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Sports MMSR: The playoffs continue and a gift for mom

Monday, May 13th, 2013. Filed under: Sports

Curry has been awesome so far this year and in the playoffs.

It was another wild weekend in the world of sports. I begin in the NBA, where many thought that the San Antonio Spurs would be able to handle the Golden State Warriors quite handily. That outcome has proven not to be the case, and in the process Steph Curry is reaching for superstar status. The Warriors have evened the series at two games apiece with a 97-87 overtime win on Sunday. Curry, despite a sore ankle, scored 22 and pulled down six rebounds and dealt out four assists. 17 of Curry’s 22 points came in the second half of the game, further cementing his MVP status for the Warriors.
In every other series in the NBA, the games stand at 2-1. The Miami Heat lead the Chicago Bulls, and after a shocking Game One victory by the Bulls, the Heat have now taken control as was to be expected from the consensus best team in the NBA. Chris Bosh led the Heat with 20 points and 19 rebounds in Friday’s 104-94 victory. On Saturday, the Indiana Pacers took the lead in their series with the New York Knicks with an 82-71 victory. Roy Hibbert has become a dominant presence in the post for the Pacers, scoring 24 points and hauling in 12 rebounds. Finally, the Memphis Grizzlies lead the Oklahoma City Thunder in their series, after an 87-81 victory on Saturday. Memphis is using their depth inside to grind down the once running and gunning Thunder, who are slowed losing their leader on the fast break, Russell Westbrook.
The NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are completing their first round matchups, and two series will be going to Game Seven. At Madison Square Garden on Sunday, the New York Rangers made a second period goal by Derick Brassard stick for a 1-0 victory against the Washington Capitals. First star for the Rangers was their goaltender, Henrik Lundqvist, who stopped all 27 Capitals shots. The Toronto Maple Leafs will go to Game Seven with the Boston Bruins after a 2-1 victory by the Maple Leafs. Leafs’ star Phil Kessel scored what proved to be the game winner midway through the third period. Milan Lucic scored a late goal, but the Bruins could not get the equalizer.
The teams that have advanced to the next round in the Stanley Cup playoffs are the Pittsburgh Penguins (4-2 over the NY Islanders), the Ottawa Senators (4-1 over the Montreal Canadiens), the Chicago Blackhawks (4-1 over the Minnesota Wild), the San Jose Sharks (4-0 over the Vancouver Canucks), the Detroit Red Wings (4-3 over the Anaheim Ducks after a 3-2 win by Detroit on Sunday) and the defending champion Los Angeles Kings (4-2 over the St. Louis Blues).
The Player’s Championship has always received the title of golf’s “fifth major.” The event usually has one of the strongest fields of players outside of a major, and the TPC Sawgrass is always one of the best theaters of the game. With the diabolical and famous island hole, the Par 3 17^th providing great drama, the Player’s never lacks for highlights and storylines. This Player’s was no exception to that standard for drama, in fact it may have even exceeded it.
On Saturday, controversy erupted with then co-leaders Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia. Woods and Garcia have never really liked each other, and their testy relationship escalated when they were paired together. Garcia took his second shot on the second hole of the third round while Woods was surveying and assessing his second shot, and while Woods pulled a club from his bag a commotion started in the crowd near the same time Garcia was in his swing. Garcia complained later that commotion disrupted his swing and it caused him to hit an errant shot. Woods did not apologize and also commented that he feel he didn’t need to apologize.
The two golfers finished the third round in a three-way tie for first and so Garcia and Woods were not paired for the final round Sunday. In the end Tiger Woods got the last laugh by winning the Player’s Championship by two shots, and Sergio Garcia imploded down the stretch, hitting two shots into the water on the infamous 17^th hole, and then one in the water on the 18^th. I have always found Garcia irritating and overrated, so it was a beautiful turn of Schadenfreude (translation: to enjoy the pain of others) to see him implode so epically at the end of the tournament.

Slapshot hanging with the family.

In closing, I would like to wish my mother a very happy Mother’s Day. I have relied upon her for so much, from my youth to even now I wanted to do something to thank her for all she does for me. Since my parents are season ticket holders to the Capitals, my sister and I decided to give her a Capitals-themed gift. We got the Capitals Mascot, Slapshot, to come to my parents’ condo and surprise her with gifts.
Slapshot had gifts for my young niece and nephew, and everyone received an autograph from Slaphshot.  My mother received a Capitals tote bag, Capitals reusable grocery bag, Capitals hat, a plush Slapshot and a gift certificate for a manicure. She was quite surprised, and the extra bonus was that Slapshot stuck around and watched the end of Game 6 with my family, and while the game didn’t have the result that we all wanted, a fun time was had by all.

Again, Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there, and enjoy the week in sports!

Link to my Beard-a-thon page

Since I am growing a beard for the playoffs, I joined the Beard-a-thon!  Donate to the Beard-a-thon for a good cause! https://www.beardathon.com/capitals/ALMorse/profile.aspx

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Weekend sports recap: Mayweather, the Derby and the ‘Wheel of Justice’

Monday, May 6th, 2013. Filed under: Sports

The Isles are giving Pitt all it can handle, but a questionable OT call in Game 3 gave the Penguins the series lead.

