Favorite CD: Ben Folds Live
Favorite movie: X-2. Don't get to the movies much.
Trend I'm most sick of: Reality TV/Paris Hilton (tie)
My favorite new toy: Madden 2004's franchise mode
I'm totally obsessed with: Honestly, nothing
Best sex I've had this year: *dies laughing*
My 2003 regret: Not doing enough. Just in general.
Word or phrase of the year: "That's it! THAT's the list!" - Tony Kornheiser after every Top 5 on PTI
Who most needs a Queer Eye makeover?: Mark from work. And it's not even close.
Is Kobe guilty?: Of adultery, yes.
Ambition for 2004: Clean up this mess
Best song I downloaded this year: Talib Kweli - "Get By"
The drunkest I was this year: Hmmm. Probably the Tom and Nancy go-away bash
Where I'll be on New Year's Eve: Damned if I know.
Tuesday, December 30, 2003
By The Pigskin Of Our Teeth, Week 17
In Which Grooves Are Busted, History Repeats Itself, And Things Fall Apart
31-0? Hey, wasn't that the score of...
Donovan's celebration... yeah. I don't know where that came from. I blame Rob and his JIB agents. I had Westbrook on my fantasy team and I didn't realize he'd scored that many touchdowns. That's gonna hurt. Spurrier has to realize by now that what he's doing isn't working. And PLEASE tell me I'm not the only one who saw the Brian Dawkins German suplex.
My only guess is that the Eagles winning prompted Fox to change our game from Cowboys-Saints to Rams-Lions. This was... it was like the Rams thought it was "first to 20 wins" or something. I'd say they got up and left but Bulger just got sacked again. There's been an Otis Smith sighting! This happened to the Eagles LAST year, too, just with far less convoluted results (Jets, after learning the Pats beat Miami to give them life, lay smack down on Packers and win division; loss sends Packers from #1 seed to #3, where they get beaten by Vick). You can't drop your finale to the Lions' C-teamers. You just can't.
Me? I also got to watch the Bengals' dream die. Still, 8-8 is enough to get Marvin the key to the city at LEAST. Am I the only one surprised that Suggs didn't hurt himself on the touchdown run?
Neil O'Donnell! I don't care what your cap situation is, you've gotta find a way to keep three quarterbacks in today's NFL. Did we ever figure out what happened to the Bucs? Meanwhile, the Texans were putting it on the Colts until everybody remembered what was going on. Edge went nuts, and the Strickland interception basically decided the game. Forty-one in a row's nice, Vanderjagt. But if you get a shot next week and blow it like you did in 2000, you'll never hear the end of it.
The Cardinals have picked some people off at home this year, and the Vikings had been spitting up against bad teams, but this... I never would have expected this. I didn't see the official signal "push" the first time they showed the catch, so I didn't know why they were reviewing for possession at first. Chris said it perfectly - this should never have happened. The Packers invited Poole to the game. Free playoff game? Damn straight. And he's a Cardinal, so it's not like he's making any money ANYWAY.
I'd figured by this point that the Ravens would at least let Jamal get to 2,000 and then take it from there. Did anyone else find a lot of the playcalling completely nonsensical? Like the Ravens abandoning the run in the third quarter? Ray has twice as many interceptions this year as McAlister. Fake punt~~~~ Blood hatred~~~~ Dickerson's "I'm Not Nervous" sign~~~~ James initially thought Richey missed on purpose before being told it was from 52 or whatever.
TOP 3:
1. New England - They may not be stopped
2. Tennessee - McNair gets much-needed rest
3. Philadelphia - Third time the charm?
BOTTOM 3:
30. San Diego - The Chargers are ON THE CLOCK. My advice: Trade down and get off
31. Oakland - Players packing up Callahan's things for him
32. N.Y. Giants - No truth to the rumor team is changing logo to a tank
31-0? Hey, wasn't that the score of...
Donovan's celebration... yeah. I don't know where that came from. I blame Rob and his JIB agents. I had Westbrook on my fantasy team and I didn't realize he'd scored that many touchdowns. That's gonna hurt. Spurrier has to realize by now that what he's doing isn't working. And PLEASE tell me I'm not the only one who saw the Brian Dawkins German suplex.
My only guess is that the Eagles winning prompted Fox to change our game from Cowboys-Saints to Rams-Lions. This was... it was like the Rams thought it was "first to 20 wins" or something. I'd say they got up and left but Bulger just got sacked again. There's been an Otis Smith sighting! This happened to the Eagles LAST year, too, just with far less convoluted results (Jets, after learning the Pats beat Miami to give them life, lay smack down on Packers and win division; loss sends Packers from #1 seed to #3, where they get beaten by Vick). You can't drop your finale to the Lions' C-teamers. You just can't.
Me? I also got to watch the Bengals' dream die. Still, 8-8 is enough to get Marvin the key to the city at LEAST. Am I the only one surprised that Suggs didn't hurt himself on the touchdown run?
Neil O'Donnell! I don't care what your cap situation is, you've gotta find a way to keep three quarterbacks in today's NFL. Did we ever figure out what happened to the Bucs? Meanwhile, the Texans were putting it on the Colts until everybody remembered what was going on. Edge went nuts, and the Strickland interception basically decided the game. Forty-one in a row's nice, Vanderjagt. But if you get a shot next week and blow it like you did in 2000, you'll never hear the end of it.
The Cardinals have picked some people off at home this year, and the Vikings had been spitting up against bad teams, but this... I never would have expected this. I didn't see the official signal "push" the first time they showed the catch, so I didn't know why they were reviewing for possession at first. Chris said it perfectly - this should never have happened. The Packers invited Poole to the game. Free playoff game? Damn straight. And he's a Cardinal, so it's not like he's making any money ANYWAY.
I'd figured by this point that the Ravens would at least let Jamal get to 2,000 and then take it from there. Did anyone else find a lot of the playcalling completely nonsensical? Like the Ravens abandoning the run in the third quarter? Ray has twice as many interceptions this year as McAlister. Fake punt~~~~ Blood hatred~~~~ Dickerson's "I'm Not Nervous" sign~~~~ James initially thought Richey missed on purpose before being told it was from 52 or whatever.
TOP 3:
1. New England - They may not be stopped
2. Tennessee - McNair gets much-needed rest
3. Philadelphia - Third time the charm?
BOTTOM 3:
30. San Diego - The Chargers are ON THE CLOCK. My advice: Trade down and get off
31. Oakland - Players packing up Callahan's things for him
32. N.Y. Giants - No truth to the rumor team is changing logo to a tank
Sunday, December 28, 2003
The Gathering
The Food:
Leg of lamb
roasted potatoes
collards
The Loot:
Ric Flair DVD
Soul Calibur II
Dave Barry 365-day calendar
three shirts, one a "RUST HTHR" color whatever the hell that is
Boogers Are My Beat by Dave Barry
two (!) Christmas ornaments
entertainment center
Leg of lamb
roasted potatoes
collards
The Loot:
Ric Flair DVD
Soul Calibur II
Dave Barry 365-day calendar
three shirts, one a "RUST HTHR" color whatever the hell that is
Boogers Are My Beat by Dave Barry
two (!) Christmas ornaments
entertainment center
Wednesday, December 24, 2003
Illinois-Chicago Diary (Week 10)
Polls: WE HAVE A NEW NUMBER ONE. It’s 15-0 Alabama, who beat LSU and Mississippi State last week. Florida lost to both Georgia and South Carolina to drop to third. Oklahoma, the only other unbeaten team left at 16-0, jumped from No. 8 to No. 4. Maryland and Syracuse tumbled from fifth and fourth to 18th and 20th, respectively.
