There's a kid in a every classroom. The one who has all the potential and brains in the world, but who just can't seem to put it all together.

Every marking period, he comes home with a report card full of C-minuses. Every big test he takes, he gets a 79. His teachers, friends and parents know he can be great at anything, but he just doesn't seem to want it enough.

At times, that has been the 2009-10 version of the Michigan State basketball team. But they seem to have "gotten it" at the right time. With all the things that have gone on this season, the Spartans are back in the Final Four. For the second year in a row. And sixth time in 12 years. No school in the country - not Duke. Not North Carolina. Not Kansas - can match that.

Many people have said the 2005 team's run to St. Louis was Izzo's best coaching job. With yesterday's one-point win over Tennessee in - ironically - St. Louis, that has just been topped.

That 2005 team FEATURED three seniors. This team' senior leader, Raymar Morgan, who has played well the last couple weeks, more often than not looks like he's been sedated.

The 2005 team was nowhere near as talented as this group, either. This group started the season as the number 2 team in the country and has seen it's share of peaks and valleys.

This team: which, at some point, has seen all of its wing players miss games, be benched, suspended or kicked out of practice.

This team: a team that dropped its biggest non-conference games (at UNC and Texas).

This team: the same team that was rumored to have a group full of guys who had been feeling themselves too much.

This team: a team that saw a 9-0 start in conference and a three-game lead vanish with the twist of Kalin Lucas' ankle.

This team: the same Spartan squad that has had its starting backcourt (Lucas and Chris Allen) on the court TOGETHER for less than 10 minutes this entire tournament run.

This team: a group that has essentially become a M.A.S.H. unit with the loss of Lucas to a torn Achilles, power forward Delvon Roe playing on one knee, and Allen playing on a foot that may need to be lopped off once the season is over.

This team: which NOBODY picked to make the Sweet Sixteen - even with a healthy Lucas.

This team: where a sleepover (inside the Breslin Center) and a Come to Jesus Moment (for junior guard Durrell Summers) was needed prior to the start of the tournament.

This team: where it's most athletically-gifted player, Summers, finally "got it" at the perfect time and has been MSU's go-to guy this entire tournament.

This team: which has seen several players step up in the absence of its floor general into roles not a lot of people thought they would be able to handle.

This team: which has come together and actually became a team and not a group of individuals.

This team: which has guys who don't mind passing up a shot late in the clock, but also has guys who WANT that last shot.

This team: which has learned to play unselfishly and execute phenomenally at the end of games.

This team: and this coach, who deserves much more credit nationally than he gets.

This team: and its coach, who may be the best tournament coach of this generation.

This team: going back to a place where one of the program's finest moments happened 10 years ago to the day of its Final Four game against Butler.

This team: still fighting. And still playing.

I know a number of people who've been laid off at some point during the past couple years, including myself for a short stretch in 2007.

When something like that happens, you do your best to make due with what you have. If you have a family, everyone in the family does their best to step on and take on a bigger role. That works out for a while at times, but other times, when bills start to pile up, things become too much to bear and certain arrangements have to be made or things have to be done to make ends meet.

I don't like comparing things like that to sports, but it makes sense when you think about this year's Michigan State basketball team. At various points this season, a number of different things have happened (injuries, benchings, players being kicked out of practice, guys not fulfilling academic responsibilities), yet the team is still two games away from its sixth Final Four appearance in 12 years.

The Spartans look to have the look of a real team now - one where everyone looks out for everyone else and where certain guys (Raymar Morgan, Draymond Green and Durrell Summers) have began to grasp "The Moment" and have stepped up in the absence of others.

The squad looks like it could continue its (somewhat) improbable run. But things are beginning to pile up on the Spartans. Their best player (Jr. G Kalin Lucas) is out for the rest of the season with a torn Achilles. MSU's best perimeter defender (Jr. G Chris Allen) has been hobbled by a foot that, according to reports, resembles something out of a cartoon - throbbing and purple. Starting power forward Delvon Roe has been playing on a torn meniscus for who knows how long.

Piled on top of that is that MSU is set to face the Team of the Tournament: Northern Iowa. Since knocking off the prohibitive favorite - Kansas - every talking head, radio show host and newspaper columnist has sang the praises of the Panthers. With good reason. The team has good spot-up shooters, plays good defense and can rotate in three players, all seniors, who are 6'8" or taller. Their starting center, Jordan Eglseder, is 7-feet tall and 280 pounds. MSU's big man, Derrick Nix, who has come to life since the tournament began, can rival Eglseder physically, but not in the skill department.

The Spartans should be able to outrebound the Panthers and the team still has the ultimate X-factor in head coach Tom Izzo - the best tournament coach of the last 15 years. MSU can win, but it'll have to play the full 40 minutes - something it hasn't been able to do so far this tournament.

If MSU is able to run on offense, and if players continue to live in The Moment, MSU could potentially, based on how crazy this tournament has been, win the whole thing.

But too many things have piled up. And I have to believe NIU fans will make the 4 hour drive to St. Louis to cheer on their Panthers. Sure, MSU will have fans in the stands, too, but, with a game being played prior to the start of ours, I have to think the Ohio State and Tennessee fans will lean toward the "underdog."

