March Madness Day 2: The Chaos Has Begun.

Rough start for the blog. Missed on Howard but hit on Colorado State. I knew Virginia was bad, but I did not think they were thirteen-minutes-straight-without-scoring bad. Yikes, only a idiot (me) would've advised on the over in that game. Picks aside, the Howard-Wagner game was a proper opener for the tournament. A vintage March Madness comeback by Howard saw a 14-2 run bring the game within 1, but ultimately fell short. If that was a tone setter for the weekend, strap in, because this is about to get nuts.

Two more games tonight to wrap up the appetizers. So make the final touches on your brackets, identify your new favorite school you never heard of until yesterday, and teach your parents or boss how to use Venmo so they can submit their entries in your pool.

Grambling (16) vs Montana State (16)

Montana State -4.5, O/U 134.5

On first glance, I love this Montana State team. As a suffix-user (IV) myself, I feel obligated to back a team whose two best players are both III. Ford III and Turner III are both guards and their two best players. The problem is Robert Ford III is 6'0" and leads the team in rebounds. You don't have to know a lot about basketball to know that having your shortest player lead the team in rebounding is, um, NOT a great sign. However, guard play reigns supreme in March, and in every game Montana State played in this season where Ford III or Turner III lead the team in scoring (17 games), there were at least 135 total points in all but 3 games. Too many 3's going on in this write-up, let's wrap it up.

The pick: Over 134.5

Colorado (10) vs Boise State (10)

Colorado -2.5, O/U 140.5

I don't want to pick this game. By far the most exciting matchup on paper when the First Four came out, this is truly a toss up. Colorado plays at a significantly quicker pace (131st fastest) than Boise (285th fastest), but over the last 5 games they've each done the reverse, with the Buffs slowing down and the Broncos picking it up. Colorado shoots better, but less often from 3, while Boise defends the 3 significantly better. Like most men when picking out the style of napkins and silverware for their wedding, I truly do not have a preference here. Boise having 1 starter shooting 40% or better from 3 while Colorado have 3 starters and 2 frequently used substitutes surpassing that mark will decide it for me, but I don't want to swallow the 2.5 hook.

The Pick: Colorado ML -145

Running March Madness record: 1-2