Why the Utah 4A State Tournament is so good…

Can you think of a good pilot episode of a TV show.

They're all terrible.

Have you ever watched the Pilot episode of Sopranos. It's terrible.

Can't get through it. It's all explanation and introductions. Same with The Wire. I've had a hundred people tell me how The Wire is the greatest show ever.

I can't get through the fat of the first episode. "Here's the cop and he's talking and then here's his wife and oh, by the way here's this guy and his life and yada yada yada.

I turn it off. I can't suffer through the explanations. I wish I could just cut to the good part!

Here's what I mean. There ain't no fat in 4A playoff basketball.

There's only 4 nights of basketball and you got a champion.

Not 4 weekends like March Madness. Not two months like the NBA post season. Not four weeks like HS football, or 3 game series and losers' brackets like high school baseball.

You get a champion in 4 nights!

No fat. 32 minute games. Skip to the good part. This is it.

Don't worry about learning every character or player, don't worry about the back stories and the plot lines, just do or die action starting from the jump.

There are those that say there should be a losers' bracket, especially with only 14 teams in the whole classification. It would make sense once you get to the quarterfinal to allow a team to battle back.

I disagree. This is perfect.

We'll see you at center court on Saturday as a new champion is crowned.