h1

College Basketball Rankings 11/28/2010

November 29, 2010

Last week’s rankings in brackets:

TOP 25

1. Duke (6-0): Duke survived it’s first tests of the season edging a possible tourney team from Marquette and easily handling #4 Kansas State. [1]

2. Ohio State (5-0): Looking forward to seeing what these guys can do against a stretch of good teams. [3]

3. Pittsburgh (7-0): Panthers still cruising after a good start to the season. [4]

4. Kansas (6-0): The Jayhawks got their first test of the season and beat a good Arizona team, plus Josh Selby is eligible soon, so these guys are just going to get better. [6]

5. Kansas State (5-1): KSU took a pretty bad loss against Duke, but hey, that’s the number one team in the nation and Kansas State already has a couple good wins under their belt (Gonzaga, Virginia Tech). [4]

6. Connecticut (5-0): Talk about a statement. UCONN headed into last week unranked by everyone and projected to finish in the bottom half of the Big East by most publications. Apparently, Kemba Walker and Alex Oriachi disagreed; UCONN toppled a good Wichita State team, #2 Michigan State, and #9 Kentucky en route to winning the Maui Invitational and Walker looked like the most dominant player in the nation. I’ve never heard of an unranked team jumping this far up the rankings, but I can’t see how you can rank them lower. They are #1 in the RPI rankings, #1 in strength of schedule, and they’re still undefeated. I could see an argument for them being in the top 5. I can’t wait to see what the AP does with them tomorrow. [Unranked]

7. Michigan State (5-1): It’s interesting how these rankings work. Michigan State lost to unranked UCONN, which is going to plummet them from the #2 spot. But… starting tomorrow, losing to Connecticut isn’t going to be so bad. Go figure. The Spartans did bounce back by edging PAC-10 favorite Washington. [2]

8. Syracuse (6-0): Still waiting for this team to play someone good. I doubt this is a top 10 team. They’re playing very tight games against some mediocre schools. [8]

9. Florida (5-1): Gators jump up a few spots and got a decent win under their belt today (vs. Florida State). [12]

10. Memphis (5-0): Hmmm… is Memphis really a top 10 team? Hard to say, but they’ve beat two teams from major conferences and play Kansas, Georgetown, and Tennessee before entering conference play, so we’ll know for sure after that stretch. [13]

11. Kentucky (4-1): Like Michigan State, the Wildcats fell victim to The Kemba Walker Show this past week. However, also like Michigan State, they notched a win over Washington. Plus, Terrence Jones looks damn good… there was hype around him in the preseason, but he could wind up being an All-American and top 3 draft pick this year. [7]

12. Baylor (4-0): Undefeated, but untested. [14]

13. Illinois (6-1): Easy week for the Illini. [15]

14. Georgetown (6-0): Same for the Hoyas. [17]

15. Tennessee (5-0): I hate on the Volunteers every year and they consistently prove me wrong. I was hoping to drop them out of the Top 25 this week; instead they had the best week of any team not named Connecticut. The Vols are #2 in RPI rankings and #7 in strength of schedule. The AP had them #24 last week, but they should be right around here now. I was tempted to rank them even higher than this. [18]

16. Minnesota (6-0): Minnesota maintains after a surprisingly strong start. [19]

17. Villanova (5-1): Just when I bite the bullet and bump Villanova up my rankings, they get upset by Tennessee. [10]

18. Purdue (5-1): I wanted to believe that Purdue could survive as a top ten team without Robbie Hummel, but I felt an impending sense of doom surrounding this team. They hadn’t played anybody special and I thought Richmond might upset them and they did exactly that. Richmond’s a good team, but that’s a game Purdue needs to win. [9]

19. Gonzaga (3-2): The Zags took another loss, but salvaged their top 25 spot with a win over Marquette. [16]

20. Washington (3-2): As a Huskies fan, this was a heartbreaking week. After absolutely demolishing Virginia, the Huskies played a mediocre game against Kentucky and still hung in there until the last couple minutes. They followed that up with a solid showing against Michigan State and barely lost that one. Even though UW took two tough losses, they still showed they are a team to be reckoned with. They’ll climb back up these rankings soon enough. I hope! [11]

21. San Diego State (6-0): Maintaining… [23]

22. Missouri (5-0): I’m waiting for Missouri to lose a game so I can say “Ha!” but it hasn’t happened. Still, I refuse to move a team I don’t really believe in up the rankings until they beat someone worth talking about. [22]

23. Texas (5-1): The Longhorns nearly lost to Rice this weekend, but knuckled up for the win to hold their top 25 spot. [24]

24. BYU (6-0): BYU fell out of my rankings last week, but made it back after going 3-0 this week with wins over South Florida and a St. Mary’s team that I wanted to put here. [Unranked]

25. UNLV (6-0): UNLV has officially played their way onto the national radar with big wins over Wisconsin and Virginia Tech. [Unranked]

DROPPED OUT

Butler
North Carolina
Virginia Tech

NOTES

*Temple, a team that was in the top 25 in both the AP and ESPN polls, took two losses this week. They’ll be unranked tomorrow and I feel kind of smart.

*North Carolina won both their games this week, but they still drop out because they haven’t beaten anyone good, lost to two unranked teams, and, after last year, it’s time to show and prove for UNC.

*I wouldn’t be shocked to see Notre Dame ranked tomorrow. They have a pretty impressive early resume for a team no one was talking about, notching wins over California, Georgia, and Wisconsin already.

