Note: Sunday was taken up by travel (and the usual immediate catch-up after a week away) and the following was largely done Sat. night from San Diego. With the passing of Duke Snider, though, I don’t have time to do his story justice so I’ll cover him Thursday, as well as Ollie Matson’s, which I failed to do last week.
Baseball Quiz: Walter Johnson is No. 9 on the all-time strikeout list with 3509 (Greg Maddux, Phil Niekro, and Ferguson Jenkins are Nos. 10-13). The first eight are all modern-day hurlers (post-1960 for these purposes). Name ‘em. Answer below.
BYU by 13 Again
In the eyes of the pollsters, especially those who don’t watch San Diego State on a regular basis, there’s a big difference between losing by 13 and going down by single digits and SDSU has now lost twice to BYU by 13. Otherwise, the Aztecs are 27-0. Despite so many of the other top ten teams continuing to lose once a week these days, I wouldn’t be surprised to see San Diego State fall out of the top ten and they are headed to a 4-seed, not the lock 2, maybe a 1 some of us were hoping for come March, unless they can win the Mountain West tournament.
And so Saturday’s 80-67 loss at the hands of the Cougars was kind of a bitter one for Aztec fans, especially as this was simply the biggest game, ever, for the SDSU basketball program. Forget that it was two top ten teams, late in the season, it was hated BYU and San Diego State was on national television for the first time in its history as well. Why CBS even had its top duo doing the game, Verne Lundquist and Clark Kellogg (excepting Jim Nantz come NCAA tourney time).
I picked a hotel close to the arena so I wouldn’t have any hassles getting there and it was a breeze for me. I was in a parking lot across the street from the site in five minutes. Not having ever been to this campus, it was pretty much as I pictured it, not real pretty but you might say serviceable. Fraternity row is literally 50-feet from Viejas Arena, for starters.
The crowd was stoked during the pregame and the Aztec players put on a slam dunk contest at one stage, which part of me wouldn’t have allowed. It was just an unnecessary cocky act for a team that had lost to these same Cougars by 13 in Provo.
And as many of you know, SDSU scored the first bucket and never led the rest of the way. BYU’s Jimmer Fredette is definitely worth the price of admission and he’s going to make one NBA franchise very happy they were able to draft him. Jimmer will put fannies in the seats and his jersey will be a top-seller instantly.
SDSU, though, held Jimmer to 8-of-23 from the field, 4-of-8 from downtown, as he scored 25, but the problem was they double-teamed him virtually the entire game and the dude isn’t stupid. He found the open man…to the tune of nine assists…as his teammates drained 10-of-16 from 3-point land. 10-of-16!!! “My word!” I imagine Verne Lundquist must have said at least once during the telecast. 14-of-24 overall from downtown every game would earn you a national championship.
In the end, I was very happy I set up my trip around this game. Imagine, I bought my excellent seat before the season started for a whopping $22.75 online! No one except me seemed to foretell how big the contest would be. There were tickets easily going for over $100 by game day ($200 and up was not out of the question as I read and heard about from those around me). But for all the disappointment, SDSU’s season isn’t over yet. It’s all about the brackets, and understand the Aztecs have never won a single NCAA tourney game so just getting the first win, regardless of the competition, could work wonders for them the rest of the way.
But concerning the atmosphere on Saturday, I agree with ESPN’s Andy Katz, who was at the game.
“Three cheers for Aztec faithful. San Diego State found a way to wake up a dormant program. The energy inside Viejas Arena was tremendous…I never thought I’d see this here. They have made SDSU a happening place.”
“The Show went on. And on. It was loud. It was cookoo. It was fun. At times it was college basketball played inside a bass drum. Everyone except Jack Nicholson was there. It was national. It was electric.
“But in the end…the Cougars were better coming in and better going out.”
Pssst…that other school, the one where my sheepskin is actually from, Wake Forest, is now 1-13 in ACC play after another desultory loss, this one to Clemson, 63-49. The Deaconwear remains stashed deep inside the dresser.
And one other basketball note. Kudos to St. John’s which continues to surge as the Johnnies hammered Villanova, at ‘Nova, to go 11-5 in Big East play. Great for the New York City area.
But wait…there’s more! I’m writing this segment Saturday night from my hotel and suddenly, what do my eyes see? No, not eight tiny reindeer but Virginia Tech defeating Duke?! I had just buried Va Tech, but suddenly their NCAA hopes have been resurrected. Good for them. [I can’t stand Duke’s Plumlee boys. They remind me of the freakin’ Winklevoss twins…who give earthlings a bad name.]
