The Sports Monitor

Sweet 16. Has a nice ring, doesn't it? The NCAA has made probably billions off marketing numbers with a little alliteration. First Four, Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four. The NCAA tournament is quite a show. And it was quite a show to get to the 16 teams left in the tournament. Who's the best? Here's a look at where I think they stand: 1. Kentucky (Midwest, No. 1 seed): Still the team to beat. 2. Arizona (West, 2): Gotta love Sean Miller as the coach. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, they would meet Kentucky in the national semifinal. 3. Duke (South, 1): Clear path to Final Four. The Blue Devils play Utah then would get UCLA-Gonzaga winner. 4. Wisconsin (West, 1): No. 1 seed, but they could be in trouble against Arizona in regional final. 5. Louisville (East, 5): Wow. Did the East open up or what with the loss of No. 1 Villanova and No. 2 Virginia? Louisville can beat N.C. State then would meet Oklahoma-Michigan State winner. 6. Michigan State (...

Is anyone shocked that Pitt lost the opening game of the NCAA tournament Thursday? Well, maybe if you believe everything you read in some of the newspapers. I've argued in the past that the Pittsburgh media has a homer complex when it comes to Pitt basketball. Either that, or they really can't objectively watch the game. Leading up to the tournament, we heard that Pitt could be seeded as high as third but probably would settle for a sixth seed. Try eighth. And they didn't even play like a No. 8. The Panthers lost to Wichita State 73-55. Another disappointment. Their staunch defense slipped (Malcolm Armsted had 22 points and averaged 10.4 this season). They found no go-to scorer when they needed it. And they lost to a team they were supposed to beat. Steven Adams led Pitt with 13 points and 11 boards, but that was it. Trey Woodall let the Panthers down, committing five turnovers and having only one assist. Let the excuses begin.

This is the fifth version of Bracket Racket, my way of picking the NCAA champion. Last year was a darn good year for the Racket. Heck, let's be honest. It was an excellent year. My formula correctly picked the championship game -- Kentucky vs. Kansas -- and it picked the winner. How do you top it? I guess simply do it again. I've tweaked the equation over the years, and after last year's success, there's not much to update. Here's the path to narrow your picks to one champion: First things first, first-round games are a joke: Honestly, no national champion will emerge from this group. And why does Dayton get to host this every year? The Sour 16: While we're being honest, no 16 seed has beaten a No. 1 seed. Go with history. Capital losses : It's easier to say UNLV instead of University of Nevada at Las Vegas. It still doesn't make them a threat to win it all. Take all teams that use capital letters off your list (UNLV, UCLA, VCU). Let...

There are many ways to pick an NCAA tournament champion. Some might pick their alma mater, others could go for a long-time favorite team while some could pull a name out of a hat. Me? I have a pretty good formula going. It's called Bracket Racket. The success is uncanny. Here's how we go from 68 to 1: First things first, first-round games are a joke: Seriously, the NCAA wants us to think the eight teams playing "first-round" games have a chance while 60 others get a bye into the second round? Missouri Valley State, Western Kentucky, BYU, Iona, Lamar, Vermont, Cal and South Florida all are eliminated. It's not sweet being a 16: Don't be a hero, scratch off the No. 16 seeds remaining. Capital losses : Teams that go by capital letters are outta here: VCU, UNLV, WVU (go home, Mountaineers). Wrong statement : I hate to break it to you, but schools with state in its name won't win it all this year. That means Iowa State, Wichita State, New Mexico...

Every spring you can count on a handful of things: the return of baseball, preparation of taxes, a wild party on St. Patrick's Day and, of course, the Pitt collapse in the NCAA basketball tournament. Saturday was the latest chapter in Pitt sports history where the eighth-seeded Butler Bulldogs crushed the hopes of Pitt fans with an unbelievable 71-70 win in the NCAA tournament. It was the second time in three seasons that the No. 1-seeded Panthers failed to make the Final Four. And this time, they failed to make the Sweet 16 under coach Jamie Dixon. The ending proved to be typical Pitt. It also proved my theory with the Panthers: They will break your heart. The Panthers failed to get a shot off with a lead, giving Butler the ball with less than 10 seconds left. Butler scored to take the lead, beating the so-called tough Pitt defense. With less than 2 seconds left, Pitt's Gilbert Brown was unbelievably fouled. It was a so-so call, but it was the gift Pitt needed. Bro...

The new-look NCAA tournament begins tonight with two games, but the same rules apply when predicting the champion -- follow my Bracket Racket for the winner of the national championship. I've picked winners in the past using this formula, so there's a good chance it'll be right again this year. Especially with the upgrades I've installed to cope with a 68-team field handed to us by the NCAA. Hopefully they don't go to a 96-team field. I'm not sure my computer can handle more changes. As an added bonus, if you have the right channels on your cable tiers, you can watch all the games. That's pretty cool, unless you own a business and want your employees to be productive. Now, on to the picks. First, eliminate all No. 16 seeds. This is a tried-and-true formula. It especially holds true since no No. 16 seed has ever won a game. That eliminates Boston U., Hampton, and the two schools that emerge to face Ohio State and Pitt after the first-round games o...

I've always had this theory that Pitt athletics will break your heart. This year's basketball team lived up to that saying once again. By all accounts, the Panthers overachieved this season. They reached the top 10 in the polls at one point, they finished second in the Big East and they received a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament. All great accomplishments. Yet it means nothing when you lose in the second round of the NCAA tournament against a team your supposed to beat. But that's Pitt basketball. It seems every season they fall about one round short of what they're supposed to do. Here's their recent history: 2009: 3-1: They lost to Villanova in the regional final. 2008: 1-1. They lost to Michigan State in the second round. 2006: 1-1. They lost to Bradley in the second round. 2005: 0-1. They lost to Pacific in the first round. The Villanova loss last season was a tough one to take. But as a No. 1 seed, Pitt was a better team than Villanova...

St. Patrick's day is tomorrow, so it's definitely a day of celebration. But before you go out and have a great time, fill out your college basketball bracket. By the time you recover on Thursday, the games will have tipped off. And before you turn in that sheet, take a look at my Bracket Racket formula. It's picked three of the past six winners, with narrow misses in the years that it failed. Let's get right to it: Eliminate all No. 16 seeds . We start off simple by crossing out a seed that never has won a game. Next, letters spell disaster . A team that goes by a couple letters won't win the couple games it needs to cut down the nets. That means UNLV, UTEP, BYU, Texas A&M, N.M. State and UC Santa Barbra are out of consideration. My wife gets directionally challenged sometimes, and that applies to this year's tournament. Don't bet your bracket on Northern Iowa, North Texas and West Virginia. I know teams like to make a statement , but Sta...