​     They have been advertising this fight like crazy, as they should. This is a rematch and the first bout was really good, several knockdowns with epic recoveries ending in a split draw. A freakin split draw! Assuming boxing is not fixed like many will swear to, a match doesn't get any closer. I'm actually excited for the fight. The boxers? Not so much. I like both Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury, they have great personalities for boxers and they are evenly matched but neither of them instills fear in me for their opponents. Remember when Iron Mike Tyson had a match coming up and it wasn't a question of if he would win but rather how quickly and how thoroughly he was going to dismantle his opponent? 
     I just don't trust Deontay Wilder. I don't trust Tyson Fury (is that his real name?). I don't trust the guy who allegedly holds three of the belts, Anthony Joshua. None of these guys are really all that exciting, which is a problem that has plagued boxing quite a bit recently. It seems to me that any of the current top twenty heavyweight boxers can be beat by any of the others on a good night.
     I get the feeling sometimes, watching a fighter like Wilder, that a brawler who could take punches like Holyfield would tear him up. Watch Holyfield vs. Qawi or Mercer. These guys punished one another with a level of skill that seems to be lacking lately. The reason I began to make these comparisons was Wilder's own ridiculous claim to be the hardest puncher in history, but any long-time boxing observer knows that just can't be. For one, Foreman hit harder at 40 years old than Wilder does now. Sure, Wilder has won 41 of 42 fights by KO and has yet to lose. Sounds great right? Tomato cans (that's an old-timey boxing term like "bums"). Some of those opponents were decent enough fighters but no one is conflating the current slate of heavyweight boxing challengers with anything resembling a golden era for the sport. Back to when Tyson was fighting a Holyfield, I believed Holyfield had the ability to injure Tyson as well (Tyson was a little past his prime by then but remained a dangerous pugilist). I doubt that Wilder has had a similar level of concern looking at his opponents.
     So, who wins this this thing? I feel like Wilder has a slight psychological edge. Fury just weighed in at his heaviest ever for a bout. I'd like Fury to pull it off just to check Wilder's ego. It irks me when guys make ridiculous claims like he has, similar to LaVar Ball claiming he could beat Jordan one-on-one. Fucking preposterous. But if I had money on it I'd have to make a bet on Wilder. A very small bet because I just don't trust him.

​     There are about five games left before conference tourneys. Did I mention we were witnessing a great college basketball season? I realize that I overstated when I used the term parity but what to make of all the upsets and volatility in rankings. Since we last talked Louisville, still at #5 before new polling, drops to another unranked team, this time Clemson. More ranked teams getting beat by schools downline; #10 Seton Hall loses to Providence, #11 Auburn falls to Missouri, #19 Butler loses to Georgetown, #20 Houston goes down by a point to SMU, #22 Illinois trounced by Rutgers, #24 Texas Tech beat by Oklahoma State and #25 LSU drops to Alabama. That's seven unranked teams taking down ranked schools. And that was only Saturday's games!
     I can't wait for tourney time to see the carnage that's left after the first weekend. A lot of guys that get paid much more than myself (I make nothing from this in case you were wondering) seem to think the four topline schools are clearly separated in quality from #5-25 but I'm not convinced. San Diego State hasn't played a single ranked team. Baylor has had an incredible season and have actually been pretty good over the last decade but have never even sniffed a Championship and that kind of pressure can do terrible things to the minds of nineteen year-olds during a deep tournament run, just ask Gonzaga. Who by the way, have been tested early and had much success but it's tough to believe the hype with such a squishy mid-major schedule. It's hard for me to say that because I love underdogs and watching mid-major or even minor conference schools advance, when they manage to. That leaves Kansas, the one blue-blood currently near the top. They're solid, but they are 3-3 against ranked schools, which equates to very beatable by goods teams.
     These squads are all vulnerable so if you're looking for an easy pick this year, there isn't one. The middle of the rankings are littered with schools that can play deep into March, the Big Ten is eating itself alive with talented teams, and North Carolina won't be getting in anyone's way this time around. How the mighty have fallen. Now if only we can have a first-time champion this year that would be cool.

     The Madness started on Tuesday November 5th, 2019. I don't know how it happened or why but parity struck men's college basketball this year. You have to take pre-season rankings with a grain of salt of course but the prognosticators got much wrong this time around. I can't blame them, predictions are impossibly complex. I like it though, it makes my own wild predictions seem not so ridiculous. Keep this in mind when I advise you on your bracket in a few weeks. Hey we're all wrong and that's okay, this is why they play the games. 
     Let's start with what's fresh in my mind. Just recently on Saturday February 8th, I watched a good Duke team that started the season ranked #2, currently #7, barely, and I mean got real lucky (there is luck in sports, ask Eli Manning) in beating the worst UNC team in decades. But it took double overtime. Now I know a lot of people have the attitude that you should count a win a win, but if you have aspirations of going deep into March and you narrowly squeak by a very average team it speaks volumes about your weaknesses. It says you're beatable and not just by highly ranked teams with sparkling records. It says you're vulnerable and a one or two point game could always go the other way with just one more possession. 
     A #16 seed finally ousted a #1 seed in the last dance and it's only gotten worse this year. The #1 ranking looked like a turnstile until Gonzaga and Baylor got into the meat of weak conference schedules and seem to be locked comfortably in at #1 and #2. They could swap positions and no one would bat an eye. Also, any one of teams #3 through #25 could beat either of them so good luck with those brackets this year. Your grandma's gonna have a better bracket. She saw one college game this year and she thought it was the Bucks vs. the Wizards.
     As if to make my point, I am watching a scrappy Alabama at 13-10, on the road, push a really good two-loss Auburn team to overtime. I mentioned UNC, who have reached the title game twice in the last four years. Well, coach got drunk and the car is now off in a tobacco road ditch, burning down. They are well below .500 and are behind the likes of cross-state rivals (rivals? not) UNC Greensboro and Northern Colorado in BPI. The ACC currently has only three ranked teams while the Big Ten is looking as though they will have 11 schools make the tournament. Yes, more schools than are even in the conference (not actually but that's another story).
     Every night gives us great games. Kentucky lost to Evansville (where?). Duke lost to Stephen F. Austin (Who?). I can't even begin to go down the list of close games and upsets between teams that are very closely matched or just as often, not close, in record, talent or perception. The rankings have an element of perception of course because for all the data and evidence we're still just guessing at who we think is better, until the day they play each other and we find out. 
     We have Dayton, San Diego State and Gonzaga, all mid-major programs, high in the rankings while perennial powerhouses like Kentucky are clinging to the bottom of the top 25. Anyone who tells you they saw Baylor doing what they've done is not being honest with you. They have been really good this year, sitting at 21-1. Their one loss? Not even remotely ranked Washington. A bad Washington team that also narrowly lost to Gonzaga and beat a USC team that had only 2 losses at the time. Anyone can be beat on a given night this season and it's going to make 2020 a really fun tournament to watch. We're going to see some great games that's guaranteed. I'll be here to help you pick 'em.
     Oh, so 11-13 Georgia Tech just beat #5 Louisville. What a season.