With all that said...

Children of the Corn - 67
300 -63

Excuse me while I go make myself a Tylenol PM sandwich.

I heard on a radio show yesterday that a youngster in Chicago correctly picked the winners of last weekend's 48 first- and second-round NCAA Tournament games. I'm not calling the kid a liar, but I believe that as much as I believe Elin didn't whoop Tiger's butt.

If the kid pick all those winners: congrats!!! But I'm not buying it. Just like I'm not buying one ESPN analysts' assessment (Jay Bilas, my favorite) that Cornell's run will continue by beating Kentucky.

Here's how I rank the remaining 16 teams in the field and their chances of winning it all (from worst to first).

16. Northern Iowa - I think NIU is a solid team and a good story. I just want them to lose by 40 tomorrow night...for obvious reasons. But if you call me a homer, I'll punch you in the face.
15. Cornell - Easily the best 3-point shooting team in the field and one of the top three in the country. They have to have an off night at some point, right?
14. Washington - Awesome guards, and the team is on a hot streak in the tourney, but the Huskies may be a little too guard heavy.
13. Butler - The last two times the Bulldogs have been in the Sweet Sixteen, they've lost - Florida in '07 and Tennessee last year.
12. Xavier - The Musketeers have a guy in sophomore Jordan Crawford who could carry them to the Final Four, but he has to get help at some point and I don't know where it'll come from.
11. Tennessee - A deep team that employs a fastbreak offense and likes to press, the Vols can cause problems all over the floor. They can also play games like no one on the roster cares if they win or not.
10. St. Mary's - Dominant big man Omar Samhan, 31.5 points in two tourney games, could put the Gaels on his back and lead them to a couple more wins this season. But later in the tournament, talent begins to take over, which means trouble for St. Mary's.
9. Kansas State - The Wildcats don't get this far in the tournament very often, as this is their first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 1988. KSU has a great backcourt, but inexperience on the big stage may fail the Wildcats.
8. Michigan State - Of course I wish I could place them higher, but I can't. Losing your floor leader this late in the game is tough. Toughness has also been a calling card of the program since Tom Izzo took over the reins in 1995. That tenacity, and Izzo, could carry the Spartans a long way, but with all the injuries the team is facing, I just don't see it happening.
7. Purdue - The Boilermakers play excellent defense, feature a versatile big man and have more than enough ballhandlers. That can lead a team far. But Purdue will have to find ways to score, as it has averaged 67.5 points in two tournament games and notched only 63 in an overtime win over Texas A & M Sunday.
6. West Virginia - A very athletic team with versatile players in Da'Sean Butler, Devin Ebanks and Kevin Jones, but the loss of point guard Truck Bryant will take its toll on a team that doesn't feature a true point man already.
5. Baylor - This season marks just the Bears sixth tournament appearance in the school's 103 years of fielding a hoops team, but it's a good one. Baylor has scorers on the wing (LaceDarius Dunn and Tweety Carter) and in the post (Michigan Tranfer Ekpe Udoh). Udoh also gives the Bears an awesome defensive presence, shown in his nearly 4 blocks a game.
4. Duke - The Blue Devils, who I like as much as I like the KKK, feature three players (all on the wing) who average at least 17 points and 35 minutes a game. Duke can also rotate in a 6'8" guy, a 6'10" guy and a 7'1" guy. That's the recipe for a title. But if anyone they play in the next couple games realizes John Scheyer isn't really a point guard, that could keep Duke out of the Elite Eight for the sixth straight year.
3. Ohio State - The Buckeyes play a short rotation, but it's full of interchangeable parts. They play solid defense and also feature the best player in the country in Evan Turner, which is always a good bet. If some team is able to get the Buckeyes in foul trouble, that could spell the end of OSU's season and Turner's career in scarlet and gray.
2. Syracuse - The Orange, like OSU, employs a short rotation, which has been made even shorter with the loss of starting center Arinze Onuaku March 11 to a knee injury. Even with that loss, Syracuse, led by top-five NBA prospect Wesley Johnson, has looked like the second-best team in the field behind...
1. Kentucky - In picking the national champion, always go with the team that features the most pro prospects. Now watch the Wildcats go out and lose by 20 to Cornell tonight.

While MSU's junior guard Durrell Summers was putting on a show (a career-high 26 points, 6-7 from three) Sunday in the Spartans' second-round NCAA Tournament win over Maryland, all I could think was, "This guy should easily be a first round-NBA draft pick."

Summers, like a lot of gifted college basketball players, doesn't always play up to that potential. But he and others have been doing so in the tournament up to this point. Guys who have been expected to lead teams all season long have picked the biggest stage to step their games up, while others have played like the got a hold of the cell number of Lil Wayne's supplier.

Playing well in the biggest games can do a lot for a college ballers' draft stock. It can put a guy on the fringe of the first round in the 20-25 range, or someone in the 20-15 range into the lottery. And playing bad can take you from the penthouse to the outhouse - kind of like what would happen if you cheated on Oprah with one of the girls from "For the Love of Ray J."

