fathom

QUOTE (Tony82087 @ Feb 21, 2009 -> 02:00 AM) I have heard, but more importantly seen with my own eyes the love affair the organization with Owens. Only an injury(like last year) is going to keep Owens out of CF, at least to start the season. Yep, I couldn't agree more. I think we all are wondering if Jerry Owens groin will make another appearance.

Rogers also stated that Getz is way in the driver's seat to be the starting 2nd baseman. I like how he stated that if Getz can leadoff, then Anderson would be the starter and hit 9th. I think that's the scenario we all would like to see the most.

The Twinkie Dome is a terrible place for Crede to hit. It's deep to left and left center, and caters to players who can drive the ball to right field. As the stats show, Crede's one of the worst in baseball with regards to opposite field power.

ESPN deportes claiming the substance ARod said he took wasn't available over the counter in the Domincan during the time period he revealed.

QUOTE (Palehosefan @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 11:24 PM) I know it's the "in" thing to make fun of Hansbrough's chances, but there's no reason he couldn't do what Udonis Haslem has done in the NBA. Their game, body, athleticism, and shooting ability from 15-18 feet are very similar. I respect the hell out of Hansbrough, even though I feel like Harangody's surpassed him in ability this season. Hansbrough's becoming automatic with his jumper though.

BTW 101, don't get me wrong about the Illini's future. With Howard at the recruiting helm, they have a great hold on the state of Illinois (especially with DePaul's pathetic coach). They should continue to have top 10-15 recruiting classes. They just have to hope Richmond and Head continue to mature on/off the court.

As Boers and Bernstein were saying, watch that 2nd pick acquired today be used on either Hansbrough or Harangody.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 10:42 PM) Did you really just compare Tech to Illinois? Illinois like Tech has some really good players coming in soon, but unlike Tech has a coach that can handle them. The Illinois program is way better than Tech right now, and the gap will only widen in the future. Please don't let your Illinois dislike distort reality. Hewitt is a terrible coach, but even he might be bringing in a recruiting class that could make anyone look like a good coach. I don't see how you can say one program is better than the other right now besides their performance on the court this season. GT has the #3 recruiting class in the country (Udofia is the pure pg they desperately lack this season), and with Shumpert and Lawal now expected to return, they should be a top 20 team when you put one of the best players in the country added to the bunch in Favors. As much as I hate Hewitt, he sure has had a ton of bad luck the past few years with Crittenton's early entry and injuries/departures.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 08:12 PM) So at this point in time we might possibly be the worst team in a very bad mvc. It's so sad to see this program now. We were starting(not quite there) to get to a Gonzaga level and all that is gone now. Complete crash. Yeah, I've been wondering what the hell happened to SIU. Did Lowery cost himself a lot of money by not pursuing a higher level job? The most important thing for SIU now is to keep the 3 frosh in school for their 4 year career.

QUOTE (Jimbo's Drinker @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 07:51 PM) Boy am I hoping that KU can make a good impressio on Lance Stephenson, his addition may take us back to a final four. Aldrich, Jeff Withey, Morris Twins, Mario Little, Quintrell Thomas, Thomas Robinson in the front court Collins(if he comes back) Elijah johnson, Stephenson???, Tyshawn Taylor, Tyrel Reed, Morningstar, Releford Damn I was under the impression that Collins and Aldrich won't be back. As for "The Chosen One", I'm not a fan. His game doesn't really translate to the college level that well, as he just bullies players with his size now. He's also a massive ballhog and has a terrible attitude. I'd rather he go to St. John's, and try to take over NYC.

QUOTE (Jimbo's Drinker @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 08:48 PM) Should never have gotten there, that was a BS call on Langford in OT that year...haha i keed. That was a hell of a game (not to mention you had home field advantage)...GT and Kansas fans have a lot of admiration for each other it seems like.

There were plenty of games that the Cubs were able to bring in Marmol with men on in the 6th or 7th last season and he was able to get a key strike out. They won't have that ability this season. I also liked the absolutely pointless Manny to the Cubs article in the Tribune today.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 07:11 PM) Are you an Illinois State fan? You obviously have some jealousy issues. Nope, no jealousy issues. I have my own team to root for who's seen their program hit the fan after a loss in the National Championship game.

