SALT LAKE CITY - I wouldn't recommend anyone changing any spring break plans to head to Utah, but the weather actually isn't that bad. At 4 p.m. on Wednesday it was a balmy 50 degrees, and the snow on the mountains looks amazing. Personally, I am hoping the snow stays right where it is and doesn't start falling from the skies, even though it probably could at any moment. On Thursday and Friday, the weather thankfully seemed to be only getting nicer·

There are bars in Utah but I haven't had much time to check them out ˛ I'm here to work, after all. However, I did learn from the shuttle bus driver that domestic beer is only 3.2 percent, while foreign beer such as Corona is the same as it back at home. I also found that the University of Utah students are on spring break so I guess the city is more dead than usual. However, I did hear from a couple writers from others papers and magazines that Club Naked went off Thursday night·

The ceiling in the Huntsman Center where the games are being played looks like a UFO. Other than that, the more than 30-year-old arena is the perfect place to host the tournament. There is really not a bad seat in the house·

Having both Lute Olson and Mike Krzyzewski in the same building is a dream for any college basketball fan. Being able to speak with both of them in the same day is a one of the shining moments for me in my career as a journalist. Even though I do speak with Olson on a regular basis, he seems to be in rare form now that he is at the tournament...

Speaking of rare form, CBS analyst Kareem Abdul-Jabbar looked like he was asleep at the mic most of the day. Not saying covering four games in one day is easy but Abdul-Jabbar didn't look like he was having much fun on the air...

Scalpers were trying to sell tickets to the early games for as much as $100 but weren't getting anything near that. Many people got tickets with a face value of $35 for just $25 bucks. The Gonzaga-Cincinnati game was worth that price alone·

With the war in Iraq in full swing, you can sense the concern for the soldiers overseas. Blake Stepp from Gonzaga put it best when he said there are kids over there that are younger than me fighting. It's scary to think about·

The bests and worst of the first day:

Best fans: Central Michigan - I guess the Cameron Crazies are only good when Duke plays at home. The Central Michigan fans were the only group out of the eight teams in Salt Lake to bring their own signs. They read "Fire it up chips" in reference to their team name, the Chippewas. They also stood for nearly the entire game.

Best mascot: The Blue Devil from Duke - As bad as the Duke fans were in Salt Lake the mascot was by far the best. Wilbur was almost as good, but once again Arizona loses to Duke.

Worst showing: Vermont - No band and no cheerleaders. I don't know if they are still stuck in Denver but it's not like Vermont makes the tournament every year. The NCAA Tournament was a big deal for the team and could have used more support than an ugly yellow and green mascot.

Best story: Gonzaga's Tony Skinner - Skinner missed a wide-open dunk that would have sealed the game for the Zags with 28 seconds left and Gonzaga up by three. However, he was able to come back down the court and as Cincinnati's Tony Bobbitt tried a game tying 3-pointer, Skinner blocked the shot to preserve the win for the Bulldogs.

Worst attitude: Cincinnati radio color analyst Chuck Machock - Machock was ejected in the Bearcats loss to Gonzaga for comments he made towards official Mike Kitts after he called traveling on Jason Maxiell. Machock said some expletives that are too harsh to even print.

Feel-good moment: National Anthem - It's only played before the first and third games of the day. Prior to the Central Michigan and Creighton game, the Chippewa players put their arms around each other and swayed when the National Anthem was played.