Jim Wins with his Blue Ribbon Pick on Tuesday
Bucks (-1) over Celtics 86-84
Tournament action Splits
Butler (-7) Crushes Wright St 70-45 WON
Duquesne/St Bonnie's Under 153 Loses

OUR JIM SEZ MID-WEEK HOOPS REPORT ROLLS ON WITH COLLEGE BASKETBALL'S MINI-TOURNEY OVERVIEWS AS THE PAC-10, ACC, SEC AND BIG 10 GET ALL REVVED UP PLUS OUR BIG EAST DAY #1 RE-CAP TOO AND THREE NON-POWER LEAGUE TEAMS THAT MUST WIN A GAME (OR MORE) THIS WEEK - OR ELSE!

By Jim Hurley:

Dr. Naismith would be proud:
    
There's folks bouncing basketballs from coast-to-coast these days as College Basketball's Conference Tournaments are in full swing and in today's mid-week edition of Jim Sez we'll provide overviews on four"power conferences" whose mini-tournies are set to get underway ...

HANDICAPPING NOTEBOOK

CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK CONTINUES WITH PREVIEWS
OF MOUNTAIN WEST, PAC 10, AND BIG WEST

by Mathew Hurley, Managing Editor

You saw last week how VITAL it was to know which teams in tournaments play defense, and which fall apart defensively at the first sign of big game pressure.

That will only be MAGNIFIED this week in some of the bigger events, which is why we want you paying very close attention to the two-point defense numbers we're posting for you. Our focus is out West today, with previews of the Mountain West (now THE premier basketball conference West of the Mississippi), the Pac 10 (potentially down to just one bid this year, but hoping for as many as three), and the Big West.

Tomorrow, we finish off our CHAMPIONSHP WEEK previews with the ACC, SEC, Big 10, and the WAC. Friday through Sunday, we'll do our best to keep you updated on developments as they unfold. If you want to find out who the winners are going to be BEFORE the games start, sign up with JIM HURLEY'S NETWORK by calling 1-800-323-4453!

MOUNTAIN WEST

This ...

WHO'S LEADING THE WAY ON DERBY ROAD?
Plus A Recap Of The Gotham Stakes

In something of a humbling surprise, the weekend's Triple Crown preps proved to be more meaningful than expected -- more meaningful, anyway, than I had expected. Awesome Act gave a very encouraging performance in winning the Gotham, and although Alphie's Bet didn't proclaim himself to be a Derby contender while winning the Sham, he did confirm, if confirmation were needed,the talent of Caracortado.

Awesome Act didn't quite perform up to the standards implied by his name, but he came close, especially for March. If in this his seasonal debut, Awesome Act had only duplicated his best juvenile effort, he ...