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I spent the first morning of the NCAA tournament -- the real tournament, not those silly play-in games -- at Caesars. All around me was a perfect storm of happiness and bliss: drunk college girls on spring break, waiting for the clouds to clear so they could hit the pool, teetered by the Munchbar; drunk college guys sitting around tables in the sports book, which were littered with cans of Miller Lite, Red Bull and sheets with all the lines for Thursday's games. They scribbled furiously and with a purpose. And all around the book, in a standing-room-only ring, was various riff-raff dressed in green shirts, green hats, green pants and, after a too long night spent drinking at Shadow Bar, green faces.
The NCAA tournament, spring break and St. Patrick's Day all at the same time! This was Charlie Sheen territory. Not even Vegas could survive this, I thought. We were all going to be sucked into a vortex of shame and regret, passing scenes of ourselves dancing on the banquettes at Lavo or spending our bonus at Olympic Gardens. Then we'd be spit out in the courtyard of the Joseph Smith Building in Provo, where we would spend eternity drinking decaf and getting lessons in repenting from Brandon Davies.
I needed to find a safe place. Shortly after Louisville was dropkicked by Morehead State I made a mad dash for my car. I pulled out of the hotel and turned left onto Las Vegas Boulevard. I drove past the Palazzo and the Wynn, where people crowded into the streets because the sidewalks were bursting. I waved goodbye to the Peppermill, putting The Strip in my rearview mirror. Within a few minutes I saw the chapel parking lot where they shot some of "The Hangover" and then the sacred spot in Vegas where both Joan Collins and Michael Jordan got married, but not to each other. I was getting close to downtown. Pretty soon, the only crowd on Las Vegas Boulevard was the one outside a pawnshop. The line to get in was around the corner.
Finally, at the intersection of Stewart and Las Vegas Boulevard, I saw it: City Hall. I had to check in with the Mayor. If Sin City was going to crumble, he'd have a bunker somewhere.
You may remember I did a podcast with Mayor Oscar Goodman about a month or so ago. I can't imagine a civil servant who has had more fun during his time in office. The one-time mob lawyer turned politico sits in an actual throne that was presented to him several years ago by his fellow city bosses from around the country, when the conference of mayors was held in Las Vegas. He's spearheading the building of the mob museum in the old federal courthouse, which he can see from the picture windows of his 10th-floor office. In a glass case outside his corner suite, there's a photo of him pretending to knock out Ali. And on the floor, ready to eventually move into the museum, is a shot of the body of former Gambino crime boss Albert Anastasia, right after he was gunned down in a barbershop.
"We've got the chair he was sitting in," Goodman told me. "It will go in the museum."
The Mayor had just come back from marshalling the Paddy's Day Parade at New York New York. On his semi-circle desk -- next to a box of poker chips with Goodman's caricature and the phrase "The Happiest Mayor of The Greatest City in the World" -- was the list of his NCAA tournament action. "I had Butler, West Virginia and Princeton to cover," Goodman says. "But I also had Temple minus-2.5, Louisville and UNC-Asheville."
For a second we started talking about Bucknell, which was a 10-point underdog against UConn. I mentioned this was a game where the line had moved quite a bit in Bucknell's direction because the wiseguys seemed to like it. He answered, "I don't follow the wiseguys. I tried that and lost. Now they should follow me."
Goodman is brash, the way a longtime criminal defense attorney should be, but curious, the way a lawyer should be. He likes to walk the town with showgirls and preach about the joy of good gin. He got into betting years ago because "my whole day was action as I tried to defend people and I didn't want to slow down. So at night I started betting sports."
We sat in his office for about 30 minutes shooting the breeze, trading stories about bad beats, mobsters, getting cited for contempt, how he got a call from O.J.'s agent while AC was driving the Ford Bronco and how some guys can just disappear and never get caught. We talked about how he's only got a few months left in office and the one thing he really wants is for Vegas to get a pro team. It's not going to happen before the end of his reign. But his wife is running for mayor. "And she's polling pretty well," he says.
When his assistant buzzed that his three o'clock was waiting, I got up to leave. He handed me a Mayor Goodman poker chip and said, "Here, this will help you get lucky."
It did. I know because when I woke up this morning Vegas was still standing.
Now, onto the Wiseguy Bracket breakdown, featuring Paul Stone, a college sports specialist whose work appears in the Las Vegas Review Journal, and Edward Golden of Right Angle Sports.
