Dallas Cowboys Dominates the Detroit Lions in the Second Half

During the first half, the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions go back and forth in the first half. The Cowboys scored first with a touchdown thrown from Dak Prescott to Brice Butler for 21 yards nine minutes and 57 seconds into the game. Detroit answered back with a touchdown of their own with five minutes and 23 seconds left in the first quarter with a seven-yard touchdown run from Zach Zenner. Dallas then scored again off of a 55-yard touchdown with two minutes and 49 seconds left in the 1st quarter. The Dallas Cowboys ended the first quarter leading the Detroit Lions 14-7.

In the second quarter, the Lions tied the game off a one-yard touchdown run from Matthew Stafford. The Lions then scored again on a five-yard touchdown run by Zach Zenner with seven minutes and 40 seconds left in the quarter. Dallas ended the half with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Dak Prescott to Dez Bryant to tie the game up 21-21 heading into halftime.

Detroit opened up the second half on offense, but they weren't on the field for too long. During their 5th play of the drive, Matthew Stafford threw an interception that was tipped by Brandon Carr and landed right into the hands of JJ Wilcox. Dallas high powered offense quickly marched down the field and led to a one-yard touchdown run by Ezekiel Elliot. Matthew Stafford and the Lions offense struggled all second half. Dallas scored again in the third quarter with a trick play end around 10-yard touchdown pass from Dez Bryant to Jason Witten.

In the fourth quarter, Dez Bryant got his second receiving touchdown on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Dak Prescott. The game ended with Matthew Stafford fumbling after hard hitting sack by David Irving.

Some key stats from the Dallas Cowboys were Dak Prescott completed 15 of his 20 passes, threw for 212 passing yards, and three touchdowns. Ezekiel Elliot ran 12 times for 80 yards and two touchdowns. Dez Bryant had four catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns. Dez Bryant also threw his first career passing touchdown. Terence Williams has stepped up as of late, and he continued last night catching four passes for 60m yards and a touchdown. Darren McFadden showed he is coming back to his old self since his injury running the ball 14 times for 49 yards. The Dallas Cowboys defense caused two turnovers, four sacks, eight pass deflections, and 10 QB hits. The Dallas Cowboys are the first team ever to  have a rookie QB throw for 20 touchdowns and a rookie running back to have 15 rushing touchdowns.

Some key stats for the Detroit Lions were Matt Stafford completed 26 of his 46 passes, 260 passing yards, one rushing touchdown, one interception, and one fumble. Zach Zenner ran the ball 12 times for 67 yards and two touchdowns. Eric Ebon Lion's tight end had eight receptions for 93 yards. Golden Tate had six receptions for 58 yards. The Detroit Lions defense caused zero turnovers, one sack, and only one QB hit.

Hopefully, the Dallas Cowboys either rest or play their starters for one-half since next week's game against the Philadelphia Eagles is an irrelevant game of the regular since Dallas has already clinched a first-round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Philadelphia Philies Bolster Their Bullpen After Trade with the Boston Red Sox

The Philadelphia Phillies just traded away their 2nd baseman, Josh Tobias who plays for the Salem Red Sox, a minor league baseball team in Virginia for Boston Red Sox's two time All-Star pitcher Clay Buchholz. Josh Tobias had a batting average of .216, scored seven runs, had three RBI's, one home run, and one stolen base for the Salem Red Sox. The Phillies clearly got the upper hand of this trade. Clay Buchholz will bring leadership and experience to this young bullpen. Clay Buchholz has a career ERA of 3.96, a career record of 81-61, and 899 career strike outs. Clay Buchholz stats for this past season was an ERA of 4.78, a record of 8-10, and 93 strikeouts.

The Philadelphia Phillies only had two pitchers with double digit wins this past season, those pitchers were Jeremy Hellickson and Jerad Eickhoff.  Jeremy had 12 wins and Jerad had 11 wins. The best ERA for the season was pitcher Alec Asher who had an ERA of 2.28 in the five games he played. The main Phillies Pitcher who received the most national buzz was Vince Velasquez who had eight wins, 152 strikeouts, and an ERA of 4.12.

