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College basketball
Calipari: "I've got maybe the best job in college basketball"
Mike DeCourcy, The Sporting News
SN: How important is it to you to win an NCAA championship? In the end, if you’re going to be a success here, don’t you have to win at least one?
CALIPARI: It depends on how you’re being judged. If it’s solely on winning the national title, then you better win one. I’m not judging myself on that. Now, everyone else might. But my whole thing will be, “Do I have my team ready for that postseason run? Are we ready to compete?” It’s one-and-done. It’s not best-of-seven. It’s not best-of-five. It’s not best-of-three. It’s one game.
But I will say if you’re up at bat enough, you give yourself the best chance of doing it. That’s why you come to coach here.
But my thing to you will be this: If we ever won a national title and no player was drafted, I would be excited for our fans, excited for our school and our program, but I’d be disappointed.
Xavier
CINCINNATI --- The Atlantic 10 Conference announced today that three Xavier men’s basketball student-athletes have earned 2012 All-Atlantic 10 Conference honors. Senior Tu Holloway is on the A-10 First Team, junior Mark Lyons is on the A-10 Third Team and freshman Dezmine Wells is on the A-10 All-Rookie Team.
Holloway leads Xavier in scoring (fifth in the A-10 at 16.7 ppg.), assists (fourth in the A-10 at 5.4 apg.), steals (eighth in the A-10 at 1.6 spg.) and free throw percentage (third in the A-10 at .864). Holloway is the only player in the Atlantic 10 that is ranked in the top five in scoring and assists.
Lyons is second on the team in scoring at 15.7 ppg. and ranks ninth in the conference. Lyons is second on the team in assists (2.8 apg.), steals (1.4 spg.) and free throw percentage (.770).
Wells is third on the team in both scoring (10.1 ppg.) and rebounding (5.1 rpg.). Wells is the first XU player to earn A-10 All-Rookie honors since Derrick Brown in the 2007 season. Brown is now playing with the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats.
Lunardi bracket: UC 9 seed, XU last four in
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Reds
Madson: "It's nothing major"
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Please help
Join The Big One for tornado relief with Matthew 25 Ministries
700WLW and our staff will be at Matthew 25 Ministires in Blue Ash, helping collect items for the storm and tornado victims on Monday, March 5th from 8:30am-5:30pm.
I will be there Monday from 3-4pm.
Items immediately needed are:
Monetary Donations: Donate online or mail checks to Matthew 25: Ministries, 11060 Kenwood Road, Cincinnati, OH 45242.
Non-Perishable Food: PULL TOP canned vegetables, fruits etc.; ready to eat dry goods such as nuts, peanut butter, dried fruits, granola and trail mixes, jerkies, ready to eat snacks; bottled water; ready- to-eat meals or MREs etc.
Personal Care Products: Antibacterial soap, hand sanitizer, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, body wash, deodorant, lotion etc.
Cleaning supplies: Laundry detergents, general cleaner, sponges, bleach (powdered form is preferred), mops, scrub brushes, buckets, rubber gloves etc.
Paper products: toilet paper, paper towels etc.
Baby and infant supplies - diapers, wipes, diaper rash ointment, baby wash, baby shampoo, baby lotion etc.
First-Aid items – Bandages, gauze, pads, first aid tape, antiseptic creams, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, latex gloves, instant cold packs etc.
How to help in Northern Kentucky: Click HERE
Saturday we dropped off shovels, brooms, paper towels, work gloves, granola bars, ect. The workers really need work gloves and band aids. There is so much debris to move they are cutting their hands. A guy bought $50 worth of Girl Scout cookies from a stand outside a store. He dropped them off for the workers. Very cool.
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Baseball!
