It is never to early to start your March Madness bracket research. As the automatic bids are being finalized, I like to put together a list of potential March Madness office pool surprises. I will use this list to pick out my first round bracket upsets. So here a quick preview of some potential 1st round surprises:
Automatic Bid Potential Surprises
Belmont (30-4)
Atlantic Sun Conference (Won 12 in a row)
Strengths
- Up tempo
- 3 point shooting
- Rebounding
Weaknesses
- Inexperience
Ideal Draw
- Team that plays slowly
- Team that does not have huge front court
Long Island (27-5)
Northeast Conference (Won 13 in a row)
Strengths
- Very up tempo
- 3 point shooting
- Offensive rebounding
- Getting to the FT line
Weaknesses
- Very poor FT shooting
- Defense
- Height
Ideal Draw
- Slow Down team
- Small team
- Lack of quickness
Wofford (21-12)
Southern Conference (Won 8 in a row)
Strengths
- 3 point shooting
- Experience
- Balanced team
Weaknesses
- Has not beat a good team
- Defense
- Height
Ideal Draw
- Team with a small front court
- Inexperienced team
- Team that does not defend 3 (zone team?)
Morehead St (24-9)
Ohio Valley Conference
Strengths
- Rebounding
- Experienced
Weaknesses
- Height
- Bench
- Turnovers
Ideal Draw
- Does not press or play aggressive
- Small team
Oakland (25-9)
Summit Conference (Won 8 in a row)
Strength
- Speed and Quickness
- Up Tempo
- Shooting
- Height
Weaknesses
- Creating turnovers
- Fouling
- Defending the 3
Ideal Draw
- Poor offensive team
- Team that does not shoot the 3
Other teams that may surprise: Old Dominion, Harvard
Check out The Office Pool Guy’s complete brackets or Bracket Strategy Guide
