Category Archives: Sports
Trail Blazers Beat Rockets in OT
Well, if there’s going to be any Linsanity in Houston this year, it’s going to have to wait until at least the next game, as Jeremy Lin and Company lost to the Portland Trail Blazers in overtime on Saturday night.
For the first half of the game in which the Trail Blazers overpowered the Rockets 95 — 85, it looked as though the Rockets were going to have another win to add to their great season so far. But the Trail Blazers dominated the third quarter, and carried that strength with them right through to the final buzzer in OT.
LeMarcus Aldridge was the hero of the game with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists. Damian Lillard also did his part, putting up 20 points on the board (8 of which he scored in OT,) and getting nine assists while at it. Nicolas Batum helped with 17 points, nine boards, four assists, and six steals.
James Harden was in front of the Houston crowd for the first time wearing a Rockets jersey, and he gave them what they wanted, tallying up 24 points for his team. It was unfortunate that his 3-pointer from the wing was blocked in the last minutes of the game, as that would have given fans what they were really after, another win. Unfortunately, his shot was blocked by the Trail Blazers. Shortly after, Lillard took a chance to get his team back into the game with a layup, and he was rewarded. After his ball sailed through the net, Portland was only lagging by 2.
That was when J.J. Hickson stepped up for the Trail Blazers with a layup that brought the game to 78 — 78 before Jeremy Lin sailed through with a layup of his own, putting the Rockets up three points. Those would be added to the 13 points and seven assists in total that Lin contributed to the game.
The game is the first victory for Portland out of the last four meetings between these two teams.
Notre Dame For the Win During Triple-Overtime
Notre Dame quarterback Everett Golson led his team to a 29-26 victory against the Pittsburgh Panthers after a hard-fought triple-overtime battle in South Bend Saturday night. With this win, the Fighting Irish currently stand undefeated at 9-0 and the team’s winning combination of a strong offense and defense make the old blue-and-gold seem unstoppable this season.
Golson started after initially being benched, and the kid was on fire during Saturday’s game–throwing for 227 yards, rushing for 74 yards, and ultimately scoring three touchdowns. That’s not to say that his performance was flawless. Golson was responsible for throwing a late-fourth-quarter pick, which he also quickly recovered from, with Notre Dame holding firm ground into the first OT.
What followed was a test of wills for the players, with matching field goals in the first overtime, a missed 33-yard field goal attempt by Pittsburgh in the second, and finally the Irish’s fateful field goal that put them over the top in the third.
Players and fans alike leapt in celebration after Golson emerged from the pile of bodies victoriously. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly even advised his team earlier this season that every team they would encounter this year would be bringing their A-game, and that they couldn’t relax for a moment or risk losing unexpectedly to an underdog team. Pittsburgh played fantastic, holding its own against the Irish, but in the end it just wasn’t enough.
Now, as Golson and the rest of the team look ahead to the next challenge on the field, they can relax for a moment to revel in their currently flawless record.
SF Giants Defeat Detroit Tigers to Win World Series
It’s not a stretch to think that the 2012 World Series Champions, the San Francisco Giants are destined for greatness. After all, this was the team’s second championship in three years–a feat bested only by the likes of the NY Yankees since the playoffs doubled in the mid-90s–and the Giants didn’t just take the championship, they took care of business. And it felt like business as usual for the Giants as they came and left Detroit with enough tiger’s blood to make Charlie Sheen jealous in a four-game sweep.
During Game 4 the Giants came out swinging, with some strong plays and big hits, putting some early distance between the Detroit Tigers and the championship. Comerica Park in Detroit erupted in the tenth inning with the winning strike-out by Giants’ ace Sergio Romo against the Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera for the 4-3 series win, making it the seventh title in the franchise’s history (its first five titles were clinched back when they were still a New York outfit), which makes the SF Giants’ win that much more impressive.
For many fans, the series may be over, but the celebration is in full order. Some even have their tickets for next season. In San Francisco, fans have taken to the streets, some of them literally wearing their love for the Giants on their sleeve. The skies ignite with fireworks. Cheers of fans echo in the distance. Sports bartenders citywide witness several spontaneous marriage proposals. Clearly, the City of San Francisco loves its Giants, and it’s a love affair between San Francisco, the fans, and a ball club that has proven its greatness…again.
