Big East Day 1 Shockers; First Practice on our Field

Big East Day 1 Shockers
UConn was wrapped up in a tight one with pathetic DePaul yesterday until the Huskies blew it open.  The same could not be said for Seton Hall, as they saw their NCAA hopes dashed after an OT loss to Rutgers.  Villanova pissed away a huge halftime lead to 3-win-in-Big-East South Florida and eventually lost on a last second layup, all but eliminating their NCAA chances (I think).  And Providence didn't put up much resistance to a Marquette team that's been pretty up and down.
I was 2-2 on my picks yesterday.

Today's picks go like this:  UConn over G'Town; St. John's over Rutgers; Cinci over an over-elated South Florida; and upset special Marquette over Huggins' kids at WVU.

First Practice on our Field
Yesterday was our first practice on our actual field.  Yes, it's true - we have played 7 games so far and have yet to practice on anything besides a gym floor or a turf soccer field.  No live reads on the outfield or on the bases.

Today is the second day - if we ever get out there.  There's a softball game and I'm going to have to rally some troops (between classes and midterms) to help me shovel snow off the first base line so that a game can be played.  A plow was brought in several weeks ago to remove snow, but the only field it cleared was lacrosse.  (MLax, WLax, Softball all share a giant turf park) Doesn't seem right to me.  This stuff has turned into blocks of ice, but based on what I saw yesterday, it is softening up.  Enough for their to be a game at 3:00pm this afternoon?  TBD.

Either way, I will spend the better part of my day down there getting it ready - or attempting to.  I hope we have some metal shovels down there because plastic shit shovels are going to snap left and right.  The other issue is that class is in full swing and midterms are this week.  I'll be lucky to get 5 or 6 guys for a job that really needs 15 or so.

Fun. (sike)

Trending Now; Big East Tournament Day 1

Trending Now
Topics that are trending today on Bing.com are topics that I'm sure are popular in almost any country (with electricity and television).

1. Charlie Sheen - actor/winner - The self-proclaimed "bi-winner" has been fired from the hit show "Two and a Half  Men", according to Warner Bros.  Can't say I was surprised by this decision.  Now all he needs to focus on is him and his two ladies at the Silver Valley Ranch, depending on how long they decide to stick around.

2. Sarah Palin - politician/Alaskan - She's been going at it with D-lister Kathy Griffin lately.  I had no idea of the barbs going back and forth, but I guess Kathy offered "reality star Sarah Palin and her reality TV crew" tickets to her Broadway show.  Low blow.  Plenty of people I know actually are in to the Alaska show she has out.  Oh well, at least she hasn't broken out the guns yet!

3. Libya - North African country/hell hole - Maniacal leader Moammar Gadhafi is reported to have ordered a bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 back in 1988, according to an ex-CIA official.  This guy needs to get killed or captured - it's getting ridiculous over there.  Government forces began new air attacks on rebels yesterday.  News flash - they're rebelling your asshole of a "leader".

4. Gas Prices - outrageous - Up $0.33 from two weeks ago?  This is getting out of control as well.  The average for a gallon of self-serve, regular gasoline is $3.50.  It's all tied into the output reduction in Libya - bastards.  Head on over to Gas Buddy to see where you can find cheap(er) gas near you.  Or just walk or take mass transportation - go green!

5. Mardi Gras - New Orleans "Carnival Season" - Purple and green and gold are the typical colors down in the Bayou during this celebration.  Mardi Gras actually translates to "Fat Tuesday" in French, which is why the festival ends the night before Ash Wednesday - it's supposed to be the last night eating fatty, richer foods.  Beads are thrown all over the place, hand grenades are consumed, hurricanes slammed down.  Sure, there's plenty of debauchery and alcohol consumption, but every city has those - New York has championship parades and happy hour's down in the city; Boston has the Red Sox and any day ending in -day.  It's fun.  Something to experience once - and before you're too old (25, I'd say).

Big East Tournament Day 1
DePaul and UConn at noon.  Rutgers and Seton Hall at 2 pm.  South Florida and Villanova at 7 pm.  Providence and Marquette at 9 pm.  

