College Basketball Weekend In Review
Friday
-Butler won their 18th straight game in as many Horizon League games with a win over Valparaiso and Cornell remains two games up on Harvard in the Ivy League after both teams won. While Siena blew out Rider to move to 16-1 in the MAAC, Fairfield pulled into second place with a win over Fairfield. Weber State continues to have a commanding lead in the Big Sky.
Saturday
-Alpabetically around the country, Rhode Island and Charlotte took crippling A-10 losses to severely damage their at-large hopes as RI fell at St. Bonaventure and Charlotte lost at George Washington. Dayton and Saint Louis took their must-win home games. The ACC saw Maryland’s legend growing bigger as Greivis Vazquez poured in a career high 41 as the Terps won at VaTech 104-100 in double-OT. Back to back losses against BC and Maryland are hurting the Hokies’ at-large hopes tremendously. While Georgia Tech won their must-win home game against BC, Wake Forest took a bad home loss to North Carolina. The Big 12 saw top ranked Kansas falling from grace in Stillwater, losing their first conference game at the hands of the Cowboys 85-77. Kansas State beat Missouri, Texas A&M may have pushed Texas into the bubble (but I doubt it) with a home win and Texas Tech will be going to the NIT after a 2OT loss at Nebraska. Baylor won at Oklahoma to stay hot. Syracuse clinched a share of the Big East regular season title and the top BE Tournament seed with a 95-77 home win over Villanova. South Florida won their must-win game over Providence, and Notre Dame put them right on the edge of an at-large bid after winning at Georgetown without Luke Harangody. In the Big 10, Minnesota got a big win at Illinois to keep their distant at-large hopes alive and put into question Illinois’ at-large chances. Old Dominion’s at-large chances got a nice boost after a home win over VCU. UTEP, UAB, Tulsa, Memphis and Marshall won their must-win contests with the Thundering Herd surviving a 3OT thriller against UCF. Northern Iowa beat Illinois State to keep their at-large hopes alive if they don’t win the Missouri Valley. New Mexico is now 6-0 against ranked teams after winning at BYU and UNLV took their must-win game by 30 at Air Force. California will at least share the Pac 10 title after winning over Arizona State and probably clinched an at-large bid. The Sun Devils still need work. Washington kept their at-large hopes alive by winning at rival Wazzu. In the SEC, number two went down along with Kansas as Kentucky lost at Tennessee 74-65 and the Vols now have wins over the top two teams in the country. Ole Miss and Mississippi State took their must-win games but Florida took a bad loss at Georgia to damage their at-large aspirations.
Sunday
-Purdue is still adjusting to life without Robbie Hummel, and became the third top-3 team to fall in two days with a 53-44 loss to Michigan State. Elsewhere in the Big 10, Northwestern suffered a 19 point loss at Penn State which ends any prayer at an at-large. Xavier and Temple are now tied atop the Atlantic 10 after the Muskateers got a big home win over Richmond in OT and Temple downed LaSalle. In the America East, Vermont drew to within a game of conference leader Stony Brook after the Seawolves fell by 22 at New Hampshire and the Catamounts beat Binghamton. Fairfield, Rider and Iona kept pace with 17-1 Siena in the MAAC. In the Big East, Louisville got a much needed road win over UConn to stay on the bubble’s good side while the Huskies need a few more wins to feel safe. Marquette can be safely called in with another victory after a huge OT win at Seton Hall that ended the Pirates’ at-large hopes at 16-11 (7-9). You can punch Clemson’s ticket to the Big Dance after a road win at Florida State and Duke pounded Virginia.
Monday Preview
-West Virginia and Georgetown are already in the Big Dance but they will fight for Big East Tournament positioning and a possible double bye at ESPN at 7 eastern followed by Texas desperately needing to end their slide at home against middling Oklahoma at 9. A loss would put the Longhorns at a serious disadvantage. Utah State needs to beat Fresno State to keep their at-large hopes alive.
NFL Free Agency Rumors 2/26/10
Well, we had a good 18 days there without having to talk about football, but with free agency starting next week, the combine going down this week and an uncapped year becoming official Monday, it’s time to start up the rumor mill.
NFL- In important coin flips today, Jacksonville will pick 10th and Denver 11th, Tennessee won the 16th pick and Atlanta beat Houston for 19th.
