March Madness

I'm not sure who I'm going for in the NCAA basketball tournament. In the past year or two I have now become an unabashed front runner. Team loyalty has become a thing of the past for me. Its just win, baby. I do feel I need to justify some kind of connection with a school for me to root for them, though. My rooting for a team will be based on a combination of their ability to win and my connection to them.

In contention for my support is:

Gonzaga - A number one seed. I've been on their campus, seen the outside of their gym, touched their golden bulldog statue, and visited their small, but adorable, Bing Crosby museum.

Louisville - Another number one seed. They're a Kentucky school about three hours away from me. They aren't University of Kentucky and most UK fans hate Louisville and vice versa. But UK couldn't manage to make the tournament, so Go Louisville!!

Oregon - They would normally be my pick whenever they make the tournament. However, they make the tournament about once a lifetime, so the issue hasn't come up that often. An added bonus is that half an hour ago I watched them win their first round game, raising my self esteem significantly. Go Ducks!!

I think there is another Kentucky school that made the field - Western Kentucky or something like that - but by the time I log on to figure out their name, they'll probably be eliminated, so why bother.

Speaking of University of Kentucky, its been a tough year. They are defending national champs, but after the season, the whole team left to go to the NBA. We had pretty much a freshman team this year. Our best freshman, maybe the best player in the nation, got injured. We still almost made the tournament, but got bumped out - probably deservedly so.

We made the NIT tournament. That used to be a big deal, but isn't anymore. We played Robert Morris and got beat in the first round. Sigh. Named after our least popular founding father, there is no way they should have beaten us, but that's how its gone this season. The good news is our current players are good, but they know they aren't ready for the NBA, so they'll be back. Also, according to experts, Kentucky will have the best recruiting class of anyone. I think we've signed 6 of the top 20 high school prospects in the nation. Next year we come storming back.