Another packed weekend in the world of sports begins with the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With most matchups now at minimum two games into the series, the early stages of the playoffs have taken shape.

In the #1 vs. #8 matchup in the East, what most thought to be an easy Pittsburgh Penguins romp over the New York Islanders has not turned out to be the case.  Pittsburgh leads the series 2-1 and got to that score with a 5-4 overtime win on Sunday in Nassau Coliseum on Long Island. Sidney Crosby has returned to the Penguins and once again is showing the talent that garners him high praise in the hockey world.  However, the Islanders spoiled Crosby’s return to action by winning Game 2 on Friday, and are giving Pittsburgh all it can handle.

In the #2 vs. #7 matchup, a chippy Canadian battle has developed between the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators. Currently the Ottawa Senators have the advantage with a 2-1 series lead after 6-1 victory in Ottawa on Sunday which featured as much fighting as goal scoring. The bad blood in the series stems from Game 1, where Montreal’s Lars Eller was carted off the ice on a stretcher after receiving a hit from Eric Gryba.  The hit knocked Eller unconscious before he hit the ice, which he hit face first. Eller was diagnosed with a concussion and multiple facial and dental fractures. Ottawa’s Eric Gryba has been suspended for two games as a result.

The Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs are tied at 1-1 in a matchup of Original Six foes in the #4 vs. #5 matchup, and the only one-sided matchup in the East thus far is the #3 vs. #6 matchup of the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers, with Washington leading 2-0 after a 1-0 overtime win on Saturday.

Out West, almost every series is at 2-1. The Chicago Blackhawks lead the Minnesota Wild in the #1 vs. #8 matchup with Minnesota winning Sunday 3-2 in overtime on a Jason Zucker game-winning goal. Anaheim leads Detroit in the #2 vs. #7 matchup, with the Ducks shutting out the Red Wings 4-0 on Sunday. This series also has a big hit that has caused a suspension. Justin Abdelkader had a leaping hit on Toni Lydman that knocked Lydman out of Game 2, and Abdelkader earned a two-game suspension as a result. In the #4 vs. #5 matchup, the St. Louis Blues lead the defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings and the #6 San Jose Sharks are upsetting the #3 Vancouver Canucks 3-0 after a 5-2 victory at HP Pavilion Sunday.

One of the key things to watch in the Stanley Cup Playoffs is how punishments will be metered out by the NHL league office, and league disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan. Shanahan, a former NHL player, has come under fire on several occasions for uneven judgments for the myriad of offenses that develop during the rough and tumble Stanley Cup Playoffs. His predecessor, Colin Campbell, also received his fair share of criticism. So far the punishments have been consistent but since that inconsistent history exists, a joke website was developed called the NHL Wheel of Justice. You can find the Wheel at http://www.nhlwheelofjustice.com/. This site is sure to give the NHL fan in your life a good laugh and some entertainment developing the numerous combinations.

In the NBA they have moved on to the Conference Semifinals. These series have just begun Sunday with two games. The Indiana Pacers defeated the New York Knicks in Game 1 102-95. This is a throwback series in terms of the teams, who played memorable scrappy series in the ‘90s, and for physical play. Indiana’s starters were all in double figures for points, and the Pacers had zero fast break points and 46 points in the paint. Roy Hibbert was a dominant inside presence with 14 points, eight rebounds, five blocks, and four assists. In the Western Conference, the first game matched up the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Memphis Grizzlies and the game went down to the wire. The Thunder came out on top 93-91 on a game-winning shot from Thunder superstar Kevin Durant. Durant had 35 points and 15 rebounds leading the Thunder.

LeBron won another MVP.

The other piece of news from the NBA is the MVP being named, and as everyone could probably assume LeBron James was the winner. James was nearly the unanimous choice for MVP, with only one vote for Carmelo Anthony keeping James from that honor. Rumor on the internet has it that ESPN personality and Miami Heraldwriter Dan Le Batard was the one who didn’t vote for his hometown hero as a publicity stunt, but that has not been confirmed.

The other stories in sports this weekend were in boxing and horse racing. In boxing, Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Robert Guerrero in a unanimous decision 117-111 Saturday night.  Mayweather remains undefeated for his career in Pro Boxing at 44-0. However, this was another example of the generally boring defensive style that Mayweather uses to win fights, which doesn’t provide much excitement for the fans watching. Floyd Mayweather Sr. returned to his son’s corner as a trainer despite their tumultuous relationship, and that improved Junior’s defensive tactics for this fight.

When horse racing is mentioned in the month of May, the focus of that sport turns to Louisville, Kentucky for the annual “run for the roses,” The Kentucky Derby. In the 139^th edition of this late spring classic, a sloppy, muddy, track didn’t prevent a fast pace for the “most exciting two minutes in sport.” Co-favorite at 6-1 odds Orb won the Derby by 2 ½ lengths in 2:02, with a dazzling final stretch run in the rain. Long shot horse Golden Soul placed (which paid $38.60 for a $2 bet to place), and the other co-favorite Revolutionary finished to show. All of the horses in the top three came from off the pace to finish the race after early speed faded at the end of the race.

