疯狂三月来袭 NCAA精彩逆袭不断

What Is March Madness? 疯狂三月来袭 NCAA精彩逆袭不断

These days, you may hear people in the United States talking about March Madness.

But what does that mean?

Does the month of March make people angry?

No, of course not!

March Madness refers to a college basketball tournament.

The competition takes place every March. And the madness it creates is excitement!

Sometimes mad is defined¹ as angry. But here is another definition² of the word:  “marked by intense³ and unpredictable activity.”

The three-week long college basketball tournament is exactly that. It involves 64 men’s team and 64 women’s teams from colleges and universities around the country.

Another reason for the madness is that people bet⁴ a lot of money on the games. In 2015, the American Gaming Association⁵ said about $9 billion is bet on the tournament.

That is more than double the amount bet for the professional American football championship known as the Super Bowl.

All that money is enough to drive someone crazy!

The National Collegiate Athletic⁶ Association, or NCAA, puts on the basketball tournament.

The competition is made up of three divisions⁸. The men’s Division⁷ I tournament is the most popular. It features players who sometimes move on to professional careers in the National Basketball Association, or NBA, and other leagues around the world.

Some of the players who became famous in the NCAA tournament and now have major professional careers are Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks and Dwyane Wade⁹ of the Miami Heat. Retired¹⁰ NBA legends Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing and Michael Jordan all played in the NCAA tournament.

Even tournament players who do not “go pro,” sometimes become folk heroes for the fans that support their teams.

Paul Jesperson of the University of Northern Iowa is an example. He will be famous in his state forever as a result of his game winning score in the tournament just a few days ago. Jesperson threw the ball from half-court with less than a second left in play. The crowd went wild when the ball went in the basket.

NCAA experts choose the teams to play in the tournament each year. When a team loses a game, it leaves the tournament. The tournament goes from 64 teams to 32, 16 and 4. The last two rounds are referred to as the Sweet Sixteen and the Final Four.

This year, the championship game will be played on April 4.

Some of the recent men’s tournament champions are Duke University from North Carolina, the University of Connecticut, and the University of Louisville, in Kentucky.

The tournament has been going on since 1939, but did not become a “madness” until 1979. That is when Michigan State University defeated Indiana State University. Two important players faced each other in competition: Michigan’s Magic Johnson and Indiana’s Larry Bird. Both went on to the NBA and great fame as two of the greatest basketball players ever.

The university with the most tournament championships is the University of California, Los Angeles, or UCLA. The Bruins, as the team is known, has won 11 times.

After this weekend’s games, the tournament will be down to the Final Four.

Some of the well-known teams still playing are Pennsylvania’s Villanova University, the University of Kansas and the University of Oregon. One of the most interesting stories in this year’s tournament came from Yale University, a school better known for academics than athletics¹¹.

Yale qualified¹² for the tournament by winning the Ivy¹³ League for the first time since 1962. The league also includes Harvard University and Princeton University.

The games are usually exciting, adding to the madness. Even the players are big fans. Daniel Ochefu plays for Villanova. His family is from Nigeria and he lived there for a couple years when he was a teenager. He says great things happen in March.

“I know I was up late watching the Northern Iowa half-court buzzer-beater and the St. Joe's game. You know, it's March. Great things happen. We just don't want to miss them. So the TV's right there. We're laying in bed and just turn the TV on, and something great could happen.”

Of course, when great things happen, that is when the madness ends.

Words in This Story

madness – n. behavior or thinking that is very foolish or dangerous

tournament – n. a sports competition or series of contests that involves many players or teams and that usually continues for at least several days

mania¹⁴ – n. extreme enthusiasm¹⁵ for something that is usually shared by many people

crazy, drive crazy – adj. wild and uncontrolled, used in the phrase drive/make (someone) crazy to describe annoying or bothering someone very much

wander – v. to move around or go to different places usually without having a particular purpose or direction

bet – n. to risk losing something (such as money) if your guess about what will happen is wrong

folk hero – n. a person who is greatly admired by many people of a particular kind or in a particular place

sweet sixteen– n. a party celebrating a person’s 16th birthday

buzzer-beater– n. a shot or goal made before the end of a period or game in a sporting event

1 defined   

adj 定义的; 清晰的

参考例句：

• These categories are not well defined. 这些类别划分得不太明确。
• The powers of a judge are defined by law. 法官的权限是由法律规定的。

2 definition   

n.定义；限定，确定；清晰度

参考例句：

• The book attempts a definition of his role in world politics.该书要阐明的是他在世界政局中的作用。
• I made a definition for this word.我给这个字下了定义。

3 intense   

adj.认真的，专注的；强烈的；紧张的；热情的

参考例句：

• Susan was an intense young lady.苏珊是一个热情的年轻姑娘。
• The quarrel caused her intense unhappiness.争吵令她极其不快。

4 bet   

v.打赌，以(与)...打赌；n.赌注，赌金；打赌

参考例句：

• I bet you can't do this puzzle.我敢说，你解决不了这个难题。
• I offered to bet with him.我提出与他打赌。

5 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

6 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

7 division   

n.区分，分开，除法，公司，部门，师(军队里)

参考例句：

• Have you learnt division?你学会除法了吗？
• The division commander ordered that we start the attack before dawn.师长令我们在拂晓前发起攻击。

8 divisions   

n.分开( division的名词复数 )；分界线；分歧；分离

参考例句：

• The country's political divisions are deep-seated. 这个国家的政治分歧根深蒂固。
• The country's political divisions are deep-seated. 这个国家的政治分歧根深蒂固。

9 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

10 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

11 athletics   

n.运动，体育，田径运动

参考例句：

• When I was at school I was always hopeless at athletics.我上学的时候体育十分糟糕。
• Our team tied with theirs in athletics.在田径比赛中，我们队与他们队旗鼓相当。

12 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

13 ivy   

n.常青藤，常春藤

参考例句：

• Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
• The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

14 mania   

n.疯狂；躁狂症，狂热，癖好

参考例句：

• Football mania is sweeping the country.足球热正风靡全国。
• Collecting small items can easily become a mania.收藏零星物品往往容易变成一种癖好。

15 enthusiasm   

n.热情，激情；巨大兴趣；热衷的事物

参考例句：

• We set about our task at once with great enthusiasm.我们立刻兴致勃勃地干起来。
• A team which is full of enthusiasm is more likely to win.情绪高涨的球队更可能获胜。