Welcome to Saturday Scorecard, where hope springs eternal on the first weekend of spring. We've got a busy day ahead -- with more hoops to watch and some quality Twitter time with Charlie V. -- so let's jump right into the notes.

Making noise in Boise: Wisconsin and Marquette helped put the paddles to the NCAA Tournament on Friday at the Taco Bell Arena. The Golden Eagles did it by nearly losing to Utah State. The Badgers did it with a dramatic 61-59 overtime victory over Florida State.

Both games held heavy local interest and, when coupled with Siena's double-overtime elimination of Ohio State, helped atone for some lackluster action on the Day 1 of the tournament. Eleven of the first 16 games were decided by double-digits.

Marquette and Wisconsin helped turn the tide and will give local sofa spuds a reason to stay glued to the couch on Sunday.

The Badgers won their game when Trevon Hughes converted a three-point play with 2 seconds left.

"Throughout the whole game I wasn't myself," Hughes said at the podium after the game. "I was making bonehead plays and at the end (coach Bo Ryan) put me in there with the ball in my hands, so it meant a lot. It means he still had trust in me to keep me out on the floor and put the ball in my hands.

"And plus I owed it to my teammates and my seniors. I didn't want this to be their last game. I'm sure we didn't want to go home tonight."

The Badgers (20-12), who trailed by 12 after a dismal first half, face Xavier on Sunday. Marquette matches up against Missouri. The third-seeded Tigers (29-6), coached by Mike Anderson, play a frenetic, fast-paced game and will challenge Marquette with their athleticism.

The "X" Factor: Xavier is a strong defensive team coached by Sean Miller, a former UW assistant. All you need to know about the Musketeers (26-7) is that they beat Memphis earlier this year and are competing in the second round of the tournament for the third straight year. In other words, they are legit and will provide a stiff test for UW.

Bustin' brackets: Plenty of people had fourth-seeded Wake Forest advancing deep into the tournament, but the Deacons got thrashed by No. 13 Cleveland State, 84-69. Here at Saturday Scorecard Headquarters, the loss by West Virginia (against a pesky Dayton squad that beat Marquette earlier this year) was far more damaging.

Saul falls short: North Dakota State, coached by UW-Platteville grad and Bo Ryan protege Saul Phillips, fell short in its attempt to dethrone defending champ Kansas. Ben Woodside scored 37 points in the 84-74 loss and prompted Jayhawks coach Bill Self to call him "the best guard we've faced." That's lofty praise.

Playing big: Big 12 teams were 6-0 in the first round. In the last two years, the Big 12 is 11-1 in first-round games. Remember that when you fill out next year's bracket. 

Tweet! The Bucks, badly in need of some "buzz" in a saturated sports market and tough economy, got some attention this past week when Charlie Villanueva sent a Twitter message during halftime of a game Sunday against Boston.

Of course, it didn't go exactly as planned.

Villanueva's "tweet" -- "In da locker room, snuck to post with my twitt. We're playing the Celtics, tie ball game at da half. Coach wants more toughness. I gotta step up." -- was harmless. It'd be ridiculously naive to think players don't check texts or voicemail messages during halftime. They do.

On its surface, there was nothing wrong with what Villanueva did. But, it created the appearance that he was somehow ignoring coach Scott Skiles and his assistants and not completely focused on the task at hand.

The Bucks didn't fine or reprimand Villanueva, which is good. Doing so would have been hypocritical. Like all sports franchises, the Bucks are trying to embrace social media like Twitter as a way to connect with fans. The team's Twitter account often "re-tweets" Villanueva's posts. The fact that Villanueva has embraced the form of direct contact with fans is something the club would like to encourage, not discourage.

What motivation does Villanueva have to participate? Well, maybe he just likes Twitter, which many people in his age group find addictive. He also is in a contract year. And, perhaps most important, his representatives recently sent out a promotional flyer advertising his availability for public appearances -- at about $1,000 a pop.

Consolation prize: Despite losing to Lake Erie on Friday night at the Bradley Center, the Admirals clinched a playoff berth because Chicago lost to Manitoba. Don't look for Lane Lambert's squad to back off the throttle in the coming weeks. The team still needs to fine-tune its power play and prepare for what could be a deep playoff run.

The Admirals host Hamilton at 4 p.m. Sunday. After the game, there will be a free concert with top-selling country music star Darius Rucker, front man for Hootie and the Blowfish.

Got their number: Detroit beat the Wave for the ninth consecutive game on Friday. Both teams are 9-7, but the Ignition holds the head-to-head tiebreaker with four games left in the inaugural season of the Xtreme Soccer League.

The Wave travels to New Jersey for a game on Sunday, then wraps up its home season with a game against New Jersey March 29 at U.S. Cellular Arena.

Speaking of the Wave, the team announced the inaugural class for the Wave Hall of Fame. Legendary goalkeeper Victor Nogueira, all-time leading scorer Michael King and franchise stalwarts Steve Morris, Pete Knezic, Todd Dusosky and Art Kramer form the first class.

"Whenever someone is inducted to a hall of fame, whether it's college or pro, it's a great honor," said Keith Tozer, head coach and vice president of soccer operations with the Wave. "I'm pleased that we have the ability to have a hall of fame, because of our longevity, and offer our players the honor they deserve."