The Final Four
Okay, we're down to the Final Four in college basketball. For me, the NCAA basketball tournament is the greatest sporting event in the world. Of course, I'm a true-blue Kentucky Wildcat. We've won seven of them there championships-only UCLA has won more
Two of those Big Blue national championships took place while I was working at KCBS television on Sunset Boulevard. Looking back now I'm thinking maybe Hollywood was a good luck charm - cause we haven't been back to the Final Four since 1998. But oh what a grand three year stretch is was for the Wildcats. In 1996 we defeated Syracuse to capture the crown. The following year, we battled another pack of Wildcats-them Wildcats from Arizona.
And we lost in overtime. But in '98 we bounced right back. We turned out to be the brutes against the Utes of Utah, claiming our 7th national championship. This Hollywood Hillbilly grew up watching UK basketball on TV and listening to it on the radio. Eventually I attended the University of Kentucky and played the saxophone in the school's band. During my freshman and sophomore years I played in the UK pep band at least a dozen times.
I can't begin to describe the energy and excitement of being so close to the action on the floor. And nothing was more amazing than playing the fight song when the team did something spectacular. Final Four Fever is sweeping the nation again right now, but my Kentucky Wildcats are nowhere to be found. In fact, at last report, we still don't have a coach. Tubby Smith has thrown in the towel and is making a move to Minnesota.
I wish him well. Inside this week's paper we have numerous predictions about who will win the 2007 championship. I might as well reveal mine as well. I'm going with Georgetown. The Hoyas are hot after that come-from-behind win over North Carolina. I think they'll bring the national championship back to the nation's capital.
See
more at www.bradleyweekly.com
