That Is All!

Smucker's Stars on Ice

I hate snow and ice. And for someone that lives as close to Cananda as an American can without actually being Canadian, that says something.

I am a basketball player and I despise hockey. In fact, any sport that actually requires you to be cold during it makes no sense to me. Which is why the up coming blog really makes no sense - because for some reason I enjoy figure skating.

It could be because during my teenage years I had a huge (ok, stalkerish) crush on Tara Lipinski. That has sort of faded away, mostly because she sort of faded away. Then came Sasha Cohen, who is also very cute.

That, and my wife used to be a figure skater, and I guess I have a thing for figure skaters.

Saturday night was the opening night of the 25th Anniversary of Smucker's Stars on Ice and it did not disappoint.

The show stars Sasha Cohen and Evan Lysacek - but honestly the stars of the show for me were the pairs team from Canada - Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. They put on an absolutely amazing show together, that was really the best part of the show.

The rest of the skaters were Kurt Browning, Ekaterina Gordeeva, Michael Weiss, Joannie Rochette, and pairs team Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto.

All skaters were amazing, but I have to admit that when they went slow music and tried to be all artsy - it fell sort of flat for me. When they played the upbeat music and got everyone involved the show was really spectacular.

They are off until February, I believe, but if they are coming your way try to check it out. The show they put on Saturday will be on television for NBC in January, so check your listings.

Quick Rant: Steroids

Well, it has happened again. Another high-profile athlete has admitted to using steroids. And, yet again, it is the story of the week.

There is only one problem: I DON'T CARE!!!

Mark McGwire, former Oakland Athletic and St. Louis Cardinal, admitted using steroids during his playing career. The only real reason McGwire finally came clean is because he is coming back to baseball as St. Louis' hitting coach this season. Instead of this being an ongoing distraction, McGwire came clean and hopes the story would go away.

So do I.

It appears that every month now another athlete (mostly baseball players) are coming clean or getting caught using steroids. The glamor of these stories, however, has just plain wore off.

When the first stories came out, sure I was interested, it had never happened before and the athletes that we have been watching were proven to be cheaters.

Now, there is just no real story. It doesn't surprise me anymore. I just don't care. I watch sports to be entertained, just like I watch movies and television. Actors and actresses continually have plastic surgery or modify their looks so they can be in the game longer or get certain parts. Are steroids any different?

I don't plan on having any plastic surgery soon, nor do I plan on shooting up steroids in my bathroom tonight. But, some people choose to live that way - more power to them.

As far as sports, I watch because I enjoy the game. Most of these athletes, if not all, are professional athletes anyway, without the drugs. There are just some that look for a little more edge. They look to get back into the game from an injury, or perhaps prolong a career.

The problem is the media. Any time anyone of any importance is even mentioned in the same breath as steroids it is the news for a month. I can't take it anymore. This is not news to me, I want to hear about next weekends playoffs. I want to hear about the basketball games from last night and if Kobe Bryant's injury is significant - I don't care about a baseball player who used steroids but hasn't been in baseball for over seven years. It is not a story.

I will never get my wish. Especially because 103 players tested positive for steroids back in 2003 and ever so slowly, like nails to a chalk board, the names will get released and we will back here talking about it for another month.

NBA 2009-10

I wanted to have this up yesterday, but again life is just too busy. Even today I really don't have the time, but I will do my best to belt this out in the short time that I have.

The NBA tipped its 2009-10 season last night with a quartet of games, including the LA Lakers being awarded their championship rings and also awarded the chance to start their season against the LA Clippers (minus top pick Blake Griffin).

So much happened in the offseason with the draft and a great many players switching teams. Did the Cavaliers get better with the addition of Shaq? Did the Celtics improve with Rasheed Wallace coming off their bench? Is Ron Artest an upgrade over Trevor Ariza for the Lakers?

With the great many moves that happened this offseason it was still sort of a surprise because, well, the rich got richer. There weren't too many great moves happening with the lower echelon of teams, but the top teams getting even better players. Now, of course this can all back fire with lack of chemistry, but it might also be a safe bet that the great teams from a year ago will again be great this year.

A few teams to watch out for and moves I have loved:

San Antonio Spurs: I have never been a fan of the Spurs and I mock them whenever I get the chance because their brand of basketball is just so boring. I cringe whenever I think of that horrible Spurs-Pistons finals from a few years ago. But, the Spurs not only got a bit younger, but they got better. They bring in a quality small forward in Richard Jefferson and a decent veteran in Antonio McDyess. Not only that, but they may have gotten a steal on draft night with DaJuan Blair falling to them in the second round - he has looked like a beast so far in the preseason.

Washington Wizards: I had the luxury of seeing this team play already last night as the knocked off the Dallas Mavericks, and one thing is for sure - Gilbert Arenas is back. The Wizards defeated a pretty darn good Mavs team with Caron Butler giving a subpar performance and Antawn Jamison missing the game due to injury. That bodes well for this team. If Gilbert stays healthy this is a team to watch.

