2022 Update 3
March Madness Update 3
April 3, 2022
“Goodbye Coach K”
Love him or hate him, the great one is gone. North Carolina, ending the 100 last games, in a stalemate, 50-50, ending the career of Coach K, with a gutsy, impressive, nail biting, fit for a semi game, defeating Duke 81-77. And what a show it was. Came down to the wire. Missed free throws were the reason, game long, not just at the end to throw anyone under the bus. Riveting, electric, GREAT GAME. The #8 seed, friend to a few in our pool comes through. The hottest team in the last few games. Up next comes Kansas. Workman like. Took control over Villanova early 10-0, and never looked back. We at March Madness Central have a MULTITUDE of generous people in our pool from Kansas/Missouri and although we don’t like to pick sides, or maybe we do, yours truly will be sporting Kansas gear come Monday night.
Kansas 81 Villanova 65.
We are on to the final game. And a great one it should be. Kansas holds steady as a 4.5 point favorite. Projected to be a 152 point game. Enjoy the last hurrah.
Pool News
Nothing new to add just yet. A final update letter will come later this week or soon. In that, final OFFICIAL entry numbers and payouts will be posted. Credits to you all who contributed extra, and final charity dollars will be posted. Credos given to those in the money. Name in lights. Can’t beat that. As always, our committee appreciates questions, concerns, and comments. Feel free to reach out any time. And if you have a small, local, deserving charity that meets our interest criteria, please let us know. We have money to give! Thank you all!
2022 Update 2
March Madness Update 2
March 27, 2022
“The Clock Strikes Midnight”
Underseeds, Houston, Arkansas, Miami, and Saint Peter’s all failed to advance to the final four. The blood turned definitively blue as the second weekend of March Madness came to a close. Thought for sure at least one of these teams would come out on top. But not to be. Seed #’s 5, 4,10, and 15 however will hold their heads high. Special congratulations to Saint Peter’s, conquering Kentucky, Murray State, and Purdue, prior to falling to North Carolina. All three schools are excellent programs, great records, tournament history and within a couple hours from March Madness Central .
Where to now Saint Peter? Why don’t you move to southern Indiana?
Charity News
Thank you all who have contributed additional money. The numbers continue to roll in. Final amounts and formal recognition in the next Update. You know whom you are, as do we:)
The March Madness Endowment Fund will continue to grow. As far as our 2022 charities, a little bit of information, as we will be forwarding checks to them after the conclusion of it all. Please consider additional donations as many of you have already.
Tri-State Food Bank (tristatefoodbank.org)
Their mission is to improve the quality of life for out community’s food insecure families and children by providing adequate food and nutrition through their network of local charities and organizations feeding the hungry. Established in 1982. As of this year, they distribute more than 9,000,000 pounds of food each year to over 250 programs in 33 counties throughout Indiana, Kentucky, and Indiana. For more information, contact their website.
Borrowed Hearts Foundation (borrowedheartsfoundation.org)
This is a non-profit organization serving children in foster care and the foster families who care for them. Clothing, hygiene, development, and a loving support system is part of their mission. Founded in Evansville in 2015. Visit them on Facebook or their website for more information.
Sweet Sixteen Action Thursday and Friday
Thursday night action in round 3 saw Arkansas face Gonzaga in the west. The Razorbacks held the lead in a tenacious struggle down the stretch by 7 points. With 3 plus minutes to play. Drew Timme the All World for the Zags responded. With less than a minute left, Arkansas had held court, but a late 3 with16 seconds left had the Zags down 3. Arkansas held strong. Winner 74-68. #1 team in the land is out. 29% of pool participants not happy! #4 seed rules. Likely changes at the top of our leaderboard as 4x points for the #4 seed.
Villanova outpaced Michigan in the second Thursday night from the south regional game 63-55. Statistically close but not in doubt. End of a great run for the Wolverines. Sad my only two Meeeechigan friends (aka the team up north) were NOT even in our pool this year. Curses to you! And you get what you deserve. Right RII? Villanova advances to the Elite Eight. Big Ten hopes rest solely with Purdue at the time of this early writing.
Second west regional game Thursday night saw the # 3 experienced and physical Texas Tech Red Raiders against the last tournament stand for Coach K and the #2 Duke Blue Devils. Duke shaky early with their first hoist an airball, turnovers, and more airballs, staked the first team from Texas to the early lead 10-2 with five minutes in. Duke settled in however to tie the game halfway through the first half. Red Raiders hold serve at the intermission with a 33-29 lead. Fast action in the opening minutes of the second half. Duke takes the lead after a frenetic 8 minutes in, 49-47. Close at four minutes, back and forth. Bryson Williams puts Texas Tech ahead. Banchero for Duke answers. Time out. Duke leads. Roach seals it. But wait, 2 points now in the final seconds. Freshman AJ Griffin seals the deal at the free throw line. Ugh. Coach K lives another day. Duke wins 78-73. How long does this misery last?
After escaping TCU in OT, #1 Arizona faced the electric 2nd team from Texas, the Houston Cougars, ranked as a 5th seed as the committee was stoned. San Antonio was rocking. Houston took the early lead and game on! Love the Cougars and the AAC (until times change) with Cincinnati, Memphis, and Wichita State. Points off turnovers ruled the first half as Houston up 34-28 at the half. Cougars defense stifles the Wildcats in the second half. 62-51 Houston with four minutes to go. Jamal Shead leads the way! Senior Kyler Edwards with four 3-pointers in the second half. Houston advances 72-60. Another #1 goes down. Kansas is left.
First game of Friday night’s Sweet Sixteen showcased Cinderella #15 Saint Peter’s vs. #3 Purdue in the east. Burn down the mission with a love song! Old school, Elton John!
Great end to a great game. Peacocks win! 67-64. Lowest seed to advance this far!
Providence, seeded #4, another saintly crew in the Sweet Sixteen, faced #1 seed Kansas in the midwest regional. Solid performance by the #1 Jayhawks who never looked back. On to to the elite eight.
2nd East regional game pitted #8 North Carolina against #4 seed UCLA. Love and Bacot were leaders for the Tar Heels, poised to make another final four run, dispatching Mick Cronin’s Bruins, 73-66.
In the nightcap in the final sweet sixteen game in the midwest regional, pitted the low seeds, #11 Iowa State vs. the #10 Hurricanes of Miami. (No one in the pool had either team to win the semifinals). Miami forced turnover after turnover, 18 total, that’s a need for a mulligan on every hole! Right on says KB our previous year’s champion. Miami reaches their first elite eight in the university’s history, 70-56
Elite Eight Action Saturday and Sunday
Houston as a favored team, faced the newly determined Villanova squad in the round of 8 on Saturday. All you need to know is Houston shot 1 for 20 from the 3-point line in this game, including Kyler Edwards 0 for 8. Say what? Pete Rose should be in the Hall of Fame! Save Shoeless Joe! Wildcats were also perfect from the free throw line, 15 of 15. Disappointing performance for the south Texans. Villanova wins 50-44.
In the west region, Duke continued to ride the farewell celebratory Coach K train, coast to coast, facing the hot Arkansas Razorbacks. 13th final four is now at hand for the great Coach K. All around great performance for Duke, winning the boards and a higher shooting percentage for the game, and held on thanks to a 12 point lead at the half, finishing off Arkansas 78-69.
In the Midwest, the #10 seeded Miami faced the rolling rock chalkers from Kansas. This one had excitement and upset written all over it, with the Hurricanes blowing away everything in their path in the first half and leading by 7. But then, the storm suddenly died, and literally disappeared. From the get go in the second half, no shots would fall for Miami. A total of but 15 points scored in the second half for the Canes. Dismal from the 3-point line, and no answer for the Jayhawk machine, including 21 bench points for Kansas. Final score not close, 76-50.
