I have a bit of a fascination with pawn shops. It's the mix of stuff, money and desperation.

So I was drawn to "Hardcore Pawn" (TruTV, 10 tonight), an entertaining reality show about a Detroit-based, family-owned shop. It has all of those elements, and since it's on TruTV, there's also lots of bleeped cussing. It's the earthy cousin of The History Channel's "Pawn Stars."

The Golds -- father Les, son Seth and daughter Ashley -- run a 50,000-square-foot store that will pawn almost anything. In the first episode, for instance, there's a donkey, a stripper poke, and a homemade cannon.

It's not much of an understatement to say that people across the country are waiting to see what the Wake County school board does today with the resolution that would dump the diversity policy for neighborhood schools.

Newspapers and television stations around the country are running the Associated Press story about today's school board vote on the community-based school assignment resolution. This comes after the Sunday New York Times article.

Gary Orfield, a UCLA professor who studies busing and civil rights, warned that abandoning the diversity policy means Raleigh can expect to see some of the same impoverished, troubled schools as Detroit, Philadelphia, New York and Chicago.

Supporters of the diversity policy are mobilizing for Tuesday's Wake County school board meeting, citing graduation statistics and a desire to keep up the pressure on the board majority.

"Two of the school board minority have asked us to keep coming; the new majority wants us to fade away so they can quietly segregate our schools," according to an e-mail message being circulated among diversity policy supporters. "Inside sources indicate that they want to move fast, and are hoping for a lull in the public's attention. . . ."

In e-mail messages, Wake's graduation rate is favorably compared with those of urban districts that don't have diversity policies. For instance, they cite how Wake's 78.4 percent graduation rate is much higher than the rates in places such as Dallas, Detroit and Houston.

• Could tonight’s championship game between Michigan State and North Carolina be all but over at halftime?

A couple of trends say so. The Tar Heels (33-4) have a 31-2 record when they go to intermission with a lead. But not so fast. The Spartans are 23-1 when leading at the half.

In Saturday’s semifinals, Carolina led Villanova 49-40 and Michigan State was up 38-36 on Connecticut at the breaks.

DETROIT — If Detroit area weather forecasts are correct, Monday’s championship game between North Carolina and Michigan State should be an interesting experience for the 72,500 or so fans expected to show up at Ford Field.

Up to 6-8 inches of snow is expected overnight Sunday and through the day Monday.

The city is used to dealing with rough weather -- “Hockey Town” is a popular nickname -- but heavy traffic is another matter. In cold but clear conditions during Saturday’s semifinal games, street and pedestrian traffic for several blocks around the stadium was a nightmare.

 UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp will be doing some schmoozing this weekend when he attends the Final Four with his family.

The itinerary, according to a university spokesman: Thorp and his family will fly to Detroit with a donor and return with the team. The athletic department covers the cost of game tickets, lodging and the return flight for Thorp and his wife, Patti. The Thorps will pay for their children to attend and travel.

Thorp will represent the university at official events sponsored by the alumni association, the Ram’s Club and the athletic department, including a pre-game reception Saturday.

Thorp had similar duties last month during the ACC tournament in Atlanta.

Under state ethics laws, the university cannot give away game tickets but state officials can purchase them from the athletics office. As of Friday, the university has received Final Four ticket requests from Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight’s office - for two tickets - and from Gov. Beverly Perdue’s office - for four tickets.

Perdue has only requested tickets if the Heels advance to Monday’s national title game, according to the university.

North Carolina's Final Four basketball team is scheduled to depart the Smith Center at 7 p.m. today and arrive in Detroit about 10 p.m.

The Tar Heels will face Villanova on Saturday in the second game of the semifinals doubleheader at Ford Field.

If UNC coach Roy Williams gets a hankering to go on one of his famous pre-game spitting sprees at the Final Four, the Detroit River will give him a big target. The broad, scenic river embraces much of the city.

In years past, Williams often has visited the banks of the Mississippi River to deposit his lucky spits. It worked for him last week in Memphis, where the Tar Heels defeated Gonzaga and Oklahoma to advance to the school's 18th Final Four.