Sweet Sixteen
March to Madness, Pang Zi, Elton John, Darius Acuff Jr, Barking Bench
Welcome to my 181st weekly newsletter. This issue includes my 1973 highlights, a book about March Madness, a popular noodle house, Bernie Taupin’s musical partner Reginald Dwight, the Razorbacks’ star guard, and a canine seat. I hope you like the picks and pics.
The Sweet Sixteen starts tomorrow. On Friday my two teams, Michigan and Michigan State, will play for the right to advance to the Elite Eight. The last time MSU was in the East Regional in Washington DC was 2019, when they beat Duke to reach the Final Four. Barb, Roger, Cristi, and I were there. Perhaps history will repeat.
I am rooting for an all-Big Ten Final Four, with the Boilermakers and Fighting Illini joining the Wolverines and Spartans in Indy. That will guarantee the first Big Ten national champion since Michigan State beat Florida in 2000, also in Indy. I was there for that one, and I will be there again this year. Fingers crossed!
It’s time to reserve seats for our April 19 house concert with Hayley Reardon. She has a number of US (Midwest mostly) shows coming next month 🌟.
On Sunday I picked up Noah and Julian for a boys’ day out. We started out at Spudnuts for donuts.
While waiting at the counter, I looked up to see Ken Olin and his grandson Elvis standing right behind us. Barb and I are huge fans of thirtysomething, in which Ken starred as Michael Steadman. Here he is with Mel Harris, who starred as his wife Hope Murdoch.
I shook his hand and told him that I am a fan. We ran into him and Elvis again at our next stop, Chaucer’s Books. We greeted one another before they departed.
Later I took the boys to Kid’s World Playground. We then walked over to Chicken Little where Julian picked out a Star Wars LEGO set and Noah chose a stuffed goat (his second one). We had a fine time together, although Julian later asked me why I like to watch basketball games so much.
If you enjoy Fave Five, please share it with your friends who also like books, food, music, sports, or humor. To do so, just click the button below.
Fave Five 181: Sweet Sixteen
ACC Action (March to Madness), Phenomenal Pho (Pang Zi Noodle Shop), Country Comfort (Elton John), Fantastic Freshman (Darius Acuff Jr), and a Barking Bench.
Fave Five List: ‘73 Highlights
I turn 73 tomorrow. To mark this occasion, here are my favorite memories of the year 1973.
Baseball: I had a press pass that let me get into all St. Louis Cardinals games. I switched allegiance from my previous team, the New York Mets, in a thrilling season that went right down to the final day. My new team, the Cards, finished 1.5 games behind my old team, the Mets. Standout players were Lou Brock, Bob Gibson, Rick Wise, Joe Torre, Tim McCarver, Bernie Carbo, and Bake McBride.
NBA: There was no pro team in St. Louis, so I continued to root for the New York Knicks. They won their second championship by beating the Los Angeles Lakers in five games. My favorite players were Dick Barnett, Bill Bradley, Dave DeBusschere, Walt Frazier, Phil Jackson, Jerry Lucas, Earl Monroe, and Willis Reed.
College Basketball: Washington University had no basketball team then, so I adopted the Saint Louis University Billikens and attended a number of their games. In the final game of the season, they defeated Memphis State, who eventually lost to UCLA in the NCAA Championship Final in St. Louis (in which Bill Walton set a championship game record, hitting 21 of 22 shots). In the semifinals, Memphis State beat Providence after Marvin Barnes (who later played for the Spirits of St. Louis in the ABA) was injured during the game. My favorite Billikens were Harry Rogers (who also later played for the Spirits), Jesse “The Ghost” Leonard, and Bill Paradoski (who often played center at 6’4”).
Career: Washington University had an intersession in January 1973 with no regular classes. To fill the time, I signed up for a class, Introduction to Programming the Laboratory Computer, at the Biomedical Computer Lab at Washington University School of Medicine. I did well in the class, and the instructor, the late Mike McDonald, recommended me for a summer job there. I got the job, worked there two summers, part-time during junior and senior year of college, and full-time after graduating in 1975. It’s a good thing that I noticed that class announcement on the bulletin board of the computer center and that I had already learned DEC PDP-8 assembly language at Northwestern University during my freshman year.
Music: Here are playlists of my 40 favorite songs and two favorite albums of 1973.
