Second Round Thoughts

It was certainly a very memorable first weekend of March Madness. The biggest story of the second round has to be Kansas losing to Northern Iowa. For a team that was such a favorite to win the whole thing to go down to Northern Iowa in the second round is truly stunning. Kansas really did not play well in either one of its games, and I really don't know why. You have to hand it to the Panthers, though: they made some clutch shots and flat outplayed Kansas.

Maryland fans are definitely hurting today. The Terps made a great comeback in the final minute, only to see Michigan State nail a 3 pointer as time expired to win. Maryland came so close to a Sweet 16 bid, only to fall short. That leaves Duke as the only ACC team to make it through the first weekend. The Blue Devils used strong defense to coast to an easy win over Cal.

This field is definitely a testament to parity. 11 conferences are represented in the Sweet 16. And we still have a 9, 10, 11 and 12 seed alive. It should make for a very interesting second week.