Orlando Magic: Talk about a team not wanting to settle. Coming off an NBA Finals appearance the Magic blew up their team, but kept three of their main players (Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis). Gone is premier rookie Courtney Lee, backup point guard Rafer Alston and do-it-all Hedo Turkoglu. But, they bring in Vince Carter to replace Turkoglu, Ryan Anderson to replace Lee, and a move that isn't getting talked enough about is the return of Jason Williams to backup Nelson. And all three (including newcomer Brandon Bass) have looked great in preseason.

Predictions:

East Playoffs (in order)
Boston Celtics
Orlando Magic
Cleveland Cavaliers
Washington Wizards
Chicago Bulls
Atlanta Hawks
Miami Heat
Toronto Raptors

West Playoffs (in order)
LA Lakers
San Antonio Spurs
Denver Nuggets
Portland Trailblazers
Utah Jazz
New Orleans Hornets
Dallas Mavericks
Oklahoma City Thunder

MVP: LeBron James
ROY: Blake Griffin (if healthy)
COY: Flip Saunders
DEF: Dwight Howard
6th: Rasheed Wallace

UPDATE: I realized after I sent this that I didn't finish it. So here are my final predictions.

All-NBA
First Team
Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant
Second Team
Dwyane Wade, Deron Williams, Chris Bosh, Tim Duncan, Paul Pierce
Third Team
Brandon Roy, Tony Parker, Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony, Pau Gasol

NBA Finals
Orlando Magic over San Antonio Spurs

2009 NFL Predictions

The NFL Season is here!!!!

Tonight marks the first regular season game of the NFL Season.

Last year my Pittsburgh Steelers captured their second NFL Championship in my lifetime, so I am still riding high. The good news for the Steelers is they return 20 starters from their Super Bowl run this season and are expecting huge things from two wide receivers Limas Sweed and rookie Mike Wallace. They will also get a boost with the return of Rashard Mendenahll and punter Daniel Sepulveda (laugh, but he was missed last year). Finally, they have a huge bump in the return game with former CFLer Stefan Logan, who looked great in the preseason.


Anyway, I have rambled on about how the Steelers should win the title again this season, but will they?

Here are my selections/predictions for the 2009 NFL season. The season begins tonight at 8 p.m. with the Steelers taking on the Tennessee Titans.

AFC
North: Pittsburgh Steelers
South: Tennessee Titans
East: New England Patriots
West: San Diego Chargers
Wildcard: Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts
NFC
North: Green Bay Packers
South: New Orleans Saints
East: NY Giants
West: Arizona Cardinals
Wildcard: Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons
Superbowl: New Orleans Saints vs. New England Patriots
Winner: Patriots (very sad).

Also, we had our fantasy football draft at the end of last month. I was unlucky enough to have the eighth pick in the draft - so I was unable to get anyone I truly wanted. I was hoping for Brees and Rodgers as QBs (every year I seem to miss out on QBs, so I was determined not to have that happen this year - I was wrong). I ended up with Cutler and - gulp - Favre.

Anyway, the rest of the team shaped up OK, but I was disappointed in my QBs. I guess we shall see what comes out.

My starters:
QB- Cutler
QB- Favre
RB- DeAngelo Williams (my first selection)
RB- Marion Barber
WR- Marques Colston
WR- Lee Evans
WR- Antonio Bryant
WR- Wes Welker
TE- Greg Olsen
K- Nick Novak
DEF- Packers
Bench
RB- Ronnie Brown
QB- Chad Pennington
WR- Steve Smith (Giants)
DEF- Colts
WR- Josh Morgan
TE- Visanthe Shiancoe
RB- Knowshon Moreno
WR- Kenny Britt

Every season I always take a flier on rookies at both the RB and WR positions. Last year I picked DeSean Jackson from the Eagles and he ended up being one of my top receivers, the same for Dwayne Bowe from the Chiefs the year before that. So, I went with the Titans' Britt this year and also Moreno for Denver, who may be their starter right away.

Wish me luck. In a league filled with Steeler fans, a Pats fan currently holds our trophy. That must end this year.

Quick Rant: Sox/Yanks

This will be a quick little rant since I have yet again been neglecting this blog. I have been hoping for my friend to finish my new banner so that I may begin my transition to a new name and site, and officially (I keep saying this, but it is going to happen) join the LAMBs. Then, hopefully, be much more diligent in my blog postings.

Anyway, I currently live in upstate New York - I am talking way upstate. I am pretty much in Canada, or as close to Canada as possible while still paying American taxes. There is no technical rooting franchise in sports in this neck of the woods. We are pretty far from anything that would be considered a pro sports team.

So, we have assembled a rather mixed bowl if you will of rooting interests in this area. I, of course, being born in Pittsburgh and also attending college there have most of my rooting interests in the pros sports team from there. I am, however, more of an Atlanta Braves fan than a Pittsburgh Pirates fan - but I do root for them to win (even if they never do).

