It’s the first day of the 2023-24 men’s and women’s college basketball seasons and storylines abound: Can LSU women and UConn men repeat? Will transfers like Hunter Dickinson (Michigan to Kansas) and Max Abmas (Oral Roberts to Texas) lead their teams to victory? How will the new head coaches at major programs fare this year?
To celebrate the men’s season getting underway, the NCAA March Madness account collaborated with Bleacher Report — the same site responsible for the iconic Team USA graphic following the 2019 Women’s World Cup win — for another picture.
College basketball is BACK 🤩
The road to Phoenix begins today 🌵 pic.twitter.com/o3EDJjqy3V
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) November 6, 2023
Not only is the Final Four in Glendale, which is decidedly not Phoenix, why are players and mascots riding on Star Wars speeders to [checks notes] the Roman Colosseum? The question here is about whether the graphic is meant to have us all confused deliberately.
Unsurprisingly, college basketball fans had questions.
Is this image supposed to take place in Phoenix or Rome or Tattooine https://t.co/3K2uAmM7D8
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) November 6, 2023
the storyboards for the women’s graphic had Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark riding Tauntauns into Cleveland https://t.co/rnWBwf2nct
— Mitchell Northam (@primetimeMitch) November 6, 2023
what's, uh, going on in this image https://t.co/bnKYhEk3aA
— The Sickos CBB Committee (@SickosCBB) November 6, 2023
Did they move the Final Four to Rome or did they move the Colosseum to Glendale? https://t.co/gTvwaZBMO2
— NunesMagician.com (@NunesMagician) November 6, 2023
I can see Hunter Dickinson knocking everyone off of these like he’s Sebulba. https://t.co/DxQWBOgK3G
— Will Ojanen (@WillsWorldMN) November 6, 2023
Been staring at this for two minutes https://t.co/gG3nFSKuKU
— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) November 6, 2023
This is Phoenix? https://t.co/kXJxegmsi3
— Kevin Sweeney (@CBB_Central) November 6, 2023
this graphic makes absolutely no sense but they put jonathan on a star wars speeder so how can i possibly be anything other than extremely hyped https://t.co/252m9hhXlT
— Steph Sheehan (@Steph_Sheehan) November 6, 2023
The weirdest part about this graphic isn't the Roman Coliseum or the Star Wars speeder bikes. It's that calling it the "road to Phoenix" will have them missing their destination of Glendale by 10 miles https://t.co/SnhaKrlkiS
— Andrew Joseph (@AndyJ0seph) November 6, 2023