We shall soon see what type of impact Clay Buchholz will have on the Philadelphia Phillies next season.

Odell Saves the Day

Yesterday's game was abysmal to the say the least between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants. Neither quarterback had a good game. Both quarterbacks turned the ball a plethora of times yesterday. Eli Manning turned the ball over three times from two fumbles and one interception. Dak Prescott threw two interceptions one that wasn't his fault due to Dez Bryant who slipped, the other pass that was intercepted that looked as if he said may the Lord be with me and just threw it down the field praying Dez Bryant would catch it.

Dak Prescott went 17 for 37 with 165 passing yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. The only bright spot for the Cowboys offense outside of Ezekiel Elliot rushing for 107 yards was Terence Williams. Terence Williams redeemed himself from his week one performance when he didn't step out of bounds. Terence Williams caught five receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown. Cole Beasley only had four receptions for 40 yards. Dez Bryant was MIA in yesterday's game, a search team wouldn't have even found him. Dez was only able to catch one pass of his ten targets and when he finally caught one he fumbled the ball which pretty much ended any hopes of Dak getting his fifth game-winning drive of the season.

Eli Manning went 17 for 28 with 193 passing yards, one touchdown, two fumbles, and an interception. But, even with a horrible game, he found his favorite target for a big play. Odell turned a simple slant route into a 61-yard touchdown where he outran Dallas Cowboys cornerback Brandon Carr and the rest of the Cowboys defense all the way to the end zone.

This is the second straight week the Dallas Cowboys passing offense has struggled. Scott Linehan, Jason Garrett, Dak Prescott, and the Cowboys wide receivers need to find a solution to fix this with the playoffs right around the corner. Hopefully, they can fix their passing struggles next week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are on a five game win streak.

Redemption Game for Dallas

After a heartbreaking loss in week 1 to the Giants of 20-19 at home in AT&T stadium, the Dallas Cowboys get their rematch. The game is tonight at 8:30 PM Eastern on the road against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium.

After week one the Cowboys have won 11 straight games. The Giants have been up and down, but nonetheless 8-4 which puts them at the fifth seed in the playoff race. Tonight's game will be a offensive shootout. This game will come down to which defense can get the most takeaways.

The key to Dallas winning tonight is to stick with what has started this win streak, which is running the ball. The Dallas Cowboys must keep the ball in the hands in Ezekiel Elliott. The more you run the ball the more you keep the Cowboys banged up defense off the field. Also, you keep Odell Beckham and rising star Sterling Shepherd off the field. Even though Dallas defense is no slouch giving up only 19 points per game. Another key for the Dallas Cowboys to win is for Dak Prescott to continue spreading the ball to all his side receivers and not trying to force it to Dez Bryant. The Cowboys have a plethora of good receivers so they need to use all of them.

The key for a New York Giants win is to stop the run. If they stop the run this will force the Cowboys to pass more and become a one sided offense. The Giants defense must force some turnovers. In order for the Giants to win Eli must also not throw any interceptions. The Giants must keep the Dallas Cowboys offense off the field as much as they can. New York Giants defense is also no slouch giving up only 19 points per game.

I predict this will be a very close game, but I pick the Dallas Cowboys to beat the New York Giants 27-24. Let's just hope Terence Williams knows how to get out of bounds this time in a late game situation.

Prescott Era Begins

 

Today is the Dallas Cowboys' first regular season game of the 2016-17 season. With Romo out due to a back injury, rookie quarterback Dak Prescott will start today against the New York Giants. Prescott played exceptionally well in the preseason. But, critics still say he hasn't played a full game against the starters. Well today is his chance to silence the critics.

 

Prescott has many options to chose from to pick apart the Giants' weak secondary. Even with the Giants adding Eli Apple in the draft and Janoris Jenkins through free agency, they still are suspect in the secondary.  Dak Prescott will show why the Cowboys drafted him to be Romo's successor today. Prescott is a much better option than what Dallas had at quarterback when Romo went down and had to rely on Matt Cassel and Kellen Moore. Dallas is expecting big things from Dak Prescott, to say the least.

