Sports Lockdown

Riverside City College football ranks No. 4 in the nation

2011-12-11T15:02:00.001-08:00

An undefeated season ended with a bowl title for the Riverside City College football team on Nov. 19.

The Tigers defeated Saddleback College, 31-14, which allowed them to capture the Golden State Bowl title as well as ending the season 11-0.

Despite having an incredible season and proving themselves worthy of competing for a state championship, the Tigers were unable to compete for one, because they were in a second tier division.

Note: Teams in the first tier division of the Southern California Football Association are the only ones able to play for the state title.

Yesterday Mt. San Antonio College, a team Riverside defeated during its season, 29-26 on Sept. 24, played City College of San Francisco for the California state title.

Mt. SAC overcame two deficits but was unable to beat San Francisco and capture its third state championship. Instead San Francisco was able to defeat Mt. SAC, 52-42, to capture its sixth state championship in college history.

With the loss, Mt. SAC ended its season 13-2.

In the JC Gridiron national poll ranking, RCC ends up No. 4 as Mt. SAC ends up No. 8.

It is unknown how the national championship works but prior to the California state title game, many fans of California community college football said RCC had a chance to play for the national title.

As of now RCC ends its season as the undefeated Golden State Bowl champion and No. 4 in the nation.

The choice to play with the Lakers

2011-12-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

Every athlete wants the opportunity to win championships and go down as one of the best in their respective sport.

Dwight Howard, center of the Orlando Magic, is no different.

He too wants to compete at the highest level and win NBA championships.

The opportunity is there for the taking for Howard right now.

The opportunity is not with the Magic but with another NBA team.

The Los Angeles Lakers are the team he has that opportunity to win championships and go down as one of the best.

The Lakers are the team that gave many players the chance to win, win and win.

Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabber, Shaquille O'Neal, James Worthy, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Kobe Bryant and etc. are just some of the many players who came and did a whole lot with the Lakers.

Right now the Lakers are pleading a trade that will send Chris Paul, one of the best point guards in the NBA right now, to Los Angeles where the Lakers look to win another championship and many more in the years to come.

Howard has a chance to be a part of that. He has the chance to go to Los Angeles and win, win and win with Paul and Bryant.

There is a problem though . . .

There is a rumor going around that Howard does not want to come to the Lakers only because he refuses to continue to be compared to O'Neal and have people claim he is trying to be like O'Neal.

Although that is something that can be irritating and annoying to be accused of being like someone--the chance to be as good or better than a hall-of-fame player is the best thin that can happen to a player, especially Howard.

Howard has the chance to be better than O'Neal and have people see him differently.

Although their roads started the same and can end the same. When the story is over, Howard has the control of deciding what people are going to compare when it is between O'Neal and him.

Howard cannot allow this to determine his choice to be traded to Los Angeles.

He will basically avoid winning simply because he does not want others to think he is copying O'Neal. What he should be thinking is that he is blessed to be compared to the likes of O'Neal and has the shot to experience what O'Neal did.

It is not a bad choice. O'Neal did it and he is one his way to the hall-of-fame.

The Lakers are a no brainier. The New Jersey Nets are not the right choice.

Deron Williams will leave and Howard will be alone.

The Nets are not going to be respected and the New York Knicks will always be the better team in the big apple, even if they suck.

The decision is simple and it is up to Howard to determine if he wants to be his own self or always let people to think he is the like O'Neal.

Los Angeles is where he needs to be. Paul and Bryant will be waiting for him.

With a Broken Thumb, Come Broken Playoff Hopes

2011-11-22T01:58:00.000-08:00

The Chicago Bears were one of the hottest teams coming out of week 11. They are on a 5-game winning streak and have tied the Detroit Lions for second place in the NFC North.

The reason I say "were" is because what looked like a solid season for the Bears (7-3), one in which they could even give the Packers a run for their money, they suddenly turned as cold as Chicago winds.

Following Sunday's game, an impressive win over the charge-less Chargers, it was reported that Bears quarterback Jay Cutler had broken his thumb, requiring surgery, and is likely out for the season.

Cutler was having a solid season, on pace to match his passing yards he had in his first season with the bears with a third of the interceptions. Now, he'll have to play cheerleader on the sidelines while he watches his team wither its way out of playoff contention.

Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher says he's not worried. He says he trusts Caleb Hanie, Cutler's replacement, who barely has more NFL snaps than yours truly.

The loss of Cutler means the end of the Bears. Bears running back Matt Forte is the major reason for the bears offense staying in games. Cutler was simply a game manager and he's been doing a stellar job not messing it up this season.

As it is, Bears' wide recievers Johnny Knox and Earl Bennett are average at best. Cutler is the reason they are making any catches at all this year. How are they going to fare with Hanie behind center? My prediction, not well.

There's six games left this season and if all goes well, they can win three. They travel to Oakland next week to take on the Raiders who have finally figured out their QB situation and are back to form.

They then play Kansas City, easy, then off to Denver to try and stop the unstoppable Tim Tebow. They then come back home to play against Seattle which should be an easy win, and then finish their final two games on the road against the undefeated Packers and the lowly Vikings.

If all goes according to plan, and when I say "according to plan", I mean Forte must be lights-out and returner Devin Hester must return at least a kick-off/punt for a touchdown in every game, the Bears should finish the season 10-6.

And you say 10-6 is a good record, well yea it is, but it might not be enough for that final wildcard spot. With Cutler out, it looks like Detroit will take the second spot in the division. To get that last spot in, they have to beat out the New York Giants and the Atlanta Falcons, who are both just one game behind with six games left.

So how do they do it with an inexperienced QB? Well, Mike Martz, the Bears offensive coordinator, is going to have to pull out his best Jim Harbaugh impression and get his QB to not lose these next six games.

Only difference is that Alex Smith, the 49ers QB, has had time put in to mess up and learn from his mistakes. Hanie doesn't have the experience, nor the time.

Sports Lockdown - Nov. 1

2011-11-01T23:32:00.000-07:00

Women's VBall: Saddleback College (3-8, 0-30 @ Riverside City College (7-7, 0-3) - 10/12/2011

2011-10-12T17:36:00.000-07:00

Women's VBall: Saddleback (3-8, 0-3) @ RCC (7-7, 0-3) - 10/12/2011

Women's Volleyball: Golden West @ RCC 9/30/2011

2011-09-30T18:11:00.001-07:00

Women\'s Volleyball: Golden West @ RCC 9/30/2011

2011-09-15T14:58:00.000-07:00

After a long, tumultuous off-season, in which many of us actually thought we'd never see a game this year, week one of this season is officially in the books.
With so many off-season training camps canceled and players not having a chance to really figure it out, week one predictions were probably about as hard to guess as trying to figure out which team Terrell Owens will eventually end up with, if any.
But now that we've had a chance to finally see what's become of this shortened off-season, with new acquisitions barely a month into it with their new team, lets see if we can figure out the week 2 results.

Raiders @ Bills
While both team looked impressive in week one I believe the Raiders actually have respectable talent on both sides of the field. Raiders win.

Chiefs @ Lions
With a healthy Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson finally connecting, the Lions should be able to quickly dismantle the Eric Berry-less Chiefs. Matt Cassel on the other hand should have his hands full with the beastly Ndomukong Suh. Lions Win.

Ravens @ Titans
The Dominating Ravens defense is just too powerful for Matt Hasselbeck and his new team. Ravens win.

Browns @ Colts
I know everyone is hoping the Manning-less Colts tank the season in hopes of landing Andrew Luck, but I honestly can not see Reggie Wayne and co. purposely losing games. What does that say about their integrity? What kind of message are they sending to their friend and teammate Manning? Now, I do believe the Colts sans Manning were not good enough to beat the Texans in week one, but they are good enough to beat these Browns. Colts win.

Buccaneers @ Vikings
I expected both of these teams to win their week one match-ups, but since they didn't I'm taking home field advantage. Vikings win.

Bears @ Saints
No disrespect to the Bears but after that near comeback against who I believe is the best team this year, The Green Bay Packers, Drew Brees and the Saints take the game. Saints win.

Jaguars @ Jets
After watching the Jets on Sunday night, I think we all learned that they have a lot to work on. Mark Sanchez is not the quarterback we expected coming into his 3rd season, Antonio Cromartie isn't aggressive enough to come down with the ball and blitz needs to come a little faster. The Jags should be good enough practice for the Jets to figure this out. Jets win.

Seahawks @ Steelers
The Steelers are mad about that beating they took at the hands of the Ravens. They're taking it all on Seattle. Steelers win.

Cardinals @ Redskins
The redskins are looking pretty good under the new and improved Rex Grossman and Cobb and company still have a bit of work to do, especially the defense who gave up over 400 passing yards to a rookie in his debut. Redskins win.

Packers @ Panthers
Lets see Cam Newton throw for over 400 yards against this defense. Packers win.

Cowboys @ 49ers
A good old match-up that takes us back to those old rivalry days between these two teams. But this is 20 years later. Frisco is on the uprising but not quite there yet. I see Tony Romo fixing some of his mistakes and getting the game ball. Cowgirls win.

Bengals @ Broncos
We already know this game doesn't matter. Neither of these teams are playing in the post season. Only thing I have to say is, WE WANT TEBOW. But staying on the topic, Maybe Orton gets a little motivation from all this. Broncos win.

Texans @ dolphins
Both teams played great offensively in week one. The winner of this one is going to come on the defensive side and one team is better defensively. Texans win.

Chargers @ Patriots
Tom Brady threw for 517 yards and only one of those completed passes was to Chad Ochocinco. Patriots win.

Eagles @ Falcons
Mike Vick is back in the dirttty South. Different uniform, different bird, different time. Loaded as he is, in the wallet and on the field, I can't see Vick leaving with a loss. Eagles win.

Rams @ Giants
Eli and the Giants need to win now if they truly wish to contend in their division. Playing the injury prone Rams, or Lambs, could be a great way to start. Giants win.

We'll see how this goes

RCC women's water polo looks to repeat

2011-08-29T10:17:00.000-07:00

A preview of the Riverside City College women's water polo team's upcoming 2011 season with coach David Alquist and a few players.

Riverside City College women's water polo from Sports Lockdown on Vimeo.

Raiders are not the team for Los Angeles

2011-08-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

A solid reason for why the Raiders should not be a serious candidate to move to Los Angeles was justified at last night's preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers.

The nonsense game between the two bay area NFL teams was supposed to be a exciting match for fans to see their teams' progress as they prepare for the start of the NFL season, turned ugly as several fans were shot and beaten by opposing fans.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that several men were attacked by a Oakland Raiders fan following the 49ers' preseason win over the Raiders.

One man was beaten in one of the stadium's restrooms and another man was shot several times in the stadium's parking lot.

The senseless acts of violence that occurs regularly with Raider fans has stereotyped Raider fans as wild maniacs with no respect and up to no good.

Los Angeles already has its issues with having trouble identifying the suspects who beat a San Francisco fan into a coma at the Los Angeles Dodgers' opening season game in April, and the LAPD does not need more violence at sporting events if Los Angeles has the Raiders as the only NFL team willing to move to the proposed downtown football stadium.

The irresponsible sports fans are already a hand full at Dodgers' games and after the Lakers win a championship since some fans take the streets of downtown and terrorize the surrounding areas through riots.

During the '80s and '90s when the Raiders were in Los Angeles, stories of gang members stealing the logo and colors of the then Los Angeles Raiders, to use as their own began popping up. Then the stories evolved to gang members running around the LA Coliseum causing trouble during the games.

Last night's acts caused by one Raider fan only proves that the fan base of the Raiders is a serious issue and Los Angeles does not need those issues. If anything, the problem might worsen if the Raiders move back to Southern California because the few LA fans who cause trouble will find a way to ruin a wonderful accomplishment for the community of LA and beyond the stay of the Raiders in LA.

The message will continue by people opposing the idea of bring the Raiders back to Los Angeles because residents of LA knows they do not want those wild acts performed by idiot Raider fans happening in their city.

Al Davis, you had your chance in LA, please leave your goofball team where it is at.

Fear breaks out during Mexican soccer match

2011-08-20T22:31:00.000-07:00

A chilly reminder interrupted a soccer match in Torreon, Mexico, when a gun battle erupted outside the stadium where Los Monracas de Moreila and Santos Laguna were playing.

A loud noise echoed through the stadium as if it were a bomb, while fans cheered and players ran down one side of the field chasing the ball.

Once everyone inside the stadium realized what was happening, more firearm sounds began breaking out.

The referee blew his whistle warning everyone on the field to get off the field and seconds later the players, coaches and referees are seen taking off to the locker room as the announcers calling the match, are puzzled to figure out what was happening.

Fans are stuck in the stands in fear of what is happening outside the stadium.

The gun war outside was later identified as a gun war with Mexican drug cartels and local police, some reports said.

The gun battle lasted for minutes but the match was paused for awhile and officials felt it was OK to continue the match.

The event that occurred outside the stadium today is only a small reminder of the ugly drug war that has been going on for years in Mexico since President Felipe Calderon announced his pledge to end the drug cartels' organized crime in the country.

The video below is footage of the moments happening inside the stadium during the gun battle outside.

Riverside City College football ranks among the best

2011-07-19T15:48:00.000-07:00

With the excitement of the upcoming season, the Riverside City College football team will be starting off as one of the best community college football programs in the nation.

According to JCGridiron.com's preseason poll, the website ranks the RCC Tigers No. 12 in the nation.

The website said the Tigers will have 18 starters returning from last season's 10-1 team, but since this season's schedule is weak; the chances for the Tigers to compete for a state title can be slim.

By viewing the Tigers' 2011 schedule, the Tigers' only tough opponent is Mt. San Antonio, who is the two-time defending state champion, whereas the other opponents are not recognizable as teams with a chance to compete for state level titles.

Although Los Angeles Harbor City College, who RCC defeated in the Central Conference Bowl title game, is ranked No. 27 in the nation.

Riverside City College football 2011 schedule

2011-07-18T12:58:00.000-07:00

The schedule is released for the Riverside City College football team's 2011 season.

Following a near perfect season in 2010, the RCC Tigers look to defend their Central Conference Bowl title.

Led by first year coach, Tom Craft, the Tigers made an outstanding turn around as they ended the season 10-1 after ending the 2009 season 1-9.

Losing its only game to Mt. San Antonio, the team was able to win the East Central Conference but the loss was enough to keep the Tigers out of any contention to play for a state title.

The RCC Tigers open up the season Sept. 10 at San Bernardino Valley College at 6 p.m. followed by another road game on Sept. 17 at Victor Valley College in Victorville at 1 p.m.

The team heads back home for its home opener against the team they lost to last season, Mt. San Antonio, on Sept. 24 at 6 p.m.

The schedule plays out as followed:

Oct. 1 vs. Chaffey College at 6 p.m.

Oct. 8 at Citrus College at 1 p.m.

Oct. 15 at Orange Coast at 6 p.m.

Oct. 22 vs. Golden West at 6 p.m.

Oct. 29 vs. Santa Ana at 6 p.m.

Nov. 5 at Desert of the College at 6 p.m.

Nov. 12 vs. Southwestern College at 6 p.m.

All of the RCC Tigers home games are played at Wheelock Stadium at RCC.

The ultimate underdog story, Japan takes home the gold

2011-07-17T21:54:00.000-07:00

How's this for a great humanity story? After the devastating earthquake that took so many lives and destroyed so many homes, Japan still put together a women's soccer team to compete in the world cup and they stunned the US silent with a game saving comeback, and extra time comeback, and a 3-1 penalty kick victory.

Talk about a nerve-racking game.

It's been a long road for them, battling Germany and Sweden to get to the final against the ambiguous United States. Unlike the other teams in the World Cup, Japan had something more to fight for than just their nation. Many of the players lost friends and family in the devastation. That kind of grief wears on a player to the point that the game became a means of honoring those lost loved ones.

Their heart took them all the way to final, which was impressive enough. After all, they had nothing to lose whereas the US had a reputation to maintain.

After barely qualifying for the world cup in the first place and after their mediocre performances against France, Brazil and even back in the group stages, it was really something to finally see the US play up to their full potential.

U.S. coach Pia Sundhage gathered her team and came up with a brilliant game plan: suffocate the middle, exploit their height advantage, keep the game in front of you. It worked like a charm.

The Japanese have impressed the world with their beautiful possession game and Sundhage knew that she had to find a way to shut down Japan's lethal midfield if her team was to win the game.

And they did just that.

The Americans pressed the goal hard, playing tight in the middle, changing their lineup to include an extra midfielder to compensate for Japan's. It was the best performance I've seen the U.S. put on the entire World Cup.

They played together as a team, they disciplined themselves to keep to their positions and to the game plan of suffocating the middle, and they really proved to the world that they are worthy of their No. 1 ranking. It was the first time I've seen them play seamless possession soccer.

They just couldn't score. They squandered a boatload of chances that sailed over the crossbar, whacked the post and were frantically cleared by the rattled Japanese defense, chances they would later regret.

Japan, who have been decidedly impressive all tournament long, did not look like themselves at all. They seemed terrified all game and never really recovered. The US would not let them settle into their rhythm.

In the second half, the youngster Alex Morgan came off the bench, wormed her way behind the defense, received a perfect ball from Meagan Rapinoe, and scored a beautiful solo goal.

Japan finally stepped up their game and Aya Miyama (my favorite player for Japan) capitalized on the first bout of sloppy defending for the U.S. Rachel Buehler made a miserable effort to clear the ball in the front of the net, the ball fell to Ali Kreiger who didn't seem to know what to do with the ball so close to the goal mouth and laid it right into the path of Miyama. We're tied at 1-1.

The game went into extra time, where I thought for sure the U.S. had the advantage of endurance. Sure enough, Abby Wamback, who had been pounding at the goal all game long, did what she does best and headed the ball in (I'm really not sure she can score any other way).

But once again Japan came back, this time Homare Sawa, Japan's leader and play maker, tied it up again.

We're off to penalties. And again, I thought for sure penalties favored the U.S. They hardly ever miss and keeper Hope Solo owns her goal in a way that would make former keeper Brianna Scurry envious.

So let the nail biting begin. Shannon Box was up first. The crowd held its breath as she drilled the ball into Ayumi Kaihori's leg. First penalty missed.

Next up Aya Miyama. Solo was left flat-footed as Miyama sent the ball the other direction to put Japan up 1-0.

