Andy's Thoughts - February 18
Holy Trinity vs Saint John
Special Guest Columnist: Mark Kalzer

Well, thanks to some unimportant Federal Budget that somehow takes presedence over Smart Ask, those in the Eastern part of the country were deprived of their fix of Smart Ask this afternoon, with no repeat in sight. (So much for the players waving to their alternates at home) So what does Andy do? Turn to his good friend Mark Kalzer from Pickering (well, Claremont, a village north of the city famous for it's huge wad of nothing), me, who just happens to have Satellite, allowing me to catch the show as it airs un-pre-empted in Winnipeg. (I can also watch that hit show 24 two hours early!) So, I will be writing a guest column today, and taping the show while I'm at it! But first...the John Madden of Smart Ask (Or should I say Don Cherry?): Andy Saunders...

"The two teams are Saint John High School from Saint John, NB and Holy Trinity High School from Torbay, NL. Saint John won its opening game 600-150 over Windermere High School (from Vancouver), and Holy Trinity advanced to Round 2 by defeating White Pines Secondary School (from Sault Ste. Marie) by a score of 530-420."

Note from Andy: Back to Mark

Really tough questions this show. Very little room is left for guessing, except in the Dog Eat Dog!

When I read the description of the teams from Andy, I initially thought the two were pretty even. As it turns out I was right. The game was neck and tie for a good portion, with Saint John only finally being able to pull a lead with a lucky guess in the Dog Eat Dog. (A really good guess, the kinda guess I would've made also) Even then it was tight.

The lightning round got pretty close but it was rather short. I really wonder how they determine how long it will be each episode. Andy theorized that it has to do with how long the taping up to that point has lasted. (Methinks Mio's moment bit was too much of a distraction for them to keep to time)

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