Join the Phun.

Enter the PhogBlog Group in the Las vegas Journal-Review March Madness contest.

This one is a little different than most of those going around the internet. Instead of having your Elite 8 or Final Four teams knocked out in the first or second round, resulting in games of no interest to you, you pick each round after the previous round’s games have been played.

In other words, every game counts.

Go to the LVRJ registration page, register, and click on My Groups. Click on “Join Public Group” and search for “PhogBlog.”

Then pick away for Round One.

What do you win?

Pick all games correctly, and the LVJR says it will fork over $100,000. (About the same chance as you would have facing off against Tiger in match play.)

Garner the most points in the PhogBlog group, and you will bask in PB glory for 12 full months.

Good luck. You will need it against the PB’s regular cast of luminarias.

Hint: Take KU in Round 1, and you will be perfect for at least a while, depending on the length of the other Thursday morning games. I promise.

–Mark

MIDWEEK RECAP

Another REAL season has come and gone. By late Sunday evening (Central DAYLIGHT time), the standings you find on-line and in your local newspaper will have merged with the REAL Standings. No one will be at an advantage or disadvantage in games yet to be played because there will be no games yet to be played.

However, while there is still a slate of Big 12 games remaining this weekend, UT maintains a REAL ½ game advantage over KU, as only a projected W remains on its schedule, while the Jayhawks have a losable game in College Station—a venue where A&M trounced UT earlier this season.

UT had a struggle at Home Tuesday night vs. Nebraska—perhaps distracted by missing the local caucus action—but managed, nevertheless, to turn a close game into a Non-Event by picking up their projected victory. KU’s own Non-Event vs. Texas Tech in the biggest slaughter in Big 12 history, meant that the Jayhawks could only tread the REAL Standings water. That will have to wait until Saturday, if at all.

In lower profile NE games, k-state and Mizzou picked up their projected Home W’s vs. Tier 3 Dwellers Colorado and Iowa St.

The two REAL stories of the Midweek slate were OU and A&M winning on the Road vs. other Tier Two teams (Okie St and Baylor), meaning big “plus ones” in the RSP for the Sooners and Aggies.

REAL STANDINGS: 3/6/08

Note: The current breakdown of teams into tiers, which is the only subjective aspect of the REAL Standings is:

Tier One: KU, UT
Tier Two: Baylor, k-state, Mizzou, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M, Texas Tech
Tier Three: CU, ISU

1. 13-3

UT (12-3) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: None

2. 12.5-3.5

KU (12-3) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: at A&M

3. 9.5-6.5

k-state (9-6) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: at ISU

4. 9-7

OU (8-7) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: None

5. 8.5-7.5

A&M (8-7) Projected L’s: at BU
Losable games: KU

6. 8-8

Baylor (8-7) Projected L’s: at TT
Losable games: None

Tech (7-8) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: None

8. 7-9

OSU (7-8) Projected L’s: at UT
Losable games: None

NU (6-9) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: None

10. 6-10

MU (6-9) Projected L’s: at OU
Losable games: None

11. 4.5-11.5

ISU (4-11) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: ksu

12. 3-13

CU (3-12) Projected L’s: at NU
Losable games: None

FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE

Big XII Weekend Games, with IQ (Interest Quotient) on a 1-4 star scale:

SATURDAY

1. Baylor at Texas Tech (12:30p.m.)***

The Bears are one of four Big 12 teams playing to impress the NCAA selection committee. A loss and an 8-8 record will not help their cause. But Lubbock is not the place to be playing for your post-season life: Tech would be undefeated at Home but for a fluke last minute desperation shot by Oklahoma.

Projected W: Tech

2. Mizzou at OU (2:30p.m.)***

A W here sets the Sooners up nicely with that all important 9th win and a first round bye in K.C.

Projected W: OU

3. k-state at Iowa St (3:00p.m.)***1/2

k-state can punch its ticket to the Big Dance with its tenth conference victory. But make no mistake about it: At Hilton, this is a losable game.

Projected W: Toss-up

4. KU at A&M (3:00p.m.)****

The last meaningful game of the conference season. Unless you are deranged enough to think that Okie St can waltz into Austin and walk out with a Win.

Projected W: Toss-up

SUNDAY

5. Colorado at Nebraska (2:00p.m.)*

Wake me at half-time, so I can turn to Okie St at UT.

