words // Brandon Richard
After a series of play-in games earlier in the week, the NCAA Tournament officially tipped off today and it didn't take long for some of that March Madness to rear its thrilling head. Before nightfall, we've already seen three buzzer-beaters, including the surprising elimination of Louisville by Morehead State. There will certainly be more shocking moments in the coming weeks, with all of us remembering exactly why Gus Johnson is the greatest human being walking the planet.
Earlier in the week, we took a look at some of the greatest sneakers to ever hit the court in college basketball history. In that post, I posed the question of who would be the next college star to be linked to a particular sneaker long-term. While there's no answer on that front, I did think it would be interesting to examine what brands are actually hitting the courts- particularly in the NCAA Tournament, where legends are made.
To nobody's surprise, Nike dominates the field, sponsoring over 3/4 of the squads in the 68-team field. Up next is adidas, who outfits 12 of the teams competing for a National Championship. The Jordan Brand follows with 3 represented squads, but that's a mere technicality because they're under the Nike umbrella and most of the Nike-sponsored schools have kids wearing Jordans on the court. After a huge year in college football, Under Armour rolls in dead last, only being worn by the Temple Owls. In all, Nike or Nike-affiliated logos are seen on the jerseys of about 81% of the tournament teams.
Adidas gets the most action in the Southwest bracket, where they're represented by Kansas, Notre Dame, Louisville and Texas A&M. Jordan Brand teams North Carolina and Marquette are seeded in the East, while Georgetown is competing in the Southwest. Lonely Temple, who won their opening round game earlier today, represents Under Armour in the West. Check out the chart below for a detailed look at what brands the schools are representing.
