ONE WORD.....

EMBARRASSING!!!!!!

OH my goodness! What in the WORLD happened to my national champion pick? (ahem...wake forest).

I can honestly say...it takes a LOT to embarrass me. But sitting there last friday night and watching the team that...after ALL the researching and preparation i did...picked to win it ALL... just absolutely FLOP...it was REALLY sad. I mean...they were NEVER even IN the game from the very get go! ...and against CLEVELAND STATE of all teams! (no offense to any fans) (which means there was some offense taken probably. lol)

My bracket actually doesn't look extremely bad in the grand scheme of things. I still do have 7 of my elite eight still alive. I still have 3 of my final 4 alive. And I still have 1 of my final 2 alive. And in just about ANY other year, that would mean I have somewhat of a shot at winning in the contests I entered.

Problem is...it ISN'T any other year. And EVERYBODY ELSE has the teams i have left. So, I'm going to stay as far behind as I am, no matter what happens really.

So...as we head into the Sweet 16 (which is by FAR the SWEETEST 16 in the HISTORY of the world!)...here goes my predictions.

MIDWEST...ya know what...as much as i REALLY want Arizona to keep going because hey... who doesn't like Cinderella, eh? ... i just dont think it happens. Rick Pitino's record in the first and third game of the tourney is off the charts good! ... so its LOUISVILLE moving on... and meeting up with...the lean mean green machine! I like Michigan State a LOT, now that Wake is out. I had them here in the first place...and I'll keep them here and moving on to the Final Four as they'll beat Louisville and cut down the nets in Indy.

WEST...this one is an absolute NO BRAINER...first of all, i really do have a deeply rooted HATRED for Purdue. Add that to the fact that the huskies are a really good team...that is now probably playing with a little extra oomph for their coach after everything that he's gone through this year...i like UCONN. ... to take on: MISSOURI... this game with memphis could very well be the most entertaining one of the whole month. it promises to be high scoring and filled with excitement...with the tiggers squeaking out the W...and i also like them to beat UConn to get to the Final four!

EAST...this one is a pretty easy pick for me too...considering i didnt even have Xavier to get out of the first round!! and...oh yeah...Pittsburgh is a DANG good team. However...i DONT think that Pitt is good enough to get by DUKE... i think they'll get a challenge from Villanova and Jay Wrights hair...but certainly Duke is Duke...and they've been playing well for the last six weeks or so and they're going back to the finale quatro.

SOUTH...this is where the road ends (again) for Gonzaga. As good as they are in the regular season year after year and in the first round or two year after year...they can never seem to get up over the hump and in to the elite eight...and i dont see it happening this year...because this tar heels team has been VERY impressive. As far as who they'll take on...as much as i like the last name Griffin (yes...i am a FAMILY GUY FREAK TOO!), i see the big orange giving them fits and getting past. But...their run ends with big Roy and big Tyler and Lawson's big TOE.

FINAL FOUR:

MICHIGAN STATE against MIZZOU... again...i like the inside outside combo of the green team...they'll take it.

DUKE against NORTH CAROLINA... are you kiddin me??? Someone keep a close eye on Dick Vitale and make sure he doesn't have a heart attack! ... i'll stick with my original prediction of a Duke victory. I LOVE this game though.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.... i'll stick with the region i had winning...MICHIGAN STATE will do the honors in D-town!!! Believe it or not, i DID pick them to win it all BEFORE the brackets actually came out. But then i saw they were in Wakes region and i changed my mind in the elite eight...so, since they're still in it...GO BIG GREEN!

I'll check back in later on and say how bad i STUNK again i'm sure.

LET IT BEGIN!!

FINALLY...its here.

As i sit here watching on TV and listening to the radio of the first half of the first round games, i thought i would jump on here and post my thoughts as the tourney begins.

alright... my final four predictions. For some wierdo reason, i just CANT pick all four number one seeds to do it again. Last year was the first time EVER, so i like my chances of it NOT happening this year. In the end, i went with a 1, a 2, a 3, and a 4 to make it to detroit. Lets go in order as you look at your bracket:

MIDWEST... here is where my 4 seed is... i REALLY like wake forest this year. And i mean REALLY...as you'll see in a bit when i say who's going to win it all. They've got a good combination of everything...from experience to size to a good bench to good coaching...and they played in a VERY tough ACC and held their own. So...its wake over michigan state.

