The Grizzles

The Grizzles beat the Spurs in Game 1 here a couple of nights ago.  Wait what?? Yeah the GRIZZLES won a playoff game.  After losing 12 consecutive playoff games and being sweep 3 times in a row, this could be the year that the Grizzles finally make a run in the playoffs.  The San Antonio Spurs, being the number 1 seed in the West, seemed to be good enough to sweep the Memphis Grizzles, the number 8 seed, again for the second time.  Not this time.  The Grizzled needed a late 3 point basket by Shane Battier to win the game and win their first playoff game in franchise history.  This may only be one win out of a seven game series, but this win is bigger for the actual city of Memphis than anything else.  The Grizzles, being over-shadowed by the Memphis Tigers, finally have a legit chance of winning a playoff series and making a name for themselves.  They have a very good chance of beating the number one seeded Spurs after already winning one game in San Antonio.  Most people thought there was no chance the Grizzles would even make the playoffs after their star Rudy Gay went down with a knee injury and was out for the season.  But, look at them know as they are in a the playoffs and a one game lead on the Spurs.  It will be exciting to see if they can continue this good span of basketball and win their first playoff series in franchise history.

OHH The Chicago Bulls!!

As the Chicago Bulls are about to play their 3rd game vs. the Indiana Pacers here in the first round of the playoffs, Derrick Rose has emerged as one of the greatest point guards in the league.  He is the front runner  for the greatest award in the NBA, the Most Valuable Player.  About halfway through the season, people began to see and believe that Rose could win the award and his numbers were showing it.  As he averaged about 26 points per game, the Bulls were emerging as a contender for the top seed in the East.  Rose has played spectacular in the first two games vs. the Pacers and has arguably been the reason why they have won the games the way they did.  His quickness and leadership on the court has developed quicker than any other point guard in the NBA as this is his 3rd year in the league.  After seeing his ability to break down defenses as they come at him with double teams, reporters are placing him in the same picture as Michael Jordan when he led the Bulls to a Championship not too long ago.  This is a huge statement to make because not even Kobe Bryant or LeBron James has been compared to Jordan in the playoffs.  The way he has been the no doubt go-to scorer for his team makes him like Jordan was back in the day.  Most people think Rose, 22, will eventually screw up somewhere and not be able to lead his team the way he needs to, but with averaging 36 points and 7 assists in the first two games vs. the Pacers, it doesn't look like he is slowing down to me.  The Bulls as a team, show more heart and passion than any other team that I know of.  They don't blow out teams as the Lakers and Celtics do, but they find a way to win and Rose is a big part of that.

Underdogs in the NCAA Tournament

The 2011 NCAA Final Four in Houston is all set after today's match-ups.  The 4 teams remaining are: 4th seeded Kentucky, 3rd seeded Connecticut, 11th seeded Virginia Commonwealth, and 8th seeded Butler.  This years Final Four is the first year in many years that there are no number 1 or 2 seeds left in the field.  Butler joins the Final Four for the second year in a row after a heartbreaking loss to Duke in the Championship game last year.  Many people are pulling for Butler to reach the title game again and to win this time around.  Standing in their way is Virginia Commonwealth (VCU) who pulled off one of the biggest upsets with their win against the number 1 seeded Jayhawks earlier today.  VCU has won 5 games thus far in the tournament, which is one more than the other 3 teams because their road to the Final Four started with a play-in game against Southern California.  The recent winning streak of VCU especially with just beating Kansas may give them an edge against Butler coming Saturday.  Butler enters Saturdays game with experience coming from lasts years tourney run, so no one seems to no what will happen come game time.  On the other side of the bracket, comes tradition as well as powerhouse teams.  Both Connecticut and Kentucky are big name schools with hall of famer coaches in Jim Calhoun and John Calipari.  Most people have already said that the winner of the Kentucky-UConn matchup will end up winning the whole thing with the Championship being a blowout game.  Unless you are a die-hard Kentucky or UConn fan, you will want to root for the underdog in the title game whether it be Butler of VCU.  The Championship game has never had a seed as low as VCU (11) in it, so history could be made with their win over Butler.  No matter what happens in the Final Four, we will have a major underdog against an extreme powerhouse, which will draw many people attention to the game coming next Monday.  

