Greg Oden was not good enough to stop the Gators

April 3rd, 2007 | Posted by PostmanR

Dude sure tried though, huh?

He had some haters, (I’m looking at you Bill Simmons) but Greg Oden singlehandedly kept the Buckeyes in that game. Or rather, tried to keep them in that game. Without him, Florida wins this game by 20 or more. No doubt about that one.

How about in the first half when, double-teamed, Oden threw a dunk in Noah’s and Horford’s face. Unreal. He also had some tremendous blocks on the defensive end. But, that defense is what we’ve come to know him as. And, this was probably also his best game of the year, on the highest stage.

In the end, Florida was just too selfless, too complete and too well, too good for the Buckeyes. From Brewer to Green to Horford to Humphrey to Noah, they simply possessed too many weapons operating as one unit to lose this game.

You know what I’d really like to see though? This Ohio State team aged a year or two, taking on this Gator squad of ‘06-’07. That would be a showdown for the ages.

I can’t imagine if I was a student at Ohio State right now. Florida trumped us in two National Championship games this year?

Um, any room left in those anti-Noah Facebook groups?

Let’s do this

April 2nd, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

It’s time. We’ve had a day full of baseball (effing Cubs) to take our minds off the sad reality that college basketball is ending, but now it’s time to face facts.

Who’s it going to be? Ohio State or Florida? Greg Oden or Noahorford, the two-headed post-playing monster? Taurean Green or Mike Conley? Ron Lewis and Jamar Butler or Lee Humphrey? Corey Brewer or … whoever Ohio State thinks they have that can stop Corey Brewer? (Hint: they don’t have anyone.)

This isn’t likely to be a battle of styles. With the exception of a switch from zone to man every once in a while, Thad Matta just sort of rolls the balls out, and Florida coach Billy Donovan doesn’t really do much strategic stuff himself. Both teams seem just as happy - perhaps happier - running up and down the floor as they do slowing the game down and moving through half court sets.

Then, as it usually does, this will come down to personnel. Ohio State is a much, much better team than they were when they lost to Florida in Gainsville earlier this year; Greg Oden is improved, the team has a whole functions better, and Mike Conley has become the de facto leader on the offensive end of the court. The Buckeyes’ roles were not nearly as defined then as they are now, and they weren’t receiving nearly as much contribution from their role players. (Terwilliger? Hunter? Lighty?)

Not only that, but if Greg Oden does leave the game early, as he is wont to do, the Buckeyes don’t seem to lose a step. Instead, they open up the floor and run a little bit more, and are just as difficult to defend.

That all said, didn’t Jeff Green sort of seem to hand OSU the game Saturday? I didn’t follow Green closely through the year, so I’m not sure if he’s ever done this before, but didn’t it seem like he totally lost track of time? Whether it was nerves or an overwhelming desire to get his teammates involved, Green almost singlehandedly gave the game to OSU. I kept screaming “Shoot, Jeff! Drive! Do something!!” And he never did.

That’s why I think Florida takes it tonight. The Gators will give OSU their best shot, unlike Georgetown, and OSU won’t have an answer. It will be closer than last time, but not that close: Florida 76, OSU 68.

Case of the Mondays: Grand opening, grand closing

April 2nd, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

In terms of sports days, it doesn’t get much better than this, does it?

With apologies to the Cardinals and the Mets (actually, screw the Cardinals), today is the real Opening Day, the one day before the Cubs start losing and my early-to-mid summer depression really begins setting in. Minus Kerry Wood and Mark Prior, all is well in Cubdom, a content feeling that will surely pass as soon as the balls are dumped on the field today. Still, today is the day to enjoy, and from now until about June is the childhood of the baseball season. The potential is limitless.

And of course, tonight also marks the closing of college basketball season. After the disappointment of the Final Four - in which the Amazing Disappearing Jeff Green ruined my bracket chances - it seems a little presumptive to assume this National Championship game will be historic in any way. Still, there’s an historic ending by default with Florida here, and if Ohio State wins, Greg Oden and Mike Conley will get their well-deserved coronation. We’ll see if the Buckeyes can keep Oden out of foul trouble and causing problems for Florida’s interior … or if the Gators will shoot OSU off the floor, as they’ve done in nearly every other tourney game this year.

