That’s a wrap on the season. What happened against Kansas, and did the Heels over or underachieve for the season? We also revisit our season predictions done way back in October to see how correct we were (not very), and in Dook sucks this week, Andy encounters a clueless Dookie at the Huffington Post.
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Ardent basketball fan and Dook lover Obama has once again made his NCAA picks, and he doesn’t give Carolina much of a chance. He’s got the Heels falling to Kansas in the third round.
Check out this interesting heat map via Facebook showing which teams basketball fans will be rooting for during the tournament. When it comes to the South bracket, Carolina blue extends across the entire nation like a curtain.
There’s also another map about UNC vs. Dook support, and we gotta say, it’s a little surprising. We knew Carolina was the overwhelming favorite, but again, the map looks more Carolina blue than a T-shirt you’d buy at student stores. And what’s up with northern Maine? How come those people are such hardcore Blue Devils fans? Being that cold and so close to Canada has warped those people’s brains. Oh, and look at the state of North Carolina. There are a couple pockets of dark blue — pinpoints really — but the entire state appears to be in the UNC column.
Here’s ESPN’s round-up of the most intriguing storylines from the tourney, and oh, would you look at that. Roy Williams potentially facing Kansas hits the top of the list.
1. Kansas vs. North Carolina? The most intriguing game may occur in the round of 32 if Kansas and North Carolina were to meet in a 1-8 matchup in Kansas City. North Carolina coach Roy Williams was a longtime coach of Kansas and famously wore a massive Jayhawks sticker when he watched KU beat Memphis in the 2008 national title game in San Antonio. Kansas would have to get by Western Kentucky in the second round, while the Tar Heels are hardly a lock to get past No. 9 Villanova. But if it were to occur, then the South would have the most talked-about coaching matchup in the early rounds since Bill Self replaced Williams, not to mention two of the most tradition-rich programs.
For the committee to claim they don’t look at match-ups and that this happened accidentally — for the third time in nine years — is just ridiculous.
The reality is that hardcore basketball fans will always tune into the tournament. To draw fringe fans, however, the playbook for TV networks is to create compelling storylines. These have been proven to increase viewership and grab eyeballs that normally wouldn’t be watching. That’s why you saw the endless flogging of Manti Te’o and his dead girlfriend during the college football season, Ray Lewis and his retirement during the Super Bowl, and on and on. Less committed viewers don’t care about a game unless they’re given emotional, human stories to latch on to. Roy Williams vs. Kansas is one of those unbeatable stories.
UPDATE: Here’s what committee chairman Mike Bobinski had to say about the UNC-Kansas matchup:
“We never predict matchups,” he continued. “We don’t try and make matchups. We don’t look down the road. That’s for everybody else to do when the bracket’s done. With the speed that this thing comes at us, we don’t have the ability to sit there, nor do the principles and procedures allow us to cook the bracket and concoct matchups that might be interesting or have some personal angle to it. We just don’t do that.”
The statistician has released his NCAA predictions, and it’s ain’t pretty — at least for UNC fans. He gives the team almost no chance of winning a national championship. Even VCU is a better bet at .4%. Not surprisingly, Louisville is his most likely winner at 22.7%.
Do put your money on Carolina beating Villanova and moving into the third round though. That’s a 67% chance. Making the Sweet 16 is only a 14% chance, however.
There’s also this tidbit about why Silver isn’t putting his money on Kansas.
One additional factor helping Florida is that Kansas could face a very tough Round of 16 game against No. 4 seed Michigan, which had until recently appeared to be in the running for a No. 1 or No. 2 seed and isn’t all that easy to differentiate from the Big Ten teams that are seeded ahead of it. North Carolina, the No. 8 seed, could also give Kansas problems if it begins to play up to its preseason billing.
Meanwhile, over at kenpom.com, Pomeroy has Florida as his top overall team, followed by Louisville. Carolina slides in at #28, one slot off the actual rank given to them by the selection committee.
The Heels couldn’t get it done in the ACC Tournament final, but it was a nice effort, and we’re looking forward to the damage Carolina might do in the NCAAs. That said, c’mon. An #8 seed? We’re calling BS. Also, what’s with the selection committee’s obsession with pairing up Roy Williams and Kansas? It’s getting creepy. In this week’s Dook Sucks, we’ve got an anecdote from a New York Times #1 bestselling author.
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