Early Thoughts From The NCAA Tournament

We are halfway through the first day of full-fledged competition at the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

8 games are already in the books, and the early action didn't disappoint.

 Some higher seeded teams were toppled, and nearly every game came down to the wire.

Here's what has stood out to me so far:

Every game so far has been competitive. Here are the margins of victory for the first eight games, from largest to smallest: 23, 18, 8, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1. If you think widespread parity doesn't exist in college basketball, consider that 5 of those 8 games were decided by 3 points or less.

Teams with connections to the Montana Grizzlies are 0-2 so far. The Old Dominion Monarchs, led by former Griz coach Blaine Taylor, lost to Butler 60-58 when Matt Howard tipped in a shot for the Bulldogs at the buzzer. Meanwhile, Northern Colorado, the team that knocked off Montana for the Big Sky title, fell to 2nd seeded San Diego State 68-50.

Check back later tonight, as I will post a recap of the late night contests as well.