Why It’s Time to Look for Green Bay Packers Tickets
Why? Because the season is getting interesting! The Green Bay Packers have scrambled back to their feet after losing 22-30 to the San Francisco 49ers. With a sigh of resounding relief for Packer fans, the weekend found them clobbering the Chicago Bears 23-10, giving them a 1-1 score for the season’s beginnings, instead of a dismal 0-2. They began the first half with a bang; a sensational all or nothing touchdown by Tom Crabtree, who remarked afterward, “It was either a touchdown or a horrible call and someone didn’t do their job and someone didn’t execute.”
From that point on, it seemed the Packers just couldn’t lose. Even though the game was still anybody’s guess, with both teams scoring only three more points by the third quarter, the stall ended when the field opened up for dancing Donald Driver to zero in for a second Packer touch-down.
The question on everyone’s mind is, will the Packers be able to present a good offense? Last year, Quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, was tearing up the turf, setting record points for offense plays. With a 15-1 regular season, confidence was high as they staged their final battle against the New York Giants – and lost. Rodgers ball placement was off, and when he was on target, his receivers just couldn’t seem to hold onto it, fumbling the game that should have been their final triumph. The opening game against the forty-niner’s began to look like Deja Vu. Once again, Rodgers threw off the mark and his receivers were dropping balls at a rate to make a grown man cry. After dropping eleven passes in last year’s games, Jermichael Finley dropped three more for the 2012 games. Offensive coordinator, Tom Clements is confident Finley will mature, but Packers fans are growing a bit uneasy.
The Green Bay Packers are set to play against the Seattle Seahawks September 24, which could be a do or die fate for the team that got off to a slow start. Seattle just clobbered the Dallas Cowboys in a brutal 27-7 game, and their message is, they’re not giving an inch. After losing to Arizona in their first game of the season, they racked up a lead against Dallas in the first five minutes with a touchdown by Jeron Johnson. Seattle began its offense a bit shaky in the first quarter, but took control of it before the second half, and kept the Cowboys flattened with bone cruncher, Golden Tate. Tate knocks them down and keeps knocking them.
The next game should tell all for the Green Bay Packers as they line up against the Seahawks, with both teams beginning the season with a slow start, and both teams with an outstanding defense. The big test will be in whether or not Aaron Rodgers pulls back together his offense, which is formidable when he’s on track.
Texas Rangers Coming into the Second Half
The Texas Rangers were looking good coming into the second half of the season with a five game lead. Here’s where Major League Baseball gets serious. With a little help from a Mariner‘s base running mistake, the Ranger’s ended Friday’s game against the Seattle team with a barely tweaking 3-2 lead.
The Rangers suffered a minor set-back when catcher, Mike Napoli bruised the inside part of his upper right knee, sliding into home plate during the fifth inning, but his fans have been assured there is no structural damage and he’ll be back in the game within the next few days. In the meantime, the Rangers decided to recall catcher Luis Martinez from Triple-A Round Rock, sending Reliever, Yoshinori Tateyama in his place.
That winning streak came to a screeching halt July 14th, when the Mariners turned around and clobbered the Rangers 7-0. Even with Yu Darvish giving it his all, after an initial rough start, pitching a walk, single and hit-batter to load all the bases in the first inning, the Rangers just couldn’t catch up. Right-hand pitcher, Felix Hernandez slammed the base plate again and again, leaving the Rangers with no score.
The pressure is on. The Rangers have a formidable team. They made five appearances in MLB, between 1996 and 2011, all following division championships. They advanced past Division for the first time in 2010 by defeating Tampa Bay Rays, going on to defeat the New York Yankees for the 2010 World Series, but succumbing to the San Francisco Giants in five games.
They battled again to become the American League champions in 2011, but lost the World Series Championship to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. Will this be the year they win the title? Three consecutive World Series appearances would be impressive, no matter how great the team is that steps up to the plate. The feat has only happened once in thirty-four years, when the Yankees went to four consecutive World Series from 1998 through 2001. Maybe you can’t win them all, but you can bet the Texas Rangers are going to try.
Cincinnati Reds – What’s the Latest News?
