Sox spank Yanks

It appears as if Duke will win the title without having to play a team in the entire NCAA tournament that ranked in the top 3 all season. Purdue was their highest ranked opponent and they checked in at one point as 4th. Of the millions of entrants in the ESPN.com bracket contest, only .03% of entrants picked this as the final matchup. I'm going to say "Go Duke" looking to work a reverse jinx here.

The four teams fighting for the last few Eastern Conference playoff spots - Boston, Philadelphia, New York Rangers and Montreal - will all play the Toronto Maple Leafs in succession. What are the odds on that?

Donovan McNabb is headed to the Washington Redskins in a true head scratcher of a trade methinks as far as the Philadelphia Eagles are concerned. By no means do I think McNabb is still a top five QB in the game, but to trade a guy with some game left within your division seems a bit crazy. Sure, Kevin Kolb may look good in practice and the odd game over the years, but NFL defences have a way of catching up to guys once there is a couple handfuls of games of tape on them. Take Derek Anderson, as one example. #NFL

Word out of the Buffalo Bills mini-camp is that some of Marshawn Lynch's teammates figure he wants out of Buffalo. Speculation is they're thinking so based on his absence from said workouts. Talk about jumping to conclusions.

Pretty sure I'm a rarity in 2010: haven't seen Avatar, heard a song by Justin Bieber, or been banged by Tiger Woods.

Speaking of Woods, expect productivity around North America to drop at 2pm today when he holds his presser at The Masters, where he'll likely say nothing worth hearing, in typical Eldrick fashion.

So much for the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox stacked pitching, if last night's first sample means anything. Both Josh Beckett and CC Sabathia were out relatively early, each tagged for five runs, in a game won 9-7 by the Sox. Today, another baker's dozen of season openers on the go.

Have a great Monday.