March 16th update

First full day of NCAA relatively tame

• The first full day of the NCAA tournament was exciting, but not as thrilling as the tournament has been in the past, with only a couple upsets. The most notable result was #12 seed VCU downing #5 seed Wichita State 62-59, but even that one wasn't too shocking given that VCU went to the the Final Four just last season as an 11 seed. Bradford Burgess, who sent the Rams to the Elite 8 last year with his last second shot to beat Florida State, was the hero again, making a late 3 that proved to be the final margin.
• The most controversial game of the day was Syracuse's tainted victory over lowly UNC-Asheville. Syracuse, a 1 seed, was expected to destroy Asheville but was instead in a dogfight, leading by only 2-3 points for much of the final few minutes. What made it even worse is that Syracuse seemed to benefit from some awful officiating calls, including a phantom goaltending call, a lane violation that gave the Orange 2 points, and an out of bounds call against UNC-A when none of their players was remotely close to touching the ball. Without those plays, UNC-A, may have become the first 16 ever to defeat a 1 seed. The road doesn't get any easier for Syracuse who is without Fab Melo, one of their best players, who was suspended for the tournament due to academic reasons.
• 16 more games take place today so get ready for more action!


NBA trade deadline passes with flurry

• There was lots of movement at the trade deadline, although Dwight Howard (who will be with the Magic for another year and a half because he signed a waiver saying that he would choose not to become a free agent this summer), Steve Nash and others are still on their old teams.
• Monta Ellis, one of the top scorers in the NBA was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks for former #1 overall pick Andrew Bogut, who has been hurt for most of the year.
• Brazilians were on the move as big man Nene was dealt to the Washington Wizards in a 3 team deal that brought the physical but error-prone Javale McGee to the Denver Nuggets and lightning quick Leandro Barbosa was traded from the Toronto Raptors to the Indiana Pacers.
• The Portland Trail Blazers, who lost to the Knicks by 42 Wednesday night, are giving up on this season seemingly, trading starting Center Marcus Camby to the Rockets and starting Small Forward Gerald Wallace to the Nets for draft picks and young players. The Blazers also waived disappointing former #1 overall pick Greg Oden who is injured again and has only played a total of 82 games in the 4 1/2 years he's been in the NBA.
• Derek Fisher's second Lakers stint ended, as he was dealt to the Cavaliers with Luke Walton and Jason Kapono for Ramon Sessions and Christian Eyenga.


NFL Free Agency begins

• The NFL offseason has begun and lots of players have new homes already (although Peyton Manning isn't one of them yet).
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have made the biggest splash so far, signing the best WR (Vincent Jackson) the best offensive lineman (Carl Nicks) and arguably the best CB (Eric Wright) available to long term contracts that were not cheap.
• Former #1 overall pick Mario Williams left the Houston Texans for the Buffalo Bills, CB Cortland Finnegan left the Titans for the St. Louis Rams and RB Peyton Hillis signed with the Kansas City Chiefs where he is expected to form a deadly 1-2 punch with Jamaal Charles.
• Lots of other players, including Drew Brees, Ray Rice, DeSean Jackson, Wes Welker, Matt Forte, Dwayne Bowe and Reggie Wayne will return to their previous teams.

March 2nd update

Kentucky Beast of the South East (Conference)

• The 29-1 Wildcats have torn through the competition this season and are looking to continue their domination deep into March Madness. The lone blemish on their record was an early season one-point loss to Indiana on a last second 3 pointer. Kentucky has all but wrapped up a #1 seed at the top of the NCAA tournament. Led by freshman stud Anthony Davis, (and his impressive uni-brow, pictured above) and Michael-Kidd Gilchrist (who's said he will graduate from Kentucky despite being good enough to leave after this, his freshman year) the Wildcats look to be the odds on favorites to win the NCAA championship.
• The Florida Gators and Vanderbilt Commodores are 2 and 3 in the conference respectively but they are truly playing second fiddle to the Wildcats.
• The Alabama Crimson Tide and Tennessee Volunteers also seem to be good bets to make it to the Big Dance but after these five teams the conference quickly fades to mediocrity.


Big 10 Top Heavy with a few title contenders

• The top of the Big 10 has two powerhouse teams who are looking to cut down the nets in early April. The Michigan State Spartans, led by senior forward Draymond Green, are 24-6 and 13-4 in conference. The Ohio State Buckeyes who have been more balanced than people thought they would be, despite having superstar forward Jared Sullinger. Both have both been ranked in the top 5 this year, and are currently both ranked in the top 12.
• The Big 10 is deep with four other teams that should have no trouble making the tournament. The Michigan Wolverines, Wisconsin Badgers, Indiana Hoosiers and Purdue Boilermakers should all be playing in a few weeks.
• Sullinger and to a lesser extent Green should be high picks in the upcoming NBA draft, and their teams will be amongst the short list of teams that have a chance of making the Final Four. Both teams are flawed however and are not atop the list of favorites to be champions this year.


NBA Trade Deadline approaching

• With the NBA deadline only a couple weeks away (March 15) teams are looking harder to see if they should be adding pieces, cutting payroll or staying pat. Here are a few names making news:

- Steve Nash. Despite putting up numbers similar to the 2 seasons he won the NBA MVP, Steve Nash's Suns don't seem to be a playoff team and he'll be a free agent next season. So why not trade him? The issue is that Nash has been the heart and soul of the Suns for years now and has gained such a following in the Phoenix community that most fans (and seemingly the team as well) would rather forgo the value he might return in young talent and see the greatest Sun (and possibly the best PG in NBA history) retire with the team. The Suns have said they will accomodate a trade request if Nash asks, but he's said he wants to finish what he started with Phoenix as well.

- Rajon Rondo. The Celtics PG, known for his ability to get his teammates involved as well as his terrific defensive pressure is said to be at odds with coach Doc Rivers. The Celtics are said to be entertaining offers but a trade of Rondo would probably have to bring back equal or greater value for them to pull the trigger.

- Pau Gasol. Similar to Rondo, it would take a lot to deal him, and the Lakers have never publicly said they'd deal the talented 7 footer. They're starting to round into form after a slow start and Kobe Bryant has even publicly asked the team not to deal him.

- Monta Ellis. The #7 scorer in the NBA has been floundering with a mediocre Golden State team for years, wasting a ton of points. However, it's been said that the Orlando Magic would love to pick up the scoring PG/SG in an effort to give Dwight Howard a reason to re-sign with Orlando this summer. The issue is that Orlando doesn't have much else to offer.

- Raymond Felton. Now with the Trail Blazers, Felton has seen his production severely drop off as he's only putting up 10 points and 6 assists per game. A team like the Lakers or 76ers could use him but he wouldn't provide a big upgrade given his current production.