CBS' tournament coverage causes fans to miss out

TUBULAR: Last time I checked, the NCAA men's basketball tournament was a national event, so why is TV coverage mostly regional? The in-game cutaways are annoying and often infuriating. Every football bowl game, even the most irrelevant, is available on TV in its entirety to the entire country but, during college basketball's most exciting time of year, fans are at the mercy of CBS producers who try to guess - often badly - what people want to see.

Say what? In Japan, of all places, ESPN baseball mouthpiece Gary Thorne referred to the Red Sox as "world champions." Really? Does he realize that Asia has its own pro leagues? Since when do the continental U.S. and Toronto constitute the world?

Quick hit It's fitting, don't you think, that Jose Canseco's new book is coming out on April Fool's Day?

Correspondence E-mailer Bill Pepe Sr. says, if the Cowboys acquire Pacman Jones, they should change their uniform design from stars to stripes.

Isn't it rich Irony is hard to define, but you know it when you see it. To wit: Michael Irvin counseling Pacman.

Freeze frame Brett Favre hasn't filed his retirement papers with the NFL. Hmm. An oversight - or a sign that he's keeping his options open?

Double fault Monica Seles would still be in contention on "Dancing With the Stars" if she had been allowed to shriek.

Quick hit Chris Webber, who officially retired the other day, called a legal timeout this time.

Add retirement Webber had it all - great hands and feet, touch, size, quickness, passing skills, a winning smile... and yet his college and pro careers are remembered more for their disappointments than triumphs. A great talent that didn't fulfill his potential.

Throwback Stan Love, father of UCLA big man Kevin, gave his son the middle name of Wesley in honor of his former Baltimore Bullets teammate, Wes Unseld. "I just wanted to pay tribute to Wes," Stan said, "I didn't plan for Kevin to throw those outlet passes like Wes."

The long view In Houston and Detroit this weekend, NCAA regional games are being played in football stadiums that allow 40,000 or more fans to say they were there. Who cares if most of them can't actually see what's happening, right?

Kick start The players who made up the backbone of Alan Dawson's Old Dominion defense are beginning their rookie seasons in Major League Soccer - David Horst with Real Salt Lake and William Yomby with the Kansas City Wizards.

Idle thought Baseball would be a more interesting game if more players were named "Mookie" or "Boog."

New look The San Francisco Giants have stripped their stadium of Barry Bonds tributes and reminders of his 756 home runs. "We're going in a new direction," team president Peter Magowan said. New direction? That would be farther south, I believe.

Bob Molinaro, (757) 446-2373, bob.molinaro@pilotonline.com