A BABE, A DOG AND A DICK - SWEET 16 DAY TWO RECAP

"In the first annual competition of "A Babe, A Dog and A Dick," Rivalfish has challenged a ditzy bombshell and a drooling canine to outperform college basketball guru Dick Vitale in picking this year's bracket. Check out last week's article to read about the contest in full, and learn how our competitors made their picks." - Rival Room Editor

Sweet 16 Day 2 Recap

It looks like the party may be finally over for our Babe and Dog. As we head to the Elite Eight in Rivalfish's online tourney, Dicky V has emerged, significantly, as the new leader in our office pool.

Click below to see the brackets!

The Babe's Picks -- The Dog's Picks -- Dick's Picks

Picks to win: The Babe - Villanova; The Dog - Gonzaga; The Dick - UConn

It's just like junior high. You graduate from 6th grade and think that 7th grade promises a blank slate, a fresh start, a leveled playing field. Any identity can be yours. However, the kids who were cool in elementary school very quickly become the kids that are cool in junior high, and while you think there's an open window to prove yourself to the one girl whose sprouted what will someday be actual breasts, very quickly, the same douchebag who was teasing you in the 2nd grade, strolls up, Marlboro Lights that his cousin bought for him in hand, and snags the girl.

This year's NCAA bracket felt the same way. We thought we could take on the expert. We saw 64 teams and we saw opportunity. Maybe it's the ESPN culture that gave us false hope.

With amateur poker players like Chris "I am the physical embodiment of an Arby's sandwich" Moneymaker and Greg "I wear these glasses to honor my grandfather's devilish, beady red eyes" Raymer taking down the poker pros, I guess we at Rivalfish got a little greedy.

"Greed is good," a certain Gecko might say, and no, not that annoying car insurance fella. Still, in our attempt to take down a college basketball giant, a sexy babe and lovable dog seem to have been hung out to dry.

After last night's mayhem, with UConn, Villanova, George Mason and Florida all moving on to the Elite Eight, in some cases by the smallest of measures, our dog and babe have been relegated back to the second tier. Although Dicky V isn't armed with peach fuzz, a Nirvana tee and a pack of Marlboro Lights, he does have something we'll call "actual basketball knowledge" that may explain why at the end of the day, he could foresee the big guns that would still be playing on the hardwood.

Though Kevin the Dog may have been proverbially "put down" in the true veterinary sense following last night's games, all hope isn't lost. The Babe still could pull off a bracket victory, and a $200 Rivalfish shopping spree, if Villanova can somehow win it all.

Dicky V may have a comfortable lead right now, but he's seen Back to the Future and he knows that Marty McFly's disappearing hand can once again materialize. It's just going to take one very fateful kiss. But remember, this is March Madness. This is college basketball's very own Enchantment Under the Sea. The big dance, where all those fateful kisses can happen.

It can still come down to the final game, where Shira the Babe has picked Villanova and Dicky V has chosen UConn.

Until then, we'll be rooting for The Babe. And may Johnny B. Goode.