Let me be the first to say I had some wild days in college and I did some stupid things, but I never jumped off a balcony into an above ground pool. And even if I did, I didn’t play Division I college basketball and have millions of dollars in my future as an NBA player. So, not the brightest move by Tyler Hansbrough and Bobby Frasor.

I won’t mention the dumb things I did college because they’re probably not appropriate for this blog.

Let’s start with Frasor. The talented point guard sat out almost all of last season with a knee injury. He hasn’t completely healed from the injury yet he finds it acceptable to jump off a balcony into a pool. Not smart.

Then Hansbrough, who could have been a lottery pick in the 2008 draft, but chose to stay for his senior season, has such a bright future that he almost ruined it. I’m sure coach Roy Williams and NBA scouts aren’t too happy with Hansbrough taking the plunge.

He could’ve sprained an ankle, broken a leg or even worse. These guys need to be careful. I know it’s the end of the school year and of course these guys are still kids and they want to have fun, but you’re a college basketball celebrity. Your star power is your wild and crazy times. Your trip to the Final Four is your fun. So, diving off balconies into pools is the stupid thing for guys like me to do, with no NBA career to jeopardize. Be smart.

The 134^th running of the Kentucky Derby is Saturday at Churchill Downs and every year I get excited for the historic race.

The Kentucky Derby has days and weeks of build up but the race itself is over in a split second. Twenty horses will compete for the first prize of the Triple Crown and every year the derby winner gets all the attention for the months leading up to the Preakness.

Horse racing is a wonderful thing. Gambling, drinking and sports combined to make a wonderful Saturday afternoon.

This year I’m going with Colonel John, a 4-1 favorite. I never actually bet money, except maybe a side bet or two with a few friends.

I hope I don’t miss the derby this year. I’ll be en route to Charleston, SC on Saturday afternoon and hope to get there before the race starts around 6 p.m.

Whoever wins the race will then become America’s obsession for the rest of the summer. The Triple Crown of horse racing is one of the most coveted accomplishments in all of sports and it’s a rare feat. Whenever a horse can win the first two legs of the crown the hype builds even higher. I hope whoever wins can win the Preakness and at least provide the opportunity for a Triple Crown, but it’s a long shot.

Yes, that’s right, the Tar Heels coach rallied in support of the team that just two days prior whipped his butt out of the tournament. He wore the logo of the team that kicked his players out of Texas and sent them back to Chapel Hill early. He supported the same team that denied one of the best players in North Carolina’s history, Tyler Hansbrough, from winning a championship in what could be his last season before departing for the NBA.

What was he thinking?

I know that Williams spent 15 years with Kansas and led the team to a national title and Kansas will always have a big place in his heart. That is totally understandable and I’d feel the same way. But the problem I have with it is showing your support so publicly, so soon. I have no problem with him attending the game, but wearing the sticker so shortly after the Jayhawks broke hearts on UNC’s campus lets his fans down.

I think the issue is timing and it was bad. I think if Roy really needed to wear the sticker he should’ve watched from home where he could’ve went wild, jumping up and down on his living room couch. He could’ve dumped a bowl of popcorn over his wife’s head in celebration. Hell, he could’ve streaked naked in his neighborhood or done laps around the block beeping the horn of his car for all I care. He could’ve worn Kansas boxers, briefs or a thong, whatever he’s into. But to publicly support and wear a logo of the team that just beat you, whether you coached there or not, is poor taste.

I’m sure there a lot of confused and hurt Tar Heels fans because you know they could care less about his history with Kansas, they’re just ticked off that the Jayhawks beat them. They’re mad it’s not them celebrating with the trophy instead of Kansas.

I heard some comparisons of this situation made with Kevin Millar, the Baltimore Orioles slugger who was a member of the 2004 World Series champion Boston Red Sox. Before the 2007 World Series, Millar wore a Red Sox uniform, sat in the dugout with the team and announced the lineup on FOX. He even said “we” throughout the lineup, like we’ve got a bruiser in David Ortiz batting third.

The beef with Millar was that he was currently on an active roster with a different team, the Orioles. Did he have the right or was it OK for him to be supporting another team, especially one in the same division? Here’s my take.

I love Millar, most Red Sox fans do. He was responsible for the “Cowboy Up” slogan that helped Boston break the curse, beat the Yankees and win its first World Series in what seemed like forever. His situation was special. He was part of history, real sports history.

