NCAA Pre-Tournament Contest Newsletter

1998 PRE-NCAA CONTEST NEWSLETTER 2

Standings

After three rounds, it appeared as if our contestants might finally be getting it, as 118 out of 126 entrants guessed at least half of the Final 8 correctly, perhaps our best Final 8 showing ever. (The other eight? Alberts; Carson; Connelly; P Leach; S Shaid; R Karpp; Wegbreit/Arglic; and D Padilla). As usual, that faint promise of competence faded quickly into a spring drizzle in the very next round. In undoubtedly the worst Final 4 showing ever, ninety two (92) of our entrants accurately selected either one (1) or zero (0) Final 4 teams.

Epitomizing our unfulfilled potential were Brady, who correctly chose seven of the Final 8, but only one of the Final 4; and K Sullivan and Brinkley, each of whom correctly chose seven of the Final 8, but only two of the Final 4. But even more impressive were A Natalini and Quasi, each of whom accurately selected six of the Final 8, but absolutely none of the Final 4. Joining A Natalini and Quasi in cluelessness were D Padilla; J Einbinder-Schatz; M Einbinder-Schatz; Gold; D Kedson; Connelly; and Post, all of whom guessed zero (0) of the actual Final 4 teams.

But of course, 92 out of 126 is not the whole picture. A whopping two (2) of our contestants accurately selected three of the Final 4: Mastro and M Leach. Mastro parlayed this stroke of luck into a money position, as he will finish no lower than third. Defending champion Mash Leach, who correctly chose three of the Final 4 for the second straight year, moved all the way up to a tie for 68th place (in part because he only got four (4) of the Final 8 teams).

Although we don’t intend to repeat too much of what was said in the "mini-updates" we released between newsletters, we do want to emphasize that, for the first time in pool history, nobody was clever enough to choose a Wild Card that was able to win two games (although two teams that were eligible Wild Cards - Valparaiso and Washington - made it to the Sweet 16).

Nobody picked Stanford as National Champion, and only one person each chose Kentucky (M Josephs) and Utah (Glowacki). Thirty two contestants chose UNC as champion, led by K Sullivan (297 points) and Mastro (288).

All prize winners, depending on national champion, are as follows:

Stanford		Kentucky		Utah		UNC
K Sullivan	297	Matt Josephs	308	Glowacki	309	K Sullivan	337
Mastro	288	K Sullivan	297	K Sullivan	297	Mastro	328
Flannery (tie)	285	Mastro	288	Mastro	288	Flannery (tie)	285
Joyce (tie)	285					Joyce (tie)	285

Just missing on the prizes were J Piccirillo (283 pts); Brady (282); Linton (282); and Dresden (281).

Brady’s all-time record for most points (379) is quite safe for another year. However, Bobbie Shaid’s year old record for futility, 140 points, is in jeopardy. Carson, who asked to be recognized for her astute pick of Valparaiso as an at-large team, has amassed a mind-numbing 102 points, but has UNC as her champion. Thus, if her champion wins, she will squeak by with 142 points. If UNC loses, Carson will set a new record for ineptitude that may well never be broken.

Almost 100 points ahead of Carson, but behind everyone else, is D Padilla (191 pts) who narrowly trails Connelly (192); P Leach (204); Gold (208); Post (209); and Quasi (210). Raps, who declined to choose any Top 25 teams as at-large selections, finished ahead of 16 entrants.

And speaking of Bobbie Shaid, last year’s darling has completed her first step in Mash Leach’s footsteps, improving from last place to 79th place, and finishing ahead of both her daughter and her future son-in-law.

It has come to the attention of the commissioners that the solicitous Salus has succinctly stated that his primary goal in the pool was to beat the score of the commissioners. And we would like to congratulate Salus for achieving his goal and a higher score than commissioner D Kedson, although we are forced to notice that Salus also finished 21 points behind commissioner Kedson’s cat.

