NCAA Men’s Basketball Quiz: 1) Name the school that won 3
straight titles, 1907-09, under Coach Joseph Raycroft. 2) What
school won titles in 1912, 1914 and 1916 with Doc Meanwell as
coach? 3) What schools won in each of 1976-80 (5 different)?
4) Who were the last two to win MVP honors in the NCAA title
game while playing for the loser? [Hint: One was in the 70s, the
other the 80s.] 5) Who won last year’s NIT? Answers below.
MARCH MADNESS!!!!!
And now, you’re EXCLUSIVE NCAA tournament picks… but
first, a word from Pontiac………………………………………………
…………………….we’re back.
Geezuz, can you believe Illinois at a #5 seed and Wisconsin a
#6? Wisconsin was #10 AP, for crying out loud, and won its
freakin’ tournament. Oh well, this is going to be one of the
crazier Big Dances ever, that’s for sure. However, I’m still
going with two #1 seeds to reach the Final Four…but first, a
word from Pontiac………………………………………………
……………………we’re back.
The Final Four
Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Duke and Stanford
Title game: Gonzaga vs. Stanford.
Winner: GONZAGA!!!!!
[For an alternative Final Four, I asked Johnny Mac for his
picks….Kentucky, Oklahoma State, Duke and UConn.]
Remember, bet with your head, not over it.
Of course I’d love to pick my beloved Wake Forest Demon
Deacons, but I’m nervous about the first round game vs. VCU,
so how can I pick them much further? We can’t hit foul shots!!!
You know, I can’t stand Billy Packer but I give him a lot of
credit for sticking his neck out the way he did on the issue of St.
Joe’s being a #1. I said long ago they would lose their second
round game and seeing that it will be Charlotte or Texas Tech
makes me believe this even more so.
Other musings…
Sorry, no #13-16 seed first round upsets…assuming the Deacs
survive. I’ll go with Manhattan over Florida and Murray State
over Illinois for your #12 seed picks.
#11 Western Michigan is a lock over #6 Vanderbilt. Bet the
house, and the second house on it. Leave the third home in the
Caribbean, however, as an escape route should the bookies not
like the fact you reneged if I’m wrong.
After watching Maryland this weekend, if you’re a college
basketball fan you have to move Gary Williams to the top of the
great coaches list. Awesome, awesome job. That was coaching,
not just what was on the floor.
I know I have a lot of readers in Utah (a sudden surge in traffic,
by the way), so my sympathies to you all for not getting Utah
State into the mix. But win your tournament next time!
I don’t particularly like this year’s Duke version, but they’ll
squeak by. A month ago I also noted Seton Hall would be a
sleeper. It’s too bad they got an 8 instead of a 7. They would
have been a regional finalist as the latter, but they’ll lose to Duke
after beating Arizona.
And finally, yeah, he’s had a great year, but you have to believe
that Lebron James was sitting back on Sunday thinking, crap, I
wish I had gone to school for just one year.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
I did this about a year-and-a-half ago, but with Monday’s
induction of Jackson Browne, The Dells, George Harrison,
Prince, Bob Seger, Traffic and ZZ Top, I find it necessary to look
once again at………Who’s In / Who’s Not…
Now remember, you can’t be inducted until 25 years after the
release of your first record and criteria include the influence and
significance of the artist’s contributions to the genre.
But let’s focus on those who performed mostly in the 1960s and
1970s (leaving out artists like Elvis, Buddy Holly and Little
Richard). Following is a list of current inductees.
