Basking In the Glow

"Hail to the hills of Westwood
To the mighty sea below
Hail to our Alma Mater
She will conquer every foe"
--Hail to the Hills of Westwood, UCLA Alma Mater

As I mute Kara Lawson's NCAA Women's Elite Eight breakdown on SportsCenter (can't they just give them their own channel?--you know, equality; they could take over KCAL and call it Title 9), my thoughts are with the real NCAA tournament and the amazing UCLA Bruins. I'm still not quite sure how it happened, but we're really going to the Final Four (it's always nice to use "we" when we're winning and "they" when they get beat, as happened far too often to far too inferior opponents in the Lavin regime), which is beyond mind-boggling. My buddy (and fellow alum) James sent me a text message yesterday, stating, "I just heard that Ryan Hollins was named Regional MVP. Should I start getting ready for the four horsemen?" While it's not quite apocalyptic, the ascension of the erstwhile John Muir benchwarmer to Honorable Mention status on Chad Ford's "Who's Hot" for the NBA Draft (sorry if you don't have Insider) is nothing short of a miracle. Other stories of note include Cedric Bozeman's transformation from do-nothing freshman to do-everything senior (let's not talk about that airballed three on Saturday), the ability of the team to win despite below-average performances from its most important player (Jordan Farmar), and the best tourney showing from a UCLA freshman since Toby Bailey (Luuuuuuuuuuuc--let's hope and pray that he actually does improve in the next few years, something we can't say for Toby). Something else nobody has really mentioned: we're in the Final Four without our best offensive player, Josh Shipp, who's been out for the season, and will hopefully return next year to help these guys get back there. While I'm on the Final Four subject, just saw some interesting numbers from ESPN's bracket contest, stating that four people actually did have this group of four teams picked--how on earth does that happen? Speaking of bracket contests, I only entered one (and it was rapidly put together), but somehow I emerged from this weekend on top of the Best Damn pool (something like $800 at stake). Basically, if UCLA wins it all, I lose, but if anything else happens, I win. Pretty much a great scenario, because if UCLA wins, I'm stoked beyond belief, and if they don't, well, I've got some cash to ease the pain (just in time for that England trip credit card bill). I think I'll be basking in this Final Four glow all week long...

I haven't bought a new CD since "Futures", but I'm strongly considering picking up the new Pearl Jam disc when it comes out, having heard the first single on KROQ the other day. "

It's got nothing to do with UCLA, but I can hardly contain my excitement--that's right, youth baseball is back, and better than ever. My first editing session takes place tonight (during "Prison Break" and/or "24", I guess), but I need to scan for a sneak preview (Side, this is for you):
"The Astros offense were led by Al Kassir, Patrick Xu and Anthony Mizrahi with 2 runs scored each" - At least they got "led" right, right?
"Despite being battered with balls, bats, and bodies, the tough Chicks continued to fight to the end" - This sounds like a pretty messy situation, good thing the chicks are tough
"The sparks were led by Leanis Stepanian, who had a bases clearing homerun in their last at bat" - I believe the term you're looking for is "grand slam"
"The Daisies offense was powered by the big bats and great base-running of Amy Giboney, Kyla Sayre, Breanna Chan and the Wonder Twins: Melissa & Rebecca Klein! (Coach Gay)" - I think I'd have a tough time playing for this guy, or at least keeping a straight face everytime I addressed him (and who else could come up with a name like "Wonder Twins"?)
"Sarah Hughes was Miss RBI Hitter" - Is this an official award they give out every week, like with a sash and everything? Not quite as prestigious as, say, Miss America, but it's gotta be an exciting time for little Sarah
"The La Canada Books and Toys', Battling Bears, were battling till the end" - I guess this guy was just looking for a place to stick a comma or two

Off to work, hoping to get Ben Howland on this week, though I don't want to take anything away from his prep time. Go Bruins.

Addendum

There are very few things in the world that get me really fired up, but women's basketball is definitely one of those things. Candace Parker dunking in a game--twice--is possibly the worst thing to have happened in sports so far this calendar year. Here's why: in the aftermath, some female analyst on SportsCenter actually had the gall to state "Anyone who wasn't watching women's basketball before HAS to watch now, because face it, the dunk is a part of the women's game. It's here to stay." I might be a little off on the exact wording, but the general idea is still conveyed. And oh by the way, the lower-third font read "The Dunk is Now a Part of the Women's Game". Ridiculous. I could honestly write for an hour straight about this (remember the Pat Summitt stupidity a couple years ago?), but I'll let Sports Guy take it for me, short and sweet:
"Laying the ball in and grabbing the rim is NOT a dunk. End of story."
Peace.

Backed-Up Thoughts

"The consequences that I've rendered
I've stretched myself beyond my means"
--It's Been Awhile, Staind

With apologies to Aaron Lewis and Staind, it has indeed "been awhile", and for that, I apologize. Every so often, I'll have a thought that I'll start to write, and then I end up with way too much to do, so it falls by the wayside. It's been that way for a little over a month now, and despite the workload facing me today, I'm going to do my best to power through and actually write something. Far too much has been going on in the sporting world and in my traveling world to ignore, so here goes, in no particular order.

