NCAA's & Other Stuff.

- As much as I would have liked to have seen Davidson make the Final Four the games next weekend should be great. Anytime you have three (UCLA, Kansas and North Carolina) of the five teams that qualify as royalty in college basketball (Indiana and Kentucky are the other two) mixed with arguably the most talented, Memphis, you are in good shape.

I am sticking with my original pick of UCLA over Kansas in the Final but Memphis scares the hell out of me. Derrick Rose is the best player left and I am not sure Westbrook or Collison of UCLA, two lottery picks themselves, can guard him.

And for the record Ms. Skeelo is sticking with her original picks of UNC over Memphis.

- Anyone who doesn't think Stephen Curry would be a good NBA player is crazy. There are not that many guys in the NBA who can shoot straight anymore and he can certainly do that. What he can also do is create his own shot coming off screens, hit floaters driving the lane and carve through taller defenders to get to the basket, three things JJ Redick can't do and he was a first rounder.

Curry is smart to stay in school at least another year, hit the weight room and work on his defense.

- Anyone who doesn't think Kevin Love will be a great NBA player is completely insane. Sure he can't run or jump but neither could Kevin McHale and he is one of the five best power forwards ever. Love is an absolute load on the blocks and can shoot and rebound like a demon. He is never out of position and his basketball IQ is off the charts. He is also an incredible passer and is miles ahead of Chris Webber, the best passing big man of the past 25 years, in that category. He also steps up to cut off guards coming off screens at the top of the key, angles quicker forwards away from the basket and pretty much anything else you want him to do. He's a poor man's Tim Duncan and that is a huge compliment.

- Well done Toronto Maple Leafs. You played just well enough to miss the playoffs again and fuck up a high first round draft choice. Jesus, the Leafs even fuck up losing. And does anyone really think anyone other than Cliff Fletcher will be running this team come next year. I really don't see Brian Burke leaving the Ducks for this mess.

- If Donnie Walsh is running the Knicks Isiah's days are done. There is no way in hell Walsh would have agreed to run the team without James Dolan getting rid of him. Which means Isiah will be out of the NBA for good because nobody else will hire him, leaving me with much less to work with as he has been one of my favorite punching bags for a while now.

- In last week's episode of CSI: Miami they mentioned "Making It Rain" in a strip club (throwing 100 dollar bills around). And for that reference we can thank Pac Man Jones who I hope to God is back in the NFL this year.

- Is P. Diddy and Cameron Diaz a strange couple or is it just me?

Opening Day!

Happy Opening Day everybody. May the season be long and rain out free.

Temporary Delays

I have a busy week in Toronto s I will try to get in what I can.

Toics I hope to cover are my MLB preview (in short I say Tigers over D'Backs in the series and Manny goes .320/45/140 in his contract year for MVP in the AL), that idiot Chad Johnson, NCAA's, Olympic boycotts and more.

OJ Mayo And Other Notes.

- Listening to people talk about USC's "youth" yesterday was hilarious. Sure their two best players are a freshman and sophomore but OJ Mayo is a 21 year old frosh and Taj Lewis is a 22 year old sophomore. Hardly youth. Where did they think they were enrolling? BYU?

- I have always said OJ Mayo makes me sick. From the day he called Tim Floyd and announced he was going to USC you knew this guy was a potential dick. There is no question he can play but you have to wonder how good he really is? He came in with a lot of hype but I think that's because he was a 20 year old high school senior last year and physically stronger than anyone who had to guard him.

Watching him last night proved he is an average pro at best. He does not shoot consistently enough to be a good 2 guard and he doesn't handle the ball well enough to be a point. And the next time he shows any interested or ability defensively will be the first. He should stay in school another year.

- You knew USC would lose a game that is tight at halfway through the 2nd half because he is just a terrible coach. Same thing goes for Rick Barnes at Texas. No matter how much talent Texas has Barnes will eventually fuck up a close game in this tournament.

- Duke looked terrible yesterday and may not get by West Virginia. If they do there is no way they are getting by Xavier, which I called anyway.

- Good thing I fell hard for Drake and had them in the Sweet 16. Actually I am not rippin' on them. Anytime you lose at the buzzer in OT you played a good game.

Madness Notes.

I'm working from home today so I will be doing periodic random notes throughout the day.

- How great is it that USC with OJ Mayo and Kansas State with Micheal Beasley meet in the first round. It's been 20 years since Danny Manning lead an out of nowhere Kansas team to the title. Mayo and Beasley both have the ability to carry their teams to the Final Four but I say Beasley wins the first round matchup but then gets bounced by Wisconsin.

- I said yesterday in the comments section that I thought Notre Dame could hang with the Tar Heels in the Sweet 16. Well I actually meant to add that I thought they would win that game. Then the Irish will lose to Tennessee.

- Mich St. is about to tip off against Temple in Denver at 12:15 EST. That's 10:15 a.m. Denver time. How the hell do you schedule games that early?