Then Carly Lloyd stepped up. Missed horribly. It took her a second to realize that she'd sent the ball whizzing over the crossbar (as she'd been doing all game long), covering her mouth with a hand, as stunned as the crowd.

Solo kept her team in the game by saving the next shot, giving Tobin Heath a chance to tie it up but Kaihori had other plans. She dove the right way and collected the ball firmly with both hands.

That three missed shots for the US, something simply unheard of in their long, impressive history.

Solo came up with another save and FINALLY! Wamback reminded her team how to take a penalty shot and burried hers home, giving the US a slim chance to catch up, but a chance nonetheless.

So it came down to Saki Kumagai to make history for Japan. And she did.

3-1 was the final score on penalties. And what a celebration. After going through such hardship at home, it was a great humanity story to see them honor their nation with a world cup win, to see Sawa win the golden boot with five goals in the tournament, and to see their heart and hard work rewarded.

The U.S. outplayed them, held firmly to a brilliant game plan, and played like the US team of old that won the 1999 world cup.

But I have to say, Japan winning the whole thing is a great underdog story that means so much more to them and to the world than if the U.S. had taken home the gold.

United States and Japan looks to make history

2011-07-13T16:59:00.000-07:00

The long road to glory is one match away for the United States' women's national soccer team.

Following emotional, hard fought wins over difficult teams like Brazil and France, the United States has strengthen its identity of being the most dominate women's soccer team in the world and being able to back up its No. 1 rank in the world.

Following the 2-1 loss to Sweden in the final match of group play, the United States battled a giant opponent in Brazil where the U.S. needed a late miracle from Abby Wambach in extra time to send the match to a penalty kick shootout; where the U.S. won the match 5-3 in penalties.

With little to celebrate, the U.S. had to bounce back and face a up and coming young France team full of young stars.

The France team did not mess around as it controlled the match for the majority of the time. While the match stood at 1-1 with less than 15 minutes to go, Wambach came through for the U.S. to send the team to the finals.

The U.S. will be facing Japan, who had a rough road getting to the finals, because they were not favored against Germany. Japan was not getting no media attention from its own country and many did not see them getting this far.

But Japan managed to use anything it could built momentum on and it has sent them passed Germany, who were many people's pick to face U.S. in the finals, and Sweden who were slight favorites over Japan.

The Japanese women have shown lots of pride and emotion in its matches throughout the tournament and facing them in the finals, where they do not have anything to lose, only makes the match much harder for the United States to win.

Despite the United States overcoming the Brazil team, which the best player in the world, the team has a lot on the line, including a 2-0 record the United States has in the Women's World Cup finals.

The last time United States won the Women's World Cup was in 1999 against China at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

Faith has brought these two teams to the end of the road where one will come up glories while the other one looks beyond in what was not to be for them.

A lot is on the line for both teams as Japan is using the earthquakes that have devastated its country and the United States that has overcame elimination in stressful, heart-pounding moments.

Defense sends USA to World Cup final

2011-07-13T11:03:00.000-07:00

After barely managing a win against Brazil, the US women’s soccer team had yet another less than convincing victory against France.

The game ended 3-1 but this was one of those games where the score line does not tell half the story.

Out-possessed, out-shot and out-played, the US really had no business winning the game.

In the end, however, it was the defense that decided the game. The French midfield was superb. Between Necib, Abily and Bompastor, the French controlled the game from start to finish. The first opportunity US had on was in the 10th minute of play . . . and Lauren Cheney poked it home.

It was all France after that. The five-player midfield displayed brilliant prowess, passed circles around Carly Lloyd and Shannon Box (the weakest links of the US team), sent shots whizzing barely over the crossbar, and whacked the post more than a few times, but they didn’t put the ball in the net until the second half. Sonia Bompastor to the rescue!

France’s biggest weakness was their defense. This was where the US held their greatest advantage. With a keeper as unbelievably mobile as Hope Solo, the incessant shots by Abily and France's lone striker Delie were kept at bay.

US sweeper Christy Rampone (the player of the game in my book) kept her defense together and organized them to keep the French players in front of them instead of committing to their dribbling.

And the dribbling was pretty fantastic.

Camille Abily and Louisa Necib gave the US defense fits, dribbling three and four players at once with fancy moves that would’ve impressed the Brazilians.

And I have to take a moment to mention the individual prowess Necib. Louisa Necib . . . remember that name because she is going to be the world’s next best player. Perfect touch, perfect vision, and perfect composure, the US had a difficult time containing her.

But the US defense held strong and if they did not completely contain the French players, they did enough. The French defense did not.

In the last ten minutes of play, Wambach headed the ball home and Alex Morgan scored her first world cup goal. No offense to any of the strikers but to be honest, the goals were all results of defensive errors on France’s part.

Nevertheless, the US capitalized on France’s unfortunate weakness and despite being horribly out-played, the US defense insured the team a place in the final for the first time since 1999.

The US will face yet another tactically strong midfield team, Japan, in the final on Sunday. France and Sweden face off in the third/fourth place match on Saturday.

USA narrowly defeats Brazil in quarter final

2011-07-11T19:34:00.000-07:00

The weekend's quarter final matches of the women's world cup were . . . unexpected. Who would've thought that Japan would give the two-time reigning champions a run for their money?

Sweden soundly defeated Australia in the only quarter final match that did not go to extra time, and France emerged victorious in a penalty shootout with England. But the match of the weekend was definitely USA and Brazil.

The game was practically decided on controversial calls by the referee. Honestly, as far as play, the game could've gone either way. The USA trumped Brazil in team work and chemistry, but they were no match for the individual flare of the Brazilians.

In the second minute of play, Brazilian defender Daiane scored an unfortunate own goal, putting the Americans up for the entire first half.

The second half was where all the controversy happened. USA defender Rachel Beuhler had no choice but to pull Marta down in the box or the world's best female player would definitely have tied the game. Obvious foul. Obvious penalty. But a straight red card? I'm not sure it was even a yellow.

Christiane lined up to take the penalty, but USA keeper Hope Solo saved it (I still can't believe how good she is at saving penalty kicks). The referee whistled a re-kick.

Now, initially no one knew why. It came out later in the game that there was some encroachment by an American player . . . maybe, possibly, by a mere few inches, Wambach kind of encroached a second before the shot was taken.

In any case, Marta took the second shot. She missed a vital penalty in the last world cup final against Germany . . . but she was not about to miss again. With the game tied at 1-1, the USA down to 10 players and Brazil finally feeling their thunder, it was looking pretty bleak for the USA.

And then it got even worse.

In the first few minutes of extra time, an offside call was not called and Marta scored a tricky goal off of it. Unfortunately it does happen in soccer and you just kind of deal with it . . . And it was one pretty goal.

By the second half of extra time, with Brazil up 2-1, the USA could not wait any longer. They had no choice but to gun at Brazil with everything they had. And they did. In the end, with 10 players, USA outlasted Brazil and Abby Wambach headed the ball home in the extra time of extra time. Literally at the last possible second.

On to penalty kicks.

Poor Daiane, the same person who scored the own goal, missed her penalty and the USA scored all five of theirs.

Though the USA beat the mighty Brazilians (and I'm going to miss watch Marta), they're still missing something. I just don't think they have what they need to win this world cup. Sweden out classed them and if they face Sweden again, I think they will lose again for the same reason.

USA will play France in the semifinals on Wednesday and we will see if they stand to an organized midfield, something Brazil lacked but Sweden dominated.

Japan will play Sweden on Wednesday.

Tomorrow's soccer stars look to make history

2011-07-07T21:13:00.000-07:00

The youth of soccer has been demonstrating the future of international soccer in Mexico for the past month and the celebration ends Sunday when one rising squad of youths will be crown U-17 FIFA World Cup champions.

The final two squads are Mexico and Uruguay, who will meet Sunday at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City for the top prize of the tournament.

The Mexican team had its share of doubtfulness well it trailed a strong Germany squad in the semifinals.

Mexico struck first in the beginning minutes with a header by Julio Gomez as the Mexicans celebrated the early success.

The smiles would not last long as Germany responded with a goal of its own seven minutes later. The two teams remained tied ending the first half.

By the 60th minute, Germany took the lead while Mexico began to wonder if its campaign to another U-17 World Cup title will be ending in the hands of the Germans,

Without hesitation Mexico continued to strike on goal and 18 minutes later Mexico got its answer off a corner kick and tied the match.

Soon later Gomez found himself injured and the Mexicans were left to force extra time in a 2-2 draw or score another goal with 10 minutes to go in the match.

The rising hero with a bandage wrapped around his head, Gomez, returned into the game as Mexico had a final chance to win the match with another corner kick.

As the ball with up and toward the goal, it was deflected and without thinking, Gomez scored the winning goal for Mexico to send them off to the finals.

The heroic performance by Gomez has created a avalanche of momentum for Mexico as it looks to win its second U-17 World Cup. The country won its last one in 2005, that was led by Carlos Vela.

The team will not have a easy run to the trophy because they will have Uruguay in the way, the team who shutout Brazil in a 3-0 win.

Uruguay jumped on top of Brazil with a penalty in the first half.

In the second half Uruguay poured two more goals in to send a messaged to everyone that it is not settling for a trip to the finals but to win the trophy too.

The two performances by Mexico and Uruguay in the semifinals sets up a awesome match. The two teams have been outstanding throughout the tournament as both won difficult games against outstanding opponents.

The two teams have came out from the pack and Sunday will be their chance to claim the world's prize and mark history in their young lives.

Without a doubt Mexico will have the home field advantage and will be favorites in the match but Uruguay has other plans too.

It will be a exciting match and Mexico will emerge as the clear winners.

United States to face Brazil in quarter finals

2011-07-07T12:19:00.000-07:00

With the round of 16 concluded, there are only eight teams left in the women's world cup. The quarter finals schedule is all set and ready to go for this weekend and some of the match-ups promise to be good games.

Germany, the defending champions, collected all nine points in their group after defeating a very impressive looking French side 4-2. German's star player Birgit Prinz has yet to find her form, which may be a small comfort to Japan, who they will face in the quarter finals.

Japan's impressive 4-0 win over Mexico shouted to the German's that they would not go down without a fight.

Though England made it through top in their group, their one-point victories have been less than convincing. Captain Kelly Smith has been trying to do everything herself but the team will have to tighten up in the middle to defeat the French in the quarters.

The upset of the tournament so far, the United States fell to Sweden 2-1 in a game that two Swedish goals were inaccurately called offside (they weren't even close to being offside, to be honest). Sweden showed more organization in the midfield, more patience in handling the ball, and a more creative offense, looking more like the team that reached the final in 2003.

A penalty from Lisa Dahlkvist put Sweden ahead and a second goal by Swedish captain Nilla Fischer, though it took a nasty deflection on its way, secured Sweden's group C victory and a match against Australia.

USA star striker Abby Wambach (though I personally would go with Lauren Cheney as the more impressive forward) finally ended her dry spell and scored a less then orthodox goal with her shoulder (no it was not a handball). But it wasn't enough for them to avoid a second place standing in the group.

Which wouldn't be a big deal except that their next opponent is Brazil.

Brazil is home to the best female player in the world, Marta. Named best player for the last five consecutive years (and she's only 24), Marta has already proven in this world cup that she means to lead her team to victory.

Erika's fancy goal against Equitorial Guinea (and awesome back flip celebration) opened Brazil's scoring and Christiane, an excellent striker often overshadowed by Marta, solidified the victory with two goals of her own.

The United States defense, who showed a lack of organization in the game verses Sweden, is going to need a game plan to stunt the powerful Brazilian offense.

Brazil's own lackluster defense will have to stand firm as well against Lauren Cheney's outside shots and Abby Wambach's opportunistic presence.

Catch Germany vs. Japan and England vs. France on Saturday July 9. USA vs. Brazil and Sweden vs. Australia are scheduled for Sunday the 10.

Sports Lockdown - July 5

2011-07-06T18:23:00.000-07:00

Four Away From Three

2011-07-06T02:57:00.000-07:00

New York Yankees short stop Derek Jeter went to bed tonight most likely not thinking about his stagnant season, or his dwindling career or even which supermodel he should have taken to the hotel, but about four simple little hits.

Four hits that place him into a category no other Yankee has ever been in. Four hits away from the 3,000 hit club. I won't lie. I was shocked when I found out that no other Yankee has accomplished this feat. especially with how historic that franchise is with players like Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle, but I'm ecstatic that I'm around to see the first.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a Yankees fan, (Go Dodgers) but as a baseball fan it's always great to see someone accomplish something this grand. For a Hall of Fame player like Jeter, this will be just another notch on his belt to add to the myriad of accomplishments he already has.

Adding to the fact that he's the all-time hits leader for the Yankees, Jeter has 12 all-star appearences (2011 included), five Gold Golve Awards, four Silver Slugger Awards, two Hank Aaron Awards, AL ROY, all-star game MVP, World Series MVP and the list goes on and on. Oh did I forget to mention he has five rings.

After all this I ask, why is everyone writing him off? Saying his career is over, that he should leave the game already, and that he's overpaid? Yes Jeter is in the midst of his worst season batting .257 with two home runs and 22 RBIs, but two words compensate for any struggles he has in the regular season. MR. NOVEMBER.

Jeter's ability to come up big in clutch situations seperates him from about 99% of the league and anyone that can get the big hits doesn't deserve the criticism Jeter is facing. If LeBron James was clutch, he'd have a ring by now, maybe he can buy one of Jeters, he does have four to spare. Do you think LeBron would hear all the ridicule he hears now if he could make a shot when he needs to.

Derek Jeter brings that to the organization. Sure, lately he's been going 0-4 or 1-5 in games this season, but he's got other all-star talent around him to get the team some wins. When it comes time for post-season baseball, who's the guy you want at the plate? I wan't the experienced veteran who's done this before.

Let me give you an example, I'm an LA guy and I love the Lakers. One of the Lakers is in the same position as Jeter. Aging, slower, average has declined. If you watch sports, you should know I'm talking about another Derek, Derek Fisher. Fisher is in the same situation as Jeter, and the media continues to bad-mouth them.

What the media doesn't count in are the intangibles that these two players bring to their respective organizations. They are leaders in the locker rooms, they play with class, and the are mentors to the new faces in the league.

Think about what goes through the mind of a rookie in the Yankees clubhouse. They look at Jeter and most likely see someone they grew up idolizing. Who doesn't want to be the best player on the country's most popular team? And then they see all the harsh things being said about them, by the media, the fans and worst of all, by the organization.

Why would someone want to play in a league like that, where you can become everyone's hero then in a heartbeat become yesterdays garbage. That is just like this country to cherish something then throw it to the side as soon as it begins to decline. It happens to our cars, to the elderly and even hall of fame players aren't safe.

Now I know that the Yankee organization is looking out for the interest of the team. Yes the name on the front of the jerseys is more important then the name on the back. Or in this case, the pin stripes are more important than whoever is wearing them. But would the organization have been the same if Jeter had never worn the pin stripes?

Jeter was an integral part of all five championships the Yankees won with him, especially the first four. I can stand here and say that without him they wouldn't have won the first four, that's how important he is to the team. Yes, the franchise would still be legendary without those four championships but they wouldn't really be the Yankees, because the Yankees are one of those fanchises that are supposed to win, not just some of the time, but all of the time.

So what should happen with Jeter then? I personally believe he needs a bit of a spark lit under him. We see it all the time, players get older and decline a bit, but something happens and their careers blossum once again. We're seeing it with Yankees pitcher Bartolo Colon. No one wanted to give him a chance, the Yankees picked him up and he's having a great season for them this year. We saw it last year in the NFL with Donovan McNabb. He got benched in the Fourth quarter, that lit a fuse and he had some of his best moments after that.

I say move him down the order a bit. Let him hit behind Cano, someone who swings for the fences and averages a good amount of XBH's. That way you have someone with a better average batting leadoff and Jeter won't commit so many double plays this year, something he's done a lot.

I'm just saying give the guy a break. For everything he's done for baseball and that organization, he can afford to have a slow year or two. He's Derek Jeter for Christ's sake, he'll figure it out. For now lets just look at what's ahead, 3,000 hits, which he should get in New York this weekend against the Rays.

So as Jeter wakes up this morning, he should get out of bed, eat some breakfast, walk past the morning paper, head to the stadium and just do what he does best, be Derek freaken Jeter.

United States aims for another World Cup

2011-07-02T22:54:00.001-07:00

With two impressive wins over North Korea and Colombia, the United States women's national team is peaking at the right moment as it sets itself up for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup quarterfinals.

The two wins have secured the team a spot in the next round but the United States has one more match against Sweden on July 6.

The team was questionable heading into the World Cup because it did not qualify for the world's soccer tournament until the last minute with a victory over Italy.

The United States fell to Mexico in its first chance to qualify.

Abby Wambach, who has dealt with injuries in the past and is the team's best striker, did not score in the United States two World Cup matches and only has one goal in the past year.

The worries dangling over the United States have been cleared away as other players like Heather O'Reilly, Megan Rapinoe, Carli Lloyd, Lauren Cheney and Rachel Buehler has been scoring and winning matches for the team.

Following the team's 2-0 win over North Korea, the United States continued to shut out its opponents with a 3-0 win over Colombia.

The team has been impressive in the two matches as the offense has been a team effort and the defense has been a collective effort by the U.S. defenders and the team's goalkeeper Hope Solo.

Solo is coming off a shoulder injury and many believed she was going to be unable to block and dive for shots but she has made it clear multiple times that she is fully healthy and ready to play.

The United States women's soccer team is nearly on all cylinders and on the right path to reaching the finals, where they hope to win its third World Cup in Germany.

The challenge remains for the United States because Germany is the country who has won the past two World Cups and beating a champion on its home field can have its problems.

Mexico is emerging as one of the best

2011-06-30T22:27:00.000-07:00

The excitement and success continues for the Mexican national soccer team after the team won its sixth Gold Cup title last weekend in Pasadena against the United States.

Today the team learned that FIFA has ranked Mexico No. 9 in the world.

The news is a significant accomplishment for Mexico because the achievement proves the dominance and incredible talent the Mexican national soccer team has developed.

Led by its raising superstar Javier "El Chicharito" Hernandez, who is becoming a world-class soccer player, Mexico has positioned themselves as one of the best soccer clubs in the world.

What that means is that Mexico is now ranked amongst the best teams who have won World Cups such as Spain, Brazil, Italy and Argentina.