Here's a list of some of the guys who may have made themselves a nice piece of change in the last week (obvious guys like John Wall, Evan Turner, Wesley Johnson, Patrick Patterson and DeMarcus Cousins omitted), along with some guys who may actually wanna keep going to class this semester and pay attention a little bit. All this is based on the 1,678,987.666 hours of basketball I watched last Thursday-Sunday.

Stock up

Jordan Crawford, Soph. G; Xavier
After sitting out a season following a transfer from Indiana, Crawford led the Musketeers in scoring this season (20.2 ppg), while chipping in with nearly 5 rebounds and 1.4 steals/game. Crawford, a Detroit native and graduate of Renaissance High School, also shot a rifleman-like 40 percent from three in leading the Musketeers to a 23-7 record. All of Crawford's numbers have gone up since the start of the tournament, as the starting guard, in two games, has averaged 27.5 points on 56 percent shooting, along with 6 rebounds and 3 assists. If he keeps it up, Crawford's individual brilliance could lead his team to the Final Four, a la Dwyane Wade in 2003. It may also make it so he can buy as many "Big Man" T-shirts as he wants to wear under his jersey.

Jimmer Fredette, Jr. G; Brigham Young University
When the tournament started last week, here's what I wrote about Fredette (29 points and 4 assists/game in two tourney games), who's Cougars have since been bounced from the tournament: "(Fredette) is a wizard with the basketball. No matter where he is on the court, if he's got the ball, he doesn't pick up his dribble without a purpose. He can score, too. On the season, Fredette averages 21.7 points, along with 4.7 assists. He also shoots .448 percent from three. He put up 49 Dec. 28 in a blowout win at Arizona and 45 in a win last week over TCU. He reminds me of Steve Nash with the way he keeps his head up at all times and how everything he does on offense has a purpose. Another aspect of Fredette's game that's similar to Nash's? Defense. Fredette, like Nash, doesn't keep his hands up on the defensive end and he couldn't guard the chair in Darko Milicic's pre-draft tape." If he wasn't such an awesome scorer and decision-maker, his future would be as a career-backup. But Fredette could prove valuable as a pick in the 20-25 range. Maybe Phoenix would take a look at him.

Omar Samham, Sr. C, St. Mary's
All of Samham's numbers have gone up in each of his four years as a Gael, which, if you didn't know, means "Irish Warrior." The 6'11," 260-pound Samhan has put in career highs in points (21.5), rebounds (10.9), blocks (2.9) and field goal percentage (.558) this season. The tournament hasn't slowed him down a bit, as the senior has dominated two NCAA Tourney games with an average of 31.5 points (on .667 percent from the field) and 9.5 boards in leading St. Mary's into the Sweet Sixteen. These last two games (against UNLV and Villanova) have put Samhan on scouts' radars. But this weekend - when St. Mary's squares off against Baylor - will be telling, as neither the Rebels or Wildcats have much size. Baylor has a front line that can match up with Samhan and throw multiple guys at him. If Samhan is able to continue his outstanding play, he could find himself drafted in the first round in June's draft.

Honorable mention: Greivis Vasquez, Sr. G; Maryland, Durrell Summers, Jr. G; Michigan State; Da'Sean Butler, Sr. G, West Virginia; Andy Rautins, Sr. G, Syracuse; Jacob Pullen, Jr. G; Kansas State

Down one.

Just a little more than 6 seconds to play and your best decision maker is on the bench wearing (sweet-looking) sweats and a boot Shaquille O'Neal would have trouble fitting into.

Your 6'7," 240-pound sixth man (Draymond Green) catches the inbounds pass and dribbles into the frontcourt.

Three seconds left.

That power forward almost blasts your starting power forward (Delvon Roe) in the head with the ball; but he ducks.

Two seconds left.

Your back-up point guard (Korie Lucious) catches the pass.

One second left.

Gives a little upfake. Takes a step to his left. Fires up a three for the win...

Cash money.

That's exactly how the end of Michigan State's second round, 85-83, win over Maryland in the second round of the 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament went.

Forget the fact we were up 16 with 12 minutes and change left. Don't harp on the fact the Spartans had a 9-point lead with 2 and a half minutes left. The team pulled out a tough win without its best player, Kalin Lucas, who will most likely not be able to play basketball until August because of a tear in his Achilles tendon.

There were a number of big plays made in that game from several players. But the biggest play came from someone who didn't take a shot, grab a rebound or take a charge.

How many games have you seen over the years where a squad will be down two with little to no time on the clock, take a desperation heave and see it fall, only for a whistle to be blown on the release because a coach called time out? More often than not, that time out doesn't result in a win.

Ironically, that happened to Maryland earlier this season in a home game against Georgia Tech, which the Terps won by two after coach Gary Williams called a timeout following a heave from halfcourt that went in. Maryland won on a second buzzer-beater.

But MSU Coach Tom Izzo - who, after watching the replay, oh, 657,986 times over the past 20 hours, looked like he was ready to signal for a timeout once Green crossed the timelime - didn't overcoach or overthink. Izzo's instincts kicked in and he let his players handle their business.

People always say it's better to be lucky than good sometimes. Well, sometimes it's better to let things happen spontaneously.

