Bill Raftery, YES!
If you’re a sports fan, it’s Christmas in March. Our favorite time of year is finally here, March Madness and the beginning of the NCAA Tournament. From sunup to sundown this weekend, we’ll be living and breathing college basketball. Mixed in with a little work here and there, and the occasional adult beverage now and then. It’s a great time to enjoy life, and we’re counting down the Top 11 reasons we love March Madness. On to the list.
11. It’s an excuse to slack off. Unless you work under a complete slavedriver, even your boss is into the Tourney. That means, while you have to at least feign concern for your job, you don’t really have to be all that engaged in the business of the office for at least a few hours on the next three Thursdays and Fridays. For most of us, it’s like a five-day weekend. Which is why March Madness leads to a ridiculous drop in corporate production on an annual basis.
10. The announcing. For those of us treated to the bungling missteps of regional television broadcasters (FSN) most of the year, the voices of the big-time national announcers are the absolute icing on our cake during March. No, you might not like all of CBS’s game-callers, but you have to admit they do a much better job than the folks you’re used to hearing. And who can resist a Bill Raftery “Send it in, big fella!” now and again?
Read more…
Apparently, Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury will do whatever it takes to gain fans. Even if that means sleeping with Oregon head coach Ernie Kent. We’re about 90% sure the two coaches aren’t literally sleeping together, but come Thursday UO and MSU will be joined as one in the stands of the Rose Garden, locked in figurative fornication as they cheer against our Washington Huskies.
Interesting move on the part of Stansbury, pining for fans to jump on the MSU bandwagon from clear across the country. Not too concerning, however. Portland should have the feel of a Husky home game with all the purple-clad supporters who will be in attendance. And lucky for the Oregon fans, they’ll finally get to see some quality basketball this year.
Barack knows basketball.
ESPN is currently featuring an exclusive inside look at Barack Obama’s NCAA Tournament bracket, and it’s not that intriguing. Between their online content, and the Sportscenter segment, it’s rather boring in fact. Our president makes safe picks, for the most part, and even takes a shot at the Pac-10, who he says is “down” this year (goodbye, California electorate). His national champion is North Carolina, and he has them beating Louisville in the title game. Eh. Oh, and he also has Washington losing to UConn in the Sweet 16. Like that hasn’t happened before.
Perhaps the most awesome thing about the whole segment is that Obama comes off as slightly perturbed by the presence of ESPN College Basketball analyst Andy Katz. You may remember Andy Katz from a column we featured on this site in December, condemning him for labeling Washington the Pac-10′s Most Disappointing team (define “disappointing”). He’s an annoying know-it-all that in reality knows little more than the rest of us. He doesn’t seem to do his job very well, and his opinions are uneducated and often just flat wrong. I’m sure Barack knows this. Which is why when Katz is needling him and trying to lend a helping hand with Barack’s bracket, our prez simply brushes him off or answers his questions with brief, two-word answers. I like it. As president, is there anything Barack can do to ensure that we never hear from Andy Katz again?
Conversation