That being said, the area in which I live is split pretty well down the middle in terms of Boston Red Sox fans and New York Yankee fans. There are also the occasional New York Mets' fans sprinkled into the bunch as well.

I have stated before that baseball to me is pretty painful to watch. It is probably my least favorite sport of the four majors, although it is just behind hockey - I may rank hockey a little higher due to the fact that Pittsburgh just won the Stanly Cup though.

The baseball season is just so painstakingly long. It was once called the Summer Classic - but it ends in November. How is that possible? And, just when it finishes and other sports can take the stage - pitchers and catchers are reporting for Spring Training.

Look, I am a sports fan, and probably talk about my Steelers or the NBA far too much for some people. But, if you have to go from February through November hearing as much as I do about the Yankees or the Red Sox, you would be going crazy as well.

And, unfortanately, it isn't just where I live. It's also on my television. The Boston/New York rivalry in baseball is totally amped up thanks to its play on all of the major sports shows, radio shows, etc.

So, this past weekend drove me absolutely crazy.

The Red Sox had pretty much owned the Yankees this season, wining all eight of their contests up until this point. But, they were slowly falling in the standings, and the Yankees had actually overtaken them to lead the AL East.

So, everyone in my area and on television, was drooling at the fact that the Yankees could bury the Red Sox after this four-game series. How many games did each team have to win to stay in the race?, etc.

Well, New York ended up sweeping Boston and went up to a 6.5 game lead in the division. So, the Red Sox were done. Pack up their bags and wait until spring training (don't worry, it's way closer than it should be).

Then, the Red Sox win the first game after their Yankees series, and New York loses. So, Boston is now only 5.5 games behind.

This is the problem - the season is not over. But, to dig up drama every game has to matter - especially when they play each other. This is not over in the least, however, there are far too many games left to throw dirt on Boston's grave.

This just drives me crazy. Each loss we have to mourn and each win it's a celebration. For 162 games.

My only glimpse of fresh air? Preseason football started on Sunday.

That noise you hear - those are tears of joy.

Stanley Cup Champions

Things are finally slowing down for me (I think) so I should be back up and running sometime this week.

As most of you know, I am a huge Pittsburgh fan, so I was pretty stoked when the Penguins captured the Stanley Cup on Friday.

If you may recall, I wrote about this last year when the fell to Detroit.

Anyway, here is the new gatorade commerical, Enjoy!

Revist: NBA Predictions

This is technically my second revist to this subject, but due to the agonizingly slow rate at which the awards are being handed out - it's almost a necessity.

Anyway, this will be quick. And, I don't have much else to write about as of this moment, hopefully tomorrow.

The NBA announce the All-NBA teams today, and I have to admit I was pretty darn close in my selections.

First Team:
Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki, Dwight Howard

Second Team:
Chris Paul, Brandon Roy, Tim Duncan, Paul Pierce, Yao Ming

Third Team:
Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Pau Gasol, Shaquille O'Neal, Tony Park

Now, I had three of the four first teamers selected correctly (Wade, Bryant, James). I also had Paul on the first squad, but he made second - and I selected Amare Stoudamire, who didn't make any team - mostly due to some injuries throughout the season.

As for the second team, I had selected Nowitzki and Howard, who both made the first team, but I got Roy and Duncan correct. I had selected Pierce and Yao Ming for my third team, however. My lone whiff was Deron Williams, who had a pretty strong year despite playing mostly on one leg due to an injry.

As for the third squad, I only was able to select Parker correctly. I totally missed on the Nuggets this year, but the trade for Billups not only elevated his game, but Anthony's as well. I also missed on Gasol, but I am not apologizing for not selecting O'Neal - despite a great season, who knew he had anything left?

Another rough time for Kevin Martin in Sacramento this season with injuries and a horrible team didn't help my selection of him on my third team. Also, Chris Bosh had a down year in Toronto, which really surprised a lot of people.

This should be my final NBA blog until the conclusion of the NBA Finals in June unless something amazing happens during the playoffs (which basically did with the Boston-Chicago series, but I will talk about that in the wrap up blog after the season).

Revisit: NBA Predictions

OK, I have slacked again with the postings - yet another job has been due here at work, plus I have been in the middle of getting everything completed for summer/grad school.

No excuse, I know, but I have a handful of ideas for blogs over the next few days. Here is the first and if I have time another will follow today.

Back in October at the beginning of the NBA season I, like I do in most sports, selected my playoff and award predictions for the season.

