First, if you haven't done so yet, check out my post about the Utah basketball team just a little ways down on the main page here. I put a lot of thought into it.
The Philadelphia Eagles (10-5) lost to the Minnesota Vikings (6-9) last night 24-14 in Philadelphia in the first Tuesday NFL game since 1946. The game was postponed from Sunday night due to inclement weather in the Philadelphia area and concerns over fan safety. Michael Vick played okay, but he may have been a little gimpy after taking a hit on the Eagles' first play from scrimmage. It was too bad because now the Eagles are out of the running for a first round bye, but still have the NFC East wrapped up as well as the 3-seed in the NFC Playoffs.
The Eagles look like they will play the Packers (9-6) or the Giants (9-6) at home in the first round depending on this weekend's results. The Eagles didn't look too sharp, but games like that happen and I'm not too worried about it. On the positive side, Philadelphia can rest its starters in this Sunday's home game against the Cowboys (5-10) as nothing they do will effect their playoff positioning.
In related news, Tucker Carlson said on Fox News Channel that Michael Vick "should have been executed" for his role in dog fighting that led to him serving a jail sentence. Carlson isn't happy that President Barack Obama has told Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie that he is happy that though he doesn't condone Vick's past actions, he is happy that Vick has gotten a second chance and doing well with it. I agree with the President, not Carlson. Vick did do some terrible things, but he paid his debt to society and I feel served an appropriate amount of time. As long as he doesn't do anything like that again, he has the right to get on with his life. Carlson's comments are just way out of line as his suggested punishment goes way beyond what the crime was. I'm happy that Vick is doing well and not just because he is helping out my team. People have a right to a second chance after they have paid their debt to society and Vick has certainly done that.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Cheering for the Leafs
First off, I have to encourage you to check out my thoughts on the Utah basketball team immediately below this post. I put a lot of thought into it. Now, my Toronto Maple Leafs (30 points, 13-18-4) are in 13th place in the Eastern Conference and lost at home tonight to the Carolina Hurricanes (36 points, 16-15-4) by a score of 4-3. The Leafs host the Columbus Blue Jackets (39 points, 18-15-3) on Thursday.
The Leafs looked like they were going to have a promising year, but the wheels look like they have come off again and the team is closing in on once again being hopelessly out of playoff contention. Something needs to change and hopefully they will get some young talent to develop sometime in the reasonably near future to lead them at least to the playoffs. It's too bad that the Maple Leafs have been so bad for so long, it's been seemingly forever since they even made the playoffs, let alone contended for the Stanley Cup. Indeed their last Stanley Cup Title came in 1967. The team has a huge fan base, possibly the biggest in the NHL, yet still struggles on an annual basis. I'm tired of it, but hopefully things will turn around, if not this year then next... or the next...
The Leafs looked like they were going to have a promising year, but the wheels look like they have come off again and the team is closing in on once again being hopelessly out of playoff contention. Something needs to change and hopefully they will get some young talent to develop sometime in the reasonably near future to lead them at least to the playoffs. It's too bad that the Maple Leafs have been so bad for so long, it's been seemingly forever since they even made the playoffs, let alone contended for the Stanley Cup. Indeed their last Stanley Cup Title came in 1967. The team has a huge fan base, possibly the biggest in the NHL, yet still struggles on an annual basis. I'm tired of it, but hopefully things will turn around, if not this year then next... or the next...
Monday, December 27, 2010
What to do about the Runnin' Utes?
The Utah Runnin' Utes (7-6) took 8th place (out of 8 teams) in the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii last week, losing to Butler 74-62, Hawaii 68-55, and San Diego 67-64. Losing to Butler (9-4) is understandable, the Bulldogs are a really good team and have most of their players back from their run to the National Championship Game last March. Losing to Hawaii (9-3) on their home court isn't a terrible loss, but it's not exactly a great loss either as in not understandable the way the Butler loss was.
And then there was the Christmas Day loss to San Diego (3-10). That loss on a neutral court (or any court really) in completely unacceptable. We are Utah and we have too good of a program and tradition to accept losing games like that. San Diego is a really bad team. The win against Utah was their first against a Division I school all season. The Toreros have lost to bad teams along the way to getting to 3-10, including the likes of Cal State Fullerton (4-8) and Fresno State (4-6), which I saw for myself as being a really bad team. I love Utah basketball and will continue to support the team no matter what, but I am growing weary of watching the team I love lose games they should win.
