Ben Stryker
Cartoonist
Welcome to another edition of Balls! For the rest of March, and a little bit into April, we’ll be focusing Balls on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Gogo Jones and I will be bringing you highlights from each day, as well as students’ and teachers’ perspectives on this exciting time of the year.
Chances are right now you are staring at a blank or incomplete bracket. I filled mine just a few minutes ago, but I know I will go back to switch things up. But if you want to know my secret, listen up. The plan to give you the best shot at winning your pool is to fill your bracket from the top down. Most pools place a lot of weight on getting the winner right, so if you miss out on that, you won’t be seeing your prize. This year it seems everyone is picking Ohio State. If you play it safe, be prepared to earn more points then your competition in the lower rounds. This tactic suits more educated fans. If you go bold and pick someone else, all you need to worry about is that one team.
From there, do your best to predict the impossible. It doesn’t hurt to ask people in your pool what they’re picking. The smart ones will keep their mouths shut, while others can’t help but to divulge their master plan. Remember, you don’t need to the perfect bracket, just one that is better than your friends.
Okay, so now that your bracket is filled, you get to enjoy the games. But wait! Thursday and Friday have games that start at noon. School ends at 2:05. Uh oh. Today and tomorrow do your best to convince your teachers to show the games in class. After all, that’s what the Smartboards are meant for. At the very least, they will allow for score updates for those not privileged with smart phones.
I leave you now with this interesting re-imagining of March Madness. It certainly does give added meaning to the phrase, “throwing a brick.”
