Sports
NCAA
San Antonio
2004
More bracketology Kansan sportswriter Ryan Greene will analyze another NCAA men's basketball region tomorrow.
1B
The University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, March 16, 2004
March Madness
'Kansan' predicts Phoenix outcomes
Kansan Bracket Breakdown
By Ryan Greene rgreene@kansan.com Kansan sportswriter
Now that the NCAA Tournament brackets have been set, it's time to bust out the pencils and erasers to predict this year's National Champ. In the spirit of the season, The University Daily Kansan's Ryan Greene will take an in-depth look every day this week at a different region of the bracket.
Courtesy of KRT Campus
Phoenix Region
If you go by this season's performances alone, there is not a ton of firepower in this region outside of No. 1-seed Stanford and No. 2-seed Connecticut. Some of the tournament's biggest sleepers, however, reside in this 16-team field.
No. 1 Stanford (29-1) vs. No. 16 Texas-San Antonio (19-13)
Stanford stumbled in its final regular-season game against Washington and had its bid for a perfect regular season squashed. Nevertheless, the cardinals recovered and won the Pac10 Tournament, including a revenge victory against Washington in the championship game. Stanford is a balanced and disciplined team that will rely heavily on the outside shooting of
senior Matt Lottich to key big runs against weaker teams, but can also pound it inside, as the Cardinal boasts a slew of bruising big men. Like most No. 16-seeds, UTSA stands little chance. Prediction — Stanford 90, UTSA 68
No. 8 Alabama (17-12) vs. No. 9 Southern Illinois (25-4)
No matter how decimated Alabama is every year by guys leaving early for the NBA, a star always emerges and the Crimson Tide is solid. The stud this year is 6-foot-6 sophomore swingman Kennedy Winston, who averaged 17.3 points per game this season. The Crimson Tide's outstanding trio is rounded out by senior point guard Antoine Pettway and junior two-guard Earnest Shelton. Alabama may not be deep after those three, but it knows how to win big games. The Crimson Tide defeated MSU once and lost by one in overtime the second time around. The Southern Illinois Salukis have garnered enough respect nationally, despite being in the tiny Missouri Valley Conference, that it got an atlarge bid following a stellar team. The Salukis don't have a lot of flash, but are deep and steady. The star is junior guard Darren Brooks, who averages 16.3 points a game. Southern Illinois has experience on its side. Its eight-man rotation includes four juniors and three seniors. Experience wins out come tourney time. Prediction — Southern Illinois 65, Alabama 61
Stantord's Fred Washington scored over the Washington State defense in the first round of the Pac-10 Tournament at the Staples Center last Thursday in Los Angeles. Stanford will face the University of Texas-San Antonio this Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
No. 5 Syracuse (21-7) vs. No. 12 BYU (21-8)
Syracuse won last year's National Championship despite six losses heading into it. The Orangemen are without last year's do-it-all star Carmelo Anthony, but still have important players in Hakim Warrick, Gerry McNamara and Josh Pace. Like last season, Syracuse has struggled with
SEE TOURNAMENT ON PAGE 6B
Oh, the many possibilities
Fans pick winners losers in pools for NCAA tournament
By Joe Bant
jbant@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Adam Leitel is no Dick Vitele, but the Moorhead, Minn., senior still considers himself a bracketologist with all the answers to the questions in this year's NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Leitel is one of many college basketball fans across the country who will fill out a bracket and participate in a pool this month, proposing to predict not only who will win the NCAA championship, but how, exactly, it will happen.
Considering that 65 teams participate in the annual tournament with 64 games and 18 quintillion possible outcomes, according to mathforum.org, that's no small task. But it's one that Leitel relishes, nevertheless.
"You can see all the possibilities and try to outsmart other people," Leitel said. "It's fun to try and pick sleepers."
This year, Leitel is coordinating a pool for himself and his co-workers at the University of Kansas Survey Research Center. Leitel said he enjoyed the pools because it was fun competing with his friends.
For Leitel and fans like him, the NCAA tournament is more than just teams playing basketball — it's an opportunity to play prophet, to pick
"You can see all the possibilities and try to outsmart other people. It's fun to try and pick."
sleepers."
Adam Leitel
Moorhead, Minn., senior
upsets, to decipher the field of competition and compete with friends to rightly guess the winners and losers of the NCAA tournament.
