And down the stretch they come....

MAN CAVE - EAST AMHERST -- It's a two-horse race to the finish in the 2021 Calcutta.  After trading punches for two straight weeks it comes down to the Slayer's 11-UCLA Bruins and the Commish's 1-Baylor Bears in the Final Four. It would be epic and not since early in the Calcutta where a Championship Game decided the winner.

Both squads came through the Elite Eight at 1-1 after both advanced two teams and half of the remaining squads heading into Monday night's start of the Elite Eight. 

The Chieftans record 16 wins will remain intact as the best either remaining squad can do is hit the 15 mark and tie the second best finish ever in the big C.

Elders sew up third as Arkansas bows out after a decent run

The old guys cash after 1-Michigan and the Chieftans bowed out after missing their last eight shots. The shared the title in 2019, but just couldn't keep up with the top two, but leave this year's contest with a positive ROI.

Amigos, Catholic Boyz look to salvage title cash

Ironically these two squads have posted the last three winning teams (Amigos, 2019 and Catholic Boyz, 2017,2018).  The Amigos (and Commish) hope the 1-Zags can end the UCLA Cinderella run on Saturday evening. The Catholic Boyz (and Slayers) will be rooting the 2-Cougs home over the Bears.

Here are the eight payout scenarios (excluding the Elders who collect their $300 in every scenario for third). 

Gonzaga over Baylor

Commish - $1,000

Slayers - $500

Amigos - $200

Gonzaga over Houston

Commish - $750

Slayers - $750

Amigos - $200

UCLA over Baylor

Slayers - $1,200

Commish - $500

UCLA over Houston

Slayers - $1,200

Commish - $500

Baylor over Gonzaga

Commish - $1,200

Slayers - $500

Baylor over UCLA

Commish - $1,200

Slayers - $500

Houston over Gonzaga

Commish - $750

Slayers - $750

Catholic Boyz - $200

Houston over UCLA

Slayers - $1,000

Commish - $500

Catholic Boyz - $200

Thanks for playing.

Slayers, Commish tied atop Calcutta, Elders still in the hunt

 

EAST AMHERST -- The 2021 Calcutta is all knotted up at 12 as the Slayers and the Commish & Crew held serve with their LA Strong contingents on Sunday night. 

The Slayers have defied all odds in this Calcutta and had not 1-Illinois blown a gasket, they'd be squarely in the driver's seat watching the rest of us from the rear view mirror.

UCLA (11) and Oregon State (12) marks the first time that multiple teams, seeded 11th or lower, made the Elite Eight in the same tournament 😯 #NCAATournament pic.twitter.com/5750DdXGgT

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 29, 2021

A historic run to the Elite Eight by the Dragon Slayers withstanding a buzzer beating 3-ball by the 2-Tide via a knockout punch OT frame which sent the Win-Docs packing. The Slayers will let their underdog due try and get them into the Final Four, but face tall tasks in both games facing 2-Houston and 1-Michigan over the next two nights.  

The Commish & Associates almost went 1-3 over the weekend losing Cinderella darlings 8-Loyola and 11-Cuse on Saturday, but top-seeded Baylor and 6-USC both survived early deficits to coast into the Elite Eight. 

The Trojans used the ole Student Body Right (sorry, Fanch couldn't resist) to silence the Ducks and delivered a quack in the armor of the Elders chances. The Commish face off with the Elders tonight in a key matchup between Baylor and 3-Arkansas in a contest that could seal both of their fates.

The Elders are still in the hunt with 9 wins and mathematically could pull off a three-way tie needing both Slayer and Commish Elite Eight losses and a Hog-tied championship. Two big losses in the Sweet Sixteen from the 7-Ducks and 4-Florida State hurt their Calcutta championship hopes. Still clinched at least a tie for third and one more win would secure they hit the board. 

