And pool master Ron is away from his keyboard, breathing deeply as the Boilermakers are in the championship game.  Best of luck, Ron, on recovering from your post-final four celebrations.

For those of us focussed on more important issues, such as the standings in our pool, we dive deep (shallow) into the final four report to see that if UConn defeats Purdue, Ron will be sad, but “WheresNova” will not only have their answer (Ummmm – who cares?), but a victory in the pool.

On the other hand, if Purdue defeats UConn, both Ron and “MF2” will be ecstatic.  Which seemed unlikely when NC State defeated Duke in the great 8.

In an example of excellent hedging strategy, Shizcity is in position to finish in 2nd or 3rd place dependent on the outcome, favoring UConn to finish in 2nd instead of 3rd should Purdue win.

Congratulations, once again to Tom for his steadfast lock on the Brandy award as previously reported.

There are four teams remaining from the original field of 68 and in a bit of a coincidence there are four entries remaining from our original field of 125. Well, for first place, anyway. Incredibly, three entries correctly picked three of the four finalists, WeresNova, MF2 and Shooters Schrute. Each of them has a chance to grab the title for this year, along with that pesky RaleighGoodBracket, who refuses to go away despite seeing Duke fall earlier in the round.

A mere eight other entries remain alive, most with hopes of no better than 4th or 5th, but alive nonetheless. Congrats to those who had the foresight to pick some of those surprise winners and ride to the top of the standings.

With the Final Four upon us (and there will be some personal game representation among your administrators here) there are several reports available that lay out the chances and different scenarios that might occur next weekend. The Possibilities Report shows that RaleighGoodBracket has a 50% chance of taking the title and a 75% chance of finishing in the money. However that requires Alabama to get to the final game and also involves some variation of NC State getting to the final, so take that percentage with a grain of salt. All of the scenarios are laid out in the Final Four report, so for those in the running, check that out and say your prayers.

And We have a “Winner”

With the first two games of the Elite Eight having been decided two entries have leaped to the top of the standings. Dunkenstein Senior and MF2 are the only contending entries that picked both Connecticut and Alabama to advance to the Final Four. RaleighGoodBracket tumbled out of the lead for the first time since Charles Barkley made a correct pick, but remains in contention in third place in present points and fourth place in possible points. MF2 is in second place in both present and possible points, but current leader, Dunkenstein Senior tumbles to 11th place in possible points by virtue of having only two Final Four picks still alive. Yeah, it’s a head scratcher. The leader in possible points is WheresNova, who has much invested in tomorrow’s NC State-Duke game, because this is the lone entry that has NC State making the Final Four. Tomorrow will provide much more clarity – we hope.

One thing is clear presently though, and that is fact that the winner of the Brandy Award is a certainty. In a huge blow to Catholicism, the Pope’s Picks has wrapped up last place with a score of 59 points. It’s a particularly cruel blow given the holiday weekend, so if the Easter Bunny seems a bit more forlorn than usual, you know why. Evidently the Easter Bunny is a very big fan of the Pope.

But wait, it gets even more interesting, because the “winner” is once again, Tom Roche. Actually it’s more than once again – in fact it’s the fourth time that Tom has secured the title awarded for “horrendously bad guessing,” breaking his own record of three times, established just two years ago. With this kind of dominance it could be high time to bar Tom from the competition as that is $20 that he has now saved – or one whole hour’s worth of labor at Del Taco (starting on Monday, that is).

If you’re wondering if anyone picked NC State to get this far, the answer is Yes! In fact four entries had them making the Elite Eight, two of those have them in the Final Four and one even has them making the Championship game! Who would be crazy enough to predict that?!? Well, an entry that we are all familiar with now, XXGoodBrackets. OK, not all three of the GoodBracket entries are still alive, but two of them are still in the running and reclaiming the overall lead in both Points Scored and Possible Points is RaleighGoodBracket, one of only eight entries to correctly pick five of the eight games played in the Sweet Sixteen round.

With the Elite Eight yet to be played a mere 33 entries are still alive, and of those only 15 have a chance to take the overall number one spot. Of the college teams still alive, six of our entries have Connecticut winning it all, two have Tennessee, two have Duke, one has Illinois, and just one has Purdue taking it.

At the other end of the standings, Maluri2024 went a stunning zilch in the Sweet Sixteen, but somehow has several contenders that can do even worse in the race for the Brandy Award. Jumping headlong into the race is Pope’s Picks, which seems rather ironic with this being Good Friday and heading into the Easter Weekend. The Pope’s Jesuit choice to win it all, Marquette, went down like attendance at Benedict’s kiddie festival, falling to NC State, leaving the entry with only one hope, the elimination of Connecticut in their Saturday game. Should that happen, our old friend, Nathan Detroit, is looking like a favorite to wrap up a free entry next year.

