Bruce Pearl's troops just frittered around enough to give the East Region its one shot of intrigue; Louisville, Washington State and especially North Carolina have looked dominant so far. How awesome have the Heels looked? Roy Williams actually admitted after the win yesterday that "we looked doggone good today." For God's sake, someone put a leash on that guy! He's out of control! (All together now: At least he finally gives a shit about North Carolina right now.)

Meanwhile, Louisville is one of the few teams we've seen in person this year ... and they lost, to Seton Hall. (This had the added humiliation of having taken place in Newark.) So where did that come from?

More to the point, though: Anyone who picked North Carolina to win the whole thing has to feel rather positive right now. So, Heels fans can all relax and just enjoy The Truth About Duke right now.

Of course, guessing what would have happened if a foul would have been called, and how that would have all went down, is one of those empty games we all play with ourselves to pretend there's some sort of order to the chaos. But man, imagine if Texas A&M would have pulled this game out: Xavier, Texas A&M, West Virginia and Western Kentucky, battling for a shot at the final four. Billy Packer would never stop crying.

For all the Kevin Love, uh, love, we think the most compelling character left in the West Regional has to be West Virginia coach Bob Huggins. This guy has had an active few years; surely, you haven't forgotten the epic DUI video. In a way, West Virginia and Huggins have always been a perfect fit, and not just because he went to school there. We're not sure what kind of message it would send about academics in college basketball of Bob Huggins led WVU to the Final Four ... probably an extremely honest one, actually.

But hey: Cincinnati's athletic grade point average is up a tick or two, so there's that.

Pics Of The Night [Rush The Court]
Bob Huggins Suspended [Cincinnati Enquirer]