Paul Stone Picks -- East
Kentucky Wildcats (4) vs. West Virginia Mountaineers (5)
Spread: Kentucky -3.5
Stone says: "A youthful Kentucky team had its hands full with Princeton and now it's got to face a veteran team with a wily coach. West Virginia, in its last 17 games in the tourney, is 13-3-1 against the spread. Kentucky, meanwhile, is 4-9-1 their last 14 as a favorite. The level of play in the SEC has been down, while West Virginia is used to the wars of the Big East. They are a grind it out, rebounding and defensive team and that fares well for the NCAA. Kentucky has great athletes -- they are not as built for the tournament."
ATS pick: West Virginia
Straight-up pick: West Virginia
West
Cincinnati Bearcats (6) vs. Connecticut Huskies (3)
Spread: UConn minus-3
"The committee obviously doesn't want teams in the same conference to meet this early in the tourney, but the Big East had so many quality teams there is no other way to draw it up. UConn has defied the conventional wisdom that tired teams don't play as well. This will be their seventh game in less than two weeks. With Kemba Walker playing at the level he's playing and UConn having so much momentum I have to side with the Huskies here. They were completely dominant. Cincy does play great defense and has a little chip on its shoulder, I think, from getting blown out in the Big East tourney. But there is an old adage that you don't get in front of a runaway train and UConn is not a team you want to be fading or playing against."
ATS pick: UConn
Straight-up pick: UConn
San Diego State Aztecs (2) vs. Temple Owls (7)
Spread: San Diego State minus-6
"This is not your father's Mountain West. With San Diego and BYU before the Davies suspension, it had two outstanding teams, plus a solid UNLV team. But I believe the Aztecs are overseeded. And that 5.5 is a lot against a Temple team that will play at a slower pace, even though Temple is not the same team without Scootie Randall, losing good scoring and leadership. I have a lukewarm endorsement of Temple plus the points, but San Diego will win this game."
ATS pick: Temple
Straight-up pick: San Diego State
Southwest
Richmond Spiders (12) vs. Morehead State Eagles (13)
Spread: Richmond minus-4
"This is an interesting matchup. Morehead hasn't faced as great a level of competition, but they have a rebound margin of 12 over their opponents. But Richmond is an outstanding 3-point shooting team. They shot 50 percent against a Vandy team that is great at defending the 3; Morehead ranked 293rd defending the 3. I don't have a strong opinion on the spread. Gun to my head, I would take Richmond minus-4 because of their schedule being stronger. And [Morehead] coming off of a win the way they did with all that emotion, maybe they come in drained."
ATS pick: Richmond
Straight-up pick: Richmond
Right Angle Sports Picks -- Southeast
Pittsburgh Panthers (1) vs. Butler Bulldogs (8)
Spread: Pitt minus-8
Golden says: "I think the number is a tad high. I think it will be low possession game so there may not be that many points scored. I will probably look at the under of 128. The Butler philosophy is to take their time and not give up easy shots, and they do a great job of that, which means they could hang around for a while. But I also don't think they are dangerous as they were last year. I have no lean on this game as far as sides."
ATS pick: Pass (lean toward the under at 128)
Straight-up pick: Pittsburgh
Wisconsin Badgers (4) vs. Kansas State Wildcats (5)
Spread: Wisconsin minus-2.5
"I lean towards Kansas State. I really like how they have been playing and think they have only improved on both sides of the ball. Wisconsin, as well coached as they are, isn't the same team offensively away from home. They are just much less efficient. You didn't see it with Belmont, in which they shot the 3 pretty well, but Kansas State will be a better matchup physically. I am learning towards Kansas State.
ATS pick: Kansas State
Straight-up pick: Kansas State, but not a high confidence level
BYU Cougars (3) vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs (11)
Spread: Pick
"I am actually seeing Gonzaga at one in a lot of places. I think this will be the best bet of this region, I like the way the Zags are playing. They have been getting good point guard play which they used to struggle with and they are getting help off the bench. They also have a really good front line and that is where BYU is lacking. Without Davies they have no one that belongs at this level. I know BYU is used to the altitude, but I think they're preferred style is to play up-tempo. And I don't think they don't have the depth to do it. It's scary going against Jimmer but I think the Zags' depth and talent will wear BYU down."
ATS pick: Gonzaga (up to minus-1)
Straight-up pick: Gonzaga
Florida Gators (2) vs. UCLA Bruins (7)
Spread: Florida minus-5
"If this were a true neutral court I would like UCLA, but since they are playing in Florida it will be a no play for me. I think the number is fair. If I were betting UCLA I would want a little more than five, I think the angle here is the over at 131. I think you have two teams that will play at a reasonable pace, both offenses are capable and it is just too low a total."