The Counselors were the first team to exit the Calcutta this year as the Big Least didn't perform in the Sweet Sixteen for the attorneys.  It was a brief (get it) run for the barristers finishing with six wins. Thanks for coming, 

The Chieftans are mathematically alive for third, but as described above, a whole lot of tomahawk chopping needs to happen. Juwon has the boys looking strong heading into the Eight, but 11-UCLA has delivered every step of the way so far. 

The Amigos can still zig and zag to salvage the championship money with the team that's dominated so far. They can avoid the big Adios with a three-game string to the title. Single digit leads have been Few and far between for the Zags and they look like the favorite to celebrate on Apr. 5.

The Catholic Boyz are the current problem for the Slayers and maybe the Commish/Elders down the road.  Should the 2-Cougs pump the Beavers tonight in the first game of the Elite Eight and the Baylor-Arkansas winner in the Final Four they certainly will make their mark on this year's Calcutta.

Alabama shooting free throws pic.twitter.com/FjDG2qi8Y2

— Donte🦌 (@PrimeRagu) March 29, 2021

Win-Doctors....I think this tweet says it all.

Good luck in the Elite Eight! 

Commish catch The Slayers in Round 2, head to Sweet Sixteen tied

 

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FRISCO, CO (UPI) -- The Commish mosied into the Sweet Sixteen riding a wave of Orange and a Trojan horse if you will. A four-win second round moved them into a tie on top of the 2021 Calcutta catching the first round leader, the Slayers, who added three wins of their own to keep pace.

I’m looking at the bracket and I thought we played Duke next but I can’t find them on here anywhere.

— Sister Jean Schmidt (@SisterSchmidt) March 22, 2021

Buoyed by a major upset by Sister Jean's 8-Loyola squad over 1-Illinois, the Commish served up a major blow to the Slayers and their Cinderella squad. Add an 7-Oregon upset over 2-Iowa and suddenly the Slayers are looking at three remaining seeds of 11, 12 and 15.

As a footnote, the Commish will take credit for giving R-Pete the 11-UCLA pick earlier in the day of the Calcutta - a rookie mistake to give up valuable inside information, but it is all in fun and he capitalized.

Things get interesting to kick off the Sweet Sixteen as the top two will go head to head with Loyola-Oregon State on Saturday afternoon.

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Elders carry three through to Sweet Sixteen, only two back from leaders

Using their own version of the Elder Wand, the old guys strategy held strong surviving three teams to the round of 16.  They're in the hunt where 3-Arkansas can knock off the Slayers 15-ORU and then can possibly go head-to-head with the Commish in the Elite Eight.  A Pac-12 battle between the Commish's 6-USC and 7-Oregon could put the geriatrics right in the Calcutta mix. 4-FSU draws top seed Michigan which is a 3 point favorite in Vegas. Get out the oxygen for the Elder Statesmen, it could go down to the wire.

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Morning line chalk doesn't live up to their billing

The legal beagles got dusted in the early rounds with big upset losses suffered by 3-Kansas, 3-Texas and 5-Tennessee. They have two 5-seeds left in Creighton and Villanova, both facing top seeds in the next round. The barristers need to run the picket fence and some major help from above.

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And then there was one.....

It wasn't to be this year for the Chieftans.  I'll have to wait to pull out old faithful as 1-Michigan can run the table to get to 9 wins which at best will get them third, but will need the Elders to trip over their own walkers for that to happen. Need a major rain dance.

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Roll Tide

For the Win-Docs, it's "wait til next year" as 2-Bama is their lone survivor into the Sixteen.  11-The Cuse dealt two major blows to the Win-Doc's chances annihilating their Midwest bracket. They can run the table to get to 8 wins, but that won't be enough. 

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Amigos not quite Gone-zaga

With a 1 seed dominating the tournament so far, we can't pull out the patented "see ya" just yet. Only chance for the 'Migos is to take the cake and the winner payout. When one Amigo texts "ugly" before the Calcutta even commences you have to wonder if there is dissention in the ranks at Amigo Central.

