+9
Scroll down to check out NCAA Tournament predictions from various SB Nation editors (and our CEO). Warning: Just 'cause we work in sports doesn't mean our brackets are to be trusted. At all.
Chris Dobbertean is the editor of Blogging the Bracket, our blog that specializes in "projecting the NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball Tournament and talking about college hoops in general." He's also serves as SB Nation's resident bracketologist. So the man knows his stuff (in theory, of course). Without further ado ...
(Click the bracket to see larger):
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky and Baylor
Title Game: Kansas vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: San Diego St. over Tennessee; Murray State over Vanderbilt; Cornell over Temple (his 12-seed winner); Siena over Purdue; Old Dominion over Notre Dame.
It'll be a rematch of the coaches from 2008 National Championship in this season's title game. But in Indianapolis, John Calipari will get the best of Bill Self this time around.
Book it: Missouri is going to the Sweet 16, beating West Virginia along the way. The Mountaineers would be playing their fifth game in 11 days (three of which came in a tough Big East Tournament), and facing the Tigers' "40 Minutes of Hell" just seems like too much to overcome. That's about where my logic ends. I also came really close to putting Louisville in the Final Four. When's Opening Day?
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky, Villanova
Title Game: Kansas vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kentucky
Biggest First Round Upsets: Utah State over Texas A&M; and, uh, that's it. Whoops.
It should probably come as no surprise that Andrew Sharp, Associate Editor at SB Nation, picked Kentucky to cut down the nets in Indianapolis. After all, this is the same guy who before the season even started wrote The Gospel Of John Wall, and then in early December, referred to the super-freshman as ""Kentucky's New God," and recently wondered aloud about how things would have been different if Wall had picked a different school.
Also, when selecting all of his winners, Andrew asked himself, "Which Team Would Lil Wayne Pick?"
"Straight outta high school/the brackets ain't for me/I will be jumping over you/Like i got a mattress at my feet."
(Click the bracket to see larger):
Final Four: Ohio State, Syracuse, Kentucky and Baylor
Title Game: Syracuse vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kentucky
Biggest First Round Upsets: Houston over Maryland; Cornell over Temple (his 12-seed winner); Siena over Purdue; Old Dominion over Notre Dame. UPDATE: Missed that he picked the first ever 16-seed over a 1-seed, Arkansas Pine Bluff beating Duke. His Blue Devils hatred does not take days off, people.
Our NCAA Tournament predictions storystream is now joined by a very special guest, Mr. Jim Bankoff, CEO of SB Nation. He had his personal assistant send these over right before his lunch with "high-level" "new media" executives at a trendy new sushi bar in downtown D.C. that you've never heard of, let alone eaten at. No big deal. (Click the bracket to see larger)
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, West Virginia, Duke
Title Game: Kansas vs. West Virginia
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: Minnesota over Xavier; Siena over Purdue; Cornell over Temple.
This man went to Harvard and bases everything he does on statistical analysis, so his NCAA Tournament predictions simply MUST be correct. Here is the bracket from SBNation.com Associate Editor Matt O' Brien, who has four mid-major teams in the Sweet 16 (click to see larger):
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky, Baylor
Title Game: Kansas-Kentucky
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: San Diego State over Tennessee; UTEP over Butler; Murray State over Vanderbilt; Old Dominion over Notre Dame; Siena over Purdue; Cornell over Temple.
Here now are the results of what happens when you take a college football blogger -- Spencer Hall -- and let him make NCAA Tournament predictions. As you'd imagine, the results are HILAR--oh, wait. Actually, the results are well-measured and completely feasible. Well, crap. I guess you don't have to waste five months watching basketball to fill out one of these things (click to see larger):
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky, Villanova
Title Game: Kansas vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: New Mexico State over Michigan State; Old Dominion over Notre Dame; Siena over Purdue.
Next stop on our magical journey of prognostication is Mike Prada, manager of Bullets Forever and Associate Editor of SBNation.com. Here are his NCAA Tournament predictions, which feature some serious Big 12 lovin' (click to see larger):
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky, Baylor
Title Game: Kansas vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: San Diego State over Tennessee; Murray State over Vanderbilt; Old Dominion over Notre Dame; Siena over Purdue; Cornell over Temple.
Continuing our tour into the brains' of SB Nation's editors, here is the NCAA Tournament bracket for Peter Bean, manager of Burnt Orange Nation and our NCAA League Manger (click image to see larger):
Final Four: Georgetown, Syracuse, Duke, Kentucky
Title Game: Syracuse vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kentucky
Biggest First Round Upset Picks: Oakland over Pittsburgh; Minnesota over Xavier; Washington over Marquette; Siena Over Purdue; Old Dominion over Notre Dame.
Sure, the editors here at SB Nation may know a thing or two about college basketball. If nothing else, this is true via the process of osmosis -- we work in sports, we're around this stuff all day, some it is bound to seep in.
But that's not why you're interested in checking out our NCAA Tournament bracket predictions. You're here because we're all inflicted with the same infatuation, which is to read as many completed brackets as possible in search of some verification that our own bracket might be accurate. We all do it, don't worry. (My mailman and my barber BOTH picked UTEP to beat Vanderbilt, too? Gut feeling justified!)
So, follow along in this storystream as we update it throughout March Madness eve with a look at who our editors (and SB Nation's CEO) have advancing through the field.
First up, yours truly -- Chris Mottram, Senior Editor of SBNation.com (click bracket to view larger).
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky, Villanova.
Title Game: Kansas vs. Kentucky
Champion: Kansas
Biggest First Round Upsets: UTEP over Butler; Old Dominion over Notre Dame; Washington over Marquette; Georgia Tech over Oklahoma State.
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
Scoreboard data copyright © 2012 by STATS LLC. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC is strictly prohibited.
OpenCalais - Powered by Thomson Reuters
•
Odds Shark 
NCAA Tournament Predictions, Part 10: The Syracuse Guy Picks Syracuse, What A Surprise
Biased? You bet. But is it possible? Absolutely.
Sure, a lot of it will depend on Mr. Onuaku’s sinewy tendons but I don’t see any other reason Wes Johnson, Andy Rautins and the rest of the Orange can’t contend with the Kansas’ and Kentucky’s of the world. I think.
Final Four: Kansas, Syracuse, Kentucky and Villanova
Title Game: Syracuse vs. Kentucky
Champion: Syracuse
Biggest First Round Upsets: UTEP over Butler, Cornell over Temple; Siena over Purdue; Old Dominion over Notre Dame, Washington over Marquette.
Mar 17 11:36p by Sean Keeley - 0 comments