Recruiting: Meet the newest Flame:
PF Jared Street (6’8”, 188, Chicago; Sheridan, Wyo., JC)
We’re not quite sure where he fits in on our front line yet, but he’ll need to add weight for sure. Assistant coach Alonzo Bloom called coach Mills on Sunday and said there was someone a lot of schools had overlooked who could help solve our looming problem at small forward, and we gave the young man our final scholarship offer:
SF Sean Keyes (6’7”, 206, LaPorte, IN)
Awards:
Horizon League Player of the Week: PF #31 Martin Sanchez, 6’10” senior, Detroit (21.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg)
Horizon League Freshman of the Week: SF #24 Andy Hayes, 6’4” freshman, Wright State (17 ppg) And all was right with the world. Cooper was second in the voting.
National Player of the Week: PF Eugene Ellis, 6’7” senior, Bethune-Cookman (29 ppg, 14.5 rpg)
National Freshman of the Week: SF David Newby, 6’3” freshman, Charlotte (29 ppg, 20 rpg, 4 spg) 41 and 22 in an overtime win over Marquette.
Injuries: A little bit of good news — Miller’s recovering ahead of schedule and could be back in four weeks. However, it looks like Scott’s season is definitely over.
Game 17 Report
Illinois-Chicago (9-7, 2-2) at Wisconsin-Milwaukee (4-12, 0-4)
Saturday, January 18, 2003
The Horizon League has nine teams, which means there’s gonna be one week in conference play where a team only has one game. This is our week.
This also kicks off a strange four-week stretch during which we play the same three teams twice: this game, vs. Cleveland State and at Detroit next week, then at Cleveland State and home against these guys the following week, then Detroit comes in the week after that. So it’s the bottom-feeders mixed in with the preseason conference favorites. It’s probably our hardest stretch of the season.
For those of you who’ve forgotten, this is the team with the player from the Indiana School for the Blind on it. Freshman Greg Morrill has appeared in four games, played seven minutes total, took two shots and missed them both, and turned the ball over once. And yes, he is only legally blind. Maybe not even, but close. About 86% is what I heard.
Our initial problem as the Panthers took an early lead was stopping junior center Cory Felix. He got behind the defense for a dunk to start the game, hit a 16-footer a little later, and got his third basket on a layup in traffic. So a defensive switch was made, and we put White on him, leaving the shorter Williams free to defend off the post. Our second problem was a familiar one — our inability to take care of the ball. The Panthers got five steals in the first seven minutes of the game. To only be down 14-10 seemed almost miraculous. Our third problem was Correa picking up three fouls before the half was half over.
Fortunately, Fields was playing well off the bench, tying the score at 16 with the half nearly half finished on a jumper. The Panthers re-took the lead from the line before yet another “trademark” three-pointer by Muhammad tied it up again at 20 two minutes later. Jones actually played point guard for about a minute and a half to give Cooper a breather. Wagner gave us our first lead with a jumper, then Williams extended it with another jumper (What’s with all our big guys taking jump shots? Ah, well. At least they’re making them) and Jones drained a three that forced the Panthers to call time out. Is 13-6 really a “run”? I dunno, but we’ll take the 29-24 lead that went along with it. Three straight baskets by Damian Jackson put an end to the euphoria, however. Wagner got us the lead back with a putback, but the Panthers would score the last four points of the half and lead 35-31.
The second half didn’t start well for us, as we couldn’t stop the Panthers at all. They scored on their first six possessions to extend their lead to 49-40 at one point, and point guard Ian Okotie was becoming a fourth problem, as he’d come on in the later stages of the first half and stayed hot into the second. Poor free throw shooting on our part would likely be the fifth problem. The Panthers went back inside, to Felix and Jason Burch, and ran the lead to 62-50 before time was called. That was with 9:16 left. Two and a half minutes later, it was 69-55.
Nothing we tried defensively was working. Cooper got frustrated and committed a flagrant foul on Okotie, which left Mills steaming. We started chipping away at their lead, but we were losing time, and it soon became “give some fouls and make some threes” time. Two minutes left, down 76-68. Okotie missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Jones came down and hit a three. But Cooper fouled out on the next possession, and we got three shots at their end and missed all three, sealing our embarrassing fate.
An 11-point loss (82-71) to the worst team in the conference. Ick. Okotie had a double-double with 20 points and 10 assists to lead all five Panther starters in double figures. Williams led us with 17 while Jones added 15. Cooper had eight assists but only two points, and White only got one rebound the entire second half. We also turned the ball over 15 times to their seven.
Happy holidays to my five readers. See you this weekend.
Recruiting: Meet the newest Flame:
PF Jared Street (6’8”, 188, Chicago; Sheridan, Wyo., JC)
We’re not quite sure where he fits in on our front line yet, but he’ll need to add weight for sure. Assistant coach Alonzo Bloom called coach Mills on Sunday and said there was someone a lot of schools had overlooked who could help solve our looming problem at small forward, and we gave the young man our final scholarship offer:
SF Sean Keyes (6’7”, 206, LaPorte, IN)
Awards:
Horizon League Player of the Week: PF #31 Martin Sanchez, 6’10” senior, Detroit (21.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg)
Horizon League Freshman of the Week: SF #24 Andy Hayes, 6’4” freshman, Wright State (17 ppg) And all was right with the world. Cooper was second in the voting.
National Player of the Week: PF Eugene Ellis, 6’7” senior, Bethune-Cookman (29 ppg, 14.5 rpg)
National Freshman of the Week: SF David Newby, 6’3” freshman, Charlotte (29 ppg, 20 rpg, 4 spg) 41 and 22 in an overtime win over Marquette.
Injuries: A little bit of good news — Miller’s recovering ahead of schedule and could be back in four weeks. However, it looks like Scott’s season is definitely over.
Game 17 Report
Illinois-Chicago (9-7, 2-2) at Wisconsin-Milwaukee (4-12, 0-4)
Saturday, January 18, 2003
The Horizon League has nine teams, which means there’s gonna be one week in conference play where a team only has one game. This is our week.
This also kicks off a strange four-week stretch during which we play the same three teams twice: this game, vs. Cleveland State and at Detroit next week, then at Cleveland State and home against these guys the following week, then Detroit comes in the week after that. So it’s the bottom-feeders mixed in with the preseason conference favorites. It’s probably our hardest stretch of the season.
For those of you who’ve forgotten, this is the team with the player from the Indiana School for the Blind on it. Freshman Greg Morrill has appeared in four games, played seven minutes total, took two shots and missed them both, and turned the ball over once. And yes, he is only legally blind. Maybe not even, but close. About 86% is what I heard.
Our initial problem as the Panthers took an early lead was stopping junior center Cory Felix. He got behind the defense for a dunk to start the game, hit a 16-footer a little later, and got his third basket on a layup in traffic. So a defensive switch was made, and we put White on him, leaving the shorter Williams free to defend off the post. Our second problem was a familiar one — our inability to take care of the ball. The Panthers got five steals in the first seven minutes of the game. To only be down 14-10 seemed almost miraculous. Our third problem was Correa picking up three fouls before the half was half over.
Fortunately, Fields was playing well off the bench, tying the score at 16 with the half nearly half finished on a jumper. The Panthers re-took the lead from the line before yet another “trademark” three-pointer by Muhammad tied it up again at 20 two minutes later. Jones actually played point guard for about a minute and a half to give Cooper a breather. Wagner gave us our first lead with a jumper, then Williams extended it with another jumper (What’s with all our big guys taking jump shots? Ah, well. At least they’re making them) and Jones drained a three that forced the Panthers to call time out. Is 13-6 really a “run”? I dunno, but we’ll take the 29-24 lead that went along with it. Three straight baskets by Damian Jackson put an end to the euphoria, however. Wagner got us the lead back with a putback, but the Panthers would score the last four points of the half and lead 35-31.
