Waterloo Stations Face off in March Madness Challenge
March Madness is fun as hell. I don't care if you love basketball, are indifferent, your team didn't make the field or they're the number one seed, this time of year is a freaking blast.
Literally, no one knows who is going to win the tournament, no one knows who is going to be upset in the first round, and even the most clueless people can come out on top. That's why they call it March Madness.
I mean, you remember this, right?
I remember. My seventh-grade self was on cloud-9 when Ali Farohkmanesh drilled that three into the heart of Kansas Jayhawk fans everywhere.
AND I got a picture with one of the gentlemen on the call -- Kevin Harlan -- at Arch Madness in St. Louis just a few weeks ago. I only fangirled a little bit.
To illustrate the craziness that is the NCAA Tournament, I gathered some of the local on-air talent in our Waterloo market to fill out brackets to see who comes out with the highest percentage of games predicted correctly.
For the record, I'm the only one of the quartet of us that has any idea what they're doing (I host an Iowa-based sports show on Saturdays that you should totally check it out on our app or website, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify).
And for that reason, I fully expect to get trounced and have one of the other three talk loads of smack over the coming year.
Eliot, 97.7 KCRR / AM 950 KOEL
Methodology: "I paid attention to college basketball for the entirety of the season, so I came ready. While I cover UNI basketball, I do watch and listen to other college basketball shows and podcasts. I chose a few upsets as one does, but they're educated choices. Mark Few finally gets his title with the Zags."
Championship: Gonzaga 84, Arizona 81
Bracket:
Kailey, AM 950 KOEL
Methodology: "First I went through and clicked on the schools in states I've been to. If I have been to both of the states that are competing, I picked which state I liked better. Then I went through and picked schools in states that I want to visit sometime, and if there were schools I didn't know what the abbreviations stood for, I looked at the ranking or logo."
Final Choice: UConn 75, Kansas 72
Bracket:
Kerri Mac, K92.3
Methodology: The reason I picked Villanova is because Eliot picked Gonzaga...jk. Villanova has always been a strong team in my eyes. Even though I'm a fairweather fan of NCAA basketball (especially when my own alma mater, Syracuse isn't in the tourney) it's just common knowledge that Villanova usually has a good team every season. Plus, since I'm from Pennsylvania, I've got to rep that Philly school!"
Final Choice: Villanova 50, Gonzaga 48
Bracket:
Gabe, K92.3
Methodology: "I normally have my fiancé pick which animal/mascot she likes better, but this year, I'm going bold. I went with a random selection while making sure to have a few upsets. I'm not very confident at all."
Final Choice: Illinois 74, UConn 69
Bracket:
If you're looking for advice and don't trust your local radio personalities, you can follow along with the expert:
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