The achievement of being one of the top 10 teams in the world shows how the Mexicans have made a jump from being a decent team to a hungry, young team full of amazing talent and stars playing in Europe like Hernandez with Manchester United and Giovanni Dos Santos, who is playing in Spain.

As long as the Mexicans continue to progress and develop its young stars than there is no doubt the chances for them to win its first World Cup in 2014 in Brazil is more than possible.

The Mexican national soccer team already has its world-class player, a outstanding cast of players surrounding Hernandez and a energetic coach who enjoys giving each guy a chance to use their talents to help the team win.

What Mexico needs, to be a dominate team and have a chance to win a World Cup in 2014, is another world-class player.

The closes player who comes to that is Dos Santos. The goal he made in the Gold Cup final against the Untied States was one of the ages and his skills resembled ones like the great, Lionel Messi, who is considered to be the greatest soccer player of today.

Dos Santos has came a long way since his first run with Mexico in the 2010 World Cup and he is only getting better.

If Mexico can have two deadly world-class strikers up front than who knows where this team can go and be come in 2014.

The team is excellent on defense and the defense is awesome at creating a chance for the midfielders to dribble the ball up front and create a lot of opportunities for the strikers.

Andres Guardado, Efrain Juarez, Pablo Barrera, and Aldo de Nigris are the other supporting cast members who are players becoming their own on the team and who are only going to get better and grow confidence after their performance in this year's Gold Cup.

Mexico has proven its dominates with the endless amount of ball possession it has in all of its games and the endless pouring of goals it gives its opponents, who later beg for mercy.

The recent achievement the Mexicans received from FIFA is only the beginning and once the 2014 World Cup comes--the world will witness the maturity and amazing talents the Mexicans have developed.

Youths play to become world star players

2011-06-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

The U-17 World Cup is halfway to crowning a champion.

The second leg of the tournament is being played and potential champions are claiming their chips and are rolling for the cup.

Japan, Brazil, Germany, and the host, Mexico, are several countries with the best chances of claiming the title this summer.

Japan has been impressive as it wont its group and defeated Argentina, Jamaica and tied France. In its first match of the second round, Japan destroyed New Zealand, 6-0, as it now faces Brazil in the quarter-finals.

Brazil has always been a country with world-class soccer players and the young players representing its U-17 team is living up to the statement. Brazil defeated Denmark, Australia and Ecuador in the first match of the second round.

Germany, which is hosting the Women's World Cup, has been making some noise in the U-17 World Cup as the team went undefeated in its group and faces the United State June 30 in the first match of the second round.

Mexico also went undefeated in its group and faces Panama June 30. Mexico has been riding lots of momentum as the team is coming off a terrific match against Holland as the Mexicans won the match, 3-2, in the final seconds.

The four teams are on a collision course as the semi-finals roll around next week and the U-17 World Cup is heating up as it continues to go under the radar in the United States.

The future of soccer is playing each other in Mexico as young hopefuls of becoming world class players try to make a name for themselves.

Sports Lockdown - June 28

2011-06-28T23:06:00.000-07:00

Gold Cup finals, Copa America, Women's World Cup, U-17 World Cup, Dodgers, MLB, NBA draft and tennis.

An unforgettable experience

2011-06-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

When the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup released its schedule for the tournament, I saw the final was going to be played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

I knew I had to go to the match if the Mexican national soccer team made it to the final.

As I followed the Mexican soccer team closely throughout the tournament, beating Cuba and El Salvador 5-0 and beating Costa Rica 4-1 in grouping, I knew Mexico was going to advance all the way to the final.

As the semi-finals came and I saw Mexico was going to take on Honduras and the U.S. was going to take on Panama. I knew Mexico was going to face the U.S. in the final.

At that moment everything came full circle and the ultimate fan experience I could ever have was becoming a reality.

The two countries have so much respect for each other but when it comes down to it--they both hate each other when it comes to seeing who is better in soccer.

The match was set up perfect: Mexico was favorites in the match, they were playing in Los Angeles where Mexico had the most supporters, Mexico never beat the U.S.'s "A-team" on U.S. soil and all of my favorite Mexican soccer players were playing in the match.

I do not know where to begin to say how I felt being at the match in person to witness history live.

But ...

A fight almost broke out in front of me between a American supporter and a Mexican supporter after another Mexican supporter threw a beer at a group of American supporters following a goal by the U.S.

I was six rows from the sideline and my favorite soccer players were less than 15 feet from me.

Mexico made one of the most incredible comebacks in its international soccer history, as they scored four unanswered goals following two straight goals from the U.S. to win the match 4-2.

I was feet away from the Gold Cup after Mexico ran around the field hoisting its sixth Gold Cup trophy.

The experience I had at the match was amazing and I believe it is one of my all-time memorable memories of my life.

The feeling of being Mexican is pleasant and being able to see the performance of the Mexican soccer team come back and defeat the Americans, in a sport that U.S. has dominated Mexico in, was brilliant and I was proud of the team, the country and myself because I felt the win was a sign of how hope is never lost and anything is possible.

The match was truly a dream come true for me.

I told my friend who went with me to the game, "This match might be the closes thing to the FiFA World Cup that we will ever get to experience."

Sports Lockdown - June 22

2011-06-22T11:50:00.000-07:00

The decision and year of the Miami Heat: 2010-2011

2011-06-17T15:31:00.000-07:00

Summer time is only fitting for South Beach Miami to have another aspect of life to glee about, the addition of Lebron James and Chris bosh to the Miami heat and Dwayne Wade.

The frenzy that was the summer of Lebron James, every station, and every news brief had something to say about Lebron.

James kept his decision a mystery as the public and media salivated like Pavlov’s dog.

Every viable team possible sought the talents of this young phenom, who put Cleveland basketball on the map. Owners and General managers from New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and Cleveland pitched their cases to entice James to join their team.

A young man with unlimited opportunities chose the path he wanted, not what we wanted.
Most wanted to see him stay in his hometown Cleveland, and watch him grow into a superstar and prove his comparison to Michael Jordan.

Others wanted James to join their squad and the glamor of their part of the nation, to win championships in the largest markets. Everyone saw dollar signs when they saw the potential of James joining their team.

But James chose the unthinkable; leaving his hometown and city he was worshiped, to join trusted friends in a place worth living.

This brings Miami to the picture.

A phenomenal athlete and star, in Dwayne Wade, who has already won a NBA championship, would be able to stay in Miami and create a dynamic trio.

Pat Riley, president of the Miami heat has a reputation for creating star bloated teams.
Riley coached the “Showtime Lakers” of the 80's with hall of farmers Erving Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy.

Winning championships and dominating the western conference during the era, this new Miami Heat team had the opportunity to achieve the same in the eastern conference.

Magic Johnson a 6'8 point guard who was magical in setting up his teammates and finishing games would be the model for James to be the playmaker for the rest of the team.

Chris Bosh would be a versatile go to post player that could add 20 points and 10 rebounds a night.

Dwayne Wade would pick up any slack that was left in the chain of this unproven, yet already crowned dynasty.

The 2010-2011 regular season started slow, and finished strong as the Miami Heat finished second in the conference behind the young and talented Chicago Bulls. Led by Derrick Rose, the two teams had their showdown in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Heat were blown out of the first game in Chicago, yet James found his stroke and was clutch down the stretch to be propel the heat to their destiny, the NBA Finals in their first year.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks past the Championship Lakers, and young Oklahoma City Thunder to the NBA Finals to square off against the Heat in a rematch of the 2006 finals.

The Miami Heat fell short in six games, losing the series at home 4-2, and sending Lebron James into yet another off-season to work harder and come back an even better player. At 26, James had been criticized before for the aspects of his game that he has yet to perfect.

James was disparaged for his inability to make a clutch free throw, or knockdown an open three pointer, or the inability to have a post move. Yet each year he worked on his game in the off-season and corrected his shortcomings.

We now look forward with eager eyes, ready to cheer, “I told you so” regardless of which side we are on.

Lebron did his part in creating hype for the NBA this year, and brought in plenty of revenue through media coverage and advertisement during a time of great financial loss for the association.

In a song off of his Blueprint 3 album longtime friend of James Jay- Z stated, “I went from the favorite to the most hated, but would you rather be underpaid or overrated?”

These words seem near and dear to James and there is a silver lining in all of this.

Do what makes you happy, not what others wish for you to do. Be bold enough as an individual to take the road less traveled and do not be fearful of any doubters or haters. Make your haters your motivators.

Regardless of the stance you take or the opinions you have there is one thing that is certain.

The Miami Heat has a young trio of superstars with six years left to put together any missing pieces to the puzzle of an NBA championship team or dare say, dynasty.

Sports Lockdown - June 3

2011-06-10T20:17:00.001-07:00

Check out the Sports Lockdown show for the week of June 3.

RCC infielder Nic Cuckovich drafted by Royals

2011-06-08T17:44:00.000-07:00

Nic Cuckovich was selected by the Kansas City Royals during round seventeen of the 2011 Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft.

The sophomore from Victoria, British Columbia in Canada was the lone Tiger selected by an MLB club and the highest of three players selected from the Orange Empire Conference.

According to Tigers coach Dennis Rogers, Cuckovich was going to attend the University of Hawaii next year but instead will report to Arizona to join the Royals rookie league team.

Although he projects as a third baseman in the pros, Cuckovich spent most of 2011 teaming with David Kiriakos in the Tigers' middle infield. Together the two were one of the best middle infield tandems in the conference this season.

Cuckovich batted .286 with one home run, 15 RBI and an impressive .831 OPS this season for RCC despite being hindered by a hand injury for part of the year.

NBA legend hangs up the jersey

2011-06-02T13:52:00.000-07:00

Shaquille O'Neal has called it quits.

Many believed he was done a season ago but the Boston Celtics gave him one more season which turned out to be a mess, but the big fella is walking away from the game with a smile.

He announced on his Twitter account June 1 in a video that he is letting his fans know first that he is retiring from the NBA.

The news spread wild throughout the social media community as NBA legends, fans and friends of O'Neal shared their thoughts about him.

The Los Angeles Lakers quickly announced they are going to retire O'Neal's No. 34 Lakers jersey sometime in the future.

Laker fans admire and applaud O'Neal for the three NBA championships he brought to Los Angeles along with Kobe Bryant.

Before O'Neal signed with the Lakers in the summer of 1996, he spent four seasons with the Orland Magic. Following his eight seasons with Lakers, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004 where he helped the Heat win its first NBA championship.

Following a short run with the Heat, O'Neal spent a few years jumping around teams which include the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Celtics.

O'Neal has accomplished a lot in his 19-season NBA career as he is a four-time champion, three-time finals MVP, Rookie-of-the-Year and many more honorable achievements.

(Cutline -- Superman: Shaquille O'Neal told his fans on Twitter he is retiring from the NBA after spending 19-years in the league and winning four championships. Javier Cabrera / Sports Lockdown)

Manchester United no match for Spanish champions

2011-05-31T17:36:00.000-07:00

More often than not, soccer finals are boring beyond reasonable tolerance. Teams will just sit on a 0-0 score line and take their chances on penalty kicks and its not until the game is over that we realize we just watched 90 plus minutes of nothing.

The Champions League final May 28 between Spain’s FC Barcelona—the greatest team ever—and England’s Manchester United was a rare treat. Both teams won their domestic leagues, so it was only fitting that they’d face off in the final battle of European soccer dominance.

With Barcelona’s reputation for hogging the ball—the lowest percentage of possession they’ve had all season was something like 63 percent—every coach on the planet knows that defeating the Spanish League winners requires one fantastic game plan.

Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson’s game plan worked . . . For about ten minutes.

His team came out strong and solid, not allowing Barcelona to settle into their usual composure and had a few unsettling chances on goal for Barca fans (myself included). But within ten minutes, their fervor died down, Barcelona settled into a rhythm and it was all downhill from there.

Manchester United did their best to contain Barca’s deadly middle, attempting to suffocate Spanish midfielders Xavi Hernadez and Andres Iniesta. But even with such talent as veteran Ryan Giggs and captain Nemanja Vidic United simply had no answer for Barcelona’s precise passing game.

A goal from Spanish international Pedro Rodriguez about 20 minutes in shook things up. United responded in the 37th minute with a goal from their star striker Wayne Rooney, a beautiful curving shot that whizzed past Barca keeper Victor Valdez.

The game went to half time with a 1-1 tie, though honestly the score could’ve been racked up in Barca’s favor with all the chances they missed.

By the second half, Manchester all but gave up, as they were out-possessed almost 70-30 percent. By this time, the ball found its way over to the feet of a little man named Lionel Messi.

And when Messi has the ball, defenders beware.

The best player in the world—not debatable—Messi took over the game and pushed Barcelona up 2-1 with an unexpected and deadly accurate shot from outside the eighteen-yard line.

The Argentinean mastermind kicked a microphone out of his way as he celebrated his goal in front of a camera (I don't think I've ever seen him so happy).

United keeper Edward van der Sar saved one shot after another, his defense collapsing under intense and incessant Barcelona pressure, but was unable to keep a third goal at bay.

After a moment of Messi doing what he does best—dribbling circles around professional defenders and watching them evaporate in his wake—the ball fell to David Villa who curved the ball into the top corner of the goal.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

3-1 was the final in an exciting Champions’ League season, earning Barcelona their second title in three years—they beat Manchester in the 2009 final as well—and their fourth ever.

Check out Foxsoccer.com for highlights and, most importantly, to watch the best goals of the tournament (the best goal was undeniably Messi's one man show against Real Madrid).

Blazers may ask Brandon Roy to retire

2011-05-26T22:03:00.000-07:00

Developing story: 750 AM The Game in Portland is reporting that the Portland Blazers might ask Brandon Roy to retire.

I caught the end of interview with JC Canzano who reported the breaking news.

The news of this report is barely developing so stay tuned as we learn more about this.

In the 2008 preseason, Roy underwent a surgery to removed a piece of cartilage that was causing irritation in Roy's left knee. Ever since then Roy has not been the same player he was before the injury.

On August 5, 2009, it was confirmed that Roy had agreed to a four-year maximum-salary contract with a fifth-year player option with the Blazers.

Riverside City Colllege fastpitch advances

2011-05-10T00:33:00.000-07:00

The Riverside City College fastpitch team swept Ventura City College this past weekend.

RCC's pitchers Nicole Zink and Chelsea Ponce completed their individual games as they held Ventura to four hits and no earned runs in the two games.

RCC was able to win Game 1, 2-0 and win Game 2, 2-1.

Up next for RCC is a trip to Cypress College where the team will be in a regional final with the defending state champs, Cypress College, Santa Ana College and RCC's opponent, Antelope Valley.

Last month RCC defeated Antelope Valley, 4-3, in a non-conference game at home.

Ponce shares her thoughts on the upcoming regional final and her performance in Game 2 vs. Ventura.

RCC fastpitch pitcher Chelsea Ponce talks about first round from Sports Lockdown on Vimeo.

RCC's coach Michelle Daddona speaks about her team's performance after the sweep.

RCC fastpitch coach talks about first round from Sports Lockdown on Vimeo.

CCCAA Playoff Game 1 Roundup

2011-05-07T00:02:00.001-07:00

Lakers are coming to the end of the road

2011-05-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

The Los Angeles Lakers are one game from being eliminated from the Western Conference semi-finals.

The team that has won two championships back-to-back and has been to the NBA finals three straight years is about to be eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks.

The Lakers who were favorites to win a third consecutive title will not be making it out of the West this postseason.

The team that has been dominating the past two years is not the same team out there this year.

The dynasty that started in Los Angeles when Pau Gasol arrived in 2008 is ending in the hands of that same Gasol in the second round of the 2011 NBA playoffs.

Andrew Bynum, the player always being the missing factor for the Lakers success but failing to do so because of injuries, is the same player playing without injuries during the time the Lakers are not succeeding.

In other words . . . It is over for the Lakers and their fans. (It hurts me to say that.)

It looks to be the end of a wonderful ride for me and my fellow Laker fans.

It was nice to have myself in the Lakers 2010 championship DVD, celebrating the Game 7 win over the Boston Celtics in Los Angeles with fellow Laker fans as I find myself onto the news stations live shots, and being present for two victory parades down Figueroa Street.

The Lakers might be falling to the ground but the purple and gold will live again and return to glory once again. Once a champion, always a champion. 16 champions and counting, the Lakers will find away back to the top.

Until then, the Lakers are signing off.

RCC baseball playoffs

2011-05-05T19:49:00.000-07:00

The Riverside City College baseball team begins its quest to win a state title May 6 as RCC travels to No. 7 Santa Barbara City college to begin a three-game series.

RCC finished 21-15 (13-8), third in the Orange Empire Conference and is No. 10 in the southern regional playoffs.

Playoff preview: Riverside City College baseball from Sports Lockdown on Vimeo.

NBA playoffs move on to the semi-finals

2011-04-29T22:57:00.000-07:00

The NBA playoffs are off into the next stage of the race as the teams who advanced on to the second round are set to start the next series on Sunday.

Surprisingly most of my predictions were right on the winners of the first round series' but the number of games were off badly. (Thanks to my belief I am a true "NBA analyze.")

Although the biggest surprises of the first round was the San Antonio Spurs being knocked out by the Memphis Grizzles and the Atlanta Hawks defeating the Orlando Magic.

So lets get started and lets see if I still have potential to be a NBA analyze.

The follow are the Eastern Conference semi-finals series' and my predictions:

No. 1 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 5 Atlanta Hawks: This is going to be a interesting series. The Bulls had a scare a few times in the series against the Indiana Pacers, as the Bulls nearly lost a few games including Game 1.

The Bulls looked great either way, they were able to handle the Pacers and Derrick Rose had a monster series.

As for the Hawks they had a great series against a mediocre Magic team. Joe Johnson did not have a terriffic series against the Magic but the Hawks were able to play great team ball and hold down Dwight Howard in a few games.

As for the series I think it will be hard for the Hawks to guard Rose. Without Kirk Hinrich for sometime, the Hawks will have trouble keeping up with Rose and with a loose Rose roaming the floor--the Bulls will be able to get anything they want.

I have the Bulls winning the series: 4-2.

No. 2 Miami Heat vs. No. 3 Boston Celtics: This series is going to be the best second round series. These two teams are building a somewhat rivalry--mainly for this season.

The Celtics own the regular season series, 3-1, and the Celtics were able to handle the Heat well in the three wins. The series against the New York Knicks helped the Celtics regain their energy and confidence to play anyone they face.

The sweep on the Knicks should jump start the Celtics to go off on another run to the finals.