And speaking of "friendly" rivalries, the commissioners couldn’t help but notice an interesting trend among couples who submitted separate pools. Starting with pool-leader Kate Sullivan, who trounced her husband D’Zuro 297 to 239; Jodi Piccirillo hammered Mark Piccirillo 283 to 248; Susan Abrams edged Norm Rosen 274 to 270; Mary Ellen Donadio beat John Donadio, Sr., 267 to 264; Sandy Disbrow shellacked Russ Karpp 263 to 218; and Susan Shaid snuck by fiancee David Kedson 238 to 237. The only male to win one of these partner contests was John Joseph, who barely bested better half Betsy Porter 252 to 246.

Even more interesting were the comparative scores of children who submitted pools separately from both their parents. John Donadio, Jr., managed a score (270) better than either of his parents (who averaged 265.5); Miles Joseph (251) scored better than his parents’ average score (249); and, most impressively, seven year old Sam Karpp beat his average parent 242 to 240.5. Sam, who earns special mention because he filled out his own pool, didn’t just beat up on his folks, however. The youthful Karpp tied with four others and had a better score than 42 alleged adults. Unborn Baby Sullivan (277) had a significantly better score than father N Sullivan (245), but the commissioners have learned a major reason for this discrepancy: apparently several of Baby Sullivan’s choices were actually made by four year old Katie Sullivan (future sibling of Baby Sullivan, and no relation to pool-leader Kate Sullivan).

In an internal struggle, the left side of Maibach’s brain beat the right side, 260 to 231.

Our average score was 249.01 points. Nationally renown Lunardi was only slightly above average, with 252 points, and is tied for 59th place. Prefers Anonymity might want to change his name to Prefers Mediocrity, as he’s tied for 55th place with 255 points.

By now, it should come as no surprise that females proved superior to males, 255.68 to 247.70. Nor should it shock anyone that, in the battle of the species, felines (253.0) soundly trounced humans (248.43), and lawyers (247.08) took their place in the food chain below both. It was a bit of a surprise that lawyers finished ahead of the dogs (227.5), however. For the second straight year, mutants (267.75) scored better than any "natural" species.

And speaking of natural selection, the commissioners would like to point out a fascinating de-evolutionary trend among our entrants. Unborn children (277.0) lead children (253.17), who in turn lead adults (248.8). There could be a paper in this.

In the name game, the Susans have slipped. In a remarkable turnaround, the Ricks (265.0) tied for the top spot, having the same score as the average Joe (265.0). Just behind were the on-the-Marks (263.0), followed by the lazy Susans (259.67), the dear Johns (252.57), the babbling Bobs (249.0), the Mr. Bills (247.75), and the speak-into-the Mikes (243.14). And chalk one up for Goliath - the Davids (237.83) are at the bottom, trailing the Ricks and Joes by almost 30 points.

Apparently feeling the pressure in the Tag Team competition, the Bridge Players Association went out and recruited several new members since the last newsletter. The finesse failed, however, as the card players lost in their bid to overcome the new kids on the block, the friends of JJ, who won the competition hands down, 254.22 to 251.00. In another potential controversy, Maran was removed as one of the Friends of Amy. Apparently, he’s nobody’s friend. Nevertheless, the extended Friends of Amy (252.64) almost caught the Friends of JJ, while the non-extended Friends of Amy (237.25) only narrowly defeated the Leach Gang (230.75). Again, the only group that the Leach Gang managed to beat was the extended Leach Gang (229.33). We guess that Mash Leach will have to hit the recruiting trail harder next year.

In the Family Fun frolic, the Donadios (267.0) held on to edge the Hastings (265.33), in a thriller. The Natalini family (256.0) was next, followed by Joseph (249.67), Shaid (245.67), Kedson (245.33), and Mc (245.0).

In the Geographical challenge, Delaware (269.0) proved to be this year’s prognosticator’s haven, followed by Connecticut (265.5), New Jersey (256.71), Maryland (253.75), Pennsylvania (247.56), and New York (242.8). The spin doctors in our nation’s capital proved inadequate (237.25), but what’s new about that? Regionally, North Jersey (253.67) barely beat South Jersey (252.38) and the New York City metropolitan area (250.33). Phiadelphia suburbanites (249.35) slammed the Philadelphia urbanites (246.22). Western Pennsylvania (237.0) was not a particularly pleasing place for Pennsylvanians to produce pretty prognostications.