Teddy Bridgewater Tears ACL

Yesterday Minnesota Vikings starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater suffered a knee injury during a non-contact injury. Bridgewater was taken to the hospital where they found out that he had a torn  ACL and other structural damage to his knee. Fortunately, there was no nerve damage done to the knee so there are no long-term concerns. Unfortunately, he will not be playing this season. This is a huge blow to a Minnesota Vikings team, who was ready to take it to the next level after finishing  11-5 last season and losing in the playoffs against Seattle after missing a game-winning field goal.

Shaun Hill will now take over as starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. There have been rumors that the Vikings could go after Mark Sanchez as a backup. The Vikings need to look for another quarterback quickly because right now they only have two healthy quarterbacks on the roster. With Teddy Bridgewater going down this will make Adrian Peterson face more blitzes than he already faces based on the fact that the defense knows he's going to have to put this team on his back as he has done before. If the Vikings expect Shaun Hill to be able to do half of what Bridgewater did, they're sadly mistaken and in for a long season. Especially since he has never even had a 3,000 passing yard season. Will see if the Vikings go after a veteran backup quarterback to be on the safe side.

South African Defies the Odds

As you all may know records are made to be broken. But yesterday Wayde Van Niekerk from South Africa did more then just break a record he broke track stereotypes as well. Track coaches will always say lane 8 is the worst lane to be in. But, yesterday Niekerk showed that was a myth. Normally people who are in lane 8 run like a chicken with their head cut off because they can't see anybody behind them or in front of them.

So basically they're running blindsided most of the race. Many were in the stands to see Usain Bolt vs. Justin Gatlin 100 meter final race. But by Niekerk doing the unthinkable out of lane 8 and breaking the 400 meter world record with a time of 43.03 that left the crowd speechless. Even Usain Bolt was shocked at the time while he was coming out the tunnel for the 100 meter finals. Wayde Van Niekerk broke Michael Johnson 400 meter world record that stood for 17 years up until last night.

Team USA Men's Basketball Dismantles Team China

Team USA Men's Basketball started their Olympic preliminary play yesterday against China. The game was basically over right from the tip off. China only lead the game once which was at the beginning of the game where they were up 2-0. After that, Team USA never looked back. Team USA ended the first half up 59-30 over China.

China really didn't have a chance. They had some decent big man, but there guard play was terrible. Hence, why the game got away from them pretty fast. China did have one bright spot during the game from former NBA pro Yi Jianlian who finished with 25 points and 6 rebounds. Jianlian was the only player that scored double figures for China. Hopefully China plays better during the rest of the Olympics.

Team USA dismantled Team China by beating them 119-62. Kevin Durant finished with 25 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds. Demarcus Cousins finished with 17 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 rebounds. Paul George finished with 15 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Kyrie Irving finished with 12 points, 5 assists, and 2 rebounds. Carmelo Anthony finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds even though he started off the game on fire.  Demar DeRozan finished with just 6 points but had a highlight posterizing dunk. Team USA will resume Olympic play on Monday at 6 PM against Venezuela.

Ben Simmons vs. Brandon Ingram Summer League Matchup

 Yesterday the 2016 NBA Draft 1st pick faced the 2nd pick. Everyone came to see Ben Simmons vs. Brandon Ingram. Ben Simmons had a pretty decent game even though he is still scared to shoot a wide open jump shot and would rather drive through the defense to get a layup or pass to a teammate. When it came down to clutch situations late in the game Simmons was nowhere to be found. The 76ers had to rely on TJ McConnell to push the ball up the court to score a quick layup that put them up late in the game. But, Simmons numbers were solid he finished with 8 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. 

Brandon Ingram started off slow struggling to buy a bucket. But late in the game, he hit a few clutch shots. Brandon Ingram finished with 7 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist. But, the player that really outshines both Simmons & Ingram was D'Angelo Russell. D'Angelo Russell had a slow first half but the second half Russell put the Lakers on his back. 