ATS pick: Pass
Straight-up pick: Florida
I spent the first morning of the NCAA tournament -- the real tournament, not those silly play-in games -- at Caesars. All around me was a perfect storm of happiness and bliss: drunk college girls on spring break, waiting for the clouds to clear so they could hit the pool, teetered by the Munchbar; drunk college guys sitting around tables in the sports book, which were littered with cans of Miller Lite, Red Bull and sheets with all the lines for Thursday's games. They scribbled furiously and with a purpose. And all around the book, in a standing-room-only ring, was various riff-raff dressed in green shirts, green hats, green pants and, after a too long night spent drinking at Shadow Bar, green faces.
The NCAA tournament, spring break and St. Patrick's Day all at the same time! This was Charlie Sheen territory. Not even Vegas could survive this, I thought. We were all going to be sucked into a vortex of shame and regret, passing scenes of ourselves dancing on the banquettes at Lavo or spending our bonus at Olympic Gardens. Then we'd be spit out in the courtyard of the Joseph Smith Building in Provo, where we would spend eternity drinking decaf and getting lessons in repenting from Brandon Davies.
I needed to find a safe place. Shortly after Louisville was dropkicked by Morehead State I made a mad dash for my car. I pulled out of the hotel and turned left onto Las Vegas Boulevard. I drove past the Palazzo and the Wynn, where people crowded into the streets because the sidewalks were bursting. I waved goodbye to the Peppermill, putting The Strip in my rearview mirror. Within a few minutes I saw the chapel parking lot where they shot some of "The Hangover" and then the sacred spot in Vegas where both Joan Collins and Michael Jordan got married, but not to each other. I was getting close to downtown. Pretty soon, the only crowd on Las Vegas Boulevard was the one outside a pawnshop. The line to get in was around the corner.
Finally, at the intersection of Stewart and Las Vegas Boulevard, I saw it: City Hall. I had to check in with the Mayor. If Sin City was going to crumble, he'd have a bunker somewhere.
You may remember I did a podcast with Mayor Oscar Goodman about a month or so ago. I can't imagine a civil servant who has had more fun during his time in office. The one-time mob lawyer turned politico sits in an actual throne that was presented to him several years ago by his fellow city bosses from around the country, when the conference of mayors was held in Las Vegas. He's spearheading the building of the mob museum in the old federal courthouse, which he can see from the picture windows of his 10th-floor office. In a glass case outside his corner suite, there's a photo of him pretending to knock out Ali. And on the floor, ready to eventually move into the museum, is a shot of the body of former Gambino crime boss Albert Anastasia, right after he was gunned down in a barbershop.
"We've got the chair he was sitting in," Goodman told me. "It will go in the museum."
The Mayor had just come back from marshalling the Paddy's Day Parade at New York New York. On his semi-circle desk -- next to a box of poker chips with Goodman's caricature and the phrase "The Happiest Mayor of The Greatest City in the World" -- was the list of his NCAA tournament action. "I had Butler, West Virginia and Princeton to cover," Goodman says. "But I also had Temple minus-2.5, Louisville and UNC-Asheville."
For a second we started talking about Bucknell, which was a 10-point underdog against UConn. I mentioned this was a game where the line had moved quite a bit in Bucknell's direction because the wiseguys seemed to like it. He answered, "I don't follow the wiseguys. I tried that and lost. Now they should follow me."
Goodman is brash, the way a longtime criminal defense attorney should be, but curious, the way a lawyer should be. He likes to walk the town with showgirls and preach about the joy of good gin. He got into betting years ago because "my whole day was action as I tried to defend people and I didn't want to slow down. So at night I started betting sports."
We sat in his office for about 30 minutes shooting the breeze, trading stories about bad beats, mobsters, getting cited for contempt, how he got a call from O.J.'s agent while AC was driving the Ford Bronco and how some guys can just disappear and never get caught. We talked about how he's only got a few months left in office and the one thing he really wants is for Vegas to get a pro team. It's not going to happen before the end of his reign. But his wife is running for mayor. "And she's polling pretty well," he says.
When his assistant buzzed that his three o'clock was waiting, I got up to leave. He handed me a Mayor Goodman poker chip and said, "Here, this will help you get lucky."
It did. I know because when I woke up this morning Vegas was still standing.
Now, onto the Wiseguy Bracket breakdown, featuring Paul Stone, a college sports specialist whose work appears in the Las Vegas Review Journal, and Edward Golden of Right Angle Sports.
