March Madness–the explosion of office betting pool activity based on the annual NCAA Basketball Tournament–is almost upon us. Selection Sunday, when the NCAA announces the 65 teams in the tournament, is March 15, just three days away. This will end the (largely manufactured) frenzy of media speculation about “bubble teams” that are teetering between selection and rejection.
The athletes will actually begin playing on March 17, when two teams will meet in the “play in” game for the honor of becoming the #16 seed that will be eliminated by the #1 seed in that region during the first round game. (No #16 seed has ever beaten a #1 seed.)
The process that takes the viewing/rooting public from 65 teams to the Sweet Sixteen to the Elite Eight to the Final Four to a national champion will drag on into April, making a mockery of the phrase March Madness, in my opinion. But then I think the October Classic should be over in October, so my sentiments are a little old-fashioned.
(I will be administering the Cabot office pool this year, mostly because I’m the only person here who really cares about NCAA basketball; this is pretty much a football-focused workplace. No money will change hands, of course. That would be illegal. Ahem.)
As a basketball fan, I just enjoy the college game. But as a person making tournament picks in an office pool, I make one huge mistake that stock investors can never afford to make. I allow sentiment to dictate my selection strategy. In short, I just can’t stand to pick a team to beat my team, the University of Illinois Fighting Illini. They’ve had a great year, finishing much higher than the experts predicted in pre-season analysis and they’ve been fun to watch. Rationally, I know that they don’t have the horses to compete with Carolina, Duke and the rest of the national powerhouses. But what can I do?
All I can do is to strengthen my resolve to erase that kind of sentiment from my stock picks and keep it in the office pool where it belongs. Good luck to your favorite team … as long as they aren’t playing the Illini.
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Here’s a thought. Athletes begin training months before the season begins. It takes time to reach the state of polished skill and perfect condition that makes for winning performance. Great athletes are willing to pay the price in sweat and time long before the tip-off/kick-off/first pitch.
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