MARCH MADNESS 2025 WRAP-UP

The 2025 March Madness college basketball tournament wrapped-up last Monday night, but there’s a reason it’s taken me longer than usual to record my many thoughts on it. And that is because the Championship game was so soul-crushing that I just could not face writing about it. For perhaps the first time ever, I stopped watching about a minute after it ended, when I saw the look on the face of losing veteran coach, Kelvin Sampson. I had originally made a note that it “took me a while to get over it,” but the truth is that I am still not. I was so miserable for Kelvin, in fact, that I could not even watch the official wrap-up shows! Since I’m a big regretter, I don’t think I’ll ever get over that the refs neglected to call a real goaltend in the first half that would have made the results different in the end.

But, since the NBA postseason actually begins tonight, I figured that I have to buck-up and get the college stuff out of the way right now.

As usual, I, of course, watched every second of the tournament. Trust me, on the days of sixteen games each, I had little sleep. I spent one of those weeks totally exhausted, and stayed in the house for two weeks straight.

And, also of course, I took copious notes each and every day. I pared them down here, so what follows are the highlights.

So first of all, let me congratulate the Florida Gators on beating the Houston Cougars for the Championship. I used to hate the Gators when they beat my UCLA Bruins about eighteen years ago, but I have to admit, even though I was almost desperate for the Auburn Tigers to win this year, as soon as I saw the Gators, and guard Walter Clayton, Jr.* in particular, play their first game this tourney, I told Mr. X, “I don’t see anyone beating them this year.” You know I love being right, but I would have still rathered any of the other three teams in the Final Four being the victor. Oh well. (Even though Houston was one of the top four teams, they were ranked the last of those.)

*By the way, early on in my notes, I wrote, “Walter Clayton, Jr. is the new Steph Curry! I was half asleep when I first saw what he can do, but he woke me right up. Truly amazing.” And then later I wrote, “This is why I watch—to discover Walter Clayton, Jr.  (Even though I detested the Gators back in 2007 when they beat my UCLA Bruins.)”

But that’s the nature of March Madness; sixty-seven of the sixty-eight teams are going to wind-up miserable. I just wish that they could all remember the happiness along the journey, not just the misery when they inevitably lose. (Mr. X added, “And the longer you’re in it, the more it hurts.” Exactly.)

Now here are some of my happier thoughts:

Every year, some very unexpected person emerges from March Madness as the star. And it’s rarely a player or coach. For example, in 2018, it was Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the now-one-hundred-and-five-year-old Chaplain for the Loyola-Chicago team. She’s adorable, and is the most universally-beloved person I’ve ever seen. And she’s still working!!

Well, this year’s star is Amir “Aura” Khan, the student manager of the McNeese State University team. He leads the guys out of the locker room and onto the court carrying a boombox. and everyone loves him! He’s the only student manager who even has an NIL deal with a few companies, which means he gets paid for companies using his “name, likeness, and image.”

The tournament started-off on a few good notes. The first was Charles Barkley’s college, Auburn, was the overall #1 in the tournament! I’m still so happy for him! (But then they lost in the Final Four, which he was actually a very good sport about. I was not—I seriously wanted them to win!)

And then the tourney started off with a great game right away, one that came down to literally the last second, and was won with a baseball pass to the scorer!

I became a fan of Johni Broome of Auburn. But I hate that he’s pronouncing his name, which should just be pronounced “Johnnie,” as “Ja-nI.” Even worse is that studio host Ernie Johnson, who should know better, was pronouncing it “Ja-nI-a.” What???

Sion James of Duke and Marcus Caldwell from Wisconsin should definitely become announcers, commentators, or analysts when they’re done playing. They speak beautifully! And Sion was the most well-spoken young man in the tourney! You know how much I love that!

Speaking of good guys, I love that Milos Uzan from Houston, (who is planning to enter this year’s NBA Draft,) said, “Excuse me” and “I’m sorry” when he didn’t understand the interviewer, instead of the usual “Huh?”

The UCSanDiego players are the nicest losers ever!  They almost won their first and only game, and then lost at the very last second, but they all still smiled and hugged each other. Those are guys who were grateful to just make the tourney in their first year of eligibility. And the smile never left their coach’s face, either, from start to finish. That’s a great group of guys.

Drake’s Bennett Stirtz has the skin of a baby! If he doesn’t go pro, he should become a dermatologist or facialist because patients will think he really knows how to take care of his skin!

Memphis coach Penny Hardaway looks the same as he did when he first played pro ball…thirty years ago!!! I used to watch him on the Orlando Magic with two of my guy friends who loved him sooo much that they put a doll of him, (called “Little Penny,”) in front of the TV each time, for luck! Along with a giant toy penny, of course.