My picks:  UConn, Seton Hall, Villanova, Marquette - I  know, not really going out on a limb.  Day two on is usually the better days of this grueling tournament.  I would be able to go Thursday to Syracuse vs. ??? (Lindsay went to Cuse) but we are leaving for Knoxville, TN. 

A few years back we went to the seven overtime thriller between UConn and Syracuse.  That was the best basketball game I've ever been to and will probably never be trumped.

Time to go measure the softball fence - 205' to the lines, 210' to center.  I thought I did it right the other day, but I guess I was wrong.

Later Charlies!

Syracuse Slump; UConn Crumbles; Duke is Doody

Two Big East powers suffered losses yesterday.  One mediocre Big East team is going to town on the behind of #3 Duke today.

Syracuse has hit some tough times of late, dropping their fourth straight game, at Marquette, 76-70.  Marquette broke the 2-3 zone and shot 6 of 13 from beyond the arc.  The difference was their inside game and ability to draw contact in the lane.  Syracuse shot 8-14 at the free throw line - Marquette was 24-33 from the stripe.  They really should have blown out the Orange but missed 9 free throws.  Still, a 6-point win over a Top 10 team (not for much longer).  My guess is that Syracuse will drop into the 20's in the rankings.  Most teams that suffer four game skids fall out of the Top 25, but their schedule will keep them there, namely their wins over Michigan St., Notre Dame, Cincinnati and St. John's.

UConn had a chance but I sounded off on that yesterday after a freshman thought he was the leader of that team.  Wrong.  Tough loss for the Huskies.  2 OT's.  I remember when me and Lindsay went to the Garden to see the Syracuse-UConn 7 overtime game a few years back - that was the best college basketball game I've ever seen.  UConn is still 17-3 and will probably fall to 10th or so.  Like Syracuse, their wins over Michigan St., Kentucky, Texas, Villanova, Tennessee and Marquette will help them maintain Top 10 status.

We'll see who's hungrier on Wednesday as UConn hosts Syracuse at 7:00pm at the XL Center in Hartford, CT.  It'll be a game worth watching, I can guarantee that.  I am guessing it'll be on ESPN.  I hope, for everyone else's sake, they put it on national TV.

And finally, before I pass out for a few hours, I get to the last story I want to touch on - St. John's kicking the snot out of #3 Duke.  I've come to grips with the reality that Duke is a pretender without Kyrie Irving.  They've been mediocre at best since he's gone down and have only held on to their Top 5 ranking because others have stumbled along the way.  They are not a Top 5 team.  No way.  Down 22 points at Madison Square Garden to a St. John's team that itself is a pretender.  11-8 overall.  4-5 and in 11th place in the Big East standings.  I guess this is why Duke is the only team from the mighty ACC in the Top 25.  One thing I'll say about the Johnnies is they're battle tested - this is the final game in an 8-game stretch against Top 25 teams.  They've lost five of them with their wins coming against Georgetown (overrated) and Cincinnati (pretender).  Their third will be against Duke (pretender).  It's a sad state of affairs and it's tough to watch.

All three teams we root for here in our Bronx apartment are struggling.  We're not the type to rest on the past either - sure Duke won the National Championship last season, but they've done nothing this year.  Sure Syracuse was a high pre-season Big East picks, but they've underachieved thus far - especially of late.  UConn is overachieving - they were not picked to make any noise in the Big East.  It'll all get sorted out once March Madness comes around.  One thing's almost for certain - all three teams will be in the Field of 68 (or whatever the number is).

Practice was good today - our defense looked a little better and the pitchers who were live today threw strikes.  Velocity was down once again, like the first day, but they located, which is a good sign.  It's still early and I know the velocity will come around.  I also know that it's easy to pitch well against the guys you are comfortable being around.  The true test comes on February 25th at 4:00 pm down in Cullowhee, NC against Western Carolina.  For now, I'll continue to keep you updated as to our progress leading up to the first game.

OK, I'm done (just like Duke).

