Boyd Bergquist’s Countdown To March Madness: IT’S HERE!!!

EDITOR’S NOTE: Boyd Bergquist was the sports director at KETS-TV in East Tree Stump, Nebraska for almost 40 years.  Known across the “Husker State” as the voice of the Boy’s High School Basketball Tournament, Bergquist was a four-time winner of the Marv J. Butz “Golden Cob” Award For Excellence In Nebraska Broadcast Journalism. That background, along with his quick if not cliché-riddled wit and love of single-malt scotch makes Bergquist a perfect fit to be our “Question and Answer” guy,

Hey sports fans…your favorite 70s TV sports anchor here. MARCH MADNESS IS HERE!!! That means it’s time to fill out brackets, and more importantly, it’s time for me to hand out some handy tips for you…the bracket-filling public. Like I said, I’ve been offering tips for a good part of this season, now it’s time to put them in action.

I’m just trying to help you people…

• Click here for the Tips from Week T-Minus 5
• Click here for the Tips from Week T-Minus 4
• Click here for the Tips from Week T-Minus 3
• Click here for the Tips from Week T-Minus 2
• Click here for the Tips from Week T-Minus 1

Let’s Talk About Our Sleepers Up To This Point:

• Alabama: #6 in the West – See Rutgers.
• Wisconsin: The Badgers got a tough draw. Frankly, I don’t think they get out of the first weekend. They’ll brush aside Colgate, but I think the athleticism of the LSU Tigers is going to be too much for them
• Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights are in that “First Four” game against B1G Ten “Wanna-Be” Notre Dame. They should easily handle the Irish, who for my money shouldn’t even be here. But when Rutgers sends them on the short drive back to South Bend from Dayton, the Scarlet Knight will run smack dab into another of my “sleepers.” the Alabama Crimson Tide. That’s a tough call. Rutgers has proven to be a “giant killer,” but they’ve been shaky away from Piscataway. But it isn’t uncommon for Alabama to shoot 60% from the floor. Here’s what I will tell you. Whichever team wins this game has a downhill run to the Final Four, there’s only really a mercurial Texas Tech, a Michigan State team which is on life-support, and a completely over-rated Duke in their way.
• Colorado State: See what I said about Wisconsin? Colorado State could be the poster child for “tough draw.” The Rams open with Michigan…Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Wolverine. And if they get past them, they likely get Tennessee…who is going to be the darling of many to win the whole damn thing,
• Murray State: The run isn’t going to be long for the Racers. It likely ends in what the Brits would call a “Kentucky Derby” when Murray State faces the “Big Blue Nation” from Lexington in the Second Round.

Let’s Keep Talking About Snubs:

I’ve been saying all along the B1G Ten deserved to get 9 teams in. Well, they did…even if Indiana and Rutgers are in those “First Four” games nobody watches. Despite that, the “TV Blowdries” wasted no time complaining about who didn’t get in.

Let’s be honest. When you have a 68-team field, the argument as to who should and shouldn’t be in isn’t exactly earth-shattering stuff. But Notre Dame getting in from a crap ACC when their only tournament resume point was a win over Kentucky before the Wildcats figured themselves out is questionable.

I know we’re talking about the bottom end of the pool here, but in a tournament which is being touted as “the return to normal” and knowing the NCAA wants crowds, it’s probably not an accident that both Indiana and Notre Dame are in those “First Four” games…considering both Bloomington and South Bend are easy 2-3ish-hour drives from Dayton, Ohio.

Sorry, Texas A&M…if only one set of those “First Four” games were in Waco or San Antonio…

Not Buying:

Gonzaga: I’ve fallen for the “Lucy Pulling The Football” thing on Gonzaga too many times. Every year, they are the “best team in college basketball.” Every year, they don’t deliver.

The Pac-12: Quick…when’s the last time a Pac-12 team won the tournament? I’ll make it even easier…when’s the last time a Pac-12 team even played in the title game? Let the web-searching begin…

The point is that trend isn’t ending this year. Fill out your bracket accordingly.

Duke As A #2 Seed: So…here’s what I originally said

The Blue Devils will be massively overrated for two undeniable reasons. First, Duke is the only team in the ACC worth a crap. They will roll into the tournament with an inflated record because they don’t have to play anybody. Second, since this is Mike Krzyzewski’s “farewell” tour, you can expect the media’s ass-kissing to be in top gear.

So, Duke is on the #2 line in front of SEC Champion Tennessee? Sure, Duke beat Gonzaga (another team I’m not buying) and Kentucky (like Notre Dame did…before they figured themselves out), But Tennessee waited until the Wildcats were good to beat them twice. Oh, by the way, Tennessee rolled through their conference tournament while Duke rolled over to a middle-of-the-pack Virginia Tech team.

I rest my case.

Don’t be a chicken. Fill out a bracket. J-Dub explains why “I don’t know anything about college basketball” is a weak excuse. That’s why you can join the best bracket challenge on the web right here. It’s free…and you can win stuff!

My Final Four: Rutgers, Kentucky, Tennessee, Kansas

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Got a question for our 70’s TY Sports Anchor? Got your own take? Nothing is “off-limits,” and no take is “too hot.” The only questions or comments Boyd Bergquist can’t handle are the one you don’t send him!

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