New York Jets- While there’s been a lot of noise about acquiring CB Nnamdi Asomugha, there are much more likely and pressing scenarios and issues for Gange Green, such as the status of RB Thomas Jones. Scouts Inc Senior Writer Matt Williamson told SprungOnSports his take on the Jones situation: “With a final 4 appearance and I think they live for today and keep Jones. Maybe listen to a trade offer for him though.” Chris Mortensen went to far as to say that he does not think Jones will be a Jet by March 5, when he’s due a $3 million roster bonus. They’ll try and rtrade him, but I think he’ll be released. Williamson also went on to tell SprungOnSports that “judging by the Jets two past off seasons, they are not going to be bashful. My needs for them are CB, WR and DE along with another OLB type pass rusher. But their D surely was not bad last year-even without Jenkins.” On the rumors of the Jets going after LB Travis LaBoy, Williamson didn’t sound too excited. “Wouldn’t get excited about LaBoy. What has he done lately?”
New Orleans Saints- With 13 restricted free agents, the defending champs are getting to work with qualifying offers already out to Remi Ayodele, Anthony Hargrove, Jamaal Brown, Jermon Bushrod, Roman Harper, Usama Young, Lance Moore, Courtney Roby, David Thomas and Pierre Thomas. Darren Sharper, Scott Fujita and Jahri Evans are among the players they’ll have tough decisions with.
Minnesota Vikings- The team is trying to resign reserve RB Chester Taylor, but they have to be thinking about LaDanian Tomlinson and Brian Westbrook, especially with Brad Childress being an old Philly guy.
Cincinnati Bengals- Despite previous reports, the Bengals probably will not bring in Terrell Owens.
New England Patriots- Still no talks between the team and LB Adalius Thomas, says Albert Breer. Looks like this one will go down to the March 5 wire.
Chicago Bears- Chicago needs a big splash and new leadership on defense and have an opening at DE. Don’t think the team is thinking about the possibility of signing Julius Peppers. Don’t expect the team to bring back Thomas Jones. The Bears are also expected to pursue Antrel Rolle.
Detroit Lions- With LaDanian Tomlinson now on the market, he has been rumored to go to a lot of places, with Houston ruling him out. Detroit said they wouldn’t rule out going after LT.
Pittsburgh Steelers- With NT Casey Hampton resigned for three years and Jeff Reed franchised the team is now concentrating on locking up S Ryan Clark. The team does not have plans to bring back Willie Parker.
Miami Dolphins- After showing support for Gibril Wilson, Channing Crowder and Patrick Turner, the team has a priority at OLB, which can easily be filled by Karlos Dansby, a free agent who shows interest in Miami.
Cleveland Browns- On March 19, Derek Anderson is due a $2 million roster bonus, and with a $7.45 million base salary in 2010, Mike Holmgren has a tough decision to make.
Washington Redskins- The Skins want to rebuild their offensive line, but would like to do it with C Casey Rabach. They’re in negotiations to resign him. The team has tendered a contract to RFA QB Jason Campbell.
NBA Week In Preview 2/26
TNT’s Dynamite Performers- Cleveland outscored Boston 60-32 in the second half and silenced the Celtics 108-88 at the TD Garden. LeBron James scored a game high 36 points, nine rebounds and seven rebounds to lead the Cavs while Ray Allen led Boston with 21 as Paul Pierce continues to sit out. Rajon Rondo had 19 points and 11 assists for the Celtics.
-Defense was thrown out the window in Oakland, as Chauncey Billups poured in 37 and Carmelo Anthony had 27 as Denver whalloped the Warriors 127-112. Stephen Curry had 30 points and 13 assists and Monta Ellis scored 22 in defeat. JR Smith had 25 off the bench for the Nuggets and Anthony Morrow had 20 off the bench for Golden State.
-Milwaukee held off Indiana 112-110 for their fifth straight win with seven Bucks scoring in double figures led by 20 from John Salmons and 17 from Ersan Ilyasova. Danny Granger led all scorers with 21 and TJ Ford had 17 but the Pacers lost their third in a row.
Robert Frost Report
Hot- Dallas, Milwaukee, Phoenix, LA Clippers, Snowicane 2010, Kim Yu Na, Healthcare Summit, Sex Addictions.
Cold- New York, Sacramento, New Jersey, Indiana, Charlotte, Houston, Killer Whales, RIP Andrew Koenig.
SprungOnSports’ Friday Top 10
1) Cleveland Cavaliers 45-14- The comeback win over Boston is cause for a sigh of relief after their three game losing streak. And the reacquisition of Zydrunas Ilgauskas is not too far behind.
2) LA Lakers 43-15- The loss to Dallas is discouraging, because it means the Lakers are going through a mini-lull right now. If not for Kobe Bryant’s game winner, they’d be coming off back-to-back road losses.
3) Orlando 39-19- The home win over Cleveland was an enormous confidence boost and showed that their style of play can still win big games. The team now plays a tough three games in four days.
4) Denver 38-19- Beating Cleveland and Boston over the last eight days shows that the Nuggets can hang with the East’s elite. Sunday’s game against the Lakers will show if they can hang with their biggest conference foe.