R&B
Aretha Franklin
Marvin Gaye
Smokey Robinson
The Supremes
Otis Redding
The Temptations
Stevie Wonder
The Four Tops
The Impressions
Wilson Pickett
Ike and Tina Turner
Booker T. and the M.G.’s
The Isley Brothers
Sly and the Family Stone
Al Green
Martha and the Vandellas
Gladys Knight and the Pips
The Shirelles
The Jackson Five
Parliament & Funkadelic
Curtis Mayfield
The Staple Singers
Earth, Wind & Fire
Michael Jackson
Isaac Hayes
Rock
Roy Orbison
The Beach Boys
The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Dion
The Rolling Stones
The Four Seasons
The Kinks
Simon and Garfunkel
The Who
The Byrds
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The Yardbirds
Cream
Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Doors
Van Morrison
The Animals
The Band
The Grateful Dead
Elton John
John Lennon
Rod Stewart
The Allman Brothers Band
Janis Joplin
Neil Young
Frank Zappa
Led Zeppelin
David Bowie
Jefferson Airplane
Pink Floyd
The Velvet Underground
The (Young) Rascals
The Bee Gees
Buffalo Springfield
Crosby, Stills and Nash
Joni Mitchell
The Eagles
Fleetwood Mac
The Mamas and the Papas
Santana
Gene Vincent
Billy Joel
Johnny Cash
Bob Marley
Paul McCartney
Del Shannon
Dusty Springfield
Bruce Springsteen
Eric Clapton
Lovin’ Spoonful
Bonnie Raitt
James Taylor
Aerosmith
Queen
Paul Simon
Steely Dan
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Gene Pitney
Ramones
Talking Heads
The Righteous Brothers
The Police
The Clash
AC / DC
Elvis Costello
Not In
The Association
Bachman-Turner Overdrive
Badfinger
Bad Company
Blood, Sweat and Tears
Bread [Don’t laugh…]
Jerry Butler
Carpenters [Stop laughing…]
Chicago
The Dave Clark Five
Petula Clark
The Doobie Brothers
The 5th Dimension
Roberta Flack
Peter Frampton
Gerry and the Pacemakers
The Grass Roots
Grand Funk
The Guess Who
Herman’s Hermits
The Hollies
Tommy James and the Shondells
Tom Jones
K.C. and the Sunshine Band
Kiss
Lynyrd Skynyrd
The Monkees
The Moody Blues
The O’Jays
Paul Revere and the Raiders
Johnny Rivers
Sonny and Cher
The Spinners
The Turtles
War
Dionne Warwick
Barry White
Seriously, if you’re gonna include Gladys Knight, how the hell
can you exclude Dionne Warwick? If Gene Pitney, why not
Tom Jones? If the Lovin’ Spoonful, you’ve got to include
Tommy James, the Turtles and the Doobie Brothers. If the Four
Tops and Temps, how can you leave out the Spinners? What
about Chicago or Blood, Sweat and Tears?
And you all know my two biggest pet peeves, leaving out the
Dave Clark Five and Petula Clark. Heck, throw in BTO because
“You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet” is the best cruising song of all time.
Time to write John Ashcroft and get his people on this corrupt,
biased institution. Some folks need to be locked up.
Stuff
–The New York Times’ Dave Anderson shined the light on a
class-action suit that’s been filed on behalf of more than 1,000
former major league baseball players who played from 1947 to
1979 but were not vested for pension or medical coverage.
As a fan growing up during part of this era, you were always told
by the announcers, especially come September and the call-ups
from the minor leagues, that for so and so it was a crucial 30
days as it added to his pension time. Back then, four years of
major league service was needed for pension and medical
benefits. But following the 1981 labor dispute things changed.
Anderson: “In that four-year collective bargaining agreement,
which went into effect after the 1981 strike, vesting for full
pension benefits was reduced from 4 years to 43 days of major
league service, and vesting for full comprehensive medical
benefits was reduced from four years to one day of major league
service. But the non-vested players before 1980 were excluded
from the new vesting rules.
“Some of them couldn’t hit or couldn’t pitch that well, but they
were all major leaguers. They all lasted more than one day. And
under the rules now, they would be eligible at least for medical
benefits.”
Why the hell the Players Association would fight this is hard to
understand, especially since, as Anderson states, “The union’s
pension fund has been described…as the most well-funded in
American labor. Its total has been estimated by baseball sources
to be as much as $400 million and possibly as much as $600
million. More than enough to absorb what would be an
estimated $11 million initial first-year payment to the 1947-79
players.”
This sucks, because you realize that so many of those falling
under these restrictions made little money in their playing days,
long before the marginal, steroid-ravaged players of today that
can obtain multi-$million contracts.
–Wow, according to the Daily News, singer Lionel Richie’s
pending divorce from wife Diane could be rather expensive. She
is seeking $300,000 a month! The same article says Harrison
Ford settled with his second wife for a reported $118 million,
plus royalties, while Tom Cruise gave a $30 million lump sum,
plus the $34 million estate in Pacific Palisades to Nicole
Kidman.
[On a personal note, the most I could offer is a Lew Alcindor
rookie card and some good Mickey Mantle ones. Then again,
looking around, I see I have a Mike Piazza bobblehead doll and a
super collection of 45s, never opened… Pssst, guys, I also have
a slew of Bose radios and we know the price never goes down on
these, but I’d hide them first.]
