UPSETS RULE DAY ONE OF THE TOURNAMENT   

Oats will have them ready

    Cinderella is in the building.  Day one of the NCAA Tournament showed us three things.  First, the gap between  Power Five conferences and the so-called lesser leagues is shrinking. Second, the three-point shot makes anything possible in a game, and lastly, there are great players at all NCAA school levels.  The saying that on any given night is absolutely true. 

       The Big 10, as been a particular victim of what I'm talking about.  First, Michigan State, who had beaten Ohio State,  Michigan, and Illinois, lost to UCLA. All of those teams have been in the top-five ranked teams this year.  Ohio State, or should we say Lohio State, lost to Oral Roberts University. If you watched the game, it seemed the better team won. It didn't seem like much of an upset.  You can see that the three things noted in my opening paragraph were all there in Ohio State's loss. Finally, Purdue took one on the chin from, wait for it, North Texas State. The Mean Green scored the first 11 points in Overtime to knock-off the Boilermakers. 

       The ACC looks vulnerable. Four ACC teams lost on day one. Georgia Tech, Clemson, North Carolina, and Virginia Tech all lost. Only Syracuse won to keep the ACC from a complete shutout.  The decline of the ACC is stunning. Tobacco Road weeps. The rest of the nation chuckles at a league that got more publicity than they have deserved in the past. 

      The SEC saw Tennessee get embarrassed. Those who follow my posts know that I haven't had much respect for the Vols this season. I think Fulkeson's loss hurt Tennessee, but I also think they would have lost with him on the court. The rocket-hot start to their season ended with losses after losses and seemingly no answer to find why. Here's a reason - they can't make enough three-point shots. Arkansas struggled early with Colgate before running up the margin of victory. The game was up for grabs with seven minutes left. It looks like the Hogs and Arkansas are on a collision course. 

      I hope the Alabama players understand what is going on. Cinderella is alive and well.  On any given night is more than a trendy saying, and no team is exempt from being beaten. I'm not even sure most of these losses were upsets. Bama has the talent to beat Iona. But the Tide better not walk in the Hinkle Fieldhouse thinking about the next game.  

HOW THE TIDE WINS:

1. Keep the turnovers down to around ten, and cause 15 or more turnovers.

2. Stick to the game plan. Score in the paint to open the outside shooting.

3. Forty percent from the outside would be great. 

4. Make seventy-five percent or more from the free-throw line.

5. Control the boards and get some second-chance scores.

6. Run, run, and then run some more. Wear down the lesser talent

7.  Keep making the extra pass on the perimeter.

8. Get ready to play defense on the outside. 

9  Don't look ahead. 

10.Get off to a solid start and don't let Iona think they can win.

PRIMO WILL NOT DRESS FOR THE GAME. 

BAMA BY 15 

Pick's Picks:

• I like Colorado over Georgetown, but this one is a close
• Florida State over UNC-Greensboro - another close one
• Kansas over Eastern Washington - no runaway here though
• LSU over St. Bonnie - you never know about LSU, do you?
• Michigan over Texas Southern - Should be one-sided, but...
• Creighton and Santa Barbara - I'm picking UCSB to win
• Alabama over Iona - Not even close
• Southern Cal over Drake - could be close
• UConn over Maryland - UConn hits its stride
• Virginia over Ohio - This could be upset, but Virginia 
• Missouri over Oklahoma - two up and down teams
• Gonzaga over Norfolk State - the Zags
• BYU and UCLA - I like BYU, but UCLA can win
• Texas over Abilene Christian - I like Texas
• Oregan over VCU - PAC 12 shows some power.