Caroline's comedy club, mere blocks away from the ESPN Zone in Times Square is hosting the stand-up equivalent to college basketball's annual gambling ritual with March Comedy Madness. Thankfully, there's no Dick Vitale, though there are 64 competitors scrambling for the right to headline at the club through an entire weekend.

Comics get one minute to win over the crowd in the first round, two minutes for the round of 32, four minutes for the Sweet Sixteen, seven for the Final Four and ten for the championship. It's like condensing years of angst and rejection into a few weeks' worth of stage time.

The New York Times highlights a few of the entrants and their jokes. Brooklynite and finalist Rob O'Reilly outlines his attack philosophy:

“My strategy during the shorter sets is to try and come off as very likable, very clean, and to try and get the crowd on my side . . . As a comedian, you want to reach the later rounds so that you have more time to mess with the audience, and more time to be funny.”

If you're curious about the affair, tickets are still available for tomorrow night's Round 4 show.