NCAA Tournament: I just heard on SportsCenter that out of more than three million brackets filled out online, not a single one had all of the Sweet 16 correctly picked, and only 12 even had 15 of them. That means the tournament has been exactly what it should be--full of Cinderellas--and with all four No. 1 seeds still in, the big boys are in the mix as well. In what amounted to pretty much perfect timing, we started our new three-days-a-week schedule last week (shooting two shows each on Tuesday and Wednesday), meaning that we were all free to sit around the office and watch games all day Thursday and Friday, several at a time of course, and cheer on our respective squads. I only filled out one bracket, did it in about five minutes the morning the sheets were due, and I'm 19th out of a few hundred, so I can't complain, and my Bruins (Final Four selection) are still very much alive. Have I mentioned how much I love Ben Howland? He goes to my church, and my buddy T.J. (the music leader guy) got tix from Big Ben for last weekend (San Diego) and this weekend (Oakland). Coach Calipari (Memphis) is supposed to come through for tickets for us (though I will obviously be rooting against his Tigers should we meet in the Regional Final), so I might also be heading up--would be pretty sweet. A few tourney observations thus far:
- Best Team: Besides UCLA, it's gotta be Florida (also one of my Final Four picks). Joakim Noah has been sick, their guards are sweet, and they pressure the heck out of you. Billy Donovan is fun to watch on the sideline too, especially with that slick-backed hair that won't quite make it to Pat Riley status, but you know he really wants it to.
- Worst Team: Syracuse. If G-Mac were healthy, this would be different (and by the way, I've made DVD copies of their Big East Tournament run for posterity), but they looked so terrible against A&M, and they didn't have anybody else who could score once he went down. It's a tough way to end his career, but he'll always have '03.
- Best Player: Other than Noah, I've gotta say that Marcus Williams has impressed me the most. There's no doubt that UConn loses either or both of those games without him (and there are those who will contend that stealing laptops should mean that they should be playing without him); he's pretty much the best point guard in the country, and he can score when they need him to.
- Worst Player: This is just among guys that are supposed to be good, 'cause I'm sure there's a walk-on at Murray State who's worse, and I'm leaving G-Mac and his two points off the list because of the injury. I'm going with Derek Raivio, who came in averaging over 11 points and three assists for the Zags, but who ended up with two terrible shooting games, minimal assist contributions (hard to avoid assists when Adam Morrison is on your team, I would think) and ceding critical minutes to Jannero Pargo, Junior. Maybe I'm just hating on the Zags 'cause I want them to play terribly on Thursday, but I really wasn't impressed with the little guy--I thought he was better last year, to be honest.
- Most Annoying Cliche: "They're not freshmen anymore". Unfortunately, the phrase that gained popularity with the Fab Five's run to the '92 final game (where they fell to G-Hill, Chest-Stomp Laettner and Dook) regains some momentum around tourney time, when freshmen apparently become sophomores somehow. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Marcus Williams (the Arizona version) and Brandon Rush (the youngest and hopefully best member of the heretofore talent-wasting Rush family) all received mention on this front, which is meant to show that these guys have now gained a lot of experience by this late stage of the season, but here's the thing: they're still freshmen, and this is still their first NCAA tournament. If they weren't freshmen anymore, they'd have post-season experience--which they don't--and their junior teammates would have become seniors--which they haven't. If Ben Howland hadn't been among those proliferating this awful cliche, I'd be even more hateful of it, but I can't really hate anything that guy says or does, so I'm done.
- My Favorite Player (that doesn't wear a UCLA jersey): Glen "Big Baby" Davis. Dude is hilarious to look at--think Tractor Traylor, but even a little rounder--and he can really play. My boss sent me this e-mail this morning, so I'll pass on a couple of notes about this kid: "A few of Glen Davis' freshman-year feasts became legendary at LSU: The time he downed a bag of 25 Chips Ahoy cookies -- about 2,200 calories worth -- in 20 minutes; the study hall session when he poured two bags of M&M's into his mouth at once; the late-night snack when he ordered a family-sized bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken and ate every piece himself." This kid is awesome.

Chargers: Drew Brees was in studio yesterday, which would normally be an exciting moment for me, but due to recent developments on the NFL free agent front, I was faced with mixed emotions at the arrival of this cool Brees. For those in the dark, my quarterback was signed by the New Orleans Saints and the Chargers, having failed to apply the franchise or transition tag to their two-time Pro Bowler, are now left with Philip Rivers at the helm. For the record, I hate this. Rivers may indeed turn out to be as good as Brees, but it certainly won't be this year, and it probably won't be next year either. A.J. Smith can spin it any way he wants, but it's definitely a step backward for the organization. Very frustrating. I don't want to talk about it anymore. I think I'll turn to TV now...

Sopranos: I've heard mixed reactions to this past Sunday's Sopranos episode, but I absolutely loved it. Complaints about a lack of action are valid, but there was so much else going on, I didn't miss the violence at all. Deep, dark, thought-provoking, everything. The fact that it generated so much office conversation (at least here) was a testament to its ingenuity. And you know it just sets up and episode where at least one or two people are going down next Sunday.

England: I need to be brief, 'cause I don't have time, but it was an absolutely amazing trip. Watching Fulham vs. Arsenal, visiting Sky Sports News, spending two days in Norway, watching Reading vs. Watford from the sidelines, watching Newcastle United vs. Manchester United with B--words wouldn't do it justice. For those who have never been to Europe, please do yourself a favor and go. I have no doubt that I'll be back sometime next year (during soccer season, of course), and many more times beyond that.

Quick Sweet 16 predictions: all the favorites win today (Duke, Memphis, Texas, UCLA) and then BC, Mason, Florida and UConn tomorrow. My Final Four still looks good: Duke beats Texas, UCLA over Memphis, Florida beats BC and UConn (such an easy region) cruises past Mase.