The heart of a Champion truly lies in how they fight back, and the Detroit Pistons showed last night that they still have a knockout punch in their arsenal. With their decisive 105-88 win over the Philadelphia Sixers, the Pistons put to rest any upset talk, at least until game 3 on Friday in Philly.
Thadeus Young’s hot start and nice contributions from Lou Williams and Reggie Evans (again) off the bench, were not enough to overcome the less then stellar performances of Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, and Willie Green. The three starters were a combined 4-23 from the field, and 18% shooting will not do much to get you a win, let alone keeping your team close.
In the end, this is what you had to expect after the Pistons got embarrassed on their home court in game 1 of the opening round series.
In game 1 the Pistons relied more heavily on Rasheed Wallace in the post one-on-one against Dalembert, which effectively took the Pistons away from their strength, which is normally …
We’ll probably forget this a few months from now, but for young players like Thadeus Young, Rodney Carney and Lou Williams the memory may last a lifetime. For these players, it was their first taste of the playoffs, and first win in the post season as well.
When we read the papers tomorrow morning or listen to the radio, we may read or hear the commentary on how the Pistons played poorly down the stretch and the Sixers were fortunate enough to capitalize. They may point out (as I did in my Sixers preview), that Detroit may be prone to a let down because they;ve rested their players for so long. They may point out D-Town played apathetically in the fourth quarter (actually for the last 18 minutes), and lost the game more then the Sixers won it.
But this win is more then the x’s and o’s on the chalk board. It’s more than a 1-0 lead in the first round of the playoffs. This victory is a moment. It is a …
I would truly like to think that the Sixers have a chance against the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, which begin in Detroit tomorrow. However, my mind won’t let me get to wistful in dreaming of an upset.
The Sixers have put together an amazing season, and despite their late season swoon (losses in 5 of their last 6 games), they have nothing to be ashamed of as players like Andre Iguodala and Samuel Dalembert proved they were worth more than people gave them credit, and youngsters like Thadeus Young and Lou Williams showed amazing maturity and provide hope going into next season.
But this season is still going strong, so let’s not close the door on the chapter just yet. The Pistons have about 400 more games of playoff experience (and 1 more Championship) then the Sixers, and that only takes into account their starting 5. However the Sixers are young and the Pistons have the look of a team that’s been going through the motions the last …
Born on February 14th, 1963, John Marzano always seemed destined for great things. The date of his birth was befitting of the man he would be become. A loving Husband, Father and Grandfather. And the rare professional athlete who epitomized what Philadelphian’s look for in a player, no matter the sport.
Mr. Marzano was found dead earlier today, after an apparent fall down a flight of stairs, believed to be caused from an apparent heart attack, but reports from the coroner’s office have yet to be released.
Born and raised in the South Philadelphia area, Mr. Marzano elected to go to college at Temple University after graduating from Central High, despite being drafted in the 3rd round of the Baseball Amateur Draft in 1981. He starred at Temple for 3 years as a catcher and was drafted in the first round (14th overall), by the Boston Red Sox in 1984. That same year, he also earned a spot on Team USA Baseball.
His major league career began with Boston in ’87, and he had …
When the schedules come out, it seems to be everyone’s favorite pastime to try and discern how many games their favorite team will win. I too like to indulge, but I like to think I have better sources then most. The following should be considered as fact, and if you’re the betting sort, I suggest you take out a loan and ride the season out. You’ll thank me in February.
Game 1: St. Louis Rams: Thanks to a healthy Marc Bulger and re-energized Steven Jackson, The Rams will roll into town with a lot of hope at the start of the season. However, in the first quarter of the game, while rolling to his right, Bulger pulls his arm back when he sees an open Torry Holt streaking down the field past Assante Samuel, who was blinded by a reflection from a penny Joe Banner dropped on the sideline.
As Bulger’s arm begins to move forward, it snaps off cleanly from …
Last night the Sixers continued their end of season fall from grace, this time at the hands of Lebron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers, who literally stole the win away from the Sixers after the game had actually ended.
The loss wasted a brilliant fourth quarter from Lou Williams (21 pts, 12 in the 4th), and further demoralized the hometown crowd.
With about 6 seconds remaining, Williams recovered a mis-handled ball from Andre Iguodala, and chucked up a shot from just inside the 3 point line, to put the Sixers ahead 90-89.
On the ensuing possession, James stumbled down the lane, and tossed up a bad shot that clanked off the rim and into Devin Brown’s hands, who went for a put back that missed as time expired.
The Sixers quickly left the court, but were called back when the refs reviewed the play and concluded that Brown was fouled on his last second attempt.
Brown sank both free throws and the Sixers were sent back to the locker room with their tails between their legs.
The …
Eddie Jordan, Coach of the Washington Wizards, described the play of Gilbert Arenas last night by saying, “He made daggers.”
Well, last night he not only made them, but he used them too. Leading the Wizards on a 10-0 run in the fourth, the Wizards sucked the life out of the Sixers last drive for playoff position, winning 109-93.
