Vince Marriott: Even though most of the country has been watching NCAA basketball over the past couple of weeks, there is still plenty of interesting NBA action taking place as the season winds down, as it seems like every game carries major playoff implications. When the Dallas Mavericks travel to Florida to take on the Orlando Magic on Friday, it will be a great game between two teams jockeying for prime playoff positioning. Dwight Howard decided to stay with the Magic because he thinks that Orlando has a chance of winning it all, and games like this will help determine whether or not this is a realistic goal. (Friday, 8 p.m., ESPN).
Jonathan Gault: The NCAA tournament is awesome, but in recent years, the Final Four has been a bit of a letdown. Everyone loves underdogs, but when those underdogs reach the Final Four, you get bad basketball. No one wants to see Butler-VCU in the national semifinals, and last year's championship game, in which UConn defeated Butler 53-41 with both teams combining to shoot 26 percent from the field, was one of the worst played games I've ever seen. Fortunately, we don't have to worry about that this year. College basketball is at its best when the traditional powers have good teams, and every team in this year's Final Four has won at least one national title. Louisville and Kentucky will take their in-state rivalry to a national stage, while Ohio State faces Kansas in the other semifinal. The winners will meet next Monday with the national championship on the line. (Saturday, 6 p.m., CBS).
Dong Zhao: Meaningful baseball is back. Although it might not feel like spring yet in Hanover, the boys of summer will be back in action starting with the Japan Opening Series on Wednesday and Thursday as the Oakland Athletics will play "host" to the Seattle Mariners in Tokyo for a two-game series. The series will officially kick off the most intriguing MLB season in recent memory. Who will benefit from the extra wild card spots? How will Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder fare on their new teams? Will Yu Darvish adjust to life in the majors? Will the Red Sox and Braves rebound from their historic collapses? One thing is for sure the 2012 baseball season will be another great one. (Wednesday, 3 a.m., MLB Network).
