Kansas slays Tar Heels, overturns poor first half to give Slayers piece of title

 

Well the Happy Handicapper nailed it with the Slayers living up to their morning line favorite role and capturing a piece of the 2022 Calcutta. The game was a real ankle-breaker for the Commish whose Tar Heels let a 15 point halftime lead slip away.  We saw shades of this potential collapse in the Baylor game and Coach Self knew to apply pressure on the winded and tired Heels.

Have to say it was an epic tournament, with a 15-seed basically determining the championship.  The Commish had opportunities but losing three head-to-head matchups (KU-UNC, St.Peters-Purdue and KU-Creighton) eventually spelled their doom.

It was the fifth title for the Slayers and third in five years for the Commish after a 17-year drought. The Commish is basically the Brandon Beane of the Calcutta.

Dreaming of that 2023 three-peat.  Never in the history of the Calcutta has there been a three-peat and we'll see come next year's Madness.

Other than predicting the Slayers to win it all at 2-1, the Commish's Kreskin skills waned in his morning line column.  The next best prediction was 10-Miami being the Chieftans sleeper and that Arizona would cost them in the long run.  A solid third-place finish by the Bunch, who seem to always be sniffing the board.

Had to post this Miami GIF for the Chieftans.

And as is the tradition.....

It took until Final Four weekend and a torn Achilles, but the Amigos lasted longer than expected and made a big run with the Wildcats. If you had the over, you're a winner: 2-Villanova is their big dog -- is it enough? Over/under on fat lady singing our favorite tune is March 26.

As always....thanks for playing and see ya next March.

Commish, out.

Blue blood Final Four will decide wacky 22 Calcutta

 

It's blueblood city in NOLA for this year's Final Four and a formful Elite Eight provided this wild and wacky Calcutta some super games next Saturday night. 

What's wacky about it is that this year's Calcutta could be decided on St. Peter's beating Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen, a win that could be pivotal for the Slayers showing that their morning line favorite role was well deserved.

It looks like the title will come down to three teams with a dormant Chieftans squad that will have to watch from home (the teepee) and root from the sidelines for a Villanova (Amigos) versus Duke (Elders) finale. They sit tied with the Commish at 10 wins after Miami bowed out with a putrid second half effort versus Kansas. 

The Commish gets an 8-seed to the Final Four and gets to meet hated archrival Duke? Sign me up, boys. Playing loose and without any pressure, this team won maybe the toughest region according to pre-tourney pundits. Can the Commish go back-to-back to garner his third title in five years? I count seven out of eight possible scenarios where yours truly shares or wins he title outright. Buckle up. 

The morning line favorites sit right behind the Chieftans and Commish with nine wins and are right in the thick of things with the lone 1-seed remaining. They'll need a Kansas sweep with a title win over Duke to win it outright. The pre-Calcutta favorite is still the chalk heading to NOLA.

The Amigos and Elders can get to nine wins and a shot at third place with a national championship run. They're still hanging around and trying to play the spoiler role in addition to trying to win a little do-re-me.

Live look in at the Win-Docs Calcutta. Welcome to the basement.

Well here's a look at the eight scenarios and he payouts....

Duke over Villanova

Chieftans $750 (share title)

Commish $750 (share title)

Elders $350

Slayers $150

Duke over Kansas

Chieftans $600 (share title)

Commish $600 (share title)

Slayers $600 (share title)

Elders $200

UNC over Villanova

Commish $1,200

Chieftans $500

Slayers $300

UNC over Kansas

Commish $1,200

Chieftans $400

Slayers $400

Villanova over Duke

Chieftans $750 (share title)

Commish $750 (share title)

Amigos $350

Slayers $150

Villanova over UNC

Commish $1,200

Chieftans $500

Amigos $350

Slayers $150

Kansas over Duke

Slayers $1,200

Chieftans $400

Commish $400

Kansas over UNC

Slayers $950 (share title)

Commish $750 (share title)

Chieftans $300

Enjoy the Final Four!

Elite Eight is set, Commish, Slayers honing in on Chiefs

 

The 2022 Calcutta is tightening up, with the Bunch of Chieftans hanging on to the lead as the Commish and the Slayers start breathing down their necks.  

