March Madness is where it’s at, consisting of 68 teams and 32 of them earning automatic bids in the dance.
This college basketball playoff is a widely anticipated event here WS; students speak very highly of this tournament that starts from the middle of March and continues to early April. March Madness is a family event for some WS students.
“It is a very big deal in my family, my family and I are very big fans of March Madness when it comes to UNC basketball,” said sophomore Dwayne Branch.
The great thing about our school is that there are people from all over the country so our students can support many different teams in the big tournament.
“UNC will go the sweet sixteen, but let’s be realistic, UNC will not win,” said Branch.
Some students enjoy watching college basketball and the excitement it brings. Others watch it for the upsets and the underdogs, like Florida Gulf Coast, who had their historic run in the 2013, and was the first 15-seed to make it to the Sweet 16. They lost an instate battle with the Florida Gators 62-50.
Another big story of March Madness was Wichita State’s undefeated streak last year in the 2014 tournament. The Shockers went into the tournament 31-0, becoming the first team in history to come out of the Missouri Valley with that record. They later went on to lose to the Kentucky Wildcats, 78-76. The tournament is filled with fan favorites and Cinderella teams, who no one thought would amount to anything.
“I think UVA will win it all, they are playing great basketball this year and VCU is definitely an underdog,” said Branch.
Some WS students will even go as far to say that they enjoy the crazy month of March as much as the NBA. March Madness can bring all types of outcomes, nobody knows what teams will bring excitement to the tournament. You have a chance to unseed some of the biggest teams in college basketball.
“I love it, I like it more than the NBA, The NBA isn’t as competitive or fast pace as college basketball,” said freshman Jonathan Iyob.
Many of the WS students every year support big teams like the teams who have rosters loaded with NBA caliber prospects. Duke and Kentucky have high draft prospects on their teams. Some people don’t like them for their dynastic qualities.
“I hate Duke, I don’t have a team, just anybody who beats Duke, because every year they win and win and it is annoying,” said Iyob.
Other fans are different. They will support these top-tier teams and watch them consistently. “Duke will go pretty far, I have Duke winning it all,” said sophomore Emma Sharman.
“Not only do I get to watch my favorite team I have a chance to make money while doing it.”