Entries For: December 2006
12/25/2006
Aston Villa v. Man U
We've told you before that we don't really know much about soccer... we weren't kidding. But these goals -- Manchester scoring against Aston Villa during Saturday's match in St. James's Park -- are pretty sweet.
12/17/2006
Nuggets Brawl with Knicks at MSG
Baseball has steroids, football has Terrell Owens, and the NBA has bench-clearing brawls. Try as these sports may, they just can't seem to get rid of these vices, and basketball had its latest relapse during a blowout at the Garden on Saturday night. If you've only seen on SportsCenter, you need to watch the whole video here.
Sparked by a Mardy Collins flagrant foul late in the 4th quarter, an altercation turned ugly after J.R. Smith took Nate Robinson to the floor in response to Robinson's shoving.
The players were eventually separated, but watch closely to notice that Carmelo "don't snitch" Anthony reignites the fight with an open-handed sucker punch on Mardy Collins. Make doubly sure to continue watching to notice that Anthony runs away immediately after.
Unfortunately, this video fails to show what may have truly instigated this debacle. According to Carmelo (as reported on espn.com), Knicks head coach, Isiah Thomas had warned Anthony to stay out of the paint apparently not happy that the Nuggets were continuing to run up the score by keeping in four starters with under two minutes to go. Thanks for snitching, 'Melo.
I was just beginning to feel sorry for Isiah, who will surely lose his job at the end of the season for assembling the highest paid group of losers in the league. But to instigate a hard foul that leads to a brawl and try to justify it by saying they were running up the score is preposterous.
This is the NBA, not a high school game where the talent can be so spread out and it really is unnecessary to embarrass a team. I didn't hear the Raptors complaining when Kobe ran up the score en route to 81 points. Should the four starters have been on the bench? Probably, but that's up to the Nuggets.
Isiah, I'm sorry the Knicks suck. I'm even more sorry that the Nuggets were too much for the roster you assembled to handle at home. However, I'm most sorry that you know your team is so bad that you feel it is unreasonable for the Nuggets to play their starters for the duration of the game. This is the NBA and the fans didn't come to watch three quarters of basketball and, while I know from what I heard you say on SportsCenter that your team had "surrendered," the Nuggets came to play. Maybe you should tell your team to do the same.
12/12/2006
Tomlinson Bolts to the Record Books
A week after writing about Reggie Bush's four-touchdown performance and declaring him “the most electrifying player in sports” I have come to the conclusion that San Diego Chargers Running Back LaDainian Tomlinson read my article (which I'm quite proud of) and took serious offense to it (which I'm quite scared of).
On Sunday, LaDainian Tomlinson – or as Chargers fans chant, “L.T.” – not only made his case for “the most electrifying player in sports” but he made breaking a coveted NFL touchdown record look easier than scoring a touchdown on PS3 against your drunk 6 year old girl cousin.
In the 4th quarter of a statement game where his AFC leading Chargers dominated divisional foes Denver Broncos, Tomlinson recorded his 29th total touchdown of the season surpassing Seattle Seahawk's Shaun Alexander’s one-year-old record of 28 TDs. If breaking the record wasn’t impressive enough, Tomlinson accomplished this feat with 3 games remaining in what is no doubt an MVP season, and arguably the most impressive individual seasons in football history.
This guy can do it all. I know it, the Chargers know it, opponents know it, fans know it, and I’m sure Tomlinson knows it, but I bet LT would be he last guy to tell you that he can. In true team player fashion, after breaking the individual TD record, he immediately called for his teammates over so he could share the moment with all those who helped him attain every single touchdown. Even after proving that he is undoubtedly the man, Tomlinson's actions show he remains humble, selfless, and classy.
Devin Hester Leads Chicago Bears to MNF Win over Rams
On two kickoff returns, Devin Hester twice earned himself trips to the end zone allowing him to practice his dance moves for what I pray will lead to another Super Bowl Shuffle.
In doing so, Hester tied the NFL record for most kickoff returns in a game, set the record for most returns in a season (six), and improved the Bears to 11-2.
Second round pick Hester was the first to recognize that while his performance was amazing, the win was part of a team effort. While it's been the Bears defense that has been leading the Bears, quarterback Rex Grossman stepped up tonight with 2 touchdowns, no interceptions, and 200 total yards to help the Bears put up enough points to beat the Rams 42-27.
With the NFC best record, this win clinches the Bears a first round playoff bye guaranteeing their birth to the second round of the playoffs...which leads me to the Super Bowl Shuffle.
In 1985 the future Super Bowl XX champions, the Chicago Bears, recorded the Super Bowl Shuffle, a classic that climbed to #41 on Billboard and surely sparked Chicago's 46-10 victory over the Pats. If you ever wanted to see Walter Payton or the William the Refrigerator Perry (show stealer) dance and rap, I highly recommend all seven minutes of it.
Unfortunately, I somehow doubt that it is possible that such an exquisite collection of talent could possibly exist on the same roster ever again, especially outside of the 80s. Nevertheless, it is my hope that the Bears will use their week off during the playoffs to create the sequel to a truly amazing marriage of sports and music.