College basketball hysteria will soon cripple the nation (in this week alone, about $3.5 billion worth of productivity will be lost to the sport) and so it’s time to stop and take a close look at what it is about the sport that has people going mad. As a devote Kentucky Wildcat fan, I’m sure I could wax something eloquent about cinderellas, buzzer beaters, and the beauties of the zone defense (wink, wink Dave Hickey); but most fascinating about the next week (really next 3 weeks) is how folks who aren’t remotely fans will become caught up in the tournament. The reason? Largely because they joined an office pool and filled out a bracket trying to predict the outcome of the 64 team tourney (actually 65 but who’s counting). What’s with these damn office pools?

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