This Feels Like March Madness, Alright

Someone once told me that the definition of "insanity" is "to keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."

Maybe I need to get some happy pills, because I keep looking forward to the ACC-Big Ten Challenge even though my beloved Big Ten has yet to win one heading into this week's ninth installment. Technically, though, I'm not expecting the Big Ten to prevail in this year's event, either.

At least this year we can't blame the schedule. Looking at it on paper before the season, most people probably would have have rated this fairly evenly balanced. That was before Ohio State showed some weakness, which shifted the balance of power too far to the ACC .

MONDAY
Wake Forest at Iowa, 6 p.m., ESPN2: Wake Forest has beaten a bunch of nobodies by a lot. Iowa also beat a bunch of nobodies by a lot, then lost to two mid-majors on South Padre Island. I'm giving the Hawkeyes a slight edge at home. Iowa.

TUESDAY
Georgia Tech at Indiana, 6 p.m., ESPN: Sure, Indiana slipped up on the road against Xavier. Tech has slipped up against the likes of N.C.-Greensboro, a school so obscure it has its location in its very name and I still don't know where it is. Indiana.

Northwestern at Virginia, 6 p.m., ESPNU: Northwestern had to dumpster-dive all the way down to Division III to get its only win of the year. At least the Big Ten is sacrificing the Wildcats on the road, which maximizes our winnable home games. Virginia.

Minnesota at Florida State, 6:30 p.m., ESPN2: Florida State is its normal inconsistent self. But while I'm willing to believe Tubby Smith will improve the Minnesota program, I need to see it first. Florida State.

Wisconsin at Duke, 8 p.m., ESPN: Another one that thankfully burns up an ACC home court. Wisconsin wasn't going to beat this Duke team anywhere on earth -- or probably anywhere else in the universe, for that matter. Duke.

Purdue at Clemson, 8:30 p.m., ESPN2: Purdue may be capable of pulling off upsets this year, but Clemson has been blowing people off the court. Clemson.

WEDNESDAY
N.C. State at Michigan State, 6 p.m., ESPN: Michigan State is probably the best team in the Big Ten. North Carolina State is not the best of the ACC. Michigan State.

Boston College at Michigan, 6 p.m., ESPNU: Michigan's got problems. Boston College.

Illinois at Maryland, 6:30 p.m., ESPN2: Wow, this one might be the toughest to call even if I wasn't biased. If Illinois plays as well as they did in the Maui Invitational, they could win this game. I don't know if that's enough for me to believe that they will, but since this is probably Illinois' last best shot at a quality non-conference win, I have to find a way. Illinois.

North Carolina at Ohio State, 8 p.m., ESPN: In fairness to the schedule-makers, this probably looked like a win for the Big Ten when the games were scheduled; the national runner-up should win at home against anybody. But it turns out Thad Matta is only a genius when he's coaching 7-footers. North Carolina.

Virginia Tech at Penn State, 8:30 p.m., ESPN2: This one is also a tough call. Va Tech has two unimpressive wins and two losses to ranked teams, which tells me nothing. Penn State has one or two bad losses. State College is a tough place to play, but I've given too many slight edges to the Big Ten already. Virginia Tech.

SUMMARY

So there you have it, the ACC takes it 7 games to 4. It could be worse; I'm not 100 percent convinced about Illinois and Iowa.

As I mentioned earlier, if Ohio State were going in the win column, all of the sudden this thing looks to be up for grabs. Minnesota could definitely pull off the upset -- and may even be favored to win -- and Penn State over Va Tech would only be a minor upset. But in real life, all three of those games go to the ACC, as does the Challenge title, again. Anybody got a connection for some happy pills?