The second half didn’t start well for us, as we couldn’t stop the Panthers at all. They scored on their first six possessions to extend their lead to 49-40 at one point, and point guard Ian Okotie was becoming a fourth problem, as he’d come on in the later stages of the first half and stayed hot into the second. Poor free throw shooting on our part would likely be the fifth problem. The Panthers went back inside, to Felix and Jason Burch, and ran the lead to 62-50 before time was called. That was with 9:16 left. Two and a half minutes later, it was 69-55.
Nothing we tried defensively was working. Cooper got frustrated and committed a flagrant foul on Okotie, which left Mills steaming. We started chipping away at their lead, but we were losing time, and it soon became “give some fouls and make some threes” time. Two minutes left, down 76-68. Okotie missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Jones came down and hit a three. But Cooper fouled out on the next possession, and we got three shots at their end and missed all three, sealing our embarrassing fate.
An 11-point loss (82-71) to the worst team in the conference. Ick. Okotie had a double-double with 20 points and 10 assists to lead all five Panther starters in double figures. Williams led us with 17 while Jones added 15. Cooper had eight assists but only two points, and White only got one rebound the entire second half. We also turned the ball over 15 times to their seven.
Happy holidays to my five readers. See you this weekend.
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
By The Pigskin Of Our Teeth, Week 16
In Which Fears Are Realized, The Unthinkable Happens - Twice, And Respect Must Be Offered
Dan Reeves was likely sitting at home cursing the gods. Who gave the Falcons' secondary recognition and coverage ability? Vick colliding with Duckett and STILL getting the first down was just... wrong. Bye-bye, Bucs!
Randy, about the hair. Never again. NEVER. You looked like Diana Ross. Fortunately for the Vikes, the Chiefs' defense PLAYED like Diana Ross. What was this? This was being horribly exposed, that's what. I said at the beginning of the season that their secondary was still weak. What had been saving them was their ability to force turnovers, and they haven't been able to do that recently.
They have to lose at some point, right? Right?
Funny yet sad was watching Nantz call the end of Titans-Texans on the post-game show. Is there anything he doesn't do for that network? And in a related note, is there anything McNair can't do for his team? Anything?
Quincy having to ask Richie Anderson to help him dump the bucket on Parcells was the funniest thing I'd heard all day.
Hang on, I'm being handed a bulletin... the Cleveland Browns have just been purchased by a J. Lewis, 24 years old, born in Atlanta. There's a statement here... he says: "I don't plan on making ANY changes."
I decided that the first lateral was straight across the field and it was all gravy from there. Then... oh man. I heard someone say the hold was botched and that that had been a problem recently? But Carney had only missed five extra points in his whole CAREER. Think about that. Forget walking back to New Orleans; he and Mitch Berger (punter/holder) oughta head south to Cuba. In separate rafts.
Why isn't Tony Parrish in the Pro Bowl? This is going to sound weird, but I'm kinda glad they lost. Because the pressure of keeping up the streak is gone (do YOU think anybody's gonna win 15 in a row?) Emmons really was one of the unsung guys on this team - he'd cover tight ends, blitz, really did everything from that spot. T.O. had already cost himself even more money with those drops, and that may be the most underpublicized broken collarbone in history. I can't really criticize Erickson because he did what Parcells didn't do two weks ago and stuck with the run. Though this team should be better than their record. Then Akers goes and misses two field goals. What's going on here? Why isn't Tony Parrish in the Pro Bowl? Even more importantly, we may have just gotten a Rams-Pats rematch.
First Bad Jake showed up and gave the Colts the early advantage. Then Good Jake showed up and kicked his ass. "We're the Denver Broncos, and we make backs great." It's a strange time when the Broncos making the playoffs is a blip on the radar.
Brett Favre r00lz. That is all.
Fantasy Report: Well, I benched Bruce and hoped against hope Portis could go. He didn't. Plummer outplayed Manning, but Moss and Barlow were the difference as Nate beat me in the USFLaPa finals, 107-91 (rounding up.) He'll face Sven in the Bacardi Bowl. The scores from MNF haven't gone up yet, but I'm fairly certain that had I gone with my gut and started Javon Walker, I would've won. Oh well. To even make the finals after the horrific start my original core players had was an accomplishment in itself.
TOP 3:
1. New England - History's least imposing-looking juggernaut
2. St. Louis - Bulger still perfect in dome home
3. Tennessee - This one was way too close
BOTTOM 3:
30. Cleveland - This wasn't supposed to happen, was it?
31. San Diego - Sputtering to the finish
32. Arizona - Going nowhere slow
Dan Reeves was likely sitting at home cursing the gods. Who gave the Falcons' secondary recognition and coverage ability? Vick colliding with Duckett and STILL getting the first down was just... wrong. Bye-bye, Bucs!
Randy, about the hair. Never again. NEVER. You looked like Diana Ross. Fortunately for the Vikes, the Chiefs' defense PLAYED like Diana Ross. What was this? This was being horribly exposed, that's what. I said at the beginning of the season that their secondary was still weak. What had been saving them was their ability to force turnovers, and they haven't been able to do that recently.
They have to lose at some point, right? Right?
Funny yet sad was watching Nantz call the end of Titans-Texans on the post-game show. Is there anything he doesn't do for that network? And in a related note, is there anything McNair can't do for his team? Anything?
Quincy having to ask Richie Anderson to help him dump the bucket on Parcells was the funniest thing I'd heard all day.
Hang on, I'm being handed a bulletin... the Cleveland Browns have just been purchased by a J. Lewis, 24 years old, born in Atlanta. There's a statement here... he says: "I don't plan on making ANY changes."
I decided that the first lateral was straight across the field and it was all gravy from there. Then... oh man. I heard someone say the hold was botched and that that had been a problem recently? But Carney had only missed five extra points in his whole CAREER. Think about that. Forget walking back to New Orleans; he and Mitch Berger (punter/holder) oughta head south to Cuba. In separate rafts.
Why isn't Tony Parrish in the Pro Bowl? This is going to sound weird, but I'm kinda glad they lost. Because the pressure of keeping up the streak is gone (do YOU think anybody's gonna win 15 in a row?) Emmons really was one of the unsung guys on this team - he'd cover tight ends, blitz, really did everything from that spot. T.O. had already cost himself even more money with those drops, and that may be the most underpublicized broken collarbone in history. I can't really criticize Erickson because he did what Parcells didn't do two weks ago and stuck with the run. Though this team should be better than their record. Then Akers goes and misses two field goals. What's going on here? Why isn't Tony Parrish in the Pro Bowl? Even more importantly, we may have just gotten a Rams-Pats rematch.
First Bad Jake showed up and gave the Colts the early advantage. Then Good Jake showed up and kicked his ass. "We're the Denver Broncos, and we make backs great." It's a strange time when the Broncos making the playoffs is a blip on the radar.
Brett Favre r00lz. That is all.
Fantasy Report: Well, I benched Bruce and hoped against hope Portis could go. He didn't. Plummer outplayed Manning, but Moss and Barlow were the difference as Nate beat me in the USFLaPa finals, 107-91 (rounding up.) He'll face Sven in the Bacardi Bowl. The scores from MNF haven't gone up yet, but I'm fairly certain that had I gone with my gut and started Javon Walker, I would've won. Oh well. To even make the finals after the horrific start my original core players had was an accomplishment in itself.
TOP 3:
1. New England - History's least imposing-looking juggernaut
2. St. Louis - Bulger still perfect in dome home
3. Tennessee - This one was way too close
BOTTOM 3:
30. Cleveland - This wasn't supposed to happen, was it?
31. San Diego - Sputtering to the finish
32. Arizona - Going nowhere slow
Sunday, December 21, 2003
ZING
Grand Theft Rob: you work for a newspaper, right?
IdeaMan405: Yeah
Grand Theft Rob: which means you could fake the articles I need of Chris Gates beating up Packer fans. :-D
Grand Theft Rob: right, right!
IdeaMan405: I could.
