March Madness: Adios Kansas and Sunday's Picks

By Pauly
Los Angeles, CA

Saturday's March Madness games smacked me back into reality. Ugly day. If it weren't for Kansas State bailing me out in the later games, the day would have been tremendously ugly. As is, I finished 2-3 for the day, whiffed on my parlay, and missed my big bet. In my defense, Butler played like absolute shit, shot anemically from every spot on the court including 32 missed FGs and a handful of clutch free throws down the stretch. Butler was lucky to win by 2 points. Shit, if they hit just one trey, I cover. Alas, I screwed the pooch with the Butler pick.

I knew New Mexico was a trap game which I clearly identified, yet I wanted action the other way due to my stubbornness. I should have listened to Johnny Walker and bet his UW Huskies. I knew that they were good enough to pick off Marquette and should have placed a higher emphasis on an injured Hobson from New Mexico. Oh well. Flush that disgusting turd down the toilet.



Overall, Saturday belonged to Cinderella-story Northern Iowa who upset highly-touted Kansas. The demise of Kansas sent brackets all over America into a tail spin. More than 50% of the Pauly's Pub pool picked Kansas to win (well, make that closer to 60% in other pools) and now the pool is wide open for everyone else who didn't pick Kansas. I had a funny feeling about the game and had deep concerns that Kansas was gonna sleep walk and underestimate their opponent. I expected a slim Kansas victory. Alas, Northern Iowa shocked the world.

The day was not without another giant falling after #10 seed St. Mary's also advanced to the Sweet 16 after knocking off a #2 seed, which did not come as a surprise at all to those Big East haters and anyone who watched Villanova struggle in their opening round game against Robert Morris. I had a feeling that Nova would not cover, but never expected them to lose.

Anyway, after a sizzling opening round, I faltered with the first day of Round 2. I'm hoping to save face on Sunday with my picks...




Feel free to copy them or fade them. The choice is yours.

And now, here's my half-baked, half-pharmied-out picks for Sunday's March Madness games...

#8 Gonzaga vs #1 Syracuse - In the first round, Gonzaga blew almost a 20 point lead against FSU, who ran out of gas down the stretch. Syracuse (without Arinze Onuaku) shredded #16 seed Vermont. The Zags are gonna be a little tougher than Vermont, but they are not as good as they once were. Syracuse wins on all of my sheets and at -7 this is tempting. I do not want to touch this game, but I crave action and need to make up some of Saturday's demise.

#10 Georgia Tech vs #2 Ohio State - It didn't matter who won the 7/10 game because Ohio State is gonna whoop them en route to the Sweet 16. Tech is a bunch of cockroaches who won't die and somehow find a way to stay alive. After a poor shooting effort against UCSB, Ohio State will redeem themselves with a better offensive effort. OSU will also be bringing the Raid. I got OSU on all of my sheets and betting them in the "upper middle class" range.

#4 Maryland vs #5 Michigan State - I love a good lane violations and MSU survived the first round by the skin of their balls. Maryland did all the right things to win, but I hate matchups like this game with two solid teams; one from the ACC and the other from the Big Ten. Too tough to call. Even Vegas and the goombas have them at almost a coin flip. I picked Maryland on my sheets. No desire to bet either the Terps or Spartans straight up. I added Maryland to a last second parlay.

#10 Missouri vs #2 West Virgina - I like WVU. A lot. Too bad they are in the wrong bracket! WVA got off to a slow start against Morgan State and then kicked it into thrashing gear. Missouri overcame a barrage of sharp three-point shooting from Clemson in order to win their first game. Alas, Otis' alma mater's run is over. WVA at -5.5 seems too good to be true. I went with WVA on my sheets and without a doubt, I'm betting them today. Bet the farm.

#12 Cornell vs #4 Wisconsin - Can't believe the Badgers struggled with Wolford. Or is it Wollford? I can't even spell the name of the team that almost upset Wisconsin. Cornell looked like a Sweet 16 team during their victory against Temple. Let's ride the hot team! Wait didn't I say that yesterday about Ohio? When I should have been betting on Northern Iowa? Yes, I rode the wrong hot team on Saturday. Let's hope I ride the correct one on Sunday. I put a small bet down on Cornell even though I have Wisconsin advancing on all of my sheets.

#6 Xavier vs #3 Pitt - This has the potential to be one of the best games on Sunday. Pitt will find out if they have what it takes to be a Final Four team if they can hold off a tough Xavier team. I'm betting Pitt small because I have them advancing to the Sweet 16 on all of my sheets.

#5 Texas A&M vs #4 Purdue - I bet both of these teams in the opening round with success, but shying away from them in this match up. I like Purdue to advance to the Sweet 16, even though I'm not betting it. Wait, who am I kidding. I'll bet just a small taste so I have sweat equity while watching the game.

#8 Cal vs #1 Duke - I hate Duke. Shocker. I liked what I've seen from Cal the last few times they played, but they have to play flawless on both ends of the court to beat Duke. Not betting this game, despite my disdain for Duke, so I decided to add them to a last second parlay. Ironically, I selected Duke to win this game on all my sheets.

OK, that's it for now. Good luck today. If you are feeling saucy and want to bet on the games, you can open up an account at SportsBook.com.