So here were my predictions:

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division: Boston Celtics
Central Division: Cleveland Cavaliers
Southeast Division: Orlando Magic
Other Playoff Teams: Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors, New Jersey Nets.
Champion: Orlando Magic
Western Conference
Northwest Conference: Utah Jazz
Pacific Conference: L.A. Lakers
Southwest Conference: New Orleans Hornets
Other Playoff Teams: Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers.
Champion: New Orleans Hornets
NBA Champion: New Orleans Hornets

Individual Awards
MVP: LeBron James
6th Man: Rodney Stuckey
Rookie: Michael Beasley
Coach: Byron Scott
Defensive Player: Ron Artest
All NBA
First Team
Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Amare Stoudemire, Chris Paul
Second Team
Tim Duncan, Deron Williams, Dwight Howard, Dirk Nowitzki, Brandon Roy
Third Team
Paul Pierce, Yao Ming, Chris Bosh, Tony Parker, Kevin Martin

The playoffs began this weekend and out of my selections, I didn't do half bad.

For the East, I was exactly correct in my division winners with Boston, Cleveland and Orlando. As for my playoff teams, I was off by two - Chicago, Detroit and Miami all made the playoffs, but so did Philadelphia and Atlanta. My selections of New Jersey (finished 12th) and Toronto (finished 13th) were a bit off.

As for the West, I was only able to correctly select the Lakers as a divisional winner. However, both New Orleans and Utah made the playoffs. My lone miss for the West was Denver, who actually captured the Northwest division, while Phoenix just missed the playoffs in finishing ninth.

As of now, the only individual award handed out was Coach of the Year and that was given to Mike Brown of Cleveland - who definitely deserved it. The way the Hornets fell into the bottom half of the Western conference bracket, my selection of Scott was a bit off.

I believe I will get my MVP selection correct with LeBron James. My Rookie pick is going to be wrong, as Derrick Rose of Chicago will most likely win. Rodney Stuckey for 6th man blew up in my face as he ended up starting, so Jason Terry of Dallas will be the winner this year. I am not sure about my defensive selection - it could be him or it could be Orlando's Dwight Howard.

Playoff predictions:

WEST
LA vs. Utah - LA
Denver vs. New Orleans - New Orleans
San Antonio vs. Dallas - Dallas
Houston vs. Portland - Portland

EAST
Cleveland vs. Detroit - Cleveland
Boston vs. Chicago - Chicago
Orlando vs. Philadelphia - Orlando
Atlanta vs. Miami - Miami

Baseball 2009

OK, so the 2009 Major League Baseball season started Sunday night with the Braves putting a whooping on the 2008 World Series champion Phillies.

I usually make selections with each pro season to what I think is going to happen - I am a lot closer with football and basketball, but I do try to guess on baseball and hockey.

So, here they are. My 2009 MLB playoff, world series, MVP and CY Young picks.

American League
East: Boston Red Sox
West: Anaheim Angels
Central: Chicago White Sox
Wild Card: Tampa Bay Rays
MVP: B.J. Upton
CY Young: Josh Beckett

National League
East: NY Mets
West: LA Dodgers
Central: Chicago Cubs
Wild Card: Atlanta Braves
MVP: David Wright
CY Young: Johan Santana

World Series: Red Sox over Dodgers

March Madness Round 4.2

Final two spots filled for the Final Four today. Higher seeds listed first.

Louisville/Michigan State - Louisville

Michigan State 64, Louisville 52. 0-1 for Elite 8. Michigan State certainly proved me wrong, whom I had going out in the second round to USC. An amazing effort against arguably the best all-around team all season long.

North Carolina/Oklahoma - North Carolina

North Carolina 72, Oklahoma 60. 1-1 for Elite 8. 1-3 Total. And the Tar Heels are my lone correct selection for the Final Four. Thank goodness for them. Blake Griffin is going to make one NBA team very happy, despite being triple teamed most trips down the floor he literally kept his team in the game.

Note: North Carolina is the lone Final Four team that I selected from the beginning to still be alive after Pitt's loss last night. I selected the Tar Heels to win it all - so with my luck this year I am probably thinking a Sooners victory, but I went with my original selection.

March Madness Round 4.1

The Elite Eight gets underway today and will put two teams in the illustrious Final Four. My picks of the games are listed below - the higher seed is listed first.

Pittsburgh/Villanova - Pittsburgh

Villanova 78, Pittsburgh 76. 0-1 for Round 4. This game will probably go down as a classic, due to Scottie Reynolds near buzzer beater to send Villanova to the Final Four. Pittsburgh finally played closer to their potential, but is still a better team than Villanova is - especially to lose to them twice.

Connecticut/Missouri - Missouri

Connecticut 82, Missouri 75. 0-2 for Round 4. Missouri was in the game the entire time, but just couldn't get themselves over the hump. Two Big East teams in the Final Four - with another possibly heading there tonight.

Notes: Despite Pittsburgh playing horribly so far, and losing to Villanova already this season, I feel this is a great game for them to wake up and show their true colors. I selected Purdue to win the Connecticut region, but with them going out and Missouri showing just how good they can be - I am going with the upset.

March Madness Round 3.2

Round 3's Second Day games. Higher seed listed first.

