Raftery's such a Philly guy

VERNE LUNDQUIST and Bill Raftery, two of the best at what they do, will be huge today in Philadelphia.

Beginning with the Villanova game at 12:30, the CBS broadcast team is calling three of the four games being televsied primarily in this area.

Lundquist, a consummate pro, lives in Colorado. Raftery has Philadelphia roots going back to his playing days at La Salle in the 1960s. He never hides his affection for this town, like when he got off one of the best lines of the college basketball season during last Sunday's Atlantic 10 championship.

As they went to break, cameras showed Fran Dunphy after Temple had scored a nifty layup off a defensive play. Raftery figuratively nudged Lundquist while saying excitedly, "Cheesesteak. Hoagie. Mustard on your pretzel, Verne. You don't get that in Colorado."

If you're not sure what that means, that's OK. You simply don't know Bill Raftery's style. But you will by the end of the day.

And before you ask . . .

UConn book it

The same cannot be said for the women's tournament. Connecticut is such a ridiculous favorite, there is no sense even making a wager.

The Huskies are a ridiculous 1-10 pick to win the championship. That means if you want to win yourself $100, you would have to lay $1,000. If you wanted to bet against UConn, the entire field is 7-1.

The Huskies have won 72 in a row and many of them were over by "Oh, say, can you see." UConn has a first-round layup drill against Southern U. and would get Temple in Tuesday's second round if the Owls beat James Madison. *

- Ed Barkowitz

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