It’s a great accomplishment for Kansas to win the national championship, but let’s be honest; it’s just one of many. There really isn’t anything super special about this one compared to its last in 1988 or any other recent champ.

With Millar, it was a huge deal when the Sox won and he was a major part of that team and organization. He was the face of the slogan and the charge from three games back to beat the Yankees in Game 7 of the ALCS. A huge chunk of his heart obviously lies in Boston because of all the history he helped write. Plus, the Orioles didn’t make the playoffs and were out of contention way before the season ended and the playoffs started. The buffer was quite longer.

Bottom line, Williams should be proud of Kansas, but he needs to show a little more respect for his fans and the school before slapping on a sticker and supporting the enemy.

I went 0-for-2 in the national semifinals with UCLA falling to Memphis and North Carolina bowing out against Kansas.

Both games were blowouts and both didn’t go my away.

I knew it was over for me when the Bruins lost in the early game because I had them winning it all. With that in mind, I continued to pull for the Tar Heels since I have a lot of friends that are Carolina fans. I was stunned they lost.

I was in a Charlotte bar packed in with hundreds of Tar Heel blue clad fans surrounding me and they were all in shock.

Kansas’ defense did what I didn’t think was possible, it shut down the Heels. Carolina only had five players score which is embarrassing. The Tar Heels only shot 36 percent, a credit to the Jayhawks swarming defense.

That’s all I’m really going to say about those games though because they were both boring to me. I was glad I chose to go to the Celtics game against the Charlotte Bobcats instead. I had to miss part of the games, but caught a lot on screens around the arena. Boston slaughtered the Bobcats and the game was a lot of fun.

I’m almost uninterested in tonight’s national championship. I’ll probably tune in for a little of it, but if something better is on, I’ll make the switch.

I’ve got more interesting topics to write about than college hoops today.

I played golf Sunday afternoon with a friend down in Charlotte. It turned out to be a nice day, but the course was soaking wet with all the recent rain. Several fluke things happened during our round.

First, on the third hole, a 160-yard Par 3, we were convinced I’d hit a hole-in-one. My tee shot was headed right at the flag stick, then landed and rolled just short of the cup. It was so close to rolling in. When we got to the green it was a few feet short of the cup and I made the gimme putt for birdie.

On the back nine it was my friend Ricky’s turn for an almost hole-in-one. On a 220-yard downhill Par 3, a very challenging hole, Ricky hit a soaring drive a little left of the hole, but it started to curve right and towards the flag. The ball bounced once and then hit the inside of the cup before eventually landing a few feet to the right. He also made his putt for birdie.

The most bizarre occurrence of the day and perhaps of my life on the golf course came on No. 7.

Ricky and I hit our tee shots into the fairway which went downhill. Let me first mention that from the tee box you can’t see if anyone is in the fairway playing the hole. I play my shot short of the green and now its Ricky’s turn.

As he approaches the ball for his shot I hear what sounds like the group behind us tee off, so I look back towards the tee to try and watch for a ball coming at Ricky while he’s shooting. As I’m looking back he takes his shot. As he hits, I hear an awkward sound. I hear him swing, make contact with the ball, then what sounded like the ball hit his foot. I turn away from the tee box and watch his shot trickle down the fairway about 25 yards away.

I assume that he’s just hit a really bad shot. Ricky immediately says, “What the heck just happened?” I told him, I didn’t really see it and that it must’ve hit his foot because I heard it hit something after the club. So, I’m over it quickly, thinking that’s what happened and it’s not a big deal.

Ricky walks up to his ball a short distance away and is still scratching his head in confusion. He hits the ball and immediately turns back and says, “No, that’s not my shot, that’s the group behind us. It’s their tee shot.”

I shout back, “Are you kidding? There’s no way that’s possible. I saw it roll downhill after you hit your shot. Unless it magically rolled under your feet, that’s yours.”

At this point I think Ricky has lost his mind and we argue back-and-forth for a few minutes about the topic which I think is not debatable.

We get up to the green after I demand he just hit and stop worrying about it. When getting there, Ricky finds what he says is his ball, the one he played on his second shot from the fairway. The ball is nowhere near where he hit his third shot after the errant shot off his foot. He now knows what happened and I still don’t.

As he starts to explain, the group behind us is now searching for one of their tee shots in the fairway.

Ricky fills me in on what actually happened.