The San Diego loss is the kind of loss that can lead to coaches getting fired. Losing to Oral Roberts (5-8) at home this season was bad enough. However, the San Diego loss is definitely worse, ranking among the worst in the Jim Boylen era at Utah, up there with the loss to Division II Southwest Baptist in 2008 and the blowout loss at home to BYU to end the regular season in 2010.
Now I do have a good memory and I remember that Utah also lost to Idaho State in 2008 but still managed to beat BYU, share the 2009 Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championship and subsequently won the Mountain West Tournament on the way to earning a 5-seed in the NCAA Tournament. All of those things were great and earned Coach Boylen a contract extension. And if he is kept around and able to do that again, I would be happy. Those memories are why I was hoping something similar would happen this year following the Oral Roberts loss.
However, the San Diego loss is much worse than the Oral Roberts loss. Coach Boylen is in his 4th season and simply cannot be having losses like this one anymore if he is trying to build the program to a national level. Every year dating back to the Ray Giacoletti era, there have been at least 1 or 2 of these losses per season to the likes of Southern Utah, Albany, Santa Clara, the aforementioned Southwest Baptist and Idaho State, Idaho, Seattle and the pair of losses this year to Oral Roberts and San Diego.
Look, I'm a patient guy, a tolerant guy. Every once in a while, something fluky can happen and a loss like this can happen and be just a blip on the radar for a program that is still really good. Syracuse lost to Le Moyne in an exhibition game last season, but still made the Sweet 16. This year they are 13-0, ranked 5th in the country, and looking strong heading into Big East play. The point is, losses like that can happen and they don't have to ruin a season. But if they are happening on an annual basis, as they are at Utah, it can bring down a program and keep it short of achieving greatness. A great program is consistent throughout the season, which puts it in to position to get a favorable seed and make a deep run into the NCAA Tournament. I'm not saying Utah has to be Syracuse, but they should be a lot further along than where they are now.
Losses like the one to San Diego can wear on a team's confidence as well. I remember in the 2006-07 season, Giacoletti's last at Utah, the Runnin' Utes lost to Southern Utah and Albany in non-conference play, but also beat Washington State (3-seed in the Tournament) and Virginia (4 seed in the Tournament) by double-digit margins. They also beat an Air Force team that was ranked 11th in the country at the time and took a UNLV team that advanced to the Sweet 16 to double overtime on its home floor. However, they had 11 wins on the year and that just wasn't good enough. Good wins can offset bad losses, but they won't substitute for a total lack of consistency.
This year, the Utes have exactly zero of what I would call good wins in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. So there is nothing to offset the bad losses. And the Diamond Head Classic exhibits a trend toward a disturbing lack of consistency. The season is not totally lost at this point, but the Runnin' Utes cannot let losses lead to more losses as they clearly did in Hawaii. I believe they have more talent than both Hawaii and San Diego, but lost both games. If that trend continues, I can pretty much guarantee you that Coach Boylen won't be back next year.
The season resumes for the Runnin' Utes this Friday at 5 p.m. MT at Portland (11-3). The game is not being televised, but can be watched live online at portlandpilots.com. Here's a link to the video page. Once there you will have to click on the "Watch" button on the event "Portland Men's Basketball vs. Utah." The game can also be heard on AM 700 in the Salt Lake City area and on kall700sports.com. The Pilots have a nice record that includes no bad losses, but no eye-popping wins either. Even though I would bet Utah is more talented than Portland, I still think the Pilots will win this game because they will be on their home floor and because they have been the more consistent team this season. The Runnin' Utes open conference play on Wednesday, January 5th at Air Force (7-3). Utah should win both games based on talent, but I think they will only win one. If they are looking to get headed back in the right direction, however, they would do well to win both heading into a home match-up with #7 San Diego State (14-0) on Saturday, January 8th.