Posted in poker | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

College Basketball Rankings

November 22, 2010

Previous ranking in brackets:

1. Duke (3-0) – Easy going so far for the reigning champs. First week of December looks tough though: Michigan State and Butler. [1]

2. Michigan State (2-0) – Part of the Maui Invitational this week in a field that features Kentucky, Washington, Connecticut, and Wichita State. [2]

3. Ohio State (3-0) – Just as strong as I thought they’d be. They already crushed #9 Florida. [3]

4. Pittsburgh (5-0) – A big jump up the rankings for the Panthers. Not only do they have five wins already, but they’ve notched victories over tough Maryland and Texas teams. [9]

5. Kansas State (3-0) – The Wildcats already own a decisive win over a ranked team from Virginia Tech. [5]

6. Kansas (3-0) – Josh Selby has been declared eligible (after nine games I think) and the Jayhawks have been crushing teams without him… including North Texas, a tournament team last year. [6]

7. Kentucky (2-0) – I’m iffy about this ranking… KU has looked dominant so far, but they haven’t played anybody and losing Enes Kanter drops them in this week’s rankings. Brandon Knight and Terrance Jones have been great though and this week’s Maui Invitational will determine if this team is legit. [4]

8. Syracuse (4-0) – The Orange move up in the rankings, but they’re pretty lucky to do so. William & Mary gave them a run for their money and shooting 36.7% from the field isn’t going to get the job done against good teams. Plus Fab Melo has been a non-factor. [10]

9. Purdue (3-0) – Oakland put up a good fight against the Boilermakers today and we probably won’t really know what this Purdue team is made of without Robbie Hummel until they face off against Virginia Tech on Dec. 1st. [7]

10. Villanova (4-0) – I think I missed the mark on this one in my initial rankings; ‘Nova is deep and talented. [14]

11. Washington (2-0) – The Huskies have been putting up some serious points and look to be severely underrated on the national level. Beating Virginia and Kentucky in the Maui Invitational would change that… and a win over MSU in the championship would open a lot of eyes. [12]

12. Florida (3-1) – Losing to Ohio State doesn’t hurt that much and it’s not like the Gators didn’t play them tough most of the game. [13]

13. Memphis (4-0) – Already have two victories over schools from major conferences (Miami and LSU). [15]

14. Baylor (3-0) – The Bears get a bump because my initial rankings assumed LaceDarius Dunn wouldn’t play this year. He’s back next week and the core of this team looks great so far.

15. Illinois (4-1) – I had Texas ranked before the season, so an overtime loss to them isn’t terrible, plus the Illini bounced back with a win over Maryland. [17]

16. Gonzaga (2-1) – Losing to San Diego State isn’t a good look, but it’s not a travesty either. It’s not going to get any easier for the Bulldogs: they have games against Kansas State, Illinois, and Baylor in the next three weeks. [10]

17. Georgetown (5-0) [20]

18. Tennessee (3-0) – Hoyas jump ahead of the Volunteers because Tennessee is untested so far and Georgetown has wins over ODU and North Carolina State. [18]

19. Minnesota (5-0) – The Golden Gophers boast the best resume in college basketball right now with wins over North Carolina, West Virginia, and Western Kentucky, all of whom could be NCAA tourney teams come March. Yikes. [unranked]

20. North Carolina (2-2) – Wow. Is this a repeat of last year? I doubt the Tarheels will fall this far in the AP rankings, but they should with two losses against unranked teams already. I saw UNC play Hofstra the other night, and even though it was a decisive win, the Heels looked pretty sloppy outside of Harrison Barnes, and then Barnes went 0-12 from the field against Minnesota. Will the real Tarheels please stand up? I don’t think this team is going to lose 17 games, but this is a bad start. [8]

21. Butler (2-1) – I’ve already heard people gunning for Butler to be dropped out of the top 25, but that seems harsh. It’s not like Louisville is a bunch of slouches and the Bulldogs still boast Shelvin Mack and Matt Howard on their roster. I think Duke is going to destroy them on December 4th, but wins over Siena and Xavier would help make up for the Louisville loss. [16]

22. Missouri (2-0) – I’m still unsure of what to think of this team and I haven’t seen them play yet. Everyone else has them ranked much higher, but I need them to prove it first. [22]

23. San Diego State (4-0) – I had BYU ranked #25 and the Aztecs unranked in my preseason rankings, but after some thought, I decided that San Diego State is going to be the better team and win the Mountain West. With a win over Gonzaga under their belt already, leap-frogging BYU in this week’s rankings not only makes up for my previous mistake, it makes sense too. [unranked]

24. Texas (3-1) – The Longhorns have been impressive so far. Unranked by a lot of publications in the preseason, they’ve already upset #13 Illinois and took #5 Pittsburgh to the buzzer, losing by two points. [24]

25. Virginia Tech (2-1) – A loss to Kansas State doesn’t hurt their stock too much. [21]

Dropped Out:

Wisconsin (2-1) – Lost to unranked UNLV.
BYU (3-0) – Shouldn’t have been ranked in the first place, but they’re right there.

Posted in poker | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

2010 Baseball Awards

November 5, 2010

Congrats to the San Francisco Giants and their first title in over sixty years. They deserve it. Were they the best team in baseball this year? I don’t think so, but they were the hottest at the most important time and proved that they might have the deepest and most talented rotation in the game. With the World Series behind us, the 2010 MLB Award season is upon us. These aren’t exactly my predictions, just how I would vote myself:

American League MVP

1. Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers: .359-32-100, 95 runs, 8 SB, 1.044 OPS
2. Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers: .328-38-126, 111 runs, 1.042 OPS
3. Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays: .260-54-124, 109 runs, 9 SB, .995 OPS
4. Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox: .312-39-111, 89 runs, .977 OPS
5. Robinson Cano, New York Yankees: .319-29-109, 113 runs, .915 OPS

This is a really close race between the top three candidates, which could have been an easier call if Hamilton hadn’t gotten hurt down the stretch. With Hamilton nursing his injury and Cabrera losing steam in the final month, Bautista exploded in the second half and transformed from the most surprising outbreak of the year into a legitimate MVP candidate and possibly the most entertaining player in all of baseball over the last couple months. After all the dust settled, however, I still had a clear favorite. Hamilton put up ridiculous power numbers while leading the majors in batting average and OPS, plus he’s the only member of the top three to guide his team into the post season. In a race this close, those edges are enough to break a tie.

