NCAA March Madness 2014 Basketball Tournament Rankings: Dayton Triumphs, Florida Dominates and Perfection is Over
The 2014 NCAA Men's Division 1 Basketball Championship, or March Madness for short, is well-underway.
Thus far, the tourney has lived up to its maddening ways with a series of oh-no-they-didn't upsets and mind-numbing gaffes. You just know ESPN's popular segment Not Top Ten will air these mishaps over and over again for the next few months, but that's not to say that elite teams haven't owned subpar squads.
Cal Poly was one of those subpar teams, and it suffered an unrelenting beat down at the hands of undefeated Wichita State. Mind you, Cal Poly was the only team without a winning record that made it to the big dance this year. They won the Big West conference tournament and entered the round of 64 after managing to win a play-in game versus the Texas Southern Tigers.
Wichita State included, not every team has given the media fuel with which to denigrate them. Standing in stark contrast to the negative press that comes a teams way when it loses are the myriad of positive moments that only a giant basketball tournament can provide.
The University of Dayton is definitely part of that positive list. Prior to the tournament, Dayton was known as a small school forever in the shadow of their in-state big-brother, Ohio State University. However, Dayton beat OSU head-to-head in a round of 64 matchup so no crafty excuses can be made by OSU coach Thad Matta on his players behalf.
Ironically, Dayton is now the preeminent basketball power in the State of Ohio. They are headed to the Sweet 16, and just need two more victories to match the achievements of two other Cinderella squads, George Mason and VCU, on route to an unforgettable Final Four run.
But as sweet and surprising as Dayton's run is, they face unfathomable odds to advance to the Final Four, let alone the championship game.
Three of the number one seeds, Florida, Arizona and Wichita State, are playing at a high level. Virginia's had to rally past Coastal Carolina to clinch a victory and avoid a historic loss. and Virginia is playing at a high level.
Some disappointments have been the three seeded Duke Blue Devils, the two seed Villanova Wildcats and the former number one-ranked Syracuse Orange. They bowed out in the second, third and third rounds respectively.
So far the NCAA tourney has provided viewers with a lot of fun, so keep watching. The NCAA Men's Final Four Championship takes place at AT&T Stadium, also known as JerryWorld after its billionaire owner Jerry Jones. You can watch the final four and winner-take-all championship game on Sunday, April 6 on CBS.
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