So…the plot thickens as we wait to see how the order is shuffled in Monday’s polls (No. 5 Texas also lost, as did No. 4 Pitt).
And I almost forgot. After Saturday’s game, I returned my car to the airport because it was just going to be easier cabbing it Sunday morning and I decided to go into the terminal to pick up some newspapers when who do I see, carting his bags, but CBS’ Verne Lundquist. It was just the two of us.
Well, we proceeded to have a nice chat, about the game and college ball in general. I expressed how much I loved his work and he was very appreciative of the compliment. I mean we’re talkin’ Verne Lundquist, sports fans. Not only a quality college sports announcer, but the man on No. 16 at Augusta for all these years [“Yes-sir!”]. What was really cool, though, is it was great to see a giant in his business be such an authentic guy and gentleman. You rock, Verne!
Oops…one more. On the flight home Sunday, I went through all the conference standings in men’s basketball and I think it’s a lock the Big East gets ten selections for the Big Dance. They deserve it.
–So who wants to be a Mets fan? Any takers? I’ll sell you my Lifetime Mets Fan Card for just $20. Now we’ve learned that Mets ownership, comprised of nothing more than a bunch of liars, received a $25 million loan from Major League Baseball last November to meet operating expenses. None other than former Commissioner Fay Vincent said over the weekend this is a “serious concern.” Yet there has been Fred Wilpon, since the Madoff scandal broke, saying ‘What problems?’
You know what, Mets fans? It’s time for our own Day of Rage!!! After Friday prayers (and after I put a dent in that other column I do) let’s all meet in Flushing Meadows Park and, you know, riot! And then we’ll march on Citi Field and demand that the Wilpons and Saul Katz sell the team to Mark Cuban or Donald Trump, immediately. Then, if ownership doesn’t comply with our demands, we’ll march on the Mets’ Interior Ministry and burn it down! And we’ll free all the concessionaires who are making $3.50 a day from the gulag, and we’ll arm the locals with bats and balls after we break into the Bats and Balls Depot. And then…oops, it seems that I’ve drawn the attention of the NYPD…I need to move on to another topic. We’ll pick this up next time when the heat dies down a bit.
–The Sunday New York Times had a piece on Derek Jeter’s mammoth mansion outside Tampa and now I hope the guy falls on his face this year. He’s officially lost touch with reality.
–Lindsey Vonn won her first race since suffering her concussion, a downhill in Sweden, the 40th World Cup victory of her amazing career, which of course is a record for both American men and women.
–Back to the BYU-SDSU game, many of the San Diego State students dressed as missionaries, white short-sleeve shirts, ties, the whole get up, and some of their signs were clever. Like “Jimmer Fredette is a False Idol,” and “My Jimmer shoots from long range too.” [OK, maybe a bit crude but cracked up yours truly when it was flashed on the big screen.]
–I was kind of surprised to see a section of I-5 heading down to San Diego named after World War II hero John Basilone, he being a Jersey boy and all. Makes me want to watch “The Pacific” again.
–What was USC thinking in hiring Lane Kiffin from Tennessee? Yeah, that was a year ago but now it’s become clear that between Kiffin (who ran the football program there before being hired by the Trojans prior to the 2010 season) and Volunteers basketball coach Bruce Pearl, the Tennessee sports program is a total mess. The NCAA now alleges that Kiffin “failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance within the football program and failed to monitor the activities regarding compliance of several assistant football coaches.” Kiffin could still be penalized for his actions at Tennessee, and that could then impact what he’s able to do at USC. Just an incredibly stupid move to hire Kiffin in the first place. The Trojans knew about a lot of this stuff beforehand…hell, Sports Illustrated highlighted it when Kiffin was at Tennessee. And that’s a memo.
–Then there’s the other side of college sports. Last time I forgot to note the history-making Caltech basketball team, which snapped a stupendous 310-game conference losing streak (over 26 years) in defeating Occidental last Tuesday, 46-45. The Los Angeles Times’ Bill Plaschke wrote of the scene following Ryan Elmquist’s winning free throw.
“Elmquist sank the shot with 3.3 seconds remaining…breaking one of the nation’s most celebrated losing streaks and giving birth to the sort of sports bedlam that one would find only at curiously wonderful Caltech.
“As several hundred howling fans swarmed the court in the tiny recreation center gym on Caltech’s campus, freshman guard Todd Cramer was embraced by an older, distinguished-looking man.
“ ‘I thought, wait a minute, that’s the school president, and he just rushed the court?’ Cramer said. ‘How cool.’