–Thanks to my brother Harry for passing along this important
tidbit from Anchorage, via the AP.
“A 19-year-old fisherman is recovering from an encounter with a
sea lion that leaped out of the water, grabbed him as he worked
on his grandfather’s docked boat and pulled him into the harbor
at King Cove. ‘It happened so fast, I forgot what I was doing,’
said Ray Dushkin Jr., who was not seriously injured in the
abduction Tuesday. Dushkin spent a few moments beneath the
water’s surface before the hefty animal let go. Dushkin’s left
buttock sports an inch-and-a-half scrape, but no bite mark, he
said. His coveralls were torn through, as were the pants worn
beneath them. The (monster) was 12-feet long and probably
weighed between 1,200 and 1,500 pounds.”
Just another warning to all of you that mess around at municipal
swimming pools this summer. When it’s time for “adult swim,”
check for large, dark objects before hopping in. Remember, the
lifeguards are looking at the young girls and won’t be paying
attention if a sea lion drags you down to the bottom.
–Did Greg Norman screw up or what? On Friday at the Honda
Classic, Norman hit his tee shot at the par-4,13th hole and
thinking it went into a water hazard, hit a provisional. But the
rules of golf allow for a provisional only if the original ball is
believed to be lost or out-of-bounds, not in a hazard.
Well, his original shot turned out to be in a bunker, but Norman
picked up the second shot and played his first one from the
trap. He hit onto the green and three-putted for bogey.
But PGA Tour rules official Slugger White said Norman was
obligated to play the second tee shot, lying three, and then assess
himself a two-shot penalty for playing the wrong ball, which at
that point had been declared out of play. So if Norman hit his
sixth onto the green and one-putted, it would have been a triple-
bogey 7. Choosing not to do this, Norman disqualified himself
and went home.
NBC commentator Roger Maltbie saw what was going on and
tried to warn Norman, calling it “pretty basic.”
For the record, here is Rule 27-2a from the official Rules of Golf.
“If a ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of
bounds, to save time the player may play another ball
provisionally in accordance with Rule 27-1 (Ball Lost or Out of
Bounds…If a ball is lost or is out of bounds, the player must play
a ball, under penalty of one stroke, as nearly as possible at the
spot from which the original ball was last played). The player
must inform his opponent in match play or his marker or a
fellow-competitor in stroke play that he intends to play a
provisional ball, and he must play it before he or his partner goes
forward to search for the original ball.
“If he fails to do so and plays another ball, that ball is not a
provisional ball and becomes the ball in play under penalty of
stroke and distance; the original ball is lost.”
This stupid move on Norman’s part will hurt him with the
galleries this year, especially his total indifference to it all.
But on the other hand, we congratulate Honda winner Todd
Hamilton, another great PGA story, as the 38-year-old has been
playing the Japanese tour while waiting to qualify for the big
show. Well, he just smashed right through to the top.
Lastly, though, you had the 5…count ‘em…5 putts on one hole
by second round leader Carl Pettersson (sic) on Saturday.
Amazingly, Pettersson didn’t slash his wrists, but was last seen
mumbling about the lack of air in the atmosphere.
–Veterans Stadium
On March 21, Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadium, perhaps the
biggest piece of @#$% ever created, next to Shea Stadium, will
be imploded. Mark Bowden had the following thoughts in
Sports Illustrated, choosing to illuminate the place’s better
aspects.
“Here are two nice things about the Vet…
“The seats were set farther away from the field than at most
stadiums, so when people tossed batteries and beer bottles it was
often without consequence. For instance, when Eagles fans
threw snowballs at Santa Claus, no one actually hit him.
“The ramps were nice and wide, so when guys threw up, there
was plenty of room to step around it.”
Good point.
–And then there is Philly”s Allen Iverson…suddenly, a front-
runner for Bar Chat Dirtball of the Year. [Actually, regardless,
he”ll get a lifetime achievement award.] Iverson has been hurt,
so coach Chris Ford said he wanted him coming off the bench on
Sunday, at which A.I. decided he wouldn”t play then. As Mark
R. wrote me, this is why the NBA shouldn”t have guaranteed
contracts.
–The New York Giants went 4-12 last season and as a reward to
their fans ticket prices are going up $5.