All eyes were glued to the screen for the finale of the Elite Eight in the east region. Upstart #15 Saint Peter’s, fanning their feathers, from the mighty MAC, ready to face the Tar Heels of North Carolina. Tip was 4:10pm. All Carolina blue to start the game, up 9-0 in the first four minutes, until the Peacocks hit the board with a three. Tar Heels too big on the inside and shots not dropping for the undermatched team from Joysey, first half all Carolina blue, ending mercifully 38-19. Peacocks shoot 22% from the field and 1/11 from downtown at the half time break. Halfway through the second period, more of the same. Saint Peter’s down 20. Low scoring affair. End of a memorable run for the little known Peacocks. Will be following MAC action next year! Final score North Carolina 69-49.
And on to the Final Four
We’re off to the Big Easy come next Saturday night! After what appeared to be a crazy, any one might cash a ticket to the last dance, the final four, once again, blah, blah, blah.
Duke, Villanova, Kansas, and North Carolina are the final teams standing. Color me blue.
Pool News
Charity money continues to roll in. Entry fees paid are doing well as usual. However several entries remain unpaid. Please remit ASAP. Venmo, Pay Pal, or check. Your Madness committee reserves the right to eliminate your entry and future entries for what entries we cannot confirm. Please take note. Don’t put yourself on the arrears list. Getting tired of this.
Leaders after round 4
With 3 games and 2 rounds left, the leaderboard has taken some turns. Congratulations to those of you who now see your names in lights. See the website for “what if scenarios”.
Current standings, and all. www.garygurtcheff.com
- The Slim Reaper, Jonah Coleman. (Former leaderboard vet for such a young man and son of a seriously great dude!)
- Greg McComis. (Oh my. The walkaway leader has fallen).
- Skip Oliver (Please call accounting)
- Michael O’Connor (Too bad about Auburn)
- Naomi Grimm (Got the shot to beat Sammy G. Tell Dad I got this!)
- Sammy G (Might historically be the best prognosticator in this pool of all time. At least before the pressure is really on. We miss the Hoops Queen)
- R II and R III. Tie. Check the entries. (Robby Wathen and his son. This is not a misprint. Trying to rival THE Jon Coleman clan. Double Mint gum)
9) JT Huelson (5 entries. We thank you, and your name is in lights. Curb your enthusiasm.)
10) Christian Fletcher (Still don’t know who you know in Annapolis. Should have said so.
Best of luck. Fortunately you may hang to cash with the champion Kansas to be)
Bridesmaid: Keith Shipman. (check the what if scenarios. I never want to know)
Last Place: Jim McDaniel???? Please contact Gary Gurtcheff immediately. Is this a mistake??
Best wishes for the rest of the event. Thank you all so very, very much. Elvis is on to N’awlins.
“Behold what lies in your path forward. Take charge of your future. It remains bright. Only your mindset can control your destiny “
2022 Update I
March 21, 2022
Update 1
“Where to now Saint Peter?”
-Elton John, Tumbleweed Connection
Our tournament rolls on in year 27. Four days of basketball bliss are in the books. Highlight of all, The Peacocks took a blue canoe down the Kentucky river, and upset the mighty Wildcats. Did you even know what state Saint Peters is in prior to this classic #15 mesmerizing victory on a #2 blue blood? Gonna take that highway, they call highway 95. Lonesome George on the slide guitar. Straight through to Jersey City and the Run Baby Run Gym! On the other side of the mighty Ohio, the Hoosiers were rout-ousted by St Mary’s. Only the Indiana Cheerleaders came to play. Classic! Okay, so half our fans are disappointed but even #1 Baylor got taken down. Our charity pool moves forward. Action is heating up at March Madness Central and the accounting looks promising. Thanks to your generosity, our March Madness Endowment Fund totals over $140,000! We have named two additional charities this year to directly send some checks, the Tri-State Food Bank, and Borrowed Hearts. More on those later, but check out the home page at the top to see our charitable giving history! Also, we have money to give through our fund each year, outside the tournament, which we have done over the years. Contact me directly if you know a smaller, local organization in need. Our fund is run through the nine county Community Foundation Alliance, and we’d like to thank the good people there, as well as the Warrick County Community Foundation for being a part of it all!
The Sweet Sixteen is now at hand
And what an opening four days it was! 6 overtime games and upsets a plenty.
After Sunday night’s action, we have the following survivors with two games to win to make it to the Final Four. Who will it be?
West Region:
Gonzaga: The number one team in the land again looked a bit sluggish in the first half, similar to their opener against Georgia State. Down 10 points at halftime against Memphis, the Zags rallied, led by Drew Timme’s 21 second half points and totaled 14 rebounds
Arkansas: Dispatching Vermont and New Mexico State did not come easy for the Razorbacks. But aided by 19 turnovers from NM State, Arkansas a #4 seed goes on to face Gonzaga.
Texas Tech: After destroying Montana State in the opener, The Red Raiders had a game of a time against the Fighting Irish. Texas Tech has the #1 defense in college basketball. Notre Dame known for three point barrage went but 9 for 28 and made no field goals in the final three minutes. The Raiders are back on another championship run, having lost in 2019 against Virginia in overtime in the championship game.
Duke: Mike Kryzewski lives to fight another day. Taking out an old time friend, Tom Izzy, and Michigan State 85-76. Good effort by the Spartans came up short at the end.
East Region:
North Carolina: Current NCAA champion and #1 seed Baylor goes down to the Tar Heels in an unbelievable game. Bears down 25 points! Come back to take it to overtime. North Carolina near complete meltdown saved by a sizzling opening and survive to take on UCLA
UCLA: With 11 national titles and a vaunted past, the Bruins under Cronin are back again. Health is an issue but should be a game to win against NC.
Purdue: #3 seed Boilers take down the Longhorns 81-71 and avenge prior losses. Workmanlike win for one of two remaining Big Ten teams
Saint Peters: Peacocks take out Kentucky in historic upset. Come back to take out a strong 31 win Murray State team. Bad week for the Bluegrass State. Saint Peters of Jersey City—Enrollment 3000 students. Please take a number!
South Region:
Arizona: Overtime thriller. #1 Zona pulls away and takes down TCU. Horned Frogs with several chances at the end to take delete another #1 seed from the tournament, but not to be.
Houston: 31-5, hardly a #5 seed. Dispatches Illinois 68-53. Great team, great effort. Home to Texas now to face Arizona in San Antonio.
Michigan: Hardly an 11 seed, early season favorite Wolverines are back and looking to make a solid effort to win it all. Down five at halftime against a big, fast, and strong Tennessee team, the Wolverines won the second half by 13 and came away the winner in a fun game to watch, 76-68. That’s 5 straight appearances in the Sweet Sixteen.
Villanova: Just as the Buckeyes of THE Ohio State University fought there way back with a chance to win, Villanova’s execution saved the day for Wildcats, 71-61. Enough said. Painful.
Goodbye EJ Liddell. See you in the NBA.
Midwest Region
Kansas: Ties Kentucky in all time wins. Diligent and methodical. Another run for a national championship is at hand for the #1 seed.
Providence: The Friars. It’s a saintly sweet sixteen to be. Took out the gangly Spiders of Richmond, 79-51.
Iowa State: In a bit of a shocker, the Cyclones badgered Wisconsin and dealt another blow to the Big Ten elite. Only won two games last year, imagine that!
