2007年VOA标准英语-US College Basketball's 'March Madness' Tournam

By Parke Brewer¹
Atlanta, Georgia
29 March 2007

Four highly³ rated men's college basketball teams survived the first two weeks of the single-elimination U.S. men's national tournament known as "March Madness" and are prepared to square off in the so-called⁴ Final Four. VOA Sports Editor Parke Brewer is in Atlanta, Georgia to see which will win the coveted⁵ title and has a report.

One of the reasons this hugely popular 65-team tournament became known as "March Madness" is because year after year lower seeded schools found a way to upset the favorites. They did not necessarily⁶ win the title, but they stopped the dreams of many and often reached the Final Four.

Mar2 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070529/1105130.jpg" width="167" vspace="2" border="0" />

Ohio State's Greg Oden, center, tries to block the shot of Tennessee's Ramar Smith (12) as Dane Bradshaw, top, watches during their NCAA South Regional semifinal, 22 Mar 2007

This year, however, is different. Defending champion Florida, last year's runner-up UCLA (University of California at Los Angeles), Ohio State and Georgetown University, located in the nation's capital, are this season's semifinalists. In the four regional playoffs to determine the Final Four, Florida and Ohio State were both top seeds, while UCLA and Georgetown were second seeds. Combined, these are the highest rated teams in the Final Four since 1933.

Because of the format⁷ where one loss sends a team home, it is rare for a college to win back-to-back titles. The last to do it was Duke University of North Carolina in 1991 and 1992. It has become even more difficult to repeat in recent years because many star players leave their colleges early to become professionals in the National Basketball Association⁸.

It was very surprising that after Florida won last year, its star underclassmen decided⁹ to stay in school instead of opt¹⁰ for huge salaries in the NBA. They said they were enjoying college life, did not want the pressures of becoming pros¹¹ and wanted to try to defend their title.

Florida coach Billy Donovan has tried to make it worth their while.

"I really have worked very very hard on my end to make sure that they enjoy and have fun with the competition part of it and enjoy it," he said. "I think that these guys have had a great time. I see them having as much fun and enjoyment¹² this year as last year. And, you know what, that may be the hardest thing to do."

In one semifinal Florida will take on UCLA, the team it beat to win last year's championship. UCLA last won the national title in 1995. The other semifinal features Ohio State against Georgetown. Ohio State's only men's college basketball title came 47 years ago.

Georgetown won its only title in 1984 under John Thompson. He is the father of the current current coach, John Thompson III. Located in the nation's capital, basketball fans in Washington have watched the team go from being unranked to being highly rated this season.

Coach Thompson knows some even think his team has the talent to win it all.

"I am just so proud of these guys. You know, it kind of played out this year, in many ways, as I thought it would," he said. "I knew we would get better as the year went on. I knew we would get better and have a chance to be very, very good by the time this time of year rolled around. And those guys, they believe in us, and that is special."

And for Saturday's Final Four winners, it will be very special to play here for the championship Monday night.

1 brewer   

n. 啤酒制造者

参考例句：

• Brewer is a very interesting man. 布鲁尔是一个很有趣的人。
• I decided to quit my job to become a brewer. 我决定辞职，做一名酿酒人。

2 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

3 highly   

adv.高度地，极，非常；非常赞许地

参考例句：

• It is highly important to provide for the future.预先做好准备非常重要。
• The teacher speaks very highly of the boy's behaviour.老师称赞这个男孩的表现。

4 so-called   

adj.所谓的，号称的

参考例句：

• These were the so-called mainframe machines.它们被称为主机。
• Let's see what this so-called button does.让我们来看看为什么这个按钮叫这个名字。

5 coveted   

adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图

参考例句：

• He had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician. 他一直渴望有机会与著名音乐家一起工作。
• Ther other boys coveted his new bat. 其他的男孩都想得到他的新球棒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 necessarily   

adv.必要地，必需地；必定地，必然地

参考例句：

• More work does not necessarily call for more men.增加工作量不一定就要增添人员。
• A voter must necessarily be no younger than eighteen.选民必须在18岁以上。

7 format   

n.设计，版式；[计算机]格式，DOS命令:格式化(磁盘)，用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据；v.使格式化，设计，安排

参考例句：

• Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
• The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。

8 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

9 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

10 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

11 pros   

abbr.prosecuting 起诉；prosecutor 起诉人；professionals 自由职业者；proscenium （舞台）前部n.赞成的意见( pro的名词复数 )；赞成的理由；抵偿物；交换物

参考例句：

• The pros and cons cancel out. 正反两种意见抵消。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We should hear all the pros and cons of the matter before we make a decision. 我们在对这事做出决定之前，应该先听取正反两方面的意见。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。