Like I said earlier in the week, you just can?t get too excited one way or the other about these conference tourneys—especially as they relate to a team?s chances in the Big Dance. Less than 24 hours after calling the Pac-10 tourney asinine, Lute Olson?s Wildcats laid an egg against freakin? UCLA. That was only UCLA?s 10th win of the entire season! I?m sure it?s hard to be motivated when your coach is seemingly emotionally uninvested, but it also doesn?t help when your senior point guard, Jason Gardner, is 0 for 12 from 3-point range. This is how shooting slumps get started, but I still think these Wildcats (not Kentucky) is the team to beat.

There are several teams that weren?t in such a comfortable position to withstand an early conference tourney loss, without negatively affecting their NCAA Tournament seeding. Had Kansas, Texas or Oklahoma not won the Big 12 tourney (or at least not made it to the Finals), Marquette could have been in a position to nab a #1 seed had they won the Conference-USA tourney. A longshot sure, but losing to Alabama-Birmingham makes even earning a 2 seed a little shaky.

Same goes for Notre Dame. I?m not as pessimistic as Andy, but their first-round loss now puts them in the 4 or 5 seed range. And even if Mike Brey?s right and the Big East does have them figured out, they?re still a team quite capable of an Elite 8 run. Stanford?s in a very similar position after losing last night to USC—they?re now looking at a 5 or 6 seed.

Conversely, UConn is looking pretty good right about now after another quality win, this time against a surging tourney-bound Seton Hall team. Emeka Okafor is absolutely dominating the paint and they are going to make a lot of noise as a hot 5 or 6 seed.

And just to ensure I don?t get an angry note from Chris-The-NCAAs-Is-All-About-The-Mid-Majors-Mac, even though they didn?t win their conference tournament Gonzaga, Butler and Southern Illinois are all in. In addition to their league mates and automatic qualifiers San Diego, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and obviously Creighton. This should make bubble teams Minnesota and Arizona State awfully nervous, especially as they did themselves no favors with losses on Thursday. I think teams like Cincy and Alabama are probably alright barring any more upsets, but N.C. State should definitely plan on taking care of business against a scrappy Georgia Tech squad.

But as the Franchise likes to remind me, the non-hoops world doesn?t stop spinning in Mid-March. If I didn?t know that already, it was made readily apparent when I went in to the conference room of my office on Thursday at 2:30p.m. to eat a unusually late lunch and catch the first half of Mizzou-Nebraska. Unbeknownst to me, someone (a Kansas State grad) had scheduled a meeting that prevented me from catching any of the first half. Then again, that also meant I was sheltered from the Nebraska?s improbable 22-4 run to start the game, so maybe I shouldn?t complain too much. Let?s just say that I set a precedent to ensure there wasn?t a similar offense during today?s Mizzou-Oklahoma State game.

I?m sure Andy will very capably recap last night?s Survivor so I?ll just hit the recaps. Let me say once again how wrong I was to ever think artificially, busty Heidi was anything more than average looking—at best. Not only is her eye spacing a little unsettling, she?s also not very smart. She?s a teacher, right? Sure, just a Phys. Ed. teacher, but still. So explain to me why an educated woman, charged with educating our nation?s youth, would ever think a woman named Jean would spell her name with a freakin? G!

Nevermind the fact that her lying, back-stabbing and quick sell-out of her female alliance with Jean and Qwisty will only keep her around for two more votes—at best. What she should have done was stick with the chicks, and force a tie—-likely between Butch and Jean, that I think still might have meant Jean was ousted since she had more previous votes—but I?m not sure about that. So what they really should have done was target Roger, figuring that he was a little less easy-going and accommodating than good ol? Butch, and was more likely to have pissed off his male tribe members during the early tribal councils.

I did like CBS? diabolical plan to liquor Dave and Jenna up, only to have their liquid honesty come back to haunt them in the form of a redraft. I don?t really have a problem with Dave?s first choice, knowing that Jenna had spoken so highly of Heidi—-well yes I can. He should have said, “If I let you keep Heidi, what?s in it for me?”—and then picked Shawna instead. This would have safeguarded him and created a super secret co-ed alliance he could have used, or kicked to the curb. Because I don?t really believe he cares what happens to Rob or Alex. Obviously, as he chose the two old geysers (Butch and Roger) over his younger, more physically able peers. So, I was totally unsurprised to see them lose their first immunity challenge—-and I fully expect them to do the same next week, which means, “Bye, bye Qwisty. We?ll mees you bewwy much!”

But seriously, how lame was it that not only did Dave do a crappy job with the re-draft, but that he also couldn?t manage to get the job done with Jenna. He was the first man that a sexy, single swimsuit model had been close with in nearly two weeks, and he opts to keep his shirt on under his robe??? CBS even gave him two bottles of wine!!! I guarantee had Alex or Rob been given the same shot, we?d be nine months away from the first ever Survivor Baby. From the looks of it, there?s still a shot of that happening between Alex and Shawna. Hopefully nobody tells him that gnats hang out in her mouth while she?s sleeping? Ewww!!!

But seriously, keep in mind that next week?s show is on Wednesday? Which will air right about the same time C-Mac, Cary and myself will be headed to Oklahoma City. If you?ve ever had the misfortune of spending time in Oklahoma, and more specifically OKC, feel free to offer us your tips and recommendations. And yes, we?ve already been told we might want to avoid a kitschy little club called Angles. Then again, it kinda sounds like a place that would make C-Mac feel right a home.

Next post: Sunday night after I?ve had a couple of hours to digest the bracket seedings. Which are due out in just 54 hours? Tick, tock?