As UConn's Silas Demary deflected a pass by Duke’s Cayden Boozer at mid-court in their Elite Eight matchup, Seton Hall sophomore business major Aidan Griffin jumped right out of his seat at the dining hall. And when UConn’s Braylon Mullins then drilled the shot of the tournament, Griffin immediately let out a scream and did a lap around a table.
“The first thing I was thinking about was that my bracket actually has a shot at winning,” said Griffin. “With all the Duke brackets gone I knew I had a chance then.”
Griffin's excitement perfectly encapsulated what has been a thrilling tournament so far. Whether it was Mullins’ shot on the men’s side, or six-seeded Notre Dame’s Cinderella run to the Elite Eight on the women’s side, this year’s March Madness has had no shortage of classic moments.
“I think this has been one of the most exciting tournaments in years,” said sophomore elementary education major Kennedy Roskopp. “They’re haven’t been a ton of upsets but all the games have been very exciting especially the UConn-Duke game on the men’s side and LSU-Duke game on the women’s side.”
Roskopp brought up a point that has been a major topic of discussion in recent tournaments: a lack of upsets. This is the first time ever in tournament history on the men’s side where for the second consecutive year a 13-seed or higher hasn’t won a tournament game.
The women’s side also didn’t see many upsets with ten-seeded Virginia’s win over two-seeded Iowa in the second round being the only significant one. So while the dominance of many top teams has brought a surge of eyeballs to the sport, some students still prefer an old-fashioned upset getting thrown into the mix.
“My favorite moment so far would have to be [12-seeded] High Point’s win over -five-seeded] Wisconsin,” said freshman sports media major Manuel Pereira. “Chase Johnston had an incredible postgame interview and the upsets are what makes March so special for me.”
While bracket-busting upsets are a highlight of the tournament for those like Pereira, it leads to despair for others competing in various bracket competitions.
“My bracket has been super trash this year”, said senior financial math major Logan Brunozzi. “The only thing right now is that I picked [one-seeded] Arizona to win and they're still in—but other than that it’s been a rough year.”
And while March's unpredictability humbles the ball knowledge of many, Roskopp correctly picked the Final Four teams of the women’s tournament.
”I am super happy with my decision to have UConn win it all,” Roskopp said. “If they get it done, this could be one of my best seasons yet.”
Although there are no remaining perfect brackets remaining on the men’s side and just one on the women’s side, the Final Four is sure to make everyone forget about their long lost brackets.
“I think there's many fun storylines in the Final Four this year,” said sophomore journalism major Samuel Stinson. “But I want UConn to bring it home in both the men’s and women’s [tournaments].”
“They’re the lone Big East team remaining and while Dan Hurley is a very emotional person, I think he is the best coach in the nation,” Stinson added.
If this 2026 edition of March Madness was written as a fictional novel, it would probably win some sort of major award. With all the down to the wire games, upsets in the second round, buzzer beaters, and record breaking performances on both sides, it has certainly been one for the ages.
And while this story has brought its share of pain and glory alike for all brackets, it’s fair to say no-one will remember who they had winning the opening Ohio State-TCU game when the curtain closes on this thrilling tournament
William Gilhooly is a writer for The Setonian’s Sports Section. He can be reached at william.gilhooly@student.shu.edu.
