Noah Horchler and the Friars open Big East Tournament vs. DePaul (AP Photo: Stew Milne)

By BUNKY McCOY

• Is it me or does spring training go on for way too long?
• At least there’s the mercy rule. Judging by the makeup of the pitching staff, the Red Sox should petition MLB to roll the rule over to the regular season.
• To pack heavy or to pack light? That is the question as the Friars head to New York for this week’s Big East Tournament.
• Want to know how to act around women? Just do the opposite of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
• The R.I. Interscholastic League deserves credit for getting through the high school winter sports season relatively unscathed.
• That being said, the RIIL couldn’t wait a few days so that Mount St. Charles and Bishop Hendricken could duke it out on the ice for the Division I hockey championship? So a few skaters are late to football practice, big deal. No matter how you slice it, it leaves an empty feeling when you declare the Hawks and Mounties co-champions.

• Is it me or the issues surrounding Prince Harry and Meghan Markle fall under the category of too much information? Better yet, who can relate since we’re talking about royalty?
• That said, Bunky, seems to me that Meghan wasn’t very believable when she told Oprah that she `never Googled my husband.’ Really?

• In case you’re scoring at home there was a 7 ½-week gap between President Joe Biden tapping Gina Raimondo as Commerce Secretary and Dan McKee getting sworn in as the state’s next governor.
• LINE OF THE WEEK comes from Channel 6 reporter Amanda Pitts via Twitter upon Governor McKee releasing the salaries for staff appointments: “Ahhh yes. The time when government salaries are made public and everyone who works in news screams/cries internally.”
• If you were to add up the salaries of McKee’s 33-person staff, it would probably be more than what the Patriots spent on their quarterbacks last season.
• There’s no truth to the rumor that the cardboard cutouts were pumped and jacked and thinking of storming the court at Alumni Hall on Saturday after the Friars held on to beat No. 10 Villanova.

• Or that we should have a little March Madness around here because we’ve had enough winter madness.
• The Journal was voted New England Newspaper of the Year. Congrats, but who exactly was the competition?
• The latest ESPN “30 for 30” documentary is titled “Al Davis vs. The NFL.” Davis is dead and the NFL is still here so that’s a TKO.
• What does your Zoom background say about you? If you’re multi-media R.I. sports personality Kevin McNamara, you’re either walking down the back nine at Augusta National or trying to watch the Celtics through the dense cigar smoke at the old Boston Garden.
• Gal Godot as Wonder Woman? Give me Lynda Carter every day of the week and twice on Sundays, Bunky.
• I’m ready for the return of Andy Gresh on whatever platform he chooses.

• Smart move by UConn to extend Dan Hurley’s contract.
• It’s only a matter of time before the NCAA basketball coaching carousel starts spinning and Bryant’s Jared Grasso is mentioned as a candidate for this school or that school. First opening of note: lowly Fordham.
• Heart shaped lights at Polar Park, the new home of the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate? Whose bright idea was that?