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Time to perform last rites on the Boyz

While they avoided the record books for Calcutta inefficacy, the Catholic Boyz got two wins out of 2-Houston and could still play spoiler to the leaders with a run to the Final Four. They ain't dead yet, but the priest is in the hallway.

At least everyone still has a shot at some do-re-mi in one way or another. 

Until the Elite Eight...good luck. 

Slayers Slay to take early command in Calcutta

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DENVER (AP) --

Metal and men clash once more to the end
Warriors above with the power to kill descend
Militia of blood troops of hate march to die
Soldiers of Hell veterans of death arise

~Slayer (Fight Till Death)

The Slayers did the improbable in tying the first round record of seven wins by advancing a 12, 13 and 15 seed through the first round.  

On the other end of the spectrum the Catholic Boyz endured a nasty opening weekend threatening the Amigos' one-win Calcutta in 2018.

The Slayers top teams held serve with 1-Illinois, 2-Iowa and 5-Colorado (who looked super impressive) have this team locked and loaded to cruise through this Calcutta.

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Commish keeps pace with six first round wins

The Commish pulled six teams through the first round anchored by old faithful, the 11-Cuse rocking the Aztecs tourney dreams en route to a rollicking 16-point thrashing. Their 8-seeds (LSU, Loyola) gutted through and top-seeded Baylor advanced easily over a frisky Hartford squad.

Old guys in striking distance

via GIPHY

The Elders hung tough with five first rounders advancing to Sunday/Monday in this year's wacky edition of the Calcutta. 7-Oregon and 10-Maryland generated key wins for the geriatric duo and 3-Arkansas survived the Gate as their top team.

via GIPHY

Counselors, Chieftans mid-packing it, stay in contention

Morning line favorite Counselors pushed through the first round with four wins, but suffered a big blow when 2-Texas was ousted by 15-Abilene Christian in one of the major upsets on the weekend. They'll need a big effort by 5-Villanova if they are to make any noise in this Calcutta and an upset or two out of Creighton or Wisconsin.

O-H.........LOL

Let's just say the fat lady is humming.

Catholic Boyz trying to avoid "Agony of Defeat" ending to this Calcutta

Late update to the blog, and Houston is trailing Rutgers. The Amigos of 2008 (RIP Bill) are looking for company in the Calcutta basement.

Sorry my GIF game was lacking today, but having spotty internet up here in the mountains.

Good Luck in round 2.

2021 Calcutta kicks off in historic fashion

Typing Jim Carrey GIF from Typing GIFs

DEEP IN THE INTERWEBS (Reuters) In a historic edition of the Buffalo Calcutta, the first ever online virtual auction of our annual event went down with nary a hitch.  After 709 days between blog posts, here we are.

Big thanks to my partner in crime and the Space Kid for helping me administratively behind the scenes last night.  To be honest, the timed bidding seemed to work like a charm and I think we should stay with it going forward, it certainly removes the uncertainty from bid closing, etc. and records everything for us to review/audit after the Calcutta.  Thanks to everyone for adapting to this new world we are living in and for Brad and Mark to push me to move forward. 

Onward to the morning line.

Vegas had some serious data to consider when setting this year's morning lines. History, experience, draft strategy, average seed rating and this year, late Covid player scratches (hello Georgia Tech and Oklahoma). But in the end they landed on the low seed rating of the Counselors and the opportunity to advance deep into the regionals. We also prepared the morning line using the actual probability points (math nerd) to set a real line.

Jonah Hill GIF from Jonah GIFs

Counselors tapped morning line favorites at 3-1

Working the phones all night like it was NFL free agency or Billy Beane's secret weapon, the barristers worked like clockwork to secure two 3-seeds and three 5-seeds over the course of the evening. If Covid-strapped Kansas can recover, they could carry 5 teams through to the first round and win a 4-5 game and they have four into the regionals where anything can happen.  

Can they handle the morning line pressure, they've wilted before but this is a new dawning.

