Matt Stout: UConn placed in paradise for first part of NCAA tourney

Walking through the hotel's sliding doors Thursday morning, I tensed up for a moment, waiting for a cold blast of air to hit me. It did - but the air conditioning unit was far friendlier than Mother Nature.

Now in my second day in Florida covering the start of what the UConn men's basketball team hopes is a long run through the NCAA tournament, I've learned it's an adjustment coming from the clutches of a New England winter to 78-degree temperatures.

Mind you, this isn't a complaint. It's a thank-you letter to the NCAA selection committee for putting the Huskies in the closest thing to paradise I've seen in years.

Palm trees, cool breezes off the neighboring waters, bathing suits - I haven't experienced these things outside of the summer months since a trip to Orlando my senior year in high school.

Of course, I spent the majority of the day Thursday sitting inside the expansive St. Pete Times Forum doing a mix of interviews, writing and reporting. But just knowing a chance a snow isn't waiting for me outside is a good feeling.

Some UConn players would definitely agree with me.

"It feels reel good, back to the hot weather, enjoying myself," Birmingham native Stanley Robinson said. "But this (trip) is about business."

He's right: I'm here to work, too. The NCAA tournament signs and banners covering the Forum and the surrounding area tell me so. All the stories in the Tampa Tribune and St. Petersburg Times about the teams in town are a good reminder, too.

But there was a point later in the afternoon when I took the five-minute walk from the arena to the nearby harbor, sat down and just soaked in as much sun as I could. When you're covering a top-25 college basketball program, there aren't too many chances to take a winter vacation, even of the quasi variety.

Of course, you'll see a number of stories from Tampa in the coming days. I just have to get out of this darn A/C soon before I catch a cold.

Norwich Bulletin writer Matt Stout is covering the UConn Huskies as they play toward the NCAA National Championship.