American League Cy Young

1. Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners: 13-12, 2.27 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 232 Ks, 3.31 K to BB ratio
2. Jered Weaver, Los Angeles Angels: 13-12, 3.01 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 233 Ks, 4.31 K:BB
3. C.C. Sabathia, New York Yankees: 21-7, 3.18 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 197 Ks, 2.66 K:BB
4. David Price, Tampa Bay Rays: 19-6, 2.72 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 188 Ks, 2.38 K:BB
5. Cliff Lee, Texas Rangers: 12-9, 3.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 185 Ks, 10.28 K:BB

The only thing easy about putting together my AL Cy list was deciding who deserves to win it. As baseball has progressed and evolved minds have come to understand that wins and losses are some of the least important factors when considering how dominate a pitcher has been, Felix Hernandez clearly had the best season in the American League and anyone else winning the award would be highway robbery. Not only did Felix lead AL starters in ERA, he did it while pitching more innings than anyone else in the AL and came up two strikeouts short of the leading the league in that category too. As doubtful as I’ve been about Felix actually winning the award, I’m starting to think the voters will get it right because his season was so much better than the competition. I have Weaver ranked second for similar reasons, although I have a feeling he won’t be finishing second in the voting. Sabathia and Price had similar seasons, but I give the edge to C.C. because he’s such an anchor and workhorse for his team. Cliff Lee over Justin Verlander, Jon Lester, Trevor Cahill, and Clay Buccholz might seem outrageous, but his control this season was legendarily good and deserves some kudos. Lastly, I left closers off the list because this is a starters award, just like the MVP is a position player award.

American League Rookie Of The Year

1. Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers: 2.73 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 4 Wins, 40 Saves, 3.94 K:BB
2. Austin Jackson, Detroit Tigers: .293-4-41, 103 runs, 27 SB, .745 OPS
3. Wade Davis, Tampa Bay Rays: 12-10, 4.07 ERA, 113 Ks, 1.35 WHIP, 1.82 K:BB

Pretty tough call between the top two guys, but I think Feliz had the more impressive season. While Jackson had a very solid (and somewhat unexpected) rookie year, Feliz was dominant in a high-pressure role as the closer for a contender. I’m sort of bias against closers, but you gotta respect the stat line. That WHIP is ridiculous and the rookie only blew three saves all season. Wade Davis gets my third place vote over Detroit’s Brennan Boesch, whose rookie season really boils down to two good months: .340-11-38 in May and June compared with a season line of .256-14-64.

National League MVP

1. Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies: .336-34-117, 111 runs, 26 SBs, .974 OPS
2. Joey Votto, Cincinatti Reds: .325-37-113, 106 runs, 16 SBs, 1.024 OPS
3. Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals: .312-42-118, 115 runs, 14 SBs, 1.010 OPS
4. Matt Holliday, St. Louis Cardinals: .312-28-103, 95 runs, 9 SBs, .922 OPS
5. Troy Tulowitski, Colorado Rockies: .315-27-95, 89 runs, 11 SBs, .949 OPS

This has to be the most exciting MVP race of my lifetime. Going in to the last six weeks of the season, CarGo, Votto, and Pujols all had legitimate chances of winning the Triple Crown, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished in over forty years. Unfortunately, CarGo took off in batting average while Pujols set the pace in power down the stretch and history wasn’t made. All three of those guys will probably get first place votes, but I’m giving the edge to Gonzalez because his line is the most impressive to me: leading the NL in batting, while posting crazy power numbers, and swiping 26 bases. Tulowitski gets my fifth place vote over some lines that are arguably better, but he also put up his numbers in about 100 less at bats than everyone else, plus that run in September was legendary.

National League Cy Young

1. Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies: 21-10, 2.44 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 219 Ks, 7.30 K:BB
2. Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals: 20-11, 2.42 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 213 Ks, 3.80 K:BB
3. Josh Johnson, Florida Marlins: 11-6, 2.30 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 186 Ks, 3.88 K:BB
4. Roy Oswalt, Philadelphia Phillies/Houston Astros: 13-13, 2.76 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 193 Ks, 3.51 K:BB
5. Ubaldo Jimenez, Colorado Rockies: 19-8, 2.88 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 214 Ks, 2.33 K:BB

It’s really a coin flip between Halladay and Wainwright: those stat lines are borderline identical and one could make a solid argument for either pitcher. While wins aren’t a crucial stat to me, they can play the role of tiebreaker and Halladay lead the majors in the category. He also displayed far superior control; however, since both starters’ WHIPs are nearly identical that also means that Halladay was far more hittable. It’s a tough call… but toss in a perfect game and a no hitter in the playoffs (which shouldn’t count, but I can’t erase the memory) and Halladay is my guy. Josh Johnson could have really been in the mix if he had pitched more innings, but staying healthy is part of winning season awards. It’s almost baffling that Jimenez didn’t notch twenty wins after having 14 by the All-Star break, but his line survived September a lot better than San Diego’s Mat Latos, who was a legitimate Cy contender until the season’s final month. Oswalt kind of came out of nowhere and had a great season that I don’t think too many people noticed. He was ridiculous for Philly down the stretch going 7-1, with a 1.74 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, and 73 Ks in 12 starts.

National League Rookie Of The Year

1. Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants: .305-18-67, 58 runs, .862 OPS
3. Jason Heyward, Atlanta Braves: .277-18-71, 83 runs, 11 SBs, .849 OPS
2. Jamie Garcia, St. Louis Cardinals: 13-8, 2.70 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 132 Ks, 2.06 K:BB

Wow, what a group of rookies in the NL this year. I could probably list off at least ten NL rookies that had noteworthy seasons. I’m giving Posey top honors for several reasons though. First off, he outhit Heyward and basically matched the Braves rookie in homers and RBI despite having roughly 150 less plate appearances. While Heyward was a key part of the Braves’ run to the postseason, I’d argue that Posey carried his team. He was so crucial to the Giants’ success this year that I wouldn’t be surprised if he finished in the top 10 of the NL MVP voting… Heyward won’t. Cardinals fans would probably argue for Garcia, and while his season was impressive, the only stat that jumps out at you is his ERA. His line as a whole doesn’t really compare to what Posey did for the Giants or the numbers Heyward put up as a 20 year old. This list of notable NL rookie seasons is endless: Starlin Castro (.300, 31 2B, 10 SBs), Ike Davis (.261-19-71), Ian Desmond (.269-10-65, 17 SBs), Chris Johnson (.311-11-52), Pedro Alvarez (.256-16-64), Gaby Sanchez (.273-19-85), Mike Stanton (.259-22-59), Jose Tabata (.299, 19 SBs), Neil Walker (.296-12-66), John Axford (24 saves, 2.48 ERA, 8 wins), Madison Bumgarner (7-6, 3.00 ERA, 86 Ks, great postseason), Daniel Hudson (8-2, 2.45 ERA, 84 Ks), and, of course, The Chose One Stephen Strasburg (5-3, 2.91 ERA, 92:17 K:BB rate, and the most exciting rookie debut I can remember).

