bracket madness

One of the definitive signs of March is when you walk into a press room and see copies of the official N.C.A.A. Final Four Records book spread out on tables. The book is one of the best research tools around for any college basketball junkie. There are tons of inane nuggets like: “The first reference to Final Four in an NCAA publication was in the 1975 Official Collegiate Basketball Guide. On page 5 in the National Preview-Review section written by Ed Chay of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Chay writes ‘Outspoken Al McGuire of Marquette, whose team was one of the final four in Greensboro….’” No word if Chay or his family have received any royalties.
Carmelo Anthony, above, led Syracuse to the 2003 title. (Bill Haber/Associated Press)The Bracket was flipping through his favorite book on a plane this afternoon and got caught up looking at old Final Fours. Numerically, anyway, the most comparable recent field came in 1999, when Richard Hamilton and Connecticut beat Elton Brand and Duke in a classic national title game. The seed total of the four teams in that final four was seven, with three No. 1 seeds and a No. 4 seed. (The book erroneously has the total at six.)The other teams in that Final Four were a solid Ohio State team – the No. 4 – led by Scoonie Penn, and a very good Michigan State team that went on to win the title the next season with Mateen Cleaves. Of course, Ohio State technically vacated the spot because of N.C.A.A. sanctions, so The Bracket wonders if we should acknowledge its existence. The total of the seeds participating this season is one better – six – with No. 1 seeds Ohio State and Florida, and No. 2 seeds Georgetown and U.C.L.A. You can argue that they were the best four teams in college basketball this year, as U.C.L.A. was ranked No. 1 for long stretches and Georgetown has lost just once since mid-January.While the games must be played, The Bracket is comfortable saying that this will be the best gathering so far this century. The best collection of talent since 2000 at the Final Four would have to be the 2003 Final Four in New Orleans. The Carmelo Anthony-led Syracuse team that won the title also featured a young Hakim Warrick. They beat a very good Texas team with T.J. Ford, Royal Ivey and James Thomas in the semis. Syracuse beat a Kansas team with Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison in the title game. The Jayhawks that year blew out Marquette in the semis. The Warriors, of course, had Dwyane Wade, who has turned out to be a fair to middling pro.