In another non-surprise, the top two occupations were Retired (260.50) and Student (257.67). Salespeople (250.20) edged Computer people (249.60), Engineers (248.29), and Accountants (246.25). Practicing Attorneys, of course, were at or near the bottom. Teachers (242.0) were once again mastered by Students, and everyone else as well.

Among employers with at 3 or more entrants, "Self" (254.43) stood alone. Among companies, Conrail (250.5) is temporarily on top, beating Urban Engineering (250.0), the Delaware Group (248.42), and PaDOT (245.75) by a rail. In a surprising turnaround, Vibroplating (238.33) tumbled from top to bottom.

ALL NAME TEAMS

This year’s all-name teams do not necessarily all come from within the Tournament, but oh well. They come in two main categories, geography and religion.

U.S.	Europe	Beyond
Rick Houston (Richmond)	Tarik London (Alabama)	Marcello Correa (SD St.)
Trenton Cross (Cal.-Northridge)	Paris Corner (Iowa St.)	Kenya Merritt (Md.-Balt.-Cty)
Arthur Carlisle (SC)	Joe Madrid (Cal-Poly-SLO)	Jordan Kardos (Ill-Chi)
Terrance Durham (St. Bon.)	Jeff Monaco (So. Utah)	Roman Peoples (NE Illinois)
Vegas Davis (Tenn)	Denmark Reid (NM St.)	Mars Mellish (Manhattan)
Hon Mention (US): Maceo Baston (Mich)		(Yes, we know Rome is in Europe, & Korea is spelled wrong)
Top Recruits: Paris London (Memphis St.)		Ontario Harper (undecided)
Coach: Cuba Gooding, Jr. (actor); Ass't Coach: Togo West (Secretary of War)

Universities	Religious Hierarchical Figures
Jonathan Richmond (NC A&T)	Dylan Pope (Air Force)
Jermaine Stanford (Minn)	Brian Cardinal (Purdue)
Sharif Fordham (E Mich)	Greg Nun (St. Francis NY)
Oral Roberts (Miss St)	Angel Santana (St. Francis NY)
James Madison (Cleve St)	J.R. Christ (Colorado)
Hon Mention (US): Phiffney Dukes (N Ill)	Hon Mention (US): Joel Templeman (Creighton)
Hon Mention (US):Marlon Hopkins (Prairie View)	Coach: God Shammgod (NBA)
	Ass’t Coach: Priest Lauderdale (NBA)
	Restricted Earnings Coach: Art Monk (NFL)

Next year, we plan on continuing this trend with a "Books of the Bible" Team, starring Leviticus Williamson of Notre Dame, and Laron Profit of Maryland (Profit, Prophet, what’s the difference).

MASCOT TRIVIA

Even more inexplicable than the commissioners’ penchant for All-Name Teams is their taste for mascot trivia. This year’s questions are:

(1) Name all teams in the tournament with nicknames that neither include a color nor end in ‘s’ (3 teams, 20 points total)
(2) Name the most popular nickname (most teams) in the NCAA Tournament field (5 points)
(3) Among Felines, Canines, and Avians, name which has had the most success (winning pct) in this year’s Tournament, and which has had the least success (5 points each)
(4) Name the five nicknames that appear more than once in the field (some latitude allowed), and of these, which has the highest and which has the lowest winning percentage (2 points for each correct answer)
(5) Name the teams that fit into each of the following categories (1 point for each correct answer):
(a) Cats (8 teams)
(b) Dogs (5 teams)
(c) Chicken (2 teams)
(d) Other Birds (4 teams)
(e) Weasels, Pigs, Reptiles, and Eight-Legged Creatures (5 teams)
(f) Bears, Pandas, Horses, and Sheep (4 teams)
(g) Soldiers of Colonial Times (3 teams)
(h) Soldiers of Medieval Times (2 teams)
(i) Other Military Figures (3 teams)
(j) Common Laborers (5 teams)
(k) Insubordinates (2 teams)
(l) Ancient Greeks, Ancient Celts, and Mythological Figures (4 teams)
(m) Ready for 50 yard dash (3 teams)
(n) Mafioso and Comic Figures (2 teams)
(o) Wind and Fire (3 teams)
(p) People who look down from high places (2 teams)
(q) Native Americans (2 teams)
(r) Nicknames that are not worth categorizing (6 teams)

Note: We counted two teams twice.

