Your Seventy-Sucksers

Rant by R.H.

Very disappointing, but not too surprising, that Stiffanski stood pat yesterday (unless you count the Primoz "Chicken Whacked" Brezec and Royal "With Cheese" Ivey blockbuster). I'll miss the Primoz Brezec era. I'm suddenly hungry.

I was happy when they hired Stefanski, mainly because of the atrocities Billly King had committed. And Stefanski said all the right things when he was hired. Since then, just about EVERY move he's made has been bad. I'll give him credit for Speights and Drew Djrue Dru Jrue Holiday, who seem like they can play and were decent picks from where the Sixers were in those drafts (although Speights may need a brain transplant, so glad Iverson's here to mentor him). And granted, he inherited Dalembert's toxic assets. "But wait, Sam's had a good 3 weeks!!!" "Good" meaning he kind of seems to care and has gotten some rebounds.


I can't blame Eddie Jordan too much. We knew it was a terrible hire to begin with. But they were buddies from their Jersey days. Stefanski's big-ticket signings (Iguodala and Brand) have been awful. Anyone with a brain knew the day they did it that the Iguodala contract was outrageous. And poor Brand looks like damaged goods at this point (I think, at this point, even if you brought in Wojo to pound the court excitedly Brand would shrug his shoulders apathetically).
It's pretty telling that Stefanski basically immediately tried to get out from under both contracts quicker than you can say "Isiah". Jason Kapono for $6 million a year? Seems steep as hell. Were teams lining up for him? Can he play here? We don't know, Jordan never plays him.
The team is unwatchable, but still winning kind of enough games to be in the mix for a 7 or 8 seed in the wretched bottom of the East. Who cares? It's just another year in David Stern's purgatory. Stern needs to go. Maybe he'll get shot by Arenas. He has really ruined the league and I can't stand looking at his stupid face anymore. The trade deadline was basically one team (Cleveland) trying to add a guy to get better and about 20 teams trying to get rid of bad contracts. (Sigh).

Which brings us to yesterday. This team should've been imploded like the Vet. Stefanski should've made every effort to make that happen. But his logic was backwards and completely flawed. Every statement I heard him make, he's said "we're only gonna make moves that make us better on the court right now" or something to that effect. For who? For what? This team is going nowhere this year or the next five years if you don't do anything drastic. If the report that the Rockets would've taken essentially Dalembert and Iguodala for Tracy McGrady (aka Tracy McGrady's Expiring Contract), and the Sixers passed on it, that's a disgrace. That's just what the Sixers needed to begin to turn this around. How could he pass on that? Would've given them alot of money for next year (or the year after), and made them a little worse on the court this year, increasing their chances for a better lottery pick. But no, the Knicks moved in and are in prime pouncing position for free agents. Not that Lebron or Wade was coming here, but the Sixers needed to take some baby steps and did nothing instead.

Stefanski needs to go. They're just running in place with him. Bring in Rod Thorn (who may be leaving Jersey) or try to lure Jerry West out of retirement. Somebody proven that has some creativity (fleece Minnesota somehow for Kevin Love). I think Ed Snider/Comcast has the money. Jordan and his You-don't-need-a-true-point-guard Princeton offense should also be shown the door. They need a point guard. Shit, I'd take a Hinrich or a Kyle Lowry right now. Or see what Holiday can do.....oh wait, he barely plays either....need to get minutes for A.I.!!! Iverson's really bought the crowds back to the Wachovia Center as well.....well, at least for that one night.

Bring in Jeff Van Gundy (who I wanted last year) or a Lawrence Frank. Who gives a shit if the players don't like them. Maybe they'll get them to play a little defense and give this team some kind of identity. They could've taken a big step forward yesterday, but now we're stuck in this nightmare for who knows how much longer.
And can Donyell Marshall fit any more marbles into his mouth on the postgame show? Yeesh.

Celtics with a weird move picking up Nate Robinson. Maybe he'll do underwhelming dunks in practice or something and be banished there as well. Good luck with all that. How did that Sheed signing work out for them? Has he moved inside the 3-point line all year? KG's intense woofing act is kind of sad anymore. Assholes.
Oh well, as long as the Lakers don't win it all again, I'll be happy. Two Kobe titles sandwiched around an A-Rod World Series title may be too much for me to recover from.

The All-Star game/weekend was sickening drek. As if the game wasn't horrible enough, we had to endure Jerry Jones mugging as a basketball game was played in his cavernous football dome. Not that I watched or anything.

I could not care less about this Tiger Woods "press conference". This has contrived sham written all over it. A prepared statement written by lawyers and no questions allowed. No thanks. It will be about as informative and fullfilling as an Andy Reid press conference.

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No TV makes Homer something-something...

Rant from R.H.

Temple-Xavier at 7pm tonight. Battle of the top two A-10 teams tonight at the Liacouras Center, but damned if anyone around here will be able to see it. As far as I can tell, it's not being televised locally. In 2010 with 900 channels. Disgraceful. South Florida at Cincinnati on ESPN 2? Who the hell cares about that game? No way that's a better game.

But even more egregious is this local channel TCN (I assume that means The Comcast Network) is showing James Madison-Drexel at 7pm!!!!!!!! That game should be shown to inmates at Guantanamo as a new form of torture. TCN shouldn't exist if it's gonna show crap when something clearly better is available. This would never happen if John Chaney was still alive.