Favorite Songs Playlist
My Feet Are Smiling by Leo Kottke
Angel Clare by Art Garfunkel
Book Best Bet
March to Madness: A View from the Floor in the Atlantic Coast Conference by John Feinstein
I previously featured The Back Roads to March and A Season on the Brink by the late John Feinstein. What better book to include in the midst of March Madness than this one. I love college basketball and John Feinstein’s writing, so this was a no-brainer for me.
From Amazon; It's the book in which America's favorite sportswriter returns to the arena of his most successful bestseller, A Season on the Brink. It's the book that takes us inside the intensely competitive Atlantic Coast Conference and paints a portrait of how college basketball is coached and played at the highest level. It's the book that takes us onto the courts, into the locker rooms, and inside the high-pressure world of the talented coaches who have helped make the ACC's nine colleges—Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Virginia, Maryland, Wake Forest, & Florida State—world-renowned for their championship basketball teams.
Restaurant Recommendation
Pang Zi Noodle Shop 4427 Hollister Ave, Santa Barbara, CA 93110
I drive by this restaurant every day when picking up Julian from his school, which is just down the street. One day Barb and I had time to kill before pickup, so we enjoyed lunch at this small and popular place. It was a very warm day, but the hot pho hit the spot.
Homemade Lemon-Limeade
Pho: Rare Steak, Beef Pho Broth and Rice Noodles, Topped with White and Green Onions. Served with Beansprouts, Thai Basil, Lime, and Jalapeños on the Side.
They provide a serious bottle of hot sauce.
Marvelous Musician
Today is Sir Elton’s 79th birthday. I first heard “Your Song” on the radio in 1970 and bought the album Elton John, followed by Tumbleweed Connection (my favorite) and Madman Across the Water. Years later I became obsessed with finding a copy of the out-of-print box set To Be Continued... I eventually bought a Japanese import version. He and Bernie Taupin wrote many outstanding songs which have held up well over time.
From Wikipedia: Sir Elton Hercules John CH Kt CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on March 25, 1947 in Pinner, Middlesex, England) is an English singer, songwriter, pianist, and composer. Collaborating with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967 on more than 30 albums, John has sold over 300 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
John has had more than fifty top-40 hits on the UK singles chart and US Billboard Hot 100, including nine number ones in both countries, as well as seven consecutive number-one albums in the US. He is the most successful solo artist in the history of the US Billboard charts. His tribute single to Diana, Princess of Wales, “Candle in the Wind 1997”, a rewritten version of his 1974 single, sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling chart single of all time. In 2021 he became the first solo artist with UK top 10 singles across six decades. John’s awards include a Primetime Emmy Award, five Grammy Awards, two Academy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards, a Laurence Olivier Award and the Kennedy Center Honors. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, and is a fellow of The Ivors Academy. He was appointed Knight Bachelor for services to music and charity in 1998 and was appointed a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in 2020.
Take Me To The Pilot
Burn Down The Mission
Levon
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Someone Saved My Life Tonight
My Playlist
Sports Star
I have been impressed with the offensive performances of this freshman from Detroit. Tomorrow’s Sweet Sixteen game against Arizona should be a good one.
Take a look at his stats for most his five most recent games, all in SEC and NCAA tournament play.
From Wikipedia: Darius Eugene Acuff Jr. (born November 16, 2006) is an American college basketball player for the Arkansas Razorbacks of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). He was a consensus five-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2025 class.
Acuff was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. His father, Darius Acuff Sr., played for the Eastern Kentucky Colonels men’s basketball team.
Acuff first attended Cass Technical High School. As a freshman, he was a 2022 Associated Press (AP) all-state honorable mention. As a sophomore, he averaged 21.4 points and 5.7 assists per game, leading Cass Tech to a state championship. In 2023, he earned AP first-team all-state recognition and was the first sophomore to ever be named Mr. PSL for his play in the Detroit Public School League. Acuff transferred to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida after his sophomore year.
Acuff was a consensus five-star recruit in the 2025 class, according to major recruiting services. On July 26, 2024, he committed to play college basketball for John Calipari and Arkansas, choosing from a final list that also included Kansas and Michigan.
24 points, 7 assists in March Madness debut vs. Hawaii
36 points, 6 assists vs. High Point
Picture Pun
Doggedly pursuing photos to post.