Grand Theft Rob: okay, okay. I'll bribe you. *slips Matt a penny*
IdeaMan405: Whether I will is another matter entirely. :-D
Grand Theft Rob: and there's plenty more where that came from!
IdeaMan405: Oh you're gonna have to do better than THAT.
Grand Theft Rob: you're a tough sell. *slips Matt a dime*
Grand Theft Rob: and this is for your trouble. *slips Matt a nickel AND a dime*
IdeaMan405: What the hell.
IdeaMan405: I can't even buy A STAMP with that.
Grand Theft Rob: *slips Matt a roll of stamps* I got postage, too, baby.
Grand Theft Rob: *holds out trenchcoat to reveal Priority Mail stamps*
IdeaMan405: Apparently the saying "Everything's bigger in Texas" doesn't apply to your wallet
IdeaMan405: Yeah
Grand Theft Rob: which means you could fake the articles I need of Chris Gates beating up Packer fans. :-D
Grand Theft Rob: right, right!
IdeaMan405: I could.
Grand Theft Rob: okay, okay. I'll bribe you. *slips Matt a penny*
IdeaMan405: Whether I will is another matter entirely. :-D
Grand Theft Rob: and there's plenty more where that came from!
IdeaMan405: Oh you're gonna have to do better than THAT.
Grand Theft Rob: you're a tough sell. *slips Matt a dime*
Grand Theft Rob: and this is for your trouble. *slips Matt a nickel AND a dime*
IdeaMan405: What the hell.
IdeaMan405: I can't even buy A STAMP with that.
Grand Theft Rob: *slips Matt a roll of stamps* I got postage, too, baby.
Grand Theft Rob: *holds out trenchcoat to reveal Priority Mail stamps*
IdeaMan405: Apparently the saying "Everything's bigger in Texas" doesn't apply to your wallet
Wednesday, December 17, 2003
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
By The Pigskin Of Our Teeth, Week 15
In Which Claims Are Staked, The Spotlight's Glare is Blinding, And The Hot Get Hotter
Can anything else go wrong for the Seahawks on the road? "The back judge falls down and trips up a receiver, thwarting a game-winning touchdown" has to be near the bottom of the list, right above "Mike Martz calls five straight running plays." What I take issue with is the Alexander run two(?) plays prior on 3rd and 1.
Why were the Vikings even trailing the Bears in the first place? What kind of sense does that make? Grossman should have been starting about six weeks ago, by my estimation. This is getting dangerously close to '64 Phillies territory, here. And Rob? THE BEARS BEAT YOU TOO. You should both be ashamed of yourselves.
The rest of the AFC better hope the Jets can pick off the Pats Saturday night. Losing home field may be the only chance anyone else has.
It took the Panthers long enough, didn't it? Congrats.
If I ever get down to Texas, I'm having me a steak and whatever's in that water that made Troy Hambrick a 900-yard back. Six takeaways by two guys. Oh man. Repent.
Marty: "Our plan was to stop Ahman Green." That may not have been wise. And really, they didn't even do that. This one was weird to follow during the cut-ins, especially in that fourth quarter when they were taking turns scoring on each other. Oh, and this just in: Brett Favre r00lz.
This ALSO just in: Wide receivers are insane. Chad's sign > Horn's cell phone (and I don't remember where I read it, but someone speculated on how many other guys had stuff hidden on the field that they never got to use). And is there another cell phone still under the goalpost at the opposite end of the Superdome? I must know.
Welcome to the last good Monday night programming of the year. No, I have not been forwarding Sven's treatises on how the Dolphins' DBs can be beaten deep. Not only was Mitchell a high school quarterback, he also played baseball. Many thanks to Al for explaining the rules on the Buckhalter touchdown, though I'm still not sure if he actually crossed the pylon or not. A lot of bad tackling on the Dolphins' part in this one. WISHBONE~~~~~! I believe this is the first time they've ever won in Miami, also.
Fantasy Report: Again, thanks to Portis and a poor showing by Scott's RBs, I was down by less than two going into MNF with Westbrook and Akers left. The first Eagles touchdown won me this game and earned me the right to get my ass handed to me by Nate in the USFLaPa finals.
TOP 3:
1. New England - Snowing out Florida teams by the... pair
2. Philadelphia - You can run on them... but you'll LOSE
3. Indianapolis - Peyton for MVP? Sure, why not
BOTTOM 3:
30. San Diego - At least Brees is playing again
31. Detroit - Just nothing good going on
32. Arizona - Brace yourself, Eli
Can anything else go wrong for the Seahawks on the road? "The back judge falls down and trips up a receiver, thwarting a game-winning touchdown" has to be near the bottom of the list, right above "Mike Martz calls five straight running plays." What I take issue with is the Alexander run two(?) plays prior on 3rd and 1.
Why were the Vikings even trailing the Bears in the first place? What kind of sense does that make? Grossman should have been starting about six weeks ago, by my estimation. This is getting dangerously close to '64 Phillies territory, here. And Rob? THE BEARS BEAT YOU TOO. You should both be ashamed of yourselves.
The rest of the AFC better hope the Jets can pick off the Pats Saturday night. Losing home field may be the only chance anyone else has.
It took the Panthers long enough, didn't it? Congrats.
If I ever get down to Texas, I'm having me a steak and whatever's in that water that made Troy Hambrick a 900-yard back. Six takeaways by two guys. Oh man. Repent.
Marty: "Our plan was to stop Ahman Green." That may not have been wise. And really, they didn't even do that. This one was weird to follow during the cut-ins, especially in that fourth quarter when they were taking turns scoring on each other. Oh, and this just in: Brett Favre r00lz.
This ALSO just in: Wide receivers are insane. Chad's sign > Horn's cell phone (and I don't remember where I read it, but someone speculated on how many other guys had stuff hidden on the field that they never got to use). And is there another cell phone still under the goalpost at the opposite end of the Superdome? I must know.
Welcome to the last good Monday night programming of the year. No, I have not been forwarding Sven's treatises on how the Dolphins' DBs can be beaten deep. Not only was Mitchell a high school quarterback, he also played baseball. Many thanks to Al for explaining the rules on the Buckhalter touchdown, though I'm still not sure if he actually crossed the pylon or not. A lot of bad tackling on the Dolphins' part in this one. WISHBONE~~~~~! I believe this is the first time they've ever won in Miami, also.
Fantasy Report: Again, thanks to Portis and a poor showing by Scott's RBs, I was down by less than two going into MNF with Westbrook and Akers left. The first Eagles touchdown won me this game and earned me the right to get my ass handed to me by Nate in the USFLaPa finals.
TOP 3:
1. New England - Snowing out Florida teams by the... pair
2. Philadelphia - You can run on them... but you'll LOSE
3. Indianapolis - Peyton for MVP? Sure, why not
BOTTOM 3:
30. San Diego - At least Brees is playing again
31. Detroit - Just nothing good going on
32. Arizona - Brace yourself, Eli
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
By The Pigskin Of Our Teeth, Week 14
In Which Guns Are Drawn, The Electricity Returns, And The Falls Continue
I still don't know why the Cowboys stopped running the football. The snap whizzing past Quincy's head... awesome comedy. "I don't know what happened."
Did anyone notice that Marvin never touched the ball with his other hand? Now we find out that McNair on the field means opponents don't score, too. You know, something like that happened in a high school game I covered once, only it was at the beginning. "All right. We'll spot the other team 16 points, then we'll take the ball." I think at some point, you have to put another return guy out there. You know, the only big game Peyton hasn't won yet is in the playoffs.
It looked like Moss just had a way of finding the worst Seahawk DB and getting himself matched up with him. Then running past him. This is becoming disastrous.
"Brett! Chicago Bears!" "Oh. Right! Shit, what am I doing? I own these motherfuckers." Then they scored 381 unanswered points or whatever it was. For some reason Fox took me here after Cowboys-Eagles ended and I was all "The hell is this?" and turned to the end of Colts-Titans that CBS picked up at 4 AND THEN CUT TO JETS-BILLS. W. T. F.