Now that’s more like it! With the first half of the Sweet Sixteen complete we saw a one seed and a pair of two seeds go down. And with that a big shakeup in the standings. Making a huge move into consideration is The Real Gusto, the one and only entry to pick all four outcomes correctly. Also making a strong showing were two entries, the only two, in fact, that picked three winners, Pad Rat and Dunkenstein Senior. The loss by North Carolina threw a huge wrench into the works for everyone, namely the XXGoodBrackets picks that have been leading the way. Actually in the current standings, the XXGoodBrackets still lead overall, such was the strength of the early picks, but Carolina was prominent in all of the brackets, such that two of the entries tumbled to 72nd and 73rd place in the Possible Score sort and the best bracket sits in a tie for seventh place.

Every entry has seen at least one pick fall from the Elite Eight, so there’s no need to fret if you’ve seen a big X in one or more of your picks. On the other hand, if you’ve seen seven of your Elite Eight picks fall by the wayside, as maluri2024 has, then you definitely have cause for concern. Maluri was one of nine entries that got blanked on Thursday, seven of which saw their names sporting that pesky asterisk. But the greater concern is that Nathan Detroit now has some serious competition in the race for the Brandy Award.

Of the original 125 entries, 90 are still alive, the majority still with a chance to claim the overall title. Tomorrow should provide some clarity, and if we have the same number of upsets (and some of us are really hoping that’s not going to be the case in certain instances) then things are really going to get crazy.

With the Second Round complete it’s what we at headquarters consider severe disappointment. Why is that? Well, the tournament is at its most fun when upsets are prominent and brackets are completely blown up. However of the 16 teams moving on, all but two of them are 4 seeds or higher. Not that some of the games weren’t exciting – Houston made it more exciting than needed (for their sake – and that of 13 entries that have them winning it all). And Marquette made a few people uncomfortable before taking the W. The lone Sunday upset was Clemson toppling Baylor, but even that game had a minimal impact on our brackets. 95 entries had Baylor moving on, but nobody had them winning overall and only one entry had the Bears advancing to the Championship game.

The standings are virtually unchanged with the Research Triangle picks, i. e. the three XXGoodBracket picks, leading the day, as they did yesterday. Two of the entries missed on just one game for Round Two, missing on only the Clemson win.

Even the Brandy Award standings are virtually unchanged as Nathan Detroit still leads the way with both current and possible points, but at least Nathan went .500 for the Second Round. That’s two games better than Zoe and Natester, who both got only six of sixteen games right, but Nathan’s lead is so strong that Zoe and Natester’s horrible performance barely made a dent in the bid for the Brandy Award.

With the end of Round Two, sadly we are beginning to see the appearance of the dreaded asterisk. Nine entries finish the first weekend of play with that nasty little indication that the competition is over for them. Also making its appearance is the Best Finish column. Though most entries still have a chance of finishing in first place, several can do no better than second, some third, and even a few have entries so hopeless at this point that their best possible finish is 4th. On the bright side, with the large number of entries this year, even 4th place might pay enough to at least cover the cost of entering.

Regarding that cost of entering notion, we’ll be reaching out to you over the next few days with instructions and requests to pay up. For any questions, please note that you can contact us at our common email address, hoopsmaster@eqemarchmadness.com

The Research Triangle knows something that the rest of us do not. How else do you explain the dominance shown by the three entries ending in GoodBracket?? As if placing three entries at the top of the standings weren’t enough, our resident sage also had the only perfect day, going 8 for 8 on two entries, and 7 for 8 on the third entry. Firmly planted atop the standings, whether you go by present points or possible score, it’s XXGoodBracket leading the way. It appears that the rest of us are hoping to save some face with a 4th place finish at best.

At the other end of the standings, Nathan Detroit made a solid move to cement the worst showing of this season, batting .500 on a day when virtually all of the favorites won. Notable, however is a pair of new contenders jumping into the fray, each of whom hit on only two games today, Zoe and Patrick. The latter has only three Elite Eight picks still alive, but somehow still has a claim on the Finals with both teams still alive.

Well, March Madness isn’t quite the March Craziness of last year. All of the One and Two seeds survived intact, some with a little less comfort than others, but all have lived to play another day so far. Of the Three’s and Four’s only one of each was eliminated, the latest being Auburn, crumbling many a bracket.

Below that, however it was the usual mix of 11 and 12 seeds overcoming their favored opponent. At present four entries lead the way with 25 correct picks, with another eight right behind with 24 correct picks. However, in the Possible Score sort, XXGoodBracket seems to have secured a monopoly on top spots. RaleighGoodBracket, HillyGoodBracket and DurhamGoodBracket, rank one, two, three, respectively, each with vastly different Final Four picks. Now that’s covering your bases – as well as the entire Research Triangle area.

So the previous post brought you the strange case of Teardrops On My Bracket, the selection that simultaneously occupied both first and (next to) last place at the same time, depending on the sort. Well, now we have the opposite, a selection so horrendously bad that it occupies last place no matter which sort criteria one uses. Making a strong early bid for the Brandy Award is Nathan Detroit, with four of the entry’s Elite Eight picks having already been eliminated, including Nathan’s projected winner, Auburn. Sharing that dubious accomplishment is Karma is a Cat, whose chosen winner, Wisconsin, also is heading home from competition. Also making a bid for consideration in ineptness recognition is perennial bottom dweller, Pope’s Picks. Nathan and the Pope each failed on 17 matchups, which believe it or not is actually pretty good considering Brandy Award History. Still a long way to go though.