Posted in baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

h1

NCAA College Basketball Preseason Top 25

October 21, 2010

I’m already in full college basketball mode and today we had our first official coach’s poll, which has inspired me to make my own list, along with the nagging of one of my co-workers. Along with my rankings, in parentheses I have the rankings from various publications in order of my perceived level of validity: Coach’s Poll, ESPN’s Andy Katz, Sporting News, and Lindy’s Sports. I wanted to post my full list, but i’ll add synopsis as time goes on, leading up to the opening game.

1. Duke (1, 1, 2, 1): Here’s your consensus preseason favorite and for good reason. Last year’s champs lose only two key components from this past season in point guard Jon Scheyer and center Brian Zoubek. Zoubek’s absence could be felt as the only knock on Duke is the lack of a big man to roam the post and grab rebounds. I doubt many people would rather have Scheyer over incoming freshman Kyrie Irving though, plus the Blue Devils add former Liberty guard Seth Curry, who averaged over 20 points a game as a freshmen and has bloodlines on his side. Most importantly, Duke returns the services of Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler, both of whom are legitimate All America candidates, with Singler a possibility for Player Of The Year honors. Duke’s backcourt is absolutely loaded and with Singler on the wing, this is the team to beat in 2011.

2. Michigan State (2, 2, 1, 3): It’d be silly to rank Tom Izzo’s Spartans much lower than this as they’ve reached the Final Four in consecutive seasons and they’ve consistently burned me in my own brackets. The Spartans return all five starters from last year’s Final Four team and Raymar Morgan is their only significant loss. Kalin Lucas has been dealing with an Achilles injury during the off-season and should be ready to play in November. A return to 100% may take some time for Lucas, but at any rate, he should be full speed by March, which is always when Izzo’s teams play their best. There’s been a lot of hype surrounding senior guard Durrell Summers taking a significant leap forward in production, while Delvin Roe, Draymond Green, and Korie Lucious round out a ridiculous starting five.

3. Ohio State (5, 5, 5, 7): No one has ranked OSU as high as I have here, yet everyone seems to think that incoming freshman big man Jared Sullinger is going to make a major impact in his only college season. While no one was as crucial to his team’s success as Evan Turner was last year, the same could ring true of Sullinger in the 2010-2011 season. Losing Turner is a major blow, but his run as Player Of The Year overshadowed an otherwise well-rounded team. Junior William Buford (14.4 ppg, 5.6 rbg, 3.1 apg) put up numbers that look a lot like Turner’s sophomore season and joins fellow guard Jon Diebler as a deadly 3-point duo. The Buckeyes return their other two starters in the frontcourt with seniors Dallas Lauderdale and David Lighty. The depth of this team remains a question mark as it relies heavily on untested freshman, but with Sullinger dominating the inside and Buford and Diebler bombing from outside, this team is going to be trouble for just about anyone.

4. Kentucky (10, 11, 8, 14): Again, another team I have ranked higher than anyone else, but betting against John Calipari has proven to be a mistake. No one recruits better than Coach Cal and this year’s class is again the best in the nation. This ranking is highly dependent on the eligibility of freshman center Enes Kanter, whose status is still in question. Much like Sullinger, Kanter has the ability to be a complete game-changer and his availability is probably the difference between a top 5 team and a top 15 team. Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones, and Doron Lamb round out this ridiculous freshman class, while returning players Darius Miller and DeAndre Liggins continue to provide support while playing a background role.

5. Kansas State (3, 4, 6, 4): Giants nation and closer Brian Wilson have popularized “Fear The Beard” this baseball season, but Jacob Pullen and Kansas State could argue they originated the concept in early 2010. Pullen returns as the Wildcats biggest offensive threat and should probably get some All America consideration this season. Losing Denis Clemente could be a big blow, but it sounds like Pullen is going to run the point (similar to how Evan Turner ran Ohio State’s offense last year) and that’s not so bad. Curtis Kelley was dominant in the NCAA tournament last year and the Wildcats are going to need him to continue putting up that kind of production to hold onto this ranking. Wally Judge’s development might be even more critical to the team’s success. Highly touted out of high school, Judge was a disappointment in his freshman season, but should look to take a big step forward in the upcoming season. Jamar Samuels was big in a reserve role last year and should move into the starting lineup this season. With Pullen at the helms and continued maturation from Kelley and Judge, KSU shouldn’t be too far off from their dominant showing last year.

6. Kansas (7, 6, 4, 17): Another team ranking that largely depends on the eligibility of one player. For Kansas, that player is point guard Josh Selby, #1 on Rivals.com’s list of incoming freshman. Like Kentucky, Kansas has top 5 potential with Selby playing a full slate, but is probably a top 15-20 team without him. Kansas did lose three players to the NBA draft and graduation, so the question is who is going to step up and replace the production that Sherron Collins, Cole Aldritch, and Xavier Henry, who combined for 40.2 points and 16.3 rbg, provided last year. One obvious answer is junior Marcus Morris, who improved immensely as a sophomore and made Sporting News’ First Team of preseason All Americans. Look for Morris to improve on the numbers (14.2 points, 7.3 rebounds per game) who put up in conference play last year. Outside of Morris and Selby, the Jayhawks will need a legitimate third scoring threat. Tyshawn Taylor averaged 7.2 points a game last year and will probably be the third option this year, with the other Morris twin, Markieff, crashing the boards and providing an additional inside threat. The Jayhawks have enough talent and depth to compete for the Big 12 title, but a lot of that success depends on if Selby is playing or not.