Memphis Weather

How about this weather in Memphis recently...  I wake up every morning having to look up the weather because its been so inconsistent this year.  Just last week, the weather looked like it was gonna get better and we would have good sunny days, but no its the complete opposite.  The weather this week has been cold and extremely windy and thats how its supposed to be the rest of the week.  We go from wearing khaki shorts one day to having to wear khaki pants and a coat.  Everyone complains about how inconsistent the weather has been recently and its kinda gotten old.  I think I can speak for everyone else and say that I'm ready for the summer and this cold weather to be gone.  Spring Break is supposed to be good weather, but it looks like its gonna be cold and rainy the whole week.

Drinking Age

Who thinks the drinking age should be lowered?  I do.  I believe it should be lowered to 18 years of age.  If you are considered a legal adult in the United States, why should you not be able to drink legally.  Also, if you are able to shoot a gun for your country in the Army, then you should be able to drink as well.  Another reason I think it should be lowered is because once people get to college, it seems like they are pretty much already 21.  Everyone I know that is under 21 gets beer just as easily as people that are 21 and up.  It has become easier to find ways to purchase alcohol as the years have been going by it seems.  The police here at the university don't seem to care if under age people are drinking either because every time I have seen one stroll by a party they just check it out and then keep on driving.  They have become more and more lenient about drinking.  Because of all these reasons, the drinking age should be lowered to 18.

The Miami Heat

When LeBron James and Chris Bosh decided to both go to Miami, everyone thought they would dominate right off the bat.  They were supposed to be unbeatable and blow teams out by at least 20 points.  Well, all of these people were wrong as the season started.  The so-called "Big 3" couldn't get anything started and didn't have that chemistry everyone thought they would establish early on.  With 3 leading scorer's on one team, people had to expect there would be some trouble with who would be in control of the team.  Many thought Dwayne Wade would be because the heat has always been "his"team for many years.  But, how would Lebron James take this coming from the Cavaliers where he was by far the leader of the team?  After watching the Miami Heat play many games, it does seem that Dwayne Wade is the leader of the team and that Lebron James has accepted this.  They are playing much better now that it is close to the All-Star break meaning halfway through the season.  Their record is a outstanding 38-14 and are in control of the Southwest.  Many think now that they have been playing together for this long that they will go far in the playoffs and make a run for the NBA title.  Many may hate the Heat because of all the All-Stars they have on one team, but you gotta respect them a little bit for playing like they are.  This reminds me of how when the NBA chooses there players to play in the Olympics how sometimes they don't play as well because of all the talent they have and how everyone wants to be the go-to guy on the team.  But, sure enough, they won this year not to mention my favorite player Derrick Rose was the starting point guard.  The Miami Heat will for sure make the playoffs this year and will most likely no doubt make it pretty far.

The Super Bowl

The Steelers and the Packers playing in the Super Bowl next weekend have more history than a lot of people know.  Both teams have rich traditions and have been two of the best teams when it comes to consistency game in and game out.  When it comes to players, there have been countless pro bowlers from both teams as well as MVP's.  The Packers are three time Super Bowl champions having won the first two Super Bowl's to have been played.  On the other hand, the Steelers are six time Super Bowl champions.  So when it comes down to it, both the Packers and the Steelers are no strangers to being in big games and coming out the winner.  Another good thing to watch dealing with this game is how many veterans each team has.  Both quarterbacks have been in the NFL for many years and therefor have the experience to win in big games.  Even though Aaron Rogers hasn't been a starter for that long, he still learned plenty as a backup to the great Brett Favre who has finally retired after about three years of saying he would.  I am going for the Packers in this game basically because I haven't really liked the Steelers in recent years but thats just me.  I really don't even follow either of the teams, but if I had to pick it would be the Packers.  Either way it's still going to be a great game to watch because of the players and the history that the two teams have.

