Julian Tavarez Goes Slugger On Speedster

Keith Foulke has the bad knee, Mike Timlin has the rubber arm, Jonathan Papelbon is the savior, Rudy Seanz and David riske have the bloated ERA's. Julian Tavarez needed to find someway to fit in to the Boston bullpen. Might as well be for his fists. Tavarez, one of the new members of the Red Sox bullpen, took offense to a hard slide by Tampa Bay outfielder Joey Gathright in the eight inning of an exhibition game today so the tall righty did what any crazy man would do -- he knocked Gathright out with a hard right hook. As Gathright was getting up from his slide, Tavarez delivered his punch. Seconds later, Gathright was on his back. Tavarez hasn't put someone on their back so fast since he drugged his last date. (Booooooooo. Bad taste.) This is not the first time Tavarez has lost his cool. In the 2004 NLCS as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals he punched a clubhouse wall and hurt his hand. Is this guy fit for Fenway? Hopefully Tavarez can keep his emotions and fists under control this season. Playing in Boston isn't easy under the best of circumstances and a hothead like Julian Tavarez can find trouble quickly in this city. Then again, if that fist is aimed at A-Rod or Sheffield or even (dare I say) Posada, maybe things will be smooth sailing for the new heavyweight of the Sox clubhouse. Maybe 'Tek can give him a few pointers.

Final Four That Nobody Expected

First off, congratulations are in order for Florida, UCLA and LSU. All three schools eclipsed pre-season and pre-tourney expectations to make it to the Final Four in Indianapolis. As for the fourth team heading to Indy ... Well, congrats don't quite make the grade. For the George Mason Patriots deserve a little more than a hand shake. To make it out of the Washington D.C. bracket, No. 11 seed George Mason knocked off 2005 Final 4 participant Michigan State, defending national champion North Carolina, underrated Wichita State and No. 1 Connecticut -- a team filled with future NBA stars such as Rudy Gay and Marcus Williams. For surviving such a tough road to the 4, George Mason is my pick to win the 2006 National Championship, they've earned my respect. Florida, LSU, and UCLA all have better talent and they earned their way here as well but in the year of the madness in March Madness, George Mason is my pick to win it all. If this comes to be true, Cinderella won't have anything on George Mason. They are the first No. 11 seed since LSU in 1986 to make the Final Four. They are also the first team from the Colonial Athletic Association to make it to this level of the NCAA Tournament. Another point on George Mason is that even though I make a point to watch almost every college basketball game televised, I never caught the Patriots on the tube -- I just so happened to see them play against Northeastern in Boston back in January. If not for a few free tickets, George Mason would be a complete mystery to me. As it stands, I still don't know where they came from and that puts me in company with former national championship coaches Tom Izzo, Jim Calhoun and Roy Williams. The Final Four kicks off Saturday night with George Mason playing against Florida with UCLA and LSU matching up as well. Will the truly unexpected happen -- can George Mason make it to the national championship game a week from tonight against the UCLA/LSU winner and actually win the 2006 national championship? We'll find out starting this weekend.

Sweet Sixteen Field Has Some Surprises

With the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament behind us, it is safe to say that there were no disappointments for the viewers. Well, the fans at Michigan State, Iowa, North Carolina and Kansas may be disappointed but overall, the opening weekend was filled with drama, action and some major upsets. Now it is on to the Sweet Sixteen. After the season started in October, only 16 men's Division One basketball teams are still playing. There were teams we expected to make it this far -- Duke, Connecticut, Villanova, Texas, Memphis -- and they survived. And then there are the surprise teams ... seriously, who had George Mason, Bradley and Wichita State in their Sweet Sixteen in the office pool? That is the beauty of this tournament, it's win or go home -- no matter what school's name is on the front of the jersey. As for who will advance onto the Elite Eight? Your guess is as good as mine. As for my guesses? Here they are: MINNEAPOLIS REGIONAL No. 4 Boston College over No. 1 Villanova No. 3 Florida over No. 7 Georgetown No. 4 Boston College over No. 3 Florida ATLANTA REGIONAL No. 1 Duke over No. 4 LSU No. 2 Texas over No. 6 West Virginia No. 1 Duke over No. 2 Texas OAKLAND REGIONAL No.13 Bradley over No. 1 Memphis No. 3 Gonzaga over No. 2 UCLA No. 3 Gonzaga over No. 13 Bradley WASHINGTON D.C. REGIONAL No. 1 UConn over No. 5 Washington No. 11 George Mason over No. 7 Wichita State No. 1 UConn over No. 11 George Mason