As for the Heat, they were able to hold off the Philadelphia 78ers without breaking a sweat. Without a post game and size in the middle, I highly doubt the Heat can survive in the postseason as they face better teams.

The Celtics are short handed too in the middle but if they can get something out of their bigs in the series than they should be able to hold off the Heat with their big four: Rajon Rondo, Ray Allan, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.

I have the Celtics winning the series: 4-2.

Moving from the East to the West, the Spurs will not be moving on after the Grizzles amazingly defeated them in six games. The Grizzles might be a low seed but the Oklahoma City Thunder should not take them lightly.

The following are the Western Conference semi-finals series' and my predictions:

No. 2 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 3 Dallas Mavericks: This series is second best to the Boston/Miami series.

In the last regular season match, Lakers' Matt Barnes and Mavericks' Jason Terry caused a huge fight after a altercation between Terry and Lakers' Steve Blake. The two teams build a rivalry after that incident and they action picks up again when the two teams face off in this series.

The Lakers started of their first round series slow after dropping Game 1 to the New Orleans Hornets but after Kobe Bryant's great performance in Game 5, the Lakers are on their A-game and are looking like an championship team again.

The Mavericks are looking great as well after taking out the Portland Blazers in six games. The Mavericks are the closes team to match the Lakers length but it is going to take a lot more to take out the champs.

The Lakers are gong to be too hard to control when they have Bryant and Pau Gasol on top of their games while having Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and the supporting cast adding on to that success.

I have the Lakers winning the series, 4-2.

No. 4 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 8 Memphis Grizzles: I am pulling for the Grizzles in this series. They match well with the Thunder. The Grizzles won the regular season series 3-1 and they are dangerous.

Memphis has a solid team although a lot of them are underrated including Zack Randolph. They have a underrated defender in Shane Battier who will be able to keep Kevin Durant under control.

Memphis has a great center, Marc Gasol and a up and coming star, Mike Conley who is making a name for himself in these playoffs.

A lot of people are going to say that the Thunder are too good with Durant and Russell Westbrook leading the way but they are becoming overrated.

This team is still young like the Grizzles and this team is filling in shoes that are too big for them. I doubt there is a difference between the Grizzles and Thunder.

Both teams have a equal chance to win the series and the winner will be determined by who has the most heart and whose bench shows up.

I have the Grizzles winning this series: 4-2.

Stay tuned as the NBA playoffs continue and lets see if my dreams of being a NBA analyze can stay alive.

Boston Celtics are making a comeback

2011-04-24T15:22:00.001-07:00

The Boston Celtics have swept the New York Knicks to advance onto the second round of the NBA playoffs.

The Celtics were not expected to make it back to the NBA finals after making a puzzling trade that left their fans wondering what it was all about.

Without Shaquille O'Neal for the start of the playoffs and most of the regular season, the lack of size was the one cause that kept experts and fans from picking the Celtics to make it back.

Although they might be halfway out the door, I think they still are the team to beat to come out of the East. A sweep in the first round can help this team out a lot.

A postseason ago everyone did not have the Celtics coming out of the East but they did anyway and lost to the Los Anageles Lakers in seven games.

The Celtics can make a hot run in the postseason and they still have their big four: Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo.

Despite not having their muscle in the post anymore (Kendrick Perkins,) they do have the two O'Neals who can help enough as long as they can stay healthy.

The Celtics are always dangerous as long as they are still alive and whoever they face in the second round (most likely the Miami Heat), they are going to give that team a hard time and possibly make people believe in them again.

At the start of the playoffs I had the Chicago Bulls in the finals but after witnessing the Celtics sweep the Knicks--I feel the Celtics are capable of making another run to the finals like they did a season ago.

MLB is bringing the excitment back to LA

2011-04-21T11:27:00.001-07:00

Old happy days are soon to be back at Chavez Lavine.

Yesterday Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig announced the league will be taking over the Los Angeles Dodgers' financial management operations day by day.

Selig said he would appoint an person of his choice for this task.

The shock came after a endless bad output from Dodgers' owner Frank McCourt.

The team is underachieving, the games are not selling tickets and McCourt is in the most expensive divorce trail in California history and the Los Angeles Police Department has taken over Dodgers Stadium following a opposing fan was beat up in the stadium's parking lot on opening day where that fan is in a coma and is still fighting for his life today.

The Los Angeles Times leak the news about McCourt taking a loan out with the team's TV partner for he could have money to pay the Dodgers staff for the month.

There are also news of the McCourts taking money out of the team to put into their personal bank accounts.

Fans are feed up with the McCourts and yesterday's news was a excitement for them. The news spread wildly hours before the Dodgers took on the Atlanta Braves at Dodgers Stadium, as the Dodgers went on to win the game later in the night.

The news even overshadowed the Los Angeles Lakers playoff win over the New Orleans Hornets.

The reaction was obvious and not one fan was supporting the McCourts. Dodger fans knew something had to be done and that something has finally been done.

The Dodgers are a fine franchise team that is estimated to be worth in the Billions and it is not worth being thrown in the mud by the McCourt's divorce.

The next step for the Dodgers is too see when MLB will sell off the team to a new owner. Before MLB can do that, they have to wait and see how they are going to cut McCourt loose from the team.

Mark Cuban, a well-known Billionaire and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, has expressed interest in owning a MLB team and he had attempted to buy the Texas Rangers last year before being rejected with his offer.

Whomever the next owner for the Dodgers will be--they must know they are going to take on a extraordinary franchise filled with history and success. The new owner also must know the Dodgers are in the second largest market in the US where they must make the team become what the Lakers have always been in LA--a championship team every season.

Do not stop believing Dodger faithfuls.

Lamar Odom wins a deserving award

2011-04-19T10:26:00.000-07:00

An award overdue has finally been rewarded.

Lamar Odom, the most versatile basketball player in the NBA, is a bench player for the Los Angeles Lakers and has won Sixth Man of the Year award today.

Odom could start easily on any other NBA team but since the acquisition of Pau Gasol in 2008, Lamar has been roaming in and out of the Lakers' starting line up and he has accepted his role.

In the summer of 2009, Odom had the chance to leave Los Angeles and play for any other team for more money and be a starter but he chose to stay with the Lakers and continue winning championships.

A two-time champion, Odom makes the Lakers unstoppable, a player of his caliber coming off the bench for the Lakers is just wrong and unfair to the opponents.

Teams do not have the luxury to have players like Odom to come off the bench and replace one of their starters.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson does not worry when Gasol, Ron Artest or Andrew Bynum get into foul trouble because he has another starter to come into for them.

This season Odom has had one of his best season's of his career, averaging 14 points and eight assist a game.

He has been shooting well shooting 53 percent from the field and 38 percent from beyond the three-point line.

His success is one factor in the Lakers three-peating as NBA champions this season and winning an award like the Sixth Man of the Year is the starting point.

Odom said in a interview with ESPN that the award will mean the sacrifice he has done to help the team and he said before winning the award that he would dedicate the award if he won it to his fans and teammates.

Jimmie Johnson wins by two tenths of a second

2011-04-17T16:33:00.000-07:00

A wild finish at Talladega Speedway Sunday results in the five-time defending champion, Jimmie Johnson winning his first Sprint Cup race of 2011.

Johnson only led 12 laps at the beginning and the race had 89 lead changes as drivers picked partners to create speed by two cars drafting with each other.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was Johnson's partner for the entire race and the two were able to work well together.

There were plenty of exciting moments in the race including Ryan Newman spinning out twice in a span of several laps then being able to control and keep the car from wreaking.

The man of the season thus far, Kyle Busch, was one of the front runners for a win today but he was involved in a multiple-car accident with less than 30 laps to go.

The race came down to all four Hendrick Motor's cars (Johnson, Earnhardt, Jeff Gordan and Mark Martin,) against the two Childress' cars (Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer.)

Johnson and his partner were trailing coming off the last turn as Gordan and his partner were battling for position with Boywer and his partner.

Johnson and Earnhardt Jr. slipped his way into the inside while Gordan was trying to deny them. The three groups ran their way down the stretch as it was unclear who was going to win.

The proven champion was able to be pushed across the start/finish line by two tenths of a second by the 101 race winless Earnhardt.

Bowyer finished second as Gordan followed close behind and Harvick and Earnhardt Jr. finishing the top five.

Despite not winning the race, Jr. now has 24 top five finishes at Talladega.

The Sprint Cup series now heads off to Richmond in two weeks.

PHOTO COURTESY OF: Jerry Markland/Getty Images for NASCAR and NASCAR Media

NBA first round brings the fun

2011-04-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

The NBA playoffs have arrived and the trills and excitement of the NBA regular season increases as the NBA's best of best face off with each other.

16 wins seperate the 16 teams who start the NBA playoffs tomorrow and at this moment each one of these teams have a chance to win the Larry O'Brien.

The Eastern Conference made powerful moves last summer as LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined Dwayne Wade in Miami to create a super team with the Heat. This past NBA deadline the New York Knicks landed Carmelo Anthony to created a dynamic duo with him and A'mare Stoudemire.

The following are the four Eastern Conference playoff series and my prediction for each one:

No. 1 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 8 Indiana Pacers - This is a unfair match for the Pacers. Granted they do have lots of pride to fight for the last playoff seed in the East but their team and record defintely prove they should be a lottery team in the NBA draft.

The Bulls will win the series easily, 4-0. Derrick Rose is the clear favorite to win Most Valuable Player and the Bulls are a team who cannot be beat because they play smart and they share the ball together where they play as a team.

No. 4 Orlando Magic vs. No. 5 Atlanta Hawks - This series is going to be boring. The Hawks are not a contending team like they were in the past few seasons. They are a good team who cannot get out of second gear.

The Magic are a team who has good pieces surrounding Dwight Howard but they seem like they have no where to go. They say they want to win a title but they do not have the identity to do that. The Magic will win this series, 4-2, but I do not see this Magic team doing anything else.

No. 3 Boston Celtics vs. No. 6 New York Knicks - This is going to be a easy series for the Celtics. The Knicks do not play defense and they are a loose team who tries to beat their opponents on quick lay-ups and three-pointers.

The Celtics are still a decent defensive team and they should be able to control the Knicks. The Celtics can use this series to jump start their big four who has been struggling ever since the team traded away its center, Kendrick Perkins.

I have the Celtics winning the series, 4-1.

No. 2 Miami Heat vs. No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers - Like the Bulls/Pacers series, I do not see the 76ers having success against the Heat. The Heat are good enough without its post game to defeat the 76ers.

James and Wade will have a great series and the Heat will win this series easily. I have the Heat winning the series, 4-0.

As the East got stronger last offseason, the West has been still competitive as years past. The two-time defending champions, Los Angeles Lakers are re-identifying themselves as they start the postseason and the Oklahoma City Thunder grew into men after picking up Perkins from the Celtics at the trade deadline.

The following are the Western Conference playoff series and my prediction for each one:

No. 1 San Antonio Spurs vs. No. 8 Memphis Grizzles - The Spurs are starting off the series without Manu Ginobili after he suffered a injury on the last game of the season. Although they do not have their scorning machine who comes off the bench, the Spurs should have not have a problem taking care of the Grizzles.

The Grizzles will be without Rudy Gay and they do not have much to compete against the Spurs.

I have the Spurs winning the series, 4-1.

No. 4 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 5 Denver Nuggets - This series is a must watch for all basketball fans. The two teams are athletic, explosive and anything can go in this series.

The Thunder are entering the series as clear favorites but they have yet to win a road playoff game and they will have a lot in their hands with the Nuggets. The Nuggets are doing well without Anthony and they have the second best second half record following the NBA All-star weekend.

Either team could have shot at winning the series. This will come down to how the Nuggets defend Kevin Durant and Russel Westbrook.

I have the Thunder winning the series, 4-3.

No. 3 Dallas Mavericks vs. No. 6 Portland Blazers - If there is going to be a upset in the first round then this series will be where that occurs. The Mavericks are not clear favorites because they are missing their toughness with the injured Caron Butler.

The Blazers have a team capable of matching the Mavericks and guarding the talented Dirk Nowitzki. The series will come down to the Blazers making the games close at crunch time and Brandon Roy being able to close out the games for the Blazers.

I have the Blazers winning the series, 4-2.

No. 2 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 7 New Orleans Hornets - This series could not have been more favoring to the Lakers. The Lakers are limping into the playoffs with five losses in their last seven games. The Lakers almost received bad luck after center Andrew Bynum hyper-extended his knee but Bynum is set to start the playoffs with the team.

The Hornets will not be able to contend with the Lakers length. The Hornets do not have a chance in the series because they are going to be playing without injured David West.

I have the Lakers winning the series, 4-0.

The first round should be interesting because the 2011 NBA playoffs are going to be one of the best in recent history. Lots of great teams will make a leap and drew closer to the NBA title as the first round series play out.

4/12/2011: Rapid Recap - 66ers get back to .500 with win over Mavericks

2011-04-12T23:30:00.000-07:00

The Inland Empire 66ers pulled back to .500 on the season Tuesday night, improving their record to 3-3 on the season. The 66ers defeated the High Desert Mavericks by a score of 3-1 in front of 1,872 fans in San Bernardino in the second game of a three game series between the two teams.

Inland Empire starter Ryan Chaffee (1-0, 1.69 ERA) went 6.2 innings for the 66ers and looked much more in command than he did in his opening day appearance. Chaffee struck out six Mavericks batters while walking just one and allowing only one earned run.

Mavericks starter Yoervis Medina (0-2, 2.45 ERA) was not totally out shined by Chaffee, going six complete innings while striking out four and allowing only two earned runs. But for the second game in a row Medina just couldn't get the run support from his teammates needed to collect a win.

Center fielder Matt Long was the star at the dish for the 66ers going three for four on the day including a lead off triple in the bottom of the fourth inning. Long would be driven in by designated hitter Dillon Baird in what proved to be the winning run of the contest. Long would also drive in the 66ers third run in the bottom of the eighth inning with a line drive single into center field.

66ers reliever David Carpenter (0-0, 0.00 ERA) collected his first save of the season pitching 1.1 without allowing a man to even reach base.

The two teams will meet again Wednesday April 13 at Arrowhead Credit Union Park in San Bernardino to close out the series.

SIDENOTE: Wednesday's game is "Bring your dog to the park Wednesday," so expect some fun on the live blog.

4/12/2011 - High Desert Mavericks @ Inland Empire 66ers Live Blog

2011-04-12T17:22:00.001-07:00

4/12/2011 - High Desert Mavericks @ Inland Empire 66ers Live Blog

4/10/2011 - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes @ Inland Empire 66ers Live Blog

2011-04-10T11:41:00.000-07:00

4/10/2011 - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes @ Inland Empire 66ers Live Blog

Chicago Bulls are running away with the East

2011-04-09T00:15:00.000-07:00

There is no surprise for why the Chicago Bulls are No. 1 in the NBA Eastern Conference.

According to Coach Nick on the video below, the Bulls have all the ingredients to possibly win the NBA title this June.

Team defense, solid scoring and doing all the little things are all what the Bulls have and those assets are what is going to lead the Bulls to the next level.

The Bulls are back!

Lakers are down for the moment

2011-04-08T22:01:00.000-07:00

Stranger things have happen in the Lakers 2010-2011 season so there should not be a surprise for the current four-game losing streak with three games left in the season.

For starts, the Lakers have been blown out by the Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs in a row.

Then lost another three games in a row a month later, including a five-point loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But the Lakers also have won 17 of 18 games including key victories over the Spurs, Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics.

The season has been a roller coaster ride as the Lakers package a group of solid games together then follow it up with a group of inconsistent sloppy losses and the pattern repeats itself.

The two-time defending champions have been playing the most basketball in the past four years starting with their first NBA finals run in 2008.

The team has of lots experience and games played where they are comfortable playing against whoever it is they play in this season's postseason. The Lakers are comfortable playing anyone, anywhere, anytime because they have seen it all in these past four season.

The two championships are proof the Lakers are no where near of worrying about themselves heading into the postseason on a four-game losing streak with three games left.

Although they are now in a dog fight with the Celtics, Heat and Mavericks for playoff positioning in potential playoff match-ups which will determine who has homecourt advantage, the Lakers are ready for whatever comes their way as the team tries to clinch its third straight championship.

The playoffs start in a week and the Lakers know in a week the season changes to the postseason and the postseason only means no more screwing around.

With the leadership of Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant, the Lakers are in the right state of mind to start the postseason despite what the records show.

Manny Ramirez 'El Maniaco' has retired

2011-04-08T13:28:00.000-07:00

Just in: Manny Ramirez has retired.

After five games with the Tampa Bay Rays, Ramirez decides to hang up the cleats.

In the short sting with the Rays, he had 17 at bats to go along with one hit and one RBI.

Ramirez, 39, came off a productive spring training as he seemed to be determine to be fitted for the opening season and have a quality season.

He comes off a bad 2010 season where he battled injuries and was dumped by the Los Angeles Dodgers and picked up by the Chicago White Sox for the remainder of the season.

Jay-Z, Nets fined by NBA

2011-04-08T13:00:00.000-07:00

ESPN.com has confirmed the New Jersey Nets has been fined $50,000 by the NBA for a incident involving minority owner, Jay-Z.

Following the game against the Arizona Wildcats, Jay-Z was seen talking to several Kentucky players following the Wildcats' victory over North Carolina in Newark, New Jersey.

The Nets were fined for violating league rules that prohibit contact with players who still have collegiate basketball eligibility remaining.

The Nets are 24-54 with four games left in the season and are well on their way to the NBA's lottery draft this summer.

Inland Empire 66ers starts season with a win

2011-04-07T23:39:00.000-07:00

The Inland Empire 66ers opened up their season without spring-like weather as the team defeated its cross town rivals, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, 6-2, in cloudy and chilly conditions.

Starting pitcher, Ryan Chaffee appeared in his first opening day game going four innings and giving up three hits and one run.

The 66ers opened up a early lead in the bottom of the second after Angels' left-fielder, Reggie Willits scored in two runs with a single.

"It is nice to see Willits come through with a big two base hit to get us on the board," said 66ers' manager Tom Gamboa.

Willits was sent down from the Angels to begin rehab training with the 66ers and will remain with the team for a week.

Willits is not the only major league player spending time with the 66ers this week. Scott Downs, a reliever for the Angels was also sent down to do some rehab work.

Downs pitched one inning, giving up two runs, one hit and one error.

