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Care to Dance?
It's that time of year again, when the country turns to all things March Madness. It's too early to predict the actual matchups, but turn the page for historical reminders and quirky facts that can help inform your bracket picks after Selection Sunday
REMEMBER THE MADNESS
There are 9.2 quintillion ways to fill out a men's tournament bracket. Taking some historic lessons—even if they involve colors and mascots—maybe can't hurt?
[The following text appears within a diagram. Please see hardcopy or PDF for actual diagram.]
No. 12 seeds have won 35.6% of their first-round games since 1985, according to ncaa.com.
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"Sad piccolo player" became a meme after eighth-seeded N.C. State upset No. 1 Villanova in 2015.
Louisville is the only final winner in the past 14 seasons that did not have blue as one of its school colors. (The Cardinals have since been forced to vacate their title due to NCAA violations.)
Tennessee has never been a No. 1 seed and has never reached the Final Four. Will this be the year the Volunteers join Syracuse (2003) and Florida ('06, '07) as the only orange schools to win titles?
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Prepare to see a lot of Bill Murray: His son Luke is an assistant coach for likely No. 1 seed Xavier.
CAT PEOPLE TAKE NOTE
The Wildcats of Villanova (1985, 2016), Kentucky (1996, 1998, 2012) and Arizona (1997) are 6--3 in championship games since 1985. However, if you like to pick your bracket based on mascot matchups, you should know that dog teams are 35--25 against cat teams in Big Dance games since '85.
NATIONAL CHAMPION
THE SHOT
Duke's Christian Laettner's buzzer-beating 16-foot turnaround to beat Kentucky in the 1992 Elite Eight remains one of the greatest shots of all time.
FINAL FOUR
March 31 & April 2 San Antonio
Teams seeded 13th have beaten No. 4 seeds 26 of 132 times since 1985. The most well-known upset came in '98, when Valparaiso tripped Ole Miss on Bryce Drew's last-second three.
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An 11th seed has made the Final Four three times: LSU in 1986, George Mason (above) in 2006 and VCU in 2011.
A fifth seed has never won a championship. Butler came the closest, in 2010, but Duke held on for a 61--59 win after Gordon Hayward's half-court heave hit the back iron.
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The lowest seed to ever win a title? Villanova (at No. 8), in 1985.
SI'S ALL-AMERICA TEAM
G Jalen Brunson
6'3" junior, Villanova
His steady hand at the point—along with his 19.0 points and 4.8 assists per game—were key to Nova's No. 1 offense.
G Trae Young
6'2" freshman, Oklahoma
Even with a late-season slump, the Norman native led the nation in scoring (27.5 ppg) and assists (8.9)—a first.
G Devonte' Graham
6'2" senior, Kansas
The hard-nosed point guard averaged 17.6 points, 7.2 assists and 4.0 boards to lead KU to a 14th straight Big 12 title.
F Marvin Bagley III
6'11" freshman, Duke
A late five-star commit, he lived up to the hype with 20.7 points (on 60.4% shooting) and 11.2 rebounds per game.
F Deandre Ayton
7'1" freshman, Arizona
The Bahamas-born big was a rock during a tumultuous season, averaging 19.9 points, 11.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks.
Defender of the Year
F Isaiah Wilkins
6'7" senior, Virginia
MVP of the nation's No. 1 D, he averaged 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals. He also contributed 6.4 rebounds and 6.0 points.
Coach of the Year
Chris Holtmann
Ohio State
Hired last June after a 17--15 season, the former Butler head man revived the Buckeyes with 24 wins and counting.
SI.COM
For up-to-the-minute bracket predictions, players to watch and everything you need to know on Selection Sunday, log on to si.com or watch SI Now.
