The Pitt News Sports Desk makes their picks for inter-newspaper challenge

Sports sections from six college newspapers across the greater Pittsburgh area are competing to see which school’s writers can put together the best bracket. 

On Monday night, The Pitt News Sports Desk convened in their office to consider each of the 63 contests in March Madness. After thoughtful — and at times intense and spirited — deliberation, the staff came to a consensus. Here’s a look at the notable selections and the picks that generated the most controversy. Our full bracket is on our Instagram and X. 

South 

The desk settled on three upsets in the first round of the South region. No. 13 seed Yale over No. 4 seed Texas A&M, No. 11 seed North Carolina/San Diego State in the First Four over No. 6 seed Mississippi and No. 10 seed New Mexico over No. 7 seed Marquette. 

Despite a 30-4 record and a popular upset pick, the staff was not convinced that UC San Diego could overcome Big Ten champion Michigan. 

The impetus for the upset over Mississippi is the belief that UNC is a strong squad with the potential to win multiple games. This decision came despite doubts that the Tar Heels belonged in the field over other teams in consideration such as Indiana and West Virginia.

Yale and New Mexico’s Cinderella bids came to an end in the second round, losing to Michigan and MSU, respectively. The desk, high on North Carolina’s potential, sees the Tar Heels’ postseason run continuing into the Sweet 16. 

The South’s third round features wins by both higher seeds, with Auburn beating Michigan and MSU taking down UNC for trips to the Elite Eight. This matchup provided the first controversy of the caucus. Eventually, MSU garnered a majority vote with the desk predicting the Spartans’ return to the Final Four.

West 

The West region follows the South with multiple double-digit seeds winning their first-round matchup. Colorado State won a closely contested vote over Memphis to decide the game between the No. 5 seed and No. 12 seed. The meeting between Drake and Missouri provided less controversy, with Drake earning a wide majority. 

After beating a Southeast Conference foe in the first round, the Bulldogs advanced as the desk’s second and final double-digit seed to reach the Sweet 16 over No. 3 Texas Tech. In the second weekend, the staff chose to advance the top two seeds in the region, Florida and St. John’s (NY), defeating Maryland and Cinderella Drake respectively.

A fierce dispute over the West’s Final Four representative transpired. One faction praised the biting, quick-striking offensive ability of the Gators while highlighting the shooting inefficiencies of St. John’s and voted in favor of Florida. Others emphasized the Johnnies’ ability to play stout, suffocating defense and their solid guard play as an advantage. In the end, the Final Four nod went to St. John’s with Rick Pitino, one of college basketball’s elder statesmen, commanding its sideline. 

East 

In the East, the Power Four conferences reigned supreme. In the one agreed-upon upset, No. 10 seed Vanderbilt of the SEC took down West Coast Conference runner-up and No. 7 seed Saint Mary’s (CA). The second round only featured one upset, with No. 5 seed Oregon defeating No. 4 seed Arizona. Duke, Wisconsin and Alabama all join Oregon in the Sweet 16. 

In the third round, Duke takes down Oregon, and Wisconsin pulls off a minor upset, taking down Alabama. Higher seeds continued to dominate in the East as the No. 1 seed Duke punched their ticket to San Antonio with a victory over No. 3 seed Wisconsin.

Midwest 

The first round in the Midwest is defined by two victories by double-digit seeds. The first is No. 13 seed High Point taking down No. 4 seed Purdue. The second surprise is Utah State’s victory over UCLA in the matchup of No. 7 and No. 10 seeds. 

Top-seeded Houston takes down No. 5 seed Clemson in one of the most hotly debated matchups of the entire meeting. Clemson initially seemed to have the votes, but after a moving oration by a member of the staff, the desk agreed on a revote, and the speech proved effective. Houston moved on. In the bottom half of the Midwest bracket, No. 2 seed Tennessee defeats No. 3 seed Kentucky in the Sweet 16. 

Tennessee secures the victory against Kelvin Sampson’s Cougars in the Elite Eight to advance to the Final Four from the Midwest. The final matchup in the Midwest was yet another point of contention with a thin margin in the vote. Houston was backed desperately by its ardent supporters on the staff, but the majority vote went the Volunteers’ way.

Final Four

The two votes to decide the two teams in the National Championship were quite disparate. The desk’s support for Tennessee evaporated as Duke won the poll with flying colors. On the other side of the bracket, Michigan State and St. John’s faced off after both schools won close votes in the Elite Eight. The staff decided it was time for the Spartans to return to the Final Four — their first in 16 years.

Now, the stage is set for San Antonio. Duke, cruising through the East, will face off against Michigan State after several close calls against Auburn and St. John’s. John Scheyer, in his first National Championship as a coach, will face off against Tom Izzo, coaching in his third. 

After 40 minutes of intense, breathless basketball on the elevated court of the Alamodome, Michigan State comes out on top 69-67. The Spartans cut down the nets for the third time in their school’s history, and Tom Izzo lifts the trophy for the first time in 25 years.