If you are like me, you have been sick of hearing about Davidson for a week or so. I am a little bias due to the demolition the Wildcats put on our beloved Badgers here in Madison. I have been jealous of the show they were putting on for anyone, but maybe it is time for me to say something nice.
Many people believe that this is what the NCAA tournament is all about. An underdog taking down team after team in unexpected fashion is why people love March Madness. I also agree to a point. Honestly, I was happy to see Kansas win last night because now we have the four best teams in the country battling it out next weekend. It was a great story for the nation to have a team to root for every time they played. They deserved every win they had and came a few inches from beating the number one seed in the Midwest region. What a shot that would have been! You saw the dreams of Davidson crumble, it seemed, when Curry finally missed an open three late in the game that would have brought it to around two points. The Cinderella story was crumbling before everyone’s eyes, but you could only sit there and admire what they accomplished.
I am not convinced Stephen Curry is a name we will here six months or a year from now. Still, he came into the tournament as the best kept secret and proved he could play. People, including me, doubted him in each round, and he somehow proved everyone wrong each game the Wildcats played. Curry is a great talent that I am extremely curious to see if he has what it takes to make it at the next level. What do you all think?
In the end, what a journey it was for Davidson who were finally handed a loss in Detroit. They culminate what March Madness should be. Passion.
Today is opening day for the MLB, and my life is not changed. Is it bad that I am not that excited? Some people use this great Monday as a type of holiday. I don’t see it. My reasoning consists of the fact that this season will go on until October! Let me get to my real point.
The regular season games in baseball are the most pointless when compared to any other professional or amateur sport. Many people love baseball and so do I to a point. Still, people insist on not like the NBA or NHL because a regular season game doesn’t matter. That reasoning goes out the window if you think you are one of the many who will watch regular season baseball. My partner here on the site is one of those people who loves baseball. (He knows a little too much really, but that’s okay.) He also talks about how the other professional seasons don’t matter and that is why the are not as cool of sports as college sports.
I love baseball to a point. Many people are just a little hypocritical when it comes to other sports that they claim to not like because of the regular season. If I ever go to a Tigers game, I want to win, but I do not lose a wink of sleep if they lose a game in April. That is why I am not excited about opening day. There are 162 games people. I need to slowly get ready to watch home run after home run on Sportscenter. Let me know if you can give me reasons about why I should be excited about opening day.
Over 115,000 people came to watch an exhibition baseball game. The game was more than just a simple spring training game, however, as it was played inside the LA Coliseum. I have two opinions on the game, and people might not like flip-floppers, but here goes.
I loved it. It was a very cool idea to celebrate 50 years of history. Look at that picture! It something you rarely see. I would compare this to having a hockey game played outside like the one at Michigan State when they took on Michigan. I would say do this more often! You want people to care, well, this kind of thing is it. Make the game a little more interesting and voila, fans show up. For example, if my team was in a warmer climate like the Houston Astros, wouldn’t it be sweet to have an exhibition game in Reliant Stadium (where the Houston Texans make their home)? I would try to go there because it is something that is not done every day. I am surely not going to a grapefruit league game between my Tigers and Braves in Lakeland. (Are they both in the Grapefruit league? Eh, who cares?)
I did not like it if it was a regular season game. Let us stick with just exhibition games. The left field wall was about 250 feet and the article claims that simple popups were being carried for home runs while in right field huge bombs were staying inside the park. That is part of what makes baseball unique. It is the only sport that I can think of that the field of play is always different. Still, this kind of field makes things a little too different for me. I want to see the best players play, and this gives too many advantages to certain players and it just is not a fair game. It isn’t fair because nobody else has to deal with this. The Red Sox has 4 out of 115,000 fans? For exhibition that’s great, but for a regular season game it is a little too lopsided to have 115,000 screaming against your team.
I love the idea, but let’s stick to exhibition. Something that is very unique happened there, and something that looks like it would have been quite cool to experience.
If you have visited google.com today you will have realized that from 8-9 tonight (in your local time zone) it is Earth Hour. A time when everyone is being encouraged to turn the lights off, unhook electric devises, and live like cavemen!
Okay, I get the idea. I even understand the importance of saving the Earth. (Pretty amazing I know) Still, tough time to do it for the Earth Hour sponsors isn’t it? Most of the United States will have something on their minds when Earth Hour commences, the NCAA Tournament! I am pretty sure that people would be willing to participate if it was at, say, 2am. No problems there. I will give Earth Hour the benefit of the doubt and say people are excited, but why didn’t they pick a Saturday evening that didn’t conflict with a major sporting event. Can you imagine if they did this during the Super Bowl? That would be funny.
The only way, I think, to get people to participate is do what my friend thought that Earth Hour was until I cleared things up. The cities turns off everyone’s power for an hour. Simple isn’t it? Nobody has a choice of course, and that may conflict with our “rights” but whatever! This is to save Earth! So, next time Earth Hour comes around, let’s petition the cities to turn off the power to everyone in the country. That way we truly will have an hour of saving Earth and stuff.