The Quakes were unable to break through the tough defense of the 66ers as the Quakes left 14 men on base. Including leaving the bases loaded in the first inning.

The 66ers secured the lead in the fifth inning as the team knocked two more runs in to increase its lead to 4-2.

"It is always good to get the first one out of the way," said Gamboa following the team's first win of the season.

The 66ers continue their opening series against the Quakes Friday at the Arrowhead Credit Union stadium at 7:05 p.m.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes @ Inland Empire 66ers Live Blog

2011-04-07T19:19:00.000-07:00

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes @ Inland Empire 66ers

NBA Western Conference gets interesting

2011-03-27T17:46:00.000-07:00

The race for the top seed in the Western Conference heats up.

The San Antonio Spurs lost today to the Memphis Grizzles and are now on a two-game losing streak.

After losing its starting center/power forward Tim Duncan, the Spurs have dropped several games and are losing their cushion over No. 2 seed Los Angeles Lakers.

The Lakers have been a different story following the NBA All-star weekend, winning 14 of their last 15 games.

With the loss today against the Grizzles, the Lakers could be four games behind if they are able to beat the New Orleans Hornets tonight at Staples Center.

The chance seemed impossible but now that same chance is looking brighter and possible every day as the Lakers and Spurs race toward the end of the season.

Both teams will have nine games remaining after tonight and the teams have one more meeting with each other in Los Angeles next month before the season ends.

The Lakers might finish first in the West after all.

Kevin Harvick steals Fontana

2011-03-27T17:31:00.001-07:00

Lap 199 seemed like a eternity for Jimmie Johnson as sped past the start/finish line leading the final lap of the California Auto Club 400 at Fontana today.

After passing Kyle Busch a few laps prior to the final lap, Johnson needed one more lap before he could claim Fontana for the second time in two seasons.

As the leader and the pack made the their way past the second turn, Johnson was followed tightly by Harvick and Busch.

The pressure was on for the five-time Nascar Sprint Cup champion as he lead the group into turns three and four. With no laps lead throughout the race and not a favorite to win the race, Harvick stormed passed Johnson on the last turn and stole the victory from Johnson.

The win gave Harvick lots of confidence and eased his frustration of today's race since Harvick was not a key player for most of the race and stood in the midst of the pack for the majority of the race.

Busch who was the strongest driver, had the best car all day as he dominated most of the race and battled with Tony Stewart all day.

Busch lost the lead late with less than five laps to go and no one felt he was going to be caught.

Unfortunately Johnson could not hold his own lead after passing Busch and neither driver could be more upset with themselves to let a driver, who was not a factor for most of the race, to win the race at the last lap.

Butler Bulldogs off to the final four

2011-03-26T16:09:00.000-07:00

Following a season of losing the NCAA Men's basketball championship by a basket, the Butler Bulldogs are back on track to finishing what they left off a season ago.

Led by the leadership of senior Matt Howard, the Bulldogs defeated Florida in overtime, 74-71, to advance to the final four.

The game seemed out of reach as Butler made a comeback from a Florida 11 point lead.

The game went into overtime as Florida failed to win the game off a long three point shot by Ervin Walker.

Butler now awaits the winner of tomorrow's Kansas and VCU.

Not another NBA team in Southern California

2011-03-16T23:39:00.001-07:00

The Anaheim Royals . . .

Do not rub your eyes and reread that. It is true, the Sacramento Kings officially sent in their request to move the team to Anaheim and relocate as the Royals.

If the request is granted, the Kings will begin next season in their new city. The question now shifts to how can the Kings compete in Southern California when there are two NBA teams in Los Angeles?

Not only are the Kings competing with the Clippers but they are also competing with the Lakers, who are kings of Los Angeles and rule all of Southern California.

The majority of Orange County residents are Laker fans but how many of those fans are willing to ditch the 16-time (soon to be 17--hopefully) NBA Champions for the Royals?

Granted the OC will get its own NBA team but why would you root for a lousy team if you are already a fan of a legendary team? (This is were NBA fans can run with this and assist that Laker fans are bandwagon fans--which is not true.)

Three NBA teams in Southern California is not the best solution. Is there anyway Southern Californians can trade the new neighbors and the Clippers for a NFL team? Now that is a awesome idea that every Southern Californian can agree on.

The soon to be Royals will suffer a long time to fit in Anaheim but it can be another two more home games for the Lakers since those Laker road games to Anaheim will be filled with Laker fans.

Tigers continue hot conference start

2011-03-16T00:10:00.000-07:00

The Riverside City College baseball team (12-7, 5-1 OEC) continued its strong start to conference play with a convincing win over the Fullerton College Hornets (8-11, 1-5 OEC) by a score of 7-3 Tuesday afternoon in Fullerton.

Both teams got off to an early start with the RCC striking first in the top of the first inning when second baseman Grady Espinosa was able to reach home on a triple by designated hitter Frankie Torres.

Hornets left fielder Eric Bernstein was able to score the equalizer in the bottom of the first inning when, after having already stolen second base, he was brought around to score on a single into left field by first baseman Derek Collins.

Fullerton would take a brief lead over the Tigers in the bottom of the fourth inning when Hornets designated hitter David Arnold would single and subsequently steal second base. He would later score on a base hit by second baseman Tanner McCall.

From that point on it was all Riverside. The Tigers would score six runs in top of the fifth and sixth innings, highlighted by a series in the top of the fifth inning in which Tigers shortstop David Kiriakos would drive in a run with a single up the middle and then proceed to steal not only second base but home plate as well in one of the more uniquely productive innings that can be seen in baseball.

Tigers starter Brian Hopper (2-1) collected the win, working five innings while allowing only two earned runs. The loss was attributed to Hornets starting pitcher Richard Lucas (2-3) who would wind up allowing five runs in five innings played. Only three of the runs Lucas allowed were credited as earned however as the Hornets defense was plagued by four errors on the day.

For their next game RCC will travel to Costa Mesa to take on the Pirates of Orange Coast College on March 17 at 2 p.m.

Strong pitching performance by Chabot fuels Tigers win

2011-03-12T19:00:00.000-08:00

For most of the season Riverside City College's bats had carried them to a winning record, however it was starting pitcher Matt Chabot who shut down the Cypress College Chargers (10-6, 3-2 OEC) on Saturday afternoon in a 7-2 Tigers victory at Evans Field in Riverside.

In Chabot's last performance against Saddleback College he struggled with his command, hitting four batters and allowing five earned runs while lasting only 4.1 innings. Against Cypress however Chabot (2-1) pitched the Tigers (11-7, 4-1 OEC) first complete game of the season allowing only one earned run scattered among four hits for a Chargers team that was unable to do much more than ground out to Tigers shortstop David Kiriakos for most of the game. Chabot credited an altered delivery to his impressive performance.

The Tigers offense made several contributions of their own to the impressive win hanging seven runs, six of them earned, on the aptly named Chargers starter Travis Pitcher (1-1).

Right fielder Cade Gotta set the pace early for the Tigers with a triple in the top of the first inning driving Michael Castello, Chad Erickson, and Kiriakos in to score.

The Tigers would continue their assault on the Chargers in the second and third innings as well scoring two runs in each. The scoring was highlighted by a thrilling play in which Tigers center fielder Aaron LaFountaine stole home in one of the more exciting moments of RCC’s season thus far.

LaFountaine continued his surge that began with onset of conference play with three hits in his four plate appearances as well as scoring a run in addition to the aforementioned steal of home. LaFountaine credits his success to seeing the ball better at the plate.

The Tigers next game will be against the Hornets of Fullerton College on March 15 at 2 p.m.

Miami Heat are out-matched

2011-03-12T17:10:00.000-08:00

The super team is not that super after all.

The Miami Heat recently went on a five-game losing streak before braking it against the two-time defending champs this past Thursday.

The Heat are considered a super team with LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh but after those three players, the Heat do not have anyone else to fall back on. The team also does not have a center.

Miami is 45-21 and its record against the best teams in the NBA is weak. Only winning two games, both against the Los Angeles Lakers, and losing three to the Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics, two against the Dallas Mavericks and one against the San Antonio Spurs.

With two "closers" on the team (James and Wade,) the Heat are only 5-13 in games decided by five points or less.

And James and Wade is 1-12 when games are 3 points or less in the fourth quarter or overtime.

Despite already clinching a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference playoffs, and third in the East at this moment, the Heat are not being counted on to come out of the East.

Without a center and inconsistent production from its bench, the Heat are not making the NBA finals this season.

0-6 against the two teams ahead of them (Boston and Chicago,) the Heat are not going to be favorites to defeat them.

If the Heat end up as the No. 4 seed in the East and the New York Knicks end up as the No. 5 seed in the East, then the Heat are not going to be able to get out of the first round because the Knicks are capable of upsetting the Heat in the playoff series.

The super team is more like a three man band.

Kobe Bryant continues to break records

2011-03-11T22:47:00.000-08:00

This season has been a marvelous season for Kobe Bryant on the all-time NBA scoring list.

Bryant has jumped over multiple players including Moses Malone, Elvin Hayes, Hakeem Olajuwon, Oscar Robertson, Dominique Wilkins and John Havlicek.

The next person ahead of Bryant on the all-time scoring list is a former teammate, the player who he won three straight NBA title with, the one and only, Shaquille O'Neal.

But the question remains, can Bryant do the unthinkable and eventually become the overall all-time scorer in NBA history?

The challenge is difficult but if Bryant can remain healthy and have consistent seasons for another four seasons then Bryant will be knocking on the door.

Bryant currently has 27,447 points and is 10,910 points behind the all-time scorer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

With the injuries he has to his fingers and the looming questions if his knees are fine, the question remains how long does Bryant have until his prime begins to decease.

Bryant is only 32-years-old and is in his 15 season in the NBA. Only time will tell when Bryant will begin to decrease. Signs show of old age but there are times when Bryant looks young.

No matter what anyone says Bryant still dominates the league and continues to show greatness as he runs pass former hall of fame players on the all-time scoring list.

Bryant will go down as one of the all-time greatest players in the NBA if he or does not conquer the all-time scoring list.

Tigers dominated by Santa Ana

2011-03-10T12:57:00.000-08:00

In a matchup between two of the top teams in the Orange Empire Conference the Riverside City Tigers were outclassed by the Dons of Santa Ana by a final score of 11-1 at Evans Field.

Both teams came into Thursday’s game with unblemished 3-0 records in the conference and looking to make the statement that they were the team to beat this year in the Orange Empire Conference. Santa Ana entered play ranked number one in the state in men’s baseball and were also looking to extend on a six game winning streak. RCC came into the game on a tear of their own that had seen them win four straight games, scoring 43 runs in the process.

Santa Ana right fielder Gary Apelian started the scoring off for the Dons with an RBI double in the top of the fourth inning. The floodgates opened from there as the Dons would go on to score seven unanswered runs before RCC was finally able to stop the bleeding in the bottom of the sixth inning when Tigers catcher Billy Nottingham was able to safely cross the plate on a fielder’s choice. Unfortunately for RCC, it would turn out to be their only score of the game.

Santa Ana would tack on three more runs in the seventh and eighth innings, including an inside the park home run by designated hitter Taylor Richardson. to make the victory even more impressive. The win moved Santa Ana manager Don Sneddon to within one win of his 1,000th career victory.

Ben Burke (3-1) collected the win for Santa Ana, scattering 110 pitches in just over 6 innings of work. Jordan Mejia, who fell to 1-1 on the season, was able to last just 3.2 innings before giving way to relief pitcher Mike Mudron.

After the game a visibly frustrated RCC manager Dennis Rogers commented that his team was “overmatched today” before bringing the squad back on the field for a team meeting.

Even with the loss RCC remains just a game behind Santa Ana in the conference standings with two games remaining against the Dons to avenge this crushing defeat and try to maintain pace in the race for the Orange Empire Conference crown.

Tigers come out on top in conference slugfest

2011-03-08T19:00:00.000-08:00

The Riverside City College Tigers were able to overcome some inconsistent fielding Thursday night in Irvine defeating Irvine Valley College by a score of 10-9 continuing their hot conference start.

The win was the Tigers fourth in a row, third straight in conference play, and again featured an explosive offensive outburst which has been the biggest reason for the team’s success since conference play began.

The first inning featured a plethora of runs for both teams with RCC getting the game off to a fast start by scoring five runs in the top of the first inning. The highlight of the inning for the Tigers was a three run bomb by short stop David Kiriakos, his first on the season.

Irvine answered quickly by pushing four runners across the plate in the bottom half of the inning, but not without a little help from some shoddy defensive play by the RCC defense. All four of Irvine’s runs in the inning were unearned. This fact wasn’t enough to save Tigers starter Kyle McNutt from falling victim to a quick hook from manager Dennis Rogers. McNutt would face 11 batters in his one inning of work while allowing no earned runs.

The third inning featured more miscues for the Tigers pitcher Brain Hopper found himself guilty of two balks; both which allowed runs to score. A double from Irvine’s right field Bryan Glynn would give Irvine a two run lead.

Chad Erickson provided the Tigers with a spark in the top of the fourth, crushing a pitch from Irvine starter Cody Fitzgerald over the wall for his second home run of the season, driving in two Tiger runs in the process and tying the game at six.

After a top of the sixth inning in which it looked like RCC may have finally put Irvine away by taking a two run lead, the Tigers again were plagued by errors in the field allowing their opponents back into the game.

After reaching on an error by RCC third baseman Curtis Cassise, Irvine center fielder Robert Dey stole second base and later scored on an RBI triple off the bat of second baseman Scott Kaplan. Kaplan would later score on a sacrifice fly, once again tying the game.

The two teams would remain scoreless from that point on until the top of the ninth inning when RCC would finally score the deciding run as Michael Castello was able to cross the plate on a fielder’s choice.

Kristopher Butler (3-0) collected the win for the Tigers allowing only one hit over three innings played. Brendan Cates (2-1) allowed six earned runs over five and two-thirds innings pitched.
Chad Erickson led the Tigers offensive attack by going 4-for-6 and driving in three runs. Kiriakos also added three runs batted in, all by way of his home run in the first.

The Tigers will next face off against the Santa Ana Dons, who are currently the top ranked team in the state, on March 10th at Evans field in Riverside in a battle for Orange Empire Conference supremecy.

Running with the Bulls

2011-02-24T20:36:00.000-08:00

With the return of Joakim Noah, the Chicago Bulls are the team to beat in the NBA Eastern Conference.

With the championship caliber coaching of Tom Thibodeau (who is my Coach of the Year) and leadership of third year point guard Derrick Rose (who is my season's Most Valuable Player,) the Bulls are favorites to make it out of the East.

Chicago is 39-17 on the season and recently got Noah back into the line-up and the Bulls are no where near of slowing down their pace.

Thus far the team is third in the East and two and a half behind No. 1 seed, the Boston Celtics and two back of the Miami Heat, who the Bulls defeated tonight, 93-89.

Alongside Rose and Noah is a solid supporting cast that includes Carlos Boozer, Kyle Klover, Luol Deng, Taj Gibson and Ronnie Brewer.

In a recent video from "Bballbreakdown" it shows how the supporting cast is benefiting from the coaching of Thibodeau and leadership of Rose.

Deng has improved his shooting based on the Bulls' team defense that leads to great team offense.

The other supporting cast held the fort down during the absents of Noah and now with Noah back from his injury, the Bulls are lead contenders in the East and are capable of defeating the Celtics and Heat in a seven-game series.

As said in the "Bballbreakdown" video, the Bulls are contenders now.

Random NBA trades at the deadline

2011-02-24T18:29:00.000-08:00

Kendrick Perkins, Deron Williams and Baron Davis all have something in common other than being basketball players.

The three were not notified to being traded by their teams and sent off unexpectly to another NBA team.

The stunned trades began with Williams yesterday when the Utah Jazz traded off its All-star point guard to the New Jersey Nets for Devin Harris, Derrick Favors and a future first round pick.

Williams' trade came weeks after the Jazz's long time head coach Jerry Sloan unexpectedly stepped down as the head coach and retired.

Williams and Sloan were believed to be in a heated argument days before Sloan stepped down.

The team denied Williams being the reason for Sloan to quit as head coach but with the trade it seems as if he was all along.

Davis was the next player to be traded without being notified. Davis and Clippers' owner Donald Sterling had their share of disagreements throughout the season.

Davis was being accused of not being interested in the team's season and Sterling was heard criticizing Davis during Clippers' games every time Davis ran pass him.

The Clippers were serching for a team to trade Davis on but Davis is going to be earning over $30 million for the next two seasons and he had a tough contract to move.

The Clippers manged to pull off a trade that sent Davis to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon.

The latest trade was the biggest stunner of the NBA trade deadline trades.

The Celtics traded Perkins along with Nate Robinson to the Oaklahoma City Thunder for Jeff Green and Nedad Krsitc.

The Celtics were a team set to compete and favorites to win the NBA title this season with the return of their starting center, Perkins, after he returned from a knee injury he suffered in Game 6 of the 2010 NBA finals.

The Celtics had all the pieces in place but now everyone around the association is scratching their head and wondering why did the Celtics make the move.

One theory is the Celtics are trying to pick up Troy Murphy after the Golden State Warriors buy him out but that is not guaranteed.

The trade might hurt the Celtics because the team made another trade a few minutes later that sent two more big men to the Cavaliers for a Cavaliers' second round pick.

Thus far these trades have been unexpected and odd but the biggest trade was Carmelo Anthony being sent to the New York Knicks. All season the Nuggets were trying to move Anthony and they finally got to make it happen and the team ended up getting great pieces back. The trade was great for both teams.

Packers are favorites all around

2011-02-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

America remains anxious for the biggest game of the year as we make our final picks on Super Bowl eve.

It has been two weeks since the NFL completed its conference championship games and my New York Jets did not advance to the big game.

In the American Football Conference championship game the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Jets, 24-19, to make their eighth appearance in the Super Bowl.

In the game the Jets were unable to overcome a 24-0 Steelers lead and the team was unable to complete a one yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

In the National Football Conference championship game the Green Bay Packers defeated their arch rival, the Chicago Bears, to advance to the Super Bowl.

The Packers were unstoppable with quarterback, Aaron Rodgers' passing in the first half. The Bears lost their quarterback, Jay Cutler, in the end of the second quarter with a knee injury.

A Steelers and Packers victory now brings us to a huge Super Bowl showdown in Arlington, Texas at Cowboys Stadium.

The two teams are outstanding on the defensive end and they both have two of the greatest quarterbacks in the league today.

