MANSFIELD — Everybody wants to win an NCAA Tournament bracket contest.
But who is willing to do their homework? Who really knows the game of college basketball? Who has the insight to decipher the pretenders from the contenders?
I ask these questions because clearly I have no idea.
When we began this contest, it was decided we should also have an expert panel — apparently so our readers could feel like they were at least beating somebody. That’s where I came into the picture.
If you couldn’t win one of our 15 prize packages, there had to be some satisfaction in whipping an “expert.” Never has that term been used more loosely.
Hence, an “expert panel” was formed.
Richland Source had more than 500 people register for Source Mania 2019. After the first weekend, which featured very few surprise results, yours truly is sitting 71st with a 40-12 record, earning 50 points.
Kudos to sports reporter Curt Conrad, who is living up to that expert adjective. Curt is in 9th place with a 41-11 record, worth 53 points.
Former Mansfield Sr. basketball coach Effie James is 161st with a 38-14 record and 47 points. Knox Pages reporter Grant Pepper, who actually played college basketball at Ohio Northern, checks in at 346th with a 29-23 mark and 35 points.
At the moment, Light12 is atop our standings with a 46-6 record and 57 points. That entry is followed by TWW93, who went 45-7 for 55 points. Jmoney0490 is third at 44-8 with 54 points.
Scores are weighted in each round, so a similar record may not yield the same number of points.
This isn’t easy. In fact, the $100,000 car is already off the table locally, as no one has a perfect bracket. That’s no surprise, it’s never happened anywhere before.
In fact, it’s believed no one has gotten past the first weekend, until this year. According to NCAA.com, there’s one perfect bracket in the world. That individual, center road, has already set a record by getting the first 48 picks correct. The previous record is believed to be 39.
Center Road’s real name is Gregg Nigl, and he’s a 40-year-old neuropsychologist who lives in Columbus, Ohio. What kind of odds is Nigl beating? If every game were a coin toss, the odds of predicting 48 in a row are 1 in 281,474,976,710,656.
The books in Vegas want no part of Gregg.
As for the rest of us, there are still some excellent local prizes looming. Be sure to follow your bracket as we turn toward the Sweet 16 this weekend.
