Blowing a gasket for college basketball

Earlier this week I wrote a column about how much I enjoy this time of year and how much I love watching college basketball.
I even included a part that said, "This is your time to take a day or two off of work, move the basement TV and the bedroom TV into your living room and set up shop on the couch."
So, is it really any surprise that at 1:48 p.m. on Friday afternoon, I'm sitting in my living room, on my couch watching Northwestern take Ohio State into overtime?
Well, it's a surprise to me.
You see, I would love to be at work. I'd love to be in the office, standing around the water cooler talking about the latest episode of Glee. But, unfortunately I'm stuck at home.
I couldn't even go to work if I wanted to.
You see, on Wednesday night, while driving home from Brighton after watching Skyline take down Dexter and Huron squeak past Pioneer, I had a bit of car trouble.
OK, I had a lot of car trouble.
My car, 1997 Ford Taurus I purchased in January of this year from some guy on Craigslist, overheated and left me stranded on the side of I-696.
Long story short, the head gasket blew and the Taurus, which I lovingly dubbed the Millennium Falcon, is headed for the scrap yard.
I learned two things from this experience:
1.) Don't buy automobiles from guys on craigslist who look like this.
2.) Being stranded at home during conference tournament time really isn't that bad.

What a night for Chelsea sports

Friday in Chelsea is going to be a snow day regardless of the weather. Well, make that a "go" day. As in GO to Plymouth and cheer on the Bulldogs on the ice during the day and then return to Chelsea to root on the boys basketball team at night.
In Allen Park, the Chelsea Bulldogs were celebrating a state quarterfinal victory over Riverview Gabriel Richard on Wednesday. Then word came from home...the Bulldogs knocked off Willow Run in basketball.
Two wins in the state playoffs on the same day. One to send the hockey team to the state semifinals. Another, to send the basketball team to a district final.
Does it get any better than that?
Well, it could on Friday.
How about a hockey team victory Friday afternoon over one of the best teams in the state that will send the Bulldogs to the hockey championship game? And then a few hours later, a basketball victory to send the Bulldogs to the regionals?
Yeah, that would be better.
But Wednesday was pretty awesome for Chelsea sports, no matter where you were sitting that evening. The hockey team pulled off another victory when it looked like the end was a sure thing. The only sure thing with this group is you can never count them out.
Gritty. Relentless. Resilient. Tough as nails. Good as (blue and) gold.
Then there is the basketball team. These same Bulldogs who looked anything like a great basketball team on Monday switched gears and ran past Willow Run. Yes, the same Willow Run team that blew Gabriel Richard out of the gym. If you watched these two games on Monday, the first one looked like the JV game compared to the second one.
Sometimes, the Bulldogs play down to their opponent. But they always play up for the better teams and that was the case on Wednesday. Like the hockey team, the basketball has the talent for a long road trip through the state playoffs.
The hockey team plays at noon on Friday and the basketball team tips off at 7 p.m.
Does anyone have Bulldog fever? I think the whole school will come down with it on Friday.