Now I see philly.com says it's on the Comcast network, but not according to the listings I'm looking at.

Also, is it me, or does there seem to be an exorbitant amount of women's coverage on ESPN this year? Good God, talk about turning away viewers. Not to sound sexist, but NO ONE outside of the lesbian community cares. If I want to see mad loose ball scrambles every other possession, set shots, and below-the-rim play I'll go sit in the bleachers at my local Y.

Speaking of Temple, good point by Jerardi the other day about how their fans are doing a terrible job (not) showing up. Still can't believe how many Kansas fans were there a few weeks ago. They had to get the tickets somehow. Also an article by Jerardi today about the 1990 LaSalle team which includes a Milko Lieverst reference!! Bad 2nd Round loss to Clemson....Speedy....Ugh.

Thank God Nova held on for dear life against Georgetown. That would've been a bad loss. They have trouble playing with a lead it seems. Not the worst problem to have I guess. I know their style is to play the up-and-down, frenetic pace. But I think you can pull the reigns back at least a little when you're up 15-20. Monroe on G'Town was unstoppable. You can see Nova's achilles heel once again rearing it's ugly head. Unfortunately, lack of size will probably come back to bite them again against a Kansas or Kentucky in March.

Weird to see the Wachovia Center with some life in it. Still a wretched place to watch a basketball game.

Nova-Rutgers tonight!! Woo-hoo! I just saw that Rutgers lost one of their few promising players. 6'9 sophomore decided to transfer to Creighton. Ouch!!
Bad when you're losing out to Creighton, especially when it's not just some floppy-haired white kid. Sorry to say it, but Rutgers should be shit out the bottom of the Big East.

Not surprised Texas lost. I saw them barely beat Texas A&M at home last Saturday. Rick Barnes seems like kind of a phony.

Sign I'm getting old- All these guys playing now that are the kid's of guys I remember watching. Rautins and Triche (dad was a pansy) on Syracuse. Harvey Grant's kid on Clemson. Curry of course, and my personal favorite, Anthony Mason Jr. last year. Nolan Smith. There's a ton of them. Last night, I saw Glen Rice's kid on Georgia Tech (Looks like dad may have run afoul of a white woman. Just sayin'). Wonder why he didn't go to Michigan? Also, there's a Brian Oliver on GT, but no relation. Weird. Artest has a few kids on Binghamton. Ok, kidding.

Awful announcer alert!!: Mike Patrick on ESPN. Should've retired 12 years ago. I don't know if it's because he's hard of hearing or what, but he feels the need to yell WAY too often and too loud about plays that don't warrant it. Also engages in too much painful, uncomfortable back-and-forth with
the analyst. And he kept calling Georgia Tech's arena "The Thrilladome". Christ.

Oh well, at least 'ole Vern Lundquist showed signs of life on Sunday. After Michigan beat UConn, he smartly questioned why the students were storming the court. Almost makes up for the cackles, gaffes, wrong-headed statements and general not paying attention he brings to every telecast.

I heard St. Joe's students stormed the court after they beat Towson the other night. Martelli immediately booked 27 radio/TV appearances.

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Tuesday Morning Rant

From R.H.

Nice win for Nova. A welcome change of pace after the Eagles annual January debacle. Helps that I learned to not get my hopes up long ago.

Really Nova's first big test, although Louisville is down a bit this year. Reynolds was ridiculous. He was putting up a Laettner perfect game for a while. Playing like an All-American. Once again, thank God for the corrupt Kelvin Sampson leaving Oklahoma for Indiana (which he summarily destroyed). 9-10 shooting for a guard!! He doesn't take bad shots and has that uncanny knack of getting to the basket. Big East slugfest, my God. 67 fouls?!? Not that there were alot of bad calls. They probably even missed some. It was almost as long as the Meineke Car Care Bowl (only much, much more entertaining). Did Louisville reach in every time Nova got a defensive rebound or what?? A well-placed elbow to the face early in the game will take care of alot of that.

That Yarou guy is definitely raw, and he might be 37, but at least he gives Nova some semblance of a presence inside. Pena's tough, but he's undersized. How did Yarou not go to Uconn? I thought Calhoun had the West African market cornered? Still, how did Louisville not go to Samuels more often? Nova clearly couldn't handle him down low. He took 4 shots?? That's coaching. Pitino's been too busy banging ladies inside locked Italian restaurants. You stay classy, Rick. They took a million terrible, rushed 3's, playing right into Nova's hands.

Taylor King-- I can't say enough about this guy. A joy to watch. Gets his hands on everything, is smart as hell, helps out on the boards. As I've said, I was plenty skeptical when he transferred from Duke, I thought he was just another entitled Coach K 3-point shooting zombie. I don't even think he took a 3 last night. Needs to get more minutes if anything. They said he committed to UCLA when he was in 8th grade. I wonder what happened. Wait, so him and Love could've played together?!? My head would've exploded.

Nova does turn it over alot, and can be frustrating at times because of the youth of their young guards (at least that's what McNabb said), but if it all comes together at some point, look out. They throw that press on and teams just can't figure it out. I think Louisville threw it away on three consecutive trips, as Pitino tried in vain to get the spaghetti sauce off his silly white suit. 20,000 Kentuckians dressed in white? Sounds like a Clan convention.