Miami: Another shocker of sorts as heavily favored Auburn pressured by the Hurricanes throughout fell victim to this #10 seed who will face the #11 seed Iowa State team in the 3rd round. Who will survive when the winds collide? Cyclone or Hurricane?
Pool Information
With the advent of the banking internet, ease for all of you to contribute by PayPal, Venmo, Bank of America, Cash App and all. It has been a bit more hectic to do the accounting. All good however and thank you. Happy to note, many of you have contributed extra, and thank you. The accounting is a work in progress, and to those of you who have not yet paid, please do so immediately. It has never been easier. Venmo seems to be the favorite choice, and they don’t charge us a fee, so go ahead, but I always love opening envelopes with a check in the mail! Too early to get on those of you who have not done so, but always this is the most frustrating part of this “labor of love”. As usual, we will recognize the extra contributors.
Suffice to say, your pool technocrat, Mr. Gary Gurtcheff is on top of things, as he always is, despite his job and travels. Happy in the free state of Texas, without complaint.
All looks good at this point. Final entry figures are still pending and we have had a dilly of a season so far due to slow internet traffic and duplicate entries.
Nevertheless, it would appear our unofficial entry total is about 440 give or take within 3%. More to come. Thank you all. Send $$ if you have not already.
Leaders after Round 2
The board on top is changing as the dust settles on the opening two rounds. 68 teams to start. 16 teams left to battle. But more importantly, current participants who are at the top with names in lights!!
- Greg McComis (Long time coming. Sad about Notre Dame but business is business, and number one on the leaderboard.
- Keith Shipman (Crafty veteran with a golden ticket with the Bruins. All final four teams left)
- Joe Smith (Jumps 45 spots in the standings. West coast is the best coast)
- Vince Prop (Doctor Batz spells comic relief. Not a real doctor says Newman from Seinfeld. Retirement is grand!)
- Michael O’Connor (Falls from #1 with rear axle coming off. Auburn, Illinois, ugh!)
- Christian Fletcher (Who you know in Maryland?)
- Jonah Coleman (Young prognosticator, the Slim Reaper, with another run in 2022)
Sam Santiago (Also with Final four intact with Slim and the Ship. Needs Purdue)
9) Keith Bratton (Mulligan man and defending champion at it again)
10) Chris Cleary (Young Kansas man makes it to the top ten with name in lights! Enjoy the ride but gotta have those Bruins!)
Last) Alex Tullar (Not for long and I bet you didn’t picture it this way)
Final Thoughts
Happy to welcome our new participants. Most are very young! Gary, myself, and our committee, hope you enjoy the show and participate for years to come. You are all part of this endeavor. Something to think about that we have given the amount of money to charitable organizations we have over the past two and a half decades, and also have initiated and sustained an endowment fund worth over 6 figures in such a small amount of time, SOLELY based on your generosity. Work hard, give when you can. Feel good about it. Thank you! In closing, I’d like to recognize our good friends no longer with us, Bengal Dave Massengale, and Steve Gabel, loyal supporters of our tournament, good friends, and Bengal fans to the end. Additional condolences to Todd Schulteis, friend of many who passed away this week. You all are in our tears, our thoughts, and our prayers.
2022 Welcome Letter
March is once again here. Spring is springing. Flowers will bloom. The sun will shine, Weather will be warmer but you can’t afford gas. NCAA basketballʼs greatest week is upon us. And so are we, Covid be damned. We are in our 27th year. There again is no concensus favorite this year, the field is wide open, and the lower seeds are good this year. So pick the upsets! You will be rewarded. The best three weeks of college sports, the NCAA men's basketball tournament has finally arrived! Welcome back friends, family, prognosticators, financiers and above all else, contributors. You all know the rules and how the system works. No rules changes, but send me your checks. Pay Pal or Venmo is fine. See and read the rules page carefully. Some changes this year
Our March Madness Endowment Fund was established in 2008. It is professionally run through the nine county, Community Foundation Alliance out of Evansville, IN. At the end of 2008, the total money in your fund was $ 4097. Currently, the fund has blossomed to a well established endeavor with assets over $140,000! We have eclipsed our original goal of six figures finally and we would like that to grow more. We have made several small grants over these years with the interest money allotted by alliance rules, and this will continue throughout the years regardless of whether this basketball pool continues to exist. But that to a larger extent depends on you. Money that grows is money that can be given out. Check out our charities page at the top of the website. Although your nominal contribution for all this fun is small, over 80% of all our charity money raised comes from your additional contributions. Year after year, individuals contribute from five, to several hundred dollars in additional funding. This of course continues to be the reason for our being. If you havenʼt before, consider this, and drop some extra cash with your entry donation!
There are NO format changes to this yearʼs pool, once again. NCAA basketball tournament selections and seedings will come out shortly on Sunday, March 13th. Entry into the tournament closes with the tip off of the first round games beginning Thursday morning, March 17th. For each entry, fill out the form all the way through to the finals, selecting the winner of each game. Donʼt worry about the play-in games on Tuesday and Wednesday. They donʼt count to the standings. But you can pick “play in winner” if you wish for the real first round on Thursday. Read the rules sheet!!
Important Tournament Pool information
Entry donation is $25 (twenty-five dollars). $10 of each initial entry will be donated to charity, $15 will go to the prize pool. For multiple entrees, each entry is $25. Again, we encourage you to make an additional contribution, (as the majority of you so kindly do).
Remember any additional moneys donated qualify as a tax-deduction, so if you desire proof of such, you may also enclose a separate check made out to one of the charities we have named. I will forward the check (as is) with the rest of the donations. Otherwise, simply make out your check to me, and mail all checks and additional donations to:
John P. Morgan, MD
PO Box 1136
Newburgh, IN 47629
The remainder of the pool will be distributed to the winners as follows:
1st --- 40% 6th --- 4%
2nd --- 20% 7th --- 3%
3rd --- 10% 8th --- 3%
4th --- 7% 9th --- 2%
5th --- 5% 10th --- 2%
Last Place --- 4%
$100 bonus for the place finish of the total score of the championship game
(Final score Dayton 74 Baylor 72 means 146th place). Winner takes home $100. Ties split. You donʼt need to pick a final score, it will just happen!
Annual thanks goes to Gary Gurtcheff, our webmaster. Additionally, we will maintain an index page for you to review rules, interim letters, charity information, periodic updates, and other items of interest, in addition to the standings. We hope you will take the time to peruse the site.
Please especially review our charity page. Additional donations may also be made out by check and sent to me directly at the above address.
2022 Charity Information
We are excited for our 27th year. The March Madness Endowment Fund lives on.
In addition to your pool entry fees, you may certainly (and we encourage you to) send a separate check made out directly to the charity of your choice, and forward to the following address:
John P. Morgan PO Box 1136 Newburgh, IN 47629-1136
In addition to the March Madness Endowment Fund, additional named charities are to be beneficiaries for our 2022 pool. Further information to follow. You may include extra money in your check to me with entry fees, or write a separate check and forward to the above address.
This years’s additional charities are as follows:
- Borrowed Hearts Foundation (borrowedheartsfoundation.org)
- Tri-State Food Bank (tristatefoodbank.org)
Thanks again.