5) Dallas 37-21- It’s not just the team’s 5 game winning streak that screams the word impressive, it’s that they’ve defeated Phoenix, Orlando, Miami and the Lakers since the 17th. Atlanta, New Orleans and Charlotte are next.
6) Atlanta 36-20- The Hawks really needed that big win over Utah earlier this week after falling to Phoenix and Golden State, but a game against the Mavericks Friday night will be a better barometer.
7) Utah 37-20- No team is playing better basketball than the Jazz lately, who are playing cohesive team ball under Jerry Sloan against easy teams. We’ll see what happens when they play Phoenix on Thursday.
Eight) Boston 36-20- It all fell apart after wins over the Lakers and Blazers, with bad losses to Denver and Cleveland and an escape against the Knicks. The next stretch is easy but they need Paul Pierce back.
9) Phoenix 36-23- Memphis, Atlanta and OKC are amont the victims as the Suns have won five straight games to regain some of their west legitimacy. San Antonio, Denver and Utah are up next week as they play four in five days.
10) Oklahoma City 33-23- The Thunder lost some of just that in their two game skid after and eight game winning streak. Minnesota, Toronto, Sacramento and Denver are up next week and they should win three.
Honorable Mention- San Antonio, Portland, Toronto
Week In Preview
Friday- Fresh off their win over the Lakers, Dallas is back on ESPN in Atlanta at 7 eastern followed by Dwight Howard and the Magic against Marcus Thornton, Darren Collison and New Orleans. Cleveland is at Toronto, Portland visits Chicago, Charlotte and Memphis and Houston against San Antonio.
Saturday- There’s no hotter NBA team than the Utah Jazz, and they’ll host Houston at 9 eastern on NBATV.
Sunday- An ABC doubleheader during the day is followed by an ESPN twinbill at night. Phoenix visits reeling San Antonio at 1 followed by Denver at the Lakers in a Western Finals rematch on ABC. ESPN has a Sunshine State Showdown as Dwayne Wade and the Heat visit Dwight Howard and the Magic at 8 followed by the Hornets and Mavericks at 10:30. Milwaukee will be at Atlanta and CBC in Canada will have the Raptors and Thunder.
Monday- March begins with Orlando visiting Andre Iguodala and Philadelphia on NBATV at 7 eastern. Everyone gets buzzing when the Knicks and Cavs get together, this time they’re in Cleveland. Dallas-Charlotte, San Antonio-New Orleans, Atlanta-Chicago, Portland-Memphis, Toronto-Houston and Denver-Phoenix all have playoff implications.
Wednesday- After a boring Tuesday night, ESPN has the night off and Monta Ellis and Golden State will be in Orlando at 7 eastern on NBATV. Charlotte is at Boston, Memphis takes on New Orleans and OKC is at Denver.
Thursday- TNT will be seriously dynamite when Kobe and the Lakers head to South Beach to take on D-Wade and the Heat followed by Deron Williams and the Jazz battling Steve Nash and the Suns. Memphis and Chicago is the other game.
Spring Training Today 2/25/10
Grapefruit League
Yankees- From Tampa, even though everyone is in camp now, the big story is the Derek Jeter press conference that went on yesterday. Joel Sherman has more. David Brown is in town talking Yogi Berra, Curtis Granderson and HGH among other topics. In important Yankee eye news, Curtis Granderson will wear contacts for the first time and what a difference a year makes for A-Rod.
Mets- From Port St. Lucie, Jeff Francouer predicts a 27 home run season, Jerry Manuel will make Rod Barajas earn his starting job, and the two Japanese pitchers are expected to have big league roles. K-Rod has pink eye.
Red Sox- From Fort Myers, JD Drew believed he was worth his five year, $70 million contract. Good luck convincing the rest of the Boston fans. Elsewhere, Adrian Beltre will be limited for a few days after twisting his ankle and the team is toying with the idea of batting Dustin Pedroia 5th.
Orioles- From Sarasota, last season’s surprise breakout player Lou Montanez likely won’t make the Opening Day roster.
Cardinals- From Jupiter, you knew they’d ask hitting coach Mark McGwire about his brother’s book in Big Mac’s steroid use. “I took care of him for a number of years. I guess this is what I get for payback,” McGwire said. “It’s sort of sad. It’s a sad day for my family. I don’t know how a family member can do that.” The debate on who should hit behind Albert Pujols is on!
Rays- From Port Charlotte, Joe Maddon talks about his FACTOR: Flexibility / Accountability / Consistency / Trust / Organization / Respect.
Braves- From Disney, top prospect Jason Heyward hit a home run over the right field fence that crashed through the sunroof of Assistant GM Bruce Manno. Estimated damage is $3,400.
