Slice of Life: March 2 -- March Madness

It's madness!

Well, almost.

No, I'm not referring to myself or even my life.  I'm referring to the joy that comes each year about this time, when college basketball begins what I believe is the craziest month in all of sports, as 68 teams compete in a tournament to declare the best team in all of men's college basketball.  Yes, March Madness is just around the corner and I absolutely love it!

To explain my love of March Madness, you have to understand a little bit about me.  First, I love sports.  I grew up with an older brother and three male cousins.  Essentially, I had no choice but to love sports.  It was either that, or be left out of every game and activity that occurred when we were together.  I can remember being in kindergarten and going with my mom and brother to sign up to play youth basketball in our local league.  Unfortunately, I was too young to play, so I signed up for the only "sport" available to someone my age: roller skating.  I spent one night each week for the next month or so very slowly making my way around the roller rink, shuffling my feet and doing my best to figure out the art of roller skating.  The next year I was old enough to play soccer in our community's local league, and two years after that, I was finally old enough to play basketball.  I remember my brother setting up cones in the driveway for me to dribble through and shooting baskets in both rain and snow.  What I remember most, however, is absolutely loving every minute of it.  This love has continued as I've become an adult.  Most mornings I watch Sports Center while getting ready for school and I love watching my favorite teams play on television.

The second important thing to know about me is that I'm extremely competitive, almost to a fault.  I have to admit that at times, my competitive nature is not one of my finer qualities.  I can turn almost anything into a competition and the truth is, I hate losing.  I even had a shirt in high school with a quote that read, "I hate to lose more than I like to win."  Like I said, being competitive doesn't always bring out the best side of me, but it's one of the reasons I love sports so much.

My love of sports and my competitive nature makes March Madness the absolutely perfect sporting event.  Teams who have played well enough during the season and are already assured of a spot in the men's college basketball tournament are hoping to keep their dream alive and make it to the Final Four, a distinction given to the last four teams who make it through the field unbeaten.  Then there are the "bubble teams," those teams who are on the verge of missing the tournament all together and are trying to make one last run in hopes of being selected as one of the 68 teams who make it to the tournament.  Next there are the teams who have no hope of making the tournament without winning their own conference tournament.  They have to win every game in the coming week just to make it to the field of 68.  Finally, and perhaps my favorite, there is always a Cinderella story that emerges every March.  There's a little known team from a small school who makes a run, wins games they were never supposed to win, and upsets the big name schools who were almost assured a trip to the Final Four.

Yes, it's March and yes, it is definitely madness.  It's time to fill out brackets, watch the agony of defeat and the joy of victory, and savor the Cinderella stories.  And just like when I was a kid shooting hoops in my driveway, I'm going to love every minute of it.