Starting Five

1. Netanyahu Neutrality

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives in Washington, D.C., drops a Game of Thrones reference, and demonstrates that a head of state is able to earn a rousing cheer when speaking to the 114th U.S. Congress.

POTUS did not attend, as Netanyahu is up for election in a few weeks and POTUS did not want it to seem as if the administration was backing one candidate over another.

A few things I never knew as I looked into this: Speaker of the House John Boehner was honorably discharged from military service in 1968 (kind of a bad time to be serving in the U.S. Army) after eight weeks due to a bad back. Second, Boehner took seven years to graduate from Xavier University, partly because he was working his way through college. He is one of 11 children and, according to Wikipedia, his parents slept on a pull-out couch. And Boehner began working at his family’s bar at age eight.

2. 30 Rock and (Heads) Roll

My favorite behind-the-scenes TV star, producer Michael Weisman, is going to have to wake up a lot earlier now that he has agreed to play Mr. Wolf to MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Meanwhile, there’s a rumor circulating that the head of NBC’s news division, Deborah “Bitch is the New Black” Turness (that’s a compliment, btw), may be on her way out, apparently for decisively handling the situations of Jamie Horowitz and Brian Williams. Wherefore art thou, Jack Donaghy?

3. Robert Flores: Temecula

Who knew he had it in him? SportsCenter anchor Robert Flores is out-swagging Swaggy P. himself, Nick Young. To recap:

Saturday: Flores takes an unprovoked shot at Young’s girlfriend, Iggy Azalea, on SportsCenter, which a few people who care about sports happen to watch. In Flores’ defense, it has been a looooooooooooooooooong winter in New England, and having lived through one central Connecticut winter (barely), I know that it makes people a little mean.

Monday a.m.: Swaggy P. fires back via social media with a veiled threat.

Monday: Flores comes back with an even harder overhead smash, alluding to Swaggy P.’s shooting percentage this season by saying that even if Young did take a shot at him, “there’s a 70% chance he’d miss.” Degree of burn? Sick. (Fact-checker update: more like a 64% chance he’d miss).

Today: Where is the Swaggy P. Army? When will someone invite Flores to settle this in Temecula? And do you think any Bristol-bound anchor would refuse a trip to southern California right about now, even if a beating accompanied it? Or this could be a fitting undercard to the next Ronda Rousey 15 seconds-or-less bout.

4. I Love Brent

A few years ago I spent an absolutely frigid and wonderful Monday in Lawrence, Kans., with the legendary Brent Musburger. One of the things Brent told me: “Don’t gamble, John.”

One of the things I love about Brent is that he doesn’t take his own advice. It sounds as if Brent, who called last night’s Oklahoma at Iowa State contest, had the Sooners plus-six. The Hawkeyes Cyclones Ames’ed high and won 77-70. “You’re looking live” handled the disappointment well, particularly when you consider that Oklahoma led 48-28 early in the second half.

5. You Know Nothing, John Snow W.

Who knew “Things I Didn’t Know” would be such a bounteous bevy of brass tacks? Only everyone who knows me. In the immortal words of Simon LeBon, “Please. Please. Tell me now. Is there something I should know?”

Two items today, each of them courtesy of my pal Sorp, who informed me last night and BLEW MY MIND!

1) Rocker Tom Petty appeared in the 1997 Kevin Costner film The Postman (WHAT!?!?). Guess I never saw it –and, honestly, back then he could’ve been mistaken for Dwight Yoakam, who did appear in Sling Blade around the same time.

2. Actor Chris Pine (Star Trek) is the son of Robert Pine, who played the sergeant (Sgt. Joe Getraer) on CHiPs (that’s how you spell it, kiddos). Moreover, Pine’s mother is actress Gwynne Gilford, who made a few appearances on CHiPs as Sgt. Getraer’s wife. Is your mind BLOWN yet?

Remote Patrol

Kentucky at Georgia

ESPN 9 p.m.

Cats versus Dawgs. Kentucky would move to 30-0 with a victory in Athens, and are the unranked but 19-9 Bulldogs the team to take down the likes of Willie Cauley-Stein, Karl-Anthony Towns and any other three-named assassins on John Calipari’s roster? Probably not. But last month the Felines played a pair of SEC road games versus decent competition, Florida and LSU, in which they trailed after halftime. That’s probably the best any fan of an upset should hope for this evening.