Mega March Madness Marathon: 8:00 pm - 9:00 pm

BYU isn’t going to get whitewashed, that’s for sure.  The Cougars have crawled their way within 13-8.

USC’s looking for the last hoop of the period...five seconds to play in the half.  The three-pointer’s off the mark, so the Wildcats will take a ten-point lead to the locker room.

Meanwhile, in Denver, Winthrop and Washington State are all tied up at the break.  Go, Eagles, go!

Halftime hits almost instanteously in three cities...so let’s see what we’ve learned.  Some people thought Duke was overseeded...they’re definitely not breezing too easily so far.  Devils by 7 in DC.  Winthrop and WSU has been pretty much what I expected/hoped.  (I mean really, I can’t expect a 13-seed to be up by 40 at half, can I?)

The only game actually playing right now has A&M winning by 10.  Dick Enberg is in the play-by-play chair for the evening doubleheader; he’s working alongside Jay Bilas, who’s on his third game of the day.

Company!  The neighbors just rang the doorbell....it’ll be nice to have more people to watch games with.  They’re amazed at the four games at once, though.

BYU’s hanging around within six.  Not bad for a team shooting 33 percent from the floor. 

Commercials.  Lots and lots of commercials.  Car commercial on each TV.  I don’t need to buy a car, so this seems to be a waste of time for me.  Where are the basketball games?

Finally, a game.  BYU promptly knocks down its first triple in six attempts...and the lead is five.  So far this looks like your typical BCS-conference middle-of-the-road team against talented “mid-major."  And BYU’s got the lead down to 26-23.

That was an offensive foul.  As far as “hooks” go, this was definitely a borderline one.  Here come the Cougars...down three and with momentum on their side.

One three-pointer later, it’s tied and the BYU fans are roaring.  A&M is thinking 11-0 was so long ago.

USC and Kansas State are ready to start the second half...which means Kevin Harlan is taking us through the stats.  How about Bill Walker with 17 first-half points? 

Duke and Belmont are underway.  And the Devils score immediately to stretch the lead to nine.  Great job by the Bruins to work the ball right back inside for a bucket.

Belmont again.  Are the Duke fans sweating yet?

Maybe not quite yet.  Three-pointer for the boys from Durham.  I think Duke hits more threes from the corner than any other team in the country.

How about that for a stat?  Krzyzewski and Byrd, the two coaches in this game, have combined for 50 seasons in their career.

Belmont!  Bucket and a foul!  The lead is eight.

Which of my picks will blow the bracket first?  USC?  (down 8) or Winthrop? (down 4)

I don’t think is news to any of you, but Michael Beasley is a very good basketball player.  And he’s going to the line for a possible three-point play.

It only gets worse for the Trojans.  The guilty party on that foul was one Taj Gibson—it’s his fourth such incident.

Winthrop has gone from tied at halftime to down seven.  Uh-oh—my upset special is officially struggling.

Three-pointer USC.  Finally.  Let’s go Mayo.

8:29     Steal USC.  Dunk USC.  Momentum USC.  Timeout—not USC.

Vince Gill is high-fiving fans.  Really.  Duke 51, Belmont 50.  Here come the Bruins!

Gerald Henderson with a HUGE shot.  Inside-outside, and the Duke lead is four.

Make that six.

This is the part of March Madness I love.  Every game that’s on could go either way.  There’s a big difference between my bracket being 12-0 or 8-4.  (Most likely somewhere in between).

Wow, tough call.  Winthrop made a big-time move on the block, but one defender flop later, we’re going the other way.  Wipe away the basket, and the Eagles stay down nine

Earlier in one of these many hours (who knows, maybe it was this one?  I’ve lost track), I was talking about the great guards for Winthrop, specifically Michael Jenkins.  Well, Jenkins averages 14 ppg and hasn’t scored tonight.  No wonder the Eagles are down nine.

Trojans cut it to two.  Momentum anyone?

Kansas State is in a 2-3 zone with a four-point lead.  And that will lead directly to...a hoop for USC.

O.J. Mayo with another hoop...and a foul...and my neighbor friend that has USC in the Sweet Sixteen is jumping up and down.

Trojans by one.  Their last lead was in the first minute of the game. 

Will somebody box out Michael Beasley?  Anybody?  Mascot?  Coach?  I don’t care who at this point!

Will somebody guard Michael Beasly...well, you get the idea.  Two great teams trading hoops.  This one could come down to the wire.

Four games going simultaneously again.  A&M/BYU is in the second half.  Sometimes I wish I had more than two TV screens.

Kansas State/USC?  One-possession game.  Duke/Belmont?  One-possession game.  A&M/BYU?  One possession game.  I love March.

Foul trouble is becoming a major theme in the Southern Cal/K-State contest.  Seems like everybody has either 3 or 4.  And there’s still 11:30 to play! 

I’m about ready to concede a Winthrop loss.  The Eagles were tied at 29 at the half.  And the second half has been one big 21-4 spurt for WSU so far.  Oh well...I wasn’t expecting to win all 63 games anyway.

I don’t understand this officiating.  USC gets an offensive rebound...plenty of contact inside...and no call.  Then on the other end, we’re calling hand checks thirty feet from the hoop?  Come on, guys in stripes.

Eight minutes to go in DC.  Nine minutes to go in Omaha.  Time to get this up on Bleacher Report and start the next installment.  Stay tuned for the buzzer-beaters to come!