I’ll be back later to talk in more detail about the National Title game and whatever else tickles me, but I’ll also be over at my other home for most of the afternoon. Make sure to stop over, and a very Happy Greatest Sports Day Of The Year Besides The Super Bowl to you and yours.

Weekend Fun: Today we spell redemption R-O-Y (Hibbert)

March 30th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

This year, I tried a different strategy. Instead of filling out a bunch of different brackets - usually randomly - I spent all my time researching teams, examining position match ups, and then filling out one master bracket. There were to be no variations from this grand plan; my genius would see me through, and I would surely win every pool I was in.

You can imagine how that ended up. Kansas flamed out (stupid pick), my Elite Eight surprise Louisville caught a tough break with Texas A&M, Pittsburgh didn’t take down UCLA, and my forays into the Sweet 16 (Georgia Tech and Creighton) … well, let’s just file those under “ill-advised.”

This was the worst bracket performance I’ve had i years. I mean, really bad. Middle of the pack in every pool, unremarkable in every way. I actually think my girlfriend outpicked me, which is embarrassing because women don’t know anything about sports. (Kidding!)

That is, but for one pool that I somehow randomly threw together, where I tried to hedge my bets against my original bracket. I forgot about filling this sheet out almost as soon as I finished it so as to devote more time fawning over my original picks. Instead, I ended up with the right Final Four, seven of the Elite Eight, and so on and so forth. And I’m the only person in the top end of the bracket with Georgetown winning it all.

And just like that, I’ve changed my picks. OSU is out, Georgetown is in. Go Hoyas!

In the other game, I’ve still got Florida, though UCLA’s defense will keep the game far closer than last year’s championship. But yeah: totally arbitrary and biased change of picks. Everyone’s cool with that, right?

Be back tomorrow or Sunday for some tourney stuff. Till then, head here for actual, you know, basketball discussion.

Case of the Mondays: Arriving, finally, at four

March 26th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

Continuing its direct departure from last year’s tournament, the Final Four this year is everyone’s guess: two No. 1 seeds and the two No. 2’s most people saw as potential Final Four teams. Whodathunkit?

Fortunately, the lack of surprise in the outcomes hasn’t held back the level of play, which (and this is a completely subjective appraisal, I know) has been much better than last year. Last year’s UConn-George Mason heartwarmer aside, this year’s Elite Eight was far better, including yesterday’s Georgetown-UNC game, a battle right up until Ty Lawson decided to stop penetrating and the Tar Heels decided to stop crashing the offensive glass.

Florida took care of business rather easily, but Oregon showed they belonged at that level, which is a victory in and of itself. No moral victories, sure, but considering this Florida team they ran into, they can be happy with that showing. (On that note, our Hoosiers’ loss to UCLA is starting to look all the more relevant. If UCLA takes this thing home, who’ll remember their near loss? I will, that’s who.)

So, it’s Florida, UCLA, Georgetown and OSU. And as much as I’d like to revise my picks and take Georgetown to win the whole thing, I’ll stick with OSU. But if there’s anyone that can negate the influence of Greg Oden, it’s Roy Hibbert. We’ll see.

(Oh, and by the way, let’s not forget Georgetown shouldn’t even be here. In case you still agree with Billy Packer [commenter law, I’m looking at you], here’s the link.)

NBA: Kobe got close to his fifth in a row, but didn’t quite get there, scoring 43 in a 115-113 win over the Warriors. Hyperbole aside, if Kobe can translate this points = wins formula into one or maybe even two playoff series victories this postseason, I will be ready to throw him into the top ten scorers of all time. I’d say that’s fair, huh?

In other NBA news, Denver pulled away from Cleveland late (a thoroughly entertaining game, by the way), and our boy Ben Gordon took it home at the last minute over the Pacers.

Golf: Tiger took home yet another tournament yesterday, but made it interesting at the end. If you didn’t see it, Tiger laid up twice - even hitting the shortest drive of the tournament on 18 by about 30 yards - before hitting a brilliant putt from the same spot that been destroying people all day. It won’t make the all-time Tiger Woods highlight reel, but it was a small bit of genius that showcases just how good the dude is day in, day out.

