3. Couldn't this sub-regional be played at Ridley High instead of in Jacksonville?
Delaware County may have produced more coaches in this tournament than any county in the nation. It so happens, however, that only one of them will reach the Sweet 16, since Temple plays Cornell and the winner probably will see Wisconsin in the second round. Wisconsin's Bo Ryan is a Chester native who grew up in Aston, Temple's Fran Dunphy is from Drexel Hill, and Cornell's Steve Donahue is from Springfield.
4. A tough little grouping?
Really tough. Temple, Cornell, and Wisconsin all probably deserved to be at least one seed higher, which makes it a tough selection for all of them.
5. Did Villanova really deserve a No. 2 seed?
No.
The Wildcats should have been a No. 3. But it makes no difference, since if 'Nova gets past Robert Morris, there is a tough second-round matchup against the Richmond-St. Mary's winner. And No. 3 Baylor would have the advantage in the Sweet 16 anyway since the game is in Houston.
6. Of the 225 entries last year in the one pool we've entered at times, how many had all four 2009 Final Four teams?
Just one, almost impossibly, considering it was top seeds North Carolina and Connecticut, No. 2 Michigan State, and No. 3 Villanova. "Some huge percentage of the entries each year have all four No. 1 seeds advancing to the Final Four," noted that pool's supervisor.
7. This guy is a genuine college hoops fanatic. His advice?
"There's not that many mysteries to successful picking," this guy said. "Teams that play good defense, teams that hit free throws, teams that dictate the flow of the game, teams that won't get overly excited or tense. And the cliché is true - it's all about matchups.''
