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      Four observations about the West Region

      March 17, 2009 /

      1. #11 Utah State looks like a sneaky smart pick against #6 Marquette.
      The Golden Eagles are just 1-5 after losing Dominic James, their fourth-leading scorer and best playmaker, for the rest of the season. Granted, those five losses were to UConn, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Villanova, and they only lost by an average of 7.2 points, but Marquette has to travel to Boise to face #25-ranked Utah State, who had a 19-game winning streak this season. The Golden Eagles better account for Gary Wilkinson and Jared Quayle, who make up one of the best inside-outside combinations west of the Mississippi.

      2. The committee didn’t do Mississippi State any favors.
      Congratulations on winning the SEC tournament, Bulldogs! Now we need you to make the 2000 mile-trip to Portland, Oregon by Thursday, where you’ll play the Pac-10 champions in their neighboring state. Good luck, and enjoy the Pacific Northwest!

      3. UConn shouldn’t be seriously challenged until the Elite Eight, but this is UConn we’re talking about.
      If the Huskies come out with a singular focus, no team on their side of the bracket should be able to keep up. Washington, Purdue and BYU are nice teams, but they don’t have the star power or coaching experience of the Huskies. Nor do they have anyone to matchup with Hasheem Thabeet on the inside. However, UConn is known for having tournament ADHD, so its entirely possible that one or more of these teams make the Huskies sweat late into the second half.

      4. Missouri/Memphis should be a good one.
      The Utah State/Marquette winner could easily give Mizzou a run, and Memphis might be challenged by the winner of the Cal/Maryland game, but if the Tigers face the…um…the other Tigers in the Sweet Sixteen, it’ll be a nice matchup. Memphis hasn’t played a good team since early February (when they blew out Gonzaga in Spokane) and Missouri just won the Big 12 tourney in convincing fashion. Both teams are stellar defensively, but Mizzou has an advantage on offense with DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons on the front line.

      College Basketball, March Madness

      Hamels’ elbow injury not serious

      March 17, 2009 /

      Cole HamelsAccording to MLBlogs.com, doctors found no structural damage in Cole Hamels’ elbow after examining it on Tuesday. Hamels had left Phillies’ spring training on Monday after reporting elbow problems in his pitching arm.

      The Phillies just announced that they have received good news from Cole Hamels’ doctor’s visit today in Philadelphia: there is no structural damage to his left elbow. Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. is in a meeting, but we are told he will provide more information later.

      That sounds like good news. Of course, we don’t know what the plan is for Hamels. Give him a shot? Shut him down for a week or two?

      That’s not only good news for Philly fans, but also for fantasy baseball owners who draft in the next week or two (or who have already drafted). Hamels still might miss a start in the beginning of the season, but after this news, he still seems like a safe pick. (Although keep an eye on any updating reports.)

      MLB

      Chipper Jones: ‘WBC format needs to change’

      March 17, 2009 /

      After aggravating his strained oblique muscle during batting practice for Team USA in preparation for a game against the Netherlands, Chipper Jones says that the format for the World Baseball Classic needs to change.

      “There’s some serious problems with the WBC setup,” said Jones, who will skip the rest of the tournament. “I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. But I wouldn’t do it again under the current format. There’s way too many days off. This tournament could be over by now.”

      Jones, who also played in the inaugural WBC in 2006, said he won’t play again if the format isn’t changed.

      “Just way too many days off,” he said. “We stayed in Toronto for a week and played three games. I don’t know if you ever stayed in Toronto, but it’s not exactly Las Vegas. To say that we were plucking our eyebrows out one at a time would be an understatement.

      “You’re not getting the work in that you should. You’re getting reps, but you’re not getting the at-bats that you need.

      “Getting to share a clubhouse with the guys and getting to know people on a different level is the cool part about it. But when you’re talking about a three-week tournament, and you could literally play eight games in three weeks, it’s just too much down time for spring training.”

      I’m sure Chipper speaks for a lot of players regarding the WBC. The timing of it is strange and it has to be a small mental and physical grind for the major league players involved. It’s nice that some of these players want to represent America, but having the tournament butt right up against the regular season makes no sense.

      If they’re going to have the games be played in doors, why not have the tournament run right after the regular season? They would still have players bow out because of injuries and other concerns, but at least the athletes who do participate would have an entire offseason to rest up before spring training starts again.

      MLB

      Does anybody want L.J. Smith?

      March 17, 2009 /

      At the start of the NFL free agency period, it appeared that free agent tight end L.J. Smith had two potential candidates to acquire his services: the Falcons and Lions.

      In early March, Smith visited the Lions, but left Detroit without a contract. He then traveled to Atlanta and this past weekend, ESPN reported that Smith had chosen the Falcons and that a deal would be worked out soon.

      But now the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that the Falcons have ended their talks with the free agent and won’t pursue Smith going forward.

      Smith’s options were down to Detroit and Atlanta. It seemed like the Falcons would easily be the winner. But Smith dragged his feet and the Falcons had a change of heart. In the end, they are a running team and Smith doesn’t block. That’s what football teams call “a bad scheme fit.”

      Ironically, on the same day the Falcons decided to end contract negotiations with Smith, the Lions signed tight end Will Heller, formally of the Seahawks.

      Chances are, Smith was asking for too much and the Falcons balked. There’s no sense overspending on a soon-to-be 29-year old tight end who doesn’t block and who comes with major injury concerns. Atlanta would love to give quarterback Matt Ryan a nice receiving target at tight end, but the draft is deep at that position this year so expect the Falcons to target one at some point next month. (Many will buy into the notion that the Falcons will go with Brandon Pettigrew in the first round if he’s available, but don’t forget that they have more pressing needs on the defensive side of the ball.)

      So where will Smith wind up? The Lions could still be an option, but they seemed to have moved on after Smith snubbed them for Atlanta. As of right now, there doesn’t seem to be much of a market for the free agent, even though he’s currently the best tight end on the market.

      Update: Apparently the Ravens wanted L.J…

      NFL

      Marshawn Lynch to be suspended 1-2 games

      March 17, 2009 /

      CBSSports.com is reporting that Bills’ running back Marshawn Lynch is expected to be suspended one to two games next season.

      Marshawn LynchLynch earlier this month pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge stemming from a Feb. 11 arrest in Culver City, Calif. According to the police report, Lynch was one of three men seated in a parked Mercedes Benz when he was questioned.

      At the time, he was charged with possession of a concealed firearm. But the felony gun charge later was reduced to three misdemeanors — with two of them dropped. Lynch was sentenced to three years of probation and 80 hours of community service.

      He also agreed to submit to police searches at any time.

      Now that he’s a Bill, maybe T.O. could help this kid get his life on track…

      …wait, what happened? I blacked out for a second.

      NFL

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