1. For much of the early part of the day, my mood and my outlook on life was out of whack because I woke up at 5 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep. Late in the morning, I took a nap and that helped sweeten my disposition and as the day developed (with the help of two Maker's Mark over ice enhanced by Woodford Reserve Bitters), my mood improved. I was sure happy not to be stuck in a Lodi of moodiness all day long.
2. It helped me get out of Lodi to leave the house, gas up the Sube, buy a couple or three items at Yoke's, and pick up a bottle of Maker's Mark at the liquor store. But, even more, I think it helped when Debbie wondered if we could have some matinee popcorn. I do not remember the last time I popped us a couple hillocks of popcorn in the afternoon on a weekday, but that's just what I did today and my mood's ascension continued.
3. So the key to getting my head straight was simple.
A nap.
An outing.
Some popcorn.
Some Maker's Mark bourbon with a few shakes of bourbon barrel-aged Woodford aromatic bitters added to it.
And, to top off my ascension: COLLEGE BASKETBALL!
First, hoops with popcorn.
Then, hoops with two of the aforementioned pours of bourbon and bitters.
Later, hoops with a romaine and jasmine rice salad.
The action today was really fun to watch.
I didn't see a lot of St. Johns' win over Xavier, 86-73, but it gave me hope that maybe the Johnnies can string together some late season victories and make a mark in the Big East Conference tournament in March.
I paid much more attention to Rutgers' home tilt against Illinois. Rutgers got off to a slow start in Big 10 play, but coming into this game they had defeated three straight nationally ranked opponents and hoped to add another such victory over 12th ranked Illinois, the first place team in the Big 10.
The Rutgers' locomotive stayed on track. The Scarlet Knights pushed Illinois around, forced them into shots they didn't want to take, resulting in Illinois' poor shooting performance, and got balanced scoring themselves with four players in double figures. They secured a very strong 70-59 win. I hadn't seen Rutgers play for a while and I had no idea that their center, Clifford Omoruyi, had developed into such a springy force inside, not only freeing himself to score a variety of dunks and short shots in the paint, but snaring 13 rebounds and playing some decent defense against the Illinois strongman, Kofi Cockburn. The Rutgers defense is physical and stingy. They looked solid tonight on offense. It's a huge and very entertaining surprise.
After Rutgers flattened Illinois, I tuned in to watch another physical and stingy defensive team, Texas Tech, play Big 12 powerhouse Baylor. Baylor's squad has suffered some costly injuries, but they are a deep team, and outplayed Texas Tech in the first half.
But in the second half, the Red Raider defense dug in and Oral Roberts University transfer Kevin Obanor went bananas, scoring 21 points after the intermission, leading a Texas Tech surge that resulted in them defeating Baylor, 83-73. During the game, ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla stated more than once that what he likes about Texas Tech is that their players "act unentitled". By that, he means that several of their players have come to Texas Tech from obscure programs, have played for junior colleges or small four year schools, schools without chartered transportation, top-notch facilities, superb food, and all the other amenities elite schools provide. In Fraschilla's view, now that players like Kevin Obanor and Adonis Arms have clawed their way to starting on a Big 12 team like Texas Tech, they play with gratitude, taking nothing for granted, and this attitude manifests itself in superb effort matched with what some might say is overachieving production.
I watched Rutgers and Texas Tech win these games today and I wished both squads could play each other right away. I enjoy each team's hard-nosed style of play and would love to see how they match up with each other -- who knows? Maybe they'll face each other in the national tournament!
Lately, I haven't been watching Gonzaga's games. Tonight, though, there I was, in the Vizio room, in front of the television, and I decided I'd watch the Zags in action.
I didn't think the result of this game was ever in doubt. Gonzaga defeated Pepperdine, 86-66. Pepperdine played much of this game with great energy. Their leading scorer, Houston Mallette, scored 25 points and Pepperdine had some flashes of really good play against the Zags. But, Gonzaga's superior talent, their speed, and their superb ball movement prevailed.
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