The Elite Eight is here and we have a 15-seed who crashed the party for the Slayers, beating the Commish's top ranked seed left in Purdue, making this Calcutta one of the tightest ones in recent memory.

Big matchup between St. Pete's and UNC on Sunday will be pivotal to how this whole she-bang ends up.

The Chieftans held the top spot with an automatic win when the two teams remaining played in the Sweet Sixteen. They control their own destiny and a win against Kansas in the Elite Eight could be enough to capture the Chalise.

The Commish is the only squad to send two teams to the Elite Eight cruising in with upset wins by Carolina (eliminating the Catholic Boyz) and Houston. The holdback on Arizona proved to be the right one as the Cougs took down the 1-seed on Thursday night.

The Slayers look the most dangerous of all with 1-Kansas the lone remaining top seed alive in the tournament. Head-to-head with the Chiefs and the Commish on Sunday are critical.

More like ejection!  The Counselors went quietly into the night, and look to be on the outside looking in stuck in the clubhouse with eight wins.

The Amigos (Nova) and Statesmen (Dook) can only max at nine wins and the Win-Docs (Hogs) with seven, so their title hopes are dashed and can only win the National Champ dough at this point.

Is that white smoke coming from the Vatican? As suspected we wave good-bye to the Catholic Boyz with losses by Providence and UCLA to bow out. Looks like we might have a pope change at the top of the Boyz lineup.

Good luck all in the Elite Eight.  Final Four report by Monday morning.

Last game of weekend decides Calcutta lead

 

ROCKY MOUNTAINS -- It took a Sunday nightcap to determine the leader heading into the Sweet Sixteen with the Bunch of Chieftans enjoying another sweep of the Friday-Sunday games. They take four teams into the Sweet Sixteen and look to be the early favorite to take the 2022 Calcutta. I will say that I rewrote this baby a few times, starting with six minutes left and a decent Arizona lead, to rebooting when TCU took control in the final two minutes. They took the Commish's blogging abilities into overtime, for sure.

The Tribe were smoking cigars over peace pipes on Sunday, crushing the Second Round with wins by Arizona, Texas Tech and scoring two upset wins with Iowa State and Miami (FL). The two latter teams looked super good in disposing of a 2 and a 3 seed in dominant fashion. The Chieftans may just run away with this thing next weekend.

The Counselors who were the first round leaders aren't about to concede at this point, advancing top seed Gonzaga and Michigan (who will face favored Villanova next) into the Sweet Sixteen. They needed an upset win by TCU in the finale on Sunday to even things up with the Bunch, but they just couldn't get over the top of the top seed Wildcats.  The Judge hasn't ruled the barristers out just yet.

Boiler up says the Commish. The defending champs, like a bad penny, are getting hard to put away. Advancing three squads into the Sweet Sixteen, they're still hanging around sitting in third-place heading into the second weekend of the tournament. Houston made mincemeat of Illinois and UNC escaped a potential choke of the century against Baylor. The Commish is still in the house.

The morning line favorites are between a Rock Chalk Jayhawk run to the championship or an early beach vacation. Gotta give them props for the St. Peter's selection, but for that thought they'd be dead in the water. 

Give the Catholic Boyz credit for having a catholic institution carrying them into the Sweet Sixteen. Both 4-seeds advanced to the Sixteen and the they'll need either team to make a run to hit the board, but who had them still sticking around at this point?

And then there was one. The fat lady is humming....the gif is all lined up. Will it be Thursday? Saturday? Or a Final Four run that gives them a shot at some dough.....you make the call.

Like the Amigos, the Elders are haphazardly hanging on with the Dukies. Will the old man Coach K keep the old guys alive? Ironically, a squad that has made it's money with the mid-seeds has only a 2 seed remaining. Alive and kicking, but have a lot of ground to make up.

Ricky Bobby time in Win-Doc HQ. "If you're not first, you're last." 

Yep, they're last.

Enjoy the Sweet Sixteen boys, should be a rousing conclusion to this year's edition.

First Round upsets highlight tight Calcutta

 

AMHERST -- Parity has found its way into the 2022 Calcutta. If it stays this tight we're going to need a cash call for a slew of yellow jackets. Can't remember it being this tight after Round One with more than half of the teams having four wins or better. Waiting out the late Friday night games at Commish Central with the Calcutta first round lead in the balance of two of the late games.

