NCAA Tournament Wrapup

The 2008 NCAA Tournament was a historic one. For the first time ever, all four number one seeds reached the Final Four, a feat which many believed would never occur. We had Cinderella runs by Davidson and Western Kentucky as well as moments by lower seeded mid-majors like Siena and San Diego. Every year a few mid major programs make a name for themselves and captivate the national viewing audience in the process. This is why the NCAA Tournament is the greatest sporting event annually. In honor of this year's tournament, Midnight to March hands out its 2008 Bracket Awards.

All-Bracket Team
PG: Derrick Rose, Memphis
SG: Stephen Curry, Davidson
SF: Chris Douglas-Roberts, Memphis
PF: Brook Lopez, Stanford
C: Kevin Love, UCLA
Does Memphis really deserve two players on the all-tournament team? Without question. CDR and Rose absolutely dominated the tournament from start to (almost) finish and should be hoisting a national championship trophy if it were not for the charity stripe. These two Tigers were unable to be tamed by anybody, and proved they were the best one-two punch in the country. Lopez carried his team to the Sweet 16 after a gutsy performance against Marquette and then again Texas, but could not overcome the Longhorns in Houston.
Honorable Mention: Brandon Rush, Kansas; Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina; Drew Lavender, Xavier; Joe Alexander, West Virginia

2008 Bracketeer of the Year
Stephen Curry, Davidson
Nobody has captured the tournament appeal quite like Stephen Curry in a really long time. Curry made all of America Davidson fans after taking over every second half the Wildcats played. 40 in the first round against Gonzaga, 30 to beat second-seeded Georgetown in round two, 33 against Wisconsin in the Sweet 16 makes gives Curry the best individual tournament that this writer has ever seen. One shot away from the Final Four, tourney fans can only hope to see Curry in the bracket for a couple more years.
Honorable Mention: None.

2008 Bracket Manager of the Year
John Calipari, Memphis
Without question, Cal motivated this Memphis team to a 38-2 record when almost every night this season they could have overlooked their opponent. Calipari always played an angle with the meida and pulled all the right strings to exceed all expectations in Memphis. Whether it be playing the poor free throws down or talking up their incredible backcourt and offense, Calipari exuded the type of leadership that a great coach needs to show.
Honorable Mention: Bill Self, Kansas; Ben Howland, UCLA; Bob McKillop, Davidson

2008 One Shining Moment
Ty Rogers' game winning three point shot in the first round, Western Kentucky
A handoff...and a prayer...answered. Mario Chalmers may have taken the honor of most clutch shot in the bracket, but Rogers' shot on the second day of the tournament set the scene. Memories of Laettner, Bryce Drew, Tyus Edney, Richard Hamilton and Eric Maynor were recaptured and now throw Rogers in with them. The handoff and prayer gave the Hilltoppers the victory over fifth-seeded Drake and allowed WKU to continue their dream run.
Honorable Mention: Chalmers, San Diego, Belmont

2008 Bracket Bust
Connecticut
It said here on Selection Sunday that the Huskies had the potential to knock off UCLA and reach San Antonio. Instead, they were knocked off by De'Jean Jackson and the San Diego Toreros in the first round in Tampa Bay. Figured to be the third best team coming out of the WCC, the Toreros were not intimidated by UCONN, and stuck it to them. The underachieving Huskies have still yet to recover from the 2006 defeat to George Mason.
Honorable Mention: Clemson (1st Round-2nd half), USC, Duke, Midwest Region

2008 Game of the Tournament
Nat'l Championship: Memphis vs. Kansas
As cliche as it is, the national title game was the best since 2003 when another Jayhawk coach was patrolling the sideline. It had drama, excellence, great offense and defense and star power. 75-68 KU was not indicative of how close Memphis was to locking in to the national championship. The Game of the Century in this man's opinion, and future Final Fours have alot to live up to if they want to exceed this one by the Riverwalk.
Honorable Mention: Midwest 2nd Rd: Davidson vs. Georgetown, West 2nd Rd: UCLA vs. Texas A&M, West 1st Rd: Duke vs. Belmont, West 1st Rd: Western Kentucky vs. Drake

The 2008 tournament had over half of its games decided by ten points or more, which indicates there were not many great games this year. Wrong. There were an incredible amount of historic performances and games which will continue on the amazing track record of the NCAA Tournament and add to its legend. From Chalmers to Curry, San Antonio to Dayton, 1 to 65, the road has come to an end, and what a road it has been.