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Which teams outside of my preliminary top 25 could be sleepers in 2012-13 ?

Posted in College Basketball by Gus Elvin on May 16th, 2012

10 Under the Radar teams to watch for 2012-13

by Gus Elvin

Alright people now that my early preseason top 25 is out, I’ve decided to start a new series of articles that will help set the table for the 2012-2013 season. This series entitled “Guru’s Top Ten”, for the most part will be list format, as I will provide a list of 10 teams, players, coaches, or anything else related to college basketball leading up to next season. For example, this list could be anything from 10 mid majors to watch, to 10 breakout players, etc. For the 1^st installment, I thought I’d take a look at some teams outside of my preseason top 25 that could make some noise next season. I know college basketball is out of season so it’s not something you readers want every day, but this once a week/every other week series is a way to stay in the loop with the happenings of college basketball, without being overburdened. Like I said for our first edition of “Guru’s Top Ten” we will take a look at “10 Teams Outside of the Top 25 to Watch”. This list is not in any particular order but just a list of 10 teams that are going a bit under the radar, who could be major players next season. Here is “Guru’s Top Ten Teams Outside of the Top 25 to Watch”.

2012 Premier League Season Review Part 2

Posted in Arsenal, Premier League, Soccer, Sports Opinions by James Caughlin on May 15th, 2012

Part 2: The story of the season:

Back on August 13, the 20^th season of the Barclays Premier League kicked off and what a season fans were treated to. Right up until the final day on May 13. It was a 9 month rollercoaster for fans of all teams as they experienced the highs and lows of league football and then some more. Since the early part of the 2000’s the league has been dominated by the Big 4 of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United but in the last 2 seasons the Big 4 has been brought back to earth than this year more than ever solidified the notion that the pack has caught up. The three teams that rose to contention were Manchester City, funded by a family of Middle Eastern billionaires, Tottenham, who have risen slowly to the top and Newcastle, who came out of nowhere this season looking to relive the club’s former glory days. Liverpool were the first club to drop off two seasons ago and this year found themselves mired in a battle of mediocre mid-table teams and Chelsea who, despite their solid runs in the FA Cup and the Champions League, were left wanting as they dropped down to 6^th spot. While Manchester United and City set themselves apart from the pack up top and Wolves were a way off at the bottom, the 17 other teams gave us a topsy-turvey season where fans could realistically hope their team could pull off a dream result on any given match day. At the end of the day, City added their name to the list of Premier League champions, joining United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Blackburn.

2012 Premier League Season Review Part 1

Posted in Arsenal, Aston Villa, Fulham, Liverpool, Soccer, Sports Opinions by James Caughlin on May 14th, 2012

Part 1: The Dramatic Final Day

One of the greatest days in sport is the final day of the English Premier League season when there is so much on the line. All 20 teams are in action at once with the 10 fixtures of the weekend kicking off at once. Going into the final day this year, Manchester United and City were locked in a battle for local bragging rights and the small matter of the Premier League title. United were going for the 20^th league title in their history and 12^th of the Premier League era (1992-1993 season) while City were looking for their first top flight league trophy in 44 years. Both teams were locked on 86 points but City held the tiebreaker advantage thanks to their superior goal difference of +63 to United’s +55. City hosted relegation battlers Queens Park Rangers (QPR) who needed a draw to guarantee safety while United travelled to Sunderland who were assured of a mid-table finish and would have little to play for.

While the Manchester clubs were fighting for the title, QPR had to fight to make sure that they would stay in the top flight and they needed to match or better the result of Bolton Wanderers who were sitting two points behind QPR and in the final relegation slot. Bolton sat in 18^th place with 35 points and a -31 goal difference while QPR had earned 37 points and a -22 goal difference which meant that if Bolton were to survive, they would need a result at Stoke, which is one of the toughest trips in English football and hope that City would take care of business against QPR.

TSHQ Eastern Conference Final Preview

Posted in NHL by Stephen Bochanski on May 13th, 2012

Although it may not be as surprising as the Kings making to the Conference Final, I certainly didn’t see the New Jersey Devils getting a chance to play for a berth in the Stanley Cup Final. The New York Rangers, despite two very hard fought series, are proving there was good reason they captured the #1 seed in the East. So for this series, get ready for a tough, muddy Atlantic Division battle.

As just mentioned, the Rangers just came out of two grueling seven game series against the Ottawa Senators and Washington Capitals. Are they going to be getting tired or will they be able to stay in a groove after only having one day off? The Devils, on the other hand, beat the Flyers handily in 5 games and have had plenty of rest leading up to the start of the series tomorrow night. The question for the Devils, as it is for any team in their situation, is whether or not the rest will negatively affect them in Game 1.

It’s tough to gauge the Devils. They looked terribly slow and worn down by their previous series in Game 1 in their series against the Flyers before making changes and dominating the rest of the series. They were terrible at faceoffs and the penalty kill against the Panthers, and then they looked great against the Flyers. Brodeur looked like the old Brodeur in a good portion of the series against the Panthers, but looked really blah at times against the Flyers (although he didn’t have to be any better than that).

