Thursday, May 24, 2012

5/24: Sixers/Cs, Suspensions, etc.

Greetings...

  • Sixers 82, Celtics 75 - What an ugly basketball game. Boston shot just 33% from the field in the loss, and the only reason this game was this close was because they dominated the boards 48-37 despite being one of the worst rebounding teams in the league. For Philly, Jrue Holiday was the bright spot, finishing with 20 points and 6 assists on 7-for-15 shooting to key the Sixer offense, and Elton Brand had a double-double with 13 and 10 up front. This series is headed to a game 7 in Boston, and I'd be shocked if Philly won there, but with how Boston played last night (and how Ray Allen's health looks), they aren't the lock that they should be.
  • The Miami Heat suspensions are out. Udonis Haslem will miss game 6 after his hard foul on Tyler Hansborough, and most seemed to feel that this was coming. The Haslem suspension is huge since he's easily their best front-court guy when Bosh is out on a team with already lackluster front-court play. Also, Dexter Pittman got 3 games for Miami, and I actually think that's pretty light in comparison to what he actually did. Alas, Pittman is inconsequential in this series so that move doesn't impact basketball on the court.
  • There is an apparently legitimate rumor that Shaquille O'Neal is going to interview for the Orlando Magic GM position. I hope they hire him just because of how much of a disaster it would be. Can you imagine Shaq in contract talks with a certified player agent? How would that even look?
  • The Braves have lost 3 straight games on the heels of a 2-1 walk-off loss last night in Cincy. Todd Frazier went lift-off against Cristhian Martinez and while the placement of the ball would've been a fly-out in most parks, it left the yard and that was that. A pretty good game out of Tommy Hanson here with 6 innings of 1-run ball, and Fredi Gonzalez even escaped mass hysteria when Chad Durbin actually managed to get 3 outs in the 7th inning at Great American Ballpark. Yikes. The Braves look to avoid the sweep later today, and need a win.
  • MLB Check - Remember when Cole Hamels was getting beat up on for all of the Bryce Harper madness? Well, he simply went out and threw 8 scoreless innings in dispatching of Washington last night. He's a top-10 pitcher and we shouldn't forget that. Boston is back to .500 after a 6-5 win over Baltimore. I've never wavered on Boston's candidacy as a playoff team, and I continue to believe they'll be there until the end. Trouble in Texas? The Rangers lost 5-3 to the Mariners yesterday, and now are just 7-8 in their last 15 games. I see no reason to panic because they are still the deepest lineup in baseball, and the pitching is better than its been, but the gauntlet hasn't been going full-steam lately.
What to watch for on Thursday...
  • MLB - Braves @ Reds - 7:00 SportSouth - Delgado vs. Bailey - Both starters are pretty mediocre, so it'll likely take some good offense for the Braves to avoid the brooms. 
  • NBA - Heat @ Pacers - 8:00 ESPN - Heat lead series 3-2 - Indiana looks to avoid elimination here at home. The Haslem injury tilts the scale a bit to Indy, but with Granger banged up and after the way they've played the last 2 games, it's tough to pick them. Gun to my head, I'd take the Heat, but Indiana will respond and compete.
  • MLB - Phillies @ Cardinals - 8:00 MLB - Blanton vs. Westbrook - If you enjoy watching pitchers that can't overwhelm anyone, this is for you.
Enjoy...

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