Foggy Night, March Madness and the Ides of March

Today is March 15. It is the 74th day of the year. We are under a waxing gibbous moon. Sunset will occur about 7:03 p.m. Here are five things to know:

1. The National Weather Service forecast for this afternoon calls for mostly sunny skies with a high near 70 degrees and patchy fog tonight after 11 p.m. with an overnight low around 54 degrees. Forecasters said to expect patchy fog tomorrow morning, otherwise it should be partly sunny with a high near 64 degrees.

Also, a large northwest swell generated by a storm in the eastern Pacific Ocean will bring above normal surf to area beaches throough early Wednesday with sets of up to 6-feet along exposed west facing beaches. There's also a strong rip current out there.

2. Playa del Rey resident Phil Jackson and the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers beat the Orlando Magic 97-84 last night at Staples Center, continuing their high level of play since the All-Star break.

3. Speaking of hoops, it's March Madness. If you need a printable NCAA bracket, we got one for you right here.

4. Today is the Ides of March. What's an ides? The ancient Roman calendar had the ides as the day of the full moon and it corresponded to the 15th of March, May, July and October and the 13th day in other months. The Ides of March in 44 BC was the day Roman dictator Julius Caesar was assassinated. Plutarch wrote in "Parallel Lives" that Caesar saw a soothsayer who warned him of danger no later than the Ides of March. The scene was made famous in William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar."

5. Did you know you can follow Marina del Rey Patch, which also covers Del Rey and Playa del Rey, on Facebook and Twitter?