WEST...here is my 3 seed...Missouri. This bracket in my opinion is the toughest of the four. I mean really...a 30 win team is an 11 seed!!! i know its utah state...but still, it illustrates how tough this bracket is. As i look at my picks, one that really stands out is...i actually DID pick PURDUE to win a game. YUK! it may be the first (and ONLY) time EVER for me doing that. But anyway...back to Mizzou...i like their style! I only saw them a handful of times on TV, but they love to push the ball and stuff it in your face. I think they'll wear out the likes of marquette, memphis and uconn on the way. So...its mizzou over uconn.

EAST...here is my 2 seed...Duke. Yes, coach K will have the dukeys right back in the finale quatro after closing out the season on a high note. Like many teams, they did flub up a little at one point in the season, but ended up running their way through the conference tourney. And all this with the toughest strength of schedule in the country. So...its duke over pitt.

SOUTH...here is my 1 seed...North Carolina. And they're my ONLY number one seed. And a big reason why is their road they get to take...by FAR the EASIEST of the four regions. In fact, i have the most first round upsets in this one...with butler, western ky, and temple. i also have clemson beating oklahoma in the second round! OK...back to the heels... They get to play their first two right in their backyard in greensboro...they've got a VERY experienced team and a VERY experienced coach. I know they're a little beat up...but even a little short handed, they should be able to punch their ticket again. So...its north carolina over syracuse.

Now...drum roll please...i have WAKE beating Mizzou...and DUKE over North Carolina. (how about THAT for a final four matchup!!!)

And your champion will beeeeee.....WAKE FOREST! for all the reasons stated above...and oh yeah...i almost forgot THIS point...remember, they were the number one team in the nation at one point this year.

So there ya go! i havent heard or read too many prognosticators take Wake...so, put it this way... if they DO win it all, i WILL win EVERY bracket competition i entered!

I'll try and hop on here on a regular basis throughout the tourney.

ENJOY the most WONDERFUL time of the year!!

HITTING THE TRIFECTA

Ya know...USUALLY hitting that trifecta is a GOOD thing, like in horse racing or something. But THIS trifecta was NOT a good thing for Wisconsin sports fans.

I guess we'll start with the Badgers, since that's the one I'll have the most fun with this coming weekend. I know they weren't expected to win the game as a two point dog with the Vegas smarties, but when you're in the situation TO win and you DON'T, that is HIGHLY disappointing. ESPECIALLY when you know that you are a "bubble team" in the month of March. There were times that they looked like a determined team that was finally getting Marcus Landry to do what was expected of him all season long. But then there were times in which they looked like a team that was playing together for the first time ever! Bo Ryan even admitted as much at half time when he said the team was searching for chemistry. Say WHAT?? The second to last game of the regular season is NOT the time of year to be trying to gel as a team! And then to let ONE GUY score the last TEN POINTS of the game...what's up with THAT! Next up...the dangerous INDIANA HOOSIERS! (more on that...including details on a little friendly wager with a co-host...tomorrow)

Then there's the Marquette (not so) Golden Eagles. I know that the game of basketball is a TEAM game, and the loss of one player isn't really supposed to make THAT big a difference. That is...unless that one player is Dominic James. I keep trying to come up with a good analogy...other than the old "taking the air out of the tires". But that's pretty much what happened when he went down a couple of games ago. The team seems like they're riding a bike with flat tires. You know...sometimes you'll build some speed and get your hopes up that you'll make it through and get to that destination... but you just KNOW that at SOME point its going to come to a screeching halt. (ok, not the greatest analogy...but you get my point) They've got to hop back on that bike again Saturday in the season finale against the 'Cuse, and I say if they lose that game... and then bow out early in the conference tourney, they may wind up dancing as a double digit seed.


Last, for some definitely least, the Milwaukee Bucks. First of all, i give them kudos for not folding when the duo of Redd and Bogut went down. They have managed to keep afloat in that wacky Eastern Conference. (the middle of the standings remind me of the Big Ten standings) But last night they ran into the machine known as LEBRON. I know that Kobe is leading his team to the best record in the league right now...and D-Wade is D-Man... but D-MVP is #23 in a Cavs uniform. They said it so well on the broadcast...he's hitting deep outside shots like they're layups! I mean...last night, the Bucks did EXACTLY what they were supposed to do...they played really good half court defense...they forced the shot clock all the way down...they forced a trapped shot deep in the corner...Luc Richard MMM Bop MMM Mootay contested it as well as ANYBODY could have...so you're thinking they got the stop, right? Not when L.J. is the one being contested. Yep...he hit it. Yet ANOTHER addition to his highlight reel. Now...there IS STILL TIME...theres a LOT of hoops to be played in the long NBA season...but with games against the likes of the Hornets, Celtics, and Magic (3 times) still on the schedule, I hate to say it, but I am starting to hear sound of the ping pong ball machine again.