Cactus League
Diamondbacks- From Tucson, the team is looking to sign C Miguel Montero to a long term deal, putting the D-Backs future of Chris Snyder in some serious doubt. They are also in discussions with 3B Mark Reynolds and OF Justin Upton.
Angels- From Tempe, the MLBPA and police are looking into an incident involving star 1B Kendry Morales after $300,000 went missing from his bank account. The member of the Hendricks group who recruited him from Cuba is the prime suspect at this point, according to police.
Giants- From Scottsdale, look for a more disciplined and determined Nate Schierholtz in 2010 now that he appears to have nailed down a full time job.
Rockies- From Tucson, Troy Tulowitzki will miss some time not because of an injury, but because of the death of his cousin.
Athletics- From Phoenix, Justin Duchscherer feels great, Lenny DiNardo going sidearm and more. Eric Chavez is taking grounders at 3B and 1B today.
White Sox- From Glendale, Ozzie Guillen commented on owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s 74th birthday like only Ozzie can: “My dad gave me a couple of dollars. Jerry made me rich.”
Rangers- From Surprise, the Rangers voided the contract of SS Khalil Greene, who is still dealing with social anxiety issues.
Brewers- From Phoenix, Jim Edmonds could emerge as the backup at 1B to Prince Fielder. Ken Macha wants to build better relationships with players.
Padres- From Peoria, Chris Young and Jon Garland throwing live BP.
MLB
-USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale talks about HGH testing in both baseball and football and how there could be a whole new ballgame in terms of PED testing coming soon. One player says bring it on!
Bubble Banter 2/25/10
Wednesday
-A lot of bubble teams did not help themselves out last night, led by Virginia Tech who fell by 20 at 14-13 Boston College. The Hokies are still in the tournament for now, but their margin for error has reduced significantly. In the Atlantic 10, Dayton‘s at-large hopes pretty much ended after a 49-41 loss at Temple and Xavier got a big win while ending Saint Louis‘ at-large hopes 73-71. Charlotte convincingly took their must-win game over St. Joe’s. In the ACC, Florida State did what they had to do at North Carolina, winning by 10. Clemson blew a 48-39 halftime lead at Maryland before losing 88-79, squandering an enormous opportunity for a resume boosting win and reducing their margin for error by a lot. Butler, South Carolina, Maryland and Florida State are their wins of note which may not be enough. In the Big 12, Oklahoma State kept it close before falling at Texas. A win at Austin would have out the Cowboys in great shape, but now they’re gonna have to work for a bid. Missouri in my mind has locked up a bid after a win over Colorado and I believe Baylor did the same after beating red hot bubble foe Texas A&M, who I think will eventually lock up a bid as well. But it was a huge night for Baylor who went to 21-6 (8-5). But the biggest bubble win of the night clearly went to Notre Dame in the Big East, who beat Pittsburgh by 15 at home without star player Luke Harangody. The Irish are now 18-10 (7-8) and only have wins over Saint Louis and UCLA out of conference so they need to keep these wins coming. South Florida had a golden opportunity at Villanova but got blown out by an angry Wildcats team coming off a loss to Pitt and send a message to Syracuse, who they play on Saturday night. Marquette didn’t look impressive at all in an OT win at St. John’s, but at 9-6 in the Big East, it’ll be hard to leave them out of the tournament. Cincinnati only beat DePaul last night and cannot lose the rest of the regular season against Villanova, West Virginia and Georgetown. With Purdue on the ropes and Robbie Hummel out, Minnesota had a golden opportunity to resurrect their season, but the Golden Gophers fell one point short 59-58 and would need to go to the conference championship game to be considered. In the CAA, VCU did what they had to do by beating James Madison but William & Mary‘s hopes may have been dashed after a bad home loss to 8-20 Towson. Conference USA was three for four in their must-win games, getting wins from UTEP, UAB and Marshall but Memphis‘ at-large hopes went up in smoke after a 17 point loss at 14-13 Houston. San Diego State can now kiss their at-large chances goodbye after a 14 point loss at BYU but UNLV won their must-win game over TCU. With wins over Lousiville and Arizona out of conference, UNLV’s case will be really interesting. The two Mississippi teams won their must-win games last night, with Ole Miss beating Auburn and Miss State defeating Alabama. Arkansas won’t be discussed after giving LSU their first conference win last night.
Thursday
-South Carolina would be on the map if they completed a sweep of Kentucky tonight. Tulsa is one of those C-USA bubble teams and would do themselves a huge favor by winning at Duke tonight. Northwestern has a must-win games against Iowa, California can’t afford to lose at home to middling Arizona and Arizona State needs to win at Stanford. Saint Mary’s and Utah State also can’t afford losses if they want any chance at an at-large bid.
