St Johns Red Storm Basketball v Duke and 2009-2010

Still haven't warmed to the Red Storm name. Let's go Red-men. clap-clap-clapclapclap.

We watch sports for hope that one day we'll get to revel in a championship. I root for the Mets, they haven't won since 1986, when I was but a wee coach on Pop Dukes' lap. I root for the Knicks, they haven't won since 1973. I root for the 'Gers, who won in 1994, but it's hockey. I root for the Giants, who won in 2008, which was a blast but I don't care much for football. I root for Manchester United, who have won a ton, and while I've watched some of their title-clinching games in bars and at home with Coups and Pops, it's different and ultimately hollow to cheer for a team from a different country and culture. Lastly, I cheer for St. John's, who have never won an NCAA championship. But in 2003 St John's won the NIT at the Garden, and Frownie and I were there. It was the greatest sporting event I've been to, culminating with Frownie and I rushing the Garden floor alongside Frownie's new friends the Elijah Ingram's family, and running into fellow Johnnie -lover Josh Dick under the hoop.

Like almost every other metro-area team, the Johnnies have fallen off the face of the earth. Coach Norm Roberts has restored stability to the program. While stability is important considering that NCAA violations under Mike Jarvis forced the Johnnies to relinquish that 03 NIT Crown, it only goes so far for a program as storied as St. John's.

It's criminal that the NYC metro area is a college basketball wasteland considering that the area seeds so many national powers with players. West Virginia, Kansas, Cincy and Kentucky are amongst the programs to have benefited from metro players in recent years. Sure, kids want to go away to college, but surely some must want to stay at home. And players from outside the area must want to come to play for a program that plays its home games at Madison Square Garden.

What's ironic is that this fallow period for St. John's comes during an era where the school has invested massive sums in building dorms in making a transition from a commuter school to a campus-based school. This should be an added bonus for recruiting, but Roberts has yet to even get the Johnnies back in the NIT. Inexcusable.

This season likely represents Roberts' last stand, and so far he's doing the best he can with the team off to a 6-0 start, including a win over back-to-back March Madness members Siena.

Also not the biggest fan of their new "STJ" logo.

The season turns for-real-for-real this Saturday when the Johnnies take on Duke at Cameron. In a further sign of St. John's' downfall Duke has decided to end this series. Part of the appeal for Duke was the chance to play a game in the Garden every two years. The Garden was once St. John's' ultimate recruiting advantage. But these days, MSG plays host to almost as much college baskets as it did in the golden age of the 50's.

Surprise! This is what Duke's best player looks like. His name is Kyle Singler.

St. John's usually plays Duke tuff. This game and their next against Gawgia represent their only two significant out-of-conference games for the rest of the season. In a down year for the Big East, it better be an up year for St. John's.

Shocking Real Video Footage of Tiger Woods Accident (via Taiwan)

Mayhap many you are tired of the endless Tiger Woods coverage. Or maybe some of you are confused by all the differing accounts of what happened.
Where to turn to get the facts? With American Journalism dying rapidly, the Taiwanese have thankfully stepped in to set the record straight.
So, here it is, the first, the last, Nay, the only word needed on Tiger Woods' "accident." Slight translation needed, perhaps, but really, this succinct video speaks for itself.

Overheard in L.A.

older man, neat-looking, all-white hair, k-mart slacks, all-white e-z strider sneakers, dragging a large suitcase on wheels in souf santa monica at ten in the morning, speaking on an enormous cell phone:

"Tonight? No, I've completely lost the taste for fish, you know. When I bottomed out and lost everything I was eating canned mackerel every day..."

I Call My Brother Sunn Cuz He Shine Like One

Al Harrington's kicks cost $35

The refs aint blind

Not quite sure what to make of the demolition tonite at the Garden. The Sunns not giving a fuck? The Italian Stallion playing D? There was even a Jordan Hill sighting, ugh, I think Renaldo Balkman was smoother around the hoop at this point. What are the odds the Knicks whiff with LeG.O.D.D., Flash, or Bosh and end up with Amare aka Antionio McDyess Part II?