Russell hit a game-winning three to have the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 70 to 69. D'Angelo Russell finished the game with 22 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds. Larry Nance Jr. & Jerami Grant were basically having a dunk contest. Larry Nance Jr filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 7 steals, 4 assists, and 4 blocks. Jerami Grant finished with 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 steal.

Philadelphia 76ers Draft Day

Today the Philadelphia 76ers have the luxury of having three first-round picks in today's NBA Draft. The 76ers have the 1st pick, 24th pick, and the 26th pick. We all know the 76ers will choose Ben Simmons as the number #1. After that is where is the fun comes in. There have been rumors that the 76ers could package the 24th pick and the 26th pick to receive another lottery pick. Also, the 76ers are still trying to trade Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel whomever gets the better trade value.

The 76ers are trying to go after Kris Dunn if they get a second lottery pick. The 76ers were also rumored to be interested in Kentucky shooting guard Jamal Murray. Either one of those players will help out the 76ers significantly. The 76ers also need to use this draft to draft guards that can shoot the ball, considering the 76ers are one the worst shooting teams in the NBA. If they draft either of these players this could help the 76ers back court issues.

New York Knicks Trade for Derrick Rose

Yesterday the Knicks made a big trade before the 2016 NBA Draft. With the New York Knicks not having any first round picks they were up a creek. The Knicks had a huge need for a  Point Guard considering they only averaged 7.6 points per game, which is the fewest in the NBA, from the starting Point Guard position. The New York Knicks handled their Point Guard issue by trading for Chicago Bulls former MVP Point Guard Derrick Rose, Justin Holiday, and the Bulls 2017 2nd round draft pick. The New York Knicks traded Robin Lopez, Jerian Grant, and Jose Calderon to the Chicago Bulls. This was a huge upgrade in the Point Guard for New York going from Jose Calderon to Derrick Rose.

Although this isn't the same explosive Derrick Rose before all the knee injuries, he's still a talented player. Derrick Rose averaged 16.4 points per game, 4.7 assists per game, and 3.4 rebounds per game. That will help run Jeff Hornacek's fast paced offense that he ran when he coached in Phoenix. After this move, the Knicks have 30 million in cap space to spend in free agency. If they could get another big name free agent the Knicks could go from bottom of the East to playoff contention. But, with Kristaps Porizingis, Carmelo Anthony , & Derrick Rose this could be the start of something special in New York.

Rematch In NBA Finals

Well, fans got what they've been waiting for all season. After an extraordinary comeback by the Warriors in the Western Conference to come back down 3-1. An NBA final rematch between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. This series is highlighted by two stories. The first story is can LeBron James finally bring a championship back to Cleveland? The other story is can Steph Curry and the Warriors win back to back titles?

The key to the Warriors is Steph Curry & Klay Thompson have to continue to shoot the three ball well. Also, Iguodala must slow down LeBron as much as he can. Draymond must continue to have his all around games and refrain from getting flagrant and technical fouls. Also, Golden State bench must continue to produce. Harrison Barnes must also give them production whether he's starting or off the bench.

In order for the Cavs to win Kyrie Irving & Kevin Love need to produce and take some pressure off LeBron. JR Smith has to find his jumper again because it's been MIA as of late. Channing Frye has to come off the bench hitting threes. Also, Tyronn Lue has to be smart and play Mozgov when Festus Ezeli comes in the game. Lue also needs to put Shumpert on one of the splash brothers if they want to have a chance of winning this series.

One Game Away From the NBA Finals

With the Thunder being up 3-1 which looked like a sure thing they would end the series between the Golden State Warriors and advance to the NBA Finals. The Oklahoma City Thunder found some way to botch up the last two games and let the Warriors even the series at 3-3. After game 5 Kevin Durant & Russell Westbrook took a shot at back to back MVP Stephen Curry defense. Stating he never guards the best point guard on the court. That wasn't a very smart idea to give Curry more motivation to win game 6 in OKC.