As Ricky hit his second shot, the tee shot from the group behind us came down hill and hit Ricky in the foot. Ricky’s shot soared over the green, while the group’s tee shot trickled 25 feet away. What I saw was the tee shot roll forward and assumed it was his shot. He was so caught off guard by being struck in the foot with the other ball that he took his eye off his shot and had no idea where it went, also giving in and thinking that the ball in front of us was his.

But it wasn’t. We then went to the group behind us and asked what ball they were playing. Sure enough, it matched. The odds of their tee shot hitting Ricky at the same exact time he took his shot and the ball looking like his errant shot, is unreal. It’s the strangest thing I’ve seen in awhile. But it made for an interesting round of golf.

The Boston Red Sox home opener is Tuesday so I’ll have plenty to write about tomorrow. Prepare yourself to read line after line of me praising Fenway Park, the city of Boston and the rich history of its fans, while of course watching the game on my computer at work.

Since my March Madness bracket is still in play I’m forced to stick with my original picks. I’m taking North Carolina over Kansas and amazingly I feel confident the Tar Heels will prevail. (Check out Final Four special section)

North Carolina is on such a roll that even a great team like the Jayhawks can’t compare.

I think earlier in the season this matchup could have gone either way, but I think the Tar Heels have more scoring ability and star power.

For starters, Kansas doesn’t have an answer for Tyler Hansbrough, I don’t think anyone in the country does. Hansbrough will do what he’s done all season which will be too much for the opposition.

The Tar Heels speedy offensive style, forcing turnovers and scoring fast-break points, will be too much for the Jayhawks, who are usually stout defensively.

North Carolina is No. 1 overall for a reason which is why it will move on to Monday night’s final. I’ll say Tar Heels 82, Kansas 70.

I honestly think the early game Saturday night is a toss up. Memphis and UCLA are obviously both excellent teams, judging by their No. 1 seeds and the level in the tournament they’ve reached.

UCLA has played strong in its last two outings, but before that struggled a bit which had me nervous for my bracket. I’ve got the Bruins overtaking the Tigers, but the result worries me a bit. I didn’t have Memphis in the Final Four, not because I didn’t think it was good, but because I didn’t think it was as good as advertised.

Playing in a weak conference weighed heavily in my pick and the fact that I needed a No. 1 seed to lose, since never before this season had all four advanced. I was wrong.

But this Memphis team scares me. I was shocked that the Tigers crushed Texas in Texas. They’ve played well all tournament long and quietly. North Carolina has stormed ahead as expected and pulled in the big headlines, but the Tigers had an equally strong showing, but under the radar.

I’m still going with UCLA 74, Memphis 70.

No doubt it will be a great night of games as the final four teams battle for a shot in the last and most important game of the season. With money on the line, I really hope my picks hold up. Enjoy the games.

With all that’s riding on my March Madness bracket I want the Final Four to be here already. I can’t stand the wait.

I’m also in a big dilemma. I’ve had plans to drive down to Charlotte to see the Boston Celtics play the Bobcats. I’ve been excited about this trip for weeks. Finally, I’ll get a chance to see the Big Three, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce tear it up on the hardwood first hand.

Well, the issue is that the game is right in the middle of the Final Four. If I went to the Celtics game I’d only be able to catch the end of the North Carolina vs. Kansas game and miss the other game completely. So, I’m not sure what to do.

All of my friends in Charlotte don’t want to miss the college games which disappoints me, but either do I. I’m not sure what I’m going to do, but basically I want to see all three games. I wish there was a way to move up the college games, then I would have exactly what I want. Sounds too good to be true.

The Celtics are close to clinching the top seed in the Eastern Conference, something which is far from a done deal in the West. It’s still a tight race in that half with every game playing a huge role in the seeding process. If the regular season has been this exciting we can only imagine what a great postseason is in store.

I was lucky enough to return home last night and catch some of the Red Sox game against the Oakland A’s. It was the perfect cap to a great night.

The Red Sox won the game on the back of an outstanding pitching performance from Daisuke Matsuzaka. The Japanese star struck out nine and was commanding his fast ball the whole game. He was finally challenging hitters with the heat, something he struggled to do last year. Another good sign for Dice-K was that he didn’t walk anyone. He’s been known to have control issues and struggled with finding the strike zone, but not Monday night.

The Red Sox weren’t playing and the weather was awful, cold and rainy, but I had to watch a few innings anyway.