And then there was the Christmas Day loss to San Diego (3-10). That loss on a neutral court (or any court really) in completely unacceptable. We are Utah and we have too good of a program and tradition to accept losing games like that. San Diego is a really bad team. The win against Utah was their first against a Division I school all season. The Toreros have lost to bad teams along the way to getting to 3-10, including the likes of Cal State Fullerton (4-8) and Fresno State (4-6), which I saw for myself as being a really bad team. I love Utah basketball and will continue to support the team no matter what, but I am growing weary of watching the team I love lose games they should win.
The San Diego loss is the kind of loss that can lead to coaches getting fired. Losing to Oral Roberts (5-8) at home this season was bad enough. However, the San Diego loss is definitely worse, ranking among the worst in the Jim Boylen era at Utah, up there with the loss to Division II Southwest Baptist in 2008 and the blowout loss at home to BYU to end the regular season in 2010.
Now I do have a good memory and I remember that Utah also lost to Idaho State in 2008 but still managed to beat BYU, share the 2009 Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championship and subsequently won the Mountain West Tournament on the way to earning a 5-seed in the NCAA Tournament. All of those things were great and earned Coach Boylen a contract extension. And if he is kept around and able to do that again, I would be happy. Those memories are why I was hoping something similar would happen this year following the Oral Roberts loss.
However, the San Diego loss is much worse than the Oral Roberts loss. Coach Boylen is in his 4th season and simply cannot be having losses like this one anymore if he is trying to build the program to a national level. Every year dating back to the Ray Giacoletti era, there have been at least 1 or 2 of these losses per season to the likes of Southern Utah, Albany, Santa Clara, the aforementioned Southwest Baptist and Idaho State, Idaho, Seattle and the pair of losses this year to Oral Roberts and San Diego.
Look, I'm a patient guy, a tolerant guy. Every once in a while, something fluky can happen and a loss like this can happen and be just a blip on the radar for a program that is still really good. Syracuse lost to Le Moyne in an exhibition game last season, but still made the Sweet 16. This year they are 13-0, ranked 5th in the country, and looking strong heading into Big East play. The point is, losses like that can happen and they don't have to ruin a season. But if they are happening on an annual basis, as they are at Utah, it can bring down a program and keep it short of achieving greatness. A great program is consistent throughout the season, which puts it in to position to get a favorable seed and make a deep run into the NCAA Tournament. I'm not saying Utah has to be Syracuse, but they should be a lot further along than where they are now.
Losses like the one to San Diego can wear on a team's confidence as well. I remember in the 2006-07 season, Giacoletti's last at Utah, the Runnin' Utes lost to Southern Utah and Albany in non-conference play, but also beat Washington State (3-seed in the Tournament) and Virginia (4 seed in the Tournament) by double-digit margins. They also beat an Air Force team that was ranked 11th in the country at the time and took a UNLV team that advanced to the Sweet 16 to double overtime on its home floor. However, they had 11 wins on the year and that just wasn't good enough. Good wins can offset bad losses, but they won't substitute for a total lack of consistency.
This year, the Utes have exactly zero of what I would call good wins in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. So there is nothing to offset the bad losses. And the Diamond Head Classic exhibits a trend toward a disturbing lack of consistency. The season is not totally lost at this point, but the Runnin' Utes cannot let losses lead to more losses as they clearly did in Hawaii. I believe they have more talent than both Hawaii and San Diego, but lost both games. If that trend continues, I can pretty much guarantee you that Coach Boylen won't be back next year.
The season resumes for the Runnin' Utes this Friday at 5 p.m. MT at Portland (11-3). The game is not being televised, but can be watched live online at portlandpilots.com. Here's a link to the video page. Once there you will have to click on the "Watch" button on the event "Portland Men's Basketball vs. Utah." The game can also be heard on AM 700 in the Salt Lake City area and on kall700sports.com. The Pilots have a nice record that includes no bad losses, but no eye-popping wins either. Even though I would bet Utah is more talented than Portland, I still think the Pilots will win this game because they will be on their home floor and because they have been the more consistent team this season. The Runnin' Utes open conference play on Wednesday, January 5th at Air Force (7-3). Utah should win both games based on talent, but I think they will only win one. If they are looking to get headed back in the right direction, however, they would do well to win both heading into a home match-up with #7 San Diego State (14-0) on Saturday, January 8th.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Utes hammered in Las Vegas Bowl
My Utah Utes lost to Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl last night by a score of 26-3. It was disappointing, especially after the Utes were in control through the entire first quarter and couldn't get more than a 3-0 lead. In the game, they left at least 13 points on the board with dropped passes and a pair of missed field goals. But Boise State left some points on the board too. The Broncos probably would have won anyway, but it would have been nice not to play as sloppy of a game and to score more than 3 points. You never know, if it was close at the end who knows what could have happened. It was a disappointing end to the season.