On the Steelers side we have Ben Roethlisberger, who is a tough quarterback that refuses to go down and is great at dodging tackles.

Roethlisberger has the ability to throw the ball down the field and run the ball down the field by himself. He already has two Super Bowl rings so it will be hard for the Packers defense to keep him under control.

On the Packers side we have Aaron Rodgers, who is becoming his own star in Green Bay and making a name for himself alongside the great Bret Favre.

Rodgers has the ability to throw the ball down the field and run the ball for himself. Rodgers will be focus on winning his first title as the leader of the Packers, the team he had to sit and watch Favre lead for several years until the Packers finally picked Rodgers over Favre.

In the championship round, I went one-for-two in my picks.

For the Super Bowl I have the Packers defeating the Steelers. The Packers were favorites to win the Super Bowl before the season started and the team was able to overcome its injuries throughout the regular season. Since then the Packers are unstoppable and on a big winning streak heading into the Super Bowl.

Go Pack Go!

No. 6 teams going to the Super Bowl

2011-01-20T23:20:00.000-08:00

The National and American Conference Football leagues of the National Football league are set for Sunday as the New York Jets face the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers face the Chicago Bears.

In the AFC championship game, the Jets head into Pittsburgh as the underdogs again and are not favored to win this game because no one believes the Jets can do the unthinkable again and knock off another elite team following the high emotional victory against the New England Patriots.

The Jets and Steelers are defensive teams first then offensive teams second. The Steelers are a great defensive team at stopping the rushing game and the Jets are a great offensive rushing team.

In order for the Jets to win another tough game, they must play every play as if it's their last and make no mistakes. The Jets have to find a way to put points on the board because their running game is not going to be enough. Jets' quarterback, Mark Sanchez has to be able to make great passing decisions and avoid being intercepted.

The Jets defense will show up again in this game and they will be on top of their game but they cannot be overwhelmed by the full-length of the field passes that Steelers' quarterback Ben Roethisber is known for throwing.

I have been sold prior to the NFL playoffs that the Jets were going to head to the Super Bowl and they are a game away from completing that prediction so in this game I am riding with the Jets to beat the Steelers.

On the other side of the coin, the NFC championship game features the two teams with the longest rivalry in the NFL, the Packers and Bears.

The Packers are on fire ever since they got back into the playoff picture back in week 15 of the regular season and they do not seem to be stopping their hot streak.

The Bears are a great team of themselves too, lead by quarterback, Jay Cutler.

The Packers have the best team thus far in the postseason and they are not going to lose again unless they lose focus or a key player is loss during a critical point of the game.

Along with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the Packers are one foot into the Super Bowl and a win away from eliminating the Bears in Chicago.

I am picking the Packers in this game because like the Jets, I was convinced before the playoffs started that the Packers were going all the way to the Super Bowl.

In summary I have both No. 6 teams of each conference heading to the Super Bowl. My motto for the 2011 NFL playoffs is "the year of the No. 6s."

Go Jets and Packers!

New York Jets win!

2011-01-16T22:06:00.000-08:00

The New York Jets did the unthinkable and upset the New England Patriots as divisional playoffs ended Sunday night to advance to the American Conference championship game.

The Jets were given no chance by every NFL analyst to beat the Patriots but the Jets, lead by coach Rex Ryan, came out on top.

The Jets opened up the first quarter by preventing a a Patriots touchdown and only giving up a field goal worth three points. The Jets offense was showing some success with the running game but they were unable to convert points.

In a Patriots drive in the first quarter, quarter back, Tom Brady, was intercepted by a member of the Jets defense and took it back to the 10-yard line before the Jet was taken down.

The Jets were unable to convert points from the Brady interception. Later on in the game Jets' quarterback, Mark Sanchez, made a few touchdowns with passes to Ladainian Tomlinson and Braylon Edwards to lead 14-3 at halftime.

The Jets defense continued to stay on top of Patriots in the third quarter but Brady was able to bring the Patriots back into the game in the fourth quarter after he led a drive worth eight points to cut the Jets lead t 14-11.

The Jets kept their cool and Sanchez was able to connect with Santonio Holmes for a incredible catch in the in zone for a touchdown.

The Patriots tried to make a late comeback but the Jets maintained the lead and won the game 28-21 to face the Steelers on Sunday for the AFC championship.

On Saturday the Packers were able to complete my prediction and slautered the Atlanta Falcons and move on to face the Chicago Bears in the National Football Conference championship game.

In my divisional playoff picks I went 75 percent and picked three of the four winners right.

I know I did a lot better than most NFL analyst because I believe in my Jets!

Packers, Steelers move on to title games

2011-01-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

Day one of divisional playoffs is over in the NFL and I went one-out-of-two in today's two games.

In my predictions I picked the Baltimore Ravens over the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers over the Atlanta Falcons but the Packers were the only pick I got right today.

The Packers went into Atlanta with a road win against the Philadelphia Eagles and lots of confidence to win on the road. The Packers started the first quarter trailing 7-0 then giving up a 102 yard return touchdown to the Falcons.

After trailing 14-7, the Packers went on a scoring outburst with Aaron Rodgers as the team scored 35 unanswered points to lead 42-14 through three quarters.

Atlanta tried to make a comeback in the fourth after scoring their first touchdown of the second half but that was not enough as the Packers beat the Falcons and move on to the National Conference League championship game to face the winner of tomorrow's Chicago Bears/Seattle Seahawks game.

In the other game, my prediction looked like it was going to come through as the Ravens defense was making plays and scored 14 points for the Ravens. The Ravens defense was so good in the first half as it held the Steelers to only seven points in the first half.

The game looked too good to be true because the second half was the opposite for both teams. In the second half, the Steelers were the ones making plays on the defensive end and scoring points.

The Steelers defense made turnovers and brought the team back from behind to take the lead and eventually win the game.

Steelers' quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger,iced the game in the fourth quarter when he connected with Antonio Brown on a 58-yard pass on a third-and-19 with 1:33 left in the game. The pass would lead to a Steelers touchdown and a victory to move on to the American Conference League championship game and face the winner of the New York Jets/New England Patriots game.

Overall I am not surprised the Ravens couldn't beat the Steelers because their offense is always a question and today was another example that their offense can't pull them to the next level.

The Packers are gaining more momentum and are stomping their way to the Super Bowl.

Tomorrow I will have two more chances to improve my prediction's percentage and see if my Jets can do the unthinkable and beat the Patriots in New England.

The unthinkable NFL postseason upsets

2011-01-11T14:58:00.000-08:00

Following multiple victories for road teams in the wild card playoff round, the National Football League playoffs shift to the conference divisional round.

The Green Bay Packers, New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens took care of business on the road to move on to the NFL playoffs as the favored defending Super Bowl champions, New Orleans Saints, came up short against the unfavored Seattle Seahawks.

In the American Conference Football league, the New York Jets defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 16-14, to move on and face their AFC East division rivals, the New England Patriots.

The Jets are clearly not favored across the board to beat the unstoppable Patriots in New England but Jets' coach Rex Ryan continues to preach his team is going to win the Super Bowl this year.

I am a Jets fan and optimistic about the Jets' chances to pull a upset but anything is possible when a team has its back against the wall and nothing to lose. My prediction is a Jets upset over the Patriots.

As for the other AFC playoff game, the Ravens face their AFC North rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Like the Jets, the Ravens are a dangerous match-up for the Steelers because both teams know each other inside and out and the Ravens have nothing to lose.

The Ravens are a dark horse to me because this team is capable of anything with the outstanding defense it has but its offense is always a question to some and the offense is the obstacle in the way of Raven from becoming a championship team.

I pick the Ravens to beat the Steelers this week because I have faith in the Ravens offense coming through in this game.

Now moving on to the National Conference League, the Packers who are clear favorites to reach the Super Bowl, head into Atlanta to face the Falcons.

Despite being the No. 1 team in the NFC, no one is sold on the Falcons because the team is not taken serious. The Falcons have been successful in past seasons and continued the success this season behind quarterback Matt Ryan.

On the other hand, the Packers were picked before the NFL season to win the Super Bowl but the team lost key players through injuries which set the team back. The Packers managed to rally back and make the playoffs in the final weeks of the season.

Packers quarterback, Arron Rodgers, was one of the key players to sit out with concussions but now he looks to be healthy and on top of his game.

The match-up will be a exciting, hard fought match and football fans should not be disappointed in this game. I pick the Packers in this game because I feel the Packers are a runaway freight train on its way to the Super Bowl.

In the other NFC playoff match, the surprisingly Seahawks, with first year coach, Pete Carrol, head on the road to face the Chicago Bears.

No one expected the Seahawks to be playing this far into the NFL postseason following a horrible season last year but the Seahawks found a way to make the postseason with their 7-9 season record.

No one had the Seahawks winning at home against the Saints but the Seahawks disproved everyone and won the game.

Once again no one will have the Seahawks beating the Bears on the road this weekend. I predict the Bears winning easily because of their great defense and good offense.

In summary: I predict the Jets and Ravens to be playing in the AFC championship game and the Packers and Beats to be playing in the NFC championship game following this weekend.

NFL MVP race heats up

2010-12-22T17:42:00.000-08:00

With two weeks remaining in the NFL regular season, the talk about who deserve the NFL's Most Valuable Player award begins.

The two candidates who are clear favorites are New England Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady and Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback Michael Vick.

The Patriots have clinched themselves the American Football Conference East and the Eagles have clinched the National Football Conference East while both teams have guaranteed spots in the postseason.

With no questions asked, both quarterbacks have been a big factor for their team's success this season and have performed spectacular in several games.

Brady has had a great season as he has been averaging 254-yards per game and has 3561 pass yards on 31 touchdowns thus far in the season with two games left on the schedule.

As well as Brady, Vick is having a great season as he is averaging 250-yards per game and has 2755 passing yards on 20 touchdowns thus far in the season with two games left as well.

The two are putting up great stats as well as spectacular games.

Against the Detroit Lions in week 12, Brady threw 341-yards on 21 of 27 completed passes with four touchdowns to win the game 45-24. He repeated his performance a game later against the Jets when he poured 326-yards on 21 of 29 completed passes with four touchdowns to win the game 45-3.

Brady's performance has lunched the Patriots to a 12-2 record thus far while on a six game winning streak.

On the other hand Vick has done his own work to keep the race between the two quarterbacks close.

Against the Chicago Bears in week 12, Vick passed for 333-yards while completing 29 passes on 44 attempts for two touchdowns but lost the game 31-26.

In last week's game against the New York Giants, Vick threw for 242-yards while completing 21 passes on 35 attempts for three touchdowns and rushed 10 times to get 130 rushing yards for one touchdown to win the game 38-31.

The win against the Giants won the AFC East for the Eagles and gave the team a 10-4 record thus far for a three game winning streak.

Either player is worth winning the award without any disappointment from the fans.

Personally I would like to see Vick win the award after overcoming his legal issues and serving time in prison for his actions. But Brady is most likely going to win the MVP award because his team is performing beyond expectation.

Jimmie Johnson: Five-time champ

2010-11-21T18:07:00.000-08:00

A five-time Sprint Cup champion is what Jimmie Johnson can now call himself.

Johnson, the driver who has been dominating the sport of Nascar since 2005, was looking to add his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship today.

The goal of winning the fifth title was not easy because Johnson was 15 points behind Danny Hamlin in the points leader board of the Sprint Cup chase.

Not only did Johnson have to leap over Hamlin for the first place finish but he also had to worry about Kevin Harvick, who was not far behind in third place in points.

The finale of the 2010 Nascar season was coming to a close in Homestead, Florida, where the three drivers looked to win the title for themselves.

Johnson qualified to start the race in the top ten, and the other two drivers started lower.

Hamlin was far behind in the back of the pack, where he had to fight his way through the traffic and reach the front of the pack.

Unfortunately as the laps started to add up, Hamlin ran into Greg Biffle on a lap after 20 laps were completed.

Hamlin's car suffered some damage that would result in him not recovering from and being the deciding factor for him to lose his chance to win the Sprint Cup.

As for Harvick, he battled along side Johnson midway through the race for forth place and looked to have a great chance to win the title.

But near the end of the race, Harvick was penalized for speeding out of the pitstop.

Harvick finished third behind Johnson but that was not enough for Harvick to win the title.

Johnson finished the race second behind Carl Edwards and that was enough for Johnson to win his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup title.

Johnson can surely secure his name in Nascar history as one of the greatest drivers to dominate the sport.

Johnson proved champions know how to win when pressure is breathing down their neck.

RCC women's water polo wins state title

2010-11-20T15:18:00.001-08:00

Riverside City College women's water polo team defeated Long Beach City College 9-7 today and won the California state title.

Riverside and Long Beach settled for a 3-3 tie after one quarter. Riverside had a 5-4 lead after two quarters and added four more goals to lead 9-6 after three quarters. Long Beach shut out Riverside in the fourth but Riverside held on to win the match 9-7.

RCC was led by Southern California Co-MVP, Jamie Clark with three goals. Chelsea Harrod had two goals.

Andrea Antonissen had four saves for Riverside.

Riverside completed the undefeated season as the team went 32-0 this season. RCC sure did disprove the saying, "No one is perfect," because they sure did achieve a perfect season.

Stay tune as Viewpoints continues the developing story on the RCC women's water polo team.

RCC football plays in bowl game

2010-11-19T20:04:00.000-08:00

A 9-1 record along being undefeated at in conference was not enough for the Riverside City College football team to compete for a state title.

The format for the California Community College Athletic Association football state finals playoffs only picks up the four best teams from Northern California and the four best in Southern California.

Riverside, ranked No. 5 missed the chance to play for the state title this year after having a remarkable turnaround in a year. Last season the team won a game and lost nine games.

Therefore RCC will settle for a bowl game tomorrow at home.

Riverside the winners of the East Central Conference, will take on Los Angeles Harbor college, the winners of the West Central Conference, for the Central Bowl at 6 p.m. at Riverside City College.

One away from state title and perfect season

2010-11-19T19:42:00.001-08:00

With a 12-1 victory over Foothill College at the California Community College Athletic Association semi-finals, the Riverside City College women's water polo team is a game away from have a undefeated season.

The Tigers took on Foothill today in Sacramento and shut the team down like Riverside has been doing to the majority of its opponents this season.

Jamie Clark led the Tigers with four goals and six steals as RCC goalkeeper Andrea Antonissen had 14 saves.

Riverside improves to 31-0 and are one win away from winning the state title.

Riverside faces Long Beach City College tomorrow as the perfect season and state title are on the line for RCC.

RCC football wins seven straight

2010-11-06T22:53:00.000-07:00

The Riverside City College football team wins seven straight games, as College of the Desert were the latest victims tonight in a 42-23 beat down by the Tigers.

RCC is now 8-1 overall on the season and 4-0 in the East Central Conference. The Tigers can win their final game of the season and head into the postseason a high note when they head to SouthWestern College on Nov. 13.

The team is looking to make the postseason again since 2005.

Last season the team had a 1-9 record and during the offseason, the team replaced coach Bill Brown with Tom Craft.

What a year can make with a new coach running the team.

Yankees, Giants take care of business

2010-10-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

The New York Yankees defeated the Minnesota Twins for the second time in two days.

The Yankees won Game 2 of the division series with the Twins to take a 2-0 lead in the best of five series.

The Yankees were lead by starting pitcher, Andy Pettitte, who pitched seven innings and allowed two runs on five hits.

The Yankees now head back to New York where they will look to sweep the Twins.

The San Francisco Giants and Atlanta Braves opened up their division series tonight in San Francisco. The Giants took Game 1 with a 1-0 victory.

The game dominated by the pitching from both teams.

The Braves' Derrick Lowe pitched five and one-third innings as he gave up one run on five hits.

Following the no-hitter from Roy Halladay yesterday, the Giants' Tim Lincecum pitched a complete shutout game and only gave up two hits.

The Major League Baseball experts are calling this postseason; the year of the pitchers. So far that motto is holding.

Tampa Bay Rays falling off

2010-10-07T15:09:00.000-07:00

What happen to the Tampa Bay Ray? A team that was expected to reach the World Series, is now one game from making a quick exit from the Major League Baseball postseason.

The Rays won the must difficult division in baseball, the American League East, with a 96-66 record and one game better than the New York Yankees. The division includes the Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue jays.

The team had the home-court advantage entering its division series with the Texas Rangers.

In the first two games of the series, the Rays have lost the first two games in Tampa Bay. Yesterday the Rangers won 5-1, and today they won 6-0.

The Rays have only scored one run against the Rangers' starting pitchers Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson.

The series now shifts to Texas where the Rangers have a chance to end the series on their home field.

MLB starts postseason with a bang

2010-10-06T20:35:00.000-07:00

The start of the Major League Baseball postseason began with an amazing performance by Roy Halladay in the Philadelphia Phillies 4-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

Halladay pitched a complete game and pitched a no-hitter in the postseason. It's just the second time a pitcher has pitched a no-hitter in the postseason. The last time it happen was in 1950.

The performance overshadowed the Phillies' 1-0 lead against the Reds in the division series and it can be a motivation boost for the Phillies to jump on and capture another World Series Championship.

Earlier in the day the Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays opened up their division series and the Rangers took Game 1 with a 5-1 victory at home.

The Rangers were lead by their ace pitcher, Cliff Lee who pitched seven innings and allowed one run on five hits.

The day ended with the defending champs, the New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins opening up their division series.

The game started with the Twins leading 3-0 after five innings, but the Yankees rallied back to tie the game after six innings.

Mark Teixeira put the Yankees up in the seventh inning with a two-run home run.

The game is currently in play as the Yankees are up 6-4 in the bottom of the eighth.

USA robbed of a win

2010-06-18T17:42:00.000-07:00

Today was the worst day for the FIFA World Cup.

The first match was a unexpected upset as Serbia defeated Germany 1-0.

The Germans were favorites in the match, but they could not get nothing to fall for them.

Not too long ago, the Germans defeated Australia easily in a 4-0 victory.

The second match was USA vs. Slovenia.

Slovenia was on a roll after they won their first match.

It was a difficult match for USA because they had to switch roles of being the underdogs in their first match against England, to being favorites in this match.

Slovenia scored two goals in the first half. USA allowed the pair of goals by poor defense.

As Slovenia relaxed with their two goal lead, the Americans stormed out of halftime and scored a pair of goals of their own.

