Some yearn for the miracle as in when the Harvard women knocked off Stanford or three years ago when the UMBC men turned aside Virginia, marking the only two times that a 16 th seed beat a top seed. Yet, the madness of March is how predictably reliable the tournament is. Underdogs may capture a game or two, but things usually return to form with the favorites winning out.
The predictability of the NCAA extends off the court as well, as millions discovered this past week, and not in a pleasing way. Specifically, the mismanagement and chauvinism bordering on flat out misogyny emanating from the headquarters of college sports was on full blast. So far so good, as the squads arrived in their cities to prepare ahead of the first two rounds of contests, which opened Saturday and continue through Wednesday.
When Prince went to get in a workout before her game, she found that the NCAA had only arranged for a handful of weights in what was supposed to pass for a weight room in San Antonio. Meanwhile, in Indianapolis, the weight room for the men was close to fully stocked.
And the bag of gifts and food for male competitors was considerably and demonstrably better than for the women in Texas. Did it really take swag bags, weights and food to wake people up to an idea that girls and women have known from day one?
The second-class status the women in San Antonio is experiencing is as old as human civilization itself. You can reach us via email with your questions and comments at Sports at large at gmail. And follow me on Twitter at Sports at Large.
