Hampton Region Round 1 Recap
#9 Nashville 29 #8 Miami 24
The eight-nine game provided the most drama in the Hampton region, as two 3.0 favorites staged an engaging battle that featured the most eye-opening comeback of the tournament. Eight seed, Miami, had a comfortable lead for most of the contest, but the final five minutes saw Nashville go on a run out of nowhere and overtake the ’09 standout, capturing the contest by 5 votes. Miami—stunned—hung its head as it packed its bag, but heading back to South Beach will sure bolster its spirit.
#11 New Haven 95 34 #6 MSG 12/30/16 19
In an upset that many prognosticators saw coming, the compact shredder from New Haven defeated the more dynamic version from Madison Square Garden. When the bracket came out, there was rampant questioning of New Haven’s seemingly-low seed, but the committee cited the version’s one-dimensional nature for its placement. The voters saw otherwise, however, as the Fall 95 version jumped out to a big lead and never looked back. Voters have shown an unbreakable love for Fall 95, as each version from the tour has advanced thus far.
#7 Austin 98 33 #10 Chicago, IL 19
The late-’90s groove monster from Austin, Texas, wasted no time devouring the multi-sectioned standout from Fall 2018. Chicago was predicted to put up more of a fight in this one, but it was no competition for one of the chunkiest and smoothest rhythmic exchanges of all-time.
#5 Hampton 13 42 #12 Red Rocks 09 11
In another battle of 3.0 versions, the revered rendition from the Mothership out-dueled the stellar Red Rocks version from five years earlier. Though Red Rocks, pound for pound, is as tough as any version in the field, the length and psychedelia of Hampton suffocated the ’09 version, and the host Tweezer of the Hampton region marched on.
#4 Bangor 33 #13 MSG 1/2/16 20
The stone cold classic from Bangor ’94, featured on A Live One, put the beat down on the uplifting MSG 16 version in a wire-to-wire domination. Bangor is one of the favorites in this bracket, and could be looking at a regional final if things fall their way.
#3 Denver 97 47 #14 Baker’s 8
This match-up was over before it started, as the well-loved opener from McNichols 97 proved far to powerful and infectious for the Baker’s Dozen opening night outing. Denver’s quintessential Fall ’97 groove factory started quick and never relented in a match-up between wildly divergent versions, easily advancing to the round of 32.
#2 Mud Island 41 #15 Minneapolis 10
The 50-minute colossus from Memphis in the Summer 95 had a strong argument for a top seed in this tournament, and when it was slotted as a two, it felt like it had something to prove. The longest Tweezer ever came out with a chip on its shoulder in the first round, drubbing the Target Center version from ’99 in a game that likened the Globetrotters versus the Washington Generals. Mud Island has its sights set on the final four, but will have to make its way through some top-shelf versions to make its dream a reality.
#1 Raleigh 99 55 #15 Shoreline 00 4
Continuing the tournament trend of top seed domination, Raleigh bludgeoned the Shoreline version from the final night of 1.0, in a contest that was as lopsided as the score suggests. Raleigh treated this game as a warm-up for its real competition which will start in round two.
* * *
Thanks to everyone who voted in the Hampton Region! Below is the Worcetser Region—the final first round games. The polls will be live for 72 hours and then we will be moving on to spicier matchups in the round of 32. Enjoy!
