IU, Reader Requests, Open Questions

After righting the ship against a stunned MN team the Spartans take on Tom "I wish I didn't look like Tom Arnold" Crean Saturday. Indiana is coming off their first win (against lowly Iowa) and should be a 20 point win. I really don't even know what to tell you about Indiana. They have one returning scholarship player from last season. That really says it all.

At the request of 33%* of the readers we will address one Wally Pipp. Wally was a major league baseball player (Yankees) around the 1920's and played 1st base. "Wally Pipped" became a verb, however, not because of his play so much as his not playing. According to legend Mr Wally Pipp decided to sit out a game, against his managers wishes, because of a "headache." His replacement? Lou Gehrig. Good idea pal. 2130 consecutive games later Gehrig was a household name for his stellar on field play, while Wally Pipp became a household verb for letting your understudy make you look a fool. Holding the door for the one that replaces you. Like pulling a Munson.

That brings us to Raymar Morgan. While I don't see Summers replacing Raymar for good or Raymar faking his illness it does make for an interesting comparison. At the very least Raymar has to be making more funny faces* than normal from his seat on the bench as he sees his future minutes fade. I still think that, if Raymar were healthy right now, the starters would be: Lucas, Walton, Suton, Morgan, and Summers. Roe has come on strong but isn't ready to push Suton out yet. Allen is...Allen. Honestly I think Allen might be Wally Pipping himself. I've openly invited Allen to go have relations with himself.

Indiana is bad. Very bad. They could get hot and hit a bunch of hot garbage 3's (see: Northwestern and Penn State) but they cannot pull this one off. They can't.

MSU - 71

IU - 59

Questions:

1. Who among you will take a minute to develop a working definition for "breaking news" and pass that information along to Nancy Grace?

2. Why are we still talking about this baby factory lady? She had 8 kids, I get it, its a news story for about...24 hours. I'll give you 48 tops. I have two problems with this still being in the news cycle: first there is no debate among intelligent people - it was medically unsafe, unbelievably irresponsible given her situation, and she has GOT to be unstable and second its none of our business. It isn't. If we want to change the public assistance/entitlement programs etc. ok, but she needs to go away. Now.

3. Why do people try to irritate me? The people who get to me w/out fail have two character traits: arrogance and ignorance.

I met the local chapter president of the arrogant and ignorant club at the MN basketball game. I was, according to him, in his seats. Never mind that our seats are designated season tickets. Never mind that these tickets have been in my possession since weeks before the season started. Never mind that THESE VERY SAME SEATS have been season tickets, in the same name, for at least the last 5 years. Before that, going back to the opening of the Breslin, they were in that immediate area. Never mind that he had no ticket to prove anything and I showed him my ticket. He acted as though the numbers and letters on the ticket were in a language he vaguely understood. This guy wasn't having it. I was in his seats and it was ok, he would just get an usher to take care of it. He then sat in some other open seats in front of us and proceeded to take his self assured story to every person*** in our section -- pointing us out each time he retold the story about the kids with the nerve to be in his seats. He wouldn't let it go. You can imagine me taking this well. Woosah. Woosah.

That guy is the reason they don't sell beer at the Breslin. He didn't need any more self assurance and I didn't need another reason to plant my fist directly in his ear.

Then he danced to the MSU Dance team music (urban) during timeouts. It was exactly as you are picturing it in your head right now. Then my thoughts moved from battering him to feeling sorry for the person that must spend hours, daily, mopping up his saliva and helping him find his baseball.

*DP

**It is mathematically impossible for R.Morgan to make additional funny faces. He has reached maximum funny face efficiency.

***"every person in our section" is only a slight exaggeration as he honestly retold the story, w/ finger pointing, at least 4 times over the next 30 minutes