Louisville/Arizona - Louisville

Louisville 103, Arizona 64. Round 3 Day 2 1-0. Once and for all I believe we can put to rest that Arizona truly belonged in this tournament. What a shellacking Louisville put on them - which makes 4 Big East teams into the Elite 8.

Michigan State/Kansas - Kansas

Michigan State 67, Kansas 62. Round 3 Day 2 1-1. In probably the only good game of round three's second day, the Spartans clawed their way back to knock off the defending champion Jayhawks.

Oklahoma/Syracuse - Oklahoma

Oklahoma 84, Syracuse 71. Round 3 Day 2 2-1. Too much Blake Griffin, not enough 3-point makes for the Orange. Syracuse lived and died by its outside shooting, and were 0-10 in the first half of the contest. Too hard to climb back from. (Note: This was the lone part of the bracket that I was near perfect in with my original picks - my only loss was selecting Temple over Arizona State in the first round).

North Carolina/Gonzaga - North Carolina

North Carolina 98, Gonzaga 77. Round 3 Day 2 3-1. A game of runs definitely went in favor of the Tar Heels as a huge run sealed the deal for North Carolina (my winner is still alive).

March Madness Round 3.1

We have reached the second weekend of March Madness - and tonight begins Round 3.

Here are my selections for tonight's games, with the higher seed being listed first. Synopsis and results should be listed tomorrow.

Connecticut/Purdue - Purdue

Connecticut 72, Purdue 60. 0-1 for Round 3. Purdue had a shot in this game, but were limited in their 3-point shooting - against a team like Connecticut you have to continue to do what you do best. The Boilermakers just didn't have enough.

Pittsburgh/Xavier - Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh 60, Xavier 55. 1-1 in Round 3. A huge run to open the second half helped Pittsburgh get back into the game. For some reason the Panthers just do not like to blow out their opponents, but luckily they are clutch down the stretch.

Memphis/Missouri - Missouri

Missouri 102, Memphis 91. 2-1 in Round 3. Wow, an extremely lucky pick for me - I knew that Missouri was talented, but I had no idea that Memphis was being overrated. Memphis had no answer for Missouri's spread offense - and despite giving up 91 points, Missouri's defense was much better than Memphis'.

Duke/Villanova - Villanova

Villanova 77, Duke 54. 3-1 in Round 4. And Villanova makes it three Big East teams to make the Elite 8. For all the naysayers who thought the ACC was better than the Big East - you better look again. Anyway, the Wildcats completely dominated the Blue Devils. Duke's lack of a true ball handler really came back to haunt them in this game.

Note: I have also seen three movies over the weekend, but have not had time to put anything down yet - hopefully things will be less chaotic next week.

March Madness Round 2-2

Picks for Second Round, Day Two. Higher Seeds listed first.

Syracuse/Arizona State - Syracuse

Syracuse 78, Arizona State 67. 1-0 for Round 2 Day 2. Syracuse had too much on both the inside and the outside for Arizona State. The Sun Devils were superb this season from beyond the arc - but couldn't seem to find the range. Losing your star inside presence to fouls at the 10-minute mark of the second half also didn't help.

Xavier/Wisconsin - Xavier

Xavier 60, Wisconsin 49. 2-0 Round 2 Day 2. I didn't originally select Xavier to win this game on my bracket - as I had Florida State defeating Wisconsin in the first round, and also being able to move past Xavier - got that one wrong.

Kansas/Dayton - Kansas

Kansas 60, Dayton 43. 3-0 Round 2 Day 2. The defending champs appear to be hitting their stride - it also helps to have one of the few triple-doubles ever in the history of the NCAA Tournament to propel you into the round of 16.

Arizona/Cleveland State - Arizona

Arizona 71, Cleveland State 57. 4-0 Round 2 Day 2. I had this one selected another way as well, as I had Wake Forest beating Arizona in my original bracket. Arizona probably shouldn't even have made the tournament, but a nice draw in round one and Cleveland State's upset of Wake Forest has them moving on.

Pittsburgh/Oklahoma State - Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh 84, Oklahoma State 76. 5-0 Round 2 Day 2. I don't think Pittsburgh has played to its full capability yet in this tournament - so if they do they could be a major factor. Oklahoma State was unconscious from 3-point land in the first half, but only managed to be tied a 49 at halftime. The Panthers showed their true grit in the final moments - and Sam Young tallied 32 points.

Missouri/Marquette - Missouri

Missouri 83, Marquette 79. 6-0 Round 2 Day 2. I have to admit I got scared when I noticed Dominic James was cleared to play Marquette after being thought to be lost for the season - not from a playing standpoint, but for an emotional boost. But, huge foul shooting in the final moments helped Missouri sneak past Marquette.

Michigan State/USC - USC

Michigan State 74, USC 69. 6-1 Round 2 Day 2. I have not been very high on Michigan State all season long, and after seeing USC finally come together as a team I thought for sure they would get by the Spartans. But, a late missed layup knocked the Trojans out and completely messed up that side of my bracket.

