2018 Calcutta Ready to Rock, Morning Line Set

Amherst, N.Y. -- The 2018 Calcutta, unofficially the 19th year of the annual auction, kicked off in pursuit of the coveted yellow jacket (that was mysteriously absent this evening). The festivities moved along all night with nary a controversy or chippy conversation. The ole' Calcutta has mellowed as we all get another year older and can't hear or see as well as we used to.

The 17 year drought (sound familiar) ended last year with the Commish engraving his name on the Chalise (sic) for the first time. The question of back-to-back came up during the evening and yes, indeed the Win-Docs captured titles in their glory years in 2007 and 2008. The Bunch did it twice, albeit sharing titles in 2001-02 and 2010-11. Good times.

So let's get right to it and the morning line for 2018 in a wide-open tournament with no team looking like it's going to waltz through this field. Over the past five years Average Seed Ratings (ASR) for the Calcutta champ has been 9.6 (Commish - 2017), 9.9 (Win-Docs - 2016), 7.3 (Tax Men - 2015) and 8.5 (Bunch - 2014, record 16 wins).

This year's lowest ASR belongs to the Catholic Boyz (7.1 ASR) and the highest went to the Amigos (a gaudy 10.0). Looking back to 2006, when the ASR emerged as a key metric in the Calcutta, no 10+ team has captured the Calcutta, only the Tax Men have hit the board with a double digit ASR.

So who's our morning line favorite?

The Counselors (3-1, ASR 7.5). The legal beagles always look strong on draft night. Of course an upset or two could knock them right out of the competition. B1G tournament champ 3-Michigan and SEC tourney champ 5-Kentucky will try and rule the left side of the bracket for the dynamic duo. They could easily come out of the first round with six wins (five lower seeds) and play catch-me-if-you-can with the rest of the group.  Sleeper: 12-South Dakota State. Steal: 7-Arkansas for $7.

The Counselors are the morning line favorite - got that!

Bunch of Chieftans (4-1, ASR 8.0). A perfect score on the ASR is 8.0 and the Chief ran a very efficient and no-nonsense draft. High off the big 11-Bonas win on Tuesday night to get into the main draw, the Chief dusted off his drafting skills moth-balled for several years and he came to play. Solid selections in each region, 2-Duke (Midwest), 3-Tennessee (South), 4-West Virginia (East) and 6-Houston (West) should put him right in the mix heading into the weekend. Looking for a record extending seventh Calcutta title. Sleeper: 11-Loyola (Chicago). Steal: 6-Houston for $9.

Let's Go Chief-tans!

Tax Slayers (5-1, ASR 9.5). Don't let that high ASR fool you. Two teams that could run the table on both sides of the bracket will steer this ship to hit the board. 1-Kansas and 4-Arizona anchor the Slayers. They added some solid higher seeds in 9-Florida State and 10-Texas that could add some valuable W's on their ledger. Sleeper: 10-Texas. Steal: 9-Florida State for $5.

The TaxSlayers were ferocious bidders all night long

Catholic Boyz (6-1, ASR 7.1). The good news is the low ASR. The bad news is the low ASR. Five 7 and 8-seeds is a dangerous mix. The 8-9 games look like toss-ups and the 7 seeds get the 2 seeds over the weekend. First round damage (which is historically the Catholic Boyz specialty) is the answer to Calcutta glory. 1-Villanova has a soft bracket and should coast to three easy wins before having to face their first real challenge. This team could be dangerous. Or flame out early. Sleeper: 8-Seton Hall. Steal: 7-URI for $7.

Catholic Boyz are coming in hot!

Win-Doctors (7-1, ASR 8.1). The docs will look to tie the Chieftans with a career sixth championship in this year's edition. With Artie being benched after his record tying two-win Calcutta in 2017 for Smytty, the Docs will look to regain its form. Lot of pundits like 3-Michigan State to win it all and they'll need as much to claim Calcutta fame in '18. Last year's runner-up 4-Gonzaga will be the stud in the West, and they'll need big East Region performances by 3-Texas Tech and 6-Florida to be a factor. It's not out of the realm of possibility and they're probably the longshot play of the day. Sleeper: 13-College of Charleston. Steal: 3-Texas Tech for $16.

Smytty draft moves

Elder Statesmen (8-1, ASR 8.8). After thwarting off a seat controversy when the Counselors tried to move on the Elders long time spot, it was all business for the Elders. A higher than normal ASR compared to historical numbers could've been due to the absence of Fanch's second chair or the lack of bathroom breaks. 2-UNC will have to carry the day for them to have a chance as 4-Auburn looks to be the weakest of the four seeds. They'll need some higher seeded wins to be a factor. Sleeper: 8-Missouri. Steal: None.

Try and sit in my seat next year, fools!

Amigos (9-1, ASR 10.0). You already heard the stats surrounding a double digit ASR. After corralling two top seeds (on the same side of the bracket, nonetheless), the Amigos went quiet for about an hour (has to be a record). Go big or go home was the mantra for the Amigos on Wednesday night with 1-Virginia and 1-Xavier secured early on. Will need 4-Wichita State to win a couple games and the ones to run the table to win it all (that's the magic number of 13 wins). Sleeper: 14-Bucknell. Steal: None.

After landing the top seeds, it was siesta time for the Amigos.

Commish & Assoc (10-1, ASR 9.0). It was a rough night for the defending champ, too much hesitation and wanted sleepers slipping through his grasp all night. A couple 2-seeds in Purdue and Cincinnati will have to work both sides of the bracket for a chance to repeat. 5-Clemson and 10-seeds Oklahoma and Providence will need to steal wins to have a shot. Sleeper: 10-Providence. Steal: None.

Not that yellow jacket!

Good luck to all, first report on Friday night after the first round. The teams are posted and the results  will be updated nightly located in the upper right hand corner of the blog.