In basketball, the Runnin' Utes lost to Butler in Honolulu in the first game of the Diamond Head Classic. Utah faces host Hawaii tonight at 10:30 p.m. MT on ESPNU. Check it out.
In basketball, the Runnin' Utes lost to Butler in Honolulu in the first game of the Diamond Head Classic. Utah faces host Hawaii tonight at 10:30 p.m. MT on ESPNU. Check it out.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Eagles win in amazing fashion
The Philadelphia Eagles (10-4) beat the New York Giants (9-5) 38-31 yesterday in what is being deemed the "Miracle at the New Meadowlands". My Eagles trailed 31-10 with 7:28 to go in the game yesterday before making an incredible rally. Michael Vick led the Eagles on three scoring drives (with a perfectly executed, surprise onside kick mixed in with a defensive stop) to tie the game at 31 with just over a minute left. Vick made plays with his arm and his legs, showing how dangerous he is as a mobile quarterback. There were at least two or three times where I thought he was going to be sacked and then scrambled and gained about 30 yards. That just makes the Eagles that much harder to defend.
Anyway, I was pretty excited at the mere prospect of going to overtime after trailing by so many with half of the fourth quarter already gone. The Eagles held the Giants on their ensuing possession and New York was forced to punt with 14 seconds left on the clock. Punter Matt Dodge booted a low, line-drive that Eagles return man Desean Jackson initially muffed. Jackson recovered and ran down the sideline for the winning score as time expired. It was an incredible play. My props are to Vick for maintaining composure down the stretch and leading the drives, as well as the team for not giving up despite a big deficit. Jackson made a great play by not panicking when he didn't catch the punt cleanly and found a seam to get to the end zone. This game will be one that is talked about for years to come and I'm just glad that my team was able to come out on top.
Anyway, I was pretty excited at the mere prospect of going to overtime after trailing by so many with half of the fourth quarter already gone. The Eagles held the Giants on their ensuing possession and New York was forced to punt with 14 seconds left on the clock. Punter Matt Dodge booted a low, line-drive that Eagles return man Desean Jackson initially muffed. Jackson recovered and ran down the sideline for the winning score as time expired. It was an incredible play. My props are to Vick for maintaining composure down the stretch and leading the drives, as well as the team for not giving up despite a big deficit. Jackson made a great play by not panicking when he didn't catch the punt cleanly and found a seam to get to the end zone. This game will be one that is talked about for years to come and I'm just glad that my team was able to come out on top.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Runnin' Utes come from behind to beat Boise State
Pictured: Will Clyburn watches his game winning three-pointer go in against Boise State last night.The Utah Runnin' Utes (7-3) defeated the Boise State Broncos (6-4) last night in Salt Lake City by a score of 86-84. Will Clyburn hit the winning three-pointer with about 10 seconds left to provide the final margin. Clyburn finished with 22 points and 8 rebounds. All five starters for the Utes were in double figures. Boise State's Daequon Montreal led all scorers with 28.
Utah jumped out to an early 17-8 lead, but the Broncos took control after that. Boise State's lead was as big as 16 at 66-50 with 14:03 left in the game. I thought Utah's defense up to that point was pretty poor as Boise State got a lot of open looks. After that, the Utes tightened up and BSU only scored 18 points the rest of the way. The Broncos got way too many offensive rebounds which led to a lot of second-chance points. That is something that needs to be cleaned up in a hurry before the Utes compete in the Diamond Head Classic beginning next Wednesday.