Louisville/Siena - Louisville

Louisville 79, Siena 72. Round Two: 14-2. Siena was almost this year's Davidson, and how great it would have been. Siena is only 2 1/2 hours from me, so it would have been nice to see them make a run in the tournament. They played against the best very well, even holding a lead with seven minutes remaining. And - this would have messed up everyone's bracket in the Midwest - which would have put me back in the mix.

NOTE: In my original selections I had teams that had already lost moving on here as well, I make those in my notes as the games conclude.

March Madness Round 2-1

My selections for Round 2. Higher Seed listed first.

Villanova/UCLA - Villanova

Villanova 89, UCLA 69. 1-0 for Round 2. After getting a huge scare from American in the first round, Villanova has awoken for round two as it destroyed UCLA to move into the Sweet 16.

Memphis/Maryland - Memphis

Memphis 89, Maryland 70. 2-0 Round 2. Memphis came out on fire, unlike its previous game against Cal-State Northridge. Maryland tried to rally back, but the Tigers wouldn't flinch.

Connecticut/Texas A&M - Connecticut

Connecticut 92, Texas A&M 66. 3-0 Round 2. Texas A&M hit its first 10 shots in the first round, but had trouble connecting against the No. 1 seeded Huskies. Too much all-around talent for Connecticut for the Aggies to handle.

Washington/Purdue - Purdue

Purdue 76, Washington 74. 4-0 Round 2. Purdue had a handle on this game for most of the contest, but a rally from Washington left the game in peril. Luckily some good defense and free thrown shooting propelled the Boilermakers to the win.

North Carolina/LSU - North Carolina

North Carolina 84, LSU 70. 5-0 Round 2. The Bengals gave the Tar Heels a huge scare as they held the lead midway through the second half, and never truly fell behind until late. Thank goodness for the return of Ty Lawson for North Carolina, or they could have been the first No. 1 seed out.

Oklahoma/Michigan - Oklahoma

Oklahoma 73, Michigan 63. 6-0 Round 2. The Wolverines were hanging with the Sooners for nearly the entire night, but too much Blake Griffin. Although, Oklahoma revealed a huge chink in its armor - free throw shooting.

Gonzaga/Western Kentucky - Gonzaga

Gonzaga 83, Western Kentucky 81. 7-0 Round 2. Another Cinderella goes down, but not without a fight. Western Kentucky battled Gonzaga until the very end - but it's the former Cinderella that moves on.

Duke/Texas - Texas

Duke 74, Texas 69. Round 2: 7-1. And the lone chink in my armor on Saturday was the Dukies. I thought a tougher Texas team would slide past them, but Duke proved to have a little more hustle in them than the Longhorns did - as they narrowly edged into the Sweet 16.

March Madness Day 2

Day Two Picks: Synopsis and Scores to Follow. Higher Seed listed first.

Syracuse/Stephen F. Austin - Syracuse

Syracuse 59, Stephen F. Austin 44. 1-0 for Day 2. No surprise here. The Orange were on a large role coming out of the Big East and this game as never in doubt.

Oklahoma State/Tennessee - Tennessee

Oklahoma State 77, Tennessee 75. 1-1 Day 2. A rough loss for the Vols who played very well, but came up just short. Oklahoma State, however, proved to be the only eight seed to move on during this tournament.

Marquette/Utah State - Marquette

Marquette 58, Utah State 57. 2-1 for Day 2. Marquette struggled down the stretch in the Big East, but I figured they had enough power to get through the first round. And the did - barely. Utah State was a strong team and gave Marquette all they could handle.

Kansas/North Dakota State - Kansas

Kansas 84, North Dakota State 74. 3-1 for Day 2. I very good showing for North Dakota State who just moved into Division I this season. They put a small scare into the defending champions, but in the end the Jayhawks pulled it out.

Arizona State/Temple - Temple

Arizona State 66, Temple 57. 3-2 for Day 2. I thought it would be another Christmas showing in the first round. I watched Dionte Christmas put on a show in the A-10 championship game, but he alone couldn't get the Owls past Arizona State.

Pittsburgh/East Tennessee State - Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh 72, East Tennessee State 62. 4-2 for Day 2. Horrible. That is all I can say for my Panthers' performance. A team that prides itself in taking care of the basketball had 13 turnovers in the first half, compared to just eight field goals. They snuck by upset minded East Tennessee State, and hopefully this scare wakes them up.

Missouri/Cornell - Missouri

Missouri 78, Cornell 59. 5-2 for Day 2. I am putting a lot of my eggs in Missouri's basket, so this was a good showing and held my faith with them.

West Virginia/Dayton - Dayton

Dayton 68, West Virginia 60. 6-2 for Day 2. This was a gut pick for me. For some reason I felt the Flyers could get past West Virginia - despite how great West Virginia looked in the Big East tournament. And I was glad my gut was correct for once.