Counselors make late Friday night run into top spot

The Counselors trailing through the first two rounds, cruised into the top spot with two late night wins on Friday night with Michigan State and TCU. Big dogs Gonzaga and Auburn held serve and upset wins by Richmond and Michigan. The jury is out on whether they will win their first title in 10 years, but they are not backing down early and their opening argument was on point.

Chieftans have big day two, sit right behind the Chieftans

The Chieftans came out with arrows drawn in winning four Friday contests to sit second behind the Counselors before swaying into the weekend. Arizona won handily and Texas Tech looked impressive. Add in two upsets by double-digit seeds Miami and Iowa State and the Chieftans are making noise for the first time in a few years in the Big Dance.

Slayers dominate Thursday action

On Friday, the ultimate Slayer passed away in John Clayton who covered the NFL for many years and had a regular appearance with the WGR boys on 550AM. The Slayers went on a run winning four games to kick off the Calcutta and live up to their morning line favorite role.  Buoyed by top seeds Kansas and Baylor and a shocking win by 15-St. Peter's, the Slayers were driving the early bus and coasting to a day one lead. They cooled off on Friday going 0-for-4, but they're still in the hunt heading into the weekend sitting in third-place in a four-way tie.

Amigos quietly tip-toe into the mix

The Dos Amigos waltzed into the second round with ___ wins avoiding a big Illinois upset, with all of their higher seeds except Iowa making it to the weekend. The Hawkeye loss wounded them, but they should still have a shot to move a couple teams forward into the Sweet Sixteen.

The Commish hanging in.....barely.

The Commish took a bad beat with UConn, a team they needed to win a couple games to compete, but still advanced four teams into the second round led by 3-Purdue and 5-Houston and 8-9 game wins by Carolina and Creighton.  The CC music factory goes head to head with the Slayers' 1-seeds on Saturday and the survivor will be in good position moving forward. We're not dead yet.

Can Duke carry the old guys all the way?

The Elders continued their methodical run to the Chalise win with four solid wins in Round One, all four coming on Friday. Duke was solid, eliciting cheers from Vegas sportsbooks when they failed to cover on Friday. The next round will decide if they are contender or pretender with Texas and Ohio State facing lower seeds over the weekend. Their mid-seed strategy has worked in the past. Don't nap on the old guys.

Catholic Boyz save face but down to three

The Altar Boyz will have to ride Tennessee to the Final Four and hope UCLA goes on a run to do any damage in this year's Calcutta. They did save face from their dismal draft night to rebound. Friars catch a break with Iowa losing to face Richmond instead of the B1G tourney champs. Hopefully didn't eat any meat on Friday.

More like Lose-Docs, amirite?

The Docs had an abysmal first round with three 6-7 seeds going down in addition to their highest seeded team Kentucky. Left with a 4 and an 11 in the same region, the Win-Docs are definitely not in. 

Slayers open up as 2-1 chalk in '22 Calcutta

AMHERST NY BITCHES -- Oh yeah.....we back. 

In person....and it was spectacular (Seinfeld reference). 

The Calcutta, after some slight technological delays, roared back into the forefront of our pandemic-restricted lives to regain some normalcy.  

Pivoting in '21 to an online auction format for a bunch of old guys who have been doing this since 1996 (who knows where those early Calcutta results are) shows that we've come a long way.

The Original 8 are still in tact since 1999 and it's been a great ride. The fact that one team actually drafted off a cell phone only makes me shake my head.

I will admit coming in as the defending champ for only the second time in the last 22 Calcuttas, I was feeling confident after watching tons of hoops in the last three weeks. Yet I didn't have a plan.  And it showed. More on that later.

But let's get down to business for the column that writes itself year-after-year. 

The Slayers were installed as the morning line favorites after last year's second-place finish.

R-Pete was methodical and patient in garnering two No.1 seeds and the third lowest ASR, a feat that can be hailed as nearly impossible based on the historic cost of a number one. Weaving his way through a Calcutta that had more twists and turns than a road course in Europe, the Slayers have earned the morning line favorite role.

With 1-Baylor and 1-Kansas leading the way at reasonable purchase prices, the Slayers grabbed mid-level seeds with opportunity in 8-Seton Hall, 9-Memphis and 10-Sister Jeans. They come with the stigma that is the morning line favorite, but the co-2019 champs have hit the exacta in the last two Calcuttas and are a deserving favorite.

