Well, that didn’t take long. The KU alarmists are out in force.
“Just look at the Midwest! KU got screwed!!!
“How are we the number one overall seed, and get stuck with that bracket”
Or, if you like Whitlock’s take…
“The NCAA is a giant conspiracy that loves Duke.”
Are you serious Jason?? Did you even let your editors read what you wrote this morning??? They can’t have. There is no way that they would have allowed you to write a piece of shit like that, which essentially accuses the NCAA of intentionally moving Duke to an “easy” bracket because they are “ratings gold”. You honestly believe that??? Please note: Whitlock also believes that the NCAA kidnapped the Lindbergh baby, faked 9-11, and killed JFK.
Here is an estimation of the S-Curve from the NCAA.
Add the rankings of the top 4 seeds in each bracket. Here is what you get:
West – 44
South – 39
East – 35
Midwest – 35
So what would you do to balance it out? Switch Maryland with Vanderbilt? You’re splitting hairs there.
Look, I understand the initial knee-jerk reaction. The Jayhawks will play in a Midwest region with the likes of Ohio State (2), Georgetown (3), Maryland (4), Michigan State (5), and Tennessee (6). Throw in a little Okie Light and some Northern Iowa, and yeah, you have a tough road to the final four.
But it’s supposed to be tough. It for a national championship!
At first glance I can see where people are getting their sense of trepidation from. But are we really afraid of these teams? I think not. We are afraid of the names.
Let’s look at a few things…
Assuming a first round win*, the likely next opponent is Northern Iowa. Northern Iowa won the MVC, which while I appreciate the feat, is not exactly a power conference. They lost to DePaul on a neutral court. My dog can beat DePaul on a neutral court.
*I honestly believe I know people that would take their own life if KU lost that game to Lehigh. I may or may not be one of them.
Then we likely have Maryland (who was ousted in their first game of the ACC tournament) or Michigan State (who lost to Minnesota, and suspended a starter). What is so scary about those actual teams?
And then here is the part that I think people are overlooking. Of Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, and Georgetown; KU only has to play one of them! That’s right; they’re in the same bracket, but they (and there’s no way of getting around it) have to play each other first!
Yes, they’re good teams, but what did you want? That game is for a trip to the Final Four. You’ll be down to only eight teams in the whole thing. They are all going to be good.
Still think I am wrong? Prove it. Sign up, and take KU down in the sweet 16. I dare you.
So while I agree that this isn’t going to be a cake-walk for KU, I also don’t think it’s an impossible climb. That is, unless the president of Lehigh decides to change the name of the school to “Blehigh”.
Then I would be worried.
***Still panicked? Think I missed something? Let me know at lwood@kcsportspodcast.com***