(Listener Jerry sends this from Goodyear, Arizona Sunday)
Reds/NL Central
Injury will likely shelve Corey Hart for rest of Brewers' spring training
Spring primer: Cincinnati Reds
C. Trent Rosecrans, CBS Sports
Optimistic outlook
Not only does Cueto improve upon his breakout 2011, but Latos is even better than he was in the second half of 2011, giving the Reds a dominant and young top of the rotation. Add to that a healthy Arroyo and see Bailey live up to his immense potential -- and the Reds have one of the best rotations in the National League. The offense continues to put up runs and Cincinnati eases into the postseason past the fading Cardinals and Brewers.
Pessimistic outlook
Injuries and unfulfilled potential lead to the second straight season of disappointment on the Ohio River. Not only does the starting pitching falter, but Stubbs breaks Mark Reynolds' single-season strikeout record, Bruce isn't able to make adjustments and rookies Mesoraco and Cozart play like rookies at the two most important defensive positions on the diamond. Milwaukee and St. Louis once again are the class of the division, while Pittsburgh improves and not only breaks its 19-year streak of losing seasons, but also leapfrogs the Reds for third in the NL Central. Adding insult to injury, Phillips leaves as a free agent and with the team in flux, Votto is sent away for prospects and another rebuilding job is underway.
Bailey, Chapman so-so in spring debuts
Madson nursing minor elbow injury
Mark Sheldon, MLB.com
New closer Ryan Madson has not appeared in either of the Reds' first two Cactus League games. Madson has been out with what the club considers to be a minor elbow injury.
"He has a little irritation in his arm," Reds manager Dusty Baker said following the Reds' 8-6 win over the Indians on Sunday. "The doctor looked at him today. Hopefully, he will be all right in the next couple of days."
Madson, 31, is one of the Reds' big offseason acquisitions. In January, the right-hander was signed to a one-year, $8.5 million contract as a free agent.
Frazier's hitting may have utility
John Fay, Enquirer
Frazier’s defense is major league caliber at all four corner positions. His best shot at steady playing time is at third base, where Scott Rolen gets regular time off. But he works at shortstop and second base as well.
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On this date: 1973
(AP photo)
New York Yankees pitchers Mike Kekich and Fritz Peterson make a stunning declaration. The left-handers announce that they have traded wives, children, and family dogs. The announcement sends shock waves through the baseball world and beyond. (Baseball-Reference)
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon movie, "The Trade", due out soon
Biggest trade ever?, we could argue, but weirdest is no contest
Clarion Ledger
Back in 1972, Fritz Peterson and Mike Kekich, both pitchers for the New York Yankees, swapped families.
Peterson traded his wife, Marilyn, his two kids and a poodle for Susan Kekich, the two Kekich children and a Bedlington terrier.
"We didn't trade wives; we traded lives," Kekich said.
.....Peterson achieved a career record of 133 wins, 131 losses, but he was never quite the same after the family swap and the outcry that followed. Kekich wasn't so successful before the swap and fell apart after it. He was traded to the Indians later that same year.
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NCAA hoops
Latest RPI
Jerry Palm, CollegeRPI.com
1 Syracuse
2 Kentucky
8 Ohio State
12 Indiana
20 Murray State
27 Louisville
42 Purdue
53 Xavier
62 Akron
68 Cincinnati
70 Ohio
72 Dayton
86 Cleveland St
104 Kent State
226 Wright State
Gotta stop
I keep hearing complaints from fans saying that bracket guys Jerry Palm (CollegeRPI.com) or Joe Lundari (ESPN) "hate" their team. Stop, unless you want to sound like a 5th grader on the playground. What purpose would be served by them "hating" your team? Each of their bracket projections is a snapshot of the moment, not a prediction of the final bracket. If their goal is to ultimately predict as many at-large teams correctly as possible, why would they chose to "hate" a team over picking the field? Stop.