And that's what Izzo did, basically saying, "*$@# it. These guys are winning it on their own."

And because of that, his team lives to play another weekend.

In seven hours, the number one overall seed, a two and a three went down.

There will be a 9, 10 and 11 seed in the Sweet Sixteen.

And with one game, with 9 seed Northern Iowa downing the number one seed Kansas Jayhawks (Kansas' only lead was 2-0 the entire game), about 75 percent of America's brackets became lining for bird cages.

Including mine.

Again, this is why I don't gamble.

Edit: Being the geek that I am, I just did a little research and found out that Kansas is only the 10th One seed that hasn't at least advanced to the Sweet Sixteen since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

With so many teams playing in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament each years, fans can't help but wonder who some of each school's most notable alumni are.

Here is a list of some interesting ones, including a non-qualifiers that may only amuse me.

Butler University, which is playing right now, has current Ohio State basketball coach Thad Matta; Bobby Plump, who played on the 1954 Milan High School Championship basketball team, and Jim Jones - not the (awful) rapper, but the founder of the People's Temple Cult, where 918 people were killed on Nov. 17, 1978.

Number-one overall seed Kansas lists Bob Dole, Scott Bakula (of "Quantum Leap" fame), and Elmer McCollum - co-discoverer of Vitamin A.

Locally, Oakland University recognizes Robert Englund (a.k.a. Freddy Krueger) and Curtis Armstrong (Booger from "Revenge of the Nerds") as famous alums. It also lists David Hasselhoff as having attended the school in Rochester. If there were a prop bet for "weirdest alumni of any team in the Dance," I'd take Oakland and clean out my Savings Acct. to make that bet.

The University of Houston lists Star Jones, CBS play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz and Master P as notable alums.

They aren't in the tournament (as usual), but I thought it made sense that Ted Kaczynski, a.k.a. The Unabomber, earned a Ph.D. in math from Michigan.

Exhibit A for the committee's bad job at seeding: A Villanova team that went 5-5 down the stretch, got bounced in the first round of their conference tournament, slept-walked through their opening-round game and got bounced by a bunch of guys with dingos for pets.

The Wildcats "earned" a two-seed, though. Ron Washington must've gotten some of that "good good" to the committee last weekend.

Oh, and have fun in the D-League Scottie Reynolds. He's gonna have fun riding buses through Iowa after being at Nova for as long as "Good Times" has ran in syndication.

After going 10-6 on day one, I came to the realization I should never gamble.

The moral to this story is, as always, I'm an idiot.

I'll take it, though. Yesterday, excitement-wise, was the best first day in a long time. Seven of the 16 games were decided by a basket and 10 f 16 were decided by single digits. The average margin of victory - 8.8 points - is nearly half what it was last year.

We'll see if that continues today. If it does, my bracket will serve as emergency TP the rest of the tournament.

Day two slate. Picks in bold. Games called by Gus Johnson have "Gus-isms" preceding the start times.

"PUUUUUUURRRRRRRRREEEEE" 12:15 PM Morgan St. #15 vs West Virginia
12:25 PM Minnesota #11 vs Xavier
12:30 PM Cornell #12 vs Temple #5
02:30 PM Siena #13 vs Purdue #4
"Rise and FIRE!!!!" 02:35 PM Missouri #10 vs Clemson #7
02:45 PM Oakland #14 vs Pittsburgh #3
02:50 PM Wofford #13 vs Wisconsin #4
04:45 PM Utah St. #12 vs Texas A&M #5
"Got IIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTT!!!!"07:10 PM Florida St. #9 vs Gonzaga #8
07:15 PM Georgia Tech #10 vs Oklahoma St. #7
07:20 PM New Mexico St. #12 vs Michigan St. #5
07:25 PM Ark.-Pine Bluff #16 vs Duke #1
"OH, my GOODNESS!!"09:30 PM Vermont #16 vs Syracuse #1
09:35 PM UC Santa Barb.#15 vs Ohio St. #2
09:40 PM Houston #13 vs Maryland #4
09:45 PM Louisville #9 vs California #8

For the first time in team history, the University Michigan will host a night football game at Michigan Stadium when the Wolverines welcome hated rival Notre Dame on Sept. 10, 2011.

New Michigan athletics director David Brandon made the historic scheduling announcement Thursday afternoon in Ann Arbor, according to the Associated Press.

The 2011 game will kick off at 8 p.m. ET and be televised by ESPN or ESPN2.

That looks like a good idea, as I've wondered why UM didn't host night games in the past. I don't know how well attended the game will be, though. Most Michigan football fans are in bed by 6:30 every night. I'm not sure all those old folks will make it through a game that might go until 11:30 at night. It should be fun, either way.

Murray St., a 13 seed that won 30 games in the regular season, just drained a buzzer beater to upset fourth seed in the West Vanderbilt, 66-65.

This has easily been the best first day of the tournament in a while. So far today, we've had a two seed pushed to OT before winning after Villanova played 40 minutes as bad as most people look in their driver's license pictures; we've had a double OT thriller (BYU 99, Florida 92) where three guards put on a scoring show, including one - BYU's Michael Loyd Jr. - who averaged a shade under 5 points a game scoring 26 in the win; we've had two double digit seeds advance with another, Sam Houston State, looking to add its name to that group, as the 14th seeded Bearkats are down just four to three seed Baylor, 55-55, with 2 minutes left due in part to SHS's solid matchup zone.