Swing the Bat There, Big Boy! or, Mike Francesa's Brother Will Teach You How To Pitch, or Jeff Lynne of E.L.O. is Difficult to Look At.

Via the always-entertaining Uniwatch, footage of Terrific Tom Seaver's first game on the mound from 1967. Watch the footage and tell me you don't get nostalgic for Shea.


There was a time, a long time ago, when I modeled my pitching on Tom Terrific. I figured, I've got the trunks, may as well make use of them. Of course, I never did pitch effectively for too long. Bryman had a bit of Seaver in him as well, in so far as that his left knee would almost kiss the earf, pope-style, during his delivery. Cannatar made use of his stems as well, but, oddly enough, he seems to end up cross-legged at the end. The Bizman always appears to be all-arm.

In recent years, I've shifted my focus from my gams to my wrist, as Mike Marshall advocates. Using two deliveries based on pronation, I've found increased accuracy, if not velocity.

Which somehow brings me to the following insanity/video. Mike Francesa's brother, in both accent and looks, will help you INSTANTANEOUSLY achieve an ideal pitching motion. Peep the gold watch on his left watch. That's so he can constantly clock all the cold hard cash that he melts into pomade. Do you know what's behind that garage door? Did you guess sadness? Would you have guessed that this operation is based out of Staten Island? Actually, I appreciate this guy's intentions. Doesn't mean the product is worth it but it is worth focusing on the wrist. His heart is in the right place.



Also worth noting that the one non-baseball-training related video is a video for E.L.O.'s "Telephone Line" featuring a coked-out-of-his-fucking-mind Jeff Lynne. It's hard to look at him. Little known fact, Jeff Lynne always wears shades because he lost his eyeballs in a back alley in Bangkok betting that "Evil Woman" was not the greatest piece of pop rock ever written. Ever a man of integrity, he knew it was, but he could not, would not, bet on himself. But he can still see right through your shit.

Chasing Weeb & Joe

Weeb Ewbank, winner of two titles with Baltimore Colts in his previous stint, and Joe Namath, "the greatest athlete I ever coached" according to Bear Bryant.

Rex Ryan, first-year head coach displaying all of his father's blustery disposition and disdain for non-defensive aspects of the game, and Mark Sanchez, brief pupil of Pete Carroll. Of Bryant, Namath had this to say: "Not only the smartest coach I ever knew, but the man who taught me the meaning of integrity." I don't think anyone's ever uttered 'smartest', 'integrity' and 'Pete Carroll' in the same sentence.

Happy Thanksgiving New York

Guard Yo Grill. That dude on the lower right is peeping your shit.

So much to be thankful for on the New York sporting scene. The middling Giants. The wayward Jets. The regressing Knicks. The historically abysmal Nets. The underachieving 'Gers. The overachieving but still bad Isles (bro). The invisible Devils. The fallen-off-the-face-of-the-earth Johnnies of St. John's. Did I mention how well the Red Bulls (bro) and the Mets did this year?

Man, does any town have it as bad as NYC right now? With this much losing it's no wonder chumps like Jay-Z have to overcompensate with the over-the-top bragging. Welcome to New Yawk. Gobble-Gobble, suckers.

Vote or Die

In the wake of Thierry Henry's blatant handball that gave France the win over Ireland to advance to the World Cup, I've got a poll up at EPL Talk asking whether soccer should add another referee by each goal or start using video replay.

The Final Verdict on David Lee

David Lee clumsily driving to the rock with probably his only move.

"...He is vastly overrated: listen, I'm not knocking him... well I guess I am."

-Mike Francesa

Mike never had strong opinions on the Knicks' power forward that has few offensive skills, can't quite guard 4s but grabs a lot of double-doubles, until one call from an overzealous fan and defender, elicited a damning response. Both Lee and Nate Robinson, the 'see, at least Isiah can draft!*' guys, had to squirm until a few weeks before preseason to sign one-year deals, and it's pretty clear neither will have places on the team next year, especially Nate after his debacle in the Meadowlands last Saturday. David might move on to become an 8th or 9th banana on an elite team -Spurs, maybe- and Nate might possibly light up an And1 tour somewhere.