Monday's moment to stop and savor UK's season
Matt Jones, Kentucky Sports Radio
.....this has also been the year that John Calipari has proven once and for all that he is the perfect fit for Kentucky basketball. In three years, Calipari has had Kentucky in contention for the national championship three times. But it is Calipari’s work with this group that I have found most impressive. He has six players, each of whom could be a contender for First Team All-SEC on any other team, and three of which could be a contender for First team All-American, and he has had them buy in from day one. They play defense at an elite level, and they do so with virtually no complaint. I chalked up some of the first year success to the respect John Wall and Patrick Patterson had amongst their peers and last season, Brandon Knight’s clutch play seemed to carry the team down the stretch. But this team’s domination is all about Calipari and the way he works the pieces. Every hater will make the claim he wins only because of elite talent. But he gets that talent, makes them believe they are collectively better than the individual and does it while overseeing the gigantic organism that is Big Blue Nation. If he isn’t Coach of the Year this season, then why have the award.
No. 3 Ohio State plays winner of No. 6 Purdue vs No. 11 Nebraska Friday evening
No. 5 Indiana plays No. 12 Penn State Thursday afternoon
Livingston: OSU's 'Willie B' was oh so good in crunch time
Kravitz: These IU seniors finally have a year to enjoy
No. 10 Miami plays No. 7 Toledo tonight at 7pm
No. 3 Ohio plays Thursday at 9:30
This is sweet: CBS Sports allows you to do a side-by-side comparision of college basketball teams.
No. 1 Kentucky will get the winner of No. 8 LSU vs No. 9 Arkansas at 1pm on Friday
No. 4 Cincinnati gets a double bye. Will play at 2pm Thursday.
Will face winner of No. 5 Georgetown vs Pitt/St John's winner
Sean Kilpatrick named All-Big East 2nd team
No. 3 Xavier gets a first round bye.
They will play winner of No. 6 Dayton vs No. 11 George Washington at a 9 p.m. Friday.
Cincinnati will pursue 2014 NCAA tournament games
John Erardi, Enquirer
Xavier athletic director Mike Bobinski has filed a request with the NCAA to have a representative visit US Bank Arena so that the Greater Cincinnati Sports Corporation (GCSC) can learn what must be done to make a viable bid for the 2014 second- and third-round games. (The Tuesday games in Dayton now are known as the first round.)
Is it time to say RIP to RPI?
Washington Post
Since 1981, the NCAA tournament selection committee has used the Ratings Percentage Index as its mathematical formula to evaluate teams, and for the entirety of its existence, it has been assailed by fans and coaches whose schools did not fare well by its metrics. But now, after more than three decades of influence, its rivals are gaining popularity and its critics are growing louder, sending a blunt message to the three most controversial, misunderstood letters in college basketball:
RIP, RPI.
NKU dancing in D-2
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University men’s basketball team received an at-large berth to the NCAA Division II Tournament on Sunday night, and the fourth-seeded Norse will meet No. 5 seed Findlay in the Midwest Regional onSaturday at 8:30 p.m. in Louisville, Ky.
NKU enters the NCAA Tournament with a 23-6 record, while Findlay is also 23-6 after winning the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament championship. The Oilers have won seven consecutive games entering the NCAADivision II Tournament.
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Stuff
(LA Times)
Kenyon Martin leading defensive effort for Clippers
Covington Catholic grad Luke Maile (JR) is on fire for the Kentucky Wildcats.
UK is 11-0 to start the season. Maile is batting .405 (2nd), with 3 HR (T-1) and 13 RBI (2nd) and slugging .714. He has one strikeout in 42 at-bats.
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NFL
Severe, sweeping penalties under consideration for bounty case
Washington Post
The person familiar with penalty deliberations in the Saints case referred pointedly to the full season suspensions that former NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle imposed in 1963 on Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras for gambling. It was not clear which of the people involved in the Saints case might face a suspension that long.
'Bounty' sanctions must be severe to protect NFL's image
Michael Lombardi, NFL.com
Let's say Dungy is right, and Phillip Daniels was rewarded for his high hit, which bent back Manning's head and neck and knocked off his helmet in the process. If that's the case, then the Redskins violated salary-cap rules and would be subject to huge fines from the league. If the reward money came from a private players fund, however, then the cap rules probably were not violated. The league might want to investigate further to ensure those funds came strictly from players, not the team or any team associate.
