USA Quarterfinal.......

Tough Game? Not for Team USA

By: Alfons I. Prince

The Redeem Team heard the talk. They decided to respond on the court. And what a response it was.

It was given in the form of a 116-85 win over Australia Wednesday night. That message will certainly resonate as America moves on the semifinal round of the Olympics.

Kobe Bryant led a balanced USA attack with 23 points. Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James added 15 and 16 points, respectively.

The game was close throughout the first half as America missed free throws (11-21). A quick 5-0 run as the half ended left USA ahead by 12, 55-43.

That run set the stage for America’s fast start out of halftime. They began the half on a 14-0 run to push the lead to 26. It ballooned up to 30 during the third quarter, as America silenced any talk of an Australian upset.

Most of that talk came from the Australian camp. "I don't think you need to take the scare factor too heavily," said Aussie guard Patrick Mills. "That's one thing Australians have, we're fearless and we don't take a step back from anyone. Just got to go out there, put our best foot forward and give it a good crack."

The Australians were fearless, and they did put their best foot forward. It was not enough as America continued to show their difference in talent, and depth.

That depth allows America to use pressure defense to disrupt the offensive flow of their opponents.

"The tournament is decided by easy baskets, and with America it's hard to get a shot off, and it's hard to get the ball past the half-court line, and they beat you down the floor and get layups," Australian coach Brian Goorjian said.

USA remains undefeated at these Olympics, running their record to 6-0. They will play their semifinal matchup Friday night ET. Win that game, and they’ll be one game closer to fulfilling their mission of bringing the gold medal back to America.

Lack of Pitching Hurts Hagerstown

Washington, DC--For the team from Hagerstown, Md., their time at the Little League World Series has provided lots of emotions. In their first game, they didn’t record a hit yet they still won 3-2.

In their second game they improved, recording six hits, scoring five runs. It was far from enough, as their opponent, Mill Creek, Wash., pounded them for 16 hits, to win 15-5 in five innings.

The loss put Hagerstown’s record at 1-1 with one game remaining in pool play.

That one game becomes very interesting, if Hagerstown wants to advance in this tournament.

The team they face in their last game, Lake Charles, La., is undefeated and has allowed only three hits thus far.

The logjam at the top of the Pool A standings means Hagerstown will have to do a couple things to advance.

First they will have to win, and then they have to hope that Mill Creek, Wash., loses their final game. If not, they will have to rely on run differential, which creates more headaches than tax time.

First, Hagerstown has to put this defeat behind them. The pitching staff must forget the fact that they allowed 15 runs, and 4 home runs. Two pitchers, Ryan Kinter and Josh Barron, must forget the fact that they did not record an out.

And they must do it rather quickly, as they play again on Tuesday.

3rd Quarter.......

USA has come out and continued to keep the lead between 15 and 23 points. They defended the front of the rim better in the quarter as LeBron James, and Chris Bosh had a couple blocks in the quarter.

Wade continues to show that he has returned.

2nd Quarter.....

2nd Quarter Thoughts:

• Their defense intensity continues to cause Greece some problems.


• USA looks more comfortable running half-court sets, as the lead grows to nine.


• Dwyane Wade looks back to his All-Star form. He is taking over the game offensively for America.


• USA goes on a 21-2 run to end the quarter to push the lead to 17.


• The half fittingly ended on a block by Chris Bosh, signifying USA's defensive presence throughout the first half.

USA vs. Greece

At the start of the second quarter USA leads 20-16. Here are some early thoughts:

• USA's defense keyed a spurt that allowed them to take the lead
• They still do have trouble in the half-court but mainly when Jason Kidd is on the floor.
• Kidd picked up three early fouls and is likely to sit the rest of the half.

Early NFL Thoughts........

NFL training camp fights occur every year. This picture on the left is from the 1997 Redskins training camp fight between Michael Westbrook and Stephen Davis. The fight left Davis beatdown and Westbrook with a fractured relationship with the Skins.

This season has been no different with the Panthers having an intra-squad fight and the Rams-Titans squaring off against each other.

Sports Illustrated has a good article about it here, giving coaches' opinions on the subject.

Training camp fights are a very touchy thing. Some can bring a team closer, while some can divide the team. The problem is that you never know which way the team will go until its too late.

The Panthers seem to be of the former variety, as Smith immediate felt remorse, and all the rhetoric from the team all echoed the closeness of the team.

Aaron Rodgers played his first preseason action last night. He played well, and didn't make any glaring errors.

Though he had one interception, it wasn't his fault as the pass bounced off his receiver's shoulder pads.

It should only get easier for Rodgers this preseason moves forward. He survive his first team. The next one will come on Opening Day, when the Minnesota Vikings come calling.

