As the NCAA March Madness basketball tournament came to a close, many WHB students were left feeling frustrated with the outcome of their bracket predictions. Despite the number 1 seed, Kansas State, taking it all, upsets along the way put a dent in hundreds of bracket predictions. 

Sophomore Kevin Smith said, “My bracket is really bad.” At the beginning he believed number 2 seed Gonzaga would win the whole thing. What ruined his bracket, he said, was “the upsets that I didn’t expect to happen.” Specifically, “the 15 seed Saint Peters going really far. I didn’t expect that to happen.”

Students aren’t the only ones who didn’t get the outcome they wanted. Social studies teacher Mr. Moran also thought Gonzaga would take the win despite his high hopes as a Duke fan. “Let’s go Blue Devils!” he said. When asked about his bracket predictions Mr. Moran said “It’s not my best showing.” His bracket was also messed up by some upset games. “[Number 15] St. Peter’s beating [2] Kentucky, [12] New Mexico State beating [5] UCONN”

St. Peter’s beating Kentucky was undoubtedly the biggest upset in the tournament, but they didn’t stop there. Next St. Peter’s defeated 7 seed Murray State, then number 3, Purdue. They went all the way to the Elite Eight, becoming the first 15 seed to make it in tournament history. Their unexpected run came to an end in a 49-69 loss against UNC.

On April 4th, number 1 Kansas State and number 8 UNC faced off for the 2022 March Madness championship. At halftime Kansas trailed by 15 points, things were looking up for UNC. However in the end Kansas took the W with a 72-69 finish, overcoming the 15 point deficit, the biggest deficit overcome in championship history. Kansas proved the odds right and the JayHawks won their first title since 2008.