Lucky for baseball fans, there was some great action on the first day. I turned on ESPN2 and watched the end of the Milwaukee Brewers at the Chicago Cubs.

Opening Day at Wrigley Field is border line more special than the opener at Fenway Park. I said border line, not is is mors special, because it isn’t. Either way, it’s still great. The game was tied 0-0 going into the ninth inning when Cubs closer Kerry Wood, let up three runs in the top of the ninth, putting the Cubbies in a big hole.

That didn’t matter. The Brewers new closer, Eric “I stink” Gagne blew the lead and allowed a game-tying three-run home run to Cubs rookie sensation Kosuke Fukudome. It was awesome and Wrigley was electric.

He blasted the homer to left-center field and completed a great afternoon in his MLB debut. He’s also the first Japanese player to ever wear a Cubs uniform.

Unfortunately, the Cubs blew the lead in the 10th, I know what a downer, but it was still a great game. Chicago skipper Lou Pinella even agreed it was a good ball game, despite taking the defeat.

I hope the rest of the season carries as much excitement as that one NL Central game did for me. I love baseball season. The Sox play tonight in their regular-season opener on U.S. soil. They play the Oakland A’s on the West coast.

I found out today that I’m still alive in my March Madness office pool. That means I’ve still got a shot in every pool I’m in. I have UCLA beating North Carolina in the final and if that happens or maybe even if just UCLA wins, I’m looking good. I’m the only one in my office pool with UCLA winning which would be huge because I could use the cash.

Check out everything you need to know about the Final Four at our special section. The section will be updated every day leading up to this weekend’s games. Read up on each team and the tournament history.

If you’ve looked at my bracket, you know that I did not pick those four teams and therefore took a hit in my tournament pools. I correctly selected three of the four teams, but missed out on Memphis, choosing Texas to knock off the Tigers.

Unfortunately for me the Longhorns choked and got crushed by Memphis. The only reason I didn’t pick Memphis was because I went in with the notion that four No. 1 seeds can’t make the Final Four, it just doesn’t happen.

I wish I hadn’t taken that into consideration. When looking at the brackets, I thought Memphis was the most likely to go down which is why I chose Texas. I didn’t choose the Longhorns because I thought they were better, but only because I thought Memphis had the highest chance to be eliminated before the final weekend. I was wrong.

Apparently a weak conference schedule means nothing since Memphis looks just as good as the other three remaining teams, Kansas, North Carolina and UCLA.

Despite losing a Final Four team I had a good weekend. I picked seven of eight Elite 8 teams and three of the four Final Four teams, not bad, considering how poorly I faired in the early rounds.

The biggest story of the weekend though was Davidson. The No. 10 Wildcats smoked Wisconsin on Friday night to move into the Elite 8 for a date with Kansas. Davidson fought tough and had a chance to win the game with a last-second 3-pointer, but missed. Stephen Curry was brilliant again, but was unable to reach 30 points for the fifth straight NCAA Tournament game. He finished with 25. The failure to do so resulted in the two-point, 59-57 loss to the Jayhawks.

But credit needs to be given to Kansas for smothering Curry at the end. With less than 10 seconds left, the Wildcats trailed by two and had a chance to tie or take the lead.

Curry took the ball up court and he was the man Davidson wanted attempting the game-winner. He was covered like glue by the Kansas defense and couldn’t get an open look. He ended up passing it off to teammate Jason Richardson who launched a deep 3 that was off the mark. A valiant effort, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Davidson should be proud though and their students represented well, filling up a large portion of the stands in Detroit, Mich.

It was fun watching Davidson stun the tournament field, but not as a Cinderella team, as a real contender. Because despite its No. 10 seed, the Wildcats spent time in the Top 25, including the most recent poll. They also won 25 straight games and went undefeated in conference. Their success was no surprise to those that were paying attention. And their future success is now expected.

The school is paying for students to travel by bus to attend the game in Detroit, Mich. Also, hotel rooms will be provided for fans, which is pretty awesome if you’re a Davidson student.

I wish the Wildcats well. I knew they were good, but honestly, after Elon gave them trouble in the first meeting this year, I didn’t think they’d go this far, but they have. Beating Georgetown was a huge task, but they’re not done yet. I think they can beat the Badgers because Stephen Curry is that good.

His ability to read the defense is incredible. He may struggle in the first half, but only because it takes him time to read the coverage on him. Once he gets it down he’s going to get open looks or find a way to drive the basket. I’ve enjoyed watching him this year and I hope we get to watch him again on Sunday in the Elite 8.

