I saw some NCAA Tournament games from the stands today for the first time in a very long while. Since I was in college at Long Beach State and drove to Logan, Utah, to see the 49ers play Weber State a lifetime ago.

I saw the two early games at the West Regional at Anaheim thanks to a childhood chum, Frank Poturica, who happens to be a Stanford alumnus and had purchased four tickets to the early session. He had an extra ticket, and saw my blog and asked me if I wanted to go along and I said, “Sure!”

Day 1 of March Madness was short on craziness, and the two games we saw were no exception. But it was interesting to see how the non-credentialed live.$12 to park. $51 face value on the tickets, which were in the first row of the fourth level. $4.75 for a “super” hot dog.

First game was Kentucky and Marquette, two schools with scads of tradition but not particularly impressive teams, currently. Mostly, I talked to Frank about what’s happened since I last saw him, 13 years ago. Kentucky got close at the end, and we actually paid some vague attention until Marquette had won.

It was a bit weird there because a lot of fans seemed as interested in games going on anywhere else. They lined the concourse to watch, oh, Purdue and Baylor. They were rapt. As if this game was the linchpin of their brackets.

Second game was the one we came to see, Stanford vs. Cornell. A great matchup when it comes to academics, but a blowout in terms of basketball talent. Stanford abused the Big Red early and coasted home. The Lopez twins (Brook and Robin) were impressive but Stanford probably isn’t athletic enough or strong enough in the backcourt to last long.

In all, it was about seven hours from door to door, which is a bit much, for a fan. Two games, for sure, was enough for me. Though it seemed as if lots of people were staying after the early session to see the night session — BYU-Texas A&M and UCLA-Mississippi Valley State.

Four games would be WAY too much hoops if you’re not getting paid to watch. Something like 11 hours of college hoops. Doable, on your couch. Not so much, sitting in the stands.

Interesting concept, fan-dom. I’m not the demonstrative sort to begin with, but I just did three decades-plus of professional detachment. “No cheering in the press box” might be The First Commandment of sports journalism.

To be sure, sports reporters almost always prefer to see a certain team win. If it’s not the “home” team then they use some other method to decide a preference. Geographical, aesthetic, color of uniform … Since most are going to write game stories, as point of view helps shape an ability to deconstruct the event, later on. “Team A lost” rather than “Team B won.”

Sometimes, reporters are quite deeply pulling for a specific team. The one they cover regularly, or  the one they grew up supporting. They can’t (and rarely do) allow outsiders to see it, but it’s there, inside their heads. They absolutely will never, ever, stand up and cheer or pump their fists. No. Oh, no. That’s unprofessional.

So, yes, I may in some senses be “ruined” as a fan. I just can’t envision being un-self-conscious enough to stand up and cheer at an event. Sports writers don’t do that …

And, being on the other side of the ropes, being able to get into clubhouses and locker rooms and see athletes and coaches on a daily basis … it really kills the romanticism of it. Huge chunks of professional athletes are not nice people, aren’t good people (as long as they live the life-distorting existence of a pro athlete) and aren’t people you’d want to be around, if they weren’t dressing out for a local team.

Knowing that, having that in the back of my mind … no, I won’t be shouting myself hoarse any time soon. Not for anyone.

It was good to catch up with Frank, one of the three kids in my neighborhood that my brothers and I played sports with year-round, growing up in Long Beach. And to meet his son, Vince, and his friend, both students at Carleton College in Minnesota, in town for spring break.

I wrote this in the newspaper a month or two ago, but I don’t know how all you fans do this. All the money you pay to be in cramped conditions. I mean, programs at the arena were something like $20 bucks, and I can remember when they were maybe 35 cents.

I may be making the transition to fan, but it’s going to be a slow, hard one. The idea of potentially spending $100 per person to see a ballgame … I’m not ready for that yet, either.

The tournament continues tomorrow with 16 more games. Maybe we’ll have some genuine upsets, as opposed to USC losing to Kansas State and Duke ALMOST losing to Belmont. Today was pretty tame, especially the two games I saw at the Honda Center.