I prefer the first week of the CTC to the second, surprisingly. Probably because, as great as the major tournaments are next week (and they are phenomenal), I think that my two favorite conference tournaments every year are the MVC and the CAA. And, the Valley begins tonight! The tournament known as “Arch Madness” gets going with a double-header to whet the appetite for tomorrow’s always-thrilling quarterfinal quadruple-header. And, this year is shaping up to be the best yet.
Championship Picks
12 for #1 Wichita St.
5 for #2 Creighton (Alexi, Bry, Mac, RSmith, Teddy)
0 for #3 Evansville
1 for #4 Illinois St. (Dave)
Biggest Upsets
R1 – #10 Bradley (Bry, Doogan, Teddy, Waters)
QF – #7 Drake (J)
SF – #6 Missouri St. (Doogan, RDoc)
Previous CTC Champs
2011 – Alexi
2010 – Stri
2009 – Stri
2008 – Ina
#7 Drake vs. #10 Bradley
When the sun rose on January 29th, Drake fans were probably as excited as they’ve been in several years – at least since that Selection Sunday that saw them chosen as a 5-seed in the Big Dance. They had just beaten first-place Wichita State in a quadruple-overtime thriller the night before and they could finally consider themselves true contenders in the tough MVC. Then, the hangover happened. They lost three straight to slip back under .500 in the league. They rebounded to finish at 9-9. The good news? 9-9 is good enough to be in a tie for 3rd-place. The bad news? It is a ridiculous FIVE-way tie and they ended up losing out with the crazy tiebreaker procedures to finish in 7th place – the only team of the 5 not to earn a first-round bye in the conference tournament. So, they are stuck playing a bad, but dangerous Bradley team in the opening round just for the chance to face Doug McDermott and Creighton tomorrow in the quarters. 4 people (Bry, Doogan, Teddy, Waters) have Bradley in this decent-sized upset. None of them have them going any further. J is the biggest fan of the Koffee Kakes, as he has them in the semis.
#8 Indiana St. vs. #9 S. Illinois
Just as disappointing Drake’s finish was – that’s how disappointing Indiana St’s whole conference season was. This team did everything they needed to do in the non-conference to really put themselves on the map. But, they were do disappointing in the conference season – losing to the two bottom feeders (Bradley and SIU) along the way. But, they are a talented team that is battle-tested, so if I were a Wichita State fan, I’d be rooting hard for the Salukis tonight because I wouldn’t want any part of Indiana State in the quarters tomorrow. 4 people went with the minor upset pick of SIU here (Alexi, Gersh, Gross, Waters). No one has either of these teams beating Wichita in the quarters.
