CNATI: Cincinnati OH Sports Journalism

Hope everyone is overcoming their hangovers today. This is one of those days it definitely pays not to have to get up and go to the office. Heard a lot of resistance as I argued for the Super Bowl being moved to Saturday last night. Have a feeling that tone might be different if the same people were pooled this morning facve down in their TPS reports.

High-5

1. New Orleans. You all know the story, but not putting this city at the top of the H5 would be a travesty. You know Mardi Gras starts next Tuesday?

I only hope the city is still standing in May (did someone just set a bonfire in the street behind Rachel Nichols?) when I go back down there.  

Seriously, how awesome is this? 

2. Atlantic-10. Quite a weekend for the conference who had a lot of pieces fall into place for it to get its largest load of teams into the tournament since Xavier joined in the mid-90s. The folks over at The Dagger think it could be as many as six.

Five is a more likely number and Dayton has moved onto the bubble after dismantling Xavier on Saturday. UD with a big game Wednesday against Charlotte (shockingly 8-1 in conference), though.

3. Great Saints stories. Great Monday Morning QB from Peter King about Saints kicker Thomas Morstead and an even great intro that sounds more like a comedy routine. "OK, so, James Carville, a 97-year-old archbishop, a lawyer and Kim Kardashian are all on a bus, right. Stop me if you've heard this one."

4. Jim Boeheim. Really wish I could cover this guy full-time. His dry sense of humor was pretty good. My favorite line came in midstream as to why his 2-3 zone is so effecitve this year. "We've got size out there. Size matters, at least in basketball."

Pat Forde has a great story as to why he should win more than "Best supporting comedian in a drama."

5. Pelting reporters. Sometimes, reporters need to be crushed with snowballs. 

Low-5

1. Bearcats. As Denny Green said, "they are who we thought they were."

For the first 28 minutes of the game against Syracuse the Bearcats looked like they had a chance. But in the Big East, in the crucial moments, the level of play raises. UC doesn't have the same level of Syracuse. Bottom line. But, we knew that, didn't we? 

As a commentor said after the Notre Dame game, "I can sum up this loss in three words: National Invitation Tournament."

Now 5-6 in the Big East, I would love to hear where five wins are coming from:

At UConn: The way this team plays on the road?

At South Florida: Winners of four of five...the way this team plays on the road?

Marquette: Won four in a row and only lost at Villanova by two and at WVU by one.

DePaul: OK, there's one win. Or Cronin is fired the next day.  

At West Virginia: UC is more likely to not be berated by the student section than win this game......the way this team plays on the road? 

Villanova: Despite being dismantled by Georgetown, they are still 9-1 in the conference for a reason.

At Georgetown: Did you see Duke and Villanova play in DC? As I tweeted on Saturday: It's times like this I wish I had a farm so I could bet it UC loses there.....the way this team plays on the road?

I see 2-3 wins. Three wins would put them at 8-10 in the conference and 17-13 overall. That's got NIT written all over it. And not even a home game.

Joey Brackets has them as part of the six-team bubble cluster. (Insider)

2. Xavier. Teams that plan to do what Xavier has done in the past don't get beatdown anywhere. Even at an archrival.

Jordan Crawford had zero help.  

Against quick teams, the Musketeers continue to struggle. UD had four And-1's. All of them a product of getting beat to the bucket and lunging at the ball.

And you can gain as much confidence from wins against Rhode Island and Duquense as you want, Xavier has losses at Temple and at UD in its last two big games.

With three of the next four games on the road, the Muskies may want to be careful of falling out of favor with the tournament committee, especially considering the rise of the middle of the pack in the A-10.  

3. Colts, Manning legacy. Before Sunday everyone was talking about if Manning is the greatest QB of all-time. I was ready to jump on that bandwagon if they won, but it seems everyone forgot the continually butt-kickings he took against the Patriots for five straight years.

The outcome of this game and Manning's pick-6 brought those back into the discussion. And rightfully so. You have a 9-9 postseason record, one win agiainst Brady in the playoffs in your house and a Super Bowl where you beat Rex Grossman.

Is that the stuff of legends? Hmmm..

4. Apparel. Did we really spot Dick Lebeau in a mock turtleneck? As my good buddy Patrick said, "Who writes this crap?"

Though, I would have loved to see him in this.

5. Tracy Porter. Tracy Porter was good. His hair was great.