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Sports

Mid-majors in the mix in March

Sports Guy

Seth Mintz 

I might be biased, but UH deserved to be in the 2006 NCAA Tournament. With the poor performances from UNC, Tennessee, and others, can you imagine what the Cougars could have done if given a chance? And that's not even the craziest part of March Madness to this point, which begs the question: Is this the most maddening postseason college basketball has ever seen?

George Mason. Wichita State. Bradley. These are teams from small conferences that have stunned the world and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. Can you name a single player on any of these teams? Better yet, do you know where any of these schools are located? (Washington, D.C., Kansas and Illinois, if you were wondering)? 

I know upsets are supposed to happen in the Tournament, but seeing these three teams go as far as they have borders on either truly amazing or completely ridiculous.

To this point, we have seen competitive teams such as UNC, Iowa, Tennessee, Arizona and Illinois eliminated from the tournament (and ending many people's hopes of winning their bracket pools this year). The mid-majors and small schools have been a dominant force in the Tournament this year. With the Final Four just around the corner, remaining powerhouses like Memphis, Duke, Texas and Connecticut could face their biggest challenges in ages.

It's true. These smaller schools are a gigantic threat to the big teams. Teams such as George Mason and Bradley, while not possessing any name value, are well-coached and have players who play well together. These teams have nothing to lose, unlike their big-time brethren. They have wildly surpassed expectations and will give the bigger schools fits because they are playing worry-free basketball right now.

The Final Four could quite possibly have one or more of these mid-majors competing for a chance to be king of college hoops (which almost puts me in tears that the Cougars didn't even get a crack at the tournament). Imagine if Duke, Texas, and or U. Conn. were eliminated. Would the Final Four be more interesting to watch, or would it be a ratings disaster? I would still watch. I'm also sure that the compulsive gamblers would still be interested. But I'm not sure about the rest of the public. 

I must confess I do not see how Bradley, George Mason, and Wichita State will advance past their next games. Unless something truly incredible happens, these three teams are most likely going home very soon. But I will not be completely shocked if they do advance (that ended when I saw George Mason take out UNC). Weird stuff sometimes happens when it only takes one loss to be eliminated from the tournament. 

This year's March Madness has exemplified why so many people love this Tournament. This tournament is exciting, engrossing, and gives a chance for many teams from many places all across our country to be on top of the college basketball world. And with the advancing of small schools like George Mason and Bradley, this year's Tournament has been amazing to watch. 

If the Sweet Sixteen plays out like the Tournament's previous games, there could be some huge upsets and the Final Four could be very interesting this year. 

Send comments to dcsports@mail.uh.edu