One of the Toss-Ups on PTI today was between Ray and Jamal and the idea that Jamal could break 2,100 yards rushing and not only would Ray be voted the team's MVP over him, but Jamal himself would vote for Ray, who has suddenly become an intercepting machine. When did this happen? Whoever loses that division, I don't think they make it.
PORTIS FOR WORLD CHAMP.
I know that snow was still falling in Foxboro, but I think you've gotta try to get in underneath that and CLEAR OUT SOME DAMN SEATS. On the Bruschi interception, it almost looked like the ball traveled farther than he returned it, if that makes any sense. What was that about the Lawyer Milloy situation dividing the team?
Did the 49ers just score again?
Never before and again will a crowd be that jacked about a 2-10 team. Did Kasay touch Feely on the shoulder before kickoff and pass the virus, like in that Denzel/John Goodman flick? People complained to ESPN because the announcers were all Vick this and Vick that - hello, that was the STORY of the GAME. And, gee, it's not like he won the game by himself or anything.
The Dawg Pound wedding means a Black Hole wedding can't be far behind. Though in that case, I imagine it'd be more of a ritual sacrifice.
Fantasy Report: Portis's five TD's sent Weeba sprawling to the curb. Though I do wish I could bank some of those points, since I face Scott in the semifinals. Top-seeded Chaz is out, losing to Chris by about two and a half points.
TOP 3:
1. New England - King of the snow-covered mountains
2. Philadelphia - Biggest run in years
3. Indianapolis - Taking opportunity by the teeth
BOTTOM 3:
30. Arizona - Just a dismal state of being
31. San Diego - Have they given up on Brees?
32. Oakland - *snapping of bones and tissue*
I still don't know why the Cowboys stopped running the football. The snap whizzing past Quincy's head... awesome comedy. "I don't know what happened."
Did anyone notice that Marvin never touched the ball with his other hand? Now we find out that McNair on the field means opponents don't score, too. You know, something like that happened in a high school game I covered once, only it was at the beginning. "All right. We'll spot the other team 16 points, then we'll take the ball." I think at some point, you have to put another return guy out there. You know, the only big game Peyton hasn't won yet is in the playoffs.
It looked like Moss just had a way of finding the worst Seahawk DB and getting himself matched up with him. Then running past him. This is becoming disastrous.
"Brett! Chicago Bears!" "Oh. Right! Shit, what am I doing? I own these motherfuckers." Then they scored 381 unanswered points or whatever it was. For some reason Fox took me here after Cowboys-Eagles ended and I was all "The hell is this?" and turned to the end of Colts-Titans that CBS picked up at 4 AND THEN CUT TO JETS-BILLS. W. T. F.
One of the Toss-Ups on PTI today was between Ray and Jamal and the idea that Jamal could break 2,100 yards rushing and not only would Ray be voted the team's MVP over him, but Jamal himself would vote for Ray, who has suddenly become an intercepting machine. When did this happen? Whoever loses that division, I don't think they make it.
PORTIS FOR WORLD CHAMP.
I know that snow was still falling in Foxboro, but I think you've gotta try to get in underneath that and CLEAR OUT SOME DAMN SEATS. On the Bruschi interception, it almost looked like the ball traveled farther than he returned it, if that makes any sense. What was that about the Lawyer Milloy situation dividing the team?
Did the 49ers just score again?
Never before and again will a crowd be that jacked about a 2-10 team. Did Kasay touch Feely on the shoulder before kickoff and pass the virus, like in that Denzel/John Goodman flick? People complained to ESPN because the announcers were all Vick this and Vick that - hello, that was the STORY of the GAME. And, gee, it's not like he won the game by himself or anything.
The Dawg Pound wedding means a Black Hole wedding can't be far behind. Though in that case, I imagine it'd be more of a ritual sacrifice.
Fantasy Report: Portis's five TD's sent Weeba sprawling to the curb. Though I do wish I could bank some of those points, since I face Scott in the semifinals. Top-seeded Chaz is out, losing to Chris by about two and a half points.
TOP 3:
1. New England - King of the snow-covered mountains
2. Philadelphia - Biggest run in years
3. Indianapolis - Taking opportunity by the teeth
BOTTOM 3:
30. Arizona - Just a dismal state of being
31. San Diego - Have they given up on Brees?
32. Oakland - *snapping of bones and tissue*
Monday, December 8, 2003
I Didn't Even Have To Use My AK
Eagles 36, Cowboys 10.
The BCS under attack again.
As Bill Simmons says, "Good times... good times."
The BCS under attack again.
As Bill Simmons says, "Good times... good times."
Saturday, December 6, 2003
Gettin' Deals
This vacation seems to be agreeing with me so far.
Tuesday night, I decided I want Pizza Hut. So I called them, placed my order, and went to pick it up, since I'm also getting lottery tickets. I got to Pizza Hut, and they didn't have it. They lost my order. So I ended up re-ordering getting a free pizza out of it.
The next day, I found out that the deposits for my gas and electric bills came back, so I'll have two fewer bills to pay for the next couple of months. Why can't that ever happen to my cable bill? Bastards.
The big thing this week was Ska recruting some of us to play poker in the Open Internet Challenge. The Gaming Club fronted us $50, and the objuect is to try to turn it into $2,000 by December 22. So far, I've been up and down - being down to $42 at one point, then all the way up to $90 before a horrible night last night dropped me to $67. Oh, well, there's time.
Tuesday night, I decided I want Pizza Hut. So I called them, placed my order, and went to pick it up, since I'm also getting lottery tickets. I got to Pizza Hut, and they didn't have it. They lost my order. So I ended up re-ordering getting a free pizza out of it.
The next day, I found out that the deposits for my gas and electric bills came back, so I'll have two fewer bills to pay for the next couple of months. Why can't that ever happen to my cable bill? Bastards.
The big thing this week was Ska recruting some of us to play poker in the Open Internet Challenge. The Gaming Club fronted us $50, and the objuect is to try to turn it into $2,000 by December 22. So far, I've been up and down - being down to $42 at one point, then all the way up to $90 before a horrible night last night dropped me to $67. Oh, well, there's time.
Wednesday, December 3, 2003
By The Pigskin (Or Turkey Carcass) Of Our Teeth, Week 13
In Which Tradition Rules, The Status Quo Fails, And Weirdness Reigns
Our Thanksgiving meal of choice was Prime Rib. But really, any Thanksgiving meal goes down well with a side of Dallas Cowboy pulp.
I'm still not sure about the Lions' throwback uniforms, especially the pre-logo age helmets. They look... Tecmo Bowlish? I dunno.
Many have questioned the play-calling at the end of Pats-Colts, and rightly so. When you know that there's going to be a 360-pound human being in the middle of the defensive line you're trying to get past, you have to think that running may not be the best idea. I didn't have a problem with the fade route: I DID have a problem with somebody other than Marvin or Reggie Wayne running the fade route. Then that last play - a two-yard run has to develop faster than that. I don't know, people. The irony? I SAW the end of this game.
My alternative viewing was Bengals-Steelers, which was also all kinds of fun. I flipped back for the end after the Steelers went ahead. The big key was Bennett returning the kickoff to midfield; I'm not sure the Bengals would have made it otherwise. "After reviewing the play, the receiver got three feet inbounds." So THAT'S how they're doing it - GENETIC MANIPULATION. Alert the media!
John Kasay hadn't missed a field goal under 40 yards in FIVE YEARS. So he goes out and misses three field goals and an extra point. Missed them badly, too. After the extra point I was all "What the hell?!" Goal-line stands~~~. And don't ask me to explain why what happened at the end happened. I'm as clueless as you are.
I find it hard to believe, but Anthony Wright may have been the quarterback Brian Billick has been looking for. 88 points in two games? W. T. F. Did I cross off the 49ers last week? If not, I'm doing it now.