- Temple has a guy named Dionte Christmas. I'd be more interested in this game if he looked like Denise Richards who played a Bond Girl named Christmas Jones

- This isn't NCAA related but I wanted to get in that Tiger isn't winning at Doral this week. The streak stops at five.

- Looks like Xavier is waking up just in time (now up 5 with 6 minutes left). I got them in my Elite Eight.

Goings On In Ottawa.

- The only reason I don't find the thought of the CFL back in Ottawa completely laughable is because Jeff Hunt, the very successful marketer and owner of the OHL's 67's, is at the helm of the group trying to get the team. Since he is in charge I say it's only 90% ridiculous.

I really don't see why anyone thinks the third time will be the charm. Ottawa is a lousy sports town and attendance would dip below sustainable levels again by year three. But at least it will mean the ridiculous plan to turn Lansdowne Park into a property with a shopping mall and 4 high rise condos (that will do wonders for the already brutal traffic on Bank St. and Colonel By) will get shelved for a few more years.

- Mayor Larry O'Brien can shove his request for $50 per city resident for snow removal and shove it up his ass. Especially after the very weak argument yesterday that it was for the kids safety.

Now he's asking councillors for their ideas on how to find money to cover the $23 million shortfall. Given the collective incompetence of the councillors in Ottawa I can't wait to hear some of the suggestions. No doubt the likes of Clive Doucet will suggest a charity poetry reading fundraiser.

How about realizing Ottawa has the potential for long, snowy winters and build up a slush fund (no pun intended) year over year? Or you could cut any number of ridiculous things this city already overpays for.

The Madness.

The best two days of the sports year are the first round of the NCAA's which start tomorrow and continue Friday. There are no great teams in college anymore because of all the top guys bolting early for the NBA so great records are deceiving. For example North Carolina at 32-2 is just as likely to get knocked out in the 2nd round by a hot shooting Eric Gordon and Indiana as they are to win the whole thing.

So how do you do well in your office pool? Stick with the high seeds and don't get cute with all your 12 over 5 upset picks. Upsets happen but it's tough to pick which ones will happen. As for me my Final Four has got Pittsburgh (who will kill Memphis physically), UCLA, Kansas and Tennessee with UCLA beating Kansas in the final.

As for the sleeper team who comes out every year? Go with Drake who should meet UCLA in the Sweet Sixteen and can shoot the lights out.

This and That.

- The NHL has to start suspending guys with some consistency. Chris Pronger's kicking incident was not as bad as Chris Simon's (Pronger kicked in the middle of the play while Simon kicked 30 seconds after the whistle) but not 22 games better. I think Colin Campbell needs to set some standards for suspensions that he can stick to or the league will continue to look ridiculous.

- Watching the Rockets lose to Boston last night has me convinced they can't make the Finals in the west. They were great during the streak so it's hard to argue they can't make a run after winning 22 straight but without Yao's scoring in the inside I don't see how they can beat Phoenix or San Antonio.

- As for the Lakers, I still can't call them the favorite the way other people have been. First of all Andrew Bynum is still not back like everyone said he would be. But the biggest thing with LA is that I am not ready to say Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol, two guys who have never done anything in the playoffs, are ready to give Kobe enough help to get through the West. If you're argument is that Kobe really is good enough to carry them himself, I will buy that because he absolutely is the best player in the league, but don't tell me it's because of Odom or Gasol.

- The Nuggets have to be the most fun team to watch. They play the way they did in the 80's with Fat Lever and Alex English. They try to run other teams out of the gym in the high altitude and score a ton of points. Unfortunately they can't stop anyone either so they are going out in the first round.

- As for the Raptors they are pretty much exactly what I thought they would be this year, good enough to make the playoffs but not good enough to get out of the first round. Their best chance is to drop to 6th and face Orlando in the first round because they can't stop LeBron and beat the Cavs.

- The goal Toskala gave up last night was probably the ugliest in the history of the NHL. Anytime the puck is bouncing it's trouble but there was still no excuse for that goal.

How To Freeze Your Ass Off In Canada

This was our friend Jimmy as filmed and commented on by other friend Chris. Jimmy was attempting to show just how much snow there has been this winter.

Please pay particular attention to his land speed and mountaineering skills. Chris also mentions it's worth noting this happened at about 4:30am and after about 138 or so Rum and Cokes.

No Snow Record For Ottawa.

Environment said today that is it highly unlikely that Ottawa will break the 1971 record of 441 cm of snow this year. I have to admit I am a little pissed off about that. What was the point of having to deal with this much snow and not breaking the record. At least saying I was part of a record would have made it more acceptable.

And to answer your question of whether I would rather have 45 degree heat all summer or this snow, I would take this snow. Though as a girl at a golf course I played with Diamond Joe in Phoenix correctly pointed out "You don't have to shovel heat".

The Three Point Game.