“Mike Edwards, a sophomore guard, was given a strong high five by another familiar face.
–It’s a time for breeding in the horse racing industry. Right after Rachel Alexandra hooked up with Curlin’, we’ve learned that Zenyatta “made her first trip to the breeding shed to mate with 2006 Preakness winner Bernadini, better known as the dashing “Italian Stallion” around the barn. “Ooh, there’s that stud, Bernadini,” say the mares. “Boy would I like to….”
–Uh oh…back to college shenanigans. It was last year I acquired some Coastal Carolina Chanticleerwear as part of their baseball team’s run, but now the hoops team, which had a 22-game winning streak, has fallen on hard times as the program is under NCAA investigation, including the status of leading scorer Desmond Holloway, who has been suspended while awaiting an NCAA decision on whether he can be reinstated. Coach Cliff Ellis is no stranger when it comes to questions of ethical behavior (witness past shady stints at Clemson and Auburn) and he has eight transfers on his team. A former player claims Ellis signed too many players and this kid’s scholarship was taken away. The kid also says players received illegal benefits.
All of this means that my Coastal Carolina shirt has been suspended as well from being worn while jogging or at the mall. Of course there’s another way I handle such matters. Recall I had a Manchester United shirt with the sponsor, AIG, emblazoned on it. Seeing as I couldn’t possibly wear it, especially in the New York area, I shipped it to my friends on the island of Yap in Micronesia, which is like Elba for banned sportswear.
–Luke Donald won the World Golf Match Play Championship in Tucson, where it snowed in the mountains this weekend and was in the mid-40s during Sunday’s round. Donald defeated Martin Kaymer, who in the process became No. 1 in the World Golf Rankings. [Johnson Wagner won the alternate PGA Tour event in Mexico…and no one got hurt!]
–Amidst the tragedy of the earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, I wanted to relay a story on the power of nature. The quake unleashed a wall of ice from a glacier in New Zealand’s Alps, 30 million tons of it, into a lake that then caused waves 11-feet high for 30 minutes. The people of Christchurch need your prayers.
–After my last bit on concussions, NBC News ran a story on how many among teenage athletes are now being diagnosed. It’s not a pretty picture, but at least some kids are learning they may have to give up their favorite contact sport before they suffer permanent brain damage.
“Arizona State quarterback Steven Threet decided to walk away from football after suffering four concussions in five years, including two this past fall. Threet says he had concussions on Oct. 23 at California and Nov. 26 against UCLA that ended his junior year. He told The Arizona Republic on Wednesday that he’s still experiencing symptoms from the last concussion, including headaches and difficulty sleeping.”
–The New York Times is reporting that “Spider-man: Turn Off the Dark” could have its formal opening delayed until June! The third delay was to take it to March 15, but now producers feel they need to make even more changes in order to improve its worldwide commercial prospects. The show blows…just shut it down.
–A “Lifetime Jerk” award goes to Keith Olbermann, who is launching a new Web site, the “FOK News Channel.” That’s just stupid.
–If you’re like me and by habit since birth watch “NBC Nightly News,” you must read Sunday’s “Doonesbury.” It’s a classic.
–I’m watching “The Oscars” and if you must know, I’m wearing Levi Strauss.
Top 3 songs for the week of 2/23/80: #1 “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” (Queen) #2 “Do That To Me One More Time” (The Captain & Tennille…keep it clean, Toni) #3 “Yes, I’m Ready” (Teri DeSario with K.C….not bad for an 80s tune)…and…#4 “Cruisin’” (Smokey Robinson… ditto) #5 “Rock With You” (Michael Jackson…from “Off the Wall” LP with Quincy Jones. Rod Temperton penned this particular song. See how serious I can be? Later in the spring of ’80 this album would burn itself into my memory, and not for a good reason, but I can’t tell you why. Carry on…) #6 “Longer” (Dan Fogelberg) #7 “On The Radio” (Donna Summer…eh, coulda been worse) #8 “Desire” (Andy Gibb) #9 “Coward Of The County” (Kenny Rogers… long before he got a new face and became Benny Beernut) #10 “Sara” (Fleetwood Mac)
Baseball Quiz Answer: First eight on all-time strikeout list.
Nolan Ryan…5714
Randy Johnson…4875
Roger Clemens…4672
Steve Carlton…4136
Bert Blyleven…3701
Tom Seaver…3640
Don Sutton…3574
Gaylord Perry…3534
Next Bar Chat, Thursday. [For those of you who missed it, I did end up doing a BC last Thursday, after saying I wouldn’t. Check the archives.]
