Here comes Peter Cottontail...

Happy Easter to you all. Easter is a very low-key holiday that is more relaxing than Christmas. I enjoyed a nice brunch with my family and grandparents (all you can eat at Hueston Woods). I have my bunny cake and my Easter basket, dominated by Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs and Peanut Butter Amazing M&M bars, which are really good.

Easter usually signals the real start of spring and the beginning of warmer weather, but that was definitely not the case here in Oxford. The temperature hung around in the high 40s, rained on and off all day. I told my friend Noah, that job I'm looking at in San Francisco may not be as attractive if the weather does this all year, even if the temperature is a little warmer.

The next 3 days I'm going to compare to an end of a Tour De France mountain stage. Tomorrow represents the Col de la Madeline, which is a vicious climb of about 15 kilometers at an average road grade of around 7%. Once I get over tomorrow, I enjoy a short descent before I begin the climb Tuesday, getting ready for my exam Wednesday. Wednesday represents the short, but brutal ascent to Sestrieres, Italy. There's not much left, but it'll require a huge effort to make it.

Now that I've lost you all in my cycling analogy, let's talk hoops:

• North Carolina 88, Wisconsin 82. Despite an unfocused effort for most of the game, the Tar Heels did enough at the end to earn their ticket to St. Louis. I mentioned last night that in order for the Badgers to stay close, they needed to make shots. At the beginning of the game, they didn't, which UNC took advantage of by getting some easy transition baskets. But, the Badgers kept getting open looks against the lackluster UNC defense, and finally started to make shots as the 1st half went on, specifically guard Clayton Hanson. The game was tied at halftime, and stayed close the rest of the way as the Badgers, looking to control tempo, didn't mind trading baskets with the Heels as they kept getting open looks. But the Heels were too good offensively, espeically down the stretch with Sean May and Rashard McCants making big shots and Raymond Felton making free throws. The Badgers didn't have the firepower in the last minute to pull off the upset, but fought gallantly in the game. Of the Final 4, I think the Tar Heels have the most question marks. Can they put together a 40 minute game? Can Jawad Williams overcome his injuries to be the offensive threat UNC needs? Can McCants be the complementary scorer for May? And finally, can Felton play under control against better competition?
  
• Michigan St. 94, Kentucky 88, 2OT. I was as giddy as a school girl watching the end to this one. At the end of regulation, it looked as if the basketball gods had exacted revenge against Patrick Sparks of UK. Earlier in the year at Louisville, Sparks was fouled at the end of the game while shooting a 3, earning and making all 3 free throws to give UK the win. Sparks appeared to, excuse the pun, "bunnyhop" into the defender to draw the foul. Tonight, Sparks came in for the injured Ramel Bradley to shoot a 1and1 that would give UK the lead, but he missed the front end. Sparks got another chance at the end though, and used every square inch of the rim to send the game to overtime. After UK couldn't get a shot off at the end of the 1st overtime, the Spartans took control early in the 2nd. I question Tubby Smith's decision to sit Sparks and Chuck Hayes early in the 2nd overtime, saving them for the latter stages of the 2nd overtime, protecting them against fouling out. TUBBY, YOU CAN'T DO THIS, THERE IS NO TOMORROW, PUT THEM IN THE GAME!!! While Sparks and Hayes were on the bench, the Spartans built a 5 point lead, which is huge, and almost insurmountable, in an overtime period. All the credit goes to the Spartans, who went as deep as UK and didn't let the Wildcats go on their patented run in the last 10 minutes of the 2nd half, which is when the effect of UK's superior depth usually takes shape. Drew Neitzel only committed 1 turnover against the UK D, which allowed shooters like Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown to get the ball in positions to score. Kentucky has so much young talent it's ridiculous. Next year will be disappointing for them if they don't make it to the Final 4. They might even be preseason #1 next year, depending on how many of North Carolina's guys come back. Michigan St. is playing well at the right time and can very much win this Tournament. Chris Hill though is going to have to find his shot again if MSU is going to win the whole thing.

This was the first NCAA tourney in history to see 3 of the 4 regional finals go to overtime. The stage is set, I think, for one of the greatest Final 4's we've had in awhile. The last really good one we had (semifinals and final) I can remember was in 1999, when UConn and Duke won close semifinals, finishing with UConn pulling the upset on Duke in the final. One thing I can guarantee is that this may be the most athletic group of teams the Final 4 has ever seen. All 4 teams like to get the ball up and down the floor, they all have some depth, and they're all capable of huge, momentum-changing scoring runs.

And in some other sports that you may have watched during commercials of the basketball games:

• Annika Sorenstam won her 8th major, dominating the Dinah Shore, earning the victory leap into the pond next to the 18th. She is on pace to be the best women's golfer EVER.
• The US men's soccer team lost a World Cup Qualifier in Mexico City 2-1 to Mexico. The US has never beaten Mexico in Mexico City. In fact Mexico has only lost 1 World Cup qualifier ever in Azteca Stadium. They host Guatemala Wednesday.
• The Players Championship was suspended again due to heavy rain. They'll try and finish tomorrow.

One last thought: Thank goodness Michigan St. beat Kentucky because the words, "Go Big Blue", will not be heard again until November. I'm rooting for an Illinois-North Carolina final, and I still think Illinois will win it all.