Stephen Curry responded to their comments by putting up 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists. But, the Golden State player who is the real reason why there is a game 7 tonight is Klay Thompson. Klay Thompson put up 41 points and made 11 three point shots. Draymond Green also showed up game 6 to force game 7 tonight he had 12 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists. Golden State is one game away from being only the 10th team in NBA History to come back down 3-1 in a playoff series. 

If the Oklahoma Thunder doesn't want to be a part of having Golden State make history again this season. Kevin Durant & Russell Westbrook must shoot the ball better. Shooting 20-58 will not cut it that's a combined 34% shooting between the two superstars. The Thunder need their two superstars to come out tonight and shoot the ball well in order for them to win. Also, Dion Waiters needs to come off the bench and give the Thunder some production tonight. 

Raptors Even Series 2-2

 Last night the Toronto Raptors did the unthinkable. The majority of people who weren't Toronto Raptors fans figured the Cleveland Cavaliers would roll through the Toronto Raptors like they had done their previous opponents the Detroit Pistons & Atlanta Hawks. But, the Raptors showed them that this series would be no cakewalk. The series is 2-2 headed back to Cleveland. The Toronto Raptors back court has stepped up these past few games.

Kyle Lowry & Demar DeRozan combined for 67 points last night. Two players of the same team haven't scored 30+ points in the conference finals since Charles Barkley & Dan Majerle. Who did it back in 1993 playing for the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference Finals. Without their scoring, the Raptors wouldn't have a shot of beating the Cavs. Also Bismarck Biyombo has stepped up big time while Valancianus ankle continues to heal. Biyombo grabbed 14 rebounds to go along with 5 points and 4 blocks. Biyombo brings a lot of energy to the Raptors.

LeBron James had another good game having 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists. Kyrie Irving also had another good game having 26 points and 6 assists. Channing Frye tried to bring them back in the fourth but his 12 points was not enough for the Cavs to win. Kevin Love & JR Smith were MIA last night. Also, the way Kevin Love limped off the court didn't look to good especially with Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas resting his ankle for the past two weeks. Will see how game 5 turns out tomorrow night in Cleveland.

Philadelphia 76ers Get Number 1 Pick

Last night was the NBA lottery where 14 teams had a chance to win the number one pick. The Philadelphia 76ers had a 26.9% chance to land the number one pick. After a long hard three seasons, the Philadelphia 76ers finally got the number one pick. The 76ers finally got lucky after receiving the number three picks in the last two drafts. This may be finally the turnaround the Philadelphia 76ers organization needed.

The Philadelphia 76ers now add the number one pick to their other first-round picks in this year draft. 76ers now have the number one pick, number twenty-four pick, and number twenty-six pick. The Sixers have a plethora of picks in this draft that can help jump-start the rebuilding process. They could trade those late first round picks to try and move up in the draft and receive another lottery pick. Or trade those two late first round picks to try and get a star veteran player.

Stephen Curry Wins Back to Back MVP Awards

 

Stephen Curry becomes the first unanimous MVP winner in NBA history. Not even Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, or Micheal Jordan did that in his career. Nobody in their right mind could think of any other player than Stephen Curry who should have won the MVP award this year. Steph Curry averaged 30.1 PPG, 6.7 APG, and 5.4 RPG. Nonetheless, Curry is a big part of the reason why the Golden State Warriors finished with the best record in NBA history with 73-9.

Stephen Curry has been on a tear the past two seasons. Last season Curry had a previous record for most three-point shots made in a season with 286. This season he broke his own record for most three-point shots made in a season by making 402 this season. He's a part of team that has the best regular season in NBA history. Also, Curry is a part of team that looks like they're about to win back to back NBA championships. 

Day Two Draft Decisions for the Dallas Cowboys

Yesterday the Dallas Cowboys decided to draft Ohio State standout running back Ezekiel Elliot. With that dominant offensive line, Ezekiel Elliot will have a field day. Last time the Cowboys had a running back that dominant they went 12-4. Adding Ezekiel Elliot to the Cowboys will help keep the pressure off Tony Romo's bad back. But, now on day 2 the Cowboys organization has to address the lack of pass rush. 