As the match was tied with less than 20 minutes left in the game, the Americans scored again, but the official who was calling the match, called off the goal because he said an American player committed a foul during the play.

The Americans showed frustration and anger because after the replay was shown multiple times, no where did it show that an American committed a foul.

The Americans were basically screwed a goal and a win.

The third match of the day was England vs. Algeria.

It was a perfect opportunity for England to get a win and keep the Americans hopes of advancing out of group play low.

But the match finished in a 0-0 draw and neither England or USA could make progress in the group standings.

The Americans group is a weak and pathetic group. It does not have great teams and England has shown they can hardly score a goal. All four teams are not great and the two teams who advance from the group, will surely be knocked out in the first round of the final 16.

Group C standings: Slovenia has four points, England and USA both have two points and Algeria has one point.

Next matches for Group C: England vs. Slovenia on June 23 at 7 a.m. on ESPN 2. USA vs. Algeria on June 23 at 7 a.m. on ESPN.

Lakers go back to back

2010-06-18T11:45:00.000-07:00

The Los Angeles Lakers repeated as NBA Champions last night after defeating the Boston Celtics 83-79.

What a game it was for the Lakers.

The team started off bad on the offensive side. Missing shot after shot, especially Kobe Bryant.

They trailed by nine points after the first quarter and scoring only 14 points.

It continued to look bad in the second quarter and Lakers fans started to get nervous and scared that it was going to be a sad ending to the season.

The Lakers managed to cut the Celtics lead to four points by halftime, but Bryant continued to shoot poorly from the field.

After the game, Bryant said that he let the hype of the game and what was on stake, get the best of him and he was lucky that his team was able to pull him up.

The second half started to become a nightmare for Los Angeles, as the Celtics lead grew to their max high, 13 points, but the Lakers continued to play hard.

Lakers coach Phil Jackson, was asked what did he say to the team during the Celtics run, and he said that he told the team to keep rebounding the ball.

His players listened as Bryant (who was not effective offensively) had 15 rebounds to finish the game.

Pau Gasol, the Lakers true MVP of the finals, finished the game 19 points and 18 rebounds.

The Lakers had 23 offensive rebounds.

The Lakers came out in the fourth and made a magnificent come back from the free throw line and was led by Gasol.

The real player that had a big contribution to this win was none other than Ron Artest.

Artest, the player who had a horrible percentage from beyond the arc in the playoffs, hit a huge three pointer for the Lakers down the stretch, after Rasheed Wallace hit a big three to cut the Lakers lead to three.

It was a wonderful ending for the Lakers. Not only did the Lakers went back to back, but they also got the big payback on the hated Celtics.

As a Lakers fan, I am so excited to see the Lakers succeed and watch them get another championship.

It was a long season and as hard it is to repeat, the Lakers did it.

Now it is a summer of partying and showing the pride and love of being a Lakers fan.

When the new season starts in Novemeber, the quest for a three peat starts.

Lets do it again Los Angeles!

Substitutions win the game for Mexico

2010-06-17T13:37:00.001-07:00

The game of the day in the 2010 World Cup was the 2-0 Mexico win over France.

The two teams were playing with a lot on the line. Both teams were playing for a chance to keep their chance to advance from the group alive.

Yesterday Uruguay defeated South Africa easily, 3-0 and had first place spot in the group.

Either Mexico or France could join Uruguay with four points, but they also could have remained tied with a draw in today's match.

The first half was quite with a 0-0 tie going into half.

Mexico made a few substitutions after the half and it would turn out to be the best move from Mexico's coach Javier Aguirre.

The first sub, Javier Hernandez, scored on a open net after beating the defenders and going around France's goalkeeper.

France thought it was a offside, but the sideline officals called him onside and Hernandez continued on to finish the goal.

The second sub, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, scored the second goal for Mexico after one of the France defender's was caught slide tackling a Mexican player inside the goal box, and rewarding the Mexicans with a penalty.

The Mexicans are now tied with Uruguay with four points, and France is tied with South Africa with one point.

As long as Mexico and Uruguay can finish their match with a draw than both teams will move on into the final 16.

The scenario is easy, but the challenge for Mexico and Uruguay is to win the top spot in Group A, because neither team does not want to face Argentina (the top team in Group B) in the first match of the final 16.

(The winner of Group A faces the second place team in Group B and the winner of Group B faces the second place team in Group A. The same goes for Group C and Group D, Group E and Group F, Group G and Group H.)

Earlier in the morning, Argentina murdered South Korea in a 4-1 victory.

Argentina were clearly favorites to win Group B, and it was no surprised they easily defeated the Southern Korans.

The other match of Group B, Greece vs. Nigeria, was a exciting but it was it was not a good game.

Greece won the game 2-1.

Group A standings: Uruguay and Mexico with four points and France and South Africa with one point.

Group B standings: Argentina with six points, South Korea and Greece with three points and Nigeria with zero points.

Biggest game of the season

2010-06-17T09:48:00.000-07:00

After a grueling NBA Finals series between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, the series comes down to one single game at Staples Center tonight.

The series has been marvelous as both teams have shown that they can rebound from a bad loss and win a game with full dominance.

The Lakers faced elimination in Game 6 and played specular as they held the Celtics to 67 points!

The Lakers cannot let their guard down after that impressive win. If they want to repeat as champions; they must repeat what they did in Game 6 and raise up the notch ten times more then the Celtics.

I am confident the Lakers will prevail in Game 7 and win the NBA's Larry O'Brien Championship for the second time in two years.

It has been a amazing season for the Lakers and winning Game 7 against their arch rivals would just be the perfect ending to the season.

Without Kendrick Perkins, the Celtics will be vulnerable inside the paint, so the Lakers must pound the ball inside to the big man for as long as they can.

The Lakers motto for the series has been, "No rebounds, no rings."

That's exactly what the Lakers also need to do, rebound!

Rebound, rebound, rebound Lakers.

Lets go Lakers. Lets get us another banner!

Spain falls to Switzerland

2010-06-16T15:26:00.000-07:00

Spain loses to Switzerland.

Something that no one thought would happen, but the unthinkable happen and it came true.

The favorites to win the 2010 World Cup opened up its run to the cup with a 1-0 loss to Switzerland.

Spain and Switzerland had a competitive first half as both held a 0-0 draw for the first half.

Seven minutes into the second half, Switzerland scored the only goal of the match when Gelson Fernandes put the ball into the net after a loose ball stood inches from the goal line, and Spain's goalkeeper feet away from recovering the ball.

Spain had multiple chances to even up the score and take the lead, but they could not convert against the strong defense and goalkeeping from Switzerland.

Switzerland's victory is the biggest upset thus far in the World Cup.

The other match of the group featured Chile and Honduras.

Chile controlled the entire game and had tons of chances to score.

Chile's only goal came at the 34 minute mark by Jean Beausejour.

All the groups have played a match each, and now it started back to Group A.

Host country, South Africa, got back on the field after splitting a 1-1 draw with Mexico.

The team played Uruguay, a team who also had a draw in its first match with France.

Uruguay beat South Africa easily 3-0.

Diego Forlan scored twice for Uruguay and Alvaro Pereira scored in the closing minutes of the match.

Group H current standings: Chile and Switzerland with three points and Honduras and Spain with no points.

Next matches for Group H: Chile vs. Switzerland on June 21 at 7 a.m. on ESPN. Honduras vs. Spain on June 21 at 11:30 a.m.

Italy is not the same 2006 champions

2010-06-14T13:50:00.001-07:00

The 2006 FIFA World Cup Champions, Italy, kicked off its campaign to defend its title against Paraguay today.

The match finished in a 1-1 draw.

Paraguay had no fear against the older and slower Italy team as the two teams had a heated battle for the first 25 minutes of the match.

Paraguay scored first at the 39 minute mark when Antolin Alcaraz connected with a header while being bodied up by two Italian defenders in the air.

The team celebrated by dancing in a big circle, but got back into the match as they tried to defend the one goal lead.

The Italians tried to get back into the match, but kept being called offside.

The second half continued to be like the first half, but Italy kept pushing to even up the score.

The Italians got their chance at the 63 minute mark when Daniele De Rossi scored off a corner from a teammate.

Both teams kept their composer for the remainder of the match and they had to settle for a draw.

There were two other matches that were played before this match. Japan defeated Cameroon 1-0 and Netherlands defeated Denmark 2-0.

Current standings for Group E: Japan and Netherlands with three points each and Cameroon and Denmark with no points.

Next matches for Group E: Japan vs. Netherlands at 4:30 a.m. on June 19 on ESPN and Cameroon vs. Denmark at 11:30 a.m. on June 19 on ESPN.

Lakers are down but not out

2010-06-13T21:45:00.000-07:00

In the shadow of the the FIFA World Cup, the NBA Finals are heating up as the series is heading back to Los Angeles.

The series has been a pattern as one team would win than the other team would win the following game and etc.

But now that pattern has been stopped as the Boston Celtics are the first team to win back to back games in the series.

The Los Angeles Lakers are now facing elimination for the first time in the postseason since the 2008 NBA Finals.

The Lakers are down 3-2 in the series but they are not discourage, because they have the final two games at home.

Now this series has been unpredictable with all the big performances by random players from both teams.

In Game 2 it was Rajon Rondo, Game 3 it was Derek Fisher, Game 4 it was Glen Davis and Nate Robinson and Game 5 it was Paul Pierce.

No game has been won by the big names like Kobe Bryant or Kevin Garnett.

But the prediction by NBA Experts like Jalen Rose are on target.

He and many other experts predicted the Lakers to win the title in seven games. They also said each team would win one game on the other team's floor.

Phil Jackson is 47-0 when winning Game 1 of a seven game series.

The Lakers won Game 1.

The winner of Game 3 after a series is tied at 1-1 in a 2-3-2 format goes on to win the title 100 percent.

The Lakers won Game 3.

It does not look like the Lakers are favorites to win at this moment, but they have all the odds with them to come back and win the title.

I predicted the Lakers in six, but I am confident they are going to win the final two games at Staples Center.

I am never going to lose hope.

Germany wins without a sweat

2010-06-13T16:09:00.000-07:00

The World Cup is beginning to pick up some momentum after having three of its first five matches end in draws.

The most exciting game of today was the Germany and Australia match.

The match was the first lopsided match of the World Cup thus far, as Germany defeated Australia 4-0.

Australia was the underdogs coming into the match, and it did not take much to show that they were.

Germany took a early 2-0 in the first 30 minutes of the match and never looked to take their foot off the gas pedal.

Germany got two more goals in the second half to win the match.

Germany was questioned weather they were going to be able to compete at a high level without their star player, Michael Ballack, but they looked great in their first match of the 2010 World Cup.

Ballack sustained a torn ligaments in his right ankle back last month.

The other two matches of the day ended in 1-0 victories for Ghana and Slovenia.

The other two teams in the USA's and England's group, Slovenia and Algeria, played their first match a day after the exciting English and American match.

Slovenia won the match and are leading Group C, follow by England and USA with one point and Algeria with no points.

The win by Slovenia now puts pressure on USA because USA must win the match against Slovenia to keep their chances alive to advance from the group play.

Slovenia and USA play on June 18 at 7 a.m. The Americans were the underdogs in the mach against England, but are now favorites in the this match, and it puts pressure on the Americans to not get caught up in underestimating their opponent.

The other match was against Ghana and Serbia.

Ghana won the match 1-0, and are tied with Germany with three points in Group D.

Group D standings: Germany and Ghana with 3 points and Australia and Serbia with no points.

Next matches for Group D: Germany vs. Serbia on June 18 at 4:30 a.m. on ESPN. Australia vs. Ghana on June 19 at 7 a.m. on ESPN.

Yanks and English settle for draw

2010-06-12T14:43:00.001-07:00

The incredible game between USA and England lived up to its hype.

The most anticipated game of the first round in the 2010 World Cup was full of dramatic and exciting fútbol for the full 90 minutes of the match.

The English did not waste anytime to put themselves on the board.

Within the first three minutes, the English found their own captain, Steven Garrard, in a open gap heading towards the USA's goal, and found themselves up 1-0 with Garrard's strike of the ball into the back of the net.

The English looked as if they were on their way to another victory of the Yanks, but the Americans felt they were not out of the game.

USA and England continued the game battling and battling for control of the game.

Hard tackles for the ball resulted in six yellow cards handed out to players on both sides. (Three for each team.)

As the time was coming to a close in the first half, the Americans had one more shot to even up the score.

At the 40th minute, Clint Dempsey blasted a ground ball towards the goal with no belief of being able to get the ball passed the great English goalkeeper, Robert Green.

But with a remarkable miracle, Green bobbled the ball from his control, and allowed to ball to roll passed him and into the goal.

The Americans celebrated the incredible mistake of the English goalkeeper and went into the half evened up with England at one.

The second half was just as exciting as the first half.

USA's goalkeeper, Tim Howard, performed an amazing performance for the Americans, as he saved several shots from going into the net.

The English and Americans couldn't get the tie breaker point in the second half, and the two teams settled for a draw.

The Americans now believe they are closer than ever of being recognized as one the elite soccer clubs in the world.

The draw with England gives USA a chance to move on from the group stage.

Group C standings: England and USA with one point and Slovenia and Algeria with zero points, but they have yet to play their match.

Next matches: Slovenia vs. Algeria 4:30 a.m. on June 13 on ESPN. USA vs. Slovenia 7 a.m. on June 18 on ESPN. England vs. Algeria 11:30 a.m. on June 18 on ESPN.

Argentina, South Korea wins first matches

2010-06-12T09:18:00.000-07:00

Group B of the 2010 FIFA World Cup turned out to be more of a one sided match in its first day debut.

Rather than having draws like Group A, the teams in Group B showed that a team can win in the World Cup.

The first match which was at 4:30 a.m. (and I was able to get up to see a bit of) had South Korea facing off with Greece.

South Korea took a early 1-0 lead after Lee Jung Soo scored a goal off his head from a corner kick in the first seven minutes.

The Koreans maintained the one goal differential for the remainder of the half.

Seven minutes into the second half, the Koreans scored again.

This time the team had Park Ji Sung grab the 2-0 lead when he took away the ball from one of the Greece defenders and scored against the goal keeper with little pressure.

2-0 would be the fine result of the match, and South Korea grabbed three points.

The second match had Argentina vs. Nigeria.

Many people and including myself predicted a Argentina blow out.

Argentina has what most people would consider the best player in the world,Lionel Messi.

But it did not matter to the Nigerians, instead it was a surprisingly 1-0 victory in favor of Argentina.

The only goal of the match came in the first six minutes of the match when Gabriel Heinze scored off one of the Argentina's corner kicks.

Give Nigeria's goalkeeper a lot off credit. The guy was not scared to get his hands dirty, because he was diving and jumping all over the place to deflect all of what should been goals for Argentina.

This game could have been easily a 6-0 win for Argentina, but Nigeria was saved of the embarrassment by their goalkeeper.

Group B now standing: Argentina and South Korea with three points each and Greece and Nigeria with zero points.

Next matches in Group B: Argentina vs. South Korea at 4:30 a.m. and Greece vs. Nigeria at 7 a.m. Both games are on June 17.

I am going to pick Argentina to win this group, and with South Korea winning today, than I have them as the second team to come out of this group.

2010 FIFA World Cup starts with draws

2010-06-11T13:24:00.000-07:00

The 2010 FIFA World Cup opening has came and gone with two fantastic matches that ended with draws.

The host country, South Africa, started the one month tournament with a fierce battle with Mexico.

Mexico controlled the first half by having 61 percent of the ball possession and having clean shots at goal over and over again, but they failed to get one shot into the back of the net.

With the scoree tied at zero, the momentum seemed to be shifting a little to the host team, but Mexico still looked like they were going to win the game.

The tie broke at the 55 minute mark when South Africa's Siphiwe Tshbalala scored off a fast break and over Mexico's undersized goal keeper.

With time increasingly fading away for the Mexicans, coach Javier Aguirre brought in fresh legs to keep the Mexicans competitive.

At the 79th minute, Mexico's Rafael Marquez tied up the game with a point blank shot at the goal.

There was not enough time for either team to break the 1-1 tie, and the game resulted in a draw.

The second game from Group A feature France and Uruguay, and it was the same result, but this time, a 0-0 draw.

Not many exciting moments from this game.

Both teams had a balance match and both played really well on the defensive end.

Uruguay was a man short for the last 15 minutes of the game after one of their players picked up a red card and resulted in a rejection.

(In soccer, when a player receives a red card: It means he or she is ejected from the game and their team is forced to play one player short. The player is then suspended for the team's following game, but is allowed to return after the one game suspension.)

With the the two games completed in draws; all four teams are tied at one point in Group A.

Next matches in the group are: Mexico vs. France on June 17 at 11:30 a.m. and South Africa vs. Uruguay on June 16 at 11:30 a.m. Both matches are on ESPN.

The World Cup matches will continue tomorrow with a triple header.

Group B starts its matches: South Korea vs. Greece at 4:30 a.m. (I don't think I will be able to watch this one. Yet again, I don't think it is worth getting up for.) Argentina vs. Nigeria 7 a.m. Both games are on ESPN.

But the most anticipated game for the Americans gets started between USA and England. The match will be on ABC at 11:30 a.m.

Referees win game two

2010-06-06T23:04:00.000-07:00

The Boston referees won game two of the 2010 NBA Finals.

It was not the Celtics, it was the referees who defeated the Los Angeles Lakers.

Bad call after bad call kept Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher and Ron Artest from being aggressive.

The referees are not letting the men play. It is cheating both teams from having a fair chance at winning.

The NBA has the worse officials calling the games and it is hurting the league, fans and teams.

The Lakers are not in trouble because of this loss on their home court.

The Lakers can beat Boston anywhere, anytime. Boston barely beat Los Angeles with the help of the referees.

The referees proved they rigged the game, when they had a chance to change a call by viewing the replay on the TV screen, but they kept the call after seeing they had the call wrong.

It is no panic time for the Lakers because they are going to win two in Boston and come back to win the series in six or seven. Depending when the NBA wants to end it.

The NBA is corrupt.

First draw goes to Lakers

2010-06-04T14:39:00.000-07:00

Game 1 goes the Los Angeles Lakers.

After a week of hyping up the rivalry between the Lakers and the Boston Celtics, the two teams started their twelfth meeting in the NBA Finals.

The Lakers came out setting the tone against the Celtics. Telling Boston that they are not the soft team in the series and they are not going to put up with all the trash talking prior to leading up to the game.