Morning Line: 2-1; ASR: 8.1; Longshot to watch: Loyola (IL).

The Doctor is In,  The Win-Docs drafting remotely are your second choice on the morning line at 4-1. The Docs with Artie back in the bidding saddle are looking to end a 4-year drought last robing the yellow jacket in 2018. Buoyed by 2-Kentucky, the perennial Calcutta win threat backed up their top selection with 4-Arkansas in the West and a solid MidWest region of 6-LSU and 7-USC. 

Morning Line: 4-1; ASR: 7.8; Longshot to Watch: Play-in winner Wyoming/Indiana

The strategy has yet to wane in over 20 years of competition. Can anyone remember these guys taking a No. 1 seed? I think it was a slip of the finger that put 2-Duke in their basket, yet the old guys still seemed to middle their way to the lowest ASR of the Calcutta and position themselves to hit the board once again. They sit in the third spot on the morning line just for that reason. They've hit the board in 10 of 22 Calcuttas on record, which is pretty impressive. The four time champs are looking for one for the thumb in 22.  The only team in this year's Calcutta with a realistic shot of sweeping the first round...they'll be favored in six of the eight games and a 9-Marquette and a 13-Chattanooga winning is not out of the question. It's never been done, Calcuttians, so stay tuned.

Morning line: 5-1; ASR: 7.0; Longshot to watch: Chattanooga (only one they really have)

The Counselors on draft night are always fun to watch. For once I let them off the hook as the morning line favorites and they have as good a shot as any in this year's wide open affair. With top dog 1-Gonzaga and formidable 2-Auburn who was on top of the rankings most of the year, they have a solid 1-2 punch at the top. They'll need big showings from the B1G notably the Wolverine State, as they tabbed the rival schools from the Great Lakes. A win from 9-TCU and an upset from the higher seeds could put them squarely in the mix.

Morning line: 6-1; ASR: 8.6; Longshot to Watch: 9-TCU.

The Bunch of Chieftans were an enigma from start to finish and they were a real distraction all night, kinda like the tomahawk chop at a sporting event. I wasn't sure where to put them after evaluating them post-draft, but seeing six double-digit seeds have them in the latter half of the morning line. With the go-big-or-go-home philosophy, they went all in on 1-Arizona surviving a bidding war with yours truly, but the price just might cost them in the long run. They'll need a big run by 3-Texas Tech to survive an early elimination and one of their higher seeds to steal a game or two. On the fence on this team.

Morning line: 6-1; ASR: 8.8; Longshot to watch: 10-Miami (FL)

The Amigos changed bidders which always puts significant pressure on the new shooter and it showed. The Sandanistas top two seeds sit in the South Region, never the best strategy, but weirder things have happened at Calcutta central. They'll need some noise from 5-seeds Iowa and Saint Mary's if they're to make any hay in this year's run for the Chalise. 2-Villanova is their big dog -- is it enough? Over/under on fat lady singing our favorite tune is March 26.

Morning line: 10-1; ASR: 8.3; Longshot to watch: 7-Murray State

The defending champs came in with no strategy and it showed. Failing to pull the trigger on Arizona will be telling as the games progress. Will need wins early and often to compete and a big run by B1G behemoth 3-Purdue and 5-seeds UConn and Houston and wins in 8-9 games from Carolina and Creighton. Big thanks to the Space Kid for helping out on the big board (whilst he wasn't texting his friends). The Commish has won two of the last four Calcuttas outright after a 17-year drought (sound familiar), so don't dig that grave too quickly.

Morning line: 12-1; ASR: 9.3 (ugly); Longshot to watch: 9-Creighton

The morning line column can be harsh at times, but a picture is worth a thousand words. Folks we have the first ever ASR over 10. Three 16-seeds. Freddie will never miss draft night again.  I will be roorting for 4-UCLA, but only because I have a future bet on them. Nick working off his phone was a trooper and I'm being a little hard on him....But hey, if Vermont makes a run.....

Morning line: 15-1; ASR: 10.3 (wowza); Longshot to watch: Too many to name.

Enjoy the opening rounds and we'll have a report out by Saturday morning.

Good luck everyone.