The Dallas Cowboys have the 34th pick and 67th pick in the draft. There are rumors that Dallas is trying to trade up to get the 32nd pick from the Cleveland Browns. There are several pass rushers on the board in the second round that could instantly come in and help Dallas pass rush. Kevin Dodd defensive end from Clemson can significantly help Dallas lackluster pass rush. Dodd finished this past college season with 60 tackles and 12 sacks. 

Another defensive end pass rusher Dallas could go after is Noah Spence from Eastern Kentucky. Noah Spence is another aggressive pass rusher. The only problem is he got kicked out of Ohio State for failing drug tests. This might lead to Dallas passing up on him since they're already problems with Randy Gregory staying away from the weed. With the 67th pick, they could choose their future quarterback once Romo retires. The best quarterback on the board and best fit for the Cowboys would be Dak Prescott.  Dak Prescott is a quarterback from Mississippi State. Prescott finished this past season with 3,793 passing yards and 29 touchdowns. Prescott also completed 66.2%. That's impressive especially with him playing in the SEC.

Day One Draft Decisions for the Dallas Cowboys

Today is the day for the 2016 NFL Draft. The Dallas Cowboys have the number 4 pick in the draft. Dallas can do numerous things with this pick. They could trade down in the draft and get a plethora of picks, draft a quarterback, draft a running back, draft a cornerback, draft a defensive end, or draft a linebacker. Dallas had many holes to fill on its roster. 

But with defensive ends Randy Gregory & Demarcus Lawrence being suspended for four games. They need to draft a defensive end that can make an instant impact on a defensive line that struggled to get to the quarterback last year. If the Cowboys were smart they would draft defensive end stand out from Ohio State Joey Bosa. Analysts have been comparing him to the next JJ Watt. He will fill a huge hole on Dallas lackluster pass rush.

Dallas could go the route of drafting Jalen Ramsey a player who could play cornerback or safety in the NFL. But, I just don't see the Cowboys drafting him since they drafted a similar player last year in Byron Jones. Plus after resigning back Morris Claiborne & Brandon Carr, the Cowboys have enough cornerback depth especially since Orlando Scandrick is coming back. Also, the Dallas Cowboys passing defense finished in the top 5 so cornerback isn't a big need.

The Dallas Cowboys could draft running back Ezekiel Elliot with the number 4 pick. But, with Darren McFadden having a great season last year along with the off season signing of Alfred Morris it would be really idiotic to waste a number 4 pick on a position that doesn't have a gaping hole in it. Dallas could also use its number 4 pick on drafting a linebacker. Because after Rolando McClain & Sean Lee that's where Dallas linebacker core starts to get iffy. But, I feel it's too many good linebackers that you could get on day 2 or day 3. So I wouldn't suggest using the number 4 pick on a linebacker.

Cavs Sends Detroit Home Early

As coaches and players would say, playoff basketball and regular season basketball season are two very different things. Detroit beat Cleveland 3 games to 1 in the regular season. So we knew that this series would be a well-fought battle between the two conference foes. With the exception of game 2 where the Cavs beat the Pistons by 17. The rest of the games were very close and well-fought games. But, the Cleveland Cavilers still swept the Detroit Pistons 4-0 in round 1 of the Eastern Conference playoffs.


Steve Van Gundy turned a Detroit Pistons team that has been the laughing stock for the past few years to a respected playoff team. The Detroit Pistons gave the Cleveland Cavaliers everything they had but, that still wasn't enough.  The Detroit Pistons didn't have much production from their bench while their starters were sitting, outside of the rookie Stanley Johnson. This offseason the Pistons need to bolster their bench through the NBA draft and free agency. If they do that the Pistons could progress to be one of the elite teams in the Eastern Conference for years to come.