Weekend NCAA update: On the move like Jeff Green

March 24th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

Since it’s the veritable halfway point of this weekend’s action, let’s take a look at some of what we’ve learned:

– Jeff Green really, really traveled. I mean, this isn’t even close, people. Sure, as the only non-No. 1 seed in my completely unimaginative Final Four, I cheered when the shot went in … but that doesn’t change the fact that Jeff Green took an entire extra step visibly and unabashedly, and that Vanderbilt was eliminated because of an obvious blown call.

– Billy Packer does not see the same things we see. He isn’t even watching the same game sometimes. For example, after the 800th replay CBS showed off Green’s travel, Packer decided to make the dubious argument that the refs couldn’t have called the travel then, since it was toward the end of the game and a travel call would have effectively ended Georgetown’s chances. This is, of course, a dumb argument; it doesn’t matter when a travel takes place, if it gains an opponent’s advantage, you call it. Pretty simple stuff.

Anyway, Packer went on for a bit before Nantz hopped in and said (I’m paraphrasing):

Nantz: “Well, Billy, it certainly looked like he picked up his pivot foot slightly there.”

Packer: “I don’t know if he did, Jim. I don’t think it was a travel.”

Nantz: (Quietly incredulous) … “Well … that right foot certainly is moving around.”

Packer: “I don’t think it was a travel, Jim. I’d have to see it again. We might have to talk to (our producer; head of officials; some dude whose name I can’t remember) to see it again.”

To review: not only did Packer argue that if it was a travel, the refs should not have called it, but he didn’t actually believe Green’s hopstep cha-cha heave was a travel, even after cameras repeatedly showed it was, and blatantly so. Packer was somehow wrong, like, six times in the matter of 30 seconds. Unbelievable.

– There seem to be two schools of thought on Ohio State right now. One: their close wins are sure to catch up with them soon, perhaps tonight vs. Memphis. Two: with close wins under their belt, they’re looking more and more like the proverbial “team of destiny.”

I’m with the former. I think Memphis outruns OSU tonight and displaces Oden just enough to keep him on his heels … and Memphis wins and moves on. (Also, Calipari for Kentucky? Derrick Rose to Indiana? Hey, it could happen …)

– The rest of the picks: Kansas, who withstood So. Ill’s absolute best shot, beats UCLA, who haven’t really taken anyone’s best shot yet … Florida, easy, over Oregon … Georgetown takes down UNC in a close, close game. Hopefully Jeff Green watches his feet this time, because the refs obviously won’t do it for him.

Case of the Mondays: Action, but at what expense?

March 19th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

Those of us clamoring for more upsets, more close games and more overall excitement in our NCAA Tournament were rewarded this weekend, finally, when everyone decided to go all crazy. My title-winner, OSU, nearly lost (I’m naming my first kid RonLewis), Purdue played Florida tightly, Wisconsin was upset and sent home, and Louisville and Texas A&M played a rousing game defined by ballsy guard play from Acie Law IV and Edgar Sosa.

All in all, a good weekend. Well … sort of.

There were at least two serious negatives here, too, and they were both brought on by LA’s two pristine academic institutions.

First, UCLA was complicit in a criminally disappointing end to our Hoosiers’ season, in which IU’s first half field goals (five) were outnumbered by their fouls (six). Terrible, terrible stuff, made all the worse by IU’s insistence on getting everyone’s hopes up and winning that thing down the stretch. Hard to swallow, to say the least. (And it kept me from another week-long vacation in California. Motherfucker.)

But the greatest loss was, by far, the USC-imposed tournament departure of Kevin Durant, who is likely to go pro now that his Longhorns failed to make it even to the Sweet 16 this year. That means no more of Durant’s sublime domination of the college game, no more Texas-Oklahoma State triple-overtime thrillers, no more 37/15 against the nation’s most athletic defense (Kansas). Instead, we have to watch Durant go through the altogether painful process of NBA draftdom. Instead of celebrating his mastery, we’ll be hearing for the next few months about the small flaws in the kid’s game, how he needs to put on weight, hold his follow through longer, and so on, why Chad Ford thinks he’s a mix of Player A and Player B with a mix of Player C thrown in, but with a higher ceiling.