The Ongoing Stanford debate: This year, the Wall Street Journal definitively spoke on the topic of the Stanford mascot, proclaiming: "They're the Cardinal now, without an ‘s’ - the color, not the bird. Their mascot is a guy dressed as a tree." The commissioners, however, do not necessarily view information from this dubious source as conclusive proof, and continue to disagree on whether the Stanford Cardinal is a color, an individual bird, or a member of the Catholic Church Hierarchy. Thus, "Stanford" will not be considered a correct answer to any question, ever.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
TRIVIA ANSWERS

(1) Massachusetts Minutemen, Navy Midshipmen, Illinois Fighting Illini
(2) Wildcats (Kentucky, Arizona, Davidson)
(3) Canines have had the most success, with a 6-5 record (.545 winning pct.). Avians have had the least (1-6, .143 win pct.) Felines are 8-7 (.533 win pct.) A feline is still playing, however.
(4) Wildcats (7-2, .778); Huskies (5-2, .714); Tigers (1-2, .333); Bulldogs (0-2, .000); Rebels (0-2, .000)
(5)
(a) Kentucky Wildcats; Arizona Wildcats; Davidson Wildcats; Princeton Tigers; Clemson Tigers; Charleston Cougars; South Alabama Jaguars; Prairie View Panthers.
(b) UConn Huskies; Washington Huskies; Butler Bulldogs; SC State Bulldogs; New Mexico Lobos.
(c) SC Gamecocks; Delaware Blue Hens.
(d) Kansas Jayhawks; Temple Owls; Illinois State Redbirds; E. Michigan Eagles.
(e) Michigan Wolverines; Arkansas Razorbacks; TCU Horned Frogs; Maryland Terrapins; Richmond Spiders.
(f) UCLA Bruins; Cincinnati Bearcats; W. Michigan Broncos; Rhode Island Rams.
(g) UMass Minutemen; George Washington Colonials; Xavier Musketeers.
(h) FDU Knights; Valparaiso Crusaders.
(i) Nicholls State Colonels; Tennessee Volunteers; Navy Midshipmen.
(j) Nebraska Cornhuskers; Northern Arizona Lumberjacks; Oklahoma St. Cowboys; UNCC 49ers; Purdue Boilermakers.
(k) Mississippi Rebels; UNLV Runnin’ Rebels.
(l) Michigan St. Spartans; Iona Gaels; Duke Blue Devils; Detroit Titans.
(m) UNLV Runnin’ Rebels; Utah Runnin’ Utes; Murray St. Racers.
(n) San Francisco Dons; St. Louis Billikens.
(o) Miami Hurricanes; St. Johns Red Storm; Illinois-Chicago Flames.
(p) West Virginia Mountaineers; Radford Highlanders.
(q) Florida St. Seminoles; Utah Runnin’ Utes.
(r) Utah St. Aggies; Illinois Fighting Illini; Oklahoma Sooners; Indiana Hoosiers; Syracuse Orangement; UNC Tar Heels.

SCORING:

1 - More than we expected.
2-20 - More than we hoped.
21-50 - Get a job.
51-114 - Get a life.