*Granted, Isiah salvaged his awful Channing Frye pick in 2005 by trading the homeless man's Tim Duncan, Kurt Thomas, to the Suns for Nate and the pick to get David, but let's not apologize for his catastrophic reign with some nice fantasy players he picked late in the draft.

Not Bad

Chose this pic cuz it sorta looks like Ray Allen may be about to dunk but clearly not.

Employee #5

The Knicks put up a good fight today. Best that can be said. Celts played em for fools on the last play, but to the Knicks' credit, that shot was a tad outside KG's range. The 'Bockers are playing better of late, and it's bout time. As bad as the team is, they are not as bad as their start suggested. Call me brazybrains, but this team as currently constituted should be scrapping for an 8th seed, not looking to give the Jzz the first pick in the draft.

Waterloo, Part Deux

The most irrelevant Michigan-Ohio State tilt in memory lacks the obvious juice involved -no national title or Rose Bowl bids, but can at least stir some interest based solely on the performance of Rich Rodriguez's Wolverines. No one needs to be told a representative showing (re: cover the 11.5) could at least allow the outgoing athletic director to stall for time to give Rodriguez one more season, but will his troops stand tall for their leader who drilled and worked them just too much?

Whatever the outcome, it's certain Rodriguez being outed is a matter of when, not if. It's a shame he left West Virginia, his alma mater and school he made his stamp in for the greener pastures at Ann Arbor, because it soured all the good work he did in Morgantown. He's one of the brilliant tacticians of the spread offense -along with Urban Meyer- who turned West Virginia into a solid program and the Big East into a credible conference, thanks to his victory in the 2006 Sugar Bowl. Some questioned from rumors of his hire at Michigan whether his system would fit into the school's proud tradition of running a pro-style offense, but even after flashes of brilliance from Tate Forcier and the offense, he's been unable to plug his sieve of a defense, and his list of enemies grows everyday -much like our first Waterloo participant. There's no doubt this will end ugly.

I just hope Rich can rebound somewhere -would have to be a Big East or mid-major- and run his spread in peace and perhaps Jim Harbaugh can take the reins in Ann Arbor and knock Jim Tressel off his perch as king of the small pond, er Big Ten.

Al K. Mza Has Lost his Appetite

Al K. Mza has got no Jet-recipes for you today. He is sick to his stomach. Here are his thoughts:
----
With apologies to Chris Onstad, It's a FUCK YOU FRIDAY!
Andre Agassi! Fuck you!
Theirry Henry! Fuck you!
Allen Iverson to the Knicks! Fuck you!
----
***UPDATE***
It appears that the Knicks are making the right call by not signing A.I. More for A.I.'s sake. A great player like Iverson deserves better than to spend his last dayz playing absolutely meaningless games and not being part of the general baskets conversation. He deserves to play for a peripheral contender.

The Knicks need to concentrate on finding a draft pick for next summer, since the Jzzzz currently hold theirs. They need to find hungry young players from the 10-day contract group of ballers.

Footie Footie Footie

Uniwatch linked up my piece on World Cup jerseys.

Also got a review of new Nike cleats up at EPL Talk today.

Fuck Yo Couch...I Mean, Fuck Yo Weak Ass Attempt on Goal. AKA is Rick James Still Alive and Living as a Retired Colombian Goalkeeper???

This clip is extraordinary for many reasons. It's from an England-Colombia friendly in 1995. Rick "Motherfuckin-Hit-After-Motherfuckin-Hit-Superfreak, Mary Jane, Ghetto Life, Cold Blooded, Party All the Time, Hollywood, Glow, Ebony Eyes,-"James in goal for the Colombians. Seriously, it's Rick James. Prove me wrong.