(On second thought, let’s just do it on August 1st next time when baseball is on and we just miss a couple of innings of the all important Red Sox/Yankees game on ESPN for the 16th time in the 2008 season.
Well, I had to say something about the Wisconsin loss to Davidson last night since a lot of the readers probably are Badger fans including me. This will be a little different but the easiest way I can organize my thoughts.
- Curry can shoot. Flowers simply did not play good defense on him, however. He would go for stupid steals, not get a hand up in his face, and go under screens. People have compared Curry to Drew Neitzel in terms of Flowers defending and wondering why Michael struggled so much. Well, Drew Neitzel is not even close to the level of Curry who can beat you inside and out.
- More struggles with Bo Ryan’s swing offense. This game was almost a replica of what happened to the Badgers last season against UNLV. I thought this team was going to be different, but the offense disappeared. We shouldn’t be surprised, but we have seen them get out of droughts much quicker this year. Instead, a barrel of three point shots were hoisted up and they did not go down. How did Wisconsin start to come back? They drove the basket! Davidson has no good interior defense and we saw that. Still, we would see Butch leave three pointer after three pointer short, Flowers clank three after three, and Landry be a non-factor thanks to him not using his size and athleticism down low.
- Davidson did play some good defense, but I’m still not convinced that Ryan’s swing offense is tournament worthy. Bo Ryan is an incredible coach, but he hasn’t shown it in the tournament yet. So when people get upset about him not getting credit I simply turn to this team underachieving every year. Well, maybe they just aren’t that good. A good point was brought up when I was talking to my friend last night. The players on Wisconsin are not good. They are all a product of his system. So, I’m inclined to think that Ryan works with nothing and get a top ten team every year, which is pretty cool. No offense to the Badgers, but nobody on this team is NBA worthy (except maybe Butch, but I don’t believe that necessarily). Year after year, this team is filled with players who are taught how to play fundamental and it works!
- In conclusion, it was another fun year to be a Wisconsin fan. Still, this team might be the most frustrating team to ever be a fan of. They showed times of brilliance versus Kansas State, and they simply layed an egg against Davidson. Davidson won that game fair and square, they played well, and certainly deserved it more than Wisconsin. It is just too bad we have to talk about this so soon.
I’m done…I don’t care.I don’t want to see it anymore.Why does Jose Canseco get any air time anywhere?This morning I turned on ESPN and there was an interview being shown with Canseco.They asked him about Clemens and new players that he is claiming to have taken steroids in the past.He has already written a book tattling on players and now he is back.Why?Well, it is obvious to me he is starved for attention.
Let me be clear from the start.Steroids are a big deal.Still, I am not interested anymore in finding out who did it and who did not.The fact or fiction that Roger Clemens took anything in 1999 doesn’t matter to me anymore.Many people would not agree with me and would say that it does mean a lot.I can see that side of discussion as well so don’t go off on my horribly bias’ opinion.Now, the example that hit close to home for me was that Canseco has now implicated Tigers right fielder Magglio Ordonez.My first reaction was, “Who cares?”The event that was discussed took place back in 2001, which by my count is seven years ago!My point is that it is not news anymore.These players are being called out by this man, and nothing is coming of it.Nothing will ever come of it.I don’t care that he thinks A-Rod has taken steroids once ever in his life.If someone told me Michael Jordon took steroids back in 1984 I would laugh and say, “that’s too bad but it doesn’t take anything away from what he did in the mid-90s!”
What bothers me the most is that people are still listening to this guy.He comes out of the woodwork just as everyone begins to forget about him.He never backs up his accusations with facts except for his “experiences.”It is not fair for players to have to defend themselves because of hearsay.They should be able to focus on the game they are playing.If they get caught tomorrow, they should be punished severely.If they get accused of something they supposedly did seven years ago, they shouldn’t have to say anything.They should be able to play the game they love without the worry that some attention-hungry man will implicate them in scandal.
A great career is now done. The career of Chris Webber ended today as he announced his retirement due to his chronic knee problems. It was fun to watch the Warriors optimism crumble in the very first game Webber played this year as he was benched in the second half of that game. They wanted him to be the missing piece. Instead, they wasted time and money. I think the majority of people knew this experiment in Golden State wasn’t going to work out as they dreamed, but nobody really thought it would end this abruptly.
Webber is one of the great big men to play the game, and if his knees held up I believe he would have been truly a top ten player ever. He averaged 20(points) and 9(rebounds) for his career. As Detroit native, it is sad to see such a great player go, but it is about time isn’t it? He hasn’t been the same player in years. His attempted comeback with the Pistons was his last chance at a ring and we all know what happened there. I agree with ESPN columnist J.A. Adande when he says that most people will remember him for his failures. His lack of championships will haunt his legacy forever.
