Episode 12: March Madness
How I've rediscovered an old hobby and pleased my inner child + Women's March Madness Tournament Bracket
🏀 Quick Update 🏀
Today’s Bonus Track includes a link to my Women’s College Basketball Tournament Challenge where you can create a bracket and determine who will win the tournament. Here is a link to the challenge, called Rooting for Women’s Basketball and the password is WBB. All are welcome!
What I’m Thinking About
If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you may know by now how much I LOVE women’s basketball. I grew up a huge basketball fan, thanks to my uncle and my grandpa. They would play NBA Live on the PlayStation and my uncle had a basketball goal so I would try to play with him all the time. It probably comes as no surprise to many, but I grew up the ultimate tomboy. My uncle is only 7 years older than I am, so I literally would try to do everything he did. I eventually had basketball jerseys and everything lol. Kyla Pratt was my idol because she played the tomboy “I can hoop just as good as you” role very well in a lot of shows back in the day.
I played JV and Varsity basketball in high school but I wasn’t good though lol. I believe that if my mom had signed me up for a basketball team in elementary or middle school, I would’ve been a lot better before I got to high school. I have a nice jump shot and can handle the ball well, but if you’re playing at the high school level, you need a lot more than that. I grew up at the height of AND1 and Allen Iverson, so I was more concerned with crossing folks up than with the fundamentals of basketball.
I also grew up in Charlotte during the Charlotte Sting era, watching players like Dawn Staley (Philly!) and Andrea Stinson (NC State!). I remember owning the WNBA Barbie doll as well. I was all in. I also grew up a huge fan of UNC basketball (don’t tell my Wolfpack family) and my favorite women’s college basketball player was Ivory Latta. Ivory was a BEAST! My mom took me to see one of her last collegiate games and now I get to watch her as a commentator for the ACC Network.
Once I got to college, my engineering mentor, Brittany Strachan, played for the women’s basketball team at NCSU, and we would pop into the home games to see her and her teammates play. After I graduated, I kind of stopped following along. I’ve been in and out of being a fan of the NBA. Once upon a time I was IN LOVE wtih Carmelo Anthony. I had his jersey, a matching backpack, Air Force Ones in the Nugget colors, and my high school best friend got me a custom dog tag with his picture on it (remember those?). Steph Curry reignited my love for the NBA, especially once I began living in Oakland, but at some point, I stopped watching basketball altogether.
In 2021, I realized that the NC State women’s team was doing pretty well, so I started to tune into their games. That year we made it to the Sweet 16 and sadly lost, however, that was all I needed to be tapped in, especially after learning that two players crossed in my Delta chapter (hey sorors). I also realized we were the ACC conference champs from 2020-2022. I had no clue we were good again and decided actually to watch games again!
In 2022 I started learning about other players like Aliyah Boston and Olivia Miles, and I decided I would watch more regular-season games, but I mainly only watched NC State and the University of South Carolina play. After putting together a terrible tournament bracket in 2023, I decided that I would start watching other teams and this is how I got super deep into women’s college basketball. Every Sunday and Thursday night I would be glued to my couch watching teams play.
This eventually led to me watching the WNBA again too, as a lot of the players I liked watching in college went to the league. I’m SO glad that Atlanta has a WNBA team and tickets are very reasonable so that I can attend the games. This year, as luck would have it, I’ve also attended four women's college basketball games - two at Georgia Tech (tickets are $7) and two at NC State.
It feels so great to be reconnected to something I loved in my childhood. My inner child is super happy, especially now that my girlfriends are tapped in, so I have folks I can text about what’s going on or spend all day watching hoops together.
As a result of all of this excitement, I have decided to start a bracket for the NCAA tournament! More on that below in today’s Bonus Track!
What I’m Reading
Full Court Seduction & Overtime for Love by Synithia Williams
I’m choosing these books to go along with my basketball theme, and sadly I did not give them a rating after I read them and I don’t remember how I would rate them. What I do remember is that they’re your typical contemporary romance novel that ends in happily ever after with a little drama and spicy scenes along the way. I can’t remember disliking anything about the stories or the writing, so check them out if that’s your vibe. I’ll leave the synopsis from Good Reads to pique your interest!