The first four completed games have been decided by a total of 12 points, with seven of those coming in BYU's win.

This is why this tournament is the best thing in sports.

The BYU Cougars dropped Florida, 99-92, in double overtime to notch its first win in the tournament since 1993.

The game was the coming out party for BYU's backcourt of Michael Loyd Jr. (26 points) and Jimmer Fredette (35). The duo shot 20-36 from the field, 6-13 from three and 15-18 from the foul line and notched six steals.

Florida has no one to blame for the loss but themselves. The Gators had two awful possessions at the end of regulation and the first overtime and didn't even get a shot off on the latter play.

If two seed Kansas State takes care of 15 seed North Texas, Saturday's game between the Cougars and Wildcats could be one for the ages when those two backcourts square off.

Villanova and Robert Morris are going to overtime after Nova mounted a furious comeback to tie the game at 58.

Cats' coach Jay Wright drew up a beautiful lob play late, but Robert Morris was able to block the lob, forcing OT.

Seriously, where is Gus Johnson? Can we get him to record tracks so CBS can have a Gus Johnson Soundboard for things like this? How much would something like that cost?

BYU and Florida are set to start double overtime.

The game should probably be over, and I should be 2-2 on my picks, but the Gators late-game execution is about as sharp as a butter knife.

At the end of the first OT, with about 20 seconds left, the Gators ran the clock down and couldn't even get a shot off.

What's good, though, is there's someone on the floor who's matching BYU's Jimmer Fredette (27 points) and Florida's Kenny Boynton (26), who just fouled out. The Cougar's Michael Loyd Jr. has scored 23 points on nine shots.

BYU is now up 4 with 3:30 left in double OT. The margin should be a bit wider, but Fredette, a 90 percent free throw shooter, missed two freebies.

The first big upset of the day is brewing, too, as Villanova just tied the game at 58 on a layup by center Mouphtaou Yarou.

Robert Morris just missed a runner from the baseline with about 30 seconds left, now Nova will get the last shot, which I expect they'll hit. But the uncertainty of that, and the fact that like my limbs, is the reason I don't gamble.

Old Dominion has the first upset of the tournament, beating sixth seeded Notre Dame, 51-50. Notre Dame couldn't break ODU's zone at all during the second half, shooting 6-20 from three for the game. That works for me, since I picked the Monarchs in an upset.

BYU and Florida look to be headed to OT, as Florida's Chandler Parsons missed a fadeway at the end of the second half. BYU apparently was granted a timeout, though, and missed a desperation 3.

Villanova still hasn't woken up yet, either. The Cats have been down the entire game and are still down 7 with four minutes left. Nova is shooting like the entire team is hungover - 32 percent from the field, 23 percent from 3. Scottie Reynolds, Nova's senior All America, is playing especially awful. He's 1-12, 0-7 from 3 and has committed 4 turnovers. I've had BMs that look better than Reynolds does today.

After being down 13 with 8 minutes left, the Florida Gators have used a 28-14 run to take a 74-73 lead on BYU with 1:22 left.

That run has been keyed by freshman guard Kenny Boynton (25 points, 5-9 from three), who has matched BYU's Jimmer Fredette (26 points) shot for shot.

All three games so far have been tailor made for Gus Johnson, who won't call a game until tomorrow afternoon.

That makes me sad. I want Gus in the delivery room when my wife gives birth. "THERE'S THE HEEEEAADDD!!! It's OUT. It's a BOY. Haha!!"

Even though the quality of play hasn't been that great, each of the day's first three games look to be going down to the wire.

Sixth seeded Notre Dame and 11 seed Old Dominion just traded threes, keeping that game tied at 46 with 1:49 left. I know the score looks like one you'd see in a girl's high school game, but trust me, it's fun.

Fifteen seed Robert Morris is up 7 on two seed Villanova with 11 minutes left. And BYU and Florida continue to go back and forth.

So far, this first wave has been better than the last couple years, when there were no upsets early and blowouts ruled the first two days.

Edit: Old Dominion is up 3 on the Irish with 35 seconds left.

After scoring only 8 points in the first half, BYU junior guard Jimmer (his real name is James. Jimmer's a nickname and not a very good one) Fredette has scored 12 in 10 minutes of second half play to give him 20 for the game. His ballhandling has been spectacular, especially on a nice crossover that got him a layup with about 9 minutes left in the game.

Some NBA teams with low first round picks may want to take a look at James. I think he'd make a solid back-up guard (nice handle, can score in bunches, plays defense like a Lady of the Night) for a team like San Antonio, Utah or Orlando.

BYU had a 10-point lead on Florida with 8:30 to go, making it look like picking the Gators may be my first mistake of the day - with several more to come, I'm sure. But the Gators have gone on an 11-2 run to cut the Cougars lead to four with 6 minutes left.

Back and forth. Back and forth.

Florida and BYU have been going back and forth the entire game.