Paul Stone Picks -- East
Kentucky Wildcats (4) vs. West Virginia Mountaineers (5)
Spread: Kentucky -3.5
Stone says: "A youthful Kentucky team had its hands full with Princeton and now it's got to face a veteran team with a wily coach. West Virginia, in its last 17 games in the tourney, is 13-3-1 against the spread. Kentucky, meanwhile, is 4-9-1 their last 14 as a favorite. The level of play in the SEC has been down, while West Virginia is used to the wars of the Big East. They are a grind it out, rebounding and defensive team and that fares well for the NCAA. Kentucky has great athletes -- they are not as built for the tournament."
ATS pick: West Virginia
Straight-up pick: West Virginia
West
Cincinnati Bearcats (6) vs. Connecticut Huskies (3)
Spread: UConn minus-3
"The committee obviously doesn't want teams in the same conference to meet this early in the tourney, but the Big East had so many quality teams there is no other way to draw it up. UConn has defied the conventional wisdom that tired teams don't play as well. This will be their seventh game in less than two weeks. With Kemba Walker playing at the level he's playing and UConn having so much momentum I have to side with the Huskies here. They were completely dominant. Cincy does play great defense and has a little chip on its shoulder, I think, from getting blown out in the Big East tourney. But there is an old adage that you don't get in front of a runaway train and UConn is not a team you want to be fading or playing against."
ATS pick: UConn
Straight-up pick: UConn
San Diego State Aztecs (2) vs. Temple Owls (7)
Spread: San Diego State minus-6
"This is not your father's Mountain West. With San Diego and BYU before the Davies suspension, it had two outstanding teams, plus a solid UNLV team. But I believe the Aztecs are overseeded. And that 5.5 is a lot against a Temple team that will play at a slower pace, even though Temple is not the same team without Scootie Randall, losing good scoring and leadership. I have a lukewarm endorsement of Temple plus the points, but San Diego will win this game."
ATS pick: Temple
Straight-up pick: San Diego State
Southwest
Richmond Spiders (12) vs. Morehead State Eagles (13)
Spread: Richmond minus-4
"This is an interesting matchup. Morehead hasn't faced as great a level of competition, but they have a rebound margin of 12 over their opponents. But Richmond is an outstanding 3-point shooting team. They shot 50 percent against a Vandy team that is great at defending the 3; Morehead ranked 293rd defending the 3. I don't have a strong opinion on the spread. Gun to my head, I would take Richmond minus-4 because of their schedule being stronger. And [Morehead] coming off of a win the way they did with all that emotion, maybe they come in drained."
ATS pick: Richmond
Straight-up pick: Richmond
Right Angle Sports Picks -- Southeast
Pittsburgh Panthers (1) vs. Butler Bulldogs (8)
Spread: Pitt minus-8
Golden says: "I think the number is a tad high. I think it will be low possession game so there may not be that many points scored. I will probably look at the under of 128. The Butler philosophy is to take their time and not give up easy shots, and they do a great job of that, which means they could hang around for a while. But I also don't think they are dangerous as they were last year. I have no lean on this game as far as sides."
ATS pick: Pass (lean toward the under at 128)
Straight-up pick: Pittsburgh
Wisconsin Badgers (4) vs. Kansas State Wildcats (5)
Spread: Wisconsin minus-2.5
"I lean towards Kansas State. I really like how they have been playing and think they have only improved on both sides of the ball. Wisconsin, as well coached as they are, isn't the same team offensively away from home. They are just much less efficient. You didn't see it with Belmont, in which they shot the 3 pretty well, but Kansas State will be a better matchup physically. I am learning towards Kansas State.
ATS pick: Kansas State
Straight-up pick: Kansas State, but not a high confidence level
BYU Cougars (3) vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs (11)
Spread: Pick
"I am actually seeing Gonzaga at one in a lot of places. I think this will be the best bet of this region, I like the way the Zags are playing. They have been getting good point guard play which they used to struggle with and they are getting help off the bench. They also have a really good front line and that is where BYU is lacking. Without Davies they have no one that belongs at this level. I know BYU is used to the altitude, but I think they're preferred style is to play up-tempo. And I don't think they don't have the depth to do it. It's scary going against Jimmer but I think the Zags' depth and talent will wear BYU down."
ATS pick: Gonzaga (up to minus-1)
Straight-up pick: Gonzaga
Florida Gators (2) vs. UCLA Bruins (7)
Spread: Florida minus-5
"If this were a true neutral court I would like UCLA, but since they are playing in Florida it will be a no play for me. I think the number is fair. If I were betting UCLA I would want a little more than five, I think the angle here is the over at 131. I think you have two teams that will play at a reasonable pace, both offenses are capable and it is just too low a total."
ATS pick: Pass
Straight-up pick: Florida