The Real Pat Blair

Everyone that was really concerned about the prospect of Bono becoming President of the World Bank can breathe a sigh of relief: it looks like Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz is going to get the job instead. Bono will just have to stick to rocking. Or at least try to start again.

Oklahoma State is my only Final Four team left. I had Wake beating U. Conn. in the finals. Oops. Maybe you should just ignore the rest of what I have to say.
Lack of credibility aside, I have to say that, 2 days after the fact, I am pretty happy with Iowa State’s season. They accomplished what they were supposed to: they reached the NCAA tournament. In spite of injuries, the loss of players, and an 0-7 start in the Big 12, they finished strong. I’ll admit to having left them for dead: you just don’t lose to Kansas State in Hilton. But they proved me wrong. Nice work, Cyclones.
Yes, the North Carolina loss got humiliating at times. Yes, it probably would have been better – emotionally, at least – to get blown out from the get-go instead of keeping the game close, and even carrying a lead for a while, albeit a very SHORT while. But I think the Cyclones can come away from the game with much more than just a loss. Four key players on the team, two freshmen and two sophomores, now have the experience of playing the most talented team in the country in a high-pressure situation, in what was essentially a home game for that team. Those guys will probably never play in a more difficult environment in their lives. Do you think they’ll be scared going to Kansas next year? I doubt it. Heck, I doubt they’d be scared going to Duke next year.
Like the NIT last year, the post-season play leaves the Cyclones more experienced and more prepared for next year. Some national face-time is always good, too, even if you are getting clobbered. The ‘Clones showed remarkable character, though (with the exception of the perpetually whining Curtis Stinson), and refused to give up, even though they were greatly outmatched.
Speaking of which, did anyone else notice the clinic that Jared Homan put on in the post throughout the entire game? Future NBA lottery pick Sean May sure did. The largely-unheralded Homan absolutely dominated North Carolina’s big men, even holding his own when Roy Williams put in two big boys in an effort to shut him down. Homan finished the game with 19 points and 20 rebounds. He finished the tournament with 33 points, 33 rebounds, 7 blocked shots, and one heck of a highlight reel for the NBA scouts. I wasn’t sure before, but now I’m convinced: he’ll play NBA ball.
Homan has gotten faster and stronger every year that he has been with Iowa State. His jump-hook is a new addition, and, with another year or two of work (perhaps in Europe), it will be impossible to defend. Given Iowa State’s sudden reputation for cranking out solid big men (recently Marcus Fizer, Paul Shirley, Jackson Vroman, and Kelvin Cato), Homan should have a bright future in front of him.

Father O’Malley answers the phone and hears, “Hello, is this Father O’Malley?”
“It is.”
“This is the IRS. Can you help us?”
“I can.”
“Do you know a Ted Houlihan?”
“I do.”
“Is he a member of your parish?”
“He is.”
“Did he donate $10,000 to the church?”
“He will.”

The Lone Strangers‘ EP, Trying and Failing, is now available for purchase on iTunes:

Yes, it may have taken 7 months, but we are now legit. Sort of. The EP can be purchased for a measly $3.96, or 4 winning Pepsi bottle-caps. You can still get a hard copy of the disc from band members, but if you want to do things the high-tech way, you should buy now before we run out of digital copies and have to ship more licenses to iTunes.

