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      2010 Wimbledon: Longest match in history suspended

      June 24, 2010 /

      John Isner and Nicolas Mahut recorded the longest match in tennis history in terms of number of games and duration at Wimbledon on Wednesday – and they’re not even done. The 10-hour match (163 games) was suspended at 59-59 due to darkness.

      From ESPN.com:

      “Nothing like this will ever happen again. Ever,” Isner said in a courtside TV interview.

      The first-round match had already been suspended because of fading light Tuesday night after the fourth set.

      They have been playing each other for exactly 10 hours — 7 hours, 6 minutes in the fifth set alone, enough to break the full-match record of 6:33, set at the 2004 French Open.

      Never before in the history of Wimbledon, which was first contested in 1877, had any match — singles or doubles, men or women — lasted more than 112 games, a mark set in 1969. Isner and Mahut have played more games than that in their fifth set, without a victor, although the American came close: He had four match points but Mahut saved each one.

      Here are some stats from the epic match: Isner has 98 aces, compared to Mahut’s 95. Both of those numbers eclipsed the previous high in a match at any tournament, which was 78. There have been 881 points scored, with 612 in the fifth set. Isner has 218 winners to Mahut’s 217, while Isner has only 44 unforced errors to Mahut’s 37.

      And again, they’re not even done yet. That’s crazy.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, Tennis

      The Heat clear cap space, trade Cook

      June 23, 2010 /

      Take our picks, please!

      The Miami Heat have traded their way out of the first round of Thursday’s NBA draft but, in doing so, cleared more cap space by sending the 18th pick and guard Daequan Cook to Oklahoma City for the No. 32 pick in the second round.

      The Heat were not enamored with the quality of players in the draft and wanted to clear cap room, a source told ESPN.com. The net result of losing Cook’s $1.36 million salary and the value of the 18th pick is $3 million.

      Actually Cook’s salary for next season ($2.2 million) is what Miami is saving with this deal. But that’s not all. The #18 pick would make around $1.4 million — that’s what last year’s #18 pick, Ty Lawson, made this season — so the Heat will save a total of $3.6 million off of this year’s payroll by essentially giving Cook and the pick away.

      I believe this leaves Miami with three players (Michael Beasley, James Jones and Mario Chalmers) under contract and $48 million in cap space, assuming the team waives or trades Jones away by the end of June. Miami’s goal is to sign three big-name free agents and with $48 million in cap space, they can afford to start three players at $16 million per season. They’d have to fill out the roster with a mid-level player and veteran minimum guys, but if they were re-sign Dwyane Wade and add two big-name free agents, the vets would come calling.

      My gut tells me that LeBron, Wade and Chris Bosh will all sign with different teams, but that doesn’t mean that Miami won’t be able to sign a combination of Joe Johnson/Rudy Gay and Amare Stoudemire/Carlos Boozer/David Lee. And they may not even have to burn the full $48 million to do so.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, NBA Draft, News, Rumors & Gossip

      TMZ: Johan Santana accused of sexual battery

      June 23, 2010 /

      According to TMZ.com, Mets’ ace Johan Santana was accused of sexual battery on a golf course in Ft. Myers, Florida last year.

      TMZ obtained a copy of the report filed with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office on October 28, 2009 — one day after the alleged attack in Fort Myers. In the document, the accuser (referred to only as Jane Doe) claims she and Santana were walking on the golf course when he “began to kiss her and pull up her top, unclasping her bra.”

      The report continues: “Johan began to pull at [the accuser’s] skirt/skort and attempt [sic] to place his hands into her underwear.” According to the document the alleged victim “told Johan no multiple times but Johan persisted.”

      The report gets more graphic, when the accuser claims Santana penetrated her, grabbed and bruised her calf, and “ejaculated on her upper thigh.”

      The accuser claims she “cleaned her thigh with her underwear” — and then returned to a tennis court with Santana, and actually watched him play tennis with someone else.

      According to the report, a detective collected all of the accuser’s clothing as evidence.

      Here’s Santana’s response:

      “I’m aware of the situation,” Santana read from a prepared statement before the Mets-Tigers game at Citi Field. “What I can tell you is that police have investigated these claims last year, and I was never charged with anything, and the case is closed. Unfortunately at this time, that’s all I can say. And I have no further comments.”

