The 2016 NCAA Tournament is in the books. Sixty-eight teams started it with life a few weeks ago, and 67 died agonizing March Madness deaths over the course of the single-elimination tournament.
This post isn't about congratulating Villanova, though. The Wildcats beat North Carolina in the national championship game at the Final Four on Monday night, and good for them. They'll get many tributes in the coming days and weeks, including the always popular One Shining Moment short film that airs after the title game every year.
No, this post isn't about the winners. It's about the losers, who make up 98.52 percent of the tournament field. There's a ton of emotion that goes into playing college basketball games, and it's never more on display than during the tournament. Players and coaches pour their hearts into this thing, and it works out with something less than a national championship for just about all of them. So there's no shame at all in having March Madness turn into March Sadness.
At any rate, congratulations to Michigan State, Northern Iowa, Stephen F. Austin, Baylor, Oklahoma, Virginia, Dayton and so many other tournament participants for getting into this year's flick. There's always a chance for a repeat next year.