The put-back by UCF’s Aubrey Dawkins in the final seconds against Duke rolled around the front of the rim, Duke’s fate hanging in the balance — and with it, the fate of about a third of the Glimm.
If the ball rolled in the basket, Duke would lose in a shocking upset, and 107 Glimmers would lose their championship. If the ball rolled out, Duke and the Glimmers survive and advance.
The ball rolled out. Duke won by a point. And by and large, most Glimmers still have hope.
UCF’s near-upset was par for the course in the 2019 NCAA Basketball Tournament, where some of the top seeds saw serious scares, but most advanced. Fourteen of the Sweet 16 teams are top-four seeds – meaning they were expected to get this far. By NCAA tournament standards, this has been about upset-free as possible.
Which has worked out well for Glimm commissioner Josh Kleinbaum. After two rounds, Kleinbaum’s quest for a first Glimm title since 1992 is alive and well. He picked 14 of 16 second-round games correctly in his Tim Whatley bracket to pass Jason Kaden’s Jiffo Tres and take first place.
Kaden is in second place, followed by Nelson Hsu’s Fear the Turtle. Kate Lord’s Go to Hell Dook 4 and Go to Hell Dook 5 round out the top five (note: Duke may not be in hell, but they must’ve made a deal with the devil for that ball roll out).
The most interesting development of the Glimm, though, came at the bottom of the bracket. Avery Sweet’s Bugsy bracket is entrenched in 318th place, and there it will remain.
Eight-year-old Sweet (who was also competing for the Kids Championship) filled out her bracket with perfect logic for an eight-year-old: She lives in Arizona, so Arizona State/St. John’s was the obvious champion. On the Gilmore Girls, Rory picked Yale over Harvard, so clearly Yale would make the Final Four (before losing to Arizona State/St. John’s). It makes so much sense.
Alas, it didn’t work out so well. Arizona State won their play-in but lost to Buffalo. Yale lost its first-round game against LSU. Avery has 18.5 points, and she can gain no more. She clinched last place, so she is the official Pity Finisher and will get her $5 back.
And now you get a few days to breath. Games resume on Thursday.
The leaderboard (click here for full standings):
| Rk | Entry Name | Score | Upset Pts | Poss | Pick Pct. | Champion |
| — | The Results | 88.5 | 24.5 | 192.5 | 100.0% | |
| 1 | Tim Whatley | 77.0 | 20.0 | 183.5 | 89.6% | Michigan |
| 2 | Jiffo Tres | 76.0 | 24.0 | 181.5 | 81.3% | MSU |
| 3 | Fear the Turtle | 73.5 | 18.5 | 177.5 | 85.4% | Duke |
| 4 | Go to Hell Dook 4 | 73.0 | 20.0 | 178.0 | 81.3% | N Carolina |
| 5 | Go to Hell Dook 5 | 72.5 | 18.5 | 177.5 | 81.3% | Gonzaga |
| 6 | Sean Ceglinsky | 72.0 | 18.0 | 177.0 | 81.3% | Duke |
| 7 | Dubois1 | 70.0 | 17.0 | 173.0 | 81.3% | MSU |
| 8 | It’s 5 p.m. Somewhere | 69.0 | 13.0 | 173.5 | 85.4% | Gonzaga |
| 9 | Buzzer Beaters 2 | 68.0 | 15.0 | 173.5 | 81.3% | Kentucky |
| 9 | CWB1 | 68.0 | 18.0 | 175.5 | 79.2% | Virginia |