Redding had a forgettable night. Someone get him some medical marijuana.

I know I criticize announcers alot, but I'll say it again- It doesn't get any better than McDonough, Raftery, and Bilas. Ok, Bilas can be a bit wordy (and nerdy) at times (how many times did he say "backflow" last night? Is that a word? Yeesh). Also, he should never be allowed to do Duke games (like he did AGAIN Sat. at Georgia Tech!). His love cannot be hidden and his overcompensating is transparent. It's like when Tom Heinson would do Sixers-Celtics Eastern Conference Final games on CBS (a travesty that hopefully somone was fired for) and give high-fives to the Celtic players as they came to the scorer's table. But really, other than all that, I like Bilas.

McDonough is the best play-by-play guy out there (for football too). No-nonsense, doesn't yell all the time or make it about himself. He's just like Brent Musberger, only the complete opposite. I loved how after they showed a replay, because ESPN thinks it's cool I guess, of Sosa (little punk) woofing at Nova, McDonough said obviously Sosa has some more maturing to do. No other guys have the balls to say that. They're supposed to embrace trash-talking, which they usually do. And Raftery, well, fuggetaboutit.

How deflating was it when they went to the second game, a Big 12 snoozefest with Oklahoma-Oklahoma State? With Brent doing it! I couldn't reach for the remote fast enough. Brent, Dick Stockton, and Verne Lundquist should be sent to a galaxy far, far away.

Mark McGwire comes out 6 years later and admits to roids. Meh. I didn't watch it. Cardinals fan Bob Costas handing a weepy McGwire tissues....no thanks. Blatant attempt to try to grovel his way back into the HOF discussion, and to prevent a media circus when he shows up as hitting instructor at spring training (as Tony LaRussa plays beer-pong in the clubhouse). McGwire said, "I wish I had never played during the steroid era." Um, yo dude, you and Canseco started the steroid era!!!! Thanks for that by the way. Gimme a break. That's like Artest saying he wishes he was never involved in the Malice at the Palace. Bud Selig was contacted for a comment, but it turns out he's been in a coma for 5 years. Who knew?

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3 hours we'll never get back....

Rant from R.H.

Sons of Reid,

What an atrocious, heartless effort. Thank God I had beer close by. Obviously the Birds were in for a tough game, and I thought Dallas would probably win, but I never thought they'd lose like that. I think the Birds can definitely win next week. The way all the pundits see it, they might as well not even show up on Sat. We'll see. Plus, Reid didn't play Vick yesterday because he was saving him to unveil the Pit Bull offense next week. They're keeping Vick caged and will prod and tease him all week so he will come out fighting mad.


But maybe that shit-show was a good thing long-term. If they win yesterday, the Birds pretty much assured themselves of being back in the NFC Championship Game, which as we all know, is good enough for this ownership. Now it will be really tough for them to get there, which will hopefully lead to some change around here finally. Of course, Reid will be back for the next 4 years (shake my head in disgusted disbelief every time I think about it). Yesterday's performace by McNabb hopefully underlines the writing on the wall that he's Dead Man Walking (nonchalantly up to the line of scrimmage in a 2-minute drill). Don't get me wrong, Reid should go to, but McNabb has run his course here. The fumbled snap, albeit a little low, was his fault. Missed a wipe open Jackson early. But he's a great "deep thrower"! Receivers were far from innocent though--way too many drops. That pass to Maclin should've been caught, but how bout hitting a guy in stride once in a while? (Also, Maclin completely bailed Donny out last week with that great catch on the sidelines to set up the game winning kick). Gimme an accurate guy with a smaller arm anyday. Then wise, old McNabb has the gall to say this afterward:



"We showed our youth in situations where everyone would look around to see who was going to make the play instead of stepping up and making a play," McNabb said. "That's something that comes with the territory when you have young players."



In other words, "Hey, this wasn't my fault, blame everyone else" (then he chest-bumped Derrick Gunn as Rendell recited stats from a piece of paper).
79 people are now laying under a bus. Give me an F'n break, pal. I guess you showed you veteran poise when you, for the 798th time in your 10 year career, ran a 2-minute drill with all the urgency of passing wind on a hammock. You don't say that in the last game of the season after you've won 6 in a row. What does he want now? Veteran weapons?? I thought we went down that road before and it didn't, um, work out. As far as "everyone would look around to see who was going to make the play", how bout taking charge of your damn huddle for once in your life? Jesus, I'm done with him.
Look at the 12 playoff QB's. Other than the rookie Dirty Sanchez, and (maybe) Carson Palmer, I wouldn't put McNabb over any of them (and I loathe Favre).

Now onto the Fat Man, staring at his laminated I-Hop menu as the game passes him by. When Wade Phillips beats you like that, you know you've got issues. That timeout early in the second quarter before the punt because they couldn't get guys on/off the field was a disgrace. You almost welcome a 5 yard penalty there to give your (shitty) punter more room. Afterwards Reid said the timeout there was "necessary". Don't blow smoke up my ass! They basically traded 5 meaningless yards for a timeout that they could've obviously used at the end of the half, when time ran out as they inexplicable ran plays in the middle of the field. F'n Groundhog Day. If it was so "necessary", then why was Reid yelling at the special teams coach right after timeout?? Which is it?? Reid hasn't looked that mad since they removed creamed chip beef from the pregame meal menu.
Then, on 4th and 2 down 17-0 at the Dallas 35, he has Akers (who he's usually very hesitant about sending out there for anything over 45 yards or so) try to boom a 53 yarder. When it's 3rd and 2, you draw up two running plays there. Stop making it more difficult than it has to be. Shithead. We won't even get into how he went for it on 4th down from his OWN 30 against SF two weeks earlier. He's not even consistently dumb. He keeps finding new, contradictory ways to look stupid. And I know they got behind early, but take away 3 runs by McNabb and Jackson, and they ran the ball 7 times yesterday. When do pitchers and catchers report?

