Day 6: At the Month of Madness

March Madness is the pinnacle of sports. No other event offers as much energy, excitment, and competition as the NCAA Tournament packs in. The Superbowl is great, but I feel like the game is sometimes overshadowed by the pagentry surrounding it (i.e. 2,000 commercials for the half time show). March Madness, unlike the BCS championship, offers a chance to any of the 65 teams who are invited. The "anything can happen" nautre makes for compelling, if not mandatory viewing. Sooooo, transplant the viewing experience of a sports bar, or a comfy couch at home to 1:30 in the morning in a Bulgarian block apartment with a shady internet connection steaming the game. Is it still March Madness? Of course, but the madness part really comes into affect after the 2am mark. You know you should be sleeping, but the pull of this tournament is like the tractor beam on the Millenium Falcon: you can't escape it. My biggest gripe with the whole affair has nothing to do with the tournament selection, play, or venues. It comes down to the fact that I went to a college with a Division III team, and therefore, I have no real "team" to root for. Maybe this is a good thing, and I can never feel the crush of dissapoint or the agony of defeat. For now, (and I suspect the forseeable future) I will latch on to schools of my family (UM, MSU), my geographical connections (WU, USC) or who ever is a giant underdog, (Go Western Kentucky!). I hope everyone who is a fan is enjoying this years tournament and doesn't have to watch on a 10 inch screen with constant buffering. Let the good times roll.