The Insanity that is March

Speaking of winners and losers, let's take a break from politics and talk the other great game: sports. Ever since childhood, I've been a near-fanatic when it comes to sports, especially college basketball. Growing up, my older brothers played basketball with former Duke standout and NBA star Grant Hill, so I naturally rooted for the Blue Devils. While that's no longer exclusively the case (I usually root for the underdog, especially when that school is the oft-shadowed Ohio University), I still enjoy watching ACC basketball in particular, and college basketball in general, as well as any other college sports.         

Call me naive, but I just think that there's a feeling of purity that you don't see in other sports. Like, for example, hockey.

In 2001, I was lucky enough to see Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, where the Colorado Avalance won the Cup, and gave the soon-retiring Ray Bourque one glorious farewell.  I love the game of hockey, and, folks, it just doesn't get much better than seeing two teams battle for one of the more storied awards in pro sports. Unfortunately, thanks to the greed of a bunch of grossly compensated folks, no one will get that chance this year. But there's something better than NHL hockey, if you care to see. That's college hockey.

I got hooked on hockey in college watching Ohio U's club hockey team, and that led to my trying to find out about college hockey. In this state, there's an incredibly fierce rivalry between Colorado College and the University of Denver--it might well be the hockey equivalent of college basketball's Duke-UNC rivalry.

DU won the NCAA hockey title last year, and this year, both teams are crazy talented, having swapped the number one ranking throughout the year with each other. CC shared the regular season WCHA title with Denver, but Denver won the tourney title this past weekend. And as fate would have it, if the seedings hold out, they'll meet April 7th in the Frozen Four semifinals, just as if the Final Four seedings hold, Duke will meet UNC for a chance to play for the title.

You can find all the information you'd ever want about the Frozen Four here. Colorado College is seeded #1 in the Midwest Regional, while Denver is seeded #1 in the Northeast Regional. Here's the schedule (all times Mountain):

Colorado College vs. Colgate--Friday, 3 PM
Wisconsin vs. Michigan--Friday, 8 PM
Denver vs. Bemidji State--Saturday, 10 AM
Harvard vs. New Hampshire, 1 PM

Midwest Regional Final--Saturday, 3 PM
Northeast Regional Final--Sunday, 10 AM

Frozen Four--Semifinals, April 7, 12 PM and 5 PM; Final, April 9, 5 PM.
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Speaking of March Madness, I ran the Sweet 16 by WhatIf Sports college basketball simulator. Here's what their computers spit out as the Final Four: Arizona, Washington, Michigan State, and North Carolina. And they have UNC beating Arizona for the title, by an average score of 96-86. My bracket, of course, is in shambles, as it usually is by this point in the tourney, so I'm just rooting for the underdog at this point--my dream final would pit Wisconsin-Milwaukee's Panthers against NC State's Wolfpack.

Use this as an open thread to discuss anything sports-related.

Comments

[Jenn]

Colorado College is actually playing Colgate in the first round on Friday. Big difference in that part of the world. I know they're big underdogs, but I have to stand up for my team. GO 'GATE!

[Lefty Rivera]

Jenn, I'm so sorry. As someone who's felt the sting of confusion with my school ("Wow...Ohio U? Right, the Buckeyes!!"), I should have known better. I've fixed it. Thanks for the sharp eye!

LR