Reaction to March Madness: Day 1

Tommy Amaker and the Crimson are moving on

Over the course of March Madness we will post a nightly blog on the day's events and what a day we had for the opener. It started out a little slow, but looking back on it there were some thrillers and none greater than Harvard taking down New Mexico. That's the Madness we know and love and tomorrow promises some more. I watched every game today and here are eight observations I took away from day one.

1. There are no "experts" when it comes to March Madness
We already knew this from years of experience, but the New Mexico loss only enhanced that thought. For a whole week we have been listening to how this was the Lobos year, but Harvard would have none of it. I actually picked New Mexico to advance to the Final Four, but Steve Alford's squad is heading home early. The Crimson played solid the whole way and hit free throws down the stretch. They have their first NCAA Tournament win under their belt and provided the most shocking upset of the day and maybe the tournament.

2. A 16th seed just about did it...but not this time
People want to criticize Gonzaga and say that this proves they didn't deserve the one seed, but I don't buy into these games proving a team or conference to be overrated. This is March Madness for a reason and crazy things happen. Southern taking the Zags down to the wire would fall under the crazy category. A look at the Southern roster made it clear that they would present a tough match up for Gonzaga. They were a long, athletic squad which is the polar opposite of the Zags. Still, Gonzaga won the game and that's all that matters. Now that sets up what will be a physical game against Wichita State on Saturday.

3. Davidson had it in the bag until the last six seconds rolled around
This was Davidson's game to win. They played well through out, but Vander Blue's layup with one second left sealed the deal for Marquette. Davidson led by as many as 10 and Marquette's largest lead was just three. The Golden Eagles shot the ball poorly and Davidson fell apart at the end. De'Mon Brooks just needed to accept the foul at the end of the game, but instead he threw the ball away and gave Marquette a chance -- a chance that they didn't blow. Rather than another Cinderella run from Davidson, Marquette survives.

4. Bad day for potential first round picks from mid-majors
Nate Wolters and Mike Muscala let me down in a bad way. Wolters, who averages over 20 points per game, mustered only 10 points which was a season low. Wolters struggled to do anything against Tim Hardaway and Glenn Robinson and his low output spelled doom for the Jackrabbits. Muscala, one of the top big men in the country, had performed well against top competition, but he was bad against Butler. He scored just nine points, only the second time he has scored under ten points this season. He was also an abysmal 4-17 from the field and didn't look like a player who could possibly be in the NBA soon.

Trey Burke and the Wolverines kept Wolters in check and UM handled SDSU

5. The Pac-12 deserves respect
The Pac-12 wasn't a real respected conference this season by fans, but they finished today with a 3-0 record. Arizona handled Belmont, Oregon took it to Oklahoma State and Cal beat a talented UNLV team. Tomorrow UCLA and Colorado will take on Big Ten opponents and could possibly complete a sweep for the conference. Oregon and Arizona hardly had trouble in their wins and Cal persevered against UNLV. So while they may not have been getting the respect they deserved, it's time to take notice.

6. VCU vs. Michigan is going to be incredibly fun
Did you get to see any of the VCU game? Sure, Akron was missing some of their players, most notably their point guard, but the Rams were unbelievable. Trey Burke better be ready for Shaka Smart's "havoc" because it is going to wear him out. However, how effective will VCU's pressure be against the nation's best point guard? That will be the main storyline heading into Saturday's match up and buckle your seat belts because this one will be wild!

7. Louisville and Syracuse didn't mess around
North Carolina A&T and Montana aren't exactly stiff competition, but as we saw with other top teams today, sometimes they don't bring their A game. Not the case with Louisville and Syracuse. Both teams came out and dominated from the start and put any thoughts of an upset to bed pretty early. Syracuse didn't even allow Montana 35 points and Louisville shot 57 percent. Both teams will have a tougher test moving forward as Louisville will face Colorado State and Syracuse must face Cal.

8. St. Louis is not a team to be messed with
The Billikens are on a mission this season as they play to honor their late coach Rick Majerus. Majerus would have been proud of St. Louis after they dominated New Mexico State on Friday. The Aggies shot just 28 percent and committed 16 turnovers. St. Louis plays tough and will be a difficult match up for Louisville should they meet in the Sweet 16. This is definitely not a team you should be sleeping on.

March Madness is officially here and a big thank you to Harvard for reminding us all that anything can happen. Stay tuned tomorrow as more big-name teams will take to the court against other upset-minded squads and look for a new post tomorrow night after the conclusion of the games.