However, the real story of the game to me is the resiliency the Utes showed by not folding when they fell behind by 16 in the second half. Utah was able to chip away at the lead and made a number of key shots down the stretch. Jason Washburn made a couple of clutch free throws as well as a jump hook to help trim the deficit and the Utes got the stops they needed. Josh Watkins put Utah up for the first time since the first half with a pair of free throws with under 30 seconds left. A Broncos bucket set up Clyburn's heroics off of a pass from Watkins. Both Clyburn and Watkins deserve credit for that play in making the right decisions and getting the shot to go. It really pleased me to see the Utes play so well down the stretch as they seemingly made every play they had to.
Utah next plays Butler (6-4, 1-0 Horizon) at 9 p.m. MT on Wednesday night in the aforementioned Diamond Head Classic. The game will be televised on ESPNU. The Utes will play either Florida State (8-2, 1-0 ACC) or Hawaii (7-2) depending on the results of the previous day's games. Butler looked very impressive in dismantling Stanford (6-3) today by a score of 83-50 in Indianapolis. The Bulldogs look to be finding their groove and reminded me of the National Championship Runner-Up team from a season ago in beating the Cardinal today. They really only have one bad loss (which came without one of their emotional leaders Ronald Nored) and have played a tough schedule. It should be a tough game for the Runnin' Utes, but I'm anxious to see how they do.
Friday, December 17, 2010
J.R. Smith's amazing dunk, NBA thoughts
In case you didn't see it, J.R. Smith of the Denver Nuggets (15-10) had an amazing dunk last night over Gary Neal of the San Antonio Spurs (22-3) last night in the Spurs' 113-112 victory. I honestly did not know Smith had that in him. What a dunk, well worth viewing. With the win, the Spurs now have the best record in the NBA. The Nuggets are just kind of there, sometimes they play well and beat teams like the Lakers (19-7) and nearly beat the Spurs, but my feeling is that they are being held hostage by the Carmelo Anthony situation. Anthony wants a trade but is stuck in Denver right now. I think it's really hard to develop any kind of lasting team chemistry with something like that over a team. The Nuggets can be decent to good, but they won't go beyond that until this situation is resolved.
I'm pretty amazed at how well the Spurs have been playing this year, considering they were in the bottom half of the Western Conference all of last season and were easily dispatched by the Suns in the second round of the playoffs. It looked like the Spurs were aging too much and would have to infuse some new blood to return to their former heights. However, Manu Ginobli is having a great season, scoring 20 points a game. However, from what I hear, the big story is that Richard Jefferson is now more acclimated with the Spurs' system. He's averaging 14.1 points per game. Tony Parker is at 17.2 points per game. Jefferson coming on gives the Spurs another threat and I think that's what to point to more than just about anything for the San Antonio resurgence.
The Spurs have won 7 in a row, but that pales in comparison to the 10 in a row won by the Miami Heat (19-8) and the 12 in a row won by the Boston Celtics (21-4). I personally think the Celtics are the team to beat in the NBA right now, although they miss slip a little bit without Rajon Rondo the next couple of weeks. I think Doc Rivers is a great coach with some great players in Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, plus of course Rondo. Shaquille O'Neal is still an asset when he's playing. The big thing about the Celtics is they play defense better than just about anybody, as well as on a much more consistent basis, and that really sets them apart.
The Heat look like they are really starting to gel and put it together following some early season struggles. I think they will definitely be a tough out come playoff time. I'm looking forward to their Christmas Day matchup with the Lakers. A win there could be a signature one for their team and give their momentum some more steam. The Heat are playing at the Knicks (16-10) tonight at 5 p.m. MT on ESPN and espn3.com. The Knicks had a long winning streak of their own snapped against the Celtics earlier this week and are really surprising people, including me. Amar'e Stoudemire is playing some great basketball and carrying the Knicks to some success. I think they will be tough to beat in Madison Square Garden, but I think they are missing a piece if they want to be a championship contender.
I'm pretty amazed at how well the Spurs have been playing this year, considering they were in the bottom half of the Western Conference all of last season and were easily dispatched by the Suns in the second round of the playoffs. It looked like the Spurs were aging too much and would have to infuse some new blood to return to their former heights. However, Manu Ginobli is having a great season, scoring 20 points a game. However, from what I hear, the big story is that Richard Jefferson is now more acclimated with the Spurs' system. He's averaging 14.1 points per game. Tony Parker is at 17.2 points per game. Jefferson coming on gives the Spurs another threat and I think that's what to point to more than just about anything for the San Antonio resurgence.