–NASCAR Update: 4 races…two wins apiece for Matt Kenseth
and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
–Austria”s Hermann Maier and Sweden”s Anja Paerson are your
overall World Cup ski champs this year. Maier”s comeback from
the 2001 motorcycle accident that almost killed him is one of
the great sports stories of all time.
–Aaghh! The cicadas are coming! You see, sports fans, there
are 13 ‘broods’ of 17-year cicadas and 5 others that emerge every
13 years. Well, this May the “Big Brood,” Brood X, is going to
emerge from Georgia to Tennessee, on up to Ohio and Michigan,
and across to New York and New Jersey. Do not, repeat, do not
walk alone in the woods during this time. Cicadas have been
known to set up road blocks and will surround you when you
aren’t paying attention. They then gobble you up and you
become part of the soil.
–What does Tyra Banks see in lying dirtball Chris Webber?
–Guess you saw that the FDA has told all those making
steroidlike supplements like andro to cease and desist unless they
can prove they aren’t dangerous. So we place the first asterisk in
the baseball record book next to Mark McGwire. Unlike Barry
Bonds, though, McGwire is a good guy and this is all kind of
sad. He’s tarnished forever, and it probably didn’t have to be
that way.
St. Patrick’s Day
It’s no secret that the Irish are a rather pacifist lot, not that there
is anything wrong with this, but in my 15 trips to Eire, I’m still
amazed at the level of their anti-war talk. Nonetheless, one day
each year we celebrate the Irish people and so I present the
classic Cold War song “Protect and Survive” by John Clifden,
which I guarantee will win you a free pint or two in your local
O’Kelly’s if you can sing it. The Dubliners do a terrific version,
by the way.
—
Well the government’s made a document
To help prevent embarrassment
And in the event of an accident
Catching us with our trousers down
It’s no use to you when your dead, nor even when alive
And the name of this piece of paper is, protect and survive.
Chorus:
So when the nukes come raining down, it’s great to be alive, well
World War III can be such fun, if you protect and survive
Protect and survive
Well a nuclear strike can be recognized, it would stand out in a
crowd
There’s a flash then a bang then a blast of heat
Then a bloody great mushroom cloud,
So if you happen to see one at the end of the street
Would you please pick up the telephone and inform your local
police
Put sticky tape on your windows
Block your ears and close your eyes
But it won’t make a blind bit of difference
You won’t have to watch yourself fry
If you find yourself in the target zone
And you haven’t got a shelter
Take a spade into the garden
And dig like merry hell, sir
They’ve got strategic ICBMs
Both theatre and tactical
With independently targeted
Multiple reentry vehicles
Backfire bombers, Polaris subs, cruise missiles
And the boys who hang around the Pentagon
Can’t wait to use these toys
When Armageddon gets underway
And the rockets come pouring down
All the bloody politicians who started it
Will scuttle off underground
And when they finally reemerge
With no life to be found
They can administrate the rubble
And they can order each other a round
For they give us a four-minute warning
When the rockets are on their way
To give us time to panic and Christians time to pray
So when you hear the siren’s going
Place your head between your thighs
Whilst maintaining this posture
You can make a final gesture
And with a little muscular pressure
You can kiss your arse goodbye
So when the nuke’s come raining down
It’s great to be alive, well
World War III can be such fun
If you protect and survive
Protect and survive
Protect and survive
Protect and…
—
And your Irish Blessing…
May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
the rain fall soft upon your fields and, until we meet again, may
God hold you in the palm of His hand.
Top 3 songs for the week of 3/14/64: #1 “I Want To Hold Your
Hand” (The Beatles) #2 “She Loves You” (The Beatles) #3
“Please Please Me” (The Beatles)
NCAA Basketball Quiz Answers: 1) Chicago won it 3 straight
years, 1907-09. 2) Wisconsin won in 1912, 1914 and 1916. 3)
1976 – Indiana beat Michigan. 1977 – Marquette beat North
Carolina. 1978 – Kentucky beat Duke. 1979 – Michigan State
beat Indiana State. 1980 – Louisville beat UCLA. 4) Howard
Porter (Villanova, lost to UCLA in 1971) and Akeem Olajuwon
(Houston, lost to NC State in 1983) are the last two to win the
MVP award in the title game while playing for the losing team.
5) St. John’s won the 2003 NIT.
Next Bar Chat, Thursday. Iraq…one year later / Tony Blair.
