Monday, March 26, 2018

March Madness 2018 - Elite Eight

Late in the second round of the draft, Stu needed to choose his second player. With pick number 17, after the top three KU players had already been chosen, with the top Virginia, Xavier, and Michigan men still on the board, Stu selected Malik Newman.

Is Stu a huge KU homer who would have picked a KU player there regardless of their quality? His past selection of Carlton Bragg suggests the answer is yes. Should Stu deny this, though, he could say that he was impressed with Newman's development over the season, or his strong Big 12 tournament performance, and that he knew that Malik Newman would be the top overall point scorer heading into the Final Four.
Malik Newman after continuing his scorching postseason run with 32 points in 44 minutes, including five 3-pointers and an 11-of-12 clip at the free-throw line. The surging sophomore scored all 13 of KU's points in the overtime session, including two 3-pointers and the four free throws that iced the game.
Stu also saw his first round pick of Nova's Brunson make the top seven studs. Meanwhile, Shawn finally got a good game from his Rambler.


TOP SEVEN STUDS - ELITE EIGHT

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME4_SCORE
1 Stu 2 17 Malik Newman Kansas 1 43
2 Shawn 8 74 Donte Ingram Loyola 11 30
3 Bob 6 55 Charles Matthews Michigan 3 27
4 Brian 1 1 Marvin Bagley III Duke 2 26
5 Stu 1 4 Jalen Brunson Villanova 1 25
6 Gavin 7 63 Trevon Duval Duke 2 25
7 Luke 2 13 Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk Kansas 1 24


While Bob got good production out of his Michigan dude, he owned two of the three worst duds, as his Nova guy only had 9, and Carter Jr of Duke was in foul trouble all game, and fouled out on a quite questionable charge call versus Newman.


TOP SEVEN DUDS - ELITE EIGHT

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME4_SCORE
1 Bob 7 66 Phil Booth Villanova 1 9
2 Brian 8 80 Jarrett Culver Texas Tech 3 11
3 Bob 1 6 Wendell Carter Jr Duke 2 14
4 Luke 4 33 Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman Michigan 3 14
5 Jake 8 76 Zhaire Smith Texas Tech 3 14
6 Chris 6 52 Lagerald Vick Kansas 1 15
7 Shawn 2 14 Omari Spellman Villanova 1 17



So yeah, Stu has taken the lead! James needs Graham to outpace his teammate Newman against Nova AND in the championship game, and for Brunson to get in early foul trouble or commit constant turnovers or fracture his leg or something. Bob still has a chance, but Nova probably has to blow out KU and Michigan needs to go to the championship.





Saturday, March 24, 2018

March Madness Fantasy 2018 - Sweet Sixteen

Most of the Sweet Sixteen's top performances were among players owned by doomed-to-fail chumps. Stu and Bob's players snuck into the top 7 studs.


TOP SEVEN STUDS, ROUND OF 16

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME3_SCORE
1 Luke 4 33 Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman Michigan 3 36
2 Gavin 4 38 Tyus Battle Syracuse 11 36
3 Chris 1 9 Carsen Edwards Purdue 2 33
4 Shawn 2 14 Omari Spellman Villanova 1 32
5 Brian 1 1 Marvin Bagley III Duke 2 30
6 Stu 1 4 Jalen Brunson Villanova 1 30
7 Bob 1 6 Wendell Carter Jr Duke 2 27


Meanwhile, as Shawn emailed earlier this week, what a huge disappointment to draft a Loyola player, see that team advance to the Elite Eight, and have jack shit to show for it. Ingram is among the top 7 duds, and his total score through 3 games is 55.5, which is the same number Trae Young earned in a single game. As Bob chases the leaders, he is disheartened to see both of his Nova guards on the dud list:


TOP SEVEN DUDS, ROUND OF 16

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME3_SCORE
1 Gavin 7 63 Trevon Duval Duke 2 5.0
2 Shawn 5 47 Dakota Mathias Purdue 2 6.0
3 Shawn 8 74 Donte Ingram Loyola 11 6.5
4 Brian 8 80 Jarrett Culver Texas Tech 3 8.0
5 Bob 2 15 Donte DiVincenzo Villanova 1 9.0
6 Luke 2 13 Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk Kansas 1 12.0
7 Bob 7 66 Phil Booth Villanova 1 16.0


As we enter the Elite Eight, James' lead has narrowed. He lost Jevon Carter and Devonte Graham is the only man standing.