Right now, the Mormons are up, 43-38, early in the second half, but this looks like a game where the ending could be added to the March Madness Montage CBS runs every year.

Both squads are shooting better than 50 percent from the field and the offenses for both teams looks crisp with plenty of passing and not a lot of one-on-one play.

I can't say the same for the teams in the other two games (Villanova/Robert Morris, Notre Dame/Old Dominion). All four of those teams look like they went on a bender with Ron Washington and Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Sheen.

It doesn't look like two seed in the South - the Villanova is playing with any purpose after the temporary benching of the Wildcats' starting backcourt.

Through 15 minutes of play, Villanova is shooting terribly, only hitting on 5 of 19 shots, including 1-9 from three. The Cats are also getting killed on the boards.

As a two seed, I fully expect Nova to pull this game out. The Cats were down 14 in the second half of their first round game last year and fought back and one, but their body language doesn't bode well for their long-term prospects.

BYU junior shooting guard Jimmer Fredette is a wizard with the basketball. No matter where he is on the court, if he's got the ball, he doesn't pick up his dribble without a purpose.

He can score, too. On the season, Fredette averages 21.7 points, along with 4.7 assists. He also shoots .448 percent from three. He put up 49 Dec. 28 in a blowout win at Arizona and 45 in a win last week over TCU.

He reminds me of Steve Nash with the way he keeps his head up at all times and how everything he does on offense has a purpose and that's shown in the early minutes of seventh seeded BYU's first round game against 10th seed Florida.

Another aspect of Fredette's game that's similar to Nash's? Defense. Fredette, like Nash, doesn't keep his hands up on the defensive end and he couldn't guard the chair in Darko Milicic's pre-draft tape.

For BYU to make a run, Fredette will have to contribute at both ends of the floor. Guards are too important in the college game, and if and when BYU plays a team with a guard as skilled as Fredette, that will hurt them.

Neither of Villanova's starting guards - Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher - will start today's first round game against 15th seed Robert Morris (12:30 p.m.), according to the Associated Press, but both will play extensive minutes.

The report quotes Wildcats coach Jay Wright saying the benching is a "teaching point." I'm sure Nova won't have any trouble today, but this still doesn't look good.

Whatever they did, they picked an awesome time to do it. That's like going overboard the night before your wedding and having a strippers drop you off at the church.

Here's today's lineup of games for the Big Dance.

Picks in bold

Thursday March 18, 2010

12:20 PM Florida #10 vs BYU #7
12:25 PM Old Dominion #11 vs Notre Dame #6
12:30 PM Robert Morris #15 vs Villanova #2
02:30 PM Murray St. #13 vs Vanderbilt #4
02:40 PM North Texas #15 vs Kansas St. #2
02:45 PM Sam Houston #14 vs Baylor #3
02:50 PM St. Mary's (Ca.) #10 vs Richmond #7
04:45 PM UTEP #12 vs Butler #5
07:10 PM N. Iowa #9 vs UNLV #8
07:15 PM East Tenn. St. #16 vs Kentucky #1
07:20 PM Washington #11 vs Marquette #6
07:25 PM Ohio #14 vs Georgetown #3
09:30 PM Lehigh #16 vs Kansas #1
09:35 PM Wake Forest #9 vs Texas #8
09:40 PM Montana #14 vs New Mexico #3
09:45 PM San Diego St. #11 vs Tennessee #6

Five most over-seeded teams: Duke, Villanova, Kansas State, Pittsburgh, Vanderbilt
Five most under-seeded teams: West Virginia, Gonzaga, Washington, UTEP, Temple
Region(s) featuring the most NBA talent: Midwest, East
Highest-seeded team that will have the shortest tournament stay: Duke
Team seeded five or lower that will make a run: Washington
Most disappointing teams in the field: Michigan State, Texas
Coach I would most want leading a team in the tournament: Tom Izzo, Michigan State
Least: Rick Barnes, Texas
Best pro prospect nobody knows about - but will soon: Epke Udoh, Baylor
Player most likely to boost his NBA Draft stock this month: Jordan Crawford, Xavier
Player most likely to kill his NBA Draft stock this month: Cole Aldrich, Kansas
Talking point I will be most sick of by early April: John Wall's dance
Person I appreciate most during the tournament: Gus Johnson
Person I'll miss most during the tournament: Charissa Thompson
Person I don't miss at all during the tournament: Dick Vitale
Best thing about the tournament: the raw emotion from the players and coaches
Worst thing: It'll be over in three weeks

Every March, when the NCAA Tournament comes around, it seems like I always have something to do.

Class, work, family obligations - there's always something.

Not this year. That's why I'll be able to watch as much basketball possible this Thursday and Friday. The only thing that could put a wrench in my plans is something serious happening to someone in my family. Even then, I'd have a decision to make because I'd like to believe everyone I'm related to has knowledge of my (unhealthy) obsession with basketball.

Seriously, there's very few things I love more than March Madness (my family, friends, Haribo Gummi Bears and those Beefy 5-Layer Burritos from Taco Bell come to mind).

During my freshman year of college - the year Michigan State won its second national title - I let one of my best friends, who's probably the most superstitious person I know - talk me into sitting in the same position in the same chair for three weeks. It must've worked, right?