Kyrie Irving averaged 27.5 PPG, 4.7 APG, and 1.2 SPG. LeBron James averaged 22.7 PPG, 9 RPG, and 6.7 APG. Kevin Love averaged 18.7 PPG and 12 RPG. With the big 3 playing like this I don't see any reason why they don't make it back to the NBA Finals if everyone stays healthy. JR Smith, Matthew Dellavedova, and Iman Shumpert have been key contributors to the Cavs success in the first round of the playoffs outside of the big 3. The Cavs will face the winner of the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks series in the 2nd round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Black Mamba Strikes One Last Time

From Lower Merion High School to a 20-year career with the Los Angles Lakers. Kobe  Bryant finished his 20-year career last night against the Utah Jazz. Kobe Bryant gave fans what he had given them for the twenty years of his NBA career amazement. Kobe started off the game slow starting out 0 for 5. But, you can never hold down the black mamba down for too long. Kobe went on a hot streak and ended the first quarter with 15 points.

Kobe returned to the game with little over 6 minutes left in the second quarter. He continued to put shots up. Kobe ended the half with 22 points. Most people thought he would run out of energy but I knew he was just getting started. Kobe finished the 4th quarter scoring 23 points and ended up bringing the Lakers back  from a 15 point deficit to beat the Utah Jazz. 

The Lakers send Kobe out in his final NBA game with a win over the Utah Jazz 101-96. Kobe Bryant finished the game with an astounding 60 points. Kobe retires as a 5x NBA champion, 18x NBA All-Star, 11x 1st Team All-NBA, 9x 1st Team All-Defense, 2x Finals MVP, Season MVP, 2x regular season leader scoring, and 4x All-Star MVP. Kobe retires as the 3rd leading All-time NBA scorer with 33,643 points. Kobe set a record tonight  for taking the most shots and scoring the most points in their final game. With Kobe retiring he's taking part of basketball with him there will never be another Kobe Bryant.

Villanova Annihilates Oklahoma

Last night Villanova took on Oklahoma in a final four matchup game in Houston, Texas. The early part of the first half it was an intense game. Both teams were taking turns of leading the game early in the first half. But, as Josh Hart and the stifling Villanova defense continued to keep Buddy Hield contained the game started to get away from the Oklahoma Sooners. By halftime, the Villanova Wildcats were up 42-28.


However, Oklahoma started out strong cutting the lead to single digits early in the second half. But, Villanova quickly answered back by going on a run of their own to end Oklahoma chances of coming back once and  for all. Josh Hart, Kris  Jenkins, and Ryan Arcidiacono continued to knock down clutch threes which helped Villanova to finish the second half on 25-0 run. On top of that, Oklahoma turned the ball over 17 times. Villanova beat Oklahoma 95-51 to advance to the national championship.


Villanova shot 71 % from the field as well as shooting 61% from the three point line. Their defense was no slouch either they caused 12 steals. Josh Hart scored 23 points and had 8 rebounds. Kris Jenkins scored 18 points and had 8 rebounds. Ryan Arcidiacono scored 15 points. Daniel Ochefu scored 10 points and had 6 rebounds. Phil Booth scored 10 points. Buddy Hield was only able to score 9 points on 4 of 12 shooting. Isaiah Cousins got shut down as well shooting 3 for 14 to only have 8 points. Jordan Woodard was the only bright spot for Oklahoma he scored 12 points. Villanova will play North Carolina in the national championship game Monday night. Villanova's Coach Jay Wright won the NCAA Coach of the year award. Buddy Hield won the Naismith Trophy award.

Villanova- Oklahoma Final Four Game

 Earlier in the season, Villanova played Oklahoma in December in Hawaii for the Pearl Harbor Classic. Oklahoma rolled over Villanova beating them 78 to 55, even with Buddy Hield only having 18 points. However, both of these teams have changed since the last time they met in December. Buddy Hield has been playing extraordinary well. Villanova has learned to play as a complete team with the inside out play. Both teams at one point in the season were ranked #1.

This NCAA tournament Buddy Hield has been averaging 29.3 points per game. Hield has been playing like he possessed and no one can stop him. Oklahoma offense has been averaging 81 points per game throughout the tournament. However, Villanova defense in the NCAA tournament has only allowed 63 points a game against them throughout the tournament. So, basically, will see if the offensive juggernaut Buddy Hield can score against the stifling Jay Wright Villanova's defense.

