We're off...

We have 67 entries in our 27th annual Pre-NCAA Contest, and the games have begun.

Well, two days worth of games, anyway. You'd think on the first day of conference tournament play, with top seeds playing low-major bottom-feeders, we'd all be safe, wouldn't you? Well, you'd be wrong.

You'd be really wrong if you were Tharp or Brenner, both of whom have already lost two conference champions. For Tharp it was his Atlantic Sun champion (Jacksonville) on March 1 and his NEC champion (St Francis PA) on March 2. Brenner dropped both of his (America East champ Albany and NEC champ St. Francis PA) on March 2. But the good news (at least for them) is these unfortunate souls were not alone. Fourteen other entrants have already lost a conference champ.

And we will gladly name them. Joining Tharp and Brenner in ignominy were:

In the ATLANTIC SUN:
Jacksonville (4): Packman, Selig, Tharp, Surprise Leach

In the AMERICA EAST:
Albany (8): Brenner, Broder, D Kedson, M Leach, M Paston, Biebel 2, Rybaltowski, Sciarabba

In the NEC:
St. Francis NY (1): Grossman
St. Francis PA (4): Anania, Brenner, Karlsruher, Tharp

In the OVC:
Tennessee Tech (1): Geo B

More games tonight, and speaking only for ourselves, we can't wait to see who's next.