Winners, Losers in NCAA Brackets

The brackets are official -- 64 (OK, 65) teams are lined up for a shot at winning the 2006 NCAA men's basketball championship. At one end of the spectrum there are the Duke's, Connecticut's and Villanova's -- teams with legit hopes of winning it all on April 4. Then there are the guys in the middle, such as the BC's and UCLA's of the country -- good clubs that may not have enough for a Final Four run. Then there are the group of teams just happy to be in the tourney. They can be classified as "No Chance University." Now that we know who is in and who is out, let's see who the winners and losers were on Selection Sunday. WINNER: Tennessee. The Volunteers came a long way in their first year under Bruce Pearl but at 21-7 and ranked No. 15 in the country, does Tennessee really deserve a No. 2 seed (in the Washington D.C. bracket)? Probably not but Pearl will not be turning this chance up -- if his team can make it past No. 15 seed Winthrop they should have a good shot at beating the Wichita State/Seton Hall winner for a trip to the Sweet Sixteen. LOSER: Boston College. BC has a case to swap places with Tennessee. The Eagles, ranked No. 11 in the nation and coming off of a trip to the ACC Tournament Final (losing to Duke), may have reason to believe they played their way into a No. 2 or No. 3 seed. Instead they are a No. 4 seed in the Minneapolis bracket. Regardless of seed, BC may be lined up to make the first Final Four in school history. WINNER: Air Force. Even at 24-6, Air Force is awfully fortunate to have beaten out the likes of Florida State, Cincinnati and Hofstra for a place in the Tournament. They have no victories that stand out in 2005-'06 and were bounced from their own conference tournament by sub-.500 Wyoming. It might be safe to say that Air Force will see their last game of the year against Illinois but at least they are in the Dance. WINNER: Illinois. The Illini, runner-up in the 2005 Tournament, should have an easy road to at least Round Two. They get Air Force and that should mean a win for Bruce Weber and Illinois. A second round match-up with the Washington/Utah State winner could mean a trip to the Sweet Sixteen. LOSER: Gonzaga. The Zags are 27-3, have the best player in the country in Adam Morrison and haven't lost in what seems like months and they still only drew a No. 3 seed. They have a bigger argument for Tennessee's No. 2 seed than either Boston College or North Carolina. The Madness starts on Thursday ... get ready.

BC = Almost Conference Champs

The new guys in town almost took home the trophy on Sunday but the local bully just wouldn't let the title slip away from their fingers. Boston College, in their first year in the Atlantic Coast Conference, narrowly lost to Duke, 78-76, on Sunday in the final of the ACC men's basketball championship. The Eagles played a tough game but in the end, Al Skiner's boys just weren't good enough to beat the Blue Devils. This was BC's second two-point loss to Duke this year (they fell 83-81 on February 1). BC was led by Louis Hinnant's 20-points and Craig Smith's 19-point, 10-rebound performance. Jared Dudley added 14 for the Eagles. Duke was led by All-American J.J. Redick as he poured in 26-points with 7 three-point baskets -- two of which came in the deciding final moments This is Duke's record 16th ACC Tournament championship. They will be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will be a favorite to win the fourth NCAA Championship under coach Mike Krzyzewski. They head into March Madness with a 30-3 record. BC, a likely three or four seed (the brackets will be announced later on this afternoon), heads into the Tournament at 26-7. If things fall right for Boston College, they could have a legitimate shot at making the first Final Four in school history.