Thursday, November 30, 2006

"Wednesday night wrap-up"

ACC destroys Big Ten again
Well, another ACC-Big Ten challenge is complete and nothing's new. The ACC dominated again. The ACC won 8-3. It has never lost the event. Its ownership of the Big Ten has never really been in doubt.

And this was possibly looking like a bit of a down year in the ACC, with Duke's roster not full of the offensive pyrotechnics we're accustomed to. But the Blue Devils ground out a Big Ten-style 54-51 win over Indiana. Michigan somehow found a way to lose to N.C. State, who - trailing 14-4 early in the contest - lost its best scorer to an injury. The Wolverines obviously felt sorry for the Wolfpack, who played just six men the rest of the game. And the rest of the games really weren't that surprising.

Only promising sign for the Big Ten? The Buckeyes showed that they can play with the nation's best, fighting UNC to the finish despite the absence of a man named Oden. With him, there's no doubt in my mind: If he's as good as advertised, they would have won. I hate to admit it, but the Buckeyes own football and basketball in the Big Ten right now. Ouch.

More college hoops
OK, if there was a BCS in college basketball, it would be a shame if the Missouri Valley Conference wasn't considered a major conference. That's how good the MVC is getting. Forget four teams; this conference could place five in the Big Dance this year - maybe more than the Big Ten. Key non-conference wins already of note: Missouri State def. then No. 7 Wisconsin; Wichita State def. then No. 6 LSU. And there are more. I just don't have time to list them. Watch out for the MVC.

NFL babies
Are you kidding me? How difficult is it for these guys to keep their words in-house? The Giants are almost as rife with clubhouse banter as the A-Rod Yankees. First Tiki Barber spouts off. Now Michael Strahan and Plaxico Burress? I don't get it. We in the media love this stuff, because we don't have to dig for stories to write. But wouldn't life be easier on everyone in the organization if players would talk about their problems privately? Would it have been too much for Strahan to approach Burress when there were no cameras or reporters around to voice his displeasure? It just seems ridiculous to me that these two professionals have to criticize each other through the media (albeit the feisty New York media).

Oh, Albert
Mark my words: I love Albert Pujols. I love everything about him as a player. I love how he works on his opposite-field hitting during batting practice instead of simply drilling balls into the left-field seats. But I disagree with Pujols' criticism of the voters decision to name Ryan Howard the MVP. Pujols said that the award should go to a player who makes the playoffs.

I agree to an extent. It should not go to a player on a crappy team. But Howard was not on a crappy team. In fact, he just about single-handedly led the Phillies to more wins than the Cardinals. If not for stellar play from the Dodgers and Padres down the stretch, the Phillies would have continued playing in October. The Cardinals, on the other hand, just squeaked into the playoffs. And we know what happened from there. But the MVP is based only on the regular season. And I'd say Howard's team had a very similar regular season to that of the Cardinals. And he had a slightly better season than Pujols. Thus the slight victory for Howard.

Final Word
A piece of advice to college basketball players trying to decide whether to live together during the season. If you don't want to endanger your team's success, don't do it. Florida's Corey Brewer is out indefinitely with mono, and earlier today Gator Nation received a scare when Joakim Noah was said to have mono as well. Luckily for the Gators he doesn't and will play this weekend against Florida State. Brewer's housemates might want to relocate, however. Not only does Noah room with Mr. Mono, but two of Florida's other key contributors - Al Horford and Taurean Green - also stay with Brewer. Could you imagine a season ruined because of mono? Wackier things have happened.

What to Watch on Thursday
NBA doubleheader on TNT: Pistons at Heat; Jazz at Lakers. Will the Heat show up in the first game? Doubtful. So if you're only going for one helping, sleep through the opener and stay up late for the nightcap, which should be a dandy.

1 comment:

Jonathan said...

I wonder if your comment that Ohio State would have definitely won with Oden is necesarily true. Don't forget that the only thing that kept Ohio State in the game was their streaky three-point shooting, which would have been largely disrupted with Oden in the paint as the main offensive option. And if anybody could match Oden down low it would be the combo of Hansbrough and Wright.