Thursday, March 20, 2008

Sometimes, It Doesn't Matter How You Look ...

I have never been an NCAA basketball guy, as they are seldom on local TV.

But in a matter of minutes, I have become a Tyler Hansbrough fan.

When I flipped to ESPN after a long-run of channel-surfing, North Carolina was trailing to Virginia Tech by some six points late in the second-half of the semi-final of the ACC Tournament.

That's when Hansbrough came through.

Hansbrough is definitely not the prettiest player on court, in terms of playing style and how he looks (Think Forrest Gump with mad hops). But he is darn good and smart, and has a knack of being at the right place at the right time. First, he sneaked behind a couple of day-dreaming Hokies to put in his teammate's missed free throw to tie the game late on. Then in the dying seconds, Hansbrough, normally and nominally a post player, drifted way from the post to the right baseline for an offensive rebound, and then coolly drilled a 15-foot jumper for the game-winning basket with just 0.8 seconds to go.

That helped the Tar Heels escape from an embarrassing upset at the hands of the Hokies, which they had annihilated earlier in the regular season, and pretty much shows the nation just how good Hansbrough really is.

Hey, if Forrest Gump could star for Bear Bryant, Hansbrough can definitely star for anyone in the NBA.

Monday, March 17, 2008

A Toast to the Toad

For those who have been following this blog, you may have noticed that I'm a huge Liverpool fan. But that has nothing to do why I hate some of the comments by Manchester United's boss Sir Alex Ferguson and his Arsenal counterpart Arsène Wenger.

They are simply bad losers.

In sports, you win some, and you lose some. You would definitely love to see your team win, and certainly be disappointed when your team loses. But can't they just be gracious enough to acknowledge that for once, their team was second best on the field, or simply luck was not on their side?

I don't recall exactly what Sir Alex said after his team lost at home to Portsmouth in the FA Cup quarter-final. In a match thoroughly dominated by the United, Portsmouth took a smash-and-grab victory thanks to a second-half penalty. After the match, Sir Alex was absolutely furious with the referee, and launched a scathing attack on his competence by not awarding his side a penalty in the first half.

As a matter of fact, it has become a routine for Sir Alex in recent years: A loss, a scathing attack on the referee, and then a huge fine slapped on him.

When Arsenal striker Eduardo da Silva had his leg horribly broken by a badly mistimed tackle by Birmingham's Martin Taylor, Wenger's, in his post-game comment, suggested that players such as Taylor should be banned for life (a comment which he later retracted). Now I totally understand his anguish and despair over the loss of his star striker, but hasn't it got a little too far?

And just like Sir Alex, Wenger always complains about the referee for not giving them penalties when he side drops points. Worse still, you can actually see his angry facial expressions when he confronts the other team's manager after the match, and he has become notorious for refusing to shake hands with them on occasion.

When Chelsea was humbled by Barnsley in the FA Cup quarter-final, their boss, Avram Grant was gracious enough to acknowledge the good job done by his opponent.

Perhaps next time when Manchester United or Arsenal loses, Sir Alex or Wenger should bear in mind the following: WWTD?

In other words, What Would the Toad Do?

Monday, March 10, 2008

A Wild Wild Weekend

Some of the top sport stories throughout the world over the past weekend:

- In the quarter-finals of the English FA Cup, Manchester United lost at home to Portsmouth, giant-killer Barnsley beat Chelsea, its second Premier League victim in as many rounds, and Cardiff City upset (or was it?) Middlesbrough away to secure a semi-final birth for this year's competition. The remaining semi-final berth was taken by the mighty West Bromwich Albion, which thrashed Bristol Rovers 5-1. After the dust has settled, the semi-finalists are Portsmouth (which last won the FA Cup in 1939), Barnsley (1912, over WBA), Cardiff City (1927) and WBA (1968). A dream final is in the making, for the nostalgics.

- In MotoGP's opening weekend in Qatar, Jorge Lorenzo and Bradley Smith, both debutants in their respective classes, took pole positions in the MotoGP and 125cc races respectively. Alex Debon, a 10-year veteran in the 250cc class, also scored his first ever pole position in the race. Lorenzo came home second to Casey Stoner and simply out-performed his World Champion teammate Valentino Rossi, who could only finish 5th. Debon scored the fastest lap on his way to a close fourth, while Smith led early on but suffered from mechanical failure which relegated him down to 16th. And more amazingly, 15-year-old Briton Scott Redding (a rider so green and unknown to the fans that you won't find his entry on the Wikipedia yet), on his debut in the 125cc race, qualified 4th on the grid, scored the fastest lap, was running among the leading group throughout the race, and came mightily close to a podium finish.