The Spurs have won 7 in a row, but that pales in comparison to the 10 in a row won by the Miami Heat (19-8) and the 12 in a row won by the Boston Celtics (21-4). I personally think the Celtics are the team to beat in the NBA right now, although they miss slip a little bit without Rajon Rondo the next couple of weeks. I think Doc Rivers is a great coach with some great players in Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, plus of course Rondo. Shaquille O'Neal is still an asset when he's playing. The big thing about the Celtics is they play defense better than just about anybody, as well as on a much more consistent basis, and that really sets them apart.
The Heat look like they are really starting to gel and put it together following some early season struggles. I think they will definitely be a tough out come playoff time. I'm looking forward to their Christmas Day matchup with the Lakers. A win there could be a signature one for their team and give their momentum some more steam. The Heat are playing at the Knicks (16-10) tonight at 5 p.m. MT on ESPN and espn3.com. The Knicks had a long winning streak of their own snapped against the Celtics earlier this week and are really surprising people, including me. Amar'e Stoudemire is playing some great basketball and carrying the Knicks to some success. I think they will be tough to beat in Madison Square Garden, but I think they are missing a piece if they want to be a championship contender.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Cliff Lee to Phillies
Prized free agent pitcher Cliff Lee has apparently agreed to a deal with the Phillies. Wow, nobody saw this one coming, I mean nobody. I don't have time right now to go into a lot of detail, but I have provided this useful link to a Jayson Stark column that I think does a nice job of articulating the details, etc.:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/hotstove10/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=5918008
I also liked the tweet from Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News that I have re-tweeted and can currently be read to the right of this post as well as on my Twitter account at twitter.com/dpaysports. And yes it is true, the 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants did beat Lee (twice), Halladay, Oswalt and Hamels on their way to the championship.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/hotstove10/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=5918008
I also liked the tweet from Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News that I have re-tweeted and can currently be read to the right of this post as well as on my Twitter account at twitter.com/dpaysports. And yes it is true, the 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants did beat Lee (twice), Halladay, Oswalt and Hamels on their way to the championship.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Update on the Runnin' Utes
The Utah Runnin' Utes (6-3) beat Pepperdine (4-8) in Salt Lake City on Tuesday 67-60 and lost at Michigan (7-2) on Friday night 75-64. The Utes next host Boise State (6-2) on Friday night at 7 p.m. MT. I'm pleased that Utah was able to beat Pepperdine after the Waves led at halftime, but I'm disappointed that they didn't win by more. Pepperdine isn't a very good team and Utah didn't look that impressive in the win, but as they say: a win is a win.
Utah lost the game at Michigan in the first half, committing at least a dozen turnovers before intermission and trailing by 17 at the break. The Wolverines led by as many as 22 before Utah made a run late to lose by 11. The Utes looked bad most of the game and simply dug themselves too big of a hole with poor play. You just have to take care of the basketball or you're not going to be in a lot of games. Michigan played fine and may have won the game anyway, but Utah really hurt themselves. Without so many turnovers and missed free throws (7-13 from the line) I believe it would have been competitive and relatively close throughout. Jay Watkins scored 17 for the Runnin' Utes and Will Clyburn and Chris Hines each had 11.
I'm still cautiously optimistic about Utah's season. I don't consider the Michigan loss a bad loss, so hopefully it doesn't set the guys back. Boise State on Friday is what I consider a winnable game at home. Let's hope the Utes can pull off the basketball-football sweep by adding a win in the Las Vegas Bowl over the Broncos the following break.
Utah lost the game at Michigan in the first half, committing at least a dozen turnovers before intermission and trailing by 17 at the break. The Wolverines led by as many as 22 before Utah made a run late to lose by 11. The Utes looked bad most of the game and simply dug themselves too big of a hole with poor play. You just have to take care of the basketball or you're not going to be in a lot of games. Michigan played fine and may have won the game anyway, but Utah really hurt themselves. Without so many turnovers and missed free throws (7-13 from the line) I believe it would have been competitive and relatively close throughout. Jay Watkins scored 17 for the Runnin' Utes and Will Clyburn and Chris Hines each had 11.
