NCAA Thoughts and Picks.

- The greatest show on earth starts tomorrow and I can't wait. I'm even working from home the next couple of days so I can have an eye on the TV. One of the best things about this tournament is watching games on a nuetral court played between two teams located nowhere near where they are playing and watching fans get behind one of the teams as the game moves on. An example of this is will be Penn playing Texas A&M in Lexington, Kentucky tomorrow. If this game is close listen as the crowd goes completely apeshit every time Penn does something good.

- You need to watch Kevin Durant of Texas play. He is the best offensvis player in college ball in 20 years and can go for 50 on any given night. I think he will take Texas to the Elite Eight and knock off 1 seed North Carolina (who I loathe) in the round of Sixteen. It will be a primetime game and he will personally dismantle UNC.

- Staying on Durant for a minute (indulge me here, there is a point) I find it funny when people say he needs to stay in school because the experience is great for him (he is a freshman). I only understand that argument from the "college is the greatest 4 years of your life" point of view. But 90% of the people who make the stay in school argument feel it is important for him to get his degree. I ask why? If the goal of college is to enhance your career prospects and get a good job Durant can't enhance them any more. He is going to be the first or second pick in the draft and with endorsements make about $5 million next year. I don't think to many other Texas grads are going to land gigs with that pay scale when they graduate next month. There was another guy who dropped out of Texas as an undergrad to start his own company. I'm currently typing this blog on one of his computers. It has the name Dell on it. Yeah, Michael Dell. I don't think dropping out of Texas caused him any career setbacks.

- You gotta cheer for Long Beach St. in this tournament if for no other reason than the potential spectacle of seeing annoying troll Billy Packer having to interview Snoop (if LBS and USC somehow met in the Final Four Packer's head would explode). I have them in the Sweet Sixteen more as a tribute to my love of Snoop, Sublime and Gwen Stefani than any real basketball reasoning.

- I think it is very unfair for small conference champions to have to play in a play in game like Niagara and Florida A&M did Tuesday night. Make two low seeded BCS conference schools like Illinois and Arkansas play the play in game like many have suggested.

- My Final Four picks are: Florida, Kansas, Ohio St. and Georgetown with Kansas beating Ohio St. in the final.