A closer look at the three men fighting for victory:

OWNERPLAYERTEAMACTIVEGAME0_SCOREGAME1_SCOREGAME2_SCOREGAME3_SCORE
JamesDevonte' GrahamKansas10421623
JamesKelan MartinButler0050.552.50
JamesJevon CarterWest Virginia00384125
JamesTra HolderArizona State029000
JamesKamar BaldwinButler0057.5350
JamesShannon Evans IIArizona State032000
JamesTy JeromeUVA002100
JamesDemontrae JeffersonTexas Southern056.544.500
OWNERPLAYERTEAMACTIVEGAME0_SCOREGAME1_SCOREGAME2_SCOREGAME3_SCORE
StuJalen BrunsonVillanova10202030
StuMalik NewmanKansas10163425
StuKeenan EvansTexas Tech10332218
StuTheo PinsonUNC0031210
StuCassius WinstonMichigan State0024200
StuDaxter Miles Jr.West Virginia0017921
StuJ.P. MacuraXavier0040200
StuShai Gilgeous-AlexanderKentucky00373820
OWNERPLAYERTEAMACTIVEGAME0_SCOREGAME1_SCOREGAME2_SCOREGAME3_SCORE
BobWendell Carter JrDuke10202027
BobDonte DiVincenzoVillanova1019259
BobCharles MatthewsMichigan10271824
BobPhil BoothVillanova10151316
BobIsaac HaasPurdue001500
BobAngel DelgadoSeton Hall003875.50
BobMarcquise ReedClemson00222617
BobDusan RisticArizona002000

Thanks to Kentucky's choke job, Stu's only unique player left is Evans from Texas Tech - that likely leaves him with a narrow path to victory via Tech heroics. Anything Brunson does will likely be mitigated by Bob's two Nova players.  

A KU loss benefits Bob most, since he has a Duke player. Bob is the only leader left fucking with the left side of the bracket, with Michigan. It's kind of remarkable he could still win, given his flameout pick of an Arizona guy and the injury to the Purdue giant.

James is rooting for KU, Florida State, and a low-scoring Texas Tech victory.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

March Madness Fantasy 2018 - Round of 32

Well well well, what a pickle of a situation these upsets have wrought. 1 seed Xavier collapsed. 2 seeds Cinci and UNC lost. Popular 3 seed Michigan State lost. And no one from those teams did so well that they appear on our top seven stud list. Angel Delgado with a 20/20 game, what a beast:


TOP SEVEN STUDS - ROUND OF 32

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME2_SCORE
1 Bob 4 35 Angel Delgado Seton Hall 8 75.5
2 James 2 19 Kelan Martin Butler 10 52.5
3 James 3 22 Jevon Carter West Virginia 5 41.0
4 Stu 8 77 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Kentucky 5 38.0
5 James 5 42 Kamar Baldwin Butler 10 35.0
6 Stu 2 17 Malik Newman Kansas 1 34.0
7 Jake 8 76 Zhaire Smith Texas Tech 3 34.0


Indeed, perhaps Xavier can lay the blame on Bluiett, who dudded instead of studded. Luke's Michigan State goon leaves the tournament with a total score of 11. Granted, he was Luke's final selection, but that shit suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks! That's as many as the next worst drafted guy scored in one game (Jake and Arizona's Trier). The worst drafted player was Gav and Virginia's Devon Hall.

TOP SEVEN DUDS - ROUND OF 32

OWNER ROUND SELECTION PLAYER TEAM SEED GAME2_SCORE
1 Gavin 2 18 Trevon Bluiett Xavier 1 7
2 Brian 5 41 Kenny Williams UNC 2 9
3 Stu 6 57 Daxter Miles Jr. West Virginia 5 9
4 Luke 8 73 Matt McQuaid Michigan State 3 9
5 Shawn 7 67 Jaren Jackson Jr. Michigan State 3 10
6 Luke 7 68 Kevin Knox Kentucky 5 11
7 Dan 5 50 Killian Tillie Gonzaga 4 12


As you saw above, James got two spectacular games out of his Butler duo, but they are now gone, and he's down to two men: KU's Graham and WVU's Carter. He could get two more games out of them, or he could get seven more.

Stu and Bob are his primary challengers. Bob technically has 6 active players left, but one of them (Purdue's Haas) has a fractured elbow and can't be expected to earn him any more points. He's got two of Nova's players, his top pick of a tall Duke guy, a Michigan guard, and a Clemson guard.

