So the tournament didn’t get off to the best start. The selection show’s new format was widely panned; it began with a tedious alphabetical reading of all the automatic qualifying schools, which was literally the only thing that anyone watching could know before tuning in, and while the announcement of the full 68-team field before the actual bracket allowed every bubble question to be answered up front, it meant 20 minutes went by before we knew who anyone would be playing or where.
The good news: nothing this time of year lasts very long. By the time we’ve all caught our breath from shouting about one game’s dramatic finish, our collective attention is already turning toward the development of another.