Current Standings - March 22, 1998
Going into Final 4

Name	Score	Conf Champs	Wild Card	Champion	Final 8	Final 4
Kate Sullivan	297	17	Xavier	North Carolina	7	2
Mark Mastro	288	15	Illinois	North Carolina	6	3
Dick Flannery	285	16	Temple	Duke	6	2
Jason Joyce	285	18	Temple	Kansas	5	2
Jodi Piccirillo	283	18	Miami-FL	North Carolina	6	2
Paul M. Brady	282	18	St. John's	Kansas	7	1
Marshall Linton	282	16	Temple	Duke	6	2
Karen Dresden	281	17	Tennessee	Duke	6	2
A Capella	280	17	Clemson	Arizona	5	2
GREF	280	15	Temple	North Carolina	6	2
Marc Kleiman	280	15	Illinois	Kansas	6	2
Troy Kane	277	15	Temple	North Carolina	6	2
Bob Shaw	277	15	Oklahoma St.	North Carolina	6	2
Baby Sullivan	277	19	Illinois	Duke	6	1
Laura Harlan	275	18	Indiana	Duke	6	1
Susan Abrams	274	19	Temple	Arizona	6	1
Lisa Brinkley	274	13	Murray St.	North Carolina	7	2
Brian Leahy	271	15	Iowa	Kansas	6	2
Joe Mc	271	15	Temple	Kansas	6	2
John Donadio, Jr.	270	15	Temple	Duke	5	2
Norm Rosen	270	17	Illinois	Duke	6	1
Joe Glowacki	269	16	Auburn	Utah	5	2
Sarah Adams	268	18	Temple	Duke	5	1
George Brindisi	268	14	UNC Charlotte	Kansas	5	2
Coach Doc	268	18	Temple	Duke	5	1
FREG	268	18	Temple	Duke	5	1
Joe Hastings	268	19	St. John's	Kansas	6	1
Matt Josephs	268	17	St. John's	Kentucky	5	2
Frank Conte	267	15	Illinois	Kansas	5	2
Mary Ellen Donadio	267	17	Tennessee	Arizona	6	1
Susan Hanson	267	17	Tennessee	Duke	6	1
Arnold E Selig	266	16	Temple	Duke	5	2
DREG	265	18	St. John's	Kansas	5	1
Peter O'Brien	265	18	Xavier	Duke	5	1
Rick Schlegel	265	16	Oklahoma St.	Duke	6	1
Polly Shaffer	265	16	Illinois	Duke	6	1
Jon Broder	264	17	Temple	North Carolina	6	1
John Donadio, Sr.	264	17	Illinois	North Carolina	6	1
Claude	263	17	Illinois	Duke	5	1
Sandy Disbrow	263	15	St. John's	North Carolina	6	1
Robert C. Natalini	262	18	Illinois	North Carolina	5	1
Packer	262	14	Indiana	Kansas	5	2
Hank Fila	261	15	St. John's	North Carolina	5	2
Jeffrey Gill	260	13	St. John's	Duke	5	2
John Maibach	260	17	St. John's	Duke	5	1
Barbara Spitz	260	15	St. John's	Arizona	6	1
Arrow Man	259	16	Xavier	North Carolina	6	1
Rick Salus	259	16	Temple	Duke	4	2
GRED	258	14	St. John's	Arizona	6	1
Butch Acchione	256	16	Xavier	Duke	6	1
AJOB	256	16	Illinois	North Carolina	6	1
Edward Leach	256	18	Temple	Duke	5	1
January Man	256	12	Marquette	North Carolina	6	2
Mike Maran	256	16	Indiana	North Carolina	4	2
Prefers Anonymity	255	18	Tennessee	North Carolina	4	1
Bill Shaid	255	15	Xavier	Duke	5	2
David Harris	254	15	Illinois	Duke	6	1
Len Kedson	253	15	Temple	Duke	5	1
John Joseph	252	14	St. John's	Arizona	6	1
Joe Lunardi	252	16	St. John's	Duke	5	1
Miles Joseph	251	17	Temple	Duke	5	1
Rick Warmbier	251	15	Oklahoma St.	Duke	6	1
David J. Josephs	249	14	Temple	Kansas	4	2
Bill McGarrigel	249	14	Illinois	Kansas	6	1