Next week there will be more NHL and NBA playoff news to discuss. Enjoy the week in sports!

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Playoff Beard started!

Start of my playoff beard tonight!  CAPS WIN!!  3-1!!  1 down 3 to go!! BEAT THE RANGERS!!!

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Sports MMSR: The NFL draft and one sorry mock

Monday, April 29th, 2013. Filed under: Sports

The sports story of the week was the 2013 NFL Draft. While the event is progressively turning into the male version of the Oscars, with fashion and red carpets, it still is an important date on the annual sports calendar. At the draft every team is hopeful to find that next big impact player. While this draft was not filled with head-turning skill and talent like last year, it was deep in the trenches where football games are often won or lost.  The number one overall pick was made by the Kansas City Chiefs,and they took an offensive tackle from Central Michigan, Eric Fisher. Tackles were three out of the first four picks, with Luke Joeckel from Texas A&M at pick number two to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Lane Johnson from Oklahoma going fourth to the Philadelphia Eagles. It was the first time that tackles were taken first and second overall since 1967. Nine offensive linemen were drafted in the first round, as well as nine defensive linemen.

This was an odd draft for more reasons than just linemen dominating the picks. It was the first time in the modern draft era that no running back was taken in the first round. Three players from Alabama were taken in consecutive order, which also was a first. The first and only quarterback taken in the first round was E.J. Manuel from Florida State by the Buffalo Bills, and many experts did not think he would be the first QB off the board. 

Where normalcy reigned in this draft, was where the majority of players were drafted from. A record 63 players were drafted from the Southeastern Conference, and LSU and Alabama led all SEC schools with nine players drafted. Florida and Georgia had eight players drafted, and my South Carolina Gamecocks had seven players drafted including inspirational story running back Marcus Lattimore, drafted in the fourth round to the San Francisco 49ers, and Mr. Irrelevant (the nickname for the last player drafted) tight end Justice Cunningham to the Indianapolis Colts.  Florida State of the ACC had the most players drafted with 11.

Thank God the Ravens took Elam, so our mock got one right. Photo USA Today.

A few days ago I posted a mock draft on this site. Well, I didn’t do so well, only getting 1 out of 32 picks right, that pick being Matt Elam from Florida going to the Baltimore Ravens with the last pick in the first round. I did also get Eddie Lacy going to the Green Bay Packers, but it happened in the second round. I was in the neighborhood with a number of picks, and completely off with a bunch as well. It certainly was a learning experience. 

I think the teams that did the best job with the draft were the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens, addressing needs and getting good value. The teams who left me with more questions than answers after the draft were the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills. Dallas and Buffalo reached for players whose value was far below their pick value.

PMandS.com will have more on the draft and how everyone did later this week.

In the NBA, the Miami Heat completed a sweep of the Milwaukee Bucks and the San Antonio Spurs also swept the LA Lakers to advance to the second round. In the elimination game for the Lakers, Dwight Howard was ejected for arguing, leaving a sour taste on what could be his last game as a Laker. The Boston Celtics staved off elimination by beating the New York Knicks 97-90 in overtime on Sunday. 

Tomorrow, the Chicago Bulls can close out the Brooklyn Nets and the Oklahoma City Thunder can complete a sweep of the Houston Rockets. While Oklahoma City may win this battle, it will be difficult to win the war without guard Russell Westbrook, who is lost for the playoffs after having surgery for a torn meniscus in his knee. Tight series remain between the LA Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies, the Golden State Warriors and Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers and Atlanta Hawks.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are now set in the NHL. In the West, the conference leading Chicago Blackhawks face the Minnesota Wild, and the Anaheim Ducks draw the Detroit Red Wings, who keep their playoff streak intact now at 22 years and counting. The defending Stanley Cup Champion LA Kings face the St. Louis Blues and the Vancouver Canucks face the San Jose Sharks. In the East, the conference-leading Pittsburgh Penguins draw a scrappy NY Islanders club, the Montreal Canadiens face the Ottawa Senators, the Boston Bruins face the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Washington Capitals face the NY Rangers in a rematch of last year’s playoffs series that went seven games, with the Rangers coming out victorious.

And finally in Major League Baseball, one year ago Sunday the two most dynamic young players to come up to the Majors in decades joined their baseball clubs for the first time. Mike Trout and Bryce Harper have wowed baseball fans ever since their call-ups. Trout had the better overall season last year, while Bryce Harper has started this season hot. In each league, both Trout and Harper were Rookie of the Year award winners and both could be future MVPs for their respective ball clubs. Whatever happens with them, it will be fun to watch Bryce Harper and Mike Trout for years to come.

We’ll keep updating the progress of the NBA and NHL playoffs next week! Enjoy the week in sports!