I'm still cautiously optimistic about Utah's season. I don't consider the Michigan loss a bad loss, so hopefully it doesn't set the guys back. Boise State on Friday is what I consider a winnable game at home. Let's hope the Utes can pull off the basketball-football sweep by adding a win in the Las Vegas Bowl over the Broncos the following break.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Utah tops Bradley, hosts Pepperdine Tuesday
The Utah Runnin' Utes (5-2) won their first road game of the season on Saturday night, beating Bradley (4-4) by a score of 68-60 in Peoria, Illinois. I'm frustrated with bradleybraves.com which said it would have all games it streamed live available on demand as well. This game was scheduled to be streamed live and yet it is curiously unavailable on demand. I was counting on the on demand feature as I was unable to watch live and the website has let me down. In fact, it seems that the only games available on demand are the games that Bradley has won this season.
Anyway, Josh Watkins scored 23 points for the Runnin' Utes and Will Clyburn had 19 as the Utes led throughout. One concerning facet of the game was that Utah went 24-44 from the free throw line. That has to change and I'm pretty confident it will as the Utes normally seem to me to be a pretty good free throw shooting team. I don't have the stats on that on me, but it seems to be the case.
Bradley is one of those teams you should beat, even in their building, so I'm pleased that Utah was able to take care of business. It's the fourth year in a row Utah has played a team from the competitive Missouri Valley Conference and the Utes have compiled a 3-1 record in that span. The Valley always seems to be a fun league, but I don't think Bradley is the class of it this year.
Utah returns home to face Pepperdine (3-6) Tuesday night at the Huntsman Center. Pepperdine is another one of those teams you should beat, but I would have said that last year when the Utes went to Malibu, California and lost to the Waves. Hopefully Utah won't overlook them and will be able to put them away rather early on. I feel confident in predicting a rather comfortable win for the Runnin' Utes. The game won't be televised but will have live audio available on kall700sports.com and on AM 700 here in the Salt Lake City area. As usual, I will be at the game and will be tweeting as well. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/dpaysports.
Utah's 5-2 record looks nice, but it hasn't come against the greatest of schedules. The toughest game of the year to date was definitely at Utah State (5-2), a loss. I don't consider that a bad loss, it being a road game against a good team. USU's 5-2 record looks better than Utah's as its only two losses were to ranked opponents (although the Aggies don't have any of what I would consider big wins to this point either). What is a bad loss for the Utes, though, is losing at home to Oral Roberts (4-4). I wouldn't necessarily consider Oral Roberts a bad team, but I think they are probably a mediocre team at best and definitely not someone you should lose to at home. However, it looks like the Utes may have put that behind them with wins against Fresno State and the aforementioned Bradley. If they keep up the winning the bad loss may end up looking like a mere blip on the radar. We should know a little more after Friday's game at Michigan (6-2).
Anyway, Josh Watkins scored 23 points for the Runnin' Utes and Will Clyburn had 19 as the Utes led throughout. One concerning facet of the game was that Utah went 24-44 from the free throw line. That has to change and I'm pretty confident it will as the Utes normally seem to me to be a pretty good free throw shooting team. I don't have the stats on that on me, but it seems to be the case.
Bradley is one of those teams you should beat, even in their building, so I'm pleased that Utah was able to take care of business. It's the fourth year in a row Utah has played a team from the competitive Missouri Valley Conference and the Utes have compiled a 3-1 record in that span. The Valley always seems to be a fun league, but I don't think Bradley is the class of it this year.
Utah returns home to face Pepperdine (3-6) Tuesday night at the Huntsman Center. Pepperdine is another one of those teams you should beat, but I would have said that last year when the Utes went to Malibu, California and lost to the Waves. Hopefully Utah won't overlook them and will be able to put them away rather early on. I feel confident in predicting a rather comfortable win for the Runnin' Utes. The game won't be televised but will have live audio available on kall700sports.com and on AM 700 here in the Salt Lake City area. As usual, I will be at the game and will be tweeting as well. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/dpaysports.
