Dave Sez

NCAA - First day

Whew! Wake Forest damn near blew my up my brackets just a few hours into the first day. For some reason, and I'm blaming it on those damn squirrels, I ended up with Wake in my Final Four. Not a great idea, probably, but I certainly didn't want to lose them in the first round.

Is it just me, or are the 12, 13 and 14 seeds getting better every year? Did you see UTEP play Maryland? That team's a 13 seed, but they were dynamite. They showed no fear of Maryland and were really only a play or two from advancing. Same with VCU, BYU and of course, Manhattan, who did advance.

My fears for the ACC weren't justified yet. They squeaked by in three of their games, but still went 4-0 on the day. In the end though, the close wins count the same as the big ones. Survive and advance.

The Big East continued its renaissance as well, going 3-0 on day 1.

The Big Ten and Pac 10 lived down to their billings, each losing one of their three teams. The Big Ten has a history of fabulous NCAA tournament flameouts, and this year could be no exception. Remember those two years in a row that the Big Ten didn't get anyone in the Sweet Sixteen? In 1995 and 1996, they had a combined 11 bids and they all failed to win two games. It could happen again. In fact, I wouldn't be shocked if they don't get any teams into the second round this year.

Tournament performance by conference