The Growing Conference USA

If you asked me 5 years ago if Conference USA would have any teams in basketball in the Associated Press of the ESPN top 25, I would call you crazy.  When the polls came out this year, Memphis was in the top 15 and then once the Tigers slipped out of the rankings, University of Central Florida came into the mix.  With an undefeated record, UCF went as high in the rankings as the number 18th team in the country.  Even though other teams in the CUSA may not be in the top 25, several teams are certainly getting better.  Teams such as Houston, Tulsa, and UAB have made it to the NCAA tournament in the past couple of years and have won a couple of games.
This past year Houston snapped the Tigers 4 year reign as CUSA champions and thus earned themselves an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.  5 years ago, the Memphis Tigers were the only team sports announcers talked about in Conference USA, if they even mentioned the conference at all.  The past couple of years, those very teams have beaten the Tigers and earned themselves a name in the league that is growing very fast.  I expect there to be at least 3 teams representing CUSA in the NCAA tournament at the end of the year with Memphis being one of them of course.

Coach Josh Pastner

We all know Coach Josh Pastner is no John Calipari these days, but a lot can be said about his coaching tactics.  Calipari was one of those coaches that was extremely active during games and really seemed to know how to get his point across to his players.  He would scream in their faces if they messed up, which is why many agree made him so successful.  Coach Pastner on the other hand doesn't curse whatsoever and rarely screams directly to his players.  Many people believe that the reason why the Tigers have plummeted out of the rankings is because of the coaching my Pastner.  He is the kind of guy that high fives his players and feels that the way to establish that certain chemistry among his players is to be nice to them even when they screw something up.
I feel as if the reason why the Tigers haven't performed up to their preseason potential can be pointed towards Pastner, but has a lot to do with the players themselves.  If you recall in the losses we have had thus this far, our key players haven't "showed up" when needed.  Will Barton and Joe Jackson seem to get caught up in the moment and don't  perform like we all know they can.  Of course the fact that they are freshmen and shouldn't have to carry the team, but we have seen them have phenomenal games.  The Tigers need that upperclassman leadership from both Wesley Witherspoon and Will Coleman in order to make a decent run in the NCAA tournament at the end of the year.  I think if anything they should be the ones blamed for the Tigers poor start to the 2011 season.  So in the end, yes Coach Pastner has weird tactics towards his coaching, but shouldn't be blamed for everything.  I think the certain people who say he is a "pitiful coach" are the very ones who just watch the highlights and the Win or Loss column.

Memphis Basketball

University of Memphis sports have been what has interested me for basically my whole life.  With both my father and mother having attended Memphis, it was a given that I would grow up to love the Tigers.  Time goes by when I find myself thinking about how many home games I have missed since I was old enough to really understand what was going on.  Basketball in particular has been my main focus solely because of how good they have been over the past four years.  I was there when the Tigers were in the Pyramid downtown and was at the FedEx Forum for their home opener.
One of my fondest memories since I've been a Tigers fan was most definitely the entire 2007-08 season.  Watching Derrick Rose as a freshman lead our team to a number one ranking was huge for the city of Memphis.  That team had both leadership as well as talent in which they used to get them all the way to the National Championship.  I do not speak of that game against Kansas so that is all I will say about the final.  I was privileged enough to have gotten to go to the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 games against Michigan State and Texas.  When I say we "beat" them, that would be an understatement because we literally demolished both of those teams.  Being there to see the Tigers beat Texas in their own state was truly special.  Even though this season has not quite matched up to that special season, I still support them just as much and think we'll do pretty well in the NCAA tournament at the end of the season.