Playoff Challenge Round 1 Results

Posted in NBA by Bryan Doherty on May 13th, 2012

First Round Results:

Series winner and games know.

Bonus Answers:

Blowout: Miami-NY (33 points)
3-point %: Spurs
Fouls: Clippers

TSHQ Western Conference Final Preview

Posted in NHL by Stephen Bochanski on May 13th, 2012

Wow, the Kings. Whoddathunk that the 8^th seed Los Angeles Kings would beat both top seeds in the Western Conference to make it all the way to the Conference Final series…in only 9 games. They’ll take on the 3^rd seeded Phoenix Coyotes who have been very impressive in their own right beating a tough Predators team pretty convincingly last round.

I’m going to get the goalie talk out of the way right now. Both Jonathan Quick of the Kings and Mike Smith of the Coyotes have been excellent in the playoffs. At this point, I think the advantage is a wash. Both are great goalies who are going to make all of the saves they should and a few they shouldn’t. So really, it’s going to come down to which team is capable of making their opponent’s goalie less of a factor in the outcome of the series.

Like baseball, if the pitcher puts the ball where he wants it, the batter’s not hitting the ball. He may get lucky once in awhile, but as a rule, the best pitchers are the ones who can hit their spots consistently. The same is true in hockey. If a shooter places his shot exactly where he wants it, the goalie’s not making the save, unless he gets very lucky or happens to completely pull one out of thin air. I expect this series to be a defensive battle whose winner will be the team that capitalizes on mistakes. With defenses and goalies this good (LA gives up 1.56 goals per game; Phoenix, 1.91), high quality scoring chances come at a premium. If you have a great chance, you’d better bury it.

Judgments on Madrid’s Blue Clay

Posted in Tennis by Yeshayahu Ginsburg on May 13th, 2012

First of all, we have to point out a huge distinction. There are two possible issues that we could be discussing here. We could be talking about the blue clay. Or we could be talking about Madrid’s clay in general. There is what to say about each. However, it is important to keep in mind the difference when we discuss this issue.

The top players are definitely unhappy with this surface. And, to their credit, very few explicitly mentioned the blue when talking about it needing to be different for next year. However, the implication was there. And it really isn’t the fault of the blue. Madrid has always been a different type of clay surface. This year is no exception. The only difference is that this year it’s more visible.

Hamilton Adding Millions With Every Bomb

Posted in MLB by Coley Michalik on May 12th, 2012

No hitters, perfect games, 300 strike out seasons, unassisted triple plays, walk off home runs… there are many instances of individual dominance throughout the Bigs. After witnessing Phillip Humber’s perfecto and Jered Weaver’s no-no already in this early season, we assumed the best had yet to come. After Josh Hamilton’s four homerun display earlier this week against the Orioles, I don’t know if we can assume that anymore.

A pure display of offensive dominance, early American League MVP frontrunner (and impending Free Agent) Hamilton put on a historical showcase this week. His four home runs (done for the first time since Carlos Delgado walloped four in 2003) and one measly, weak double tallied 18 total bases (an AL record, one shy of tying Shawn Green’s ML mark), eight RBI, and a few more million added to his next contract. Hamilton While Hamilton is surely a risk off of the field, his production on the field and in the batter’s box certainly warrants a deal in the Matt Kemp range ($180 million).

2012 New Orleans Saints Draft Grade

Posted in NFL by Seth Cox on May 10th, 2012

I should probably say something about bounties in the NFL, but really that has been beaten to death at this point.

The Saints had little to work with in the 2012 draft, with the trade they made in the 2011 draft to take Mark Ingram and then losing their second round pick because of the bounties program.

So we pick up our coverage of the 2012 New Orleans Saints Draft Grade in round 3, where they made a surprising selection.

When the Saints came on the clock there were some big names at need positions available as CB’s, LB’s and WR’s had all fallen into round 3.

Which way did the Saints go? With a rookie out of Canada? Alright, who is Akiem Hicks?

2012 Atlanta Falcons Draft Grade

Posted in NFL by Seth Cox on May 9th, 2012

The Julio Jones results draft is what this will be known as from here on out, as the Atlanta Falcons mortgaged their 2012 NFL Draft in order to move up and get a game changer in Jones in the 2011 draft. The results are still TBD, but the immediate outcome was another first round loss by the Falcons where Jones was, well not overly effective, at no fault of his own.

We know my disdain for calling Matt Ryan a top level QB in this league and that will show even more as we progress through the off season.

Today however, we will be discussing the draft, and giving out my 2012 Atlanta Falcons Draft Grade.

As always, if there is a question of how I grade my drafts, well check it out here.

The draft started out fantastically for the Falcons with the injury concerns of Peter Konz causing him to fall to their selection near the end of round 2.