March Madness Committee
2021 Final Update
March Madness 2021 Final Update
Wednesday, April 7th
“Baylor is Champ! Spoils Gonzaga’s run for Undefeated Season”
18 years ago, Baylor began the rise from ashes with Scott Drew’s hire in 2003. The Phoenix has taken flight and the Bears are 2021 National Champions. An absolute throttling of the highly coveted and favored Zags, Baylor never looked back from the opening salvo. 9-0 run, no field goals for the Bulldogs in the first 5 and 1/2 minutes. This one was over before you had time to settle in. Baylor had the desire, the execution, a clicking offense, and a smothering defense that left Gonzaga bewildered. Aggressive, athletic, and dominant. Butler, Teague, and Mitchell led the Bears in addition to 21 points off the bench. A deserving champion, and finishing the year 28-2. Final score:
Baylor 86
Gonzaga 70
Saturday’s Semifinals recap
Gonzaga 93
UCLA 90
This was the game of the decade! If you did not see this game, it is well worth finding the rerun on whatever smart TV, internet site, or platform you have. Watch the whole game from start to finish. Tremendous execution, outstanding coaching on both ends, referees that let them play, and what makes the yearly NCAA tournament the finest in sport. Multiple lead changes, contributions from many soon to be recognized moving forward. Good sportsmanship and a wild finish. Overtime and almost double overtime. Never giving up, the gamely Bruins 5 down in the final minute manage to tie the game up on his own offensive rebound by Johnnie Juzang (29 points and unstoppable throughout the game) with 3.3 seconds to play. Follow this with a near half court bank in 3 pointer to beat the buzzer. In the days gone by, an ESPN Instant Classic! Move over Christian Laettner. The new kid on the block is Jalen Suggs! Gotta see it. Zags were finally tested and rose to the occasion. Drew Timme, Gonzaga center stepped up big despite four fouls in overtime. Hard to sleep after that game. Truly March Madness!
Baylor 78
Houston 59
Hyped as the game that would be close, this one was a bit of a yawner unless you came to see a tremendously talented team take total dominance. Frighteningly quick and precise, this one was over at halftime. Baylor earned the right to face Gonzaga in the championship, first time since 1948.
Pool News and Notes
Congratulations to our 2021 March Madness Champion, Keith Bratton!! The Bull and golfer, par excellence (and at times below) secured the championship with the play in game winner in the final four. Enough points to hold off all challengers by a mere two points and by virtue of Gonzaga losing in the final game. Special thanks to Keith for a large cut of his payout to our charitable endeavor! Thank you and congratulations. Add your name to the hall of fame.
Bye Archie!! It was great! Not!!
Best entry names 2021———Love that creativity!
You Did What? Colleen Martin
Presented by Rocket Mortgage Ben Waits
Duke Loses America Wins. Clint Bender
BuhBye Archie! Gary Gurtcheff
Outgoing reigning champion, Kelly Morgan, who held the distinction for two years (no pool last year) turns her crown over to Keith.
March Madness Central has made it official. 419 entrees. Covering the few pending with benevolence. 99% paid. $15 of each entry to the prize pool, $10 to the charities. Place of finish and $$ won are as listed below. Congratulations to all of you. Sorrows to you oh so close. Winners will be paid within the month.
Please contact me if you wish to be paid through Venmo, Pay Pal, or cash in person. Checks will otherwise be mailed to the address you put on your entry. If you wish to contribute extra to the charities and subtract from your winnings, please also advise, and thank you.
Final Standings 2021
1st place: Keith Bratton$ 2514
Keith is a long time contributor and moves from the golfing world to prognosticator of hoop outcomes given his fine acumen to predict the markets. See above.
2nd place:Joe Smith (JCSmitty) $ 1257
It’s a time for Lone Star and chili! No beans. Champagne and caviar out. Smitty had to relocate from the sunny beaches of California to Austin, Texas this past year to finally cash in his rightful due. Best final four bracket in the tournament with Baylor over Gonzaga, and Houston to follow with the two players below. Syracuse got some points as well early on. Met Smitty in like 1997 give or take a year on a golfing junket to Riviera and LA CC that former champion Paul Perry and I took to California, where we met Smitty in Beverly Hills at a fine establishment, maybe Morton’s was it? He was enamored by our pool concept and has participated ever since. Congratulations!
3rd place: John Lamb$ 629
Another financier and local stalwart, John also rode Baylor to the championship with a Zags, Houston final four. USC did most of the damage to put him in position at the top of the stretch. Third place at the wire in a tight one.
4th place: Donna Preziotti$ 440
Tweety Bird needed the Zags. Would have won the pool. But by virtue of her sizable lead heading home, she hung on for place money and the only top 10 finisher to take the Zags. Next in line on the Zags derailment was Kevin Shinar, almost but not yet for once in the money! Donna is a resident of Milan, Michigan, that state up north.
5th place: Adam Kunkel $ 315
Construction projects begin a new. Thinking about the bubble concept. Congrats to Adam, on a solid finish in the pool.
6th place: Brad Smith$ 252
Best Kansas finish amongst the throng. Also best final four in line with Smitty and Gary Bellew, with Baylor over the Zags and Houston in the final four. Wildcat Brad is established. Our 2013 March Madness Champion back in the top ten!
7th place: Joe Smith$ 189
Sherwood Joe this time and local contributor to the pool for years. Rode that play in game winner through the Elite Eight! Good finish and name’s in lights!
8th place: Diana Marquez$ 189
Kansas entry, not a Kansas fan. Strong second round keeps her in the money!
9th place: Gary Bellew$ 126
Big time participant and cracks the top ten. Appreciate the generosity with the winnings. Also ties for the best final four finish with the two above. Baylor over the Zags, with Houston. All 3 had a different losing final four team that could have secured the victory. Florida State was yours.
10th place: Gary Gurtcheff$ 126
The webmaster has cracked the top ten and also donates his winnings. Much thanks to all you do. Gary is cofounder of the March Madness Endowment Fund and in addition does everything technical to make this happen! Can’t say enough. And all from Plano, Texas!
Last place: Tyler Watkins $ 252
Big Ty from Tampa sets history. He claims last place in the pool for the first time in our 24 year history actually picking true teams he felt would win. Gonzaga, Kansas, Iowa, Michigan, Baylor, Florida State, Houston, and others. All victories in the first round, but then the wheels fell off! Only 4 victors in the Elite Eight. Secures last place in an unconventional way. Runner up to Hoops Queen, followed by Travis Farhar, legitimate contenders for the coveted 4%. Last place was stolen they cry! What a nefarious turn of events and outcome!
Bridesmaid:John Rapp No money but pride!!
Three (3) Smiths in the Top Ten and Luke Smith in 24th.
And for once, no ties!
Late thanks to Maria the Hoops Queen, Roger Colman, and Corey Greening for the extra donations not previously listed and those who contributed from their winnings!! Aside from the year we had a Lilly Endowment Match, we have collected MORE charity money with less entrees than we ever had before. Thank you to all!!
Charity Notes
A banner year!! Thanks to additional contributions we have raised $14,000 to be given out to charity and our endowment fund in 2021. Essentially a record raised!! We will distribute funds as listed. This will include the checks several of you have written to the charities which we will present in the very near future.
March Madness Endowment Fund: $9000
Potter’s Wheel: $2000
Isaiah House 117: $1500
Life Choices: $1500
Final Note: Thanks to ALL participants!! It was a crazy year and somehow despite the coronabros, the politicization of sports, and the naysayers, the tournament was held, no problems occurred, they pulled it off, a champion was crowned, and all is well.
The entire tournament was held in Indianapolis. The city once again proved to be a tremendous host. Until we meet again!!
Trust the wait.
Embrace the uncertainty.
Enjoy the beauty of becoming.
When nothing is certain, anything is possible.