Watch This Video; UConn Ballhog Problem; Syracuse Looks to Right the Ship

Here's a story from ESPN on Kevin Laue, a one-handed basketball player here at Manhattan.  Even though they're going through an awful season (3-17), it's still good to see a kid like Kevin get a chance at to play at the highest level of amateur basketball - Division I.  Seeing him almost every day and speaking to him from time to time, I can tell he's a great kid with his head on straight who knows that attitude is everything. 


UConn has a ballhog problem.  And his name is not Kemba Walker.  It's Shabazz Napier.  #23 Louisville escaped the northeast with a 79-78 win over #5 UConn.  Kemba Walker got the final shot - from 35' away.  Napier was hoisting up three-pointers like they were going out of style - 5 for 13 on the game.  Sure he had 23 points, Jeremy Lamb had 21 (1-9 on threes) and Kemba had 20 (on 7-28 shooting).

The game was lost because of their transition defense (or lack thereof) and the fact that the big shots was taken by Napier, a freshman, and not by Walker, the leader of this team.  Regardless of who's hot and who's not, the (arguably) best player in the country should have the shot to win the game from closer that 35'.  A tough loss in the Big East will only help the Huskies, but still, heartbreak is heartbreak.  They need to regroup when they host #9 Syracuse at home next Wednesday.

Syracuse has a tough road test today with Marquette at 3:00 pm - they're trying to avoid a four game losing streak.  They started the season 18-0 before losing to Pittsburgh, Villanova, and Seton Hall.  A loss today could drop them to ninth or tenth in the Big East standings.  Seeing how the Big East has seven teams in the Top-25, they still aren't out of it, but they could have made their road to March a little easier by simply beating a mediocre-at-best Seton Hall team at the Carrier Dome.

Exciting day of college hoops today.  My nap has been cancelled due to the fact that I can't keep my eyes closed with all these good games on.  Chocolate milk time.  Oh yeaaaaahhhhhhhhh.

Duke's Slow Start; BEast-ly Big East

Watching this game on ESPN3.com (instead of the Manhattan game that's in my own gym) and am scratching my head as to how a team as good as #1 (for now) Duke can struggle so mightily.

They've mustered only 11 points in the first 12 minutes to start this game against a Virginia team that has played eight straight at home - I expected the always hostile Cameron Indoor to have some effect, which it clearly hasn't. 

Duke's big men (Plumlee and Kelly) have been no-shows so far this season.  Sure, Mason Plumlee has 8 rebounds already (and averages eight a game on the year) but he hasn't scored yet, but Kelly's five points per game and 3 rebounds per game are atrocious numbers for a guy like him.

Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler have been steady all season.  Singler's shooting percentages are slightly better than last year as are Smith's.  The injury to freshman phenom Kyrie Irving has hurt them big time.  He was putting up 17 a game, dishing out 5 assists, and really made them go.  He was, essentially, the WD-40 of this Duke team.  With him still in there, they beat Florida State.

Right now, I'd rather watch paint dry.  Down 15-11, their offense is inept, they're playing sloppy, and they're getting out hustled.  Halftime can't come soon enough - Coach K needs to get into them a little bit.  Losing two ACC games in a row is a no-no in Durham.

This game here is 22-19 Manhattan in case anyone was wondering.

#4 Syracuse had a tough match up (on paper) today as they hosted #25 Cincinnati at the Carrier Dome.  The Bearcats came in with a gaudy 16-1 record and got manhandled by the Orange (18-0), 67-52.  Cincinnati has played a joke of a schedule with their only two tests coming in Big East play - they lost by 11 at #7 Villanova and now by 15 at #4 Syracuse.  Next up for them - at #9 Notre Dame.  It's not getting easier for Cuse either as they head to #5 Pittsburgh next. 

The Big East is the best conference in college basketball and you can't even make an argument against that.  Five teams in the Top 10 and three others ranked in the AP Top 25.  Marquette, West Virginia, and St. John's are all contenders too this year.  Half the teams in this 16-team beast of a conference are in the AP Top 25.  Are you kidding me?

33-22 Canisius has stormed back.  See what I'm missing because of this blog?  Hahaha.

Tuning out here.  Halftime is almost here.  Duke is down 2.  Referee's use my office as their halftime quarters.  Later!!