The Bears are only two back? Eh. They won't make it.
Damn it, Vick SHOULD be playing. Frankly, so should Brees and possibly Grossman too. It's the best way to improve (though Grossman's an ex-Gator, so odds are he won't improve anyway)
What have I been saying for the past three years? If Marshall Faulk is healthy, it almost doesn't matter who the quarterback is. Hell, even Isaac Bruce can crank off a pass if he wants. The fake field goal sounds like something Martz would call in that situation. Maybe he pulled the Jedi mind trick or something. Bulger has yet to lose in there.
And I do hope that Angie Harmon got as much screen time during her game as Elisabeth Hasselbeck did.
It's official - if the Saints win next week (and they might), they ARE playing this season backwards.
Imagine the frenzy if Smith and McCardell were still teammates. I don't know what to make of the Bucs anymore - I don't think they've given up, but it's like... I don't know. They're like a kid lost in the mall.
Who means more to his team, Vick or Pennington? And how did this happen, exactly?
Fantasy Report: Thanks mainly to Portis and Faulk (Ward also had 13 catches and Bruce THREW a pass), I beat the holy hell out of Chaz. Didn't matter, though, as the top three spots were already locked in. I'm the No. 3 seed at 8-5, facing Weeba in the first round. Gates got in when Brian came back to beat Jeff and Rob upset Wade to knock him out.
TOP 3:
1. Kansas City - Cut it way too close against sieve-like Bolts
2. New England - Brady starting to gather MVP buzz
3. Philadelphia - I know; I'm shocked too
BOTTOM 3:
30. N.Y. Giants - It's kinda sad
31. San Diego - Wade: "Tomlinson on the Chargers is looking more and more like Barry Sanders on the Lions. Someone please save that kid."
32. Oakland - Well, if the coach is the brains of a stupid operation...
Our Thanksgiving meal of choice was Prime Rib. But really, any Thanksgiving meal goes down well with a side of Dallas Cowboy pulp.
I'm still not sure about the Lions' throwback uniforms, especially the pre-logo age helmets. They look... Tecmo Bowlish? I dunno.
Many have questioned the play-calling at the end of Pats-Colts, and rightly so. When you know that there's going to be a 360-pound human being in the middle of the defensive line you're trying to get past, you have to think that running may not be the best idea. I didn't have a problem with the fade route: I DID have a problem with somebody other than Marvin or Reggie Wayne running the fade route. Then that last play - a two-yard run has to develop faster than that. I don't know, people. The irony? I SAW the end of this game.
My alternative viewing was Bengals-Steelers, which was also all kinds of fun. I flipped back for the end after the Steelers went ahead. The big key was Bennett returning the kickoff to midfield; I'm not sure the Bengals would have made it otherwise. "After reviewing the play, the receiver got three feet inbounds." So THAT'S how they're doing it - GENETIC MANIPULATION. Alert the media!
John Kasay hadn't missed a field goal under 40 yards in FIVE YEARS. So he goes out and misses three field goals and an extra point. Missed them badly, too. After the extra point I was all "What the hell?!" Goal-line stands~~~. And don't ask me to explain why what happened at the end happened. I'm as clueless as you are.
I find it hard to believe, but Anthony Wright may have been the quarterback Brian Billick has been looking for. 88 points in two games? W. T. F. Did I cross off the 49ers last week? If not, I'm doing it now.
The Bears are only two back? Eh. They won't make it.
Damn it, Vick SHOULD be playing. Frankly, so should Brees and possibly Grossman too. It's the best way to improve (though Grossman's an ex-Gator, so odds are he won't improve anyway)
What have I been saying for the past three years? If Marshall Faulk is healthy, it almost doesn't matter who the quarterback is. Hell, even Isaac Bruce can crank off a pass if he wants. The fake field goal sounds like something Martz would call in that situation. Maybe he pulled the Jedi mind trick or something. Bulger has yet to lose in there.
And I do hope that Angie Harmon got as much screen time during her game as Elisabeth Hasselbeck did.
It's official - if the Saints win next week (and they might), they ARE playing this season backwards.
Imagine the frenzy if Smith and McCardell were still teammates. I don't know what to make of the Bucs anymore - I don't think they've given up, but it's like... I don't know. They're like a kid lost in the mall.
Who means more to his team, Vick or Pennington? And how did this happen, exactly?
Fantasy Report: Thanks mainly to Portis and Faulk (Ward also had 13 catches and Bruce THREW a pass), I beat the holy hell out of Chaz. Didn't matter, though, as the top three spots were already locked in. I'm the No. 3 seed at 8-5, facing Weeba in the first round. Gates got in when Brian came back to beat Jeff and Rob upset Wade to knock him out.
TOP 3:
1. Kansas City - Cut it way too close against sieve-like Bolts
2. New England - Brady starting to gather MVP buzz
3. Philadelphia - I know; I'm shocked too
BOTTOM 3:
30. N.Y. Giants - It's kinda sad
31. San Diego - Wade: "Tomlinson on the Chargers is looking more and more like Barry Sanders on the Lions. Someone please save that kid."
32. Oakland - Well, if the coach is the brains of a stupid operation...
Monday, December 1, 2003
Illinois-Chicago Diary (Week 9)
(Author's Note: I'm actually three weeks farther ahead in the game than what I'm posting here. But I haven't played recently, mostly due to Madden 2004's Owner Mode and planning and writing the Dyad Championship Match for Action's Players and Pawns [which I may devote a post of its own to when I finish the damn thing], so I'll be posting to try to catch up to myself.)
Polls: Florida lost! 89-79 to Tennessee on Friday. But they're still No. 1. The Vols moved up to No. 2, while unbeaten Alabama sits at No. 3. Five SEC schools are in the top 10.
Recruiting: Disaster. Winkfield swerved everybody (and I do mean everybody) as he signed with Southern Illinois. Even worse, our backup plan at SF, Antonio Morrison, committed to Central Michigan. And Alex Ahern signed with Southwest Missouri State. So, with only two weeks left in the recruiting period, last-minute offers went out to Street and:
C Jamison Harrington (6'11", 236, Central Catholic H.S., Lafayette, Ind.)
We're not sure why he's lasted this long. He's averaging almost 30 a game, though his rebounding numbers could be better. (Maybe that's it.) Several big programs have him as a fall-back option, but we're going after him hard.
Awards: Horizon League Player of the Week: C #11 Gabriel Ichaki, 6'6" senior, Butler (23.5 ppg, 15.5 rpg, 6.5 bpg)
Horizon League Freshman of the Week: PG #12 Chris Merton, 6'3" freshman, Wisconsin-Green Bay (14 ppg, 10 apg) Surprise! (Not really, actually.)
National Player of the Week: SG Demetrius Briggs, 6'5" senior, Dartmouth (27 ppg, 9 apg, 9 rpg, 8 spg)
National Freshman of the Week: SF Donald Dilligard, 6'3" freshman, Loyola Marymount (28 ppg, 5 rpg)
Game 15 Report
Illinois-Chicago (8-6, 1-1) at Wisconsin-Green Bay (5-9, 1-1)
Tuesday, January 7, 2003
These games are so unpredictable.
Early on, White was a demon on the boards and managed to do it legally to boot. We gave up and early three but used our advantage in the paint to put ourselves in it. Then the game hit a stretch where nobody could make a damn shot. The Phoenix (it's my understanding that they stopped Fighting several years ago) were shooting an inordinate amount of three-pointers and making more of them than we'd been led to believe they were capable of. But we hung tough and only trailed by three after seven minutes. Then, James Smith (or was it Josh? Must... check... PBP... more... closely) began to make some shots, and he helped extend the lead to 22-15 with 9:20 to go in the first half.
Things proceeded to get worse.