Utah's 5-2 record looks nice, but it hasn't come against the greatest of schedules. The toughest game of the year to date was definitely at Utah State (5-2), a loss. I don't consider that a bad loss, it being a road game against a good team. USU's 5-2 record looks better than Utah's as its only two losses were to ranked opponents (although the Aggies don't have any of what I would consider big wins to this point either). What is a bad loss for the Utes, though, is losing at home to Oral Roberts (4-4). I wouldn't necessarily consider Oral Roberts a bad team, but I think they are probably a mediocre team at best and definitely not someone you should lose to at home. However, it looks like the Utes may have put that behind them with wins against Fresno State and the aforementioned Bradley. If they keep up the winning the bad loss may end up looking like a mere blip on the radar. We should know a little more after Friday's game at Michigan (6-2).
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Runnin' Utes visit Bradley on Saturday night
The Utah Runnin' Utes (4-2) visit Bradley (4-3) on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MT. The game will not be televised in Utah, but there is a live video stream of the game available on bradleybraves.com. Unfortunately the stream costs money, but hey it's worth watching the game to me. The Utes beat Fresno State (1-4) on Tuesday in Salt Lake City, but I thought it was a rather underwhelming victory against a horrible team.
Now I don't consider Bradley to be a great team, but they are definitely better than Fresno State and the game will be more of a challenge as it is on the road. My hope is that the Utes will win and give me some encouragement as to the potential of this team, but in all honesty I consider the game a toss up. I'll be back on here with my thoughts and analysis at some point following the game.
In other news this week, junior guard and captain Jace Tavita has left the program. Tavita didn't play at all Tuesday night against Fresno State despite being healthy and has seen his playing time diminished of late. The word is that Tavita is looking to transfer to a program in which he can get more playing time. Tavita was a good team guy and a good defender, but he was a serious liability on the offensive end of the floor. I won't miss him on the offensive end of the court and I don't think his absence will hurt the team too much. However, he was a likable guy that I always rooted for and I hope he lands on his feet and is successful somewhere.
For sports fans in the state of Utah it is also worth noting that Utah State (5-1) is at #16 Georgetown (7-0) at 10 a.m. MT on ESPNU. I think it's a game well worth checking out. I've thought the Aggies' basketball schedule has been far too weak in recent years and that scheduling a game like this is a step in the right direction regardless of the outcome.
Now I don't consider Bradley to be a great team, but they are definitely better than Fresno State and the game will be more of a challenge as it is on the road. My hope is that the Utes will win and give me some encouragement as to the potential of this team, but in all honesty I consider the game a toss up. I'll be back on here with my thoughts and analysis at some point following the game.
In other news this week, junior guard and captain Jace Tavita has left the program. Tavita didn't play at all Tuesday night against Fresno State despite being healthy and has seen his playing time diminished of late. The word is that Tavita is looking to transfer to a program in which he can get more playing time. Tavita was a good team guy and a good defender, but he was a serious liability on the offensive end of the floor. I won't miss him on the offensive end of the court and I don't think his absence will hurt the team too much. However, he was a likable guy that I always rooted for and I hope he lands on his feet and is successful somewhere.
For sports fans in the state of Utah it is also worth noting that Utah State (5-1) is at #16 Georgetown (7-0) at 10 a.m. MT on ESPNU. I think it's a game well worth checking out. I've thought the Aggies' basketball schedule has been far too weak in recent years and that scheduling a game like this is a step in the right direction regardless of the outcome.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Utah tops Fresno State
Utah (4-2) defeated Fresno State (1-4) last night by a score of 76-63. Utah led by as many as 24 in the second half. A lot of guys got into the act including Chris Kupets, Josh Watkins, Will Clyburn and Jason Washburn. I liked the balanced scoring from the Runnin' Utes last night. I didn't like how slow of a start they got off to, but they really started the second half strong and took control of the game.
Fresno State looks like a really bad team. They missed many open shots, often by wide margins. I thought Utah's defense was okay, but they still gave up a lot of open looks that the Bulldogs just weren't able to knock down. Hopefully they can ratchet up the defense a little bit more in the future. Utah next plays at Bradley (4-3) on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MT.
Fresno State looks like a really bad team. They missed many open shots, often by wide margins. I thought Utah's defense was okay, but they still gave up a lot of open looks that the Bulldogs just weren't able to knock down. Hopefully they can ratchet up the defense a little bit more in the future. Utah next plays at Bradley (4-3) on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MT.
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