The fun continues tomorrow and the point values for correct picks increase, so look for some separation as we move through the round of 32.

If you happened to look in on the Status Report following the first four games on Friday and your entry happened to be Teardrops on My Bracket, you probably would have been quite please to see that the Status Report had you listed as tied for first place with 17 of 20 correct selections. However, had you changed that sort from Current Points to Possible Score you would probably not be quite as pleased as the sort would have your entry in 124th place! Why the vast difference? Well, take a look at the selected winner. Yes, that’s the Kentucky Wildcats and we all know what happened to them yesterday.

This example underscores the importance of checking the standings using both sorts – and also gives hope to those who think they are hopelessly out of the running. Hey, it’s early yet, and you only earn two points during the first round with the point value progressively increasing with each round. Lots of surprises are certainly in store and the standings can shift dramatically. Everyone still has a chance to win it all!!! Well, unless you had Kentucky winning it all, to be honest.

With half of the first round games having concluded we have a four-way tie for first in the current standings, two of them coming from a certain Shizcity. We’re not sure where Shizcity is located exactly but apparently the residents really know their basketball, because they’re 14 of 16. Somewhat surprising is the fact that all but one pool entries are batting at least .500, which is either commendable given the number of upsets on the first day, or incredibly lucky given the number of favorites who are packing their bags for the trip home.

Had you simply picked eleven seeds to win over their opposing six seeds chances are you’d be leading the standings. Three teams seeded sixth were defeated by their corresponding eleven seed during the opening round. The biggest surprise, however, Oakland taking down third seeded Kentucky, also resulted in the biggest shakeup in our EQE March Madness rankings. A total of 103 entries had the Wildcats getting at least to the Sweet Sixteen, with two of them having Kentucky winning the whole thing. That would make for two very badly busted brackets. And somehow six entries actually picked Oakland to prevail in the first round. Makes you wonder what they knew.

Oh, and a Public Service Announcement on behalf of those six who picked Oakland over Kentucky. A certain John Calipari wants to know if he can come stay with one of you for a few days until the heat dies down in Lexington. Warning – that stay could be a while.

With eight of the 16 Thursday games complete we can now project that there will be no perfect brackets coming from EQE March Madness. With three of the eight matchups resulting in lower seeded teams grabbing the W every entry has at least one incorrect pick. On the bright side, we presently have a 24-way tie for first place, all of whom have only one loss among their bracket picks. Taking a big hit in the possibilities is the entry labeled Patrick, which saw two Elite Eight picks suffer losses, one of which, Nevada, was slated to make it to the Final Four. And that officially marks our first serious contender for the Brandy Award. Too early for such talk? Never!

A few tips at this point to help you track your entries and standings:

• The Status Reports menu selection above shows the standings ranked by current points at any given time during the tournament. Click on either the Score Sort or the Possible Score Sort to figure out how you’re doing relative to other entries.
• The Reports menu selection gives you more options on scoring selections. See how many people picked UConn (spoiler – it’s 48) or Kansas (a mere one) to win it all.
• The Archives menu selection has the history of our tournament, dating back to 1988, and stories from past tournaments. Don’t forget to browse the Brandy Award winners to see who makes horrendously bad guesses.
• If you’re stuck at the office and the boss made you turn off the TV that you stashed on your desk, tune into live action or view interesting videos in your downtime by clicking on the next two menu items. So much info available right from your Headquarters home page!

Well, it seems we’re in for another tournament filled with upsets and surprises. After just two games, the lower seeded teams are undefeated (although Michigan State overcoming Mississippi State is by most definitions far short of an upset). For our tournament 117 of the 125 entries have at least one wrong pick, making the odds of a perfect bracket rather long. As for the 48 entries that are oh-fer, do not despair as you are doing better than Charles Barkley already.

The interest in EQE March Madness is at its highest since Charles Barkley and Clark Kellog shared a comb, 125 entries! It promises to be a fun, competitive few weeks filled with pounding that remote, crossing out our bracket losers and endless Capital One and Wendys commercials. Very soon we’ll update the Choice and Distribution Reports, enabling you to see how many of your competitors made the same Final Four picks as you. Check back often, send us your comments and questions and let’s enjoy the greatest sports tournament in existence!

Entries are beginning to pour in and the play-in games are underway. It’s sure to be another tournament filled with upsets, surprises and brackets that get blown up by the round of 32. The key to winning is picking the right upsets…..or if you’re like last year’s winner, turn the lights out, and make your picks at random while shrouded in darkness!

Note!!: The email inviting you to play went out on Sunday evening. If you have not received the invite, first check your spam folder. We are aware that some were filtered directly, Yahoo and Gmail accounts among those, and if you still haven’t received the invite and need the password to create your entries, please let us know at headquarters, hoopsmaster@eqemarchmadness.com

Entries are due before Thursday, March 21, 2024 at 9:15am PDT!