BASKETBALL FOR THE GEOGRAPHICALLY IMPAIRED

***THE FOUR BRACKETS***
We all know them: EAST, WEST, SOUTHWEST AND SOUTHEAST. Apparently, basketball is not played in the middle of the country.
In the EAST, games will be played in Cleveland, which is okay. Then there are games in Tampa, Florida. Wouldn't that be the SOUTHEAST? And finally, in Charlotte, NC. Seems like it should also be SOUTHEAST.
The SOUTHEAST bracket has games in Washington DC, which is north of Charlotte, plus Denver, Colorado (?), and Tucson, Arizona. Oh yeah, and Tampa, which I thought was in the EAST bracket.
The WEST bracket has games in Charlotte and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The SOUTHWEST bracket, in the meantime, will be in southwestern cities like Denver and Chicago.

So you end up with situations like Connecticut assigned to the WEST bracket playing in Washington, DC. Georgetown is in the SOUTHWEST but will play in Chicago. Wisconsin will play it's SOUTHEAST game in Tuscon. I'm confused.

One final comment: there are always arguments about teams that miss the bubble, teams with decent records and signature wins, but sometimes it's difficult to justify the inclusion of some teams. This year, someone will have to explain to me Alabama State with a record of 17-17. I know, I know, it's a conference tournament winner. Heck of a conference.

One reader has some strong feelings about BYU:
sportsfan1981 said...
About Jimmer Fredette, he is an amazing player! As long as he stays hot, I still think BYU has a legitimate shot of advancing to at least the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament despite the fact Brandon Davies is suspended. It will be up to Fredette and Jackson Emery to lead the team to success!

The only problem with a One-Star team, is that if he should cool off or get shut down, they often have no Plan B. BYU has a good team, but I still think the strong reliance on one superstar is very dangerous. BYU could make it to the Final 8, but probably no further.

CP-