Every March, 68 college basketball teams meet in one of the most popular sporting events in the world. In South Hadley High School, students and teachers get ready to fill out their brackets and watch the Madness unfold over the next month.
March Madness is one of the country’s oldest college tournaments, first conducted in 1939. The tradition of filling out brackets to predict the tournament is almost forty years younger than the tournament itself, having started in 1977. Despite this, filling out brackets for March Madness has become synonymous with the competition, and this tradition has become a low-stakes way to connect and compete with your friends, family, and classmates.
This year’s competition has brought with it no share of surprises. While powerhouses like Florida, Duke, and Houston have all performed as expected, cruising their way to the Final Four, earlier rounds gave us some massive upsets. Clemson, a huge brand in college athletics and the fifth seed out of the Midwest, was knocked out in the first round by 12-seeded McNeese State. South Hadley sophomore Jackson Driver was shocked, saying, “What the heck, Clemson? They completely ruined my bracket”.
Most viewers anticipate this upset drama as one of the most exciting parts of March Madness, and the students at South Hadley are no exception. Sophomore Bradley Fournier said, “The thing I love most about March Madness is that anyone can win. The upsets and underdogs are always the best part of the tournament.”
Another beloved aspect of March Madness is the competition between brackets. South Hadley High School has its own league for people to share their brackets and compete with each other. Sophomore Maxwell Barcome-Laflamme said, “I like the competition between brackets; it’s my favorite part of March Madness”.
Currently, everyone is waiting for the Final Four to see which of Houston, Duke, Florida, and Auburn will advance to the national championship. No matter who goes through, it promises to be a thrilling conclusion to an electric tournament that has taken the world by storm.
