Tournaments on the mind

The NCAA selection committee got it right for the first time ever -- they got the four top seeds into the final four. And only one of them really had all that tough of a challenge in their actual regional final.

When the brackets came out a couple weeks ago, I really never got a good read on all these teams. Turns out that what I thought was going to be the toughest year to predict the winners was actually the best. If you would have taken straight top seeds, you would likely be near the top of your bracket. How often can you say that? But what is the fun of stealing the NCAA's selection committee's pick.

But to be truthful, this could honestly go down as one of the most boring NCAA Tournament in history. If it were not for Davidson's run, this was a very predictable tournament. I know we had some 13 seeds win and all that, but that happens every year. Sometimes you can see these upsets coming (we all knew Villanova is up there). But there is still time for drama. What if the title game goes to double-overtime, oh yeah, this is all of a sudden a great, exciting tournament.

Now let us talk about a tournament I have all of a sudden embraced. It is the NIT. Ohio State vs Cal followed by Dayton sounds more like a good round of 32 matchup in the NCAA. But the one thing you get from the NIT's you never get from the NCAA is a true basketball atmosphere in real college arenas. For instance, did anyone watch the Cal game on ESPN last week? Did you have a tough time hearing play by play man John Saunders? It was truly that loud in St. John Arena. You get real basketball fans close to the court and look what happens. I think the handful of fathers who brought their sons as a $40 history lesson got what they paid for: An old style basketball game in front of a large rocking crowd with the blaring of Hang On Sloopy coming from the bleachers.

But when I never thought it was possible to get the Schott that loud, it was just as loud two nights later. What would have had it even louder had Dayton not bought up a section in the lowers. But still, the vast majority was wearing scarlet and grey and once again, when you don't have millionaires sitting close to the action, you notice there is a crowd. But of course that isn't likely to change anytime soon. But what a nice way to send out the seniors.

I will have Destroyers and Jackets updates later tonight/tomorrow.