QUOTE (Jimbo's Drinker @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 04:47 PM) that is our old friend Buerhle >>> Wood, he loves blaming the refs. They blame the refs, win or lose. Another staple of Weber is always claiming someone was sick/injured after a loss. Last night, he was saying McCamey was throwing up at halftime. If a guy is sick or injured, then don't play him! The Illini have to be one of the luckiest teams, with regards to health, all year in the NCAA. Not many other teams can start the same lineup in 25 consecutive games.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan99 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 04:21 AM) I'm pretty much in agreement with your list. Curry, Meeks and Griffin are obviously locks. Lawson has been just ridiculous lately. Blair is a good choice but obviously Hansbrough and Thabeet have good cases. Harangody is a really good player but he is still awful defensively and he has been scoring his points by basically being a volume shooter at times this year. Haha, my brother uses the term "volume shooter" about Harangody every game. He also should lose votes for being the biggest crybaby in basketball.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 04:20 AM) Like what? Recruiting players that have already declared for a particular school (see Justin Dentmon), dealing with AAU and recruits handlers (see Worldwide Wes and Reggie Rose), doing everything in his power to keep criminals in school (Jamar Smith, Luther Head, and R. Roberts at SIU). Weber treated the David Palmer situation very unprofessionally, and there's rumors he's doing the same with Joseph Bertrand now. Of course, Weber has his buddies like Brad Sturdy and Kedric Price stating that he's the cleanest coach in the history of sports, so you'll probably say none of this is true.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 05:04 AM) Fair enough. I never have been a big Bruce fan, and even now I'm really not. He's a very good in game coach (usually), but I still think he's a bit too whiny and that Jerrance Howard is the actual reason for the recruiting revival. I can see why somebody would hate him, as well as the Dee Brown group. Actually, between Dee and Luther and McBride and so on, the Illini have had a lot of hateable players. I didn't hear much bad about McBride. Luther Head was just a piece of s*** while on campus. Deron was actually a very nice person..but not really a scholar.

So who's your All American team so far? Mine would be: pg- Ty Lawson sg- Stephen Curry c- Dejuan Blair sf- Jodie Meeks pf- Blake Griffin Harden, Thabeet, Hansbrough, McNeal, Harangody, and Calathes just miss

QUOTE (whitesoxfan99 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 04:55 AM) It was lost by Illinois being completely inept on offense, nothing more. The reason the travel calls stick out in my mind so much is because there was at least 3 very obvious ones in a very short stretch by PSU that weren't called and Davis was called for a travel right after that. Don't get me wrong, you're probably the best Illini fan I know. For the most part though, there's no fan base that complains about the refs more than Illinois.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 04:52 AM) Haha what makes you hate Illinois so much anyways? Most people are self explanatory, but I don't even know what team you like. Sadly, I root Georgia Tech. I hate Bruce Weber with a passion. It's amazing how Weber has such a pristine image among Illini fans when he's as guilty of the same crap that he complains about other coaches doing. I actually like a few of their players, in Chester Frazier and Mike Davis. I disliked the Dee Brown group due to Dee being just a piece of s*** on campus.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan99 @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 03:40 AM) We deserved a few FTs tonight but yes this team just isn't built for drawing fouls. They don't have a consistent low post threat and McCamey is the only one who can get to the basket and he wasn't attacking tonight. Davis did get hammered down low in the 2nd half when he had a layup and I thought Penn St. got away with a couple in the first half but it wasn't the fouls that bugged me. But PSU traveled on a ton of possessions during their run in the 2nd half without being called for it. The one that really stands out is when Morrisey kind of lost the ball at the top of the key took at least 3 steps and then hit Pringle for a wide open 3. I hate Bobby Knight, but he is absolutely right that college basketball officials do a terrible job looking for the walk. And then what killed me is they called a travel on Davis (the right call in that case) for a travel a couple possessions later for dragging the pivot foot. Call it for both teams or don't call it at all. Any fan can find a traveling call during a game that should be called. Tisdale shuffled his feet on his little hook shot under 2 minutes to make it a one point game. Tonight's game wasn't decided by the refs...it was by whatever team could make a basket and stop down the stretch.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Feb 19, 2009 -> 03:36 AM) I agree on the perspective on the whole, but tonight was especially bad. 0 FTs on 50 shots against a pretty physical PSU team? On 6 fouls on the whole? Granted, we are not the most dynamic team, but still. Illinois is one of the 5 worst teams in the country at getting to the FT line. When you have guards like Frazier and Meacham, that's going to happen.

Illinois and Notre Dame lose in the same night = good basketball night!

Before the tiebreaker, my best experience at the Cell was the Sox comeback off of Mariano with C. Lee tying it and then Valentin with the broken bat winner.

Way to go Penn State!