I’m starting this blog post with a disclaimer… tonight’s sports slate is almost unbearably gross. I did lose my last college basketball pick by a missed game-winning shot so I was eager to give one out today, so here we are.

In terms of a prologue, I’m holding on to most of my creative thoughts for the podcast tonight. In other words, you’re not getting one. I did write about the fall off of the NBA Dunk Contest earlier today with some phenomenal dad jokes.

Let’s get this over with.

The best.

(NCAAB) New Mexico vs. San Diego State

It’s getting to the point of the season where it’s time to start thinking about your March Madness bracket.

The good news for you is I’ve been thinking about March since the college basketball season tipped off in November, and these young men playing tonight have been on my mind all season long. *pause*

While neither of these Mountain West foes rank in the AP Top 25, both rank in the Top 50 in Net, meaning whoever wins tonight is gaining another quality Quad 1 win. San Diego State of course went all the way to the “Natty” last year before getting blitzed by UConn, while New Mexico hasn’t made been invited to the big dance since it went four times in five years from 2010-2014.

The Aztecs have the home court advantage tonight and should get the win. They also will be a higher seed in March considering they return four starters from last year’s Final Four team.

That still doesn’t discount the fact New Mexico may make the deeper run of the two (if they can claim a bid). Head coach Richard Pitino (yes the son of Rick) leads a trio of fantastic guards in Jaelen House, Donovan Dent, and Jamal Mashburn Jr. All three average well over 15 points per game, setting up the Lobos nicely for a tournament that thrives on guard play.

(NBA) Celebrity All-Star Game + Rising Stars Challenge

Remember when I said tonight’s slate was unbearably rough? Here we are. The celebrity game is tonight on ESPN which is cool I guess. The cast of characters playing is not however. Texans quarterback and friend of the podcast C.J Stroud will be getting some minutes so that’s cool, but the rest of the lineup features d-list actors, comedians, and a few WNBA players for some reason.

Also Aces Star A’ja Wilson is coaching a team featuring some of her peers. Kind of seems like a slap in the face to me, but hey you do you Adam.

Victor Wembanyama and other young stars take the floor on in the actual arena shortly after on TNT. If you care, here are the lineups.

Pau, Tamika, Jalen, Detlef… Whose squad are you rocking with? 👀

Watch the next generation of young stars during #PaniniRisingStars, TONIGHT at 9pm/et on TNT!

All-access on the NBA App: https://t.co/p9f1cWPxS1 pic.twitter.com/ekjDSoz1aY

— NBA (@NBA) February 16, 2024

Brian’s CBB Pick of the Day

Princeton team total over 77.5

It may seem like an egregiously high total, but Princeton is going to smash this thing with ease. The Tigers have had trouble on the road recently but return home tonight where they average 81.2 points per matchup.

Add that to the fact Brown is a bad basketball team, and Princeton should win this one in the 83-72 range.

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