adding it up

They say you can judge the strength of the Final Four by adding up the seeds.

This year, we have a #11 seed Virginia Commonwealth, an #8 seed in Butler, a #4 with Kentucky and a #3 seed belonging to UConn.  This adds up to a 26, which is the highest sum I can remember in quite some time.

In 2008, all #1 seeds advanced to the Final Four, which netted the lowest possible sum of 4.

This year is the complete opposite.  Even crazier is when after the NCAA committee originally selected Virginia Commonwealth to participate in the tournament, analyst Jay Bilas claimed that he wondered  "if some people on the committee know whether the ball is round." 

Virginia Commonwealth is considered to have been the last selection of the original 68-team field, and now they're in the Final Four.

Virginia Commonwealth's Jamie Skeen drives past a Kansas defender

Adding up the seeds doesn't necessarily mean that this year's Final Four is weak, but it just means some very unpredictable things have happened for a few weeks.