7. Purdue (8, 23, 3, 2): A few weeks ago, there were three teams that clearly stood atop the college basketball landscape: Duke, Michigan State, and Purdue. Owning three seniors with All America potential, the Boilermakers looked poised to make a run at a Big Ten title and a trip to the Final Four. And then Robbie Hummel blew out his ACL… again. The question is: how important is Hummel to Purdue’s success? With a skill set that is somewhat similar to Duke’s Kyle Singler, the answer is: pretty damn important. Hummel has had a solid college career, but has constantly been hampered by injuries and one wonders what he and Purdue could have achieved if he was consistently healthy. While the Hummel injury is a huge blow, I’m not so sure the team should go diving in the rankings (ESPN dropped them from #2 all the way down to #23). Most teams would be happy to have two potential All Americans and Purdue still has that in guard E’twaun Moore and center JaJuan Johnson. I’ve been keeping tabs on Johnson ever since he dominated Washington in the 2009 NCAA tournament and he lived up to that performance last year by averaging 15.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, and over 2 blocks a game…. still building strength on what used to be a pretty wiry frame, he can build on those numbers. Moore will aide Johnson in providing leadership and will probably be asked to do the bulk of the scoring with Hummel out. He’s got a great jump shot and will be asked to step up his defensive game with the departure of Chris Kramer. Outside of the big two, Purdue is deep, but inexperienced. Outside of the three seniors, no returning player averaged more than 3.4 points a game and this year’s roster has ten underclassmen. Moore and Johnson have enough talent to keep Purdue in the top ten, but without Hummel it’s extremely unlikely this team has a shot at winning the conference and making a run past the Elite 8.

8. North Carolina (9, 14, 9, 6): I feel risky saying that UNC will be a top ten team after their implosion last year. However, last year they didn’t have freshman Harrison Barnes, a ridiculously athletic wing that received more attention in high school than any other incoming recruit. Barnes is unlikely to experience the growing pains that plagued last year’s freshman class and should make an immediate impact in the ACC. Speaking of last year’s freshmen, no one on the team will be asked to produce more than big man John Henson. Henson averaged 5.7 points and 4.4 rebounds a game playing behind departed Ed Davis and Deon Thompson, but will have to carry a much larger load now that they’re gone. It’s not difficult to imagine Henson becoming the ACC’s Most Improved player and he has enough talent potential to be a lottery pick next June. The Tarheels have enough potential star in seven footer Tyler Zeller, who has had some injury problems so far in his career. Even though the Wear twins transferred to UCLA, the Heels still have plenty of McDonalds All American depth on the bench and another potential freshman star in Reggie Bullock. If Henson and Zeller live up to their potential and Barnes is as good as advertised, Duke could have a run for their money in the ACC.

9. Pittsburgh (4, 3, 6, 4): A consensus top five team that I’m not as sold on. Left off everyone’s radar last year, Pittsburgh turned out to be a team to be reckoned with. Ashton Gibbs and Brad Wanamaker sort of came out of no where to provide some pretty ridiculous numbers. Both those guys are back this year and sophomore Dante Taylor looks to prove that his disappointing freshman season was a fluke. Pittsburgh will be a tough team this year, and probably good enough to win the Big East, but while it’s usually a mistake to underestimate the Panthers, I don’t really see them as a Final Four squad.

10. Gonzaga (12, 8, 14, 16): Gonzaga won’t open the season as a top ten team, but as a nationally relevant mid major school, they’ll be there after running through conference play. The loss of Matt Bouldin hurts, but is easily relieved by the return of Elias Harris, who most projected as a lottery pick after his first week in college. Harris averaged 14.9 points and 7.1 rebounds a game as a frosh and is probably the most talented and athletic player in Gonzaga’s history (sorry John Stockton, the game has changed). The Zags have plenty of experience returning with center Robert Sacre and guard Steven Gray providing enough of an offensive threat to keep opposing defenses from zeroing in on Harris. The point guard position is the biggest question for Gonzaga. Demetri Gooden has proven to be unreliable, so JuCo transfer Marquise Carter may be asked to take the reigns. While the WCC has some solid teams from St. Marys and Loyola Marymount, Gonzaga could still run through league play undefeated… but the days of being the tournament’s Cinderella are over and the Bulldogs need to take advantage of what is likely the last year for Harris.

11. Syracuse (13, 10, 7, 21): The Orange return a solid core and add 7 foot freshman Fab Melo to the middle. Also, Kris Joseph could be this year’s Wesley Johnson.

12. Washington (17, 17, 23, 10): This is my team so I’m going to write a bit more about them. First off, the Dawgs are the best team in the Pac-10 and should run through conference play. Then again, I thought that last year and had they to fight tooth-and-nail for a NCAA berth. Losing Quincy Pondexter hurts, but UW recovered from the loss of Jon Broxton last year, and I’m looking for more improvement from Matthew Bryan-Amaning this year. He won’t provide Quincy’s production, but he should improve across the board. The backcourt is still crazy. Isaiah Thomas is underrated nationally, but he does have some glaring flaws. While he’s a great slashing guard, his decision-making needs work. Too many times I saw him drive hopelessly to the basket and come up empty, trying to force a basket through three defenders. If he can learn to dish out when he can’t get off a good shot and improve his outside game, he could be a beast. Venoy Overton is UW’s secret weapon. He’s known as a defensive pest, but he can also score when we need him to. Abdul Gaddy is still a question mark. Watching him as a freshman was painful most of the time. He showed flashes of brilliance every once in a while, but he usually looked uncomfortable on the court. He’s still regarded as one of the best NBA prospects in the Pac-10 and I think it all boils down to confidence for him, so if he can find that, he could be the difference-maker for this club. I don’t know much about Terrence Ross, but word is that he’s going to be a player for us. The Huskies have some depth on the bench. Justin Holliday is another underrated player that is solid defensively and I’m not sure what to expect from 7 foot center Aziz N’Diaye. If he has any type of talent in the middle, the Huskies could be a lot more dangerous than expected.