Thanks to Chris we have one of the best moments in NCAA Men’s Basketball history with his infamous timeout call while at the University of Michigan. A lot of times, I forget how good he was when he was healthy with the Kings, and it is too bad that I do forget that. In any case, thanks for coming back and playing nine games with Golden State. It was great fun to see you out there! (Oh, wait, I didn’t see him play at all) Here’s a song in honor of Chris’ attempted comeback courtesy of the Barenaked Ladies!
Did you hear? The NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament is going on right now! Well, if you ever watch ESPN you should know since they advertise there broadcasts to death, but outside of that did you know? What is it about women’s basketball that makes us not pay attention?
I have nothing against women playing sports or even them being broadcast on ESPN. I think it’s great that people are able to see a sport like this get great exposure. Still, it is tough for me to care. Do not lie to me! It is just as tough for you too, and you know it. Last year, I was really into the Wisconsin women’s basketball team’s season. So much so, I watched the women’s NIT final. (Look, I announced the games, knew the team and saw every other women’s NIT game for the Badgers. How could I miss the final?) I could not mention that with a straight face. Even though I did sort of care, I couldn’t get myself to believe that it was actually important. Basketball is tough for the girls out there. Simply because there is better versions of it. For example men’s basketball. Unlike softball or skating, there is a sport to really compare basketball too, and that is where the game loses a lot of credibility.
The first thing you notice is how slow the game is compared to the men. There is so much ugly play sometimes because the girls are simply not that good. The difference I think is that there are so few really talented women’s basketball players. You can tell immediately who is going to dominate a game most of the time. Lastly, there are only so many contenders in the NCAA. The same four teams will be 1 or 2 seeds and the rest will not have much of a chance. Sure, Rutgers made quite the run last year, but, unlike the Men’s tournament, the lower seeded teams usually don’t have much of a chance to get very far. So, fans of Maryland will follow the women’s team, but it is rare that I can turn on a women’s tournament game and care. Sorry, there’s just no excitement for the casual fan.
It is clearly overshadowed in March, and it is too bad because I have seen first hand how hard these girls work. I have seen that the level of play, while not great, can be pretty exciting. The problem is that there is another option. There is a better option, and most people will select that better option over the Women.
Literally… If Tiger Woods was running for President of the United States, I would vote for him.
Most people know Tiger Woods because of his name and due to the success he has had, and is having, on the golf course…after all, he hadn’t lost in a tournament in over six months until Sunday. He also is third all-time with 64 career PGA Tour victories. Aside from golf, many know him from various commercials and advertisements he has appeared in throughout is illustrious career. So why the hell would I want some 30-something year old golfer/model/spokesperson running the United States of America? It’s simple really…
First of all, TW attended Stanford University as a young lad instead of jumping right to the PGA Tour where he could have had immediate success. Instead, he showed patience and maturity by trying the college thing for a time…and I don’t hear anyone faulting him for continuing with a career as a golfer instead of a physician or lawyer.
Secondly, he’s basically Barack Obama in a red shirt, a minority in society who grew up from the streets to make something of himself. However, instead of using a political platform to preach national unity and health, Tiger does it by earning and donating millions of dollars to charities and foundations to make the country a better place. We see these efforts within the Tiger Woods Foundation, which is giving youth in America more opportunities every year to succeed and become what they want to be. I’m fairly certain that no other American athlete donates more money to benefit society than Tiger Woods…what a wonderful country we would have if all professional athletes were like that.
Finally, in my opinion, he already is the face of this country. I would bet money that more people in this country could recognize a picture of Tiger Woods than one of any one of the last three U.S. Presidents. Also, I would venture to say that Tiger Woods’ approval rating is supremely higher than that of any U.S. President in the history of the country!
Now, I understand that he hasn’t had to make important decisions that affect the entire country; however, I can honestly say I would be comfortable with him making those decisions based off the success he has brought to the Tiger Woods Foundation and just generally how he lives his life. I can’t think of a better human being I’d rather have running America than Eldrick (Tiger) Woods.
I basically buried the Lakers last week, and I am burying the Mavericks this week as contenders for the Western Conference Title. I didn’t like the Mavs even with the reigning MVP Dirk Nowitzki, but without him, it’s over. Look, the trade for Kidd backfired completely in Mark Cuban’s face. The team just doesn’t gel together with the moves they have made. Would they still beat 80% of the Eastern Conference teams in a 7-game series? Well, the answer is yes, but that is not something to be to proud of.
In case you missed it, here is the fall that Nowitzki took.
To me, that is not a two week injury. As soon as I saw it, I said he would be done for the season. Even with Cuban’s assurances, I still believe he is out longer than two weeks and would not be surprised to see him gone for the season. If that is the case, the Mavericks are dead. Simple as that.
So, that leaves me to pick between the Spurs, Suns, Hornets, Jazz, and Rockets. I’m sticking with my pick of the Spurs. No flip-flopping here, but let me just say that I like the Jazz. They scare me. Maybe because if it ended up being Pistons/Jazz, Utah would most likely sweep the Pistons because Detroit cannot beat Utah.
Scott
Dan
