NCAA Torunament: My thoughts as the Sweet 16 nears

Wow, do we have a lot to talk about. The first 2 rounds of March Maddness were beyond maddness. We saw upsets, heartbreak, joy and a lot of pissed off civilians throwing away their brackets by the time Saturdays games got underway. All of these things are what makes this month so special in the world of sports. When people who are not sports fans fill out a bracket and pay attention just for a brief period of time, that is a special thing. I am not going to do a breakdown of every single game because I am only a man, but I will give out awards, some  good, some bad, but awards nonetheless. Let's get into it.

Biggest Surprise: Mercer beats Duke

Tell me, how many of you reading this post knew where Mercer is located on the map before this game? Now put your hands down, liars. Believe it or not, I do know some people who picked Mercer to win this game, but I was still shocked by the result. The fact that Duke was playing in their home state of North Carolina makes it that much more stunning that they lost. Mercer had 1 thing that the Blue-Devils did not: experience. Most of the mid-major teams that make runs in the tournament are filled with seniors, and that is not a coincidence. Coach K gave Mercer full credit in the post-game press conference, saying basically that they won they game, and not that Duke lost it, which I feel is true, as Mercer played close to perfect. The dream would die just 2 days later at the hands of Tennessee, but that does not take away what these kids accomplished. It will not be forgotten by fans anytime soon.
Biggest disappointment: Wichita State loses to Kentucky
Any time a team that finished the season at 35-0 and gets a #1 seed loses in the 2nd round, it's hard to imagine them not getting this unfortunate award. I am not doing this to hate on Gregg Marshall's team by any means: winning 35 straight games is a great accomplishment no matter what conference a team is in, and I still believe that they deserved all of the praise that they got. Unfortunately for the Shockers, Kentucky was just a little bit better on this day. The thing that is most disappointing to me is that some people will remember the 2014 WSU Shockers as a team that was a product of a down conference and never should have had the spotlight in the first place. Because of that fact, I really feel for those kids who could have been remembered as a team that went to the Final Four and possibly beyond.

Best Game
Wichita State vs. Kentucky
This was a tough one to decide as there were so many great games to choose from in this tournament, but I decided that this one had the most drama. On one side we had an upstart program who was out to prove that it belonged with the best of them. On the other we had a legendary program who's tradition dates back decades, and was out to save what many have called a disappointing season. This alone makes for compelling television, but the game was exactly what makes college basketball great. This game went back and forth the whole way through, and Kentucky had several chances to put they game away late in the game. But the Shockers would not go away without a fight, and the game was not sealed until a 3 pointer shot by Fred VanVleet fell short. Kentucky will move on a face Louisville in the Sweet 16, and what a game that should be.

Best Story: Dayton

What a story. Dayton, Ohio is a town that has fallen on hard times in the past and doesn't have a lot to take pride in, but one thing that people from Dayton are proud of is their basketball team. Now, coach Archie Miller has guided Dayton to the sweet 16 for the first time since Regan was president. This scene on campus pretty much sums up why I think this has been the best story of the tournament so far.

What to watch for: Tennessee is on fire, and I am interested to see what happens when they take on Nick Stauskas and the #2 seeded Michigan Wolverines. Stanford vs. Dayton should be great as it is 2 Cinderella's battling against one another. Louisville vs. Kentucky is 2 historic rivals battling against each other for the 2nd time in March since 2012, so that says it all. All Sweet 16 games are interesting, but these are the ones that stick out to me.

That's all I got for today. Thanks for reading!