The Half Time Poem. Okay, the BasketCases have a confession to make. Writing a blog takes time! (You didn't think we just tossed this stuff up here, did you?) And when there's a 7pm game on a school night, well, waiting until after the game to start blogging means a fairly late night. So given that Maryland was playing at Clemson and we could sit at our computer and blog while listening to the game, we thought we'd get ahead of the curve by drafting our blog during halftime, when Maryland was up 48-30 after a great run, including Kristi Toliver's incredible 5 of 5 three-pointers. We were so inspired by Maryland's first half performance, we wrote a poem. (Well, okay, we stole someone else's poem and changed a few words.) Unfortunately, the poem that we wrote wasn't justified by the second half of the game. But we wrote it and now it's late, so we are going to share it with you anyway. So here is it, our half time poem:

Tigers, Tigers, Burning Bright
In the Carolina night
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

The Terps of course with game on fire,
And burning eyes of great desire.
To Kristi’s threes they all aspired
And with great hands they scored much higher.

While on Lang's shoulders all took part
To twist the sinews of each heart.
And when their hearts began to beat,
They ran the court with swifter feet.

What the hammer? What the chain?
Why cause Clemson so much pain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp
Had the Tigers closely clasped?

When the stars threw down their spears,
And water’d heaven with their tears,
The Terps were there to smile and see,
How well they played and shot the three.

Tigers, Tigers, burning bright
In the Carolina night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

Maryland 48, Clemson 30. [Final score: Maryland 76, Clemson 62]

with great apologies to William Blake

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Friday Morning Update: Double Yow. Don't miss Rick Maese's column in today's Baltimore Sun about Debbie Yow and big sis Kay, who, thankfully, has just returned to her Wolfpack team even as she continues chemotherapy to battle the recurrence of breast cancer. NC State's Hoops for Hope game against Boston College is this Sunday in Raleigh.