Who will be the first one-seed to fall? Who will be the Cinderella in the Sweet Sixteen? These are the types of questions fans try to answer in their efforts to complete the perfect bracket
Leitel's biggest upset is Air Force over North Carolina in the first round. He also likes Louisville, a 10-seed, advancing past Xavier and Mississippi State to the Sweet 16.
Leitel's Final Four is the epitome of Big 12 dominance, with Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma State all represented along with Connecticut.
Leitel said he hadn't had much luck winning pools in the past, but hoped this year would be different.
this year. Becky Kuckelman, Baileville junior, is also participating in a pool with her co-workers at the University's
SEE POOLS ON PAGE 6B
Junior linebacker helps out in Haiti
Junior linebacker Clark McCracken serves as an example for the other football players. He helped set up a woman's clinic in Heiti during a missionary trip in January. "I really learned to be thankful for all the things we have," McCracken said.
Football player volunteered on mission trip in January
By Kevin Flaherty
kflaherty@kansan.com
Kansan sportswriter
As Mark Mangino stood in front of a restaurant packed with alumni and fans in Overland Park last month, much of the the fans' focus was on Kansas newly minted recruiting class.
But the Kansas football coach was careful to pound out a message that his Jayhawks were going to get more involved with the community.
From January 8 to 14, McCracken went on a mission trip with 15 other people to Haiti. The trip was set up by Central Baptist Seminary, where McCracken's father received his master's in divinity. His father also is the pastor at First Baptist Church in Fort Scott McCracken's hometown.
"We want our kids to see things other than the weight room and the practice fields," Mangino said.
town.
Though Haiti was not in the state of tumul that it has sunk into in recent days, the trip was still a shock for the Fort Scott junior.
shock for the Fort Scott junior. "At first I thought it was something I could do for others to help people out," McCracken said. "Once I got down there, I actually learned more from the people of Haiti."
Mangino may have found an example for his players in junior linebacker Clark McCracken.
Hali's poverty left a lasting image with McCracken.
"I've never seen poverty like that before, eight or nine people living in a one-room house with no furniture," McCracken said. "But then, when we got out to the country, I'd never seen anything so beautiful. You could see the ocean, the mountains, tropical forests."
After rebels forced Haiti's president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, out of power this month, Haiti has been in a precarious political state.
But McCracken said the unrest was not yet a problem where the group stayed, just off Cap Haitien.
The group had several goals while in the Caribbean country such as setting up a women's clinic and establishing contacts for future mission trips in May and January 2005.
trips in May and January 2008. The group brought an obstetrician-gynecologist, a group of nurses and medicine. The women's clinic saw almost 200 women in four daws.
The trip taught McCracken lessons that he's taken back to the University with him.
taken back to the University with
"I really learned to be thankful for the things
TALK TO SPORTS; Contact Henry C. Jackson or Maggie Newcomer at SPORTS@KANSAN.COM
"Ive never seen poverty like that before, eight or nine people living in a one-room house with no
furniture."
Clark McCracken
that we have, like a warm shower our roads or our government," McCracken said. "They have so much less than we do, but they are so happy and thankful."
After growing up in Fort Scott, McCracken played football at Fort Scott Community College, where he played for a year with Bill Whittimore.
Kansas junior linebacker
After two years at Fort Scott, McCracken transferred to Kansas to become a walk-on player.
In his first season as a Jayhawk, McCracken recorded four tackles on special teams, including a couple of highlight-reel hits.
"It's just a lot of fun and I get a chance to play." McCracken said.
But the reasons McCracken plays football have little to do with statistics or NFL and even All Conference aspirations.
McCracken doesn't just focus on mission trips and football.
He is a dedicated student and was named second team Academic All-Big 12. Second team academic members must maintain a GPA between 3.0 and 3.19.
After college McCracken wants to continue his career in volunteerism. McCracken's major is English, and he said he loved writing short stories and would love to become a teacher. He is considering joining Teach for America, typically a two-year program designed to address teaching needs in underdeveloped teaching areas such as Haiti.
The political unrest in Haiti might lead to a postponement of McCracken's return trip in May but he remains optimistic.
he remains optimistic. "I'd love to be able to go again," McCracken said. "Hopefully this time I'll get to stay a bit longer."
Edited by Cindy Yeo
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