ASR: 7.5  Sleeper: Morehead State

Amiii Dance GIF from Amiii GIFs

No change to the Elders strategy, secure second choice on the ML at 7-2

A lot of firsts last night, but no bathroom breaks takes the cake.  The Elders held there age-old middle seed strategy, with lowest seed being Arkansas (3).  Love the Oklahoma State (4) pick and solid middle seeds in Clemson (7) and Oregon (7). Also favored in five first round games.  

ASR: 7.9  Sleeper: Santa Barbara

Can I Get One?! GIF from Canigetahallelujah GIFs

Solid draft night from the Catholic Boyz, albeit off script

Fred had to go off script with his normal strategy when the institutions most likely to be drafted by the Boyz were scooped up by other teams. Bad break with GT best player off for the first two games, but solid low seeds in Houston (2) and defending champ Virginia (4).  Some middle seeds in UConn, UNC and Tech need to make second round noise.  Morning line at 6-1.

ASR: 8.3  Sleeper: Georgetown

Mexican Dance GIF from Mexican GIFs

Amigos bid high, bid hard, rate a chance at 8-1

Coming off a 2019 co-championship, the Amigos went right after it early and put their stack of chips right into the middle of the table with a Gonzaga (1) - Ohio State (2) championship tilt which would earn them 11 points. Totally doable, but they're all in with nothing lower than a 10-seed (Virginia Tech), so they'll need at least one upset and the top two to carry through to hit the board. Highest ASR, but on purpose.

ASR: 10.5 Sleeper: Iona

Jon Snow Is Cold GIF from Snow GIFs

Slayers spend early, wait for late dinner

They weathered the early spending spree going big with Illinois (1) and Iowa (2) citing the strength of the B1G in 20-21. The Slayers sat patiently at the Wall and waited for some late night bargains in Colorado (5) for $6 (!), a 12-seed for $1 and a tough 11-seed play-in opponent in UCLA or Michigan State. Big Ten or bust for the Slayers. They earned a 9-1 morning line, which may be the value bet of the Calcutta early betting.

ASR: 9.4 Sleeper: Play-in winner

Back Up GIF from Tooclose GIFs

Win-Docs sure were in close quarters

Making sure all three got in the video screen all evening long, it was fun to watch the muted gang of three trying to piece together a team that can make some Calcutta noise. Their last outright title was in 2016 (shared a title in 2018) so they're out for blood. Lot of faith in the Nate Oats-led Tide (2) and Huggy Bear's Mountaineers (3). Middle seeds San Diego State and Florida will have to perform to get them into the money.  Morning line set at 10-1.

ASR: 7.9  Sleeper: Winthrop

Chieftans sift through rubbish, find some aluminum, 11-1 on the ML

Guy Bs Kc Chiefs Fan GIF from Guybs GIFs

It was garbage hunting time for the Chiefs with color commentary all night long. The politically-incorrect squad booked a 1-seed in Michigan and then was at the close out sale the rest of the evening. With no lower than a 13, it does give them an outside chance. Covid-player issue in Oklahoma (8) (whoops) and will need Purdue (4) to carry a big weight for this squad. 

ASR: 8.3 Sleeper: Ohio

Bhl Commish GIF from Bhl GIFs

Commish rounds out morning line as big longshot

When you only win one title since 1999 you deserve to be 30-1. Even with administrative help, the Commish (30-1) struggled keeping things straight (Alzheimers?).  Made his annual over-bid on the Cuse (11) to hold historic form.  Still has five teams that should be first round favorites, albeit two are 8-seeds. Got a break in Loyola-Chicago (8) facing G-Tech losing its best player and an LSU (8) team that came off a strong showing in the SEC tourney. But let's face it, its Baylor or bust for the Commish.

ASR: 8.4 Sleeper: LSU

That's a wrap for the morning line, we'll chime back in after the first round and will keep the scorecard updated in the upper right corner of the blog.

Cheers and Good Luck.

Amigos grab slice of Calcutta and overall championship

Hola Amigos

 Amherst, N.Y. (AP) -- Virginia smoked Tech in OT to capture a share of the 2019 Calcutta. With the lowest total wins since 2004 (tying the lowest score), they will go into the record books along with the Elders and Tax Slayers as this year's co-champions.