“Optimistic and hardworking, Angela Bouler prides herself on getting through life without asking for an assist. School, two jobs, caring for her nephew, Cory—she's keeping all together…then Isaiah Reynolds bounces into her life. The Jacksonville Gators' star forward is coaching at Cory's summer camp, but guardians and mentors aren't supposed to mix—and certainly not surrender to red-hot kisses…
Isaiah has an image of the perfect partner in his head, and it doesn't quite mesh with Angela's hectic life. Or her evening job serving drinks at a gentlemen's club. But deep down, she's the only woman who sparks a true connection. He's expected to keep his image spotless, but instead, he's risking everything on a strong, sexy, complicated woman. Winning her heart won't be easy, but it's becoming the only play that really matters…”
Playing for keeps
“Straitlaced conservationist Danielle Stewart is known for passionately protecting the Florida coastline. Only one man knows about the other side of Danielle, the one she keeps concealed behind prim cardigans and glasses. Back in college, Danielle shared a sizzling night with Jacobe Jenkins. Next day, he left for the NBA draft, and his talent for troublemaking has made him as infamous as his on-court skills. Now chance has thrown them together again, and Danielle sees a perfect way to boost awareness for her favorite cause.
He's older, wiser and a lot more notorious, but one thing about Jacobe hasn't changed: his deep attraction to Danielle. Supporting her conservation efforts could improve his public image—and give him a second chance with the woman he still regrets leaving behind. But the lasting kind of love takes more than a trick shot. Will he overcome his bad-boy reputation and put his heart on the line for what could be the biggest play of his life?”
What I’m Watching
The Playbook - Dawn Staley: A Coach’s Rules for Life on Netflix
It’s no secret that Dawn Staley (who I affectionately call Louis Vuitton Dawn because she stays dripped out in designer clothes) is my favorite basketball coach. Somehow this Netflix documentary slipped by me, but I watched it this morning and enjoyed learning more about Dawn’s North Philly upbringing, as well as, her coaching philosophy.
If you haven’t watched this 2020 doc yet, I highly recommend it!
Stephen Curry: Underrated on Apple TV+
I watched the Steph Curry doc a few months ago and thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the hometown hero, Wardell Stephen Curry II. Like did you know that his mom and dad met as students at Virginia Tech, and his mom played volleyball for them? I had no clue! Anyway, anything Apple TV+ releases is gold, and this doc is no different. Check it out if you haven’t!
What I’m Vibin’ to
I’m going off of the basketball theme here, but this new ScHoolboy Q album is 🔥. My favorite tracks are THank god 4 me, Bluslides, Yearn 101, and Love Birds.
Bonus Track: March Madness Tournament Bracket
I hate that the bonus track comes last because this is often the topic I’m most excited to talk about!!
TL;DR:
I created a March Madness Bracket for the women’s tournament called “Rooting for Women’s Basketball” and you can sign up to play by clicking here and using the password WBB to join my league. (You’ll need an ESPN account)
You have to create your bracket before the first game begins on March 20th!
You can create up to 3 different brackets to determine who will win the championship!
If you want to participate and have no clue what a bracket is, keep reading and I got you!
QTNA: KB, let’s back up, help me understand what is happening.
All colleges compete athletically in a conference (I.e. ACC, SEC, Pac-12, Big East, Big 10, etc.).
In March, each conference hosts a 4-day tournament where one team will win the conference championship. The winner has an automatic entry into the national tournament.
A week or so later, the national NCAA tournament will begin. That’s when the top 64 teams across all conferences are competing against each other for the BIG title!
QTNA: Okay bet, now KB, what is a “bracket”??
Below is a picture of a “bracket”. On Selection Sunday, which is this Sunday, March 17th at 8 pm on ESPN, a Selection Committee will announce which teams will compete for the national title, which would fill out the “First Round” portion of the bracket.
After they make their announcement, you get to fill out the rest of the brackets, where you predict who you think will win each matchup and ultimately the national championship.
Notice the numbers on each of the “First Round” lines, as well as the different colors in each quadrant (red, black, orange, and blue). This is part of Selection Sunday as well. Each team is given a seed between 1-16, which you can think of as a rank, and a region, one of the 4 colors. Once the tournament starts, teams are competing within their region to see who will make it to the final four and ultimately the championship game.
Sometimes people will predict that whoever is ranked highest in a matchup will win a game, but that’s not always the case!
This article on ESPN goes into more detail about creating a bracket and selecting teams and if you have more questions, let me know!