Stu has 5 players left, and all of their bones are good. Stu can nearly match Graham's output with Newman's, who has scored 50 to Graham's 58. He's also got WVU's Miles, who is not keeping pace with Carter's total but you know, he exists on the same team! He's got Kentucky's leading scorer, and we know Kentucky is the highest seed left in its bracket. He's got Texas Tech's Evans. Oh, and he's got Nova's Brunson, who is very good.








Saturday, March 17, 2018

March Madness Fantasy 2018 - Round of 64 and Play-In Games

First, the play-in games occurred, and America loves its play-in games.

We all marveled as Syracuse had an ugly win against Arizona State, removing two players from the team of James. His deceased Sun Devils earned 32 and 29 points in their only action.

On the other side, Gavin's Syracuse guy had 26 and lived to fight another day.

James' 16-seed pick of Jefferson from Texas Southern had a great win, earning 56.5 points.

Let's hear it for the play-in round!


The round of 64, perhaps even more beloved among those of us who follow the sport, also held games and statistics.

TOP SEVEN STUDS, ROUND OF 64
OWNERROUNDSELECTIONPLAYERTEAMSEEDGAME1_SCORE
1James542Kamar BaldwinButler1057.5
2Chris329Trae YoungOklahoma1055.5
3James219Kelan MartinButler1050.5
4Chris872Zach ThomasBucknell1449.5
5Gavin878Alpha DialloProvidence1049.5
6Luke548Mohamed BambaTexas1048.0
7Chris432Mike DaumSouth Dakota St1247.0

TOP SEVEN DUDS, ROUND OF 64
OWNERROUNDSELECTIONPLAYERTEAMSEEDGAME1_SCORE
1Chris212Udoka AzubuikeKansas12
2Luke873Matt McQuaidMichigan State32
3Gavin323Devon HallUVA14
4Brian880Jarrett CulverTexas Tech38
5Dan550Killian TillieGonzaga49
6Brian321Moritz WagnerMichigan310
7Jake545Allonzo TrierArizona411

Brian saw his bonus players from Montana and Murray State eliminated, but his core group stayed alive, though two of his guys had uninspiring performances.

James got very good performances out of some remaining players in the round of 64, with his Butler duo, Devonte' Graham, the Texas Southern little guy, and Jevon Carter all scoring 38 or more.

Gav got good games from his bonus players, and is living that play-in life with his bonus Syracuse player moving on to his third game.

All of Stu's players advanced, and the two players I selected for him in the last two rounds of the draft were excellent. I am so great!

Jake is in trouble. His Creighton players stunk, and Trier and Arizona were historically bad.

Bob lost Purdue's Haas, a 3rd-round pick, to a broken elbow. Ouchie! Other than that, not a bad showing.

Shawn's Loyola guy advanced! He hit the shot that won the game and made that very old Sister happy!

Luke's lottery pick centers had good games in losing efforts, as did his flyer on Mizzou's Porter Jr. But his 3rd-round pick of Landry Shamet had a terrible game and lost to Marshall. Ooof.

Chris got 55.5 in a losing overtime effort from Trae Young, 49.5 from the Bucknell guy, and 47 from Daum in South Dakota State's loss. Udoka only scored 2 in limited action, but perhaps he'll play in the next round.

Dan got all of his players to advance! Oh, except for the Virginia guy, as Virginia suffered the biggest upset in the history of time. As a quick reminder, I wanted to draft two Virginians with my top two picks. Shawn and Gav, and to a lesser extent James and Dan, will bear the brunt of this Cavalier debacle.




Here's a plot of the players we drafted!



Among players we didn't draft, the Buffalo and Marshall guys would have been good to grab:

PLAYERTEAMSEEDGAME1_SCORE
1Terrell Miller Jr.Murray State1267.0
2Allerik FreemanNC State966.5
3Wes ClarkBuffalo1355.5
4Jon ElmoreMarshall1352.5
5Kerwin Roach IITexas1050.0
6Khadeen CarringtonSeton Hall849.5
7Torin DornNC State949.0

Wednesday, March 14, 2018

March Madness Fantasy 2018 - The Draft

This year’s draft order saw Brian picking first, just like last year, and Dan picking last, just like last year:
Brian
James
Gavin
Stu
Jake
Bob
Shawn
Luke
Chris
Dan



“I’M SEEING DOUBLE - FOUR KRUSTYS”

Since I was last in the draft order, I thought I would need to think outside the bun for a winning scheme. My idea was to draft both top Virginia scorers with picks 10 and 11 - go all-in with the best but least offense-oriented team. Then, as I was logging into the draft, my television displayed the news about their 6th man, De’Andre Hunter, missing the tourney with a broken wrist. Did I think, “Oh, the same thing happened to Oregon last year, and they reached the Final Four,” or, “Well, that just means that my two Virginia players will get even more playing time.”? No, I panicked and redesigned my strategy on the fly.