Projected W: Nebraska

6. Okie St at UT (3:00p.m.)***1/2

Can Okie St dish out a -1 in the REAL Standings to UT on Senior Day in Austin with at least a share of the Big 12 championship on the line? Not bloody likely. But UT did just squeak by Nebraska Tuesday night by 4 on this same court, where they barely outlasted hapless Colorado by 2 earlier this season. Not to mention surviving OT’s in Stillwater and Ames, and capitalizing on Baylor pulling a Chris Webber to make it out of Waco alive. So maybe, just maybe, UT is more accurately characterized as a resourceful team than an overpowering one. Might be worth looking in on this game, just in case. . .

Projected W: UT

–Mark

WEEKEND RECAP

On the day before Texas Independence Day, Texas declared independence from the stranglehold it had on the Big 12 title, falling in Lubbock to a Red Raiders team that had lost by 44 points days earlier in College Station to a Texas A&M team that had lost days earlier in Austin by 27. But this game was not in Austin. And what is the prime premise of the REAL Standings? It is that Road games are different from Home games. And so, the Loss in Lubbock, being a Losable game, was hardly a surprise.

Surprise or not, it cost UT ½ game in the REAL Standings, preventing them from virtually wrapping up the Big 12 championship, having no Projected L’s and no Losable game remaining on its schedule.

UT does remain in first place in the REAL Standings, however, with KU having a Losable game yet to play. March 8. College Station. Where Tech fell by 44. Where UT fell by 17.

Where Nebraska won by 6. What’s wrong with this picture?

But, first, KU and UT must take care of business in Home games vs. Tech and Lubbock respectively. As if. . .

Meanwhile, Okie St continued making its move up the Real Standings Ladder, picking up a full game in the RSP with a Road victory at Nebraska—its third consecutive W away from home and its 5th in its last six games overall.

Non-Event games found Projected Home W’s by OU over A&M (10 points in the first half? Are you kidding me?), Baylor over Mizzou, Colorado over Iowa St, and–oh, by the way—KU over k-state (with Beasley outscoring A&M’s entire team 39-37).

REAL STANDINGS: 3/2/08

Note: The current breakdown of teams into tiers, which is the only subjective aspect of the REAL Standings is:

Tier One: KU, UT
Tier Two: Baylor, k-state, Mizzou, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M, Texas Tech
Tier Three: CU, ISU

1. 13-3

UT (11-3) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: None

2. 12.5-3.5

KU (11-3) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: at A&M

3. 9.5-6.5

k-state (8-6) Projected L’s: None
Losable games: at ISU

4. 9-7

Baylor (8-6) Projected L’s: at TT
Losable games: None

5. 8-8

OU (7-7) Projected L’s: at OSU
Losable games: None

OSU (7-7) Projected L’s: at UT
Losable games: None

Tech (7-7) Projected L’s: at KU
Losable games: None

8. 7.5-8.5

A&M (7-7) Projected L’s: at BU
Losable games: KU

9. 7-9

NU (6-8) Projected L’s: at UT
Losable games: None

10. 6-10

MU (5-9) Projected L’s: at OU
Losable games: None

11. 4.5-11.5

ISU (4-10) Projected L’s: at MU
Losable games: ksu

12. 3-13

CU (3-11) Projected L’s: at ksu, at NU
Losable games: None

FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE

Big XII Midweek Games, with IQ (Interest Quotient) on a 1-4 star scale:

MONDAY

1. Texas Tech at KU (8:0p.m.)**1/2

After playing Mr. Hyde last week in College Station, Tech played Dr. Jekyll Saturday afternoon vs. UT in Lubbock. On the Road again, expect a Hydeous relapse.

Projected W: KU

TUESDAY

2. NU at UT (6:30p.m.)*1/2

Exhibit 1 for the proposition that the Big 12 should consider adopting a mercy rule.

Projected W: UT

3. Colorado at k-state (8:00p.m.)*

Exhibit 2.

Projected W: k-state

WEDNESDAY

4. Iowa St at Mizzou (7:00p.m.)*1/2

Exhibit 3? That might be stretching it, but it won’t be Bedlam either. . .

Projected W: Mizzou

5. OU at Okie St (7:00p.m.)***1/2

With Okie St coming on strong (5 of their last 6), this game will justify the Bedlam Series moniker.

Projected W: Okie St

6. A&M at Baylor (8:00p.m.)***

These two teams played 65 minutes in College Station. For you Aggies and Bears, that’s longer than a football game.

Projected W: Baylor

–Mark