March Madness is the biggest event of the year for college basketball and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The 68 team tournament known for its buzzer beaters and bracket-breaking upsets leaves viewers surprised every year. The men’s championship on Monday, April 3 and the women’s championship on Sunday, Apr. 2 were filled with excitement and suspense.
The four-seeded University of Connecticut’s 76-59 victory over five-seeded San Diego State University in the men’s championship and three-seeded Louisiana State University’s 102-85 win against two- seeded Iowa in the women’s championship were both a surprise to many fans. They were not the only teams that surpassed expectations, as Florida Atlantic University’s nine-seed men’s team made it all the way to the final four, just a buzzer beater away from going to the National Championship. Princeton University’s 15-seed men’s team unexpectedly made it to the Sweet 16 before losing 75-86 to Creighton.
Many CHS students had opinions on the tournaments and their favorite teams.
“I was happy that UConn won,” said Freshman Eric Epelbaum of Marlboro. “They fought hard and deserved the win. This was actually the first time I watched March Madness. It is easy to watch and very exciting.”
Senior Jiachen Pan of Middletown said, “I was rooting for Alabama. I felt like they were doing good, but they really died out towards the end.”
One signature aspect of the March Madness tournament are the brackets viewers can fill out before the tournament begins. Predicting the outcome of the tournament allows for friendly competition with friends and family, and can be done without spending much time watching games.
“When I created my bracket for the Final Four, I did end with San Diego State and UConn with UConn winning, though I didn’t keep up that much,”said Freshman Angelina Freel-Di Palma.
Predictions add an extra element of engagement amongst viewers for every game, as they can root for the teams they have winning in their brackets. Even with all the non-stop action of switching between games to see if your perfect bracket is still alive, the tournament does not seem to be popular across all CHS students.
When asked about making March Madness brackets, Sophomore Sam Kovach of Avon said, “Personally, I wouldn’t, because it’s a really big time investment and it seems kind of boring. I don’t know if my brain would be able to follow that.”
However, the tournament’s fast-pace and intensity makes it so anyone—not just basketball fans—can enjoy.
“There’s no NBA type of thing that has this single elimination style, so I think it’s always pretty cool to see how the series turns out,” Kovach said.
