When I took a break, from our preparation for Texas Tech and the first round of the NCAA tournament, I was stunned to see the tone set by Jalen Rose. The man who provides UW-Milwaukee’s Tony Jones with hand-me-downs continues to ride the, soon-to-be-derailed, Jones bandwagon. But soon it will be time for Rose and his personal butler to circle the wagons.

For starters, I don’t know he can run off at the mouth after his butler sported such gaudy attire, during ESPN’s Bracket Buster game at Hawaii. Are you serious? That was my reaction to what I saw on ESPN 2 on that Saturday evening.

With a long weekend road trip in the Bay Area (Cal on Thursday and Stanford on Sunday) that Saturday night offered the rare opportunity to watch other teams play. What a coincidence, there was my man Riley Wallace at home against none other than Bruce Pearl and the Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers in a Bracket Buster contest.

Well, let's just say that I know at least one bracket got "busted" and that is the Gateway to Style bracket.

Did anyone else catch those bright yellow bowling shirts on the sidelines? It's a good thing Dave Magarity isn't on that staff, because they would have to make Hawaii a planet – isn't that what they do when place has two suns? Like Calogero said, you don't walk with Jo Jo Magarity, you walk "among" him.

But walking anywhere in the vicinity of Tony Jones could only be described as embarrassing.

I can't believe that Jalen approved of that gear I'm sure Jones is going to have some story about the shirts, some custom made, silk, embroidered deal from a guy in England, but results are what speak volumes. As in how they look on television.

Jones once tried to play off the fact that UCLA appears on TV much more that Milwaukee, and now we really know why. By the way, did the back of those shirts say "Chico’s Bail Bonds”?

So I ask. Bandwagon or train wreck? You decide.


INTIMIDATION

I am officially in Brian Loyd's head. Mr. Number 1 on the charts and the top overall seed in Angela’s Runway to the Fashionable 4 is worried. The west coast showdown last week in LA was more like, when will he show up?

Upon arriving to the arena 45 minutes later than the usual 90 minutes before tip-off, it was revealed that the hold up was due to Brian's indecision on which suit to wear for the big game.

And to further justify the mental victory, on the pre game handshake, all he could do was ask about the watch. Not too much confidence form a no.1 ranked FPI holder, but I'll give him the props on the grey pinstripe and solid shiny silver "hitman" style tie.

That made me wonder; should the FPI be adjusted a la the RPI? It will be a hot topic in St. Louis, when the best converge on the Gateway to the West. I expect to see the Chronicles of Riddick (as Angela describes Loyd) playing on a stage in St. Louis, but I doubt the Jones-Rose sideshow will being making any appearances.


QUESTIONS

Angela’s judgment doesn’t come into question all that often, but I do have some problems with the seeding process. Apparently the Pac-10 doesn’t rank high in the FPI. The league does have five entries in the head-coach field, but none received higher than a No. 4 seed.

Lorenzo Romar (Washington) and Trent Johnson (Stanford) both claimed No. 4 seeds, while Rob Evans (Arizona State) and Lute Olson (Arizona) both got No. 6 seeds. And Ernie Kent (Oregon) got no love with a No. 10.

And how does Jerry Wainwright (Richmond) go from the FPI’s Top 10 to a No. 14 seed. I have to assume that Jerry missed a lace in his shoes or left a tie at home. On top of that, he has to face John Calipari (Memphis) in round one. That’s a tough draw for my fashion mentor.

Most curious to me was Don Harnum (Rider) getting a spot in the field. I love the Bronx Tale deal on his official website (DonHarnum.com) but that doesn’t warrant a ticket to the fashion show. Coach Harnum will participate in the “Style-In-Contest,” which should speak volumes about his attire. The truly stylish avoid such contests. If he had any talent hanging in the closet he wouldn’t have to style in Wednesday’s contest.

Lastly, there is something lacking from this year’s competition. Nowhere in the brackets is the name “Dave Magarity.” Since the real MAAC Daddy is not currently coaching, he is unable to be a part of Majestic Madness. However, I have been told by a couple of sources that Mags may be crashing the stage and using his size and girth to take the spot of one of the sixty-five competitors.

He may as well take Harnum’s spot because he clearly has no place in this tournament.

JALEN ROSE'S BUTLER
Jan. 24, 2005

The holidays are over and everyone is engulfed in conference play, which means that March Madness is right around the corner, but there is something else just around the bend. January ushers fashion smack talking. Soon phone messages will be left and emails will be sent, as coaches begin the process of posturing for March and The Runway to the Fashionable Four.

Over the holidays I was fortunate enough to incorporate a rare trip to see my family in Kansas, in the middle of our road games around Christmas and the always-busy recruiting season. Coincidentally, Kansas had a game scheduled with Wisconsin-Milwaukee on the day I arrived so I took the opportunity to say hello to Jalen Rose's butler, Tony Jones. This was -- I guess you could say -- an advanced scout for the Runway in St. Louis, where I am sure all local jewelers will be "watching" closely as I look to avenge a controversial upset loss to Coach Jones in last years final.

Well, let me say that I have already put in a call to Bruiser Flint to state my case for this year. Under NO circumstance should a guy in a mock turtleneck be considered a serious threat to the rest of the prestigious field. But to my amazement, Tony went that route in a big road game in Kansas City. Let's break it down…

Upon my surprise visit, Tony was in a tan suit with an off white mock-T with which could be construed -- to the untrained eye -- as brown "gators" on his feet. I may not be a big proponent of the gator look on the wheels, but I do know that Donald Pliner would have been embarrassed for the intentional misdirection.

C'mon. Do you really think I fell for that Rolodex on the wrist last year? And now we have fake skins? The judges were fooled, but I am taking a page out of Mack Brown's book right now to let them know that it's “the real thing” in Westwood.

Mike Brey? Larry Davis? Tommy Amaker? All frequent the mock T look and all have exactly as many FPI titles as Timmy Capstraw. None. And Capstrawm, who kicked off the fashion craze back in 1998, didn't even have to beat anyone back in the day. All he had to do was beat the mirror.

While I know there will be some formidable opponents on the 2005 Catwalk, I have no concerns about a possible re-match with T. Jones. We have met twice, with one “tie” and one controversial win for Jones. Should we square off again, this time things will be much different.

Lastly I would like to send out a belated holiday greeting to everyone from the West coast. I hope that everyone's travels were safe. Let me also send condolences to all of the families affected by the terrible events in the Indian Ocean, as it seems that thousands of American families were also directly impacted by the tsunami. Good luck to everyone as conference games get heated up and I see you all in St. Louis!