~Mandy Hale
2021 Update II
MARCH MADNESS 2021 UPDATE 2
“West Coast vs The Lone Star State”
Final Four is set
#2 Houston vs #1 Baylor #1 Gonzaga vs #11 UCLA
On Monday night, visions of Phi Slama Jama rang out in Lucas Oil Stadium as the Houston Cougars defeated upstart Oregon State 67-61, and will reach the Final Four for the first time since 1984. Surely there is an ESPN 30 For 30? You all remember Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde the Glide Drexler? What looked like a blow out to be became a tie game late before the Cougars rallied. Sasser and Grimes led Houston. Kelvin Sampson, returned to Indiana after banishment and has a chance to lead the 28-3 Cougars to the title.
In the other semifinal, the Baylor Bears took down the surprising Razorbacks of Arkansas, 81-72. Father and son Brooks, both assistants for the Bears and the Cougars will face off in Saturday’s semifinal. One way or another, a team from Texas will have a chance at the title. This will be the early game will Baylor tabbed as a 5 point favorite.
On Tuesday night, Gonzaga stayed undefeated, chasing history with a solid and disciplined performance, neutralizing the Trojans of USC with ease, and cruising to an 85-66 victory. 30 wins in a row. The last undefeated team ever was Indiana in 1976, That was like half a century ago. Still fresh in the minds of Hoosiers young and old. Fitting the Zagnuts will have a chance to match in the city of Indianapolis. No turnovers and a 19 point lead at half, put the fans to bed early. Gonzaga gets no press. They are impressive to watch. Stay tuned.
Best game of the Elite Eight pitted #1 Michigan against the play in game winner UCLA. Nobody expected this one. Except Bill Walton and Keith Bratton (or was it supposed to be Michigan State in the final four?). Despite three solid chances to tie or win the game in the final minute, fate was not on the side of the Wolverines, who concluded a great season in losing 51-49. Michigan missed their last 8 shots of the night. And what on earth happened to Franz Wagner? Big Ten be damned. North Texas? Oral Roberts? Loyola-Chicago? Illinois and Iowa were routed. 9 teams up, 9 teams down. Only Michigan made it so far and laid an egg at the end. Nevertheless, kudos to Mick Cronin, who led Cincinnati to a 31-5 record in 2018 and 9 straight NCAA appearances. How quickly Steve Alford is forgotten. The ex-Bearcat coach from Cincinnati, takes the UCLA Bruins back to where they once were 11 times or so. John Wooden would be proud! He lived to be 100.
Leaders after Round 4
Results of the Elite Eight tally on Sunday showed Donna Preziotti leading the pack. Long time entrant and prompt from Milan, Michigan. Followed by your webmaster under the name BuhByeArchie!, with likelihood of nothing but falling from the mountaintop. And goodbye Archie is right. Miller time is no more in the hotbed of NCAA basketball. A new era has begun! Bring back the Hoosiers to prominence, Mike Woodson. Indiana bred and Big Ten player of the year in 1980. Home Sweet Home! And throw in Thad Matta too! Third place on Sunday fell to Diana Marquez who hoped for Villanova, but alas, no more. John Rapp and Krampe Kynedi rounded out the top 5 heading into the Monday/Tuesday games. Kudos to Kirsten Wags, 11th on the list.
Final action early this week brought us to the Final Four. And currently, here is how we stand.
#1 on the leaderboard is Keith Bratton. Long time supporter and donor to our charitable event. And it’s a family affair, but this time, Keith himself holds the top spot in Masters. Keith has UCLA in the finals. Multiple points shot him up the leaderboard with this 11 seed. He is the only entrant to choose UCLA to make it to the final four.
Funny though, I’d bet a pretty penny he was thinking Michigan State in the play in game, and rode them to the finals. Haha 2 for 1 and I can’t recall a play-in game winner responsible for a tremendous place of finish in this pool, let alone the win. VCU in 2011 was the only other team to advance to the final dance.
Current runner up is Joe Smith (Joe Smith 3), Sherwood Joe, local product and long time participant. Needs Houston in a big way. Speaking of another Joe Smith, glad to have Smitty, (Joe C) back again, recently transplanting himself from the sunny beaches of California to a free state, Texas. Austin welcomes you! Good run in the pool this year!
3rd place still with Tweety Bird, hanging on. Not much change with 4 through 8 with Gary G, John Rapp, Diana Marquez, and The Kegster, Jill Spaetti in 7th followed by Kynedi K.
9th place to John Lamb, climbing up the leaderboard and Travis Farhar in 10th but about to fall off the leaderboard. He is still giving it a good run for last place. Hoops Queen sound in, and show me the money!!
All tournament updates and what if scenarios are posted.
Tournament Accounting and Demographic Update
Unofficial # of entrees is 419. Some are suspect, suspicious, bold faced intrusions, and may be eliminated. A few others need to cough up the dough. Did we forget? Either way we are pleased and surprised by over 400 entrees with the year off.
18 states in the union are represented, from Washington to Florida, Texas to Connecticut, and the usual home bases of Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Kansas. Michigan of course.
Eventual prize pool dollars and charity dollars will be tallied and finalized after the tournament concludes, but so far we are doing very well.
Please note: Checks written and sent to me have NOT been cashed yet!!
Charity News
Special thanks as always to the majority of you who have given additional donations to the charities. If you get time, review previous pool updates, and the charities given to and the amounts over the years as listed on the website. The endowment fund grows again!!!
Thanks to the following individuals who keep this pool going year after year:
Erv Aeschliman Brandon Anslinger Don Apple. Andrew Bender
Tom Berkley. Dan Bishop Billy Blake Brandon Boots
Vickie Buse Jill Carpenter Gayle Coudret Brandon Crane
Andrew DeLoof Christian Fletcher Sam Garau AJ Gauthier
Grant Gilles Brian Goffinet Todd Herrenbruck Brandon Iafrate. Chris Jesop Steve Jones Lynne Massengale Kevin Kalb
Dave Machisko Ken Marshall et al JoLayne Meyer John Miles
Clay Miller Ryan Neal Deb North Michael O’Connor
Bill Papineau Donna Preziotti. John Radtke TJ Schick
Jake Schiff Kevin Shinar Keith Shipman Joe C. Smith
Sam Stratman Brent Vanderheide Haley Vos Lee Wagmeister
Tom Weber Jon Wendt Kevin Wetzler Melissa Wideman
Lebra Winiger. Danny Winn. John Wojkovich
Amber Anslinger Mike Arco David Carlson Brian Cooper
Phil Coudret. Andrew DeVries Dennis Dewey Melanie Emge
Gary Gurtcheff Jim Hall. Paul Kainrath John Lamb
Steven Mank. Chris McConnell Kelly Morgan. Lynne Morgan
Patrick Morgan Ryan Morgan Dharmesh Patel Vince Prop
Mike Pyferroen Tom Rose Brad Smith Tony Stephens
Pat Wempe John Willis
Ron Bonger Keith Bratton Randy Braun Dan Brown
Jack Cleary John Cummins Lois Davidson Patty Dewey
Scott Elliott Travis Farhar Rick Friedman Clint Keown
Leslie Gabel Kwon Julie Leaf. Colleen Martin Judy McDonald
Paul Perry Karen Rush. Joe Smith Fred Stutz
Dale Todd Rob Wathen Shannon Wathen Greg Wilming
Mike Cleary Scott Gowdy Tom Waits
Phil Gilson Mike Head Skip Seamon
Lance Payton Stacy Payton
There may be more coming, and if I left anyone out, my apologies, and please bring it to my attention! That’s about 108 participants who went the extra mile. That’s over half the field and more assuming family members not listed in multiple entrees.
