Not Everybody Loves an Underdog When It Comes to the NCAA Tournament

Also in Traina Thoughts: Luka Doncic will leave you in awe; Tom Brady hits the beach; WWE spoofs ‘Goodfellas’; and more.

1. The men’s college basketball stalwarts, Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky and Kansas, were nowhere to be found when the Elite Eight was played over the weekend.

Neither was a No. 1-ranked team.

And now we have a Final Four featuring San Diego State, Florida Atlantic, UConn and Miami.

While you might think that everyone loves an underdog and you might get the impression that college basketball fans are ecstatic with this development of new teams getting to battle in the Final Four, you can be sure that CBS/Turner isn’t exactly thrilled.

Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp shared some tournament ratings news from the weekend, and it wasn’t great.

Viewership overall for the 2023 tournament is down 6% from last season, and this weekend’s Elite Eight games were down 14% from last season, which featured North Carolina, Kansas, Kentucky and Duke.

Viewership for the men's NCAA Basketball Tournament is -6% headed into the Final Four (vs. 2022). +5% compared to 2021 tourney, which had adjusted schedule due to COVID restrictions.

Elite 8 was -14% vs. 2022. +40% vs. 2021, when games were Monday/Tuesday

— Austin Karp (@AustinKarp) March 28, 2023

There are a couple of takeaways here. One, the hardcore sports fan may love the story of Florida Atlantic, but it’s the powerhouse teams that bring the fringe fan to the tournament.

Two, people love to hate. Sports fans want a team to root against just as much as they want a team to root for.

2. Luka Dončić had one of the more absurd passes you'll ever seen in an NBA game on Monday night.

WHAT A PASS BY LUKA 😱

Watch live on NBA TV
📺: https://t.co/WjxYAo0Ivs pic.twitter.com/v11BEs94pY

— NBA (@NBA) March 28, 2023

He also had an outstanding quote about the social media reaction to the pass after the game.

Luka Dončić on his insane pass to Jaden Hardy: “Probably one of the best passes I made for me. So you know, I’m just glad it went through.”

He said he hasn’t seen the social media buzz on the pass yet, he was playing dominoes against his father. 📱 pic.twitter.com/A5EhewMLFH

— Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) March 28, 2023

3. I’ve seen a bunch of people say that this new Instagram post from Tom Brady is a thirst trap and that he’s showing he’s ready to embark on the dating life. I’d like to know what exactly he’s supposed to wear while he’s on the beach. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tom Brady (@tombrady)

4. WrestleMania will take place this weekend in Los Angeles, so several WWE superstars have starred in "WWE Goes Hollywood" skits over the past few weeks. There was none better than this one featuring Roman Reigns and (recent SI Media With Jimmy Traina guest) Paul Heyman spoofing Goodfellas.

5. This was a pretty cool thing to do by Giants relief pitcher Sergio Romo.

Every time a kid asked Sergio Romo for an autograph in spring training he asked them to sign his hat first. He wore this to the mound tonight: pic.twitter.com/O3CXB5BLyr

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) March 28, 2023

6. This week’s episode of SI Media With Jimmy Traina features an interview with the NFL Network’s Kyle Brandt.

Brandt discusses his busy schedule, cohosting Good Morning Football and hosting Kyle Brandt’s Basement five days a week, in addition to taking on other projects. He also talks about interviewing Josh Allen every week, cast changes at GMFB, auditioning for ManningCast and why it’s O.K. to say no to sports media jobs.

Among other topics covered with Brandt: the Aaron Rodgers–New York marriage, the NFL adding a Black Friday game next season, Monday Night Football getting flex scheduling next season, Las Vegas brothels offering Jimmy Garoppolo free sex for life, Anthony Richardson’s jumping ability, elevator etiquette, people who complain to you in stores and much more.

Following Brandt, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV joins Jimmy for their weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, Jimmy and Sal discuss the World Baseball Classic, the NCAA tournament, MLB’s awful Apple TV+ deal and more.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.

You can also watch the SI Media With Jimmy Traina on YouTube.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: In honor of WrestleMania week, let's remember the time that NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor defeated Bam Bam Bigelow at WrestleMania XI with a bunch of other NFL stars in his corner.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.