13. Florida (11, 9, 20, 11): Kenny Boynton had a great freshmen year and the Gators are long on experience and talent.

14. Villanova (6, 7, 11, 13):
15. Memphis (19, 15, 12, 34)
16. Butler (18, 18, 19, 8)
17. Illinois (16, 13, 15, 9)
18. Tennessee (20, 20, 22, 12)
19. Baylor (14, 16, 16, 15)
20. Georgetown (21, 19, 17, 27)
21. Virginia Tech (23, 26, 21, 18)
22. Missouri (15, 12, 13, 33)
23. Wisconsin (24, top 40, 18, 32)
24. Texas (25, top 40, unranked, 20)
25. BYU (27, top 40, unranked, 25)

Posted in poker | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

Easy A (2010)

September 28, 2010

Plot: Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) makes up a story about losing her virginity to a community college student instead of admitting what she really did all weekend: sing along with her Hallmark card. After her story circulates around school and her reputation changes, other students come to her and ask her to pretend like she hooked up with them to improve their images as well.

If you can look past the fact that a high school girl losing her virginity isn’t really a big story in any high school I’ve ever heard of, Easy A is actually a pretty funny and charming movie. If nothing else, Emma Stone should come out of this as a legitimate leading lady. I see some real success in her future and she proves she can carry a movie by herself. Lisa Kudrow seems out of place as the school counselor on some Mary Kay shit, but the rest of the adult cast is phenomenal. Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson are particularly hilarious as Olive’s parents. The cast of teenagers isn’t nearly as strong. Outside of Olive, none of them are memorable, except for her best friend’s rack… it’s a beauty! I didn’t even realize Amanda Bynes was in this movie until it was over. She plays the uber-obnoxious leader of the school’s Christian group and is virtually unrecognizable. Did she put on some weight? Overall, Easy A is a solid, but not remarkable high school comedy with a breakthrough performance from Stone. It was funny, but not as good as I was hoping it would be. A DVD rental in my opinion.

Grade: B-
Viewings: 1
Replay Value: Comedies have a tendency to grow on me over multiple viewings, so maybe this will too. Right now, I’m not sure I’d watch it again.
Sequel Potential: Pretty unlikely.
Oscar Potential: None.
Nudity?: None.

Posted in movie reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

Glee: Season Two premiere

September 27, 2010

I don’t feel like writing up a long post on the last half of season one, so I’m just going to sum up my feelings here briefly. I really thought the second half of the season took a big nosedive. The writing was already worrisome, but it got progressively worse throughout the season. There weren’t as many stand out musical numbers either, and the poor writing and ridiculous arcs on the show started to overshadow awesome performances. I enjoyed Neil Patrick Harris in his episode and the episodes devoted to Lady Gaga and Madonna, particularly Jane Lynch’s rendition of “Vogue” (“Will Schuester, I hate you!), but I wasn’t doing nearly as much rewinding. As obsessed as I became during the first thirteen episodes, I found myself getting bored and irritable finishing the season. How many times do we have to see an episode close with a musical number and watch these kids set aside their differences for a moment, come together as a group, smile, and exchange meaningful looks? They even ended the season by giving Sue Sylvester a heart, which is not a good look for the future, as her crushing criticisms and constant sabotages were the one non-musical pieces of writing I always looked forward to.

Season two opens with a new potential villain–for both Will Schuester and Sue Sylvester–as Coach Beiste (pronounced Beast), an extremely large and butch woman, takes over the football team and the school shifts focus to sports, threatening the budgets of both the Cheerios and New Directions. I’m tired of hearing about budget cuts on this show. It’s hard to believe that a Glee Club constantly facing budget woes has the financial freedom to pony up for new (and expensive looking) outfits and elaborate sets for every new musical number they do. Seriously, where is that money coming from? Lazy writing, that’s where.

I did like the way the season started with high school blogger, and nerd, Jacob interviewing various members of the Glee Club with loaded questions. He asks Will Schuester: “Did you know there’s a forum on my blog begging you to stop rapping?” A good question! It was a rare moment when the white people on Glee did hip-hop and my face didn’t look like this —-> : / It’s obviously a montage meant for the writers to respond to some of the negative feedback people have posted about the show online. Rachel is asked if she is difficult to work with, which mirrors similar real-life rumors that actress Lea Michele is the same way. It’s good tongue-in-cheek humor with a bit of self-deprecation. Kurt tops it off by giving a big “Fuck You” to the blogosphere. It’s good that they are self-aware and don’t really care about the critics, but seriously, no one on this show can rap.

A new season and a new school year means new students and potential new cast members. What’s the deal with discovering male vocal talent in the showers? It was weird the first time and now it’s just creepy. Fortunately, Sam Evans (Chord Overstreet) can sing. He doesn’t join the glee club in this episode, but we all know he will, and his number shows that he’s going to contribute to the show in a good way. Charice also joins the cast as Sunshine Corazon and her confrontation with Rachel in the bathroom doing Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” was the highlight of the episode. She shows right away that she’s got a good voice and later proves that she has some serious pipes, announcing herself as legitimate competition with Rachel for best singer in the group…. so naturally, she’s lured away by Vocal Adrenaline by the end of the episode.

It was a better premiere than I was expecting after last season’s lackluster run to the finish line. The new cast members are great additions and all the musical numbers were excellent with the exception of Jay-Z’s “Empire State Of Mind,” which featured more of that questionable rapping. After briefly teaming up against Coach Beiste, Sue & Will are enemies by the end, which is good because a friendship there doesn’t help this show out at all. Sue is definitely at her best when she’s stirring up trouble for everyone… but “poop cookies?” Really? Come up with some better gags. A solid premiere episode that has me a bit more optimistic about this season than I was a few days ago.

Posted in TV Shows | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

Revisiting 1990: Misery

September 26, 2010

“I am your number one fan.”

Considered For: Top 5, Top Horror Film

Plot: Successful author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) traps himself in his car after getting in an accident during a blizzard. He is saved when Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) pulls him out and lets him recover in her home. As Sheldon lies crippled in a bed, Annie slowly starts to unravel and show her true colors, especially after she discovers that Paul plans to kill off his famed heroine Misery in his latest novel, and the author realizes that his life might be in danger.

