a wide range of something; a variety.

1.   Go to the head of the class if you thought Baylor, Gonzaga, San Diego St., and Dayton would occupy four of the top five spots in the AP basketball poll with less than a week to go in February.  It could be March Madness indeed.  In fact, it will be.

2.  Where are the blue bloods?  Well, Kansas likely will ascend to number one this week thanks to their big Saturday win over previous number one Baylor.  Duke was six and might break into the top 5.  Kentucky and Louisville are 10 and 11.  The blue bloods are there, but so are the upstarts.

3.   Along with Duke are Maryland, Florida St., and Louisville repping the ACC in or very near the top 10.  West Virginia will check in at roughly 15 as well.

4.  Where is North Carolina?  Losers of seven in a row the Tar Heels are 10-17 overall.  This might be Roy Williams first losing college basketball coaching season EVER.  Is Roy done?  Hardly.  Seeded number one just a year ago, this blip reverts back to the norm next year.  Williams has four McDonald’s All Americans headed in.

5.  Auburn joins Kentucky in the top 25 from the SEC.  The SEC is weak in roundball this year.  At least it is perceived to be.  Mississippi St. and South Carolina are bubble type teams.  Florida, baring a big collapse will get in as will LSU.  Four tourney teams, if that is all that gets in, is indeed weak.

6.  In a recent episode of the No Laying Up podcast longtime CBS on-course announcer(but no more) Peter Kostis said, “I’ve seen Patrick Reed improve his lie, up close and personal, four times now.”  Reed must have felt like he took a sand wedge to the cranium.

7.  Speaking of sand, in a town hall interview this week on SiriusXM PGA Tour radio, Brooks Koepka was asked about Kostas’ comments and Reed’s penalty for improving his lie in a bunker last year in the Bahamas. “Yeah. I don’t know what he was doing, building sandcastles in the sand,” he said. “But you know where your club is.”  Ouch again.

8. After his opening round at the WGC-Mexico Championship, Reed was asked to respond to criticism from world No. 2 Brooks Koepka and former CBS analyst Peter Kostis.  “I said what I have to say about what happened in the Bahamas, and at the end of the day, all I’m trying to do is go out and play good golf and trying to win a golf championship,” Reed said following a first-round 69 that left him tied for eighth place in Mexico.  And win it he did.

9.  What would sports be without villains (er, umm, cheaters) like Reed?  The Red Sox don’t like the Yankees very much and vice versa.  Outside of Houston everyone now has the Astros.  Reed calls Houston home if you need another reason to boo the Astros when they come to your town this spring.

10.  Reed won $1.8 million for the four days of work in Mexico.  It was his ninth win on tour including the 2018 Masters.  He has an uncanny ability to shut out the naysayers in big moments.   Reed credited a hot putter down the stretch with three straight birdies to chase down Bryson DeChambeau.  His putter was hot.  But it wasn’t as hot as 84-year-old Mary Ann Wakefield’s putter.  Take a 30-second look.