Twilight Sparkling

PYB commences another March Madness today, and for the first time on 20 years, it's not from a bar. Work duties call, and so does a last-minute trip to San Antonio to watch Nebraska play Baylor in Friday's first games. That, followed by Creighton in the second game....and then, if all goes well, multiple margaritas from the Riverwalk. We aren't paying $300 to watch the UNC and Iowa State games, and would likely opt for the margaritas even if the second session was free.

Instead of countless beer glasses, we're surrounded by countless My Little Pony dolls. Onward, as we watch Dayton and Ohio State kick off the festivities and hope for a Flyer upset.

Picks for today's early games....we're just praying for a 4-4 result!

--Wisconsin -13
--Colorado +7
--Florida -21
--Dayton +7
--Michigan State -14
--Cincinnati -3
--BYU +5
--Western Michigan +13

--If you didn't get the chance to listen to this interview with Erick Strickland, carve out 30 minutes to do so. Lots of discussion items: partying w/ Mark Cuban, chasing pussy, coaching college basketball, coaching today's soft and fundamentally unsound players, and his old Mazda 626 which PYB remembers seeing all across campus back in the early 1990s. Good days. Good times.

--Speaking of Ohio State, Nebraska's meltdown against the Suckeyes last week at the Big Ten Conference Tournament was deflating. But, in the long run, meaningless. NU got in the field of 64+4, and if they somehow beat Baylor, it's the best Nebraska team of all time. That's a huge "if", obviously, but the goal is still there to achieve. We're channeling our inner Bo Pinelli with that one. NU basketball is FUCKING FINE.

--The Iowa basketball team capped a late-season slide with one final meltdown in the First Four. Blowing a five-point lead late in the second half, before losing in overtime after being outscored 14-1 in the extra session. Ouch. And the fact that the fabricated play-in games are now dubbed the First Four may just be the death blow to college basketball. Embarrassing.

--At least Kansas will have an excuse for losing early this year.

--While we're talking about excuse makers and fundamentally unsound players, Superwoman is missing games with a mild ankle strain.

--While we're talking about excuse makers, Tiger Woods is missing the Bay Hill (now dubbed the Arnold Palmer Invitational) event this week. It must really sting since he only enters events that he's won multiple times or that pay him $2 million to appear. But, if anyone can come back to win an event in which he is not even entered, it's Tiger Woods!! He's back and we're sure he'll be more than ready to win the Masters now!

--And before we get out of here...this is why Steve Smith is not soft and why he's on of our favorites.

Enjoy the Madness......PYB