The defense was awful too. They can't get any pressure except for Trent Cole, who teams obviously know to double-team. Juqua Parker? Darren Howard? Mind-numbingly mediocre guys. Gocong might be a decent pass rusher, but we'll never know because for some reason they tried to make him into an NFL linebacker even though he never played it in college, where he set a Division 1-AA records for sacks. Make sense to everyone? Ok good.
Bunkley and Patterson are overrated. Being morbidly obese doesn't automatically make you a good d-tackle. And poor Trotter should be led out to pasture and put down. I've seen faster guys on The Biggest Loser (not that I watch that show. My wife does. I'm serious!! I'm not being defensive!! How dare you!).
I don't know, Asante Samuel gambles way too much for my liking. Sure, he'll make a flashy pick once in a while, but it seems to hurt him more often than not. And he tackles like a pussy. Speaking of which, it's about time this Sean McDermott character takes some heat. I was skeptical to begin with....a red-haired guy from LaSalle high school?? Pansy. Since they can't get pressure at all, they have to blitz, and any good QB knows when it's coming and will pick them apart (Romo yesterday, Warner in the NFC championship). The lone bright spot was my stepbrother Joselio's INT.

Too many dumb penalties as well. Although I thought that personal foul when the guy touched Romo's helmet was a disgrace. That's a penalty??

Buck and Aikman could barely contain themselves yesterday. I'm sure they'll be doing the game next week too, so they can stay in their Dallas hotel room all week and make sweet love to each other. We probably would've put on Merril Reese, but he was probably busy making his laundry list of excuses (handed to him by Banner) as Mike Quick was off-mic feverishly practicing how to pronounce "Abiamiri". Too many in-game advertisements on the radio too, it's so annoying. "That botched two-minute drill was brought to you by Chapman Ford!!"

Dallas was doing alot of celebrating and woofing for a team with a rematch next week. Goddamn maggots. Even Wade Phillips was waving a lasso at the end (Buddy would've punched him in the gut at midfield after the game). I haven't seen a hick that happy since I was standing in the midst of thousands of them at the Temple-Kansas game on Saturday. Freaks. Bad times. Don't get me started. And where's a terrorist bomber to walk into Jerry Jones suite when we need one?

How bout the Giants laying down the last two weeks? Inspired bunch. Now please bulldoze the Meadowlands. Preferably when it's full.

Besides Eagles-Cowboys, Pats-Ravens should be a really good one next week. So pissed that Welker is out. I hate to say it, but Miles Austin is kind of like a black Welker..... wait a minute....I call Black Welkers as my fantasy team name next year!

(Pic via 700level)
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Rant from R.H.

Temple gave Seton Hall their first loss in Jersey the other night. In Jersey. Temple's my new favorite team in case you haven't noticed. This game was Sat. night at 7. I couldn't find it anywhere at all on TV. There was high school football on, but not this. Whatever. Good point by Jerardi, rematch of the 2000 Tournament game where Temple laid an egg and lost in OT. Ty Shine (pre- Eddie Griffin black eye) and Dalembert on SHU. Ugh, what a nightmare that was.
I was looking forward to Duke- Gonzaga at MSG, and only saw bits and pieces, but had to tune out quickly. Zags didn't show up. Duke is even more nauseating when up 30 in front of their shitbag fans. Jon Scheyer.....little p***y.

Nova gets Redding back, clean and sober hopefully. They needed him too. Needed his leadership and stability with all these young guards. Plus they'll need to him to win games with the Big East schedule coming up. I guess Syracuse is good, but I can't believe they're as good as they've looked so far. Jackson and Jardine-- Neumann connection. I still can't shake the fact that they lost to that DII team at the dome in a scrimmage.
Speaking of the Nova game, this from Mushnick in the Post:

* Villanova-Fordham, Saturday, on YES. A camera found a sweet picture of a kid, 9 or 10, holding ice cream. The kid gave the camera the finger. . .

Pretty funny, but sign of the times I guess with disrespectful punk kids. Don't get me started! Shades of Costanza with the ice cream on TV....



Drexel-Kentucky tonight at Rupp. Line is now at 58 and a half. I assume Bruiser and Calipari are buddies or something. Ick. Oh well, at least Drexel gets an ESPN game that doesn't start just before dawn. How bout Calipari, coming out and saying he "disagrees" with Knight, but nothing else? If you were innocent and someone said that about you, you would come back with guns blazing. But he knows what Knight said is true, and he has no comeback. Slimy fraud. I read an article about John Wall today. Towards the end there was a blurb that he was arrested in May for breaking and entering. Sounds like a nice kid. Maybe that's why Roy Williams didn't recruit him at all (and why Cal jumped on him) even though he played in his backyard.
St. Joe's held on to beat Lehigh at home. So, um, yeah.