It’s exciting, sure, but it’s also sort of sad. In that way, Kevin Durant, as we now know him, is gone for good.

The Postmen’s NCAA TE Part 2: Tourney leftovers

March 15th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanR

With E firmly entrenched on the Left Coast for the IU-Gonzaga game tonight and me firmly entrenched on my couch, I’m just going to roundup some stuff for you because, well, I can do that if I want.

Obviously, the Spin is doing its fair share of live-blogging today, as is WBRS Sports Blog and Awful Announcing. Those are always fun to ride along with, so if you’re feeling lonely, go make Internet friends in the comments.

Oh, also, I never made my NCAA picks. So consider this our NCAA Tournament Extravaganza: Part Deux, minus that image in the post below.

Final Four: Georgetown, Ohio State, Florida, Kansas

Wow look! Three No. 1 seeds! So, right there I’m probably already wrong. And as I just realized, this is the same Final Four E picked. (We’re like the same person!)

HOWEVA, I’m going with a different title game and champ. I see Florida regrouping quite well for this tournament. They have good point-guard play with Green, can shoot the trifecta with Humphrey and the Gators’ bigs are solid, as we all know. So, sorry Bill Self.

Second, although Ohio State has been crazy dominant all season, I don’t see them getting past Georgetown. The Hoyas seem more mature and more of a complete package to me. I could also be dead wrong in that assertion though, who knows.

So, I have the Gators vs. the Hoyas in the final bout, with Florida prevailing. After the game, Joakim Noah will do some lame dance, annoying millions. He will then go on to enjoy a mediocre NBA career, averaging 4.8 points a game, until he’s out of the league in seven years.

If something particularly peeks my interest during the games today, or if I find a YouTube video (a nut shot, of course!) then I’ll blog again today. If not, don’t expect again. It’s a holiday today anyways, right?

(By the way, Friday is our one-year anniversary. Hooray! We’ll write more about that tomorrow, hopefully.)

Case of the Mondays: College basketball fiesta

February 26th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

Quite a weekend for college hoops, huh?

So our Hoosiers suffered a massive meltdown in Lansing - so what? We didn’t expect them to win anyway, and those Spartans are a dangerous, dangerous squad, provided they don’t turn the ball over. Oh well, right?

No, the main action to be seen was elsewhere in the Big Ten, as I mentioned Friday. That game didn’t disappoint one bit, as the Badgers put up a great second half fight even after they lost criminally underrated center Brian Butch. The big man’s bum elbow will definitely damage the Badgers’ chances of overtaking Ohio State in the Big Ten tourney, or of making a huge NCAA push … but if any team can weather an injury, it’s Wisconsin. They’ll be imperfect, but tough nonetheless.

Elsewhere, we can shake our heads dismissively at Florida today. Luke Winn’s question from Saturday’s letdown to undermanned LSU rings true: Are the Gators good enough to flip the proverbial switch whenever necessary? Are they the Shaq-and-Kobe-era Lakers, capable of huge regular season relaxation periods as well as playoff success? We’ll see in the next few weeks.

Also partially interesting: Maryland takes down UNC in College Park. Are the Terps making a surge here or what? That’s five in a row for a suddenly dangerous tournament team.

Georgetown tops Pittsburgh. Speaking of surging, the Hoyas are playing as well as anyone in the country right now. They’re certainly playing better than Florida and UNC, and even maybe better than Wisconsin.

This is freaking awesome

January 11th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

This little vid has matriculated its way around the Web well enough now (it’s from NBXSports, but we saw it first - as with most hilarious internet-related material - at With Leather) that we really need not post it, but hey, it’s a slow day (The fact that Barry Bonds squeezed in a greenie between Barbaro-sized steroid doses doesn’t, in my mind, qualify as “news”), so I’ve got nothing better to do.

Therefore, I choose to wallow in the pain of Ohio State fans, much because these people are wearing the exact same expressions as the Katzenmoyer jersey-sporting idiots who populated the bar I was at Monday night. As my friends and I were drunkenly chanting “Ba dum dum dum dum … GO … GATORS!!” repeatedly, they were wiping their tears with their scarlet and grey sleeves. And that, my friends, was beautiful.