A star of Memphis has the odd moniker, Dain Dainja. How do parents choose to give their kid just about the same first name as his last? Oysh. It’s even worse for a guy on the Texas Tech team—Federiko Federiko! (That’s not a typo.) Actually, I once knew a guy named “John” who introduced me to his brother, “Jon.” And George Foreman (who passed away on the second day of this tournament, right after I had written this paragraph,) named all five of his sons “George Edward Foreman,” the same as…himself.  Some parents are just weird.

I love this: Analyst Clark Kellogg said about Kentucky Head Coach Mark Pope, who also went to med school, “A phenomenal portfolio of experiences.” What a great term! It made me think that all of my crazy situations can be bundled together into that same title. I hate borrowing other people’s words when I have so many of my own, but this one is so good that I just might have to at some point!

Host of the studio shows, Ernie Johnson, said of the shortest-in-height team, “Shoot low, boys—they’re riding Shetland ponies,” which only Clark Kellogg, (and I, of course,) understood the humor of. I even had to explain it to Mr. X, (who usually gets odd statements,) at least ten times. I had never heard that expression before myself, but figured it out in a nano-second, and laughed along with the guys when Ernie explained it to them. (For the nesceints out there, “Shoot low, boys—they’re riding Shetland ponies” is a quote from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. It wasn’t meant humorously; Sundance said it literally. It’s since become used to mean shorter people.)

I’m still wondering how Arizona was allowed to have so many players??? Isn’t the team number regulated by the NCAA and other college entities? Each one cannot just decide for themselves willy-nilly! So what’s up with that?

At this point in the tourney, I was also amazed that so many players were copying my iconic old school look of rocking two different color sneakers! I know that these young guys could not have seen me doing it back then, but perhaps their parents told them about my famous and much-talked-about unique fashion.

Analyst, and former player, Kenny Smith, gave a great lesson about “finding the seams” on the ball, for maximum shooting effectiveness. That’s what I always used to teach my nephew, but I didn’t know how to do it as well as Kenny did.

The Richardson men—dad Jason, who was in the NBA, and his son, Michigan State’s Jase—are so adorbs! I love a father who’s more famous than his son, but the son is everything to him. Jason is so much prouder to be Jase’s dad than be famous himself.

How is Rueben Chinyelu of Florida allowed to wear shell beads in the front of his braids? I know players are not allowed to wear jewelry because it could be dangerous to them and everyone else on the court, so how is a decorative hair accessory allowed?

Of a player on the BYU team, the play-by-play guy, Brian Anderson, said, “He’s 6’6” and looks like a mini-Charles Barkley.” His on-air partner, Jim Jackson, added, “He may be short of stature, but not of heart.” Are they kidding??? They think that 6’6’ is short?! It’s not even short for a basketball player!

I haven’t had time to watch many commercials, but the ATT one about the former Villanova team, now mostly Knicks, actually makes me cry. Every time I see it!

I like Florida coach Todd Golden—he sounds like just a regular guy, so basic and honest.

Zvonimir Ivisic from Arkansas and his twin brother, Tomislav, who plays for Illinois, pronounce their last names differently! That sounds so crazy, but Mr. X also has a Croatian last name, and he and his father pronounce it differently because Mr. X American-izes it, while his father was actually from the old country, so he used the original pronunciation. But it’s amusing for brothers to do that, especially when they’re the same age!

I absolutely adored that all four #1 teams made it to the Final Four this year! That has happened only once before, in 2008. (If you don’t know how the NCAA tourney works, there are four groups of teams, seeded 1-16. And they’re all chosen and ranked by a Selection Committee, which looks like geniuses this year! So there are a quartet of #1s, and even those are ranked. There’s an overall #1—which was Auburn this year—down to the fourth-ranked #1. And the tournament usually features several upsets, which is one of the reasons it’s March Madness.)

Another interesting aspect of this year’s Final Four was that two of the coaches were…Jewish! When does that ever happen?! And Auburn’s Bruce Pearl and Florida’s Todd Golden not only knew each other, but have worked together twice before.

After the Gators won their penultimate game to get into the Final, sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson asked the celebratory team, “You lost in the first round last year, what’s different?,” to which Walter Clayton, Jr. replied, “We all just love each other.” But, the real difference is that last year…they didn’t have him!!!

I really wish that all the broadcasters would stop mispronouncing so many names!!! For example, Duke player Kon Knueppel’s last name is clearly “knUppel,” not the “knIpple” they all say!!!

When Houston beat Duke in the Final Four, color commentator, (and two-time Champion with Duke back in the day,) Grant Hill said it was “one of the most impressive comebacks I’ve ever seen.” That’s what I was thinking—through my tears.

I cannot believe that anyone beat Duke, (with their very young projected-to-be-the-#1-draft-pick, Cooper Flagg,) in general, especially after them being up by twelve! But Houston went on an 11-1 run at the end, and did just that.

And then Houston lost in the Championship game.

As heartbreaking as that turned-out to be for me, I’m pulling myself together and moving on to the pro ballers play-offs now, where I’m sure there will be more misery for me! When will I ever learn?