After a slow start, the Cincinnati Reds are breaking into the National League games in high style. Never mind that their hard-hitting first baseman, Joey Votto had to leave the game early–a precautionary measure for an inflamed knee. Tapping that plate with formidable force, Miguel Cairo and Ryan Hannigan were each credited with runs batted in the four games starter against the San Francisco Giants. However, pitcher Mat Latos proved once and for all that a smoking hot pitcher is every bit as valuable an asset as a hard hitting batter.
With only one year under his belt with the Cincinnati Reds, fans are already saying Latos is proving he’s got what it takes to be a major league pitcher. They call him “Mr. Complete.” He delivers with equal aplomb his speed balls, curve balls and sliders. Handing out no-hits to his opposition seems to be his favorite style. Anxieties run high when he steps into the pitcher mound, and that ball goes sizzling across the plate. There’s only one thing the batter knows: Latos’ pitch will be unpredictable. However, “Will that be enough to win the series?” more skeptical fans want to know.
No wonder all eyes have turned anxiously to Cincinnati star, first baseman, Joey Votto. Jamming his knee sliding into base during the Giant’s games, the question is on everybody’s minds; is Votto down for the count? And if he is, how is that going to affect the Reds’ line-up? If Votto loses significant time, it could have a devastating effect on the team trying to bolster its hitting average. Some experts state that the Reds are hanging their reputation on a strong defense and a pitcher you just can’t beat. Baseball is, after all, a team sport. With players like Cairo, Hannigan, Frazier and Stubbs, coming up to bat, just waiting for their chance to hit a home run, the Reds are not going to enter the season lying down.
You are not going to want to miss the opportunity to see them in action. All eyes are on the Cincinnati Reds, who are out to prove that even with a first baseman sitting in the bleachers, they know how to play ball.
Are Bounty Punishments a “Smear Campaign” by the NFL?
Many thought that the punishments handed out to current and former New Orleans Saints‘ players and coaches were too harsh when they were first handed down. But, now one former Saints player is actually calling it a “smear campaign.”
The player is Scott Fujita, former Saints’ linebacker that left the organization after the 2009 season and now plays with Cleveland. Fujita was found guilty in the bounty program investigation of contributing “a significant sum to the general pool that included payments for nonspecific bounties in the form of ‘cart-offs’ and ‘knockouts,'” according to NFL spokesman Greg Aiello in his discipline letter.
But while Fujita doesn’t deny the claims, and even calls making his contributions “paying it forward,” he thinks his three-game suspension is too harsh; and believes the league is actually just carrying out vengeance for his arguments against current NFL player-safety standards in the past. It was in 2010 that Fujita, as part of the NFLPA executive committee, spoke out about the NFL’s knowledge of concussions and how they relate to brain disease. At the time Fujita said that while the league knew, they covered it up much like the tobacco industry did when they discovered the dangers of smoking.
Now Fujita thinks the NFL is simply seizing the opportunity to make him pay for his earlier comments.
“I’m not saying the NFL is intentionally lying,” Fujita told the Associated Press. “I’ve been willing to give them the benefit of the doubt that they may have just been working with the information they’ve been given, even though much of that information was inaccurate and lacked credibility. It’s their cavalier interpretation of everything that’s been way off. They clearly proceeded with a public smear campaign with very little regard for the truth.”
One of the NFL’s reports stated that Fujita played for the Saints in 2010, when he already with the Browns. This he says, is just one indication of what a shoddy investigation it was. Fujita also accused the league of not approaching him about the 3-year investigation until reports first came out in March.
While the league did not touch on whether or not they were carrying out a vendetta against Fujita, Aiello did release a statement saying, “The process gave all players every opportunity to raise arguments and provide any mitigating information. Scott Fujita unfortunately chose not to avail himself of the process. Nothing that he has asserted in his various public statements undermines the findings of this investigation.”
The league also states that none of the players involved were told about the investigation any earlier than March in order to protect those who brought the bounty matter to the attention of the authorities.
Fujita has appealed his suspension, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell could rule on that appeal as early as today. Other players who have also appealed their punishments will also be ruled on at the same time.
Tiger Woods Wins Memorial and Looks Towards the U.S. Open
“Greatness” is all about perspective when it comes to Tiger Woods and there’s no doubt that after establishing himself as the best golfer in the world, he’s definitely held to different standards. But he looks like he’s starting to get some of that true Tiger greatness back, and starting to match his records of years past; first by winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March and this past Sunday, winning the Memorial Tournament.