Two years after that, I rushed through a test in a history class in order to make it home to watch MSU lose to North Carolina State in the first round. It's safe to say I would have been better off skipping the class altogether.

I've gone from skipping class to trying my best to get out of work the first couple days of the Big Dance.

I even told a boss of mine once that I was a devout Bracketologist and that if he didn't give me that Thursday-Friday off, I'd have the ACLU on him with the quickness.

I don't have to do any of that this year!! Everything is all set for me to only have to leave my couch for one thing. That's still up in the air, too, especially if I come across a bed pan in the next 48 hours.

From start to finish, millions upon millions of people are enthralled by the NCAA Tournament. Even those Butler-UTEP (pick UTEP) and Richmond-St. Mary's (go with the Spiders) matchups will garner decent ratings and shares.

I love everything about this tournament.

From the rowdy, die-hard, sometimes too optimistic fans; to the double-overtime buzzer-beaters from half court; to the awesome play-by-play skills of Detroit native Gus Johnson. College basketball, not the NBA, is truly "Where the Amazing Happens."

And who doesn't know of the legends this tournament has helped make?

Who doesn't remember the skinny kid from North Carolina - with a full head of hair - sinking that legendary jumper from the baseline in 1982 in New Orleans against Georgetown?

Anybody who can't recall Christian Laettner's one bounce, turnaround jumper to beat Kentucky at the buzzer in the Elite Eight during the 1992 tournament should be court marshalled.

And I know everyone around here remembers Glen Rice's phenomenal six-game run in '89. And how Magic Johnson essentially saved college basketball with his play in the 1979 tournament.

It's not like productivity is at a high level during the Dance. An article published by various publications each March says U.S. companies will lose about $20 million a minute paying employees for time spent following the games at their desk, according to an estimate by global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

I’m sure worker bees all over the country already have ways set up on how to enjoy the Madness from their cubes. I always have several windows open on my computer so I can keep track of each game. I power walk back and forth from my desk to the television in our newsroom “like an expectant father whose wife is in labor” as our office manager said while I marched back and forth to watch the Big Ten Tournament a couple years back.

So as we get closer and closer to tourney time, I advise everyone to set their DVRs, skip class or call in sick to work.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get ahold of my mom so she can help me win my pools. Why do I have her help me, you ask? Because she thinks March Madness is a sale at Lord & Taylor.

With an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament at stake Saturday morning, UTEP's best guard - Randy Culpepper - stepped to the free throw line with his squad down 6 to Houston with 33.7 seconds left in the Conference USA conference title game and split a pair. The Miners, the best team in Conference USA, lost by 8.

Duke's Jon Scheyer, who has shot 89 percent from the line this season, was fouled while firing up a three early Saturday afternoon in the Blue Devil's ACC Tournament semi-final against Miami (FL) and hit just one of three attempts.

That same afternoon, the University of Tennessee, in its SEC semi against Kentucky, started out 1-4 at the line.

In their Big Ten quarterfinal against Minnesota Friday night, my Spartans (17-32 free throws, 68 percent on the season) were about as accurate a shot as Dick Cheney on their way to gagging again in the Big Ten Tournament.

Tight games are already somewhat painful to watch, with all the intentional fouls and time outs coaches call. But when neither team can take control of a game when given a "Free" look at the basket, that makes teammates, coaches and fans cringe. It got so bad during the MSU game that I started hoping the Spartans would shoot their free throws underhanded like Rick Barry or Wilt Chamberlain.

Free throw shooting has been an issue all across the NCAA all season long. Only four teams projected to earn high seeds (1-4) in next week's NCAA Tournament - Duke (9), Villanova (13), Wisconsin (29) and Purdue (30) - rank in the top 50 in the nation in free throw shooting accuracy. After Baylor, at number 44, the next "good" team that comes up on the list is Georgetown, which is ranked 110th in the country in free throw shooting.

The number one team in the country, the Kansas Jayhawks, check in at number 145, shooting .698 from the line as a team.

I researched all this hoping to feel better about my team's struggles from the line. I don't. MSU is the 203rd best (out of 347) free throw shooting team in the country.

So when the tourney starts Thursday, you have a second option for taking bathroom breaks - when the refs blows his whistle.

There's lots of things in sports that need to be re-examined.

Overtime in the NFL. The college bowl season. The NBA and NHL regular seasons. The WNBA as a whole.

One things in sports that is perfect as is is the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, or as I like to call it, "Three Weeks of Heaven."

That could change, though, as NCAA officials have had preliminary discussions about expanding the tournament - currently at 65 teams - to 96 teams. The only motivating factor that could lead to this coming to fruition is cash money.

Revenue drives everything, and the Big Dance is no different. However, there never seems to be a shortage of advertisers when March Madness rolls around each year. Add that to the fact the tournament is a perfect Made for TV event - four games on at once, 12 straight hours of coverage over the first two days, constant updates during games, CBS cutting away from games when others are tight down the stretch - and there is absolutely no need to mess with such a good thing. That'd be like Jessica Alba or Zoe Saldana feeling the need to get breast implants.

