College basketball
The Nitty Gritty Report
Jerry Palm, CBS Sports
Record vs Top 50/Top 100 RPI
Kentucky: 0-2/2-6
Louisville: 4-3/7-4
Butler: 4-2/8-3
Indiana: 4-2/7-2
Ohio State: 1-4/4-4
Cincinnati: 4-3/7-4
Xavier: 2-1/3-4
***
Bengals
From the Bengals on Twitter
Bengals announce the retirement of running backs coach Jim Anderson. No successor has been named. Good luck JA!
The Dean's last class
Geoff Hobson, Bengals.com
Jim Anderson, the last link to franchise founder Paul Brown on the Bengals coaching staff, retired Tuesday after spending the last several seasons as the dean of NFL assistant coaches.
Anderson, who turns 65 in March, ended a run that began 30 years ago when Brown interviewed him to be the running backs coach on the practice field at the East-West Shrine Game. No current assistant has been with an NFL team longer in a career that spanned the James Brooks trade to the free-agent signing of BenJarvus Green-Ellis.
Hamilton to live tweet Top 100 prospects
MLB.com
On Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET, MLB.com's 2013 Top 100 Prospects list will be revealed on MLB.com and MLB Network, and you're invited to interact with several of the players on the list as they live tweet the unveiling, moderated by MLBPipeline.com (@MLBPipeline), using the hashtag #MLBPipeline.
***
Bengals
The Core 5
Last night on Sports Talk, we attempted to identify the core of the Bengals.
I was looking for five players on the roster to keep around, pay and build with over the next five years. I left it open for fans to weigh the players age, production, potential, injury risk, potential for off field issues, etc. I accepted votes by calls, Twitter, Facebook and email. I wound up capping things at 300 voters.
Results of note:
*36 different players received at least one vote
*Benjarvus Green-Ellis, Taylor Mays did not receive a single vote
*Armon Binns, no longer on the team, got a vote.
*There was an OSU influence, wtih Mike Nugent and Boom Herron getting votes.
Top 5 votes: Bengals Core 5
1. AJ Green
2. Geno Atkins
3. Vontaze Burfict
4. Andy Dalton
5. Andrew Whitworth
Others, by votes received
Next 5: Carlos Dunlap, Leon Hall, Kevin Zeitler, Michael Johnson, Andre Smith
Next 5: Jermaine Gresham, Dre Kirkpatrick, Mohamed Sanu, Reggie Nelson, Domata Peko
Other receiving vote(s):
Andrew Hawkins, Kevin Huber, Mike Nugent, Dan Skuta, Jeromy Miles, Marvin Jones, Adam Jones, Clint Boling, Armon Binns, Pat Sims, Josh Brown, John Conner, Chris Pressley, Terence Newman, Trevor Robinson, Manny Lawson, Kyle Cook, Boom Herron, Rey Maualuga, Thomas Howard.
Media voters
Lance McAlister: Green, Atkins, Johnson, Whitworth, Hall
Joe Reedy: Green, Atkins, Johnson, Smith, Dalton
Geoff Hobson: Green, Atkins, Hall, Dunlap, Dalton
John Thornton: Geen, Atkins, Johnson, Hall, Dunlap
Dan Hoard: Green, Atkins, Johnson, Dunlap, Dalton
Artrell Hawkins: Green, Atkins, Dunlap, Dalton, Zeitler
Ken Broo: Green, Atkins, Dunlap, Dalton, Zeitler
Chick Ludwig: Green, Atkins, Hall, Dunlap, Dalton,
Mo Egger: Green, Atkins, Johnson, Burfict, Zeitler
Lindsay Patterson: Green, Atkins, Dunlap, Hall, Zeitler
Paul Dehner Jr.: Green, Atkins, Whitworth, Hall, Smith
Consensus:
10 voters named 10 different players
Core 5: Green (10), Atkins (10), Dunlap (7), Dalton (6), Hall/Johnson (5) (tie)
Others: Zeiter (4), Burfict (1), Whitworth (1), Smith (1)
Previous results
2006: Palmer, Thurman, C. Johnson, L. Jones, Steinbach
2007: Palmer, Joseph, Houshmandzadeh, L. Jones, C. Johnson
2008: Palmer, Geathers, Joseph, Rivers, Housmandzadeh/Hall (tied)
2009: Palmer, Rivers, Maualuga, Whitworth, Hall
Speaking of the core:
The Sporting News: Last hurrah for Raven's Cour Four
Bengals' Johnson says he's blessed, thankful
The Selma Times-Journal
“I’m healthy, I’ve played in every game. I’ve only missed two practices. I’m just very blessed and thankful,” Johnson said, “and now I’m back in school taking three classes at [Georgia] Tech this spring. My degree is in business administration. I’ve got 18 hours and then I’m done. I’m taking ten right now. Out of everything I’ve done, including football, when I get my degree, that will be one of my proudest moments I’ve had in my life. That’s a big thing and Georgia Tech is one of the top schools in the country. To come out of there with a degree of completion, it’s going to mean a lot to me.”
***
College basketball
Huggs
I wonder when the last time was that a Bob Huggins team was two games under .500 overall (9-11) and three games under in conference (2-5) heading to February?
Field of 68
The Sporting News
Bubble watch: Kentucky. This is the most important week of the Wildcats’ entire season. Tonight, they visit an Ole Miss team that is 6-0 in the SEC, and on Saturday, they play on the road against a Texas A&M team that beat UK at Rupp Arena by a dozen points a few short weeks ago. Lose both, and their NCAA hopes might just vanish. (Yes, the Wildcats have two games left with Florida, but let’s be honest—we’ve seen absolutely zero evidence to suggest Kentucky can hang with the Gators this season.)
Michigan: College basketball's Rip Van Winkle
Wall Street Journal
Best college basketball coaches for the money
Forbes
Who is the best college basketball coach in the country for the money? The calculations have been made and the results might surprise you. If you thought it might be a legend like Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski or an upstart newcomer like Butler’s boy wonder coach Brad Stevens, guess again, because they didn’t even make the list. In fact, when it comes to a school’s return on investment in basketball, #1 on our lists of the best college basketball coaches for the money are taken by Saint Bonaventure’s Mark Schmidt (High-Majors) and South Dakota State’s Scott Nagy (Mid-Major).
1. Mark Schmidt, St Bonaventure
6. Thad Matta, OSU
7. Chris Mack, Xavier
9. Mick Cronin, Cincinnati
11. Andy Kennedy, Ole Miss
20. Sean Miller, Arizona
***
Stuff
Remember former Reds first round pick, catcher Yasmani Grandal?
He was part of the Mat Latos deal.
A Miami clinic supplies drugs to sports biggest names
Miami News Times
Grandal had a terrific rookie season for the San Diego Padres last year, batting .297 with eight home runs, but then — just like Cabrera — he was caught with elevated testosterone levels in November and banned for 50 games. In his notebook, Bosch says of Grandal: "Deliver April 4 (in person or by mail). He is in Tucson. Waiting for his call to see if he can drive to Phoenix. Payment will be made by his [illegible], $500 of expenses."
