Blink-182 'Going Hard In The Paint' To Win Musical March Madness

The second round of MTV's Musical March Madness tournament is nearly in the books, and if a band is looking to punch their ticket to the Sweet 16, well, they'd better hurry.

After all, with polls set to close on Monday, April 1 at noon ET, there's not much time left to make a move ... which is why we've seen Paramore take potshots at Tokio Hotel, Tegan and Sara say sayonara to Green Day, and Fall Out Boy throw some Windy City shade at Smashing Pumpkins.

Simply put, the time for sportsmanship is over. Now, it's all about winning.

And when it comes to winning, there are few bands that do it better in MMM than Blink-182, who, for the fourth-consecutive year, are looking strong. They blasted Pearl Jam in the opening round of the tourney, and are currently pasting upset-minded #14 Queens of the Stone Age in round two ... meaning that, once again, a Sweet 16 showdown with old foes Thirty Seconds To Mars is probably looming.

But, as any tourney-tested band knows, you can't take anything for granted until the final buzzer sounds ... which is why Blink's Mark Hoppus emailed MTV News to give us an update on the band's MMM strategy, and to once again remind their fans to get out and vote.

"We're back in the brackets! Blink-182 going hard in the paint, as always," he wrote. "Now we're up against QOTSA and need your votes to advance forward. Vote it up, kind people!"

And when Hoppus quotes Wakka, well, you know he's serious. Screw sportsmanship, it's all about survive ... and advance. And with polls closing on Monday, it'll be up to you to help Blink do just that; and maybe topple Thirty Seconds To Mars in the Sweet 16.