I am thinking of a word to describe my picks for day 1 of the Big 12 Basketball Tournament. It starts with “suck” and ends with “ttt.” Yeah. That’s about right. I guess that’s the danger of putting predictions out there for the whole world (read: 8 people) to see.
I take hope in a couple facts:
1) I was right about the only game that really mattered: ISU v Baylor
2) I’m only guaranteed one loss for today, so I could still be in pretty good shape. I suppose it’s POSSIBLE that Colorado will beat Oklahoma State, but I’m not holding my breath.
3) Maybe the Big 12 North is a lot tougher than everyone thought they were. That bodes well for ISU come NCAA time.
Assuming they make the cut, that is. For some reason, unbeknownst to me, ESPN still has them on the bubble. And as an 8-seed at the same time. I don’t get it (and I’ve stopped linking to them because they are ridiculous, and also because they change the pages every day, making my links obsolete). If Maryland, Notre Dame, or ANY team from the Big 10 that hasn’t won 12 conference games make the dance and ISU doesn’t, I’m calling shennanigans. Same if Texas makes it and ISU doesn’t.
I wouldn’t have said this yesterday. Yes, Texas and ISU have the same conference record, and yes, Texas has been given way more ‘press’ than ISU. That has to do with one thing: Big 12 South. Regardless of what I said above, the South (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M (recently)) is way tougher than the North this year (Kansas, ISU, a bunch of other decent-but-not-excellent teams). Iowa State only had to play the teams in the South once, not twice, and it got half of them at home. Texas also beat Oklahoma State at home (recently), which might be bigger than ISU beating Kansas at home (awhile ago, after which both teams temporarily fell apart). Texas made life ugly by losing to an awful Colorado team (note: I think every team from Colorado, regardless of their record, is awful) on a neutral court (no altitude to complain about). I gotta think the Cyclones move ahead of the Longhorns now.
Of course, I have found that, in the past, the committee generally proves itself a bit smarter than all of the talking heads, so I may just stop worrying about it and root for ISU.
Oh, I almost forgot:
4) Has anyone noticed that ISU is suddenly in a great position to run the table at the Big 12 tournament? There is only 1 team left in the tournament that they haven’t beat (Oklahoma State), only 1 team with a ‘home court’ advantage (Kansas), and they have a 6-5 record overall (with recent wins against every team but OSU) against teams in the tournament. I’m not much for predictions (clearly), and I kinda doubt this will happen, but things are looking pretty sweet for the Cyclones (provided the team that plays defense shows up instead of the team that takes 8-minute breaks from making baskets).
Go Cyclones!

March is the most wonderful time of the year. Conference tournaments are underway, and we are just a week away from the NCAA Basketball Tournament, known to all as “March Madness,” though it doesn’t end until April. Stupid? Perhaps, but why let something as trivial as a calendar get in the way of marketing for a multi-billion dollar professional (ahem) athletic event.
For my money, there is no greater sporting event, nothing more exciting, intense, and gut-wrenching than college basketball. And tournament time is basketball at the most gut-wrenchingest. Fortunately, it looks like Iowa State will make it to the Big Dance this year. Though ESPN’s Andy Katz says that the Cyclones are a lock, conventional wisdom is that the 5th seeded Cyclones will have to beat 12-seed Baylor at the Big 12 tournament to seal the deal. This should make ISU fans happy, but, of course, I was there 4 years ago when the Clones last lost to a 12-seed Baylor team (Iowa State was number ONE that time), so I think everyone is still holding their collective breath to some degree.
Regardless of ISU, my roommates and I are considering going overboard for the least productive month in America’s fiscal year – we’ve discussed hooking up MORE TV’s in the basement (up to 6 or and signing up for whatever cable package will give us access to all the games all the time. So bring a dollar (to cover food, of course, because it would be illegal for us to charge you to see the games), some chips or drink, and we’ll all have a great month: watching great games and talking about less-than-great brackets.
Speaking of brackets, I’ve decided to jump the gun this year. Since the debutantes at the Big Dance aren’t announced until Sunday night, I’ve filled out a bracket for the Big 12 tournament. So if you’re curious as to how it’s all going to go down, click here.
Go Cyclones!

U2 have announced the third leg of their tour. Relevant dates:
-September 20: Chicago, United Center
-September 21: Chicago, United Center
-September 23: Minneapolis, Target Center
And, of all the freakin’ places…
-December 15: Omaha, Qwest Center
Just thought you’d all like to know. Tickets for the Omaha show go on sale March 19th. I will probably not be anxiously waiting in line.