I have not been a fan of the NHL's awarding a point for an overtime or shootout loss since it was introduced after the lockout. One of the main reasons is it screws up the standings and makes it hard for teams to make exciting late season runs to the playoffs (I'm not talking about this year's Leafs either because they have no shot at the playoffs despite playing well of late) because so many teams are getting the extra point.

But the biggest reasons I hate it is because it exaggerates how good bad teams really are. As of the end of last night's games 25 of the 30 teams in the league are over .500. That's ridiculous.

Nelly Furtado.

I realized a few days ago that I hadn't had a Pursuit of Leisure Hottie in way too long. I also noticed I hadn't had a good Canadian Hottie yet either. So in honor of the recent discussion of not having Nelly Furtado in the top 10 all-time Canadian babes like she should have been, I am happy to add her to the pantheon here at Pursuit of Leisure. With her combination of voice, looks and sexuality it's not hard to figure out why.

Canadian Babes.

Askmen.com has ranked the top 10 all-time Canadian babes. It's always hard to argue over a list like this but I will say that if you are going to have Pamela Anderson at number 1 (though I think she should only be number 1 on a list of all-time notorious Canadian babes) at least use a good picture of her in her heyday.

I'm also very glad to see Rachel McAdam on this list because she is old school gorgeous. And by that I mean she is classically beautiful and would have been a great pinup girl in the 50's.

My only complaint would be that Evangeline Lilly was not on the list but then you would have to knock someone off the list. So who would I knock off? Probably Trish Stratus much to The Hammer's dismay, though we are really splitting hairs here.

Death Is Punishable By Death.

A small village in France is running out of space in their cemetery so people who wish to be buried there will be "severely punished" if they die.

How exactly do you severely punish someone who has died?

Roger Clemens vs. Barry Bonds

Democratic Congressman and 2009 New York Mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner thinks Roger Clemens has already suffered enough and that the FBI should drop it's investigation into whether or not Clemens perjured himself in front of Congress.

While I think Clemens is a complete ass, and as Tom Verducci pointed out recently in Sport Illustrated, probably actually believes he never did anything wrong (as George Costanza once said "It's not a lie if you believe it"), and should be ashamed of himself for throwing everyone he knows, including his own wife, under the bus, I really don't care if they drop the investigation of him. I think the FBI should have more important things to worry about than Clemens and the thought of him going to jail for essentially being an asshole seems a bit extreme.

My issue with Weiner's comments is this - Has Barry Bonds not suffered more than Roger? Or how about Marion Jones for that matter? Why does Roger get to get off when Jones is going to jail and Bonds is being investigated for the same perjury charges (I know taxes are an issue for Bonds as well but people are gunning for him because he is a jerk like Roger)? I think the honest answer to that question is because Roger is white and Barry is black.

The race issue is not one I gave a lot of credence to until recently but one I am starting to acknowledge has a much bigger role in this than I thought. I'm a white male (not an angry white male) so I don't always think I have the same outlook on this as a guy like Dave Stewart might. I use Stewart as an example because not only did he dominate Clemens head to head (a point I love bringing up to Clemens fans)but also because he spoke out about this recently. As he points out, and as I have pointed out for as long as I have had this blog, Bonds and Clemens late career surges are virtual mirror images of each other yet Clemens was never suspected of using steroids, or at least not by as many prominent writers.

It's going to be very interesting over the next little while to see how the fallout from the Mitchell Report goes and who else will be targeted by Congress.

Hillary and Obama? I Don't Think So.

The thought of Hillary and Obama running on the same ticket is laughable. Even the Democrats, who have made losing winnable elections an art form the past 60 years, wouldn't be dumb enough to put these two together. I guarantee you whichever of them wins the Presidential nomination will have an Old White Male as their VP running mate.

Here is another question I find interesting but as of yet haven't given much thought to. Hillary and Obama both talk about one of the first things they will do being repairing the US image abroad. Given that the US is about five years away from being owned by the Middle East and China, how would Middle Eastern countries and China look upon a female President?

Skating On The Rideau Canal.

The easiest thing to do is bitch about Ottawa's winters (and on a day like today with another 25cm of snow falling it's very easy). Yes they are long and yes they are cold. But being able to enjoy something like skating on the Rideau Canal makes a cold and sunny winter day absolutely fantastic to me.

Ms. Skeelo and I always take advantage of being able to skate the 7.8 KM stretch and we headed out on Sunday for what was very likely the last day to be able to skate this year. The Canal once again made the winter a lot more bearable.

Brett Favre Hangs 'Em Up.

I'm glad Brett Favre has finally decided to retire. All the hero worship around the guy the last few years was sickening to watch. I'm glad for his sake that he had a good year last year but he would not have done it again.

All said he was a hell of a great guy to watch in his prime. The gunslinger was always dangerous when he still had the best arm strength in the league (which he didn't the last few years and that's why he really wasn't that good) and played his ass off. No question he is a first ballot Hall of Famer and one of the 10 best QB's ever.