Had the Sixers managed to play well in the fourth quarter of their last two games, they would have gone into tomorrow nights match-up against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a chance to take over the 4th seed in the playoff picture.
Instead, they head into that game with the prospect of staying with the Toronto Raptors for the 6th playoff seed. So instead of a reasonable first round match-up with Cleveland, they will have to take on either Detroit or Orlando with what should be a brief series before before they head home for the off-season.
Heading into the 3rd quarter last night, the Sixers held a 6 point lead, and still a chance to secure …
To the East Side… they finally got a piece of the pie-i-i-iiiii! Ah The Jefferson’s, that classic sitcom with Sherman Helmsley. The rags to upper middle class riches theme is a good comparison to The Sixers story that’s been written this season. The only difference is that, although I’ve seen just about every episode of The Jefferson’s, I never really enjoyed it. Hey, there used to be only 5 channels, some nights I just didn’t have much choice.
With the Sixers, on the other hand, I can’t wait till they come on. With four games left the Sixers are 2 games behind The Cleveland Cavaliers and just 1 game back of Washington. They play both teams in those final four games, and if The Sixers win out, they will clinch the 5 seed and with some luck, hop over The Cavs and get home court advantage for the first round.
Do I think they’ll be able to do it? I think it’s possible, maybe a 40% chance, which isn’t bad, but I’d have …
Everyone’s lasting image of the moment that brought Philadelphia its last major championship isn’t Andrew Toney shooting a jumper over Michael Cooper, or Moses Malone grabbing a rebound or even Dr. J tomahawking a slam. It’s of Maurice Cheeks, giddily running down the floor, dribbling the ball chest high and throwing down a “slam” (I use quotes because it was more of a layup where his hand just grazed the rim, but still).
It is not only the defining moment of that last triumphant year, it is a defining moment in Philadelphia sports, right there with Chuck Bednarik standing over Frank Gifford, Tug Mcgraw striking out Willie Wilson, and Bobby Clarke’s famous two tooth smile.
This week gives Mo the opportunity to repeat that moment, at least figuratively.
The Philadelphia Sixers will have an opportunity to solidify their recent ascent to the 5th seed in the playoff picture. It is imperative that the Sixers lock into that 5 seed because it would probably present their most favorable match-up in the playoffs against the Cleveland …
When Charlie Manuel sat upon Santa’s lap back in December he sure had a lot of things on his mind. Charlie’s Mom told him that this was absolutely the last year he would be able to visit Santa. After all, she reasoned, he been growed up for a long time now… and he was simply getting too big for poor old Santa to handle.
So she told Charlie to make sure he wished for something good, because after this year he would not get another opportunity. Well Charlie thought long and hard for the right thing to wish for. A new fishing rod? “Nah”, Charlie thought. A rubber ducky? “I could never replace Bubba… he been with me ever since I growed up!” Maybe a bucket full of biscuits wth mustard, Charlie wondered? “Hmm, tempting… but Momma gives them to me for free anyway.”
Charlie thought for weeks about what he wanted and as he approached Santa, he was frustrated at his inability to figure that out.
“HO HO HO!” Santa exclaimed as Charlie …
It’s a notable feat for a team to go on a 10-0 run at any point during a game, but when a player goes on a 10-0 run on his own… it’s truly amazing. Andre Iguodala’s abilities as a team leader and genuine Star have been a point of contention in the media and with the fan base his entire career, but last night he figuratively choked his critics and brought back nightmares of Andrew Toney raining jumpers to the horror of Celtics fans.
Trailing by 5 heading into the fourth quarter last night in Boston, the Sixers turned on the jets and outscored the seemingly lackluster Celtics 29-19 to take the win, and more importantly build further on the great momentum they’ve created for themselves.
With the 95-90 victory, the Sixers move ahead of Toronto for the 6th playoff seed, just a game back of Washington for the 5th. And you can thank Andre for that.
With just over 8 minutes left in the game, Eddie House’s3 point jumper put the Celtics up …
In the Spring of 2008… Pedro Martinez’s dwarf friend will hit Johan Santana in the head with a baseball bat, after the concerned Santana asks him, “Whose your Daddy?”. In turn, Santana misses the rest of the season… two weeks due to the concussion and the remainder of the season because he’s afraid to leave his house.
In the Spring of 2008… Ryan Howard will get off to a record breaking start, hitting 23 home runs and knocking in 73 by April 30th. However, he will not take another at bat for the rest of the season, due to 437 consecutive intentional walks.
In the Spring of 2008… After striking out 32 consecutive times looking to start the season… Pat Burrell finally admits to needing glasses. He finishes the season with a .303 average with 48 home runs and 132 rbi’s, stealing the MVP award from Chase Utley. Asked if the specs had a negative effect on his love life, Burrell replies, “No way man, Giggity! Giggity! Giggity!”
In the Spring of 2008… When …
