Here's a quick overview of the rules:
1. Each person gets a budget of $100 each week of the tournament (before the second/third rounds, before the Sweet 16/Elite 8, and before the Final 4/Championship).
2. Each person will select as many teams as they desire as long as said teams can fit in their budget.
3. Teams will earn points as follows:
Second round win = 1 point
Third round win = 3 points
Sweet 16 win = 2 points
Elite 8 win= 6 points
Final 4 win = 3 points
Championship win = 9 points
If you're wondering why the scoring works this way, it's because A) It's harder to pick the second game of the weekend than it is the first, B) It's harder to pick games later in the tournament, C) You need more points when there are less games to more properly even the scoring out (even though it's not necessarily completely even, it's a bit more distributed this way).
4. The most points at the end of the tournament wins. The winner will take 60% of the pot, second will take 30%, and third will take 10%.
5. The entry fee will be $30.
So, without further ado, here is the price list for week 1 (you'll note that I just guessed at play-in game winners; you only get the team I guessed below ... so you probably want to avoid those teams unless you feel super confident in Vandy, for instance):
| KANSAS | 41 |
| VIRGINIA | 40 |
| NORTH CAROLINA | 39 |
| MICHIGAN ST. | 39 |
| OKLAHOMA | 37 |
| VILLANOVA | 32 |
| OREGON | 32 |
| WEST VIRGINIA | 32 |
| TEXAS A&M | 30 |
| MIAMI FL | 26 |
| DUKE | 26 |
| PURDUE | 26 |
| KENTUCKY | 25 |
| XAVIER | 25 |
| UTAH | 25 |
| MARYLAND | 24 |
| INDIANA | 21 |
| IOWA ST. | 20 |
| CALIFORNIA | 19 |
| BAYLOR | 17 |
| IOWA | 16 |
| TEXAS | 16 |
| PITTSBURGH | 15 |
| CINCINNATI | 14 |
| VANDERBILT | 13 |
| GONZAGA | 13 |
| ARIZONA | 11 |
| SETON HALL | 10 |
| WISCONSIN | 9 |
| MICHIGAN | 8 |
| VCU | 7 |
| USC | 7 |
| NOTRE DAME | 7 |
| SYRACUSE | 7 |
| CONNECTICUT | 6 |
| OREGON ST. | 6 |
| BUTLER | 6 |
| YALE | 5 |
| SAINT JOSEPH'S | 4 |
| NORTHERN IOWA | 4 |
| PROVIDENCE | 4 |
| TEXAS TECH | 4 |
| DAYTON | 4 |
| COLORADO | 3 |
| SOUTH DAKOTA ST. | 3 |
| HAWAII | 3 |
| STEPHEN F. AUSTIN | 3 |
| ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK | 3 |
| UNC WILMINGTON | 2 |
| CHATTANOOGA | 2 |
| STONY BROOK | 2 |
| FRESNO ST. | 2 |
| BUFFALO | 1 |
| TEMPLE | 1 |
| UNC ASHEVILLE | 1 |
| WISCONSIN GREEN BAY | 1 |
| CAL ST. BAKERSFIELD | 1 |
| WEBER ST. | 1 |
| IONA | 1 |
| AUSTIN PEAY | 1 |
| HOLY CROSS | 1 |
| FLORIDA GULF COAST | 1 |
| HAMPTON | 1 |
| MIDDLE TENNESSEE | 1 |
Again, you can construct a squad of however many teams you would like AS LONG AS YOU STAY AT OR UNDER $100. Do you want to take a few apparent near sure-things (like Kansas and Virginia?) and a few longer shots, or do you take a ton of longshots? Or try for some happy medium?
Whatever you do, remember that even if your teams flame out this week, you'll be supplied with new team prices next week and should still have a chance to win regardless of what happened (last year, everyone was still in contention after the first weekend and only one of 11 people was eliminated entirely heading into the Final Four).
You can have as many entries as you want. Feel free to share with friends.
If you want to be in, send me an email at bobwothe@gmail.com titled 2016 NCAA POOL WEEK 1 TEAMS with your teams and $30 via PayPal (this is preferred -- bobwothe@gmail.com) or check (32 Country Court, Fond du Lac, WI 54935) by Wednesday, 3/16, at 10 p.m. CST. If you haven't gotten me the money or made other arrangements by then, your entry will not count, PERIOD.
Last thing: In order to remove any issues with me knowing other people's picks before giving my own, I will send my picks to a new email account each week before 11:59 p.m. CST Monday of that week. You will then need to get your picks to me by 11:59 p.m. CST Tuesday of that week. Then, Wednesday night/Thursday morning of each week, I will send out an email with a spreadsheet containing everyone's picks AS WELL AS the login credentials to the email account that I create. This will provide a timestamped version of my picks so that you can rest assured that I am not cheating.
As for this first week, I have already sent my entry on to this new email address, so you may send in your entries whenever you wish.
Let me know if you have any questions. Again, feel free to share this with others!