I can’t think of a Stephen King adaptation I like more than Misery, but that is because none of those films had a performance as strong as Kathy Bates was in this movie. Kathy Bates is this movie. Outside of James Caan, who is pretty limited considering he’s confined to a bed for most of the film, and the sheriff and his wife, there aren’t many characters in Misery to speak of, so Bates really had a lot riding on her performance and she carries that burden like a badge of honor. Deserving of an easy Oscar win, Bates channels her inner psychopath as her character Annie Wilkes goes from happy-go-lucky hick to deranged, violent batterer in sheer seconds. I saw this movie when I was a kid and the only thing I remembered about it was Wilkes taking a sledgehammer to Sheldon’s legs, a testament to how iconic and powerful that scene was. This movie is the epitome of suspense and will have you on edge the whole time. I’m considering it for my top horror movie of 1990, but I’m not really sure if fits my definition of a horror movie. I’d place Misery in the suspense/thriller category and it’s a top notch effort. Highly recommended and a must see for Kathy Bates going completely insane.

Grade: B+
Viewings: 2
Replay Value: Worth revisiting every several years or so.
Sequel Potential: None
Oscars?: A win for Bates
Nudity?: None

Posted in movie reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

Revisiting 1990: Darkman

September 26, 2010

“Don’t look at me.”

Considered For: Guilty Pleasure

Plot: Scientist Peyton Westlake (Liam Neeson) is in the midst of developing technology to duplicate healthy skin for burn victims when he is brutally scarred and left for dead by a crime lord (Larry Drake) looking for an incriminating memo in possession of Westlake’s girlfriend (Frances McDormand). Westlake uses his skin process to return as Darkman and seek revenge against those that ruined him.

I imagine in my quest to find the best guilty pleasure in various years I’m going to run across some true stinkers. Despite a solid crew that features respected actors (Neeson and Oscar nominee McDormand) and the director that brought us the Evil Dead trilogy and Spider-Man, Darkman still manages to suck. Even if you can look past the ridiculous plot, the number of holes in the script are enormous and laughable. In the beginning of the film, Westlake discovers that his created skin will only hold for 99 minutes in the light, but can maintain its composure infinitely in the dark. You’d think this discovery, combined with a film title of Darkman would indicate our vigilante would do most of his work at night, but Darkman operates during the day time. In fact, rather than using this knowledge to his advantage, our brilliant scientist finds himself wearing a mask, sitting on a bench in broad daylight, and acting shocked when he realizes his 99 minutes are up any second. Seriously? How stupid is this character? If you have a mission you can only carry out in the daylight, plan ahead! If you know it’s going to take more than 99 minutes, bring a second mask (that’s all it is anyways, right?), store it in a bag that keeps out the sunlight, and switch faces at a convenient time that doesn’t jeopardize your task. But seriously, you can be whoever you want, however long you want at night, so why are you even fucking with daylight hours? Also, did anyone ever notice how fucked up Darkman’s hands are? We see that the faces Darkman wears are simply masks, so I’d have to assume the hands he wears are merely gloves and there is no way he’s fitting his mutilated paws into those things without getting some double takes.

Darkman has some solid actors and is mildly entertaining at times, but the writing in this movie is terrible. Definitely the worst movie I’ve watched in a while.

Grade: D
Viewings: 2+
Replay Value: Very limited
Sequel Potential: Spawned two sequels that I imagine are equally as bad, and probably worse.
Oscars?: None
Nudity?: None

Posted in movie reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

Glee: Season 1 – Part 1 (Episodes 1-13)

September 25, 2010

Premise: Spanish teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) takes over as head of the Glee Club at William McKinley High School, a once popular school program that is now hanging by a thread and likely to be axed due to budget cuts. A large portion of the school’s budget is being used by the Cheerios, McKinley’s nationally recognized and dominant cheerleading program headed by the ruthless Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch). As Glee Club gains momentum under Schuester’s tutelage, the enormous budget of Sylvester’s program is threatened and a heated rivalry is born between the two teachers and their respective clubs.

I had written Glee off as a corny high school show that probably featured its cast bursting out into random musical numbers in mid-conversation. The TV spots and the few times I skimmed by Glee while it was on the air, did nothing to quell this assumption. After receiving a ridiculous amount of Emmy nominations (including a few wins), a lot of attention for the Sue Sylvester character, and good word of mouth over the summer, I found myself excited to be adding it to my Netflix queue.

With the popularity of singing-based reality shows, the premise for Glee couldn’t come at a better time. The question was: how can you turn a TV show into a musical without coming across corny? Glee succeeds because there is nothing random about the musical numbers performed. Since the characters are part of a Glee Club, all the performances are premeditated and performed as part of their after school activity and only once during the first thirteen episodes did a character seem to start singing out of no where. While it takes some getting used to the fact that all the vocals are prerecorded–creating a sense of detachment from what’s happening on screen and the feeling the actors aren’t really singing (oh, but they are!)–it’s a necessary process. We get to hear these kids at their best instead of struggling to catch their breath while singing and doing demanding choreography sequences at the same time.

The cast is tremendously talented and the casting directors should be lauded for managing to bring together a group of relatively unknown actors that possess such amazing skill. Leading the pack is Lea Michele, who plays Rachel Berry, a character that constantly reminds me of Tracy Flick played by Reese Witherspoon in 1999’s Election. While Michele’s character is an obnoxious know-it-all hell bent on her own success before others, her talent is undeniable (a fact the Glee group reluctantly has to swallow constantly). Watching the pilot episode, I found Rachel only mildly attractive… and then she started performing, and suddenly I was declaring my love on Facebook. This is a woman that would probably be a hands down favorite in almost any American Idol competition, and from what I’ve seen, her range knows no boundaries. Glee is just going to be the first big step (Michele is a noted Broadway actor already) into a wildly successful mainstream career for this enormously talented actress/singer.

Jane Lynch is the other standout in this cast. Even after Lynch won the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Emmy, I was pretty skeptical when I read a couple online articles that separately declared Sue Sylvester the 18th best character in pop culture over the past twenty years and one of televisions greatest all-time villains. That’s some pretty lofty praise for a character that has been on air for less than a year… yet, it was all justified by the end of the first thirteen episode arc. Sylvester gets all of Glee’s best lines and Lynch delivers them with confidence and hilarity. Sylvester’s obsession with bringing down the Glee Club provides the series’ most laughs and her constant feuding with nemesis Schuester is almost always laugh-out-loud funny, especially her constant references to his hair. There were moments when I thought Sylvester might simply become a petty enemy, but by the close of the first half of season one, she has cemented herself as truly evil and Lynch is worthy of all the accolades showered upon her.

