- West Virginia 70, Clemson 33 - For those of you (like me) that didn't watch this game, no, that score is not a misprint. West Virginia put up a bowl-record 70-spot on Clemson that featured bowl records in most points for a quarter (35 in the 2nd), half (49 in the 1st) and the aforementioned full game record. I'm not even really sure what to say, just in that we knew Clemson's defense wasn't their strength and scoring 33 points SHOULD be enough to compete (and win, really) but they didn't show up defensively. WV netted 600 yards of offense including a ludicrous 401 yard, 6 TD, 0 INT performance from Geno Smith. I'm moving on.
- Temple knocks off #3 Duke last night in Philly after shooting 56% from the field and 50% on threes to outlast the Devils. I knew this would be a competitive game, but the Owls had it going on all cylinders offensively, and, led by Khalif Wyatt's 22 points, it was enough. Duke got 17 points in 19 minutes off the bench from Miles Plumlee, but Austin Rivers shot just 3 of 11, and the Thornton/Curry combo didn't give them much. I wouldn't take it as an all-encompassing sign of bad things for Duke, but that's a flawed basketball team just like most college teams.
- The Cubs have traded Carlos Zambrano to the Marlins for Chris Volstad. The "retired" Zambrano was never going to retire, and we all knew it, but the Cubs are being forced to pay $15 million of the $18 million remaining on his deal in order to unload him. I look forward to Zambrano melting down in the NL East in the very near future.
- NCAA Hoops Round-Up - #1 Syracuse holds serve in a Big East road game against Providence with an 87-73 victory led by six players in double figures. Georgetown outlasts Marquette 73-70 thanks to 26 points from Jason Clark as they continue to ride a hot streak. And finally, Kansas beats up on cross-state rival K-State by 18 in the Phog led by a ho-hum 15 and 14 from the beast that is Thomas Robinson.
To the NBA...
- Bobcats 118, Knicks 110 - Umm, does anyone want to talk about the Knicks being 2-4? There's been a surprisingly low level of chatter about the Knicks slow start, which I'm guessing is partially due to them being without Baron still, but giving up 118 points at home to the hapless Bobcats is pretty pathetic. Boris Diaw poured in 27 points on 12-15 shooting and Gerald Henderson had 24 points on 10 of 13 to lead the Bobcats while Corey Maggette somehow continued to struggle by shooting 4 of 12 again. For the Knicks, they got 57 total points from Amare and Carmelo, and even got the infusion of 18 points from Shumpert off the bench, but you're not going to win when you allow the opposition to shoot 55/64/81 slash lines. Good gracious.
- LA Clippers 117, Houston 89 - We saw some flashes from the Clips last night. Paul was in total command from the tip finishing with 20 points and 10 assists in just 29 minutes, and Blake was dominant and explosive (22 and 9), but I can't figure out if it was Lob City playing so well, or Houston being so mediocre. The Rockets have one of the weirder rotations in the league right now with so much depth but no discernible top-8, and with Kyle Lowry as the only guy playing particularly well at the moment. Speaking of Lowry, I can't go by without telling you that a) I love Kyle Lowry irrationally, and b) he's averaging 15 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds on the season to back up that love. That is all.
- Box Score Round-up - Dwight Howard threw up a 28 point/20 rebound explosion on JeVale McGee and the Wiz last night as the Magic cruised to an 18-point win to keep Washington winless. Man, they're bad. The Raptors got 31 from Bargnani to outlast the Cavs in the "least compelling game award" for the night. Miami outright blitzed the Pacers 118-83 led by another ridiculous Lebron game with 33 points and 13 dimes. I guess the talk of the Pacers ascension may have been a tad premature? Oh, by the way, Dwyane Wade didn't play in this game. Yes. Jrue Holiday netted 23 points and 8 dimes to lead the Sixers to a road win over the Hornets by 8. Eric Gordon returned with 22 points for NO in a welcome sign, but it wasn't enough. The short-handed Grizz win on the road in Minnesota led by an unexpected 20 from Tony Allen. Without Z-Bo (out 6-8 weeks), they were able to put up 90 and that was enough despite Kevin Love's somehow-usual 27 and 14. Dirk played in his 1,000th game last night. That was the most interesting thing (besides the SportsCenter cut away of young, skinny, short-haired Dirk in game #1) from that game. And alas, the Spurs get a home win without Manu (out 6-8 weeks) thanks to a 15-11 from Duncan and 21 from Tony Parker. On the Dubs side, Monta Ellis threw up 30 field goal attempts (making 15) and scored 38 points to go along with 20/8 from Curry, but they got no help on offense.
What to watch for on Thursday...
- NBA - Heat @ Hawks - TNT 8:00 - Lebron and Wade are both questionable for tonight's game at Philips, but I'd like to see the full-strength rematch. Marvin Williams continues to play out of his mind (I love this) and he'll be key in trying to slow LBJ.
- NBA - Lakers @ Blazers - TNT 10:30 - Another really nice matchup to watch. Wes Matthews gets the Kobe assignment, and Portland is one of the rare teams that can semi-match-up with the Lakers up front when Camby and Aldridge are out there together.
- NCAAB - Michigan @ Indiana - ESPN2 9:00 - A quietly awesome college hoops game buried on the deuce tonight. Both teams are in the top-15 and Indiana has those two enormous upset wins. This is a throwback to the 80s or something.
- Football - Under-Armour High School All American Game - ESPN 7:30 - If you desperately need football in your life, there's a collection of the finest high school players in the country going tonight. Check out your favorite college's recruits, etc.
Enjoy...
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