Why? Why am I even at work today? When I'm going to be completely useless as the Tigers play their first NCAA tourney game. There is so much riding on this game. There are a lot of haters out there rooting for the Tigers to lose today. It's been a historical year for Tiger basketball, and I don't want to see them cap it off by making the bad kind of history. No No. 1 seed has ever lost to a No. 16. And so those people who love a good upset will be watching this game closely. Because it's become conventional wisdom that if a No. 1 seed goes down in the first round, it'll be Memphis. Fer Sure. So here I am this morning, with my stomach in knots and my mind distracted. I'll greet this afternoon's game not with a roaring, chest thumping yell of "Goooooo Tigers!" but with a whimpering prayer of "Please, please, please win this game."

So far one of my brackets is in fourth place in the office pool and the other is in sixth. The Pacific and Nevada games killed me. Both of those teams are known as giant killers. I gave Nevada the first round in both brackets. I gave Pacific the first round in one. The Alabama win also threw me off. I had them losing in the first round in both brackets. I had initially picked Xavier to knock out Gonzaga and then changed my mind at the last minute. I was kicking myself last night, but then Adam Morrison came through for the 'zags. He is such a great player. It was also really close for Tennessee (props to Chris Lofton) and George Washington, so I was barely safe there too.

Please, please, Tigers. Don't lose today.