Louisville/Morehead State - Louisville

Louisville 74, Morehead State 54. 7-2 for Day 2. Louisville also received a scare as a number one seed, but not as big of one as Pittsburgh. The winner of the play-in-game, Morehead State, played very well in the first half and even held a few leads before the Cardinals pulled awau in the second half.

Utah/Arizona - Arizona

Arizona 84, Utah 71. 8-2 for Day 2. Arizona had no right even making this tournament, as St. Mary's, Creighton and Penn State had better resumes - but they did receive a favorable matchup in the first round so I felt they could get the upset.

Boston College/USC - USC

USC 72, Boston College 55. 9-2 for Day 2. This game scared me because I had USC going pretty far in the tournament. I thought they had finally matured and woken up in the Pac-10 tournament - but the Eagles held close for most of the contest.

Xavier/Portland State - Xavier

Xavier 77, Portland State 59. 10-2 for Day 2. Another pretty easy game for the higher seed. They got the lead early and never relinquished it.

Ohio State/Siena - Siena

Siena 74, Ohio State 72. 11-2 for Day 2. It took two overtimes and multiple comebacks but the Saints managed to pull off another upset in the first round - their second in as many years. This game was great to watch - and even better as I picked Siena.

Wake Forest/Cleveland State - Wake Forest

Cleveland State 84, Wake Forest 69. 11-3 for Day 2. If you thought Pittsburgh played horribly - no one laid a bigger egg than Wake Forest in the first round. I had the Demon Deacons making it all the way to the finals this year - so that side of my bracket is destroyed. Wake Forest was the lowest (No. 4) seed to lose in the first round.

Michigan State/Robert Morris - Michigan State

Michigan State 77, Robert Morris 62. 12-3 for Day 2. Robert Morris pulled North Dakota State or a Binghamton and got off to a good start against Michigan State. However, the Spartans proved to be too much and pulled away for a 15-point win in the end.

Florida State/Wisconsin - Florida State

Wisconsin 61, Florida State 59. Day Two: 12-4. First Round: 25-7. In another overtime contest the Badgers and Seminoles played a pheomenal contest that came down to a spinning layup and free throw to give Wisconsin the victory.

March Madness Begins

March Madness got underway today, so I thought I would toss out my selections for today's games.

I will update later with a brief synopsis and the winner. The higher seed is listed first.

LSU/Butler - Butler.

LSU 75, Butler 71. And I am 0-1 to start the tournament, a nice start. Butler was actually down a lot in this game, including falling behind 9-0 to start the game. They came back to take the lead on a few occasions, but couldn't hold that lead at all.

Memphis/Cal State-Northridge - Memphis

Memphis 81, Cal State-Northridge 70. I am back to .500 for the tournament, although this game had to have had many people scratching their heads and hyperventilating. Cal-State Northridge put up a heck of a fight against the No. 2 seeded Tigers from Memphis - which some believed to have been good enough for a No. 1 seed.

BYU/Texas A&M - Texas A&M

Texas A&M 79, BYU 66. 2-1 for the tournament. There wasn't much doubt in this one as Texas A&M hit their first 10 shots of the game and got out to an 18 point lead at one point. BYU did its best to post a comeback, but the damage had been done. It's the second consecutive year the Aggies have bounced BYU from the tournament.

Purdue/Northern Iowa - Purdue

Purdue 61, Norhtern Iowa 56. 3-1 for the tournament. This one had me scared as Purdue got out to a good sized lead in the first half, but Northern Iowa hung around the entire contest. I have the Boilermakers making a long run in this tournament, so a loss here could have hurt my bracket a lot.

North Carolina/Raford - North Carolina

North Carolina 101, Radford 58. 4-1 for the tournament. This one was never close. Despite the fact that the Tar Heels played the game without possibly its best all-around player in Ty Lawson.

California/Maryland - Maryland

Maryland 84, California 71. 5-1 for the tournament. A small upset as Maryland was a No. 10 seed to California's No. 7. Maryland held the lead for most of the game and never relinquished it despite a close contest near the middle of the second half.

Connecticut/Chatanooga - Connecticut

Connecticut 103, Chatanooga 47. 6-1 for the tournament. The most lop-sided first day game goes to the Huskies. Connecticut was without its coach for this game as he was stricken ill. So the Huskies unleashed a 'win one for the Gipper' type game against the poor Mocs.

Washington/Mississippi State - Mississippi State

Washington 71, Mississippi State 58. 6-2 for the tournament. This was one of my large upset picks. I felt Mississippi State was rolling after winning the SEC tournament while Washington fell early in the Pac-10 tournament. I guess the SEC truly is as down as it looks.

Texas/Minnesota - Texas

Texas 76, Minnesota 62. 7-2 for the tournament. This was another game I had to keep a close eye on as I have felt Texas could do some damage in the tournament, but was worried with a Minnesota team led by Tubby Smith, but the Longhorns prevailed.