I actually watched the second half of Sixers-Celtics Friday night--sans Iverson. Surprisingly entertaining and they actually played pretty well and won. Also, Sheed got tossed with two T's in the first half and had to be restrained by half the Celtics bench when he got tossed. What a complete stooge. Every time I think he's done amusing me with his childish, boorish behavior, he comes through with a stunt like that.
Anyway, this Speights guy looks really good. He should easily play the bulk of the minutes at center and Dalembert should be sent to Siberia or the wilds of his native Canada. I don't care how much he makes, let's not compound the mistake by starting the guy. It was Speights' first game back from injury and he played great. I could see him being a potential headcase down the road, but he has alot of ability. His postgame interview with Zumoff and Easy Ed was tough to get through without closed-captioning. Sweet Jesus!!! Gotta love the "student"-athletes the University of Florida churns out.
Brand has also been very spry off the bench lately. And this Holliday guy looks like a keeper as well. Wait, what's this? Are the Sixers becoming watchable again??? I thought so, just for a second, until they lost at home to the Clip-Joint the very next night. Wow. Sixers-Clippers in the midst of a blizzard!!! NBA Basketball, it's fantastic!!! I'm surprised anyone showed up for that game. Oh, also, the Sixers play no defense whatsoever, and it doesn't appear they ever will. And fuggetaboutit when Iverson is on the court. It takes 4 on 5 to a new level. It's like they're trying to kill off a power play or something.

Choppy Eagles game, but a win is a win. Actually was closer than it should've been. The Niners had no chance. Coming across the country on a short week after playing on MNF. If that Walter guy didn't fumble down inside the Eagles 10, it could be a whole different ballgame. This of course was after Reid's incomprehensible decision to go for it on 4th down from his own 30!! Stunning even for him. It's dumb even when Belichick does it, and he has 4 rings. The defense was better I guess. Couldn't be any worse. Tony Siragusa, the fat moron that stands on the field and screams dumb comments/observations every minute or so, said the Eagles defense was "unbelievable". Let's calm down. I'm pretty sure they were going up against Alex Smith.
Does Asante Samuel irk anyone else? I know he makes alot of plays (although that fumble recovery was all Sheldon Brown, he just fell on it). His "tackling" is horrifically bad. How bout when he completely whiffed on that tackle? What should've been a 3 yard gain turned into a 30 yard gain. Gambles a ton too. Can't have that against competent teams or you'll get burnt. Look at the Giants game. I know he's a good CB, but he annoys me sometimes. And stop dancing after you fall on a fumble!!!

Is anyone else giddy that the wheels are starting to come off Favre and the Vikings? Brad Childress is wound tighter than Reid's belt. Crazy that the Birds could possibly move ahead of them in playoff positioning. 4th and 26 game punts thrown up by Favre, here we come! It's a shame snowball-throwing fans didn't storm the booth and bombard Kenny Albert (Son of Gay Back-Biter) and "Moose" (Moose....Christ) Johnston with snowballs. Two jackasses.


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Rant by R.H.

Glen Miller out at Penn. Can't say I'm surprised.


Two good Big 5 games the last few days. St. Joe's-Nova was surprisingly competitive. By far the best St. Joe's played all year. But in the end, they tried to run with Nova and gave up 95 points. The overrating of Martelli continues unabaded. I must say, Nova probably wouldn't have won without Taylor King. I wanted to hate him, because you know, he's a Dukie, but he was clutch as hell. Pretty impressive for a kid from California in his first game in the hellish Palestra. Way better than he was when he was a freshman at Duke. Not that he got a ton of time back then, but he was just a mindless chucker who rarely came inside the 3 point line (like me when I play now). But now, he got boards and even created some things. Sweet lefty stroke doesn't hurt either.

By the way, that Hilliard guy on St. Joe's had a poor man's Laettner game going for a while. Perfect from the field and the line. I think he finally missed a shot from the field. Nova hit 29 straight foul shots in the second half. Nuff said. Good job by ESPN having Rafftery do the game. He just "gets" the Big 5. Probably the only ESPN analyst you can say that about. I also love when, after an iffy walk call on Nova, he said, "I don't comment on travelling calls on Villanova anymore." (obviously referring back to the '04 Sweet 16 game against Carolina when that phantom walk was called on Nova.....costing them the game. Still hurts). Of course, this comment was met by awkward silence from the clueless play-by-play guy.

Temple!! I can't say I was too shocked that they beat Nova yesterday. Luckily I caught like the last 15 minutes or so. For some reason, it was buried on some CBS College Sports station that too a GPS for me to find it. Disgrace that Comcast Sportsnet didn't carry it. I guess it would've messed up their 9 hour Eagles pregame. We wouldn't want to miss Rendell praising Donavan again.
Anyway, Juan Fernandez was a revelation! Pepe with a jump shot!! The guy was unconscious!! Knocked down like three 3's in a row right after I turned it on. I'm not saying he's better than Pepe now, but he could be someday. With him, Brooks, and Lavoy Allen, they have three really nice players. Allen was a madman controlling the paint down the stretch. I also can't believe he only had 3 assists. I swear I saw 4 just while I was watching. Love his game, he just needs to play with a fire under his ass like that alot more. They look like a tournament team right now (should've beaten G'Town too, oh well). That win will look huge come March. Also, that Kansas game on 1/2 just became much more interesting.

