See this picture here?  That ought to be like manna from heaven for every college hoops fan not in Durham, North Carolina.  Duke losing in the second round, how freakin' awesome is that!!  Greg Paulus, go cry in Coach K's arms!

I didn't get to enjoy this moment one bit.  Why?  Because I had Duke in my Final 8.  And this could royally screw up my bracket.  And that ticked me off!!

What the heck is wrong with that?  I mean, 20 years from now, what am I going to remember?  Watching Duke go down, or how that screwed up my bracket...well ok, both for me, and that probably says something about my capacity for holding useless knowledge.  But regardless, shouldn't we be rooting for the teams we want to get through?

Truth be told, when I was filling out my bracket I felt like Xavier had a good shot at knocking off Duke if they got there (suuuure you say, and you probably had Western Kentucky in the Sweet 16 too...well I had that, so...take that for what it's worth).  But, I learned through my early bracket picking experiences that you're better off betting against the local teams, mostly because everyone else is giving them the homer bonus, and if they tank out early you're in the catbird seat. 

So, I pick against my heart, and then look what happens; I'm a freakin' Dukie for a day, and I end up getting depressed when they lose.  Couldn't psychiatrists set up practices based on this school of thought?  Take one Tarheel Blue, one Burnt Orange, and a Razorback Red, and call me in the morning.

And now it gets worse.  Because I'd really love to see Xavier make a Final Four run.  But at the same time, I know that a WVU win would pretty much wipe out a lot of other brackets, and that'd really help me.  And this is leaving me seriously conflicted.

So that begs the question: at what point do you sell your basketball soul to root for a team that you picked in your bracket?  When do you start cheering like mad for a team that you wouldn't even consider lifting a finger for during an early February conference game?  And when do you turn on a team that you'd much prefer to see move on, just because it might mean a greater gain for your bracket (and likely pocketbook)?

The patient is in, I'll be seeing doctors now.  Give me your best prescription for therapy.

I came across a really interesting article on Dusty Baker, actually, that revealed a very interesting take on Josh Hamilton that I had not yet heard before. Here's the paragraph from Bill Madden's article in the NY Daily News:

"But according to team sources, Hamilton, for all his recovered abilities, was not a popular player in the Reds' clubhouse. His teammates resented the fact that he had to have Narron's brother as a constant chaperone and they also felt he too often begged out of the lineup for minor ailments. In any case, Baker, from what he's seen of Volquez so far, is delighted with the trade."

Wow. That makes sense. Hamilton was caudled along the way and Narron is now a special coach with the Rangers, for Hamilton. This is truly a strange setup. Look, I've said before that Hamilton's story last year was a great one. Very compelling and feel-good. But, I am so tired of hearing Reds fans griping about not having Hamilton here. Let's not forget that the Reds got Edison Volquez for Hamilton. Volquez is having a fantastic spring and has probably earned himself a spot in the rotation as a result. He's upgraded the pitching staff either way. If the Reds still had Hamilton, think of the glut of OF talent. Jay Bruce couldn't even stick around because of the depth of OF talent. So, please, for the last time, can all Reds fans move on from Josh Hamilton. He's not a Red any more. Let's wish him well, but worry about those who are actually on the team now.

Rick Pitino has to be happy with the way his Louisville Cardinals breezed through the first weekend of the tournament. Their was the first round shalacking of Boise State, but that was nothing compared to the beat down his team put on Oklahoma on Sunday. The Sooners were more like the Laters as DaVille put a 78-48 smackdown on them in an effort that had be one the most impressive, balance attacks I have seen in recent tournament history.

Louisville could nothing wrong on Sunday and if they keep playing like that Rick Pitino and his boys have as good as a chance as any other team in this tournament to be crowned champions.

Rick Borzak, a columinist for the Louisville Courier-Journal that sees plenty of Cards' basketball' wrote it best, "Louisville made better than 59 percent of its shots against an Oklahoma team that came to Birmingham ranked 39th in the country in field-goal defense, forcing opponents to miss nearly 60 percent of their shots.

"Not yesterday. Pitino's team played with energy. They shared the basketball. They didn't make one extra pass to get better shots. They made a couple. They took charges, Borzak wrote on Monday. "They called out screens. The Cardinals played as if they finally understood everything Pitino has been asking them to do since October. It was their most complete -- and dazzling -- offensive performance this season."

Next up for the Cards, a showdown with second-seeded Tennessee on Thursday night in Charlotte, a win there would likely set up a match-up with #1 North Carolina, the regional final. It's safe to say if Louisville does make it to the Final Four they have a great chance to win the whole thing.