Like I mentioned before, my bracket is alive again. Thanks to going 4-for-4 on the first night of the Sweet 16, I jumped toward the top of the standings. I’m not at the top yet, but I remain confident that hopefully I can get there and bring home so March cash.

The Tar Heels of North Carolina again looked unbeatable Thursday night and not leaving the state sure helps. Another game, another blowout for the boys in blue.

The Sweet 16 is set and all four No. 1 seeds are still alive, but we lost two No. 2 seeds along the way. Duke and Georgetown went down in the second round.

No. 7 West Virginia knocked off the Blue Devils who looked awful in the first round against Belmont and Southern Conference power Davidson dispatched the Hoyas on the back of Stephen Curry.

Curry and Davidson have made two gigantic comebacks in their first two games. Curry has been amazing in the second half. He had 30 second-half points against Gonzaga and 25 against Georgetown. In the sophomore’s three NCAA Tournament games he has 100 points, that’s an average of 33 a game. He is showing the nation why the Wildcats have the longest winning streak in the country at 24 games.

Everyone is falling in love with Davidson and its story is a lot better than the other underdog teams that advanced like Western Kentucky and Villanova.

Western Kentucky just isn’t as fun as Davidson and its road wasn’t as difficult, beating Drake and San Diego. Villanova is a big-time program, it just has a high seed. The Wildcats had to be Gonzaga, one of the most clutch NCAA Tournament teams in recent years, and the heavily favored Hoyas, a Final Four team from a year ago.

I debated for a long time whether to pick Davidson and I’m kicking myself that I didn’t. My buddy Ben took the Wildcats which was a smart move. I was thinking out loud to one of our sports writers Adam Smith last week about the Davidson pick. I kept saying, “I want to pick them, but I think Roy Hibbert is just too tall for them.”

I don’t think I saw Hibbert touch the ball once in the last 10 minutes. Bad pick on my part.

There were some great games over the weekend and plenty of overtime affairs. UCLA almost gave me a heart attack Saturday night as it barely slipped past Texas A&M. I have the Bruins winning it all so that would’ve been the end of my bracket.

I did pick Duke to lose to West Virginia which helped my cause, but after the first weekend I think I have the lowest point total I can ever remember.

I had a decent second round, getting 10 of 16 teams correct, but my first round was horrible, with only 19 of 32 picks going my way. I think I picked too many upsets. Take a look at my backet.

But seven of my Elite 8 teams are left and all of my Final Four teams are still in play. Like I said to someone this morning, I’m ready to explode.

Cinderella teams exist because they gain a home environment when they play tough. Last night, Belmont kept things close and even led toward the end of the game. West Virginia and Arizona fans packed the Verizon Center in Washington because the game was prior to their tip-off. Those fans started cheering on the Bruins.

The arena was going wild and it was such an exciting atmosphere and Belmont fed off the energy sending them en route to an upset victory. But after a Gerald Henderson coast-to-coast layup and a turnover it wasn’t meant to be.

But that crowd played a huge role in making Coach K and the Blue Devils sweat. That and the fact that Duke looked like it was their first game of the season at times.

I have never seen a top team look so tired in my life. Conditioning is something every team works on all year long and you’d think by this time of year they’d have it down. Coach K didn’t sub as much as Belmont and it almost cost him.

All of his players, Greg Paulus and DeMarcus Nelson included were dogging it down the court on offense. They were walking up court breathing heavily. When I saw that I thought the Dukies were done. And to be honest, I was pulling for Belmont because I have Duke losing to West Virginia on Saturday. I figured a first-round loss wouldn’t hurt my bracket too much since everyone had Duke winning its first game.

After the heavy breathing, that’s when Henderson appeared. He took it all the way down the court and never thought about passing. He made a nice move through traffic and made the bucket to put Duke up two points. I was stunned. I really thought Belmont was going to win.

That’s March Madness for you. Everyone has a chance. Often times the team who leads the whole game or has the edge or even lead late doesn’t end up with the win. That was the case Thursday night.

I picked several upsets for the first day and they didn’t pay off. I had Wisconsin losing to Cal State Fullerton, but it wasn’t to be. I also had Temple upsetting Michigan State and then advancing to the Sweet 16. That pick hurt the most.

Hopefully today will go a little smoother. My biggest upset is Saint Joe’s beating Oklahoma.