Today In Sport

The Phoenix Mercury are the 2009 WNBA Champions after beating the Indiana Fever in game 5, 94 - 86.  Lead by Finals MVP Diana Taurasi, livewire Cappie Pondexter and Aussie star Penny Taylor, the Mercury were able to fight back from a 2-1 series deficit and win on their home court in the decider.

Tamika Catchings from the Fever did all she could to keep her team in the contest ably aided by Tammy Sutton-Brown and back-up center Jessica Davenport who was unstoppable down low but guard Katie Douglas had a shocker hitting only one of her nine 3-point shots including two misses late in the contest when they were trying for the miracle comeback. (continue reading…)

Earlier this week I awoke to the news that MJ was dead.  I was devastated that arguably the greatest basketball player in history had died.  Michael Jordan was a hero to millions and one of my favourite athletes of all time.  But then I learned the truth.

It was Michael Jackson who died, not Jordan.  I was so relieved that one of my idols was still alive.  This is a man who dragged a big ranga Australian like Luc Longley to three championships.  He had to be good to do that.  But he is still alive so thank goodness for that.

Oh and it’s very sad that Michael Jackson died as well, sort of.

Tomorrow, a select bunch of the worlds basketball talent are about to cash in on a whole mess of money.  The annual NBA draft is taking place in New York and for a few guys it will be a nervous wait to see who will be the top five picks.

Oklahoma’s beastman Blake Griffin seems like a lock for the top spot but there are a number of others sniffing around for the big money as well.  Spain’s wild eyed Boy Wonder, Ricky Rubio has the whole world talking, and not just about whether he knows any English.  He has been playing Pro-ball in Spain since he was 14 and also is a professional bullfighter [citation needed]. (continue reading…)

I know this has taken a while to get up here but here it is.  The 2009 NBA Playoffs have been run and won and quite easily in the end by the Los Angeles Lakers but not without some stumbles and hurdles along the way.  Kobe Bryant may not have won the league MVP award but he did show he can play when it counts.

There were some great series in the first round of the playoffs including the Boston v Chicago and Miami v Atlanta series’ that went to seven games.  Chicago showed with a few additions they might be able to return to the glory years of the 90’s but also they showed the frailties that exist in Boston without Garnett.

Two former powerhouses suffered embarassing first round defeats.  The Spurs and Detroit both showed that maybe their time has passed for now.  LeBron James treated Detroit like his own personal punching bag as he took control of every game.  As for San Antonio, you know you are going bad when you get beat by Dallas in a playoff series.

Speaking of Dallas, they not only embarrassed themselves on the court in the second round but also off it.  During the series with Denver, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban thought it would be a good idea to go off his nut and tell Kenyon Martin’s mother that her son was a punk (or worse if you believe some reports). (continue reading…)

NBA Commissioner David Stern and all his bean counters were looking forward to the dream match-up that was on the horizon.  An NBA Finals series featuring the two hottest teams.  Los Angeles v Cleveland.  Lakers v Cavs.  Kobe v LeBron.  Phil Jackson v The Other Guy.

The Denver Nuggets had read the script and knew their place in the world.  Win a game, try really hard but ultimately fade away in the shadow of the mighty Lakers.  Apparently Dwight Howard and his Orlando Magic either can’t read or just threw the script in the bin.

Even when LeBron James is busy hitting last second miracle shots the Magic still didn’t get the message.  Earth to the Magic - YOU ARE RUINING EVERYTHING!

But does Dwight Howard really care?  Not one little bit.  The poor NBA had printed thousands of Kobe v LeBron T-shirts and now all they are good for is wiping the tears away of all the NBA journalists who now have to throw away all the stories they had pre-written and come up with new ones. (continue reading…)

The 2009 Playoff season in both the NBA and NHL have been full of exciting games and series.  The last few years have been so full of one sided sweeps that someone must have a large collection of brooms somewhere.  But it seems like this year is different and teams are actually fighting for their playoff lives.

Take the NHL Conference semi-finals for instance, three of the four series have gone to game 7.  Even Chicago took 6 games to defeat Vancouver.  The Pittsburgh - Washington series up until game 7 had been a battle of titanic proportions…and then Washington hit the iceberg the Penguins were on and sunk.  The Penguins now march on to the Conference finals after a 6-2 shellacking of the hapless Capitals. (continue reading…)

We have completed a week in the Stanley Cup playoffs and almost a week in the NBA so it would be a good time to see how everybody is going.  We have a couple of series that are over and some that soon will be but some others that might go down to the wire.

In the NHL, Boston completed their sweep of a very disappointing Montreal Canadiens.  The Bruins look to have the goods this year and big Tim Thomas is providing the great goaltending that every Cup hopeful needs.  Right Winger Michael Ryder is the playoff point leader at the moment with 4 goals and 3 assists. (continue reading…)

Out west there are still some good teams that are hanging around not wanting to go away and let the East dominate.  Here are the matchups.

1-LA Lakers v 8-Utah Jazz

It is always easy to say how Kobe goes so go the Lakers.  But with Gasol and Bynum and Fisher as his running mates the Lakers are a definite contender and do not always have to rely on Kobe to save them in every game.  However it is comforting to know that if your team gets in trouble you can always keep giving the ball to one of the best players ever to play this game. (continue reading…)

The NBA Playoffs kick off this weekend and there are quite a number of teams with claims to the title.  Let’s have a look at the Eastern Conference matchups. (continue reading…)

Well we finally have our final four teams left in the tournament.  They are, in no particular order: North Carolina, Villanova, Connecticut and Michigan State.  I had two of the four finalists in my bracket, UNC and Villanova.

Unfortunately my pick to win it all, Louisville was defeated by Michigan State in the regional final.  So now we have the four teams in Detroit waiting for a shot at glory.

Michigan State plays Connecticut in what is almost a home game for MSU.  They will have loads of fans and a lot of confidence after running away from Louisville at the end of their game.  MSU can go missing sometimes in big games but the chance for a national championship should make sure they are on their game.

Connecticut on the other hand has one player who towers over the rest.  Hasheem Thabeet is a defensive monster and if MSU are to score inside they will really have to push the floor.  Interestingly they won in 1999 and then in 2004, a difference of five years.  If superstition plays any part it might be their time again.

In the other game UNC plays Villanova.  UNC have had things pretty much their own way throughout the tournament.  With stellar play from the likes of Ty Lawson and Tyler Hansborough it has been a smooth ride and they took care of Oklahoma in the regional final despite a late run from the Okies.

Villanova won their region in a dramatic last second victory over Pittsburgh.  After two made free throws from Pitt tied the game up with just seconds left on the clock a great chain of passes got the ball into Scottie Reynolds hands who drove the lane and hit a tough shot with .5 of a second left on the clock.  This win will give them confidence that anything is possible and they might cause another upset.

So I reckon the final game will be MSU vs UNC with North Carolina emerging victorious.

We will see what happens, first on April 4th and then the final on April 6th.  Go Tar Heels!