Special thanks to those last listed. Major $$ and much thanks!!
Final Four begins this weekend. Best of luck to you all still in contention!
“Let’s Make It Happen”
2021 Update I
March Madness 2021 Update 1
Glad to be back! What an incredible comeback in 2021. March Madness is live. Upsets galore. Who would have figured, the greatest of all Duke, Kentucky, Michigan State (kind of) and others would not even make the tournament. Who would have believed the premiere power conference in the land, the BIG TEN, would have ALL teams eliminated aside for Meeeeechigan? Who would have believed that the PAC-12 which most EVERY pundit on earth said was a HORRIBLE conference with no standing would have total dominance to date? I think the national media and us as individuals (that includes you Duke and Kentucky fans) must realize that there is great basketball played outside of the Midwest. And never disregard Sister Jean. How about Loyola of Chicago? And what about the upstarts? How many teams over seed #8 are in the Sweet 16? LMAO. Prognosticators be damned.
Syracuse, really? Of course. Always! Have we not learned?. The Beavers? UCLA? Credos to Mr. Cronin at UCLA. Nobody wanted the job. Left Cincinnati as good as it most ever was in recent years, and look at them now. Four players on their active roster for next year. Makes my heart sad. Abilene Christian beating the Longhorns in round one? North Texas? Houston? Thought the Lone Star State was all about football. Oh yes, Baylor.
Action heats up again this weekend. Been a long time coming. Covid be damned. Heartfelt sorrow for VCU. Bogus. Blame Fauci.
Pool Update:
We at March Madness Central are incredibly busy sorting through the legitimate entries and the hapless individuals to find us online and enter with no intention of paying or helping with our charities. Fortunately we have a relative limited list and all is well. Just don’t know the exact number of entrees to date but it will be at least 400!. Not bad for a last minute decision to host the pool for the 24th year? The actual accounting remains to be completed and is a work in progress. I implore you to submit your entry fees if you have not done so already. What I can say, is that extra charity donations are doing well and I personally thank all of you have gone the extra mile. I hope to weed out the slackers, and I will have an update for y’all again.
I want to again thank Gary Gurtcheff for his help in this endeavor. He runs the pool as webmaster, takes care of the updates being posted, the up to date results, is solely responsible for the software, and takes care of the discrepancies. We could not do this without him. Please send him a note.
Current leaders and full standing are posted. www.garygurtcheff.com
Congratulations to our first round leader, Michael O’Connor. Means little but you get your name in lights!! Funny thing is second place was Dale Cardinal in his attempt to come in last!. Great how that works. Ty Herrunbruck was third, followed by Sphia, entered by a great doctor, Rick Wepsic. You know the rest if you are paying attention.
But round one standings do not stand. See the current leaders after the end of the field of 32. And we are on to the Sweet Sixteen coming to you Saturday.
Leaders after Round 2:
John Rapp
John Miles
Debbie McDaniel
Diana Marquez
Donna Preziotti
Gary Gurtcheff
Travis Farhar
John Cummins
Michael O’Connor
Ty Herrenbruck
Check the update standing moving on to the Sweet Sixteen this weekend at www.garygurtcheff.com
Peace and out until next time.
Thank you to all who are sincere and loyal.
JPM
2021 Welcome Letter
MARCH MADNESS 2021 NCAA BASKETBALL POOL
March is once again here, after a 2020 interruption due to the Covid pandemic. NCAA basketballʼs greatest week is upon us and all action will take place in the heart of it all, Indiana!. What a year and with many of the power blue blood teams officially, out, many surprises may be in store! Welcome back friends, family, prognosticators, financiers and above all else, contributors. You all know the rules and how the system works. Only slight rule changes. Send me your checks. Venmo is fine. See and read the rules page carefully.
Our March Madness Endowment Fund was established in 2008. It is professionally run through the Warrick County Community Foundation and the nine county, Community Foundation Alliance. At the end of 2008, the total money in your fund was $ 4097. As of the end of 2020, via a Fund Activity Report I am currently reading, the March Madness Endowment Fund had an ending fund balance of $126,032!!! Funds historic gift value thanks to you all was $89,621. We have accumulated $$ through interest and investments. We have additional given out grants and the like. Money that grows is money that can be given out. Check out our charities page at the top of the website. Although your nominal contribution for all this fun is small, over 80% of all our charity money raised comes from your additional contributions. Year after year, individuals contribute from five, to several hundred dollars in additional funding. This of course continues to be the reason for our being. If you havenʼt before, consider this, and drop some extra cash with your entry donation!
There are NO format changes to this yearʼs pool, once again. NCAA basketball tournament selections and seedings will come out Sunday, March 14th. Entry into the tournament closes with the tip off of the first round games beginning Thursday morning, March 18th. For each entry, fill out the form all the way through to the finals, selecting the winner of each game. Donʼt worry about the play-in games on Tuesday and Wednesday. They donʼt count to the standings. Read the rules sheet!!
Important Tournament Pool information
Entry fee is $25 (twenty-five dollars) PER ENTRY. $10 of each initial entry will be donated to charity, $15 will go to the prize pool. Again, we encourage you to make an additional contribution, (as the majority of you so kindly do).
Remember any additional moneys donated qualify as a tax-deduction, so if you desire proof of such, you may also enclose a separate check made out to one of the charities listed below. I will forward the check (as is) with the rest of the donations. Otherwise, simply make out your check to me, and mail all checks and additional donations to:
John P. Morgan, MD
PO Box 1136
Newburgh, IN 47629
The remainder of the pool will be distributed to the winners as follows:
1st --- 40% 6th --- 4%
2nd --- 20% 7th --- 3%
3rd --- 10% 8th --- 3%
4th --- 7% 9th --- 2%
5th --- 5% 10th --- 2% Last Place --- 4%
No other gimmicks this year. Too late in the game.
2021 Charity Information
We are excited for our 24th anniversary tournament this year. The endowment fund lives on. As mentioned, over $126,000 at the end of 2020.
In addition to your pool entry fees, you may certainly (and we encourage you to) send a separate check made out directly to the charity of your choice, and forward to the following address:
John P. Morgan PO Box 1136 Newburgh, IN 47629-1136
In addition to the March Madness Endowment Fund, additional named charities are to be beneficiaries for our 2021 pool. Further information to follow. You may include extra money in your check to me with entry fees, or write a separate check and forward to the above address.
This years’s additional charities are as follows:
- Potter’s Wheel (www.potterswheelministries.com)
- Isaiah 117 House (isaiah117house.com)
- Life Choices Maternity and Youth Home (LCEvv.org)
Please review these organizations by visiting the websites. Further information will be sent by email or posted, but please consider them with additional donations.
Please read the RULES page carefully!
Thanks again.
March Madness Committee
2019 Final Update
March Madness Final Update
April 14, 2019
“Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus”
Arguably the best NCAA Elite Eight, Final Four, Semifinals, and Final Game combined in the history of the tournament came to a thrilling conclusion last Monday night. Annual drama, unlikely finishes, controversy, more controversy, overtime, and more overtime! History was made on many fronts. CSI was even called in to review fingertip evidence from a hundred angles to overturn Texas Tech’s last chance to win the title. That was after Columbo himself could not decide. And “One more thing”, Virginia never looked back, and championed free throws to pull away in overtime 85-77. That’s 162 points. 5 way tie gets some of you 20. After an ignominious loss for the first time ever to a #16 seed (UMBC) last year, the Cavaliers were granted three wishes. Three miracles occurred. First over Purdue, then over Auburn after the Tiger celebration began, and finally against the Red Raiders.
