The Victors: Project OSPREY
(No. 12) Purdue 80-57 Michigan
10-3, Big Ten 0-1

Sweet merciful crap! As painful as yesterday's drubbing was, 'twould be inaccurate for me to say it was no fun at all. The ill-starred Boilermakers beat the tar out of us at the top of the game, being on pace in the first five minutes to score a century, but this was followed by rising elation as the valiant Wolverines came roaring back & a moment of pure bliss when the score became, for one too-brief moment shortly before halftime, Michigan 26-25 Purdue. And then the roof of Crisler Arena might as well have collapsed. We were unable to muster any defense in the second half as Purdue scored an obscene 50 points; our offense output in the second half slightly exceeded that of the first half, but 'twas all for naught in the face of the ill-starred Boilermakers' onslaught. "Misery, misery, misery," compounded by my father's giddy cackling throughout the second half. (He is an alumnus of Purdue University.) I didn't expect the valiant Wolverines to triumph, but neither did I expect such a shellacking in our own facility. I'd rather such an embarrassment had taken place inside the "Black Hole of Calcutta" instead of the "House that Cazzie Built." Alas! Woe! Doom!

On the other hand, there's no time to dwell on the loss, for Big Ten play's just getting started. Next up: the valiant Wolverines host the ferocious Nittany Lions of Penn State on Sunday afternoon (2 January, 4:00 P.M.).

Go Blue!

The Rebel Black Dot Song of the Fifth Day of Christmas
Bing Crosby, "Hark! The Herald Angel Sings" from Christmas with Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, & Dean Martin (T.L.A.M.)