The final four
It's the first day of the month of April. Nuts and jokers will be at their ridiculous best today in reverence to April Fools. If we hear something that's too good to be true, we better not jump into conclusions. Chances are we're being taken for a ride. So, why has today become a "fools' day"?
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader gives us an explanation, and to quote, "Until 1564, it was a tradition to begin the New Year with a week of celebration ending with a big party. The calendar was different then - the New Year beginning on March 25, and the biggest party fell on April 1. In 1564, a new calendar made January 1 the New Year. People who forgot or didn't realize what happened, and still showed up to celebrate on April 1, were called 'April Fools' ".
Now, you know. If you want to be a fool today, go ahead and make somebody die of laughter. Bwa-ha-ha!
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College athletics, no matter what sport, always produces deep passion and emotion among supporters. Check their games, be it foreign or domestic and you'll see what I mean. Our local CESAFI, Manila's UAAP, NCAA and similar leagues pack in the crowds.
Their US counterparts also pack them in, in a bit larger scale. Pep squads, bands, costumed and painted faces in their respective school colors dominate the stands, which brings us now to the culmination, the Final Four.
March is the only time of the year that I get some serious watching of the US NCAA basketball. From the Sweet Sixteen to the Elite Eight and now the Final Four which the City of Houston will be hosting early this Sunday morning, our time.
Since the US NCAA began seeding teams, this is the third time that no number one seed made it to the Final Four. This year's cast of UConn (#3), Kentucky (#4), Butler (#8) and VCU (#11) is considered an unlikely group. VCU will face Butler, UConn faces Kentucky, with the winners squaring off for the national title. VCU is the third 11th ranked team to figure in the Final Four. There was LSU in 1986 and another Virgina-based school, George Mason, in 2006.
Virginia Commonwealth (VCU) is on its first-ever Final Four appearance and their magical run prompted a 300% increase in their school's enrollment inquiries. All the college basketball experts were complaining about VCU's inclusion to the tournament. The team nobody wanted but has now become the team that nobody wants to meet. It's a fun team to watch, a no frills, all guts kind of squad. Players to check out are point guard Joey Rodriguez and forwards Jamie Skeen and Bradford Burgess.
Butler is on their second consecutive Final Four appearance, losing to Duke last year in the national finals. The team plays unselfish team basketball. Point guard Shelvin Mack and power forward Matt Howard provides the leadership and the points on this squad.
UConn is no stranger to the Final Four, having appeared four times with two national titles to show. This will be a Kemba Walker show supported by center Alex Oriakhi and the sweet-shooting Jeremy Lamb.
The title favorites are the Wildcats of Kentucky. This is their 14th overall Final Four appearance but the first since 1998. Brandon Knight is their star guard and I won't be surprised if he will be among the NBA's top rookie picks. For the past three years, Kentucky has sent superior point guards to the world's biggest pro basketball league in Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans and John Wall.
Knight will have able backup from shooting guard Doron Lamb, forward Terence Jones and center Josh Harrellson.
For the simple reason that I have tribe members residing in Virginia, I will be rooting for VCU. Games on Sunday start at 6am and if I'm not mistaken, VCU-Butler goes first followed by KU-Uconn.
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