Final Standings

After what may go down as the greatest college basketball championship game of all time, the Villanova Wildcats were crowned national champions.  And Jim Weissinger took home first place in the main pool.  Winning a tiebreaker for second place was Scott Brown, while Fred Alcaro took home third.  Attached are the final standings:

2016 Final Standings

This is the final blog for 2016, but keep an eye out for a final e-mail that wraps up this year's pools.  Thank you once again to everyone who participated this year!

Standings After Day 9

The gamblers pool has been decided!  Congrats to Tiny Bellmore, this year's winner.  2nd place goes to Aiden Schweitzer, with 3rd place to Nick Moreno.

The Villanova-North Carolina tussle will decide the main pool.  If North Carolina wins and the total score is under 150, Fred Alcaro will be the champ.  If North Carolina wins and the total score is over 150, Scott Brown will be the champ.  If North Carolina wins and the total score is 150, we will have our first ever tie.  Things are much simpler if Villanova wins, as Jim Weissinger will be your champ.

Day 9 Standings

Final Four Scenarios

Below are the eight different championship game scenarios and who will finish in the top three of each pool based on that scenario happening.  Nine people can still crack the top three of the main pool (with five different possible winners), while Tiny, Aiden, and Nick look to have the gamblers pool locked up, with Uncle John the only possible spoiler remaining.

Final Four Scenarios:

North Carolina def. Oklahoma

Main Pool:

(1) Scott Brown

(2) Fred Alcaro

(3) James Dematteo

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Aiden Schweitzer

(2) Tiny Bellmore

(3) Nick Moreno

North Carolina def. Villanova

Main Pool:

(1) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

(2) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

(3) Jamil Jackson

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore

(2) Aiden Schweitzer

(3) Nick Moreno

Villanova def.  North Carolina

Main Pool:

(1) Jim Weissinger

(2) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

(3) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore

(2) Aiden Schweitzer

(3) Nick Moreno

Villanova def.  Syracuse

Main Pool:

(1) Jamil Jackson or John Baxindine

(2) Jamil Jackson or John Baxindine

(3) Jim Weissinger

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore

(2) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

(3) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

Oklahoma def.  North Carolina

Main Pool:

(1) Scott Brown

(2) John Batza

(3) Brian Fessler

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Aiden Schweitzer

(2) Tiny Bellmore or John Batza

(3) Tiny Bellmore or John Batza

Oklahoma def. Syracuse

Main Pool:

(1) Scott Brown

(2) John Batza

(3) Brian Fessler

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore or John Batza

(2) Tiny Bellmore or John Batza

(3) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

Syracuse def. Villanova

Main Pool:

(1) Jamil Jackson

(2) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

(3) Scott Brown or Fred Alcaro

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore

(2) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

(3) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

Syracuse def. Oklahoma

Main Pool:

(1) Scott Brown

(2) Nate Heffner

(3) Jamil Jackson

Gamblers Pool:

(1) Tiny Bellmore

(2) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno

(3) Aiden Schweitzer or Nick Moreno 

Standings After Day 8

The regional finals began with the possibility that all four #1 seeds could be clashing for college basketball supremacy in Houston.  But only North Carolina could live up to their top billing as Syracuse continued their Cinderella run by knocking off Virginia.  Villanova and Oklahoma will meet up in the other national semifinal.

Scott Brown still leads the main pool while Tiny still leads the gambler's pool.  I'll post Final Four scenarios to let you know how the top three for each pool might play out.

Day 8 Standings

Standings After Day 7

Two spots in the Final Four have been claimed, both by two seeds as our first #1 seeds have been sent packing.  Oklahoma and Villanova are moving on to Houston, while two ACC teams will join them after tomorrow night's games.

As for the pools, we have confusion and clarity.  In the main pool, there are 8 people within 5 points of the lead.  Seems unlikely we will have a winner before the championship game is played.  As for the gambler pool, Tiny has taken control as all four of his Final Four picks are still alive.  His lead is only 1 point currently, but his immaculate-looking bracket will be tough to beat.

Day 7 Standings

Standings After Day 6

We're down to the Elite Eight, but there is very little separation at the top of the two pools as we head down the stretch.  Scott Brown is clinging to a one point lead in both pools.  Can he hang on?

Day 6 Standings

Standings After Day 5

Brackets are starting to look chalky as two regional finals have been set and they are both match-ups pitting the top two seeds against one another.  As for the standings, it is still the Nate and Scott show:

Day 5 Standings

Standings After Day 4

Seems like we say it every year, but this tournament has been filled with crazy moments.  Congrats to Nate Heffner and Scott Brown on leading the respective pools after the first weekend of games.  The Sweet 16 will resume on Thursday night.

Day 4 Standings

Standings After Day 3

8 games away from the Sweet 16.  Here's how things stand after Day 3 of the Madness:

Day 3 Standings

Standings After Day 2

At least you didn't have to wait long for the Day 2 update.  Scott Brown has jumped out to the lead in both pools.  Here are the standings after Friday's results:

Day 2 Standings

Standings After Day 1

Will have recaps tomorrow, but for now I'm just posting the standings.  Because honestly, I know that's what everyone is most interested in.  Hit up the tabs labeled "Main Results" and "Gambler Results".  Here's how things looked after Thursday's action:

Day 1 Standings

The 2016 Madness

Hello everyone!  If you're reading this, you obviously read my introductory e-mail.  I will be posting daily updates here on the blog, along with a link to the spreadsheet that will contain everyone's picks and the updated standings.

Just a warning: I am scheduled to honor my heritage by going on a pub crawl Thursday morning, so that first update will likely not happen until late on Friday.  But once everything is set up, it will be pretty simple to keep things updated on here.

Thanks again for playing and good luck!