Anyway, I do not have two Virginia players. No one does. But here is who selected two players from the same team:

JAMES - 2 from Butler, 2 from Arizona State (Both 1.5x bonus teams! Look for James to jump out to the early lead!)

JAKE - 2 from Michigan State, 2 from Creighton

DAN - 2 from North Carolina, 2 from Gonzaga (I considered getting 3 from Gonzaga, because my mind was failing throughout the evening!) (These teams are in the same region, because see previous comment.)

CHRIS - 2 from Kansas

BOB - 2 from Villanova

Whoa, 5 owners selected teammates! Only one (me) did that last year!


“I’VE TRAVELED FIVE HUNDRED MILES TO GIVE YOU MY SEED”

No 6 or 7 seed players were selected. Number of players chosen by seed:
1   16
2   15
3   13
4   9
5   6
6   0
7   0
8   5
9   1
10  5
11  4
12  3
13  0
14  2
15  0
16  1

Gavin and Stu each have three 1 seed players. Brian and Jake did not draft anyone from a 1 seed.


“TEAM. GET ON TOP” -- PRINCE (R.I.P.)

Most players drafted per team:
1 Kansas 5
1 Villanova 5
2 North Carolina 5
3 Michigan St 5
1 Virginia 4
2 Duke 4
2 Purdue 4
3 Michigan 3
3 Texas Tech 3
4 Arizona 3
4 Gonzaga 3



“I BELIEVE IT’S TIME TO MULTIPLYYYYYYY” -- REO SPEEDWAGON

21 of the 80 players selected were from seeds 8 and above and earn the 1.5x multiplier. Dan and Stu lack any 1.5x bonus players. James has the most bonus players, with 5, including his Texas Southern play-in game guy. Chris has 4.


“LET’S GET REGIONAL” -- OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN

Players drafted per region:
Midwest 24
East 20
West 19
South 17

Everyone has at least one player per region except Dan, who has no one from the East. Dan drafted 5 West region players, and Chris drafted 5 Midwest region players.


“BALANCE” -- MR. MIYAGI AT SOME POINT, PROBABLY

Will their players knock each other out of the tourney? From least balanced to best balanced, I guess, it’s kind of arguable:

Brian has 2 players that play against each other in the round of 64, and 2 players that could meet in the Sweet 16.

Dan has 3 players that could meet in the round of 32.

Gav has 2 players that could meet in the round of 32, and 4 that could meet in the Sweet 16.

Luke has 2 players that could meet in the round of 32.

Jake has 5 players that could meet in the Sweet 16.

Chris has 4 players that could meet in the Sweet 16.

Bob, Shawn, and Stu have 2 players that could meet in the Sweet 16.

James’ players cannot face each other until the Elite 8.


“DON’T PUT ME IN THIS POSITION” -- SOMEONE EXPERIENCING AN INTERPERSONAL CONFLICT

Only 5 players are classified as centers, and Bob drafted 3 of them. 24 forwards were picked, and the remainder is 51 guards. Gav has all guards but for 1 center, and Stu and James drafted 7 guards and one forward.


AND NOW, HERE ARE EVERYONE'S PICKS:

Brian needs 1 seeds to lose, and Cinci and Michigan to have strong showings.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
11BrianMW2DukeMarvin Bagley IIIF
220BrianS2CincinnatiGary ClarkF
321BrianW3MichiganMoritz WagnerF
440BrianMW8Seton HallDesi RodriguezF
541BrianW2UNCKenny WilliamsG
660BrianE12Murray StateJonathan StarkG
761BrianW14MontanaAhmaad RorieG
880BrianE3Texas TechJarrett CulverG

James’s hopes are dim unless both Butler and Arizona State each win a game.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
12JamesMW1KansasDevonte' GrahamG
219JamesE10ButlerKelan MartinF
322JamesE5West VirginiaJevon CarterG
439JamesMW11Arizona StateTra HolderG
542JamesE10ButlerKamar BaldwinG
659JamesMW11Arizona StateShannon Evans IIG
762JamesS1UVATy JeromeG
879JamesW16Texas SouthernDemontrae JeffersonG