Clemson/Michigan - Michigan

Michigan 62, Clemson 59. 8-2 for the tournament. Another 10 over a 7 which I was unaware I actually selected. I was back-and-forth on this game and in the end wasn't aware who I took. But, I am happy I went with the Wolverines who got their first tournament victory in 11 years.

Villanova/American - Villanova

Villanova 80, American 67. 9-2 for the tournament. Much like the Memphis game this one had to have many scratching their heads. A lot of people have Villanova going far in this tournament, and for American to not only play them well, but hold a 10-point lead at the half was phenomenal. In the end, the Wildcats just had too much depth and fire-power for the Eagles to hold on.

Gonzaga/Akron - Gonzaga

Gonzaga 77, Akron 64. 10-2 for the tournament. I was actually up in the air with this pick as I felt Akron could give Gonzaga a very good game - and they did. But, the Bulldogs proved their worth and their tournament experience in the end to hold of the Zips.

Duke/Binghamton - Duke

Duke 86, Binghamton 62. 11-2 for the tournament. Binghamton came out like gangbusters, but it was only a matter of time before the Dukies took control of the game. I am not a huge fan of this Blue Devils team, but no way Coach K goes out to Binghamton.

Oklahoma/Morgan State - Oklahoma

Oklahoma 82, Morgan State 54. 12-2 for the tournament. Too much Blake Griffen (28 points, 13 rebounds) for Morgan State to handle. The Sooners coast past the Bears.

UCLA/VCU - VCU

UCLA 65, VCU 64. 12-3 for the tournament. This was many people's glaring upset bid for the first round as VCU had knocked out Duke two years prior - and returned a very mature senior point guard in Eric Maynor. It almost came to fruition, but a Maynor jumper at the buzzer fell short and the Bruins live another day.

Illinois/Western Kentucky - Western Kentucky

Western Kentucky 76, Illinois 72. First day record: 13-3. This was another upset with the No. 12 seed knocking off the No. 5. Most people were seeing this as well, but were still thinking Illinois could pull it off - even with an important injured player. But, I felt Western Kentucky had enough to get by and they were just able to pull it off.

Second Day picks sometime afternoon.

Steelers Nab Six-Pack!

The Pittsburgh Steelers captured the 2008 NFL Championship last night. The second in my lifetime, and sixth overall.

The game had me on the edge of my seat for the entire fourth quarter. I give my props to the Cardinals - who tallied the most yardage against the Steelers defense all season - but I am thankful to have players like Ben Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes in Pittsburgh.

Amazing game - Amazing finish.


Also, sorry for being absent on here. I hope to be back up and running again shortly. My company just moved offices so I was without a computer until Friday - plus my second semester of school has started, and I am pretty busy at work - so I have had other things keeping me busy.

But, once I get myself in the groove again - I'll be back more often.

Rookie All Star Guesses

The 2009 NBA All-Star game will be played in Phoenix this season during the three-day period of February 13-15.

For the most part, I try to take in as much of the festivities as possible - but my favorite events are the NBA Rookie All-Star game and the 3-point shootout. To a lesser extent, I also enjoy the slam dunk contest and other events, but not as much as the other two.

So, before the team is announced I thought I would look over the two classes and see who would be making it to the rookie challenge this season.

For those that do not know, a few years ago the rookie challenge changed from an all rookie event, to the Rookies vs. Sophomores. Therefore, only nine players are usually selected from each class.

Also, as you will see, I am not totally sure about the rules for selection - but I will explain that after my picks.

For the Sophomores:
Kevin Durant (Thunder)
Daequan Cook (Heat)
Rodney Stuckey (Pistons)
Al Horford (Hawks)
Wilson Chandler (Knicks)
Luis Scola (Rockets)
Mike Conley (Grizzlies)
Jeff Green (Thunder)
Aaron Brooks (Rockets)

For the Rookies:
Derrick Rose (Bulls)
Michael Beasley (Heat)
OJ Mayo (Grizzlies)
Brooke Lopez (Nets)
DJ Augustine (Bobcats)
Eric Gordon (Clippers)
Greg Oden (Blazers)
Kevin Love (T-wolves)
Rudy Fernandez (Blazers)

Now, my main concern is for Oden - who technically would have been a sophomore had he not been injured for his entire rookie season - in my mind he is a rookie, but I am not sure where the league stands on this. That being said, I may also include Marc Gasol in the rookie list of the Grizzlies, who is having a great year as well.

That's funny, the rookie list was a lot harder to select because there are so many rookies on the cusp. So many on the fringe of being great, so narrowing it down to nine was difficult.

The sophomore list was actually hard as well, but for another reason - most of them just aren't having great years. It was difficult finding nine able bodies - in fact Al Horford is injured right now but should be able to play. Yi Jianlian of the Nets would have been eligible, but as of now is injured as well - and I think too injured to be able to play in this game.

Well, those are my predictions. I was looking to see when the announcement would be made, but I can't find it anywhere - so when they are announced we'll have to compare my predictions.