Not a bad loss at all for Nova. Might not be the worst thing in the world. And if they had to lose, why not to another city team. Game obviously meant alot more to Temple. Thought King (my new favorite player) probably should've been more aggresive in looking for his shot. Down the stretch, only Reynolds was being aggressive. Nova will be fine. Redding will help them when he comes back soon.....if he's clean. Oh yeah, Lappas was the analyst for the game!! Horrific New Yawk accent was more evident than ever ("Derrick Jeetuh!!!!"). And that lisp...ugh.... the mic was soaked by game's end. Isn't it embarrassing for him to do Nova games now? ("Hey Steve, here's that program you ruined!"). Just sayin'.

LaSalle stayed close to Kansas for a few minutes. Ugh. Loathe Kansas and Self. Speaking of loathesome coaches. I heard after the UConn-Kentucky game last week that Calipari and Calhoun hate each other. I guess it goes back to the days when Calipari was at UMass and they for some reason never played each other. Two assholes.

Wild Eagles game to say the least. Although I've seen better defense at my Ryan's toddler soccer games. Atrocious tackling on both sides.
DeSean Jackson....my God. I mean, I could do without all the showboating, but this guy is outrageous. It's rare to see a guy in the NFL that is just that much faster than everyone else. That punt return was straight out of the schoolyard. It was beautiful how he toyed with the Giants on that play, and it was even better because it brought out the Coughlin "Rocky's Trainer Mickey" face. Jackson should probably get the ball more (and yes, I subscribe to the theory--started by me-- that McNabb doesn't throw to him more because he doesn't want him to become a bigger star. Too late. See: T.O.). For as much as I blast him, Reid was pretty good. Sure there was the requisite blown challenge, but whatever. Some great play calls. Now let's all spray Bactine in our eyes as we think about the next 4 years with him still here.

It's a known fact that the Giants season-ticket holders despise any games that don't start at 1PM. 8:30 starts are their most hated of course there most hated. (65,000 70 year-olds with their thermoses and bologna sandwiches-- it's a bunch of Morty Seinfelds-- they're ready for bed by halftime. "If we're gonna be here till all hours of the night, can we at least order some food?"). So that made the win even sweeter. I'm sure they're just getting home right about now.

NFC East is setting up nice. Dallas with their annual December swan-dive. Stupid stadium. Birds are in good shape. I can see the NFC Championship Game loss coming from a mile away...

I think Wes Welker is my favorite player in the NFL right now. That's one tough honkey. Love watching him play. Speaking of the Pats, I have Randy Moss on my fantasy team. I'm glad he picked my bye week to quit on his team. Shades of Oakland and the horrible end in Minnesota. F the Pats. Also, last Feb. when I was in Vegas I took the Chargers to win the Super Bowl this year. So come on, Bolts!!! My two others were homer bets just missed-- Nova to win it all (stupid UNC) and the Phils to win the World Series (*%#$$*$^*^$&*%@^!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).

Alright, I have a Seinfeld Quizzo to prepare for....



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Wrong Answer

Rant from R.H.

Warning- this is kind of long and about basketball. So, um, yeah....

I wasn't gonna dignify this Iverson story with a response, but I can't hold it in any longer. Too bad for the Sixers that it's come to this, although it's their own fault. I could've used a nice distraction too until baseball season. Especially since I just can't get fully emotionally invested in the Eagles like I used to until Reid and McNabb are gone, which will probably be never (Gimmicks like starting the game with an onside kick against a crappy team you should just line up against and steamroll??? And then, just to prove it wasn't a disastrous acquisition, they have to trot the encrusted remains of Michael Vick out there every now and then. That pass to Celek was classic. Thanks dude, but we already have a QB that fires 90 mph passes behind receivers from 5 yards away. Whatever. Don't get me started).

In case you guys missed it, Stephen A. Smith broke the news that Iverson woke up this morning and took a big dump. My God, does that joker just keep "breaking" stories to correct his previous, incorrect "breaking" news? If these Iverson rumors are true it's unfortunate, and not just because it would mean one less handicap parking space available each day around here. I'm not gonna jump up and down about it, but I wouldn't do it. Smacks of desperation. For who? For what? Nightclub owners, casino heads, and fast-food managers are clamoring for him to return.

Obviously, the Sixers are broken and a long, long way from being good. But bringing Iverson in here would just postpone the rebuilding. Why should we just throw away the last 5 or so months of the season? That's just pissing away 5 months to sell a few extra tickets. If they plan on keeping Eddie Jordan, which at this point they might as well give him a chance, this time should be used to develop the younger guys and to learn his Princeton offense (Iverson and Princeton anything should never be used in the same sentence). Any learning curve or development of Holiday, Lou Williams (possible already too far gone), etc. will stop as soon as Iverson comes in. It's like locking a bunch of guys in AA in a liquor store with Keith Richards.

But the majority of the fan base will be for it, and management will probably succumb to them. At the risk of generalizing, most of the NBA fans in this town are idiots. All thoughout the Iverson era and still today, they'd rather see Iverson cross someone over in a 20-ponts loss than watch a cohesive group play as a team and win consistently. I got news for management, if you put a good team out there that wins, people will show up. Iverson or no Iverson. But they're a long way from that so I guess this is their stop-gap solution.