Gav is a 1 seed supporter: Villanova, Virginia, and especially Xavier.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
13GavinE1VillanovaMikal BridgesG
218GavinW1XavierTrevon BluiettG
323GavinS1UVADevon HallG
438GavinMW11SyracuseTyus BattleG
543GavinE9AlabamaCollin SextonG
658GavinE4Wichita StateShaquille MorrisC
763GavinMW2DukeTrevon DuvalG
878GavinW10ProvidenceAlpha DialloG

Stu is balanced with 1 seed players, but would benefit most from Kentucky and Texas Tech wins.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
14StuE1VillanovaJalen BrunsonG
217StuMW1KansasMalik NewmanG
324StuW2UNCTheo PinsonF
437StuE3Texas TechKeenan EvansG
544StuMW3Michigan StateCassius WinstonG
657StuE5West VirginiaDaxter Miles Jr.G
764StuW1XavierJ.P. MacuraG
877StuS5KentuckyShai Gilgeous-AlexanderG

Jake’s best path to victory is with Michigan State, with support from Purdue and North Carolina.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
15JakeW2UNCLuke MayeF
216JakeMW3Michigan StateMiles BridgesG
325JakeE2PurdueVincent EdwardsF
436JakeS8CreightonMarcus FosterG
545JakeS4ArizonaAllonzo TrierG
656JakeS8CreightonKhyri ThomasG
765JakeMW3Michigan StateNick WardF
876JakeE3Texas TechZhaire SmithG

Bob is betting on Duke and Villanova, and would like KU to be upset early.
ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
16BobMW2DukeWendell Carter JrF
215BobE1VillanovaDonte DiVincenzoG
326BobE2PurdueIsaac HaasC
435BobMW8Seton HallAngel DelgadoC
546BobMW5ClemsonMarcquise ReedG
655BobW3MichiganCharles MatthewsG
766BobE1VillanovaPhil BoothG
875BobS4ArizonaDusan RisticC

Shawn wants Duke, UNC, and KU to lose.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
17ShawnW4GonzagaJohnathan WilliamsF
214ShawnE1VillanovaOmari SpellmanF
327ShawnS1UVAKyle GuyG
434ShawnS2CincinnatiJacob EvansG
547ShawnE2PurdueDakota MathiasG
654ShawnMW4AuburnMustapha HeronG
767ShawnMW3Michigan StateJaren Jackson Jr.F
874ShawnS11LoyolaDonte IngramG

Luke needs 1 seeds to lose, and would like Arizona, Missouri, and Wichita St to be the teams that beat them.

ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
18LukeS4ArizonaDeandre AytonF
213LukeMW1KansasSviatoslav MykhailiukG
328LukeE4Wichita StateLandry ShametG
433LukeW3MichiganMuhammad-Ali Abdur-RahkmanG
548LukeS10TexasMohamed BambaF
653LukeW8MissouriMichael Porter Jr.F
768LukeS5KentuckyKevin KnoxF
873LukeMW3Michigan StateMatt McQuaidG

Chris needs KU to make a Final Four, a long enough run to make his selection of their 4-best scorer and sprained center (Udoka Azubuike is likely to sit in the round of 64) worthwhile. He needs first-round upsets to take advantage of his bonus players.
ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
19ChrisE2PurdueCarsen EdwardsG
212ChrisMW1KansasUdoka AzubuikeC
329ChrisMW10OklahomaTrae YoungG
432ChrisW12South Dakota StMike DaumF
549ChrisMW12New Mexico StZach LoftonG
652ChrisMW1KansasLagerald VickG
769ChrisS3TennesseeAdmiral SchofieldF
872ChrisMW14BucknellZach ThomasF

Dan almost certainly needs Gonzaga to meet North Carolina in the Elite Eight to stand a chance of winning. If that game went to triple overtime, all the better.
ROUNDSELECTIONOWNERREGIONSEEDTeamPlayerPosition
110DanMW2DukeGrayson AllenG
211DanW2UNCJoel Berry IIG
330DanW5OSUKeita Bates-DiopF
431DanS3TennesseeGrant WilliamsF
550DanW4GonzagaKillian TillieF
651DanW4GonzagaJosh PerkinsG
770DanW2UNCCameron JohnsonG
871DanS1UVAIsaiah WilkinsF