Meanwhile, in Dayton...

...the vaunted Michigan State home court advantage ran up against the coaching wisdom of Scott Cherry. Never bet agaisnt The Cherry when he faces a Michigan team.

As for the Heels, it probably was a good thing I was at a St. Patrick's Day party that showed the Kentuck-UAB contest. It kept the swearing to a minimum. The team kept its poise at the end though, holding off the Fightin' Murrays. Between Michigan State not living up to expectations and Tennessee finally doing as expected, the next major conference team the Heels could see is most likely a Husky in the Elite Eight. Shades of the 1998 bracket there.

Of course, if George Mason's rebounding dominance was more Patriot power than Spartan slackerdom, UNC won't have to worry about travel plans next week.

(ESPN2 is making CBS proud by airing FSU-LaTech instead of local Big West girls UC Riverside - the C is for Can't Get on TV - trying to upset the Tar Heels women's squad. But since the score is 38-17 in the first half, I'm reasonably sure there's not much to be discussed here.)