All instant classics.
Kyle Guy, Mr. Indiana basketball, did it again, calm, cool, and collected and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Born on August 11, 1997, same day, but three years later than this year’s tournament champion!!!
Congratulations to our 2019 March Madness Champion………….
~ Kelly Morgan
Born in Texas, and for no other reason, Kelly rode the Red Raiders to the final game, but didn't think they could actually win it all so she chose Virginia to fill the void. Kelly is an Indiana University graduate from two years ago and currently resides in Chicago, Illinois. She works for BreakThru Beverage and handles all the accounts around Wrigley Field. Interestingly on the day of the finals, Kelly was at the Cubs home Opening Day (working of course) with the March Madness Championship on the line. Tom Waits, aka Ryne Sandberg, conceded that evening and took home third place. .Kelly played high school golf with Tom’s daughter-in-law Katie and credits her help on the course. Kelly will be back in town Thursday to collect her winnings and accept congratulations. Daddy’s ‘Lil Darling. Now she can add A+ Basketball Prognosticator to her resume. Way to go Sugarpop!!
This year was a family affair on the leaderboard. Thanks goes out to Jill Tullar Carpenter, executive director of the Community Foundation Alliance (administers our March Madness fund). Jill’s son Alex took second place, husband Jon took seventh place, and Jill shared in 162nd. Keith Bratton negotiated tenth place and his son Austin stormed to fifth place.
And she who would be first shall not be last, but dad was:-)
Tournament Recap
Apologies for the delay. Accounting took awhile, and we have finally settled in on an official 519 entries this year, which includes our personal donation to cover ALL of the unpaid slackers. More this year than most unfortunately, but no matter. However we still want your money. So send it in. Or Venmo/jpmorganmd.
Another record number of entries this year, and we thank you all for participating. 5 of our top ten had Texas Tech in the finals. 8 had Virginia to win the game. No one had all four teams in the final four The order of finish and everything else can be perused on the website, www.garygurtcheff.com Special thanks as always to our super webmaster who makes this all work! And makes the endeavor worthwhile!
Charity Information
Special thanks to all the March Madness participants who have donated $ 8005 additional dollars to charity. See list below! $2595 also comes from the pool itself. 130 individuals have sent in extra money and thanks to everyone involved, we have raised a grand total of $10,600 this year to distribute to the following organizations and our endowment fund, in the amounts listed. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! This is a new record for total money raised for charity.
Evansville Rescue Mission: $ 2000
Tri-State Food Bank Back Pack Program for Kids $ 2000
Ark Crisis Child Care Center Fairy Tale Ball: $ 600
March Madness Endowment Fund: $ 6000 ($ 9000 with matching funds)
An additional $3000 will be given thanks to matching funds from the Eli Lilly Endowment for every dollar the March Madness Endowment Fund brings in. This will raise the Grand Total of charitable donations for 2019 to $13,600. Thank you so very much!!
Cheers to our additional donors. We have now surpassed 55% of all March Madness participants/families donating additional dollars to the charities. Special thanks to:
Gary Bellew Ron Bonger Keith Bratton
Dan Brown Jack Cleary Mike Cleary
Jon Coleman Chris Combs Lois Davidson
Patty Dewey Scott Elliott Mark Erickson
Travis Farhar Brad Fulkerson Sam Garau
AJ Gauthier Phil Gilson Scott Gowdy
Gary Gurtcheff Jim Hall Kevin Kalb
Clint Keown Brian Kwon Julie Leaf
Colleen Martin Eric Miller Sara Miller
Christy Mills Alan Newman Lance Payton
Stacy Payton Paul Perry Larry Renschler
Tom Rose Karen Rush Keith Shipman
Tom Slade Joe Smith Tony Stephens
Fred Stutz Dale Todd Mark Vickers
Tom Waits Rob Wathen Pat Wempe
Rick Wepsic John Willis Greg Willming
Additional thanks to:
Ervin Aeschliman Amber Anslinger Mike Arco Brooke Barkley
Don Barry Tom Berkley Sr Drew Bender Dan Bishop
Michael Blake Joel Bowers Mike Brown David Carlson
Jill Carpenter Tom Carpenter Craig Carter Paul Catterson
Roger Colman Brian Cooper Gary Delk Aaron Deloof
Mariellen Dentino Andre Dugas Steve Elliott Melanie Emge
Ryan Fears Rick Friedman Steve Gilliam Brian Goffinet
Corey Greening Kevin Ham Jim Hauser Shane Headlee
Jim Heinrich Wayne Hentrup Todd Herrenbruck
Brandon Iafrate Terry Iafrate Chris Jesop Jason Jones
Steve Jones Rob Kadela Paul Kainrath Ray Kixmiller
John Lamb Doug Lane Michael Lightner
Dave Machismo Steve Mank Ken Marshall Dee Massengale
Fred McCool Jim McDaniel Judy McDonald Greg Meyer
John Miles Keith Miller Dana Mills Ann Morgan
Lynne Morgan Patrick Morgan Ryan Morgan Michael O’Connor
Skip Oliver Bill Papineau Donna Preziosi Mike Pyferroen
Jason Robbins TJ Schick Jake Schiff Kevin Shinar
Mert Shipman Joe C Smith Bill Vukovich
Lee Wagmeister Steve Ward Tom Weber Kevin Wetzler
Melissa Wideman Duane Williams Lebra Winiger Danny Winn
Jake Wojkovich Ryan Wolfe
My apologies if I have missed anyone who has contributed additional dollars.
Final Standings and March Madness Winners 2019
1st-Kelly Morgan Chicago, IL $ 3114
2nd- Alex Tullar Indianapolis, IN $ 1557
3rd- Tom Waits Newburgh, IN $ 779
4th- Gary Bellew Newburgh, IN $ 545
5th- Austin Bratton Jacksonville, FL $ 390
6th- Chris Tilley Walkersville, MD $ 312
7th- Casey Keown Evansville, IN $ 234
Tie- Jon Carpenter Newburgh, IN $ 234
9th- Stephen Weber Evansville, IN $ 156
10th- Keith Bratton Evansville, IN $ 156
Last Place- Yours Truly Newburgh, IN $ 312
Goat- Dan Brown Evansville, IN $ 100
162nd Place- (5 way tie): Tim Dant, Ty Watkins, Keith Miller, Jill Carpenter and Lana McConnell (again)$ 20 a piece
Bridesmaid-Casey Eaton $0 No Money. At least your name is in lights!
2nd Bridesmaid-Brian Cooper. Shout out to the other commish!
3rd Bridesmaid-Rick Friedman. A good run!
And Tiger Woods won the Masters today!
~“Read the book. Follow the directions. History repeats itself. But every now and then, YOU will make history”
~ Rest in peace Terry Friedman, Patty Gowdy, Mark LeMond, and Stevie Gabel
See the rest of you in 2020 for our 24th year God willing
2019 Update II
March Madness Update II March 30-31, 2019
Chalk Cracks
“Guns Up. Red Raiders Clamp down and take out Gonzaga”
In the initial game of the Elite
Eight, in Anaheim, California, #3
seed Texas Tech had a tall order,
but was up to the task, defeating
the #1 Bulldogs 75-69. Gonzaga
again becomes Gonza-gone,
despite gamely efforts by
Hachimura and Clarke (sounds
like a Chicago intersection?
Or great steak house??)
Amarillo by morning, but two
hours south, Lubbock was
rocking Saturday night.
