Let the madness begin. Another March has come along, and now ESPN's Dick Vitale can finally see some beauty in the world. Dick — and myself for that matter — see blue skies and clean tobacco roads nowadays, and not just in North Carolina.

Now that the most exciting event in sports is upon us, Dick and I will witness no more meaningless WAC conference games between Hawaii and whoever. And, we'll all be bombarded with in-depth profiles on persistent player on Holy Cross or Iona or Utah State who never got a shot until now.

Oh, the beauty of March.

But enough serenity and tranquility. Truth be written, the 2001 NCAA Tournament is all about office pools, late-night bracket busters, and omnipresent Cinderellas spoiling a top seed's expected run.

So, onto the predictions.

Beginning in the East, I see Duke, UCLA, Boston College and Iowa reaching the Sugary Sixteen.

Yes, Kentucky will choke once again and succumb to a lower seed.

Duke's balanced attack — with or without Carlos Boozer and Jason Williams — is just too much for any squad in this region. Putting even a dime on anyone else would be uncivilized. The Blue Devils will reach the Final Four.

In the West, Stanford, Cincinnati, Maryland and Iowa State will survive the first weekend.

Indiana could pull out a win over the Bearcats, but either way, Stanford will smother the winner of that game.

Once again, the top seed — Stanford — makes it out of this bracket. But there could be a slew of upsets here, however. Kent State could blow up Indiana's plans in the first round, and Georgetown could very well unseat Arkansas.

On the contrary, the Midwest region is by far the easiest to predict.

Every Xeroxed bracket from Philadelphia to Anaheim should have Illinois, Kansas, Ole Miss and Arizona making their way into the Sweet 16.

However, never underestimate the power of St. Patrick's Day. Notre Dame could play a pair of games bookending the 17th, and could edge out Ole Miss if the Lucky Charms are plentiful.

In the South, I see Michigan State, Virginia, Florida and North Carolina emerging.

Oklahoma could — and I'd say the chances are more like 50-50 — beat Virginia and face Michigan State.

But either way, coach Tom Izzo will guide the Spartans one step closer to repeating as champs.

And for the local crowd: I fully expect Penn State to beat Providence, but the chances of PSU defeating UNC will appropriately fit the opponent's acronym: Under No Circumstances.

After the Sweet Sixteen has been decided, I see Duke, Stanford, Arizona and North Carolina reaching the Final Four.

Now I recognize that quartet consists of two No. 1's and two No. 2's, but hey, the selection committee did a great job this year. Even with a wide-open field, there four aforementioned teams are clearly a notch above the next-year powerhouses like Illinois and Maryland.

After March passes and just as April begins to fool us, Duke will defeat Arizona. In fact, Duke will destroy the 'Cats in the big game.

By that time, Williams and Boozer will be healthy enough to lead the Blue Devils into half of the NBA's arenas and walk out as winners.

So if you haven't filled out a pool yet, do yourself a favor and take these picks into consideration.

Without a little advice, March can be maddening.

Unless of course, your name is Dick.