For a while, we couldn't make up any ground despite our best efforts. It didn't help that Jones, our leading active scorer, didn't get on the board until there were only five minutes left in the half. But James Smith sparked a run by the Phoenix that he put an exclamation point on with another three-pointer, giving them a 40-25 lead with 2:27 left on the first-half clock. Some uninspired (on our part) back-and-forth followed, and Phoenix reserve Mitch Cundiff hit a three at the end of the half for a 46-29 score.
James Smith is their leading scorer with 13.7 a game, and he already had 12 points at halftime. They had 12 assists to our three.
The guys came out of the locker room deadly serious. And they played like it, too - after a couple of early free throws, we went on an amazing 20-2 run over the next eight minutes that everybody got in on. It was good enough to give us a 51-50 lead with 12:47 to play, even. It ended up being a short-lived lead, but we were back in the game.
The Phoenix pulled away slightly, but improved defense on our part and James Smith being on the bench allowed us to come back. Muhammad hit another of his "trademark" threes with 7:30 to go to make it a two-point game again, and Fields tied it at 61 with seven minutes left on a nice baby hook. From there it was nip and tuck until the two-minute mark, when the Phoenix led 68-66 (we had two good looks underneath the basket to tie at around 2:20, but missed).
Two minutes left, our ball out of bounds, down two, both teams in the one-and-one and neither squad's been shooting the free throws particularly well tonight. White had four fouls of COURSE, and Merton and Josh Smith had four fouls for WGB. Correa's at three fouls. Williams tied the game with 1:33 left on a bank shot. We got a steal, but Cooper missed a 14-footer that would have given us the lead. The Phoenix got a fast break off of the miss, and Dan Gresham gave them a 70-68 lead with a dunk. 33 seconds left. Cooper drover the lane - and was fouled by Melvin Dearman. Remember, one-and-one.
Cooper... made them both. 70-all with 19 seconds left. The Phoenix got the ball in Merton's hands to create, but Cooper fouled him.
He missed the first free throw.
Jones came down with the rebound but didn't hear Mills yelling at him to call time, and he and Cooper ran the floor. Cooper got the ball and put up a shot with the clock running down...
And missed.
Overtime.
The first four possessions of overtime ended with turnovers before a Josh Smith turnaround jumper gave the Phoenix the lead. Nothing for us, then Dearman hit a fadeaway to make it 74-70. But Cooper came back with a big 3, then got fouled in the act on a fast break the next trip down. He made one of two to tie the game at 74. Gresham hit a jumper, but Cooper came back with one of his own. Tied at 76! The Phoenix took their time and worked the post, and James Smith got fouled. The foul was on White, and he fouled out with 27 seconds left in OT.
James made one of two, but rebounded his own miss - but Jones stole the ball! THIS time, he saw Mills signal and called time out. Cooper got the inbounds pass and was whistled for a very questionable travel, but the Phoenix lost the ball out of bounds on the ensuing possession. Seven seconds left. Cooper brought the ball up, turned, stopped, saw Correa and got him the ball. Correa's shot...
...missed.
77-76 final.
Ah, home court advantage. Nothin' like it.
This was a tough one to swallow, since we felt we could and should have won, especially after the comeback we had to make. Cooper had his best game so far, scoring a game-high 16 points and adding five assists. He was absolutely huge for us down the stretch and in OT. Correa had 15, while White had 11 points and 13 rebounds before fouling out. James Smith and Dan Gresham each had 14 for the Phoenix, but we shut down James very well in the second half and OT, as he only got two points after halftime.
Game 16 Report
Loyola-Chicago (6-8, 2-0) at Illinois-Chicago (8-7, 1-2)
Saturday, January 11, 2003
The first meeting of the season between the city neighbors and rivals. The Ramblers' size is deceiving; they start a 6'5" center, but their true "big man" is power forward Justin Mansell:
PF #42 Justin Mansell (6'9", 239, sophomore, Alexandria Monroe HS, Alexandria, IN)
10.4 ppg, 9 rpg (leads team), 3.1 bpg (leads team and conference), 2.49 GPA
They also bring 6'11" junior Russell Jordan off the bench, and he led them with 26 points in their 88-85 win over Wright State on Thursday.
Our plan? Go right at them; we have enough forwards (that's basically all our team is at this point) to handle any foul trouble they give us.
While it didn't work out quite that way at the start, it was an exciting beginning, each team missing only one shot in the first 4:40 en route to an early 11-11 tie. But no one would score for another two and a half minutes until a Correa free throw broke it. We went to our bench first but suffered little, as the score was 16-16 nine minutes into the game. Then the Ramblers reeled off an 8-2 run over the next two-plus minutes, only for us to respond with an 8-2 run of our own, tying the score at 26 on a White putback of a Jones miss at the free throw line. The half would end much the same way it began, with three straight makes, including a 16-footer from White at the buzzer to knot the game at 36 at the half.
White can be quite productive when he's not in foul trouble. He had 12 points at halftime, and Correa added nine. Mansell and Nathan Clay had eight apiece for the Ramblers. We must shoot better at the line; only 4-for-9 in the first half.
The Ramblers got the second half's first points from the free throw line, but we scored the next six. However, a bit of poor decision-making (and more bad free-throw shooting) left us with only a 43-42 lead four minutes into the second half when we should have been up by five or six. This trend continued, and the Ramblers were able to regain the lead on a Chris Paulding three with 13:31 left. A Cooper putback and a Wagner jumper enabled us to pull back into a 49-49 tie.
Greer sent Mansell to the bench with his fourth foul with 10:39 left to play. It's usually the situation we have with White, so it was nice to see it on the other side for a change. Another nice little flurry of consistent offense ended with us down two with 6:50 left. Substitutions were made, and we switched from our help defense (which the Ramblers were starting to beat more consistently) to a 2-1-2 zone. Jordan missed the back end of a one-and-one, and Greer's fadeaway got us the lead back, 65-64 with 4:03 left. Muhammad, gutting it out with four fouls, made the front end of a one-and-one, but missed the second shot, and two second chances also failed. Fields converted a three-point play when Mansell hacked him in mid-double pump, fouling out in the process. The shot banked in, and Fields made the following free throw. We were up five with 2:28 to go, and it's a good thing we already had the lead, because once again, only Cooper could make free throws down the stretch. A three by Dante Caskill at the buzzer preserved some of their dignity, but for us, a 76-69 victory still goes into the books as a victory.
We shot 66 percent from the floor and only 57 percent from the foul line. White scored 17 points for us. Cooper had another solid game with 13 points and eight assists and seems to be getting it. He's making better decisions, and is scoring more, mostly out of necessity. Correa added 14. Caskill and Ashley Phillips had 15 apiece for the Ramblers. Greer actually had more blocks than Mansell (3 to 2).
Polls: Florida lost! 89-79 to Tennessee on Friday. But they're still No. 1. The Vols moved up to No. 2, while unbeaten Alabama sits at No. 3. Five SEC schools are in the top 10.
Recruiting: Disaster. Winkfield swerved everybody (and I do mean everybody) as he signed with Southern Illinois. Even worse, our backup plan at SF, Antonio Morrison, committed to Central Michigan. And Alex Ahern signed with Southwest Missouri State. So, with only two weeks left in the recruiting period, last-minute offers went out to Street and:
C Jamison Harrington (6'11", 236, Central Catholic H.S., Lafayette, Ind.)
We're not sure why he's lasted this long. He's averaging almost 30 a game, though his rebounding numbers could be better. (Maybe that's it.) Several big programs have him as a fall-back option, but we're going after him hard.
Awards: Horizon League Player of the Week: C #11 Gabriel Ichaki, 6'6" senior, Butler (23.5 ppg, 15.5 rpg, 6.5 bpg)
Horizon League Freshman of the Week: PG #12 Chris Merton, 6'3" freshman, Wisconsin-Green Bay (14 ppg, 10 apg) Surprise! (Not really, actually.)