Lynch and Michele are definitely the stars of Glee, but the rest of the cast is pretty talented too. Although relegated to background duty most of the time, Amber Riley (who plays token black girl Mercedes) is almost as talented as Michele. She gives Jennifer Hudson a run for her money with her rendition of “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going” and stands out in several other numbers as well. Matthew Morrison is probably the best actor of the bunch (outside of Lynch) and has some good singing moments as well, particularly his mash up of “Young Girl” and “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” when the teacher is trying to keep Rachel’s feelings for him at bay. Chris Cofler, the gay kid, while over-the-top with his flamboyance a lot of the time, actually can sing too. He kills “Defying Gravity” in a “diva off” with Rachel. On top of the great individual performances, it’s when the entire Glee club comes together to perform a number that the cast is at its best. I might be as gay as Kurt Hummel for admitting this, but the first time I heard them do Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” I actually got chills.

The performances and talent on Glee are great, but the writing seems to have a hard time keeping up. The moments in between musical numbers and Sue Sylvester appearances can be excruciating. Outside of the Sylvester vs. Schuester drama, the major conflicts of the first season center around the pregnancies of Will’s wife (she’s faking it) and Quinn Fabray (the gorgeous Dianna Agron), the head cheerleader and lead male vocalist Finn Hudson’s girlfriend (she’s pregnant by his best friend Puck). Rather than drive the story forward, these conflicts just cause annoyance. Will Schuester is made out to be a blind idiot married to a woman that has absolutely no admirable qualities and the love triangle between Finn, Puck and Quinn is equally obnoxious, as they trade loyalties like baseball cards and go from throwing punches to smiling and hugging in a musical number a few scenes later.

Speaking of relationships, there’s not a single couple on Glee that you’re rooting for. It seems like we’re supposed to want Will to hook up with guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury (Jayma Mays), and she is somewhat adorable, but she’s also a complete wacko. Between her obsessive compulsive disorder, phobia of germs, and some ridiculous decision-making, it’s hard to believe this is someone we want our main protagonist to hook up with. There’s a similar vibe for Finn and Rachel, which is understandable when they’re performing together, but off stage these characters lack any sign of charisma: Finn’s a self-conscious moron and Rachel’s obnoxiousness is often taken to extremes. Maybe the writers think they are making an accurate depiction of high school life, but none of these kids have any consistency and constantly walk the line between lovable and repulsive. The lone exception is Sue Sylvester and it’s odd that the writers can always display such brilliance with her dialogue and arcs while being so messy with the rest of the characters. If they could learn to apply that writing ability to the rest of the show, Glee might be able to elevate past an awesome novelty and turn into something that can be taken a bit more seriously.

Now here’s a list of the best numbers from the first 13 episodes (search for them on YouTube):

New Directions – “Don’t Stop Believing”
Will Schuester – “Young Girl”/”Don’t Stand So Close To Me” mash up
Rachel & Finn – “Smile”
Rachel & Kurt – “Defying Gravity”
April Rhodes & Rachel – “Maybe This Time”
Mercedes – “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going”
New Directions – “Push It”
New Directions – “Look At All The People”

Grade: B+

Posted in TV Shows | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

h1

The Town (2010)

September 18, 2010

“Not only do you harass women, you have to fuck them too? That’s your thing?”

Plot: A tight knit group of professional bank robbers in Charlestown, Massachusetts find their operations compromised when their leader Doug Macray (Ben Affleck) becomes romantically involved with the primary witness of their most recent heist and the FBI closes in on the foursome.

Ben Affleck is still trying to shake off the affects of starring in numerous shit fests earlier this decade. Between his tabloid romance with J-Lo and some seriously questionable roles, the formerly respectable actor has become somewhat of a joke in Hollywood. Gone Baby Gone (directed by Affleck) was a great movie, but it did nothing to help the status of Ben Affleck, the actor. The Town is a film that should start erasing those bad memories…fast.

Set in Affleck’s home state, with all sorts of Bean Town references throughout the film, The Town is one of the best heist flicks in recent memory. We get solid performances from Affleck and Rebecca Hall, who plays the bank manager Affleck’s character becomes involved with. Jeremy Renner, plays Affleck’s best friend James Coughlin, the wild card of the bunch, with a performance that’s even more animated and impressive than the one he gave in last year’s The Hurt Locker. For someone that was relatively unknown a couple years ago, he sure looks like a star in the making, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he does with the Hawkeye character in 2012’s The Avengers.

The Town has a relatively long running time, but it gives the writers a chance to develop the three main characters while the pacing is still relatively quick. Aside from some really good action sequences, there’s enough humor and gully moments to keep the crowd interested. The bank scenes are definitely the best parts of the movie, with the post-heist chase after the second robbery being the highlight of the film, topped off by an awesome final showdown at Fenway Park. For all the flack you could give Affleck as an actor, his abilities as a writer and director have been remarkable so far. Between this movie, Gone Baby Gone, and Good Will Hunting, he’s batting a very strong three for three. Regardless of his acting resume, Affleck is an established star and if he wants to remain a serious player in Hollywood, the best thing he can do is keep making his own movies and start taking a closer look at the scripts other people are writing before deciding to star in those films.

Grade: A-
Viewings: 1
Replay Value: Definitely would watch again… maybe good enough to own.
Sequel Potential: None
Oscar Potential: With ten nominees for Best Picture, The Town is definitely an easy shoo-in at the moment and might be strong enough to hold on for a spot. I’d give Affleck some play for Best Director depending on what happens in the last couple months and I think a writing nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay is likely. The acting in this movie is solid, but I don’t know if it will be award worthy. Jeremy Renner gets a shout from me for Best Supporting Actor for now. Cinematography and some of the sound work could get some love too.
Nudity?: None

Posted in movie reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment »

« Newer Entries
Older Entries »