This could be a knee-jerk reaction to the low ratings drawn by the 2009 National Championship game between North Carolina and Michigan State, which saw a 7-percent decrease in viewers, according to a report published shortly after last year's title game. That was offset, though, by a 5-percent increase in viewership for the entire tournament.

College basketball, for the most part, has been the one sport that has stayed true to players and fans. There's no TV break every couple minutes. There's rarely an extended commercial break during a game. And the sport, in general, is fun. Expanding the field of the tournament would take from that, and, for what? To make a few extra dollars? Granted, it'd be much more than that, but adding 31 teams to the Dance would kill competition across the board.

That expansion would turn March Madness into essentially the college bowl season, where even the most mediocre team would have a shot (albeit not a realistic one) to win a national title. Bowl games are different, though. You have a 6-6 team that gets a trip to Mobile, Ala., to play in what really accounts as a meaningless game. Unlike bowl season and its several Toilet Bowls, there are no meaningless games in the NCAA Tournament. All 63 contests are a part of a story.

That story should continue to have only the best teams as characters. During bowl season, which I do love, by the way, about 60 percent of Football Bowl Subdivision Teams get a payday. Only 19 percent of D-I men's basketball teams (347 total) make the Big Dance. That means only the cream of the crop are invited.

Take Connecticut for example. UCONN advanced to the Final Four as a one seed last year. This year, after some attrition, coach Jim Calhoun's temporary leave of absence and some admittedly bad play, UCONN finished the season 17-15, 7-11 in the tough Big East. The Huskies had 15 chances to beat potential Tourney teams and made good on just three of those. But, with an expanded tournament field, UCONN would, more than likely, be a shoo-in to make the tournament with that barely above .500 record.

What sense does that make? Why would any team schedule tough non-conference opponents or go on the the road in the non-conference when it knows it can have an up-and-down year, finish in the middle - or near the bottom- of its conference and still have a shot at the national title? What would be the purpose of conference tournaments (other than, yea, you guessed it, money)?

Why would anyone get excited about Championship Week and Selection Sunday? Why would I take the first two days of the tournament off every year to watch 15-15 Michigan play 16-14 North Carolina State when neither team has a shot to make any noise? Isn't that what the NIT is for? Or would the expansion serve as a way to do away with the NIT, as some have speculated, since Three Weeks of Heaven may move from CBS to ESPN, which currently broadcasts the NIT?

And what would become of the mid- and low-major conferences? Schools like Dayton and UTEP don't generate a whole hell of a lot of revenue, but it's schools like those and others who are a part of the charm of the tournament. Gonzaga, Davidson, George Mason, Bucknell, Howard and others are the schools that really make March Mad.

Could a team like, say, Arizona State, really be considered a "Cinderella" when it's on a level playing field revenue- and recruiting-wise with the likes of UCLA and Washington? I don't think so. But if the tournament field is expanded. I can't help but believe the move would be made in part to make room for more power conference (Big Ten, SEC, Big East, ACC, Pac 10, Big 12) teams.

If there is real talk of expanding Three Weeks of Heaven, it should stop. Now. As the saying goes, "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it." The NCAA tournament doesn't need tweaking. It's perfect the way it is.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna check TMZ.com to make sure Jessica Alba hasn't done anything stupid.

-6'8"

-230 pounds

-Four-year starter

-Averaged double-figure points and around 6 board a game his entire career, along with shooting about 51 percent from the field

-The ability to score on the wing, combined with the skills to get buckets in the paint

-Can guard multiple positions

That looks like the resume of an NBA Lottery pick, right?

What about when you add this in:

-Looks lost on the court at times

-Sulks when things don't go his way

-No-shows entire games at times

-A bit of a whiner

That looks like the attributes of an athlete with the mental acumen of Ron Artest.

But that's been, for better or worse, what MSU has gotten from Raymar Morgan the last four years. Morgan shows flashes of brilliance at times - like averaging 18 points and 10 rebounds over State's final three regular season games. Those were all wins MSU HAD to have, and Raymar was easily the best player on the floor in each contest.

Then there's the other side of it, like when Morgan had a five-game stretch of 0, 8, 8, 6 and 4 points when MSU lost three of five, and the lead in the Big Ten, early last month.

That's what kills me. I get more upset when Ray has a great game (WHY THE #%$* CAN'T YOU PLAY THIS WAY ALL THE TIME?!?) than I do when he goes out and gives a performance that rivals the acting in "Homeboys From Outer Space." How weird is that? There's so much potential there, but he hasn't fully harnessed it. He's faced injuries and illness during his time in East Lansing, but more often than not, Morgan has played like Rasheed Wallace: great skills and talent, but no real desire to be The Man.

Look at Texas' Damion James. I've been telling my boys all season that he and Raymar are the exact same player: same size, skill set, everything. But James doesn't take nights off (he's scored in double figures in 28 of Texas' 31 games and has 15 double-doubles this season) and is projected as a top-15 pick in this summer's NBA Draft. Morgan - because of his inconsistent play and demeanor at times, not is level of skill - will be lucky to latch on with a team overseas.

But Ray can redeem himself if he carries his good play from the end of the regular season into the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament.

The most frustrating thing about that?

Nobody knows if he will.