Shoutout to the Elders for a great run, one long Virginia pass in the Purdue game from sweeping the whole she-bang.

Big ups to the Slayers for jacking up the recliner and coasting to a co-championship.

Great year and great parity as most teams were still alive heading into the Elite Eight games.

Final Four Report: Going down to the wire in Calcutta

Amherst, N.Y. (UPI) -- Trying to figure out this year's Calcutta has been tougher than a one-eared alley cat.

With four teams advancing to the Final Four, three sit one spot behind the idling Tax Slayers and one sits two back, all capable of having an engraving ceremony the Calcutta Chalise.

Incredible games with three of the four Elite Eight games going down to the wire and the fourth had a 3-ball that could have tightened up the Zags game. The only top seed to advance is the Amigos' Virginia, who had to be rooting hard for the Dukies who fell hard to Sparty in the waning moments.

Let's look at the capsules and probables as we head to the Twin Cities for the Final Four.

Tax Slayers (9 points). Must be rooting hard for the Cavs at this point and the 3-way tie to claim a slice of the title. Sweeps by any of the other three teams puts them in a tie for second, but the weekend worked out pretty well for the Slayers, who watched the weekend at home.

Tap Tap Tap....

Win-Docs (8 points). Biggest disappointment of the weekend, losing a 1-Gonzaga and 2-Kentucky both favored and wins would've slipped them past the Slayers and with two teams in the Final Four with 10 wins. Welp. There's always next year.

Woulda coulda shoulda (emphasis on shoulda)

Elder Statesman (8 points). Heartbreaker when Virginia hit the buzzer beater to send it into overtime and kept the Elders from sending two teams to Minny. They'll take the red hot 3-Texas Tech squad into the Final Four and a big matchup with the Commish and Sparty to see who will cash the bigger check. Great drafting by the Elders who once again surprise with a late run.

Elders dancing into the Final Four

Catholic Boyz (8 points). War Eagle muther-effers. They just took down Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky in succession. That's some blue blood damage right there. Prayers answered and two wins away from an outright title. Divine intervention helps sometimes.

High Five!

The Commish (8 points). Down goes Duke. Down goes Duke. This was so good on so many levels. Now to get focused to make a run to a second title in three years. It's all on a focused veteran Sparty squad, but now they face defensive lockdown Tech in what should be a terrific game. Buckle your seatbelts for this Calcutta conclusion.

Two more.....

Amigos (7 points). Revived by a terrific play at the end of regulation, you know we were humming that tune, but these Amigos said Hola instead. The Hoos showed they mean business and will be favored in the national semifinal and the only representative left from the ACC. Two wins and they take the top dollar honors.

Who said we were dead?

The Bunch (6 points).

Never gets old.

Here's a look at the eight probable combinations for next weekend's games....

Virginia over Texas Tech:
1 - Amigos $800
1 - Slayers $600
1 - Elders $600

Virginia over Michigan State:
1 - Amigos $800
1 - Slayers $600
1 - Commish $600

Auburn over Texas Tech: 
1 - Catholic Boyz $1,200
2 - Elders $400
2 - Slayers $400

Auburn over Michigan State:
1 - Catholic Boyz $1,200
2 - Commish $400
2 - Slayers $400

Texas Tech over Virginia:
1 - Elders $1,200
2 - Slayers $500
3 - Commish, Boyz, Win-Docs, Amigos $75

Texas Tech over Auburn:
1 - Elders $1,200
2 - Catholic Boyz $400
2 - Slayers $400

Michigan State over Virginia:
1 - Commish $1,200
2 - Slayers $500
3 - Elders, Boyz, Win-Docs, Amigos $75

Michigan State over Auburn:
1 - Commish $1,200
2 - Catholic Boyz $400
2 - Slayers $400

Lots of different combos, but if you take care of business next Saturday you cash. Good luck to all.