Much like with Watergate, the money trail -- who paid what to whom -- will indicate the scandal's reach. I am confident Goodell and the league office will ask the right questions.
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Reds
Who is Neftali Soto?
He's a 22-year old 1B that checks in at 6'2 180 lbs...RH bat.
The Reds drafted him in the 3rd round of out high school in 2007.
Baseball America rates him as the Reds #8 prospect.
MinorLeagueBaseball.com rates him as the Reds #11 prospect.
MILB.com rates him as as the 7th best 1B prospect.
He spent four seasons in the system between Rookie Ball and High A.
He broke out in his first season at AA in 2011:
30 HR in 102 games/379 AB with .904 OPS
The amazing part of 2011 was the fact he broke his wrist and missed a month of the season.
He got a taste of AAA at the end of 2011 going 7 for 17, HR.
He's bounced around the field before the Reds settled him in at 1B in 2010.
Games played in career: 10 C, 36 SS, 147 3B, 198 1B.
He's got big power, doesn't walk much, tends to swing and miss a decent amount, and doesn't hit for much average.
Career: .278 BA, .322 OBP, ,.473 SLG,.794 OPS
Last three years:
K: 95-105-96
BB: 23-32-25
Career: 375 K/103 BB in 1,860 at-bats
Check out video from Doug Gray, RedsMinorLeagues.com
Soto on 'fast track' to be next Reds 1B
Hal McCoy, Dayton Daily News
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Was that a glimpse of the future, a flash of what it soon might be, when first baseman Neftali Soto hit a home run Saturday during 2012’s exhibition opener for the Cincinnati Reds?
His home run in the fifth inning broke a tie game and the Reds clung to that 5-4 lead until the ninth inning in a game that ended in a 6-6 tie with the Cleveland Indians.
Reds have window of opportunity
Paul Daugherty, Enquirer
"I think you’re 100 percent correct," Castellini said. "It’s a challenge. OK, fans, we’ll pay it back. Are you going to support us, or aren’t you? We have to get these fans into the ballpark, through winning and a good fan experience. I think we do a good job with the fan experience part of it."
He also realizes patience counts for only so much. He’s not a patient fan, either.
"Forget hope," said Castellini. We have to get their excitement."
(AP photo)
Padres: Grandal slow afoot, but catching on
North County Times
A switch-hitter with power on both sides, Grandal is every bit the physical presence that the Reds believed he was when they drafted him 12th overall in 2008. But with prospect Devin Mesoraco also in the system, Cincinnati had a surplus of good catchers and included Grandal in the Latos deal.
The Padres are the beneficiary, in particular Triple-A manager Terry Kennedy, who probably will take Grandal with him to Tucson when the team breaks camp next month. Grandal, 23, started last season at Single-A with the Reds and advanced to Triple-A before the season ended.
"A switch-hitting catcher with some juice?" Kennedy said. "Yeah, I'll take him."
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West Liberty was part of my childhood
I was born in Ashland, Kentucky. My granny lived in West Liberty, KY.
I spent a lot of my childhood running around West Liberty. We attended the Sorghum Festival many years. I would play catch with my dad and kick field goals on the field behind the high school. My granny lived on a street at the bottom of a hill. The street led to the main part of town. Walking up that hill seemed like climbing a mountain when I was a kid. It was a big deal to go to the Freezer Fresh for ice cream. As I grew older I realized how small that hill and the town actually was. My dad would tell me the stories of former Reds pitcher Don Gullett's parents living nearby and the legend of area pitcher/major league pitcher Steve Hamilton. The news today is so sad.
It appears West Liberty has been wiped out.
Video: Dramtic storm scenes from West Liberty
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No way!
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Kid combine
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