Ed Snider has said he'll signoff on anything Sixer-related at this point. He's too busy scouring the AHL ranks for a 4th line winger for the Flyers.

Iverson has proven time and again that he's incapable of conforming to being a team-player. Oh, he says all the right things. He cares about winning, he'll come of the bench, yada-yada-yada. The he goes out and does the opposite (Costanza would be proud). In Detroit and Memphis, he said he would have no problem coming off the bench, then proceeded to sandbag both teams. Three games in Memphis?!? That's shocking even for him. It's a shame it didn't work out, him and Zach Randolph could've done some great and horrible things together on Beale Street.

It's also no coincidence that Denver took off right after they got rid of him last year.

Oh yeah, if Bubba Chuck returned it would be all fun and games in the beginning, especially with Lou Williams out a couple months. Iverson would act like he's still the man, push Holiday aside (go learn the game somewhere else, rook), and pick up right where he left off here. Lots of 30-shot, 27 points games.....and 20-points losses. We've seen this movie a thousand times before.

People say he'll put fans in the seats, and they're probably right. I know I'm probably in the minority, but that's even more of a reason NOT to go for me. And really, who cares that no one is going to the games? If anything, the Sixers deserve what they are getting with the product they've been putting out there and the decisions they've been making the last few years. Maybe empty seats will wake them up a bit. Just look at the Knicks, another horrible team with absolutely nothing to lose. Could've bought Iverson in for the rest of the year for a measley $1 mill. to fill-up some seats. They did about 24 hours of due-diligence on him (talked to Memphis I'm sure) and quickly said thanks, but no thanks (made me wish Isiah was still there and recklessly signed him to a 6 year/ $64 million deal in between groping MSG employees. Good times). Speaks volumes. The guy is a disease that infects teams on and off the court. Practice? Good luck.

Retiring to spend time with his family? Wow, that's rich. I know he's always been a pillar of family values, but he's retiring because no one wants him. He almost had to "retire" over the summer when no one wanted him until Memphis took a flier. The rest is history. I can't think of another future hall of famer that was not wanted by anyone when he still had something left in the tank. Even Rasheed Wallace, the posterboy for angry, selfish malcontents everywhere, got the point and went to the Celtics knowing damn well he'd be coming off the bench. Iverson has been his own worst enemy throughout. If he was smart, starting in Detroit last year, he would've used it as an audition for good teams to see him. He's obviously a shell of his former self, but he can still play. But no, he only knows his way, dominating the ball and undermining coaches. Good teams don't want him because he'll disrupt chemistry immediately. Bad teams (see: Memphis) also now know to steer clear of him.

Now John Thompson and Larry Brown are trying to reach out to him to talk him out of retirement? (like it was his decision). Yo Larry, please shut up and go away, you phony. You hated Iverson when you were here. And if you like him so damn much, bring him to Charlotte. Now start figuring out which team you're gonna jump ship to next. Eddie Jordan can't be for this. The only reason Stefanski would be for it is because he's desperate and out of ideas after taking over the mantle of Horrible GM from Billy King. If Jordan and Stefanski are on the fence about it, they should consult with, in no particular order, Randy Ayers, Chris Ford, Jim O'Brien, Mo Cheeks, Michael Curry, and Lionel Hollins. I think the only one that survived AI's wrath to get another head coaching job was O'Brien. I would've thrown George Karl in there but he's been in paycheck mode for years now.

Again, if Iverson was smart and not surrounded by a posse of yes-men, he would've long ago sucked up his pride and went to a playoff team that could use him. The funny thing is, he'd be an absolute killer coming off the bench for a good team. Talk about instant offense, he'd be like Vinnie "Microwave" Johnson on crack (possibly literally). It's really the perfect role for him- come in, shoot constantly and play no defense.If he's hot, keep him in. If not, take him out (and then the games begin). But that decision is out of his hands now. The damage is done. Beggars can't be choosers. Kind of sad in a way. I would pity him if he didn't bring it all on himself.

He should go kill a few dogs, maybe that would pique Andy Reid's interest.

But, whether the rumors are true or not, I guess the Sixers wanted to create a buzz, which they've accomplished.

Tiger's Geico Agent
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Pre-Turkey Thoughts

From friend of DW R.H.

It's tough to get a read on much in college hoops in Novemeber. Preseason college polls/rankings are completey useless. Nova has been winning, haven't seen any of them, but they seem to be a bit overrated right now. Almost lost to George Mason on a neutral floor. They should be good come February though. Same old story with them. No size whatsoever. Although they say Pena is playing really well. Corey Fisher, now a junior and extremetly talented, still makes me nervous when he has the ball in key moments.

St. Joe's is bad. Will be a tough year for them. Needing OT to beat Drexel in your home opener is never a good sign. So much for those "great" recruiting classes after the Nelson/West era.
Penn is abominable. Should that guy still have his job? As soon as Dunphy left, the program went in the shitter.

Word is Lasalle should actually be decent. Once every 17 years ain't bad. It's all been downhill ever since Speedy left the cupboard bare to go coach high school girls again, followed by Billy Hahn's drunkeness and various rapes.

