The first National Quarter-Final game for the Mascot Melee comes out of the Midwest Region and pits the Wake Forest Demon Deacons against the Spartans of Michigan State. Wake Forest has looked impressive throughout the duration of this tournament rolling over opponents one after another in amazing fashion. However, this would not be the Demon Deacons day. The mighty Spartans came for a fight and they brought the fight right to Wake Forest. From the very beginning the Spartans hit Wake with shot after shot in a relentless attack of technique and precision. And when it was all said and done, only one remained standing and it was the Spartans heading to the Final Four out of the Midwest Region.
In the Western Region, the National Quarter-Final sees the Purdue Boilermakers face off with the Memphis Tigers. The Boilermakers are coming off an impressive win over the BYU Cougars, while Memphis had an absolute fracas with the Tigers of Missouri. Purdue attempted to make quick work of Memphis in the same fashion they took care of BYU, but it didn't work out the way the Boilermakers wanted. The Tigers were weary of being overly aggressive with Purdue and let the Boilermakers come to them. When that happened, the Tigers did, what Tigers do; pounced. Memphis moves on to the Final 4.
The Quarter-Finals in the East have the Oklahoma State Cowboys versus the Duke Blue Devils. Oklahoma State coming off an impressive dual of Cowboys and Indians against Florida State, while Duke has been impressing the competition with devilish (ha get it?) strategies and continues to impress upon the opposition that they are a force to be reckoned with, taking in another victory.
The last Quarter-Final match-up sees the Arizona State Sun Devils face off with the LSU Tigers in an old fashioned scuffle straight out of the jungle. While LSU has upended their opponents en route to the Elite 8, the Sun Devils easy path to the Final Four continues and they make quick work of the Tigers in unimpressive fashion.
With the Elite 8 now complete, our Final Four Match-ups are the Michigan State Spartans vs Memphis Tigers and Duke Blue Devils vs Arizona State Sun Devils
The National Semi-Final kicks off with a bang having Devils vs Devils, Duke and Arizona State. Both having tremendous tournaments, it was up in the air as to who would come out victorious, until the sun went behind a few clouds and the Sun Devils were left powerless to stop the Blue Devils from overpowering and ultimately defeating them. The Duke Blue Devils in the Finals.
The Michigan State Spartans and the Memphis Tigers square off in the final Semi-Final game for the chance to fight for the National Championship of the Mascot Melee. This seemed more like a first round contest than a Final Four Fracas. In a display of sheer skill, the Spartans move on to face the Duke Blue Devils in the National Championship contest, with everything on the line. Congratulations to the Memphis Tigers on an impressive season, just one year after narrowly missing out on the National Championship, to make it to back to back Final Four's is something to be commended.
National Championship Contest of the Mascot Melee: Michigan State vs Duke:
In the Finals of the Tournament of 65: Mascot Melee, it's the Brawl For it All, the Dual to the Death, the Mascot Mayhem on Monday, I could go on, but you get the picture. This is what it all comes down to. These are where winners are created, legends are born and the men are separated from the babies. The Spartans and Blue Devils meet at center-court with looks of determination in their eyes (although the Dukies have red eyes), the Blue Devils get off to a quick start and have the Spartans on the brink of elimination. But, following the advice from King Leonidas in 300 "Spartans never retreat, Spartans never surrender", the Michigan State squad reached down to the very depths of their souls and cast the Blue Devils back to hell (or North Carolina, whichever way you want to look at it) and reigned supreme as the last team remaining.
2009 NCAA Tournament of 65: Mascot Melee Champions Michigan State Spartans!
So, there you have it. The first annual Mascot Melee is complete and the Michigan State Spartans stand tall as your champion. How did we get to this point? How did 65 end up as 1?
Let's break down the teams by the numbers:
14: Teams that are just regular people like you and me (Tar Heels, Orange, Sooners, Musketeers, Boilermakers, Mountaineers, Volunteers, Hilltoppers, Lumberjacks, Colonials, Matadors, Buccaneers, Highlanders, Cowboys)
10: Teams that are named after Cats (Pittsburgh, Memphis, Missouri, LSU, Clemson, Michigan, Northern Iowa, Arizona, Villanova, BYU)
9: Teams that are named after Birds (Louisville, Kansas, Marquette, American, Morehead State, Chatanooga, Temple, Dayton, Boston College)
5: Teams named after Dogs: (Uconn, Washington, Gonzaga, Mississippi State, Butler)
4: Teams named after Bears: (California, Binghamton, Morgan State, UCLA)
3: Teams named after Indian Tribes: (Utes, Seminoles, Fighting Illini)
3: Teams with Demonic Forces (Duke, Arizona State, Wake Forest)
3: Teams named after Large Cattle: (Longhorns, Bison, Rams)
3: Teams with stupid names that nobody understands: (We're looking at you Akron Zips, Ohio State Buckeyes and Cornell Big Red)
2: Teams named after Vikings: (Cleveland State, Portland State)
2: Teams named after Agriculturists: (Texas A&M, Utah State)
2: Teams named after Small Animals: (Golden Gophers, Badgers)
1: Teams named for Reptiles: (Terrapins)
1: Teams named for Insects: (Hornets)
1: Teams Fighting the Good Fight: (Saints)
1: Teams named after Greek Mythology: (Trojans)
Do the math. 65 teams minus the aforementioned 64 leaves us with the number 1:
Michigan State Spartans
You heard it here first, Michigan State will face Duke in the finals. That should make Dick Vitale and Jay Bilas extremely happy, since they sip the Mike Krzyzewski kool-aid a little too much. But, if none of this happens and all of my whacky predictions based on who's mascot would win in a fight to the death seem like the incoherent ranting of someone who has too much time on his hands, well then with one little click of the button, I delete this, and it never happened. No proof.
Either way, whether it happens or not, the next three weeks are the most entertaining of the Year. This is a time where stars are born, memorable moments are made and anybody can win (except you Radford, Akron and Chattanooga, you still suck, sorry). Do you hear it? The madness of March is upon us.
Until next time...
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