      I’m surprised that no one has reported the story until now since it happened in October of 2009. But seeing as how the investigation is closed, I doubt he’ll face any punishment from MLB or the Mets – especially considering he was never charged with anything.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, MLB

      Report: Phil Jackson leaning towards retirement

      June 23, 2010 /

      Phil Jackson told the media on Wednesday that he’s leaning towards retiring instead of returning to the Lakers to defend their latest NBA title.

      From the Orange County Register:

      Jackson said he told Lakers owner Jerry Buss and select players such as Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher about his leanings.

      “Take a week and then make a decision,” said Jackson, who also is awaiting results from various medical tests he took Monday.

      Jackson seemed confident that he was ready to do something else in a quest for “making the next phase of my life” an accomplishment also. Jackson had said previously that it’d be hard to turn down the chance to go for a fourth set of three consecutive championships, and he acknowledged that ongoing desire Wednesday in referring to that temptation as “a fly in the ointment.”

      But Jackson is trying out this mentality of not coaching anymore and waiting to see “if something turns me around.”

      Jackson said he wouldn’t rule out coaching again if he stepped away but didn’t envision it.

      “I have to sit on it and do the right thing for myself,” he said. “I wouldn’t say that I’m 95 percent or 50 percent sure. This is what I feel right now.”

      Among his many accomplishments, Jackson has won 11 NBA championships as a coach and two more as a player. He was the 1996 NBA Coach of the Year, owns the most NBA titles as a head coach and has the most wins in NBA playoffs history. (Not to mention he also has the most wins in Bulls and Lakers’ history, which is incredible given the history of both franchises.)

      What I’m saying is that he doesn’t have much to prove anymore. The only reason to return would be because coaching is still fun for him and he can make it through the grind of another 82-game season. If he’s not up for it, then there’s no reason to continue.

      We’ll just have to wait and see what he decides.

      External Sports, NBA

      Rams taking right approach with Bradford

      June 23, 2010 /

      On Wednesday, Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo answered questions from fans (all four of them) at the Missouri Botanical Garden and reiterated that A.J. Feeley was his starting quarterback for now.

      “It would be an injustice to Sam and the rest of the team” to set a timetable, he said. “He’s in the early stages of developing as an NFL quarterback. He came into the league far advanced from some quarterbacks I’ve worked with. We’ll do first what’s right for the team and second what’s right for Sam.”

      St. Louis fans might not have wanted to hear that, but Spags is right when he says it’s not far to Bradford to make him the starter right away. He’s in the infancy stages of his career and just went from basic algebra to advanced calculus in terms of his learning curve from Oklahoma to the NFL.

      The inexperience of the Rams’ offensive line also plays into whether or not Bradford should start right away. Assuming 2010 second round pick Rodger Saffold joins 2009 first round pick Jason Smith in the starting lineup, the Rams’ offensive tackles will have a combined seven games of experience under their belts. That’s not to say that the line won’t be a strength by the end of the season (Smith and Saffold both offer plenty of upside, while center Jason Brown is an excellent pass blocker and guards Adam Goldberg and Jacob Bell are serviceable) – it’s just too early to tell what the Rams have at the position.

      Another thing to keep in mind is that the team has an extremely young receiving corps. I really like Laurent Robinson’s potential, but he hasn’t been able to stay healthy and neither has Donnie Avery, who was a bit of a disappointment last season. Brandon Gibson showed last year that he could push for a starting job, but he has fallen victim to nagging injuries himself. Rookie Mardy Gilyard is lightening in a bottle, but like Bradford, he too has a learning curve to overcome. Everyone focuses on the offensive line when it comes to judging whether or not a young quarterback should start, but the talent and experience level of the receiving corps plays a huge part as well.

      Spagnuolo and his staff are handling Bradford well. They’re allowing him to learn the system without having the pressure to succeed right away hanging over his head. If he looks like he’s ahead of the learning curve in preseason, then maybe the Rams can visit the idea of starting him as a rookie.

      Until then, let the kid learn.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      External Sports, NFL

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