The keys for Villanova to winning this final four matchup continue to shoot the three-point shot at 46%. The second key is to make someone else other then Buddy Hield beat you. The third key for Villanova to win continue to feed Daniel Ochefu in the post. The first key to Oklahoma winning this final four matchup is obvious get Buddy Hield the ball. The second key is somebody else has to score to complement Buddy Hield scoring whether it be Isaiah Cousins or Jordan Woodard. The third key is don't get down to the extent where you have to full court press a four guard run offense. Oklahoma can ask Miami how it worked out for them when then full court pressed Villanova in the elite 8 the score got worse for them before it got better.

Follow me on twitter @younghibachi20 to vote for who you think will advance to the national championship. 

All-Star Weekend Saturday Night

To say Saturday night All-Star weekend was amazing is an understatement. The NBA added the big men to the skills contest for the first time in NBA all-star history. Karl-Anthony Towns beat all the big men in the skills contest where he faced Boston Celtics guard Isiah Thomas. Karl- Anthony Towns beat Isiah Thomas in the finals. He showed out for the big men.

Next came the three point shootout contest. The three-point shootout consisted of James Harden, JJ Redick, Kyle Lowry, Devin Booker, Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, CJ McCollum, and Khris Middleton.  The three-point shootout had a three-way tie before the finals. So they had to do a three -point shootout between Devin Booker, James Harden, and JJ Redick. Devin Booker beat them out to advance to the finals to face the splash brothers. Klay Thompson won the three point shootout scoring 27 points. Steph Curry came in second with a score of 23. Devin Booker finished third with a score of 16 points.

This dunk contest was the most exciting contest in the last five years. From Zach Lavine catching alley-oops from the free throw line and doing just about every last one of his dunk attempts from the free throw line. To Aaron Gordon taking the ball from a mascot spinning around on a hover board, putting the opposite hand behind his head, and using the other arm to cock the ball back and dunking the ball while doing a 360. Next, Aaron Gordon followed the dunk off in the finals by jumping over the mascot, putting the ball under his legs, and dunking it without falling. Then he did a dunk by putting it over his head like he was going to tomahawk dunk it then changed his mind in mid air and brought the ball below his legs and still had enough time to dunk it. It's no way Aaron Gordon shouldn't have won the dunk contest. But, in the end, Zach Lavine won the dunk contest for the second year in a row.

David Blatt Fired By Cleveland Cavaliers

After just his second season David Blatt has been fired by the Cleveland Cavaliers. In his two seasons with the Cavs David Blatt finished with a regular season record of 83-40. Blatt's playoff record was 14-6. David Blatt also took the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in his first season where he lost to the Golden State Warriors 4-2 without his two other stars Kyrie Irving Kevin Love. The Cleveland Cavaliers have the best record in the East right now at 30-11.

So the firing of David Blatt was surprising to Cleveland players, especially LeBron James. Even though LeBron and a few other players had their differences with Blatt none of them told Cleveland management to fire David Blatt. Tyronn Lou will serve as the Cleveland Cavaliers head coach. LeBron and Tyronn Lou are good friends and could be a big reason why the Cavs front office decided to make him head coach. That is the only reason anybody could think of to fire a coach who has your team 30-11 this season. We will soon find out if the Cavs made the right choice to fire David Blatt.

Draymond Green Records 3rd Straight Triple-Double

Draymond Green has been playing superb as of late. Not only have the Warriors been having a historic season so has Draymond Green. Draymond recorded his third straight triple-double game last night against the Charlotte Hornets. Only four players in the last 20 seasons were able to have three straight triple-double games. Those players were Grant Hill, Jason Kidd, Russell Westbrook, and LeBron James.

Last night Draymond Green dominated another game putting up 13 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists. The NBA Finals championship last June gave Draymond a lot more confidence that is clearly being shown this year in his play. If he keeps this up he could be playing in the All-Star game this February in Toronto. After completing another triple-double performance last night, Draymond Green now has 8 triple doubles in his career which ties him with Wilt Chamberlain for fourth in the Warriors history. If he keeps this type of play up the Warriors could repeat as NBA Champions again this season.