Temple is kind of intriguing. This Lavoy Allen guy is really good. Could be the best player in the city if he wants to be. Can score and rebound, has touch, smart, and an excellent passer. Completely outplayed Monroe on Georgetown. Seems like he just needs to play with more intensity on a consistent basis.

Nationally, I've seen Gonzaga a few times and they look pretty good. Not pretty and soft like they usually are. They look tough, still have Bolden, and have a bunch of giants down low! If there's a God, Kansas, Michigan State, and Carolina won't win it all. Actually, Carolina won't get a sniff of the Final 4 this year. F Kentucky too and that shitbag Calipari.

What can be said about the Sixers except they are thoroughly depressing and basically unwatchable? Brand seems like a good guy and a hard worker, but let's face it, he's been a Webber-esque bust up to this point. I don't see much evidence of this vaunted Eddie Jordan Princeton offense. Unless Princeton now has guys (see: Lou Williams and Iguodala) that dribble around until the shot-clock is about to expire and then jack up hopeless 25-footers.

Now let's all sit around tomorrow afternoon and watch the terrible, terrible games the NFL will subject us to. I know, for some reason, we're saddled with Detroit. When and why did that become a tradition again? But there is absolutely no excuse for Dallas-Oakland!!! That was a terrible game on paper when the schedule came out, and a terrible game now.
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Bud Selig- An Asshole for the Ages

A quick rant on this bozo- by R.H.

For the record, I hope it snows 5 feet in Colorado this weekend, just so this joker has egg on his face (again). Yankees-Twins, in a DOME, gets the earlier, primetime spot. No, let's make the game in the Rocky Mountains the late game. 3 hours makes a big difference when the temperature is falling and it might snow. And when the hell did Yankees-Twins become some glamour matchup? It's better than the defending champs against the hottest team down the stretch? Really? Dodgers-Cardinals? Please--two teams that can't get out of their own F'n way.


10:07 start time on the east coast is a disgrace. And Buddy-boy wonders aloud why kids don't watch/play/care about baseball anymore. How could they?

I hope the whole weekend is snowed out, the World Series doesn't end till Nov. 15th, and he has to hold press conferences where he talks in circles and looks like an ass......again.

TBS makes me yearn for Buck and McCarver.....never thought I'd say that. Rant over.

ps- Myers has declared himself available for Sat. night if they need to surrender a 500 ft. foul home run and then possibly start a bean-brawl.

Pedro- The Last Man Standing .
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Friday Morning Rant

Since we obviously cannot get enough of this Vick talk..Here is an early weekend rant from friend of DirtyWudders, R.H.

I must say I was stunned when I heard they signed Vick. I'm sure everyone was. Totally took me off guard. Dogs on my street suddenly started howling, somehow sensing impending doom. But seriously, from a moral standpoint, I have no problem with them bringing him in. Obviously, what he did was horrific and unspeakable. But he paid his debt to society, much more than many people do for crimes and killings against humans (see: 36 different guys in the NFL and the University of Miami football team).
These people who are outraged and say they will never root for the Eagles again crack me up. Let's hold them to that and make sure they don't watch one minute of the Birds this year. Phonies. Some team was gonna sign him. They shouldn't watch sports period then, or movies for that matter (plenty of bad apples in Hollywood). I also love all these asswipes on talk radio around here that are outraged. God forbid there's a free-thinker that's not politically correct 24/7. I need to get satellite radio.

From a football standpoint, I don't know how much sense it makes. Not much, probably. I just like anything that will make McNabb squirm a little bit. It shouldn't, but it will. Funny how Reid had to make crystal clear during his press conference how Donavan was on-board with the move. Please. Insecurity like this doesn't grow on trees. It's a pretty low-risk move though. If he can't play, just cut him. I find it really hard to believe that Reid and Co. didn't bring Vick in for any kind of workout. And if that's true, shame on them. From what Reid said, he talked to Vick on the phone, he sounded sorry, and that was that. He said he did his "homework". What, did he interview Cell Block D or something? Obviously, they made sure they checked with animal rights groups and what not about this first. I think Reid referenced the "Humane Society" like 37 times last night. And when and why did Tony Dungy become Vick's spiritual mentor?? If he spent half as much time with his son......I'll stop myself before I go straight to hell. Maybe he should mentor his ex-player Marvin Harrison, last seen gun-running in North Philly.

Reid insisted that Vick was a quarterback. No way he's playing QB, not even backup QB. Even in his prime, he made McNabb look accurate. Who's Reid kidding, he's here strictly for gadget plays, which as we know, the Fat Man is a big fan of. Plus he can show us all how smart he is, as evidenced by his smug "I have some things in mind for him" statement (How bout taking a clock-management seminar rather than designing trick plays for a converted QB. Christ. Fat ass). I guess they'll use the wildcat more as well. Although the Eagles didn't seem to really utilize it much last year (and the few times they did it was wildly unsuccessful. DeShean Jackson throwing a pick in the end zone comes to mind). And I have no problem with them using Vick for these types of plays-- if he can still play. Let's face it, he'll probably only be involved in about 20 plays the whole season (unless they can teach him how to play left or right tackle).

I think Reid's new "second chance" philosophy definitely stems from his junkie sons. No way the Birds even considered a move like this 5 years ago. I also think that if the Pats didn't show interest in Vick, the Birds probably would've never looked at him. Reid yearns to be Bellichick.
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