Patrick O'Brien	249	16	Xavier	Duke	5	1
Mike Papalia	248	12	St. John's	Kansas	6	1
Mark Piccirillo	248	15	Xavier	North Carolina	6	1
Bill Byrnes	247	15	Illinois	North Carolina	5	1
Ira Kedson	247	16	Ball St.	Duke	6	1
Mash Leach	247	9	Charleston	North Carolina	4	3
Brian Corrin	246	16	St. John's	Duke	5	1
Bruno Pappasergi	246	16	Temple	North Carolina	5	1
Betsy Porter	246	14	Tennessee	Kansas	6	1
Stephen Smith	246	14	St. John's	Arizona	6	1
Peter Hastings	245	15		Duke	6	1
Quasi II	245	16	Clemson	Kansas	4	1
Neil Sullivan	245	16	Seton Hall	Duke	4	1
Bobbie Shaid	244	13	Temple	Duke	4	2
Kevin Kasprzak	243	15	St. John's	Duke	4	1
Michael Aub (Manute)	242	12	Temple	Kansas	6	1
Sam Karpp	242	14	Illinois	Duke	5	1
Robert A. Peloso	242	16	Xavier	Kansas	4	1
Pat Riot	242	14	Illinois	Duke	5	1
Don Russell	242	16	St. John's	Arizona	4	1
Oliver Brooks	241	13	Murray St.	Kansas	4	2
Jeff Clark	241	17	Temple	Duke	4	1
Bill Acchione	240	11	St. John's	Duke	6	1
Kevin Grande	240	15	Indiana	Arizona	4	1
Bob D'Zuro	239	14	Temple	North Carolina	5	1
David Lundberg	239	16	Oklahoma St.	North Carolina	4	1
Jerry Ostru	239	14	Temple	North Carolina	5	1
Dave Papalia	239	14	Temple	Duke	5	1
Mike Mc	238	15	St. John's	Kansas	5	1
Susan Shaid	238	12	Illinois	Duke	3	2
Al Alberts	237	17	Tennessee	Duke	3	1
David Kedson	237	17	Temple	Duke	5
Randy Wanger	237	13	Illinois	Duke	5	1
Cowboy	236	14	St. John's	Duke	5	1
Mark Tiger	236	16	Illinois	North Carolina	4	1
Travis Bryan	235	13	Xavier	North Carolina	6	1
Dodger	234	13	Xavier	Arizona	5	1
Jack Henderson	234	13	Xavier	Duke	5	1
Amy Natalini	232	14	St. John's	Duke	6
Clinton Walker	232	14	Temple	Arizona	4	1
Lou C	231	15	Ill.-Chicago	North Carolina	4	1
John Maibach II	231	13	Xavier	Kansas	5	1
Mike Baer	230	13	Temple	Kansas	4	1
Bob Wegbreit (ARGLIC)	230	15	Clemson	North Carolina	3	1
Jon Raps	227	16	Xavier	North Carolina	5	2
Alan Schwartz	227	13	St. Louis	Arizona	4	1
Ed Leeds	226	14	Oklahoma St.	Arizona	4	1
McMoose	226	12	Temple	North Carolina	5	1
Manny Pogach	226	14	Temple	Kansas	4	1
Matt Nannen	224	13	St. John's	North Carolina	4	1
Michael Einbinder-Schatz	220	15	Temple	Arizona	4
Russell J. Karpp	218	9	Tennessee	Duke	3	1
Domino Leach	216	12	St. John's	Kansas	4	1
Joshua Einbinder-Schatz	211	15	St. John's	Duke	4
Tom Wamser	211	11	Temple	South Carolina	4	1
Quasi	210	12	N. Arizona	Duke	6
David F. Post	209	12	St. John's	Duke	5
Ken Gold	208	15	Temple	Arizona	4
Perry Leach	204	11	Oklahoma St.	Duke	3	1
Brett Connelly	192	12	Xavier	Arizona	3
Don Padilla	191	13	St. John's	Duke	3
Eileen Carson	102	4	Long Beach St.	North Carolina	2	1

1998 PRE-NCAA CONTEST NEWSLETTER 2

Current Standings - March 22, 1998Going into Final 4

Current Standings - March 22, 1998
Going into Final 4