It gets better. So in the 22nd minute, England's Jamie Redknapp fires a relatively harmless shot towards goal, where Colombia's goalkeeper, Rick James, posing as "Rene Higuita," instead of catching it, or punching it to safety, defies belief and SCORPION KICKS it clear. He did it 'just-cuz." A must-peep.

Pop Your Collar

New post up at EPL Talk about the success rate of collared shirts in the World Cup.

You Only Think You're Free...

The actual miniseries is OK... though Johannesburg or whatever South African city they picked to film flashback scenes bears very little resemblance to New York. But part of me wonders what my boy, Sir Christopher Lee could've done as 2. BTW, if you're a producer looking for a poor man's Christian Bale, Jim Caviezel is your man. And does AMC know how to cast actresses with personality, or what? Hayley Atwell's got it in spades.

Is there such a thing as Jets pride?

The hunch - the beers - the jersey -- it says it all.

At least next year, our camo-hat-and-under-hoodie-wearing-walrus-stache-rocking-walking-man has this to look forward to...
that's right, our new stadium is an air conditioner.

Mets Hot Plate Report...

...because ownership at Chez Coupon are unable to afford a stove, oven or even microwave. Watch Omar add a dash of Vicente Padilla and a spoonful of Austin Kearns on minor league invites to a severely depleted Met bowl, and if he really impresses the restaurant's owner, he might be able to splurge on locally grown products Mark DeRosa and Jason Marquis. Of course, the big fish Omar prizes is Met-killer Joel Piniero, a spicy dish known to fizzle when put in the hands of the wrong pitching coach. Bon Appetit!

SOJ

I'm pretty sure an eight-year old playing Madden knows how to conserve timeouts better than Rex Ryan -though he isn't alone in the league, which is a little embarrassing.
I'm also certain players given a full week off will tackle poorly the next game.
I'm never surprised by the Jets finding new and exotic ways to lose each week.
I'm positive the Jets will have another losing record in the Meadowlands this season*.
And I am convinced by the Jets' long track record there and early returns by the Mets a very legitimate case can be made for a Curse of Shea Stadium.

Rex, have another burger (words from Joe Benigno reserved for Eric Mangini), go get a defensive coordinating gig somewhere and quit wasting everyone's time as a head coach. Maybe there is a reason you never got a job for so long.

*Just wait for the debut of SheaHey's! LOCK OF THE UNIVERSE, Sunday January 3rd against the Bengwads.

If we aint getting mathematics then somethin got to give

Bryman comes throo with an excellent analysis of LeBron's proposed jersey number change. LeG.O.D.D. has indicated that he will rock #6 next season, explaining, "My second-favorite player was Julius Erving, and he wore No. 6. I wore 32 in high school because Dr. J wore it at first. My first child was born on Oct. 6, it's my Olympic number, my second child was born in June."

A tad convulted but reasonable nevertheless. But the science of numerology is not to be trifled with by amateurs. Has LeBron consulted with professional practioners? Pros like Prodigy, "fuck the myths, the science of numbers is how I live, if we aint getting mathematics then something got to give." (free the P!) Or Ghostface, "it's manifested, the Gods work like appliances, dealing in my cypher I revolve around sciences." The ideas that the Five Percent Nation associate with each of the numbers 1 throo 10 are explained in Brand Nubian's "Allah and Justice." The number 6 is associated with "equality."

The number 7, as explained by the RZA in the Wu-Tang Manual, is Godly, and is often associated with the 5 percent who have a clue. The number 6, being one below God, is the earth, and is often associated with women. Under this interpretation, LeBron would be wise to avoid the number.

However, LeBron could be taking a page from Joe Girardi's book. Girardi took the number 27 upon becoming the Yanks' manager, symbolizing his quest to bring the thirsty axe-spray masses a 27th championship. LeBron could be recognizing that he has not achieved Godly status just yet, and will wear number 6 until such status is attained.

Either way, it is good to see LeBron shedding his Jordan idolatry. The search for an identity of one's own is an essential step on the path to maturity. As No I.D. titled his classic, "accept your own and be yourself."

A warning for LeBron tho, for through such research he will feel the joy and the hurt.