NCAA Hoops: Obama Backs Tar Heels
As I write this entry, the NCAA men's basketball tournament is already underway.
Earlier today, Barack Obama revealed his picks for the Final Four and eventual champion. He's got Kansas, North Carolina, Pitt and UCLA making it through to the semifinal round.
With perhaps a bit of political motivation (North Carolina holds its Democratic primary May 6), Obama picks the Tar Heels to beat UCLA's Bruins in the national championship game.
No teams from Obama's home state of Illinois are playing in the tournament. His alma mater, Columbia University, hasn't sent a team to an NCAA tournament since 1968, according to a report from Bloomberg News.
Hillary Clinton declined to divulge her NCAA selections this week, saying that she'd leave that up to her "basketball advisor," husband Bill Clinton. (The former president has not disclosed his picks. His alma mater, Georgetown, is a No. 2 seed in the Midwest Regional, where Kansas is the top seed.)
As for supporting teams from her home state of New York, Senator Clinton could look to Cornell or Siena. Cornell, the No. 14 seed in the South Regional, plays No. 3 seed Stanford. Siena, the No. 13 seed in the Midwest Regional plays No. 4 seed Vanderbilt. She got her undergraduate degree at all-women Wellesley College, which, naturally, has never participated in the men's tournament.
John McCain encouraged people to compare their tournament brackets to his, posted on his official Web site. I tried to access the Arizona senator's bracket this morning, but the Web site hung after I submitted information on a sign-in sheet. So I don't know his Final Four -- but I've already gotten two e-mails asking for campaign support.
McCain's home-state team, Arizona, is the No. 10 seed in the West Regional, taking on No. 7 seed West Virginia. His alma mater, the U.S. Naval Academy, last made the field of 64 teams 10 years ago.