Lastly, I have to end on Brett Favre. Finally, he will play this Saturday against the Redskins. I am excited to see Favre, to see if the joy he had last year is still there. I want to see if that Week 2 match-up with the Patriots will have any meaning.

Well that's all for now.........

Going wait until the after the last preseason to predict how the season will go. Hopefully, that will help.

In Case You Missed It..........

......The Tampa Bay Rays are good. Like, no really this team is good.


First place good. In August.


4 games ahead of the Red Sox (9 games ahead of the Yankees).


Where did this team come from? I can't exactly answer that, but I know that I am thrilled that someone else in the AL East has stepped up.


The Rays have taken their mixture of youthful exuberance (5th youngest team in the majors)and great pitching to become the feel-good story of this season.


They might hit a little snag in the next week. Despite the injuries, the Rays are equipped to stay on top.


They have a balanced line-up, with no one hitting more than 22 home-runs. Some might argue that that is a problem, but I disagree. Having everyone contribute creates that team atmosphere where everyone feels like a part of the team.


They have rebounded from that awful 7-game losing streak going into the All-Star break to go 16-7 since then.


Here's to hoping that their story continues..........

Olympic Fever........

These four guys to the left are responsible for it. They are responsible for raising my interest in these Olympics. I'm sure you know how the race was won, but if not here is a link for a clip of the ending.



The race alone was one of the best sporting events I've seen this year. I'm now fully immersed in Phelps' quest for eight gold medals. At this current time, Phelps is 3-for-3 in his quest. The next events for Phelps: the 200 butterfly and 800 free relay, both of which he already holds the world records for. I'll be tuned in.



Next Olympic sport that has caught my eye is USA men's basketball. The 'Redeem Team' won its second group game, defeating Angola 97-76 on Tuesday night.



Though the team still hasn't lit it up from the outside, their defensive pressure has been some of the best I've seen in international competition in a long time. That is the key to the US winning the gold.



Defense. Sure, these international teams have played together and under FIBA rules longer, but they have never played a team with this much talent or defensive intensity.



Not to mention, the huge chip on the shoulders of all the players. They've heard for two years how they don't have enough 3-point shooting, how the rest of the world has caught up to them, how much of a disappointment it would be to come back with anything other than a gold medal.



These players have pride. They'll win the gold. They may not win every game by 25 points, but they'll be standing on the top podium wearing gold medals.


Tune in to see it..........

August 11, 2008

Man the hot topic of this weekend has to be Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and others saying that they would listen to offers from Europe. Now watching the morning shows, I'm hearing people criticize these players for thinking about going to play in Europe.

REALLY!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!

Why?....what is keeping them here?

I hope that one of these stars take the money, and go to Europe. The NBA is showing some of the American arrogance, believing that their way of basketball is best. However, in each of the past four NBA Finals, at least one team has had a strong foreign presence. (San Antonio in 2005 and 2007, Dallas in 2006, and Los Angeles in 2008)

Throw in the fact that our American teams haven't dominated in world competition in some time, and the idea doesn't seem so far-fetched.

Also, Wade and James (along with Carmelo) had shown that when examining their contracts, they are not opposed to doing something new. All three signed shorter contracts after their rookie contracts so that they could have more freedom. I don't think they saw this coming, but it helps them out. The current collective bargaining agreement ends in 2010, though there is a league option for another year.

Commissioner David Stern has a potentially problem. How will he handle it? Will he not even research the topic and run the risk of losing one (or more) of the league's megastars?

August 5, 2008

Man, it has been a long time since I've been able to blog. A lot has taken place in that time.

Roger Federer lost at Wimbledon, and now is about to lose the No. 1 ATP ranking for the first time in 237 weeks. Though he will be replaced at the top by Rafael Nadal, Federer epitomized what a champion should be. This article echoes that sentiment.

However the sports story that brought back to my blog is no other than Brett Lorenzo Favre. Here is the latest from ESPN, and hopefully this will be all. This has been the leading story for far too long. And the coverage is making me sick.

Why does Favre get to dictate what happens with the Packers forever? How long are they embedded to Favre? Favre twice flip-flopped on returning to the Packers before finally realizing this was an itch that needed to be scratched.

Now, Green Bay is supposed to bend over backwards for Favre because he had an amazing season? Yes, the Packers were one win away from the Super Bowl, but they didn't make it because Favre threw a terrible interception in overtime. Yet that is overlooked.

And now he really handcuffed the Packers. Aaron Rodgers is not going to re-sign with the Packers after this fiasco. And why should he? The Packers haven't shown any commitment besides their one to Favre.

And Favre is definitely a diva in his own right. Waiting until July to decide to come back, and then blame the Packers, saying they forced him out. Boo, boo, boo. Please!!! You retired, prolly because the Packers didn't go after Randy Moss, and it was on your own accord.

Now they all will have to live with their decisions. And we'll all be watching, whether we want to or not......