- In a similarly wild (but mind-boggling) fashion, Corey Maggette took ages and made an easy jumper for his Los Angeles Clippers against the Minnesota Timberwolves, instead of dishing the ball to teammate Cuttino Mobley who was wide open for a three-pointer. Problem was, his team was down by three, and there were only three seconds left in the game after the basket. The Clippers then promptly lost the game by three.

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Early Draft Predictions (and More)

My early predictions for the top 5 picks of the upcoming NFL Draft:

1. Miami Dolphins: Chris Long, DE, Virginia
Bill Parcells will go defense, defense and defense, and Long has the pedigree (son of Howie) that the Big Tuna loves.

2. St. Louis Rams: Jake Long, OT, Michigan
Long will either replace or complement All-Pro Orlando Pace.

3. Atlanta Falcons: Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College
The post-Mike Vick era will start with another QB with a four-letter first name and last name.

4. Oakland Raiders: Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
The highest possible spot where McFadden, the best player on board, will go.

5. Kansas City Chiefs: Glenn Dorsey, DT, Louisiana State
Will take either Jake Long if the Rams take Dorsey instead, in a heartbeat.

In other news, Warren Sapp has announced his retirement. ("I'm done," says the QBKilla). Although he has revealed his intention to retire before the season, his timing couldn't be much better. It coincides with the retirement of his long-time adversary and buddy Brett Favre. Well, who can forget the number of friendly showdowns between the two, when Sapp was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers which butt heads with the Green Bay Packers twice a year?

Hm, I've got a hunch that New York Giants' Michael Strahan, another veteran and Favre-buddy, will decided to call it a day soon, especially after finally winning his first Superbowl on his 15th season.

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

No. 4 Favre-ever

After a glorious run 17 years, Brett Favre has announced his retirement.

While many are surprised by his decision, especially after his Green Bay Packers came oh-so close to play in Superbowl XLII, I am not surprised at all.

When the Packers went 4-12 and with Favre throwing a career-worst 29 interceptions in 2005, rumours started circulating that he had "lost it", and many thought that he should and would step away. After months of deliberation, he decided to stay put.

In 2006, things were going a little better, but his team barely reached .500 at 8-8. With two straight dismal seasons under Favre's belt, the NFL was so sure that he would retire after the season that, it rescheduled the Packers' final regular season game at the Chicago Bears to be broadcast live on TV. But he decided to play on.

Last season, Favre's play exceeded everyone's expectation and the Packers finished the season 13-3, tied for the best in NFC. Many are convinced that Favre had regained his magic and should keep on playing. Instead, he decided to hang up his helmet.

To me, Favre knows that his Packers aren't really a good team, and the 2007 season was a fluke. In fact, the Packers' performance in the NFC title game against the New York Giants was a microcosm of their play in the past three seasons. While they can be explosive on offense (a 90-yard TD throw to Donald Driver), they need a lot of luck (Driver scored because Giants' safety Gibril Wilson got his pursue angle hopelessly wrong) and otherwise they are going nowhere (they lost because the Giants intercepted a badly-thrown pass in OT). Favre knows that if he wants to go out on top, this year is probably the best opportunity for him in years to come. Hey, who knows when will be the next time the Packers to finish atop the standings again?

When Dallas Cowboys' reserve cornerback Nate Jones injured Favre's hand on a blind-side blitz in a regular season game in November, Aaron Rodgers, Favre's highly-touted backup and a former first-round pick, was finally able to showcase how good he is. When Rodgers nearly led the Packers to upset the Cowboys, everyone took notice, including Favre himself. And when he sees that the Packers will be in good hands in his absence, he knows it's finally time for him to step down.

Favre never sees himself as a superstar, and his friendliness and down-to-earthiness has won him the heart of fans of all ages. With his retirement, the NFL will have a hard time to find someone as charismatic to replace him as the next icon for the league.

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

One is Better Than Two

The feud between the Indy Racing League (IRL) and Champ Car has finally come to an end, mercifully, after 12 long years.

Anyone who has been following the open-wheel racing in the United States knows that it simply can't afford to sustain two similar but competing racing series. The only surprise is that it took THIS long for the merger to materialise.

I have always been more a Champ Car fan than an IRL fan, and it's so agonising to see Champ Car struggling to field cars in each and every race. I love Champ Car's healthy mixture of road races and oval races, and its willingness (or do they have a choice?) to field young and promising drivers unknown to many of us.

Meanwhile, although IRL has taken with them the legendary Indianapolis 500, as well as most of the top teams and drivers from Champ Car, it has struggled to gather mainstream status due to its over-reliance on in oval racing. It took them all the way until 2005 to start racing on street and road circuits.

In the absence of a major open-wheel racing series, NASCAR has become the biggest beneficiary as media attention and sponsorship money keep pouring in. Hopefully the merger will allow the newly unified series to regain the recognition and status it deserves, and once again becomes the hotbed for promising open-wheel racers for the US.