Facing my disinterest in college basketball

On Wednesday night, I did something I haven't done since last March.

I watched a couple of college basketball games.

My decision was rewarded because I saw a great game when No. 2 Syracuse beat No. 11 Georgetown 64-61 in overtime and witnessed an even better game when Austin Rivers hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift No. 9 Duke over No. 5 North Carolina.

I couldn't have asked for better games to watch on my day off. An overtime game and a buzzer-beater back-to-back had me jumping out of my seat.

Then I got depressed.

I used to be a die-hard college basketball fan. I still remember where I was (hotel room in Palm Springs with my ex-girlfriend's family) the night UCLA knocked off the Adam Morrison-led Gonzaga team 73-71 in Sweet Sixteen in the 2006 tournament and left me — an avid Morrison fan — heartbroken. Remembering those moments makes it feel like I'm looking through old pictures of an ex-girlfriend, remembering how much I loved college basketball. Remembering how exciting it was and how I felt I would always love college basketball with all my heart. No other sport could ever make me feel this way.

But during the past 10 years, college basketball has slowly become the victim of Caliparism.

While a coach for Memphis and now at Kentucky, John Calipari has made a living on bringing in talented freshmen who use college as a springboard to get from high school to the pros. They'll play one year at that school before entering the NBA draft.

The NBA's rule prohibiting high school players to enter the draft has made college basketball better and worse. It means the sport is filled with better players, who will be become more prepared for the NBA when they enter the draft after a year. But it's also made the sport more difficult to follow. Talented players pass through college basketball like a revolving door and by the time you know who's who, they're employees of David Stern.

Another factor in my gradual disinterest in college basketball is the emergence of the NBA. Many will complain about the style of play in the NBA compared to college basketball, but with talented — and likeable — stars like Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, the product is extremely more polished than college basketball.

Because the two sports play simultaneously and have games scattered across the week, there isn't enough time to rigorously follow both. College football (Saturday) and the NFL (Sunday) can coexist because you have all week to catch up on news and teams.

The NCAA basketball tournament is the best playoff of any sport at any level — and it's not even close. In high school, I got out of my English class to go to the office and watch the first-round games. Every sports fan worth their weight in jerseys will fill out a bracket, truly believing this is the year they get them all right. After the first round, mine is usually only good to line a birdcage. That sort of parity is what makes the tournament so great.

But with constant overhaul of rosters in college basketball, the sport has become like a movie that's difficult to follow for two hours but the final 15 minutes are amazing. Sooner or later, those two hours of frustration aren't worth sitting through anymore.

Familiarity breeds comfort. It's why we go see movies with actors we know, like Tom Hanks and Clint Eastwood. It's why many people like living in the same house for years. It's why people don't up and move to Madagascar just because.

And it's the same reason why when March Madness rolls around and all the experts are raving about the talented freshmen for Kentucky, UConn and Syracuse, I know what my response will be.

Who?

Jesse Severson can be reached at jseverson@yumasun.com or at 539-6881