Bracket Saving Tip: Skip The Cinderella Stories

You have a problem. I get it. You haven’t paid any attention whatsoever to the college basketball season beyond seeing Mike Krzyzewski get a little testy with a student journalist. And now you’re stuck with the civic duty of having to fill out your NCAA Tournament bracket to show everyone at your virtual office that you know more than they do.Then, you looked at the bracket so you could reflexively push Duke and Kentucky through several rounds for a few easy picks only to find out that they aren’t in the draw at all. Drake is.Relax. I’ve got you.The first thing to know is that all the other know-it-alls you’re competing against don’t know anything and haven’t paid attention either.I’m here to help. It’s true that Krzyzewski isn’t in the NCAA Tournament this year. Duke didn’t make it. Neither did Kentucky and John Calipari. Sister Jean is back, however. The 101-year-old Loyola of Chicago team chaplain, who was the star of the NCAA Tournament in 2018 when little Loyola made it to the Final Four, is still alive and kicking. With only a limited number of fans expected to attend the games, Sister Jean, who has been vaccinated, said she believes she has talked her school administrators into letting her go with the team.“I was like that old woman in the Gospels who went to the judge so many times, the judge finally said, `Let’s let her do what she wants. . .’ ‘’ she told the Chicago Tribune. “They said there’s restrictions. You can’t run down on the court. You can’t talk to the young men. I said, `I’m not going to run down on the court, and I’m not going to cause any disturbance.’’Telling a 101-year-old woman in a wheelchair that she shouldn’t storm the court seems a bit excessive. But Sister Jean did survive the Spanish Flu pandemic from 100 years ago and now COVID-19. For the sake of your bracket, though, I don’t think she can lead Loyola past Illinois in the second round.For more inspiration from the gods, you could look at Grand Canyon, whose coach, Bryce Drew, made the buzzer-beating 3-pointer for Valparaiso 23 years ago, giving a Cinderella win over Mississippi that CBS likes to replay every single year. Grand Canyon is a 15 seed against No. 2 seed Iowa. Take Iowa.Rick Pitino, the champion and cheat at Louisville, is back to the NCAA Tournament with Iona College. This is the fifth school he has led to the tournament. Meanwhile, the other four -- Kentucky, Louisville, Providence and Boston University, are out.If you’re looking for a major upset in your bracket, Pitino at a No. 15 seed over No. 2 Alabama has got to be tempting. But that’s too much to ask. Take Alabama.Nearly 30 years ago, Michigan had the Fab Five, a group of freshmen that came in in baggy shorts and black socks and changed college basketball and made it a whole lot of fun. The thing is, they never won a national championship. Not one. Now, one of those Fab Five, Juwan Howard, is Michigan’s coach, and if you like redemption stories, this one is it.If you want to win your bracket, however, Michigan might be a No. 1 seed, but it isn’t going to win the national championship.For your bracket, I’d start by putting Illinois on the line to win the national championship, and fill them in all the way through. I was picking the Illini for weeks, before anyone else was. They have the best guard in the country in Ayo Dosunmu and one of the best centers in Kofi Cockburn. When Dosunmu was out hurt, the Illini crushed Michigan on the road. When Cockburn had foul trouble in the second half of the Big Ten Tournament championship game Sunday against Ohio State, his backup dominated. And they play killer defense. And they rebound.Everyone thinks Gonzaga, which is undefeated and ranked No. 1, is going to win. The Zags are great and from the looks of things were able to pick their own draw. They might have the easiest path of all time to the Final Four. Draw them all the way to the championship game, losing to the Illini.Take No. 1 seed Baylor, and move them through four wins to the Final Four. Give three wins to the other No. 1 seed, Michigan.Take all the No. 2 seeds and give them two wins. No. 1 and No. 2 seeds rarely lose early.In the first round, I’ll take the higher seed in every game except for No. 9 Wisconsin over No. 8 North Carolina, No. 9 Missouri over No. 8 Oklahoma, Michigan State/UCLA over No. 6 BYU, No. 11 Syracuse over No. 6 San Diego State and No. 10 Rutgers over No. 7 Clemson.In the second round, I have the top 4 seeds winning again, except for No. 6 Texas Tech over No. 3 Arkansas.That brings us to the Sweet 16, and I’ll take Baylor, Ohio State, Gonzaga, Iowa, Michigan, Texas, Illinois and West Virginia to reach the Elite 8.I like Illinois, Gonzaga, Baylor and Texas in the Final Four. And Illinois over Gonzaga to win the title. Illinois even has a home-court advantage as the entire tournament will be in or around Indianapolis. As a Chicagoan, I can tell you that while Indy is a great place for a sporting event, it’s not a great place to spend three weeks. If you try to eat dinner after 10 p.m., you might be stuck at the White Castle. I speak from experience. So the farther you are from home, the worse it will feel.So that’s what my bracket says. But I’d gladly lose if would mean seeing Sister Jean storm the court.-30-