National Player of the Week: SG Demetrius Briggs, 6'5" senior, Dartmouth (27 ppg, 9 apg, 9 rpg, 8 spg)
National Freshman of the Week: SF Donald Dilligard, 6'3" freshman, Loyola Marymount (28 ppg, 5 rpg)
Game 15 Report
Illinois-Chicago (8-6, 1-1) at Wisconsin-Green Bay (5-9, 1-1)
Tuesday, January 7, 2003
These games are so unpredictable.
Early on, White was a demon on the boards and managed to do it legally to boot. We gave up and early three but used our advantage in the paint to put ourselves in it. Then the game hit a stretch where nobody could make a damn shot. The Phoenix (it's my understanding that they stopped Fighting several years ago) were shooting an inordinate amount of three-pointers and making more of them than we'd been led to believe they were capable of. But we hung tough and only trailed by three after seven minutes. Then, James Smith (or was it Josh? Must... check... PBP... more... closely) began to make some shots, and he helped extend the lead to 22-15 with 9:20 to go in the first half.
Things proceeded to get worse.
For a while, we couldn't make up any ground despite our best efforts. It didn't help that Jones, our leading active scorer, didn't get on the board until there were only five minutes left in the half. But James Smith sparked a run by the Phoenix that he put an exclamation point on with another three-pointer, giving them a 40-25 lead with 2:27 left on the first-half clock. Some uninspired (on our part) back-and-forth followed, and Phoenix reserve Mitch Cundiff hit a three at the end of the half for a 46-29 score.
James Smith is their leading scorer with 13.7 a game, and he already had 12 points at halftime. They had 12 assists to our three.
The guys came out of the locker room deadly serious. And they played like it, too - after a couple of early free throws, we went on an amazing 20-2 run over the next eight minutes that everybody got in on. It was good enough to give us a 51-50 lead with 12:47 to play, even. It ended up being a short-lived lead, but we were back in the game.
The Phoenix pulled away slightly, but improved defense on our part and James Smith being on the bench allowed us to come back. Muhammad hit another of his "trademark" threes with 7:30 to go to make it a two-point game again, and Fields tied it at 61 with seven minutes left on a nice baby hook. From there it was nip and tuck until the two-minute mark, when the Phoenix led 68-66 (we had two good looks underneath the basket to tie at around 2:20, but missed).
Two minutes left, our ball out of bounds, down two, both teams in the one-and-one and neither squad's been shooting the free throws particularly well tonight. White had four fouls of COURSE, and Merton and Josh Smith had four fouls for WGB. Correa's at three fouls. Williams tied the game with 1:33 left on a bank shot. We got a steal, but Cooper missed a 14-footer that would have given us the lead. The Phoenix got a fast break off of the miss, and Dan Gresham gave them a 70-68 lead with a dunk. 33 seconds left. Cooper drover the lane - and was fouled by Melvin Dearman. Remember, one-and-one.
Cooper... made them both. 70-all with 19 seconds left. The Phoenix got the ball in Merton's hands to create, but Cooper fouled him.
He missed the first free throw.
Jones came down with the rebound but didn't hear Mills yelling at him to call time, and he and Cooper ran the floor. Cooper got the ball and put up a shot with the clock running down...
And missed.
Overtime.
The first four possessions of overtime ended with turnovers before a Josh Smith turnaround jumper gave the Phoenix the lead. Nothing for us, then Dearman hit a fadeaway to make it 74-70. But Cooper came back with a big 3, then got fouled in the act on a fast break the next trip down. He made one of two to tie the game at 74. Gresham hit a jumper, but Cooper came back with one of his own. Tied at 76! The Phoenix took their time and worked the post, and James Smith got fouled. The foul was on White, and he fouled out with 27 seconds left in OT.
James made one of two, but rebounded his own miss - but Jones stole the ball! THIS time, he saw Mills signal and called time out. Cooper got the inbounds pass and was whistled for a very questionable travel, but the Phoenix lost the ball out of bounds on the ensuing possession. Seven seconds left. Cooper brought the ball up, turned, stopped, saw Correa and got him the ball. Correa's shot...
...missed.
77-76 final.
Ah, home court advantage. Nothin' like it.
This was a tough one to swallow, since we felt we could and should have won, especially after the comeback we had to make. Cooper had his best game so far, scoring a game-high 16 points and adding five assists. He was absolutely huge for us down the stretch and in OT. Correa had 15, while White had 11 points and 13 rebounds before fouling out. James Smith and Dan Gresham each had 14 for the Phoenix, but we shut down James very well in the second half and OT, as he only got two points after halftime.
Game 16 Report
Loyola-Chicago (6-8, 2-0) at Illinois-Chicago (8-7, 1-2)
Saturday, January 11, 2003
The first meeting of the season between the city neighbors and rivals. The Ramblers' size is deceiving; they start a 6'5" center, but their true "big man" is power forward Justin Mansell:
PF #42 Justin Mansell (6'9", 239, sophomore, Alexandria Monroe HS, Alexandria, IN)
10.4 ppg, 9 rpg (leads team), 3.1 bpg (leads team and conference), 2.49 GPA
They also bring 6'11" junior Russell Jordan off the bench, and he led them with 26 points in their 88-85 win over Wright State on Thursday.
Our plan? Go right at them; we have enough forwards (that's basically all our team is at this point) to handle any foul trouble they give us.
While it didn't work out quite that way at the start, it was an exciting beginning, each team missing only one shot in the first 4:40 en route to an early 11-11 tie. But no one would score for another two and a half minutes until a Correa free throw broke it. We went to our bench first but suffered little, as the score was 16-16 nine minutes into the game. Then the Ramblers reeled off an 8-2 run over the next two-plus minutes, only for us to respond with an 8-2 run of our own, tying the score at 26 on a White putback of a Jones miss at the free throw line. The half would end much the same way it began, with three straight makes, including a 16-footer from White at the buzzer to knot the game at 36 at the half.
White can be quite productive when he's not in foul trouble. He had 12 points at halftime, and Correa added nine. Mansell and Nathan Clay had eight apiece for the Ramblers. We must shoot better at the line; only 4-for-9 in the first half.
The Ramblers got the second half's first points from the free throw line, but we scored the next six. However, a bit of poor decision-making (and more bad free-throw shooting) left us with only a 43-42 lead four minutes into the second half when we should have been up by five or six. This trend continued, and the Ramblers were able to regain the lead on a Chris Paulding three with 13:31 left. A Cooper putback and a Wagner jumper enabled us to pull back into a 49-49 tie.
Greer sent Mansell to the bench with his fourth foul with 10:39 left to play. It's usually the situation we have with White, so it was nice to see it on the other side for a change. Another nice little flurry of consistent offense ended with us down two with 6:50 left. Substitutions were made, and we switched from our help defense (which the Ramblers were starting to beat more consistently) to a 2-1-2 zone. Jordan missed the back end of a one-and-one, and Greer's fadeaway got us the lead back, 65-64 with 4:03 left. Muhammad, gutting it out with four fouls, made the front end of a one-and-one, but missed the second shot, and two second chances also failed. Fields converted a three-point play when Mansell hacked him in mid-double pump, fouling out in the process. The shot banked in, and Fields made the following free throw. We were up five with 2:28 to go, and it's a good thing we already had the lead, because once again, only Cooper could make free throws down the stretch. A three by Dante Caskill at the buzzer preserved some of their dignity, but for us, a 76-69 victory still goes into the books as a victory.
We shot 66 percent from the floor and only 57 percent from the foul line. White scored 17 points for us. Cooper had another solid game with 13 points and eight assists and seems to be getting it. He's making better decisions, and is scoring more, mostly out of necessity. Correa added 14. Caskill and Ashley Phillips had 15 apiece for the Ramblers. Greer actually had more blocks than Mansell (3 to 2).
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