Some of the old Tiger, indeed. At the last four holes Tiger pulled off some pretty fancy footwork to make a birdie on three of the holes and chipping one in perfectly on the 16th hole — a move that tied him for the lead. Sure his opponents Spencer Levin, Rickie Fowler, and Rory Sabbatini all had their own problems to contend with, problems that definitely helped Tiger in his win. But there’s also no denying that red shirt and all, Tiger was just starting to get back what once made him the best.
But truthfully, he still hasn’t won a major. And until he does, the headlines will always be asking if he’s back, rather than stating it as a fact. It won’t be long until Tiger has the chance to prove himself on the major grounds once again. The 2012 U.S. Open is set to begin on June 14, and while his two tournament wins of the year are definitely going to give him back some of his confidence, it’s only a couple of weeks until we find out if that’s enough.
Junior Seau’s Death Raises More Questions about Players’ Safety
After former NFL linebacker, Junior Seau, 43, was found dead in his Southern California home yesterday due to an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest, it was hard to make sense of anything. But after the police ruled the death a suicide, no one wondered why the chest was chosen. It was the very same way that former Chicago Bears Dave Duerson took his own life last February and all of it points to head trauma suffered by former NFL players.
At the time of Duerson’s death it was found that he chose to keep his brain intact so that it could later be studied for signs of CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. While it hasn’t yet been reported that Seau had the same intention, the similarities certainly are striking. And they also help bolster the case of former NFL players who currently have a lawsuit against the league in which they are asking for damages as well as reimbursement for health and medical costs. Sadly one of the plaintiffs in that case, Ray Easterling who played for the Atlanta Falcons during the 1970s, also shot himself just two weeks ago.
It’s becoming a case of there simply being too many victims to count. And although it’s still yet to be found whether or not Seau’s death was due to head trauma caused by repeated concussions, the problems of insanely rough play and sending players back out onto the field after sustaining an injury are becoming obvious.
Junior Seau was nothing short of a legend in the NFL. He played for the league over a course of 20 years and was with the Chargers for 12 of them. It was during his time with San Diego that he took them to the Super Bowl, had 12 back-to-back Pro Bowl appearances, and was also voted to All-Pro six times.
Tim Tebow is Going to New York!
Start spreading the news…Tebow is “leaving today” and is heading to New York! Tebow officially signed with the New York Jets and took part in an enthusiastic press conference that had the sports world buzzing.
Tim Tebow has recovered quickly after a particularly nasty shoving-in-front-of-a-train incident involving his former team the Denver Broncos. The Broncos signed Peyton Manning this month leaving quarterback Tebow few other options than to play the big field of the NFL and find a new home. Tim Tebow made national headlines last year, as he almost single-handedly led the disastrous Denver Broncos to a decent season end. He also garnered plenty of attention for his hard-Christian posing, citing scriptures and thanking God. While this isn’t exactly a “new play” for an NFL star, it is unique to see such a young man promoting God so fearlessly.
Some football experts, however, are not entirely convinced that Denver made a mistake–or that Tebow’s moving to New York is bad news for the Jets. Denver’s coach is not the only Tebow detractor. Why even Joe Namath joined the anti-Tebow movement recently.
The ex-Jet said, “I think it stinks,” he told USA Today, and cited starting quarterback Mark Sanchez as yet another victim in the scenario. Namath actually said much worse about Tebow before Monday, March 26, 2012, stating that Tebow had serious accuracy problems. However, on Monday, he seemed less upset and even credited Tebow as one of the “biggest stars in the game today.” He also said respectfully, “I think the Jets have done a terrific thing here in bringing the Jet fans a real star.”
Tebow is remaining very modest about the move–and about his expectations. “I think first and foremost, I’ve always said that I’m a football player first and then a quarterback. However, I can help the team, however I can make a difference, however they can use me, I’ll be open to it.”
Still Tebow is not stupid and knows that his quarterback ability is what brought him to the game. He would obviously be disappointed if he didn’t earn a permanent quarterback position sooner than later–and he would be joined by NFL fans and big suits, who want to see Tebow earn that investment.
What do you think? Is Tebow going to save the New York Jets or is it hell fire and brimstone from here on out?