The Masked Rider was the only
thing missing as no horses
indoors on this day away from
home, but the old Ghost Rider
was there in spirit. Did you know
that Texas Tech had the nation’s
first school mascot to feature a
live horse at a football game,
long before Chief Osceola at
Florida State and the USC Trojan
Horse. Of course this is
basketball, so Raider Red was a
credible stand in. For the first
time in their history and nearly a
century, Texas Tech ballers are
heading to the Final Four. A lock
down defense held the most
prolific offense to under 70
points. An unusual two shot technical foul on an inbound play sealed the deal. The Red Raiders forced 16 turnovers and limited the long range jumpers. Matt Mooney on offense with 17 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals, and Tariq Owens on defense with 3
blocks. Chris Beard, coach of the team from Tumbleweed, Texas pulled off another gem having lost his stars from last year and taking this rag tag band of no-namers to the big dance.
“Virginia Survives Game of the Year in Overtime Thriller vs. Purdue”
An unbelievable game, an unbelievable finish. Carson Edwards of Purdue had the game of his life and a 3 point shooting spree from points unknown, but missed the final attempt and the Cavaliers are moving on, 80-75. Fast paced and beyond the world shots from both teams, edge of your seat excitement on Saturday night. It’s a game worth seeing in case you missed it. Mamadi Diakite’s midrange jumper at the buzzer fell true and overtime it was when it seemed Purdue would take out another #1. Like father, like son, Tony Bennett has his team in the final show. But although both the overtime session and the end of regulation were mesmerizing, how the game got to the add-on 5 minutes has to be replayed. Ryan Cline (money) somehow missed the chance at the free throw line to give the Boilers a two possession lead. A purposeful foul by Purdue while up 3 points with under 7 seconds left. First throw made but the second missed. Diakite, the tall one, slapped the ball all the way beyond half court. In a not a chance scenario, Kihei Clark recovered for Virginia, tossed it forcibly to Mamadi D, who turned and threw up a perfect prayer at the buzzer, and the game goes to overtime. Equally close and tense, the Cavaliers held on to win, dashing the dreams of an overachieving Purdue team. Best performance of the tournament goes to Carsen Edwards, scoring 42 points including 10 three-pointers from way beyond the arc. Virginia’s Kyle Guy with 25 points on the night, returned from an ankle injury in the first half to contribute 5 three- pointers of his own. Back and forth and nothing but the bottom of the net for the two seemingly heavyweights. 33 feet. Swish. Your turn. I called Bank.
“Auburn Stuns Kentucky in Another Overtime Finish”
Charles Barkley was nothing but smiles as his parrot (Larry Bird) truly is keeping the dream alive. First ever final four for Auburn. Bruce Pearl, local coach at one time, led the University of Southern Indiana to the Division II national championship in 1995 and has the current Tigers rolling. Taking out Kansas, North Carolina, and now Kentucky, 77-71. This was a swat fest, 12 blocks. Kentucky’s length seemed unconquerable, but Auburn played with the tenacity of the hungrier cat. Harper and Brown combined for 50. PJ Washington scored 28 off the bench for the Wildcats recovering from injury, but not enough. Kentucky but 57% from the line and 23% from beyond the arc. Always a bit sad when Kentucky goes out as the local balloon deflates, but I’m sure five new freshman will bring them back next year
“Duke Houdini Act Exposed. Sparty owns March”
The Zion show is over. Ones and dones again fall to chemistry and experience. No Kentucky, No Duke. Michigan State and Tom Izzo own March. I even saw it on the T- shirt! The Big Lebowski and the overall #1 seed go down 68-67. Only fitting on the last day of March, the Madness continues with yet another thriller! All four games this weekend were instant classics. Chalk bores. Chalk breaks. Chalk drops. In their third consecutive last shot to determine the winner of the game, the Blue bedeviled came up short. Kenny Goins hit the deciding three pointer to give Michigan State a two point lead. On a day, the wily weasly one had a chance to set the record for most teams to the final four, eclipsing John Wooden who retired on this day after his 12th appearance and a championship to boot, it wasn’t meant to be. Finally after only one success, Izzy gets the best of coach K. It didn’t look pretty early for Sparty especially with Williamson having a weak first half. Looked like this one might be over early, but MSU rallied late in the opening 20 minute set, and took the lead to the locker room by 4 with a 13-0 run. Zion however seemed unstoppable in the second half, but appeared to wither down the stretch after doing it all (rebounds, dunks, blocks, and even three point shots). Cassius Winston ran out the clock to secure the Spartan victory. Solid performance by the leader with 20 points and with10 assists. MVP is right Zach Rose. Duke committed 17 turnovers to 7 for Michigan State
On To the Final Four Leaders after Round 4
On the eve of the Elite Eight, Terry Iafrate had assumed the March Madness lead after the third round, but alas it was short-lived for but a game. Red Raider faithful brought the points times three and we have a shakeup on the leaderboard. Congratulations to the following top ten prognosticators who now hold the lead after the first four rounds of the madness.
Current Leaders after Round 4.
1st- Ty Weber- Wearing Barkley Auburn jersey as we speak
2nd- Terry Iafrate - May get back on top after round 3 with Spartan win
Scott Gowdy - Posted up to the top spot early in round 4 but party is over for Duke 4th- Dennis Martin - My how you can frame this. Unfortunately the time has come to say
goodbye
Danny Winn- Upstate PA friend and supporter of the Madness
6th- Max Simpson - Glad you got your picks fixes. But had your time in the spotlight Ernie Banks - Texas Tech got you here TW, but so long
8th- Bailey Bratton - Little known fact. Keith Bratton was in 8th place last year in this exact spot. How did that work out?
9th- Rick Friedman - Hanging in there Rick.
10th- Kelly Morgan - Chicago entry. Red Raiders must win.
Bridesmaid- Ryne Sandberg- Kerry Wood next? Hack Wilson? Ron Santo? Two in the top 11 is sensational with a chance to win it all after all these years
Last Place-Yep. That’s right. Edged out the Mr. Eaton and the webmaster in the last game. UC Irving went down. 12’s over 5’s. Or is it 5’s over 12’s??
Tournament Recap
Over 500 entries this year. Another record. Unofficial as of yet until the final accounting is done. Multiple states represented. Illinois, Florida, Louisiana, Washington, California, Texas, Michigan, Ohio, North Carolina, Tennessee, and more.
Charity Information
Special thanks to all the March Madness participants who have donated additional dollars to charity. Never too late to continue to contribute. Money continues to roll in thanks to your benevolence. Individual checks may be made out to any one of the following organizations and forwarded to me at the following address (or add additional funds to your entry fees if you unfortunately and currently are in arrears):
John P. Morgan, MD PO Box 1136 Newburgh, IN 47629
Charity information is detailed on the home page at www.garygurtcheff.com (see index on the right. 2019 Charity Info)
- 1 Evansville Rescue Mission
- 2 Ark Crisis Child Care Center: We are again supporting the Fairy Tale Ball!
- 3 Tri-State Food Bank (Backpack Program for children)
- 4 March Madness Endowment Fund: Thanks to your generosity our endowed fund is
now over $ 92,000. Administered through the Warrick County Community Foundation, our fund assists in providing grant monies for children and youth services in
southern Indiana. Please consider an additional donation to support our ongoing endeavor. The principal of the fund always stays. The interest money is eligible for grants.
And now, it’s...............
On to Minnesota!!
Final Four awaits in Minneapolis
#3 Texas Tech vs. #2 Michigan State #1 Virginia vs. #5 Auburn
“ Most people have the will to win, few have the will to
prepare to win”
-Bobby Knight