Ron Artest sent the first message after tangling with Paul Pierce in the first 30 seconds of the game.

After that play, the Lakers kept the lead and never looked back.

The Lakers were soft in their front line in 2008 against the Celtics, but in Game 1 last night, the Lakers front line had 48 points in the paint.

Pau Gasol was the player everyone was looking at to see if he would be tougher against Keven Garnett.

Gasol did not waste no time to show everyone he is no longer a soft big man. Gasol finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds (eight of them being offensive rebounds.)

Kobe Bryant picked up where he left off at in the Phoenix series, since he finished with 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists in Game 1.

Bryant did not let nothing distract him, not even the comedian, Chris Rock, as Rock tried to crack a smile from him.

Boston had been talking trash for the past four days, and claiming they were going to win Game 1, but it looked as if they did not know what hit them after the Lakers came out as a team that the Celtics never knew existed.

The Lakers are focused to defeat the Celtics and not only get revenge from 2008, but repeat as NBA Champions.

As Bryant said after the Phoenix series, Boston is just a team that is in the way of the Lakers from the title.

Lakers are on their way to a repeat.

Let the revenge begin

2010-05-30T15:16:00.000-07:00

Finally after two weeks of amazing basketball, the NBA finals are set, and as the smoke clears, we are left with the two most storied franchised in the NBA.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics will renew their long documented rivalry.

The Celtics were a team that everyone wrote off and were no one's choice to be in this year's NBA Finals, but after a impressive upset over the favorites, Cleveland Cavaliers, and knocking off the defending Eastern Conference Champions, Orlando Magic, the Celtics are back again as the team they were two years ago.

The Lakers were favorites to be back in the finals, and are the favorites to repeat as champions again, but it was not easy for the Lakers to get back to the finals this year.

The Celtics entered the NBA Playoffs with questions on the health of their team.

The Celtics passed the Miami Heat and were up against their next challenge: The Cavaliers. The world was shocked when LeBron James had quit in Games 5 and 6, and give the Celtics the series.

After knocking out the Cavaliers, no one believed the Celtics could do it again against the Magic. The Celtics jumped up to a 3-0 lead in the series, and had people jumping back on their wagon.

The Magic did not quit, instead the team grabbed two wins before the Celtics eliminated them.

For the Lakers, they had a tough season dealing with injuries with their super star Kobe Bryant. Bryant did not let that stop him from playing, he continued playing with the injuries.

The Lakers opened up their road to repeat with the young, athletic Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder did not let them off easily as they took them six games, but the Lakers won the series.

Next were the Utah Jazz, the team was lucky to advance to the second round, after the Denver Nuggets lost control of their team without the leadership of their coach.

The Jazz had no chance against the Lakers. Los Angeles swept them in four games.

Next were the underestimated Phoenix Suns, the team that missed the playoffs last season and were not expected to be in the Western Conference Finals.

No one had the Suns beating the Lakers, but the Suns figured out a way to beat the Lakers after Los Angeles went up 2-0 in the series.

Pheonix went to a zone defense that brought the team back to a 2-2 tie and was keeping them in the series.

Game 5 was the turning point of the series.

With a minute to go and the Lakers up 101-98, Ron Artest took the stupidest shot in Lakers history.

Artest had missed a running shot but Gasol had gotten the offensive rebound and passed it back to Artest, but Artest took another shot with 22 seconds left in the shot clock but missed the shot.

Afterwards Steve Nash brought the ball up and took a three pointer that missed. The Suns grabbed the rebound and Jason Richardson took another three, but he missed and the Suns got another rebound, this time Richardson banked a three with three seconds left in the game.

The Lakers came back with Bryant shooting a three pointer, but it fell short and Artest was there to put it back for the game winning shot.

The win gave the Lakers a 3-2 lead in the series and allowing Artest to redeem himself for dumb shot he did before.

The Lakers closed out the Suns back in Phoenix and are in the NBA Finals for the third straight year and 31st time in franchise history.

The last time the Lakers and Celtics faced off in the finals, the Lakers were on a roll that was feeding off the trade that brought Gasol to the Lakers.

The Celtics had fire power and great defense that locked up Bryant to allow Boston to beat the Lakers in six games.

This year will be different because the Lakers have the experience, great defense (with the addition of Artest), Andrew Bynum (a player that the Lakers did not have in 2008), and the Celtics are not the same team of 2008.

Artest was brought to Los Angeles to face guys like Paul Pierce. Pierce went off on the Lakers back in 2008, but this time he will be getting locked down by Artest.

The Lakers did not have Bynum in 2008 because he had a knee injury. Bynum has another knee injury, but since he is playing with it, it gives the Lakers another body to fill the post and get rebounds and block shots.

Bynum does not need to lead the Lakers in scoring, any points he gets will be a extra for the Lakers. His defense is what is more important for the Lakers.

The Lakers are favorites this time, because I do not believe the Celtics can take out another elite team for a third time.

Kevin Garnett is not 100 percent, Ray Allen is not going to hurt the Lakers a whole lot, Pierce won't get everything he wants, and the Celtics live and die with Rajon Rondo.

As long as the Lakers continue what they have been doing all season, than Boston should not be a headace.

Boston will get wins, but not all four wins.

The Lakers are well enough prepared to go head to head with the Celtics and they have home court advantage.

Not that I am a Lakers fan, but I do believe the Lakers will beat the Celtics this year.

I pick the Lakers in six games.

A fan is a fan

2010-05-14T21:26:00.000-07:00

What does a person have to do to be known as a "die hard fan" of a certain team and what makes other people judge a person's loyalty to a team?

It is a well debated argument among fans of the same team.

Fans who self proclaim themselves as a die hard, call out the others who show little less support to the team as to how the die hard shows their support.

What if the fan who shows little less support does not have the money to spend to show their support via t-shirt, hat, jersey and etc.

How can other fans of the same team judge the person based on not knowing why they do not wear the team's colors during the time the team plays?

How long does it take to be called a fan of a team?

My friend Jenny Martinez tried to answer these questions on her own.

She sets examples during times where her team was going through troubles and the fans of now where not there at the time.

She asked other die hard fans to expressed their thoughts on the fans who are not die hard's, and they agreed with her.

But I find that these questions cannot be answered because every fan's situtation is different, because it shouldn't be up to other fans to claim one fan's loyalty to the team.

So call "bandwagons" is a term used to describe a fan who suddenly appeared during a time the team is succeeding and claims they have been a fan for a while.

Other definitions for a bandwagon fan is a person claiming they are a fan and not knowing one fact about the team.

If a person wants to cheer on a team, than let them, the team does not care who is a fan of theirs.

It's the people who are the die hard fans who care if the person is a true fan or not.

It splits a line in the middle between the fans who care about calling out the bandwagons and the fans who can careless about these fans.

Instead of becoming one group of fans cheering on their team, these fans cause conflict between each other and cause two parties fighting about nonsense stuff.

As a fan of the Lakers, I see this everyday on Twitter.

Laker fans argue among each other about stupid things. One being bandwagons and instead of agreeing on one thing, it causes more arguments.

Every Laker fan should not care about other fan's loyalty because they should care about the team, and know for themselves if they are true fan or not.

It shouldn't be up to other fans to determine if one fan's loyalty to the team is faithful or not.

If a person wants to root for the Lakers or Yankees because the are the popular team than let them, and if a person self proclaims that they are only a Laker fan no matter what then let them too.

What it boils down to is that Kobe Bryant or Derek Jeter can give a rat's ass of who is cheering their teams on every night.

The predictable NBA playoffs

2010-05-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

How exciting is it to finally be in the NBA conference finals after a month's worth of amazing and unpredictable playoffs.

The main headline in the conference finals is the Boston Celtics upsetting LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers to advance the the eastern conference finals.

The second headline is the Phoenix Suns make their way back the the western conference finals. They return after sweeping the San Antonio Spurs and a season after missing the playoffs.

The two teams that were predicted to be in the conference finals were the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic, and with no surprise, both are there.

The Lakers and Magic both swept their semi-finals series' and are looking to have a collision course in the NBA finals for a consecutive season.

My predictions for the semi-finals were a lot better from my first round predictions. All four teams that I predicted to be in the conference finals are in and I hit the bull's eye with Boston beating Cleveland in six games.

Now that the conference finals are set; it's time to predict who will be in the NBA finals in June.

In the East we have No. 2 Orlando Magic vs. No. 4 Boston Celtics:

I am going to pick Boston in six. I am sold this team is the best team in the east. They were chosen to be the best team in the regular season, but they fell to fourth because of injuries. Now that they have a full roster and are playing their best basketball of the season; I think they have to be the favorite to come out of the east.

Yes, Orlando is great, they swept both of their first two series, but I think Boston has too much momentum after knocking of King Quitter and the Cavaliers.

Rajon Rondo is leading the Celtics with impressive stats, Kevin Garnett looks like he is still in his prime, Paul Pierce is looking sharp from the three point line, Ray Allen is still a prime shooter, and the Celtics supporting cast behind these four guys are superior to Orlando's supporting cast.

Boston has the best defense to match Orlando's hot offense and I just don't see the Magic getting past Boston like they did last season.

Now to the West. we have No. 1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 3 Phoenix Suns:

I have the Lakers in five. It's not even a contest. The Lakers can defeat the Suns with one hand tied behind their back.

The Suns do not have the height to compete with the Lakers' big men. Last series, Pau Gasol went off against the under-size Utah Jazz, and he will do the same with the Suns.

Andrew Bynum is suffering a bad knee, but as long as he can give the Lakers 10 points and 12 rebounds for the series, that will be enough for him to help the Lakers.

Lamar Odom, the player who has been inconsistent forever for the Lakers, will have a huge series. I see Odom averaging a double-double in the series.

The Suns had a impressive season, but their season is going to fall short here. They are just not good enough at their best against the Lakers.

So let's recap my picks. After my predictions we have Boston and LA.

"Boston and LA ... That's all you can say ... is Boston and LA," Kobe Bryant once said about facing the Celtics.

And he is right, that's all you can say, Boston and LA.

The rematch the Lakers have been waiting for two years is going to finally happen.

The rivalry of these two teams is going to be once again renewed.

The best series the NBA can hope for is going to go down in June!

I can't wait for these series to start, check back when Boston and LA defeat their opponents and make the finals to see my prediction of who is going to win the NBA championship!

LeBron's last game with Cleveland

2010-05-13T21:55:00.000-07:00

Tonight LeBron James proved he is the king.

The king of quitting.

Seriously, this man is overrated, how can he be the greatest player in today's world when his team had the best record in the last two season's and failed to reach the NBA finals?

James is no super hero who can be seen as one of the greats to be talked about in the likes of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

He simply turned his back on his team, the city of Cleveland and himself.

Passing up shots, back peddling when his team had yet to attempt a shot and turning over the ball repeatedly in a game where Cleveland needed to continue their season; he gave the attitude of "It's fine, it happens," and it is not what I view as one of the characteristics of a legend.

If it were Jordan or Bryant, neither player would had sat back and let their team sink in a elimination game like James did tonight; they both would had taken control of the game and win the game at their own will.

James made no excuses for the failed season after finishing the season with a Cleveland Cavaliers record 61-21 and winning his consecutive season NBA Most Valuable Player award.

But he showed through his body language that he was done with the Cavaliers after seven seasons.

The careless reaction of what had happen to the team's collapse, his fall in the series and the endless questions if he will return to the Cavaliers.

I see James leaving Cleveland this off season, but I don't know where.

The scary though is him and another superstar like Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh or Joe Johnson teaming up on one team.

James would never achieve winning a NBA championship with the attitude he showed in this series. He gave up.

One more thing, I finally hit the bull's eye, I predicted the exact winner in the series and the exact number of games the team would take to win it.

The unpredictable NBA

2010-05-09T12:05:00.001-07:00

I am starting to believe I am not the best when it comes to predicting NBA playoff series' outcomes.

Now I am good at picking what team wins, but I am not good at how many games it will take.

I did not see the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic and especially the Phoenix Suns being up 3-0 in their respective series'.

I did have them all moving on to the conference finals.

I knew the Suns would beat the San Antonio Spurs, but I had that series going six games. Now that it is 3-0 in favor of the Suns, this can be over in four.

I had the Suns moving on because I was not sold on the Spurs doing it again after that impressive six game series they won against the Dallas Mavericks.

I had the Lakers over the Utah Jazz in five games because the Lakers beat the Jazz in five games in the past two postseasons series' they had against them.

But it's not a surprise that the Lakers and Magic are up 3-0, because those are the teams that are expected to dominate throughout the postseason.

I am still hoping the Boston Celtics can find their three-leaved clover and beat LePrick James in six games.

The Celtics had a horrible game three in Boston. The team had nothing going for them for the start that resulted in a slaughter by the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The excitement of the NBA playoffs is starting to heat up. It's time to buckle your seat belts because the Lakers are coming hard.

Magic make a lasting impression

2010-05-04T19:22:00.000-07:00

Talk about taking care of business.

The Los Angeles Lakers should rip a page out of the Orlando Magic's playbook after the Magic defeated the Atlanta Hawks 114-71 in Game 1.

After the Hawks won their seven game series against the Milwaukee Bucks in seven games, they set their sites on Orlando.

It felt as if the Magic have been waiting decades to start its second round series after they swept the Charlotte Bobcats.

The game was a no contest from the opening tip, and the Hawks seemed to be lost as they did in their first series.

I predicted the Magic would win in five games, but now that they beat the Hawks by 43 points; I think they can sweep them too.

Vince Carter said it best after the game, "We are hungry." Something that Lakers lack this year.

Suns doing more off the court

2010-05-04T16:00:00.000-07:00

For the first time the Phoenix Suns are a winner in my eyes.

It's not because they defeated the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 last night, it's because they are standing up for what's right and they get a standing ovation by me and my raza.

After the illegal immigration bill was signed by Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer last month, lots of people, including Latinos opposed the bill, because it has the potential to develop racial profiling other than being used for its purpose of allowing police officers to request proof of legal documents if there is reasonable suspicion.

Suns owner, Robert Sarver wanted to make his mark of how he thinks of this bill, and by doing so, he came up with a brilliant plan.

In the next game the Suns play, the team will be wearing the "Los Suns" jerseys that they and other NBA teams wear during the annual NBA's "Noche Latina".

The game falls on Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican holiday that is celebrated for the wrong reasons, but it is more than a perfect day for Sarver and the Suns to show their appreciation for their Latino fans and tell them they are on our side.

After the bill was past, there were calls out to professional sport teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels to consider moving their spring training facility out of Arizona help boycott the bill.

People have threaten to leave the state, students who where committed to attending college in Arizona immediately canceled their plans and Arizona was left with the potential to lose out on lots of money.

So with the first action from a professional sport being made by the Suns, a sign that the heroes the fans look up to all the time, do care about their fans, and are trying to be a voice for them.

I applause the Suns for their efforts, but once they face my Los Angeles Lakers in a few weeks in the western conference finals, it's no more respect for you.

But thank you to the Phoenix Suns for doing this for the Latinos, we appreciate your efforts in this unfair situation.

Celtics are better than ever

2010-05-04T09:42:00.000-07:00

The Boston Celtics are back.

The team that won its seventh NBA Championship two years ago, are back to contend for another one.

A team that was written off as too old to compete with the likes of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers, have made a 180 and now seems to be able to beat anyone.

The Celtics are currently in a 1-1 tie with the Cavaliers in their best of seven series, and Boston is looking to take the lead when the series resumes back in Massachusetts.

As a loyal Lakers' fan, I hate to admit this thought, but the Celtics are the team I am pulling for in the series.

Not only because I know they are going to win this series, but the fact that Cleveland fans are so ignorant and stupid to believe their team is the best with the mediocre players they have surrounding LeBron... is why I want them to lose every year.

Believe me, I would love to see Kobe Bryant capture his fifth NBA Championship by beating "LePrick" James and Shaq, but on behave of the rest of the NBA, we would love to see the Celtics and Lakers get it on again.

The Celtics are healthy and are playing their best basketball of the season, that said, they have the recipe to make it back to the finals for another showdown with their foe.

Trust me, the Lakers have their ticket to the finals set, the Utah Jazz and most likely, the Phoenix Suns are not going to be a threat to them.

I will say it again, the Lakers will not repeat if they get beat by themselves, no one can beat L.A. in a seven game series.

On a final thought, let the rivalry continue Boston and L.A.

Round one is done; now round two is up

2010-05-01T13:57:00.000-07:00

Where to start with what happen in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

My first round predictions were a bust, I came no where near of my predictions and picked losing teams.

Lots of action, intensity and twist and turns happened in the western conference first round.

The No. 7 San Antonio Spurs defeated the No. 2 Dallas Mavericks in six games. I said I was going with the Mavs but I would not be surprised if the Spurs won and they did.

The No. 5 Utah Jazz defeated the No. 4 Denver Nuggets in six games. I had the Jazz winning in 7 and I was almost right, because they still won and they won because the Nuggets were a mess without its head coach, George Karl.

The biggest surprise is the No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks and the No. 3 Atlanta Hawks. I had the Hawks winning, and they still have a chance tomorrow in Game 7, but I didn't believe the Bucks could possibly win. They did not only force a Game 7, but they also had a 3-2 lead in the series. Tomorrow is the big game to see who Orlando will face, and I am going with the Hawks.

Now for my second round NBA predictions. Hopefully this goes better than the first time.

In the West:

No. 1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 5 Utah Jazz.

I am going with the Lakers in five games. I know the Jazz and Lakers are both dealing with lots of injuries, but this is what the Lakers need after a long six game series against the Oaklahoma City Thunder. This series favors the Lakers because they dominate the tempo and front line. The only advantage the Jazz have is Deron Williams.

No. 3 Phoenix Suns vs. No. 7 San Antonio Spurs.

I am going with the Suns in six. I think the Spurs had a great series against the Mavericks, but I am not sure if they can do it again against the Suns. The Suns are doing really well right now, they had one of the best second half season records in the NBA and they continue to play really good. I think the reason why the Suns are playing great is because they finally got over the Amare Stoudemire trades.

Another reason why I am going with the Suns is because they would be a really great way for the Lakers to finally get revenge for those two first round loses against the Suns back in the 2006 and 2007 playoffs.

Now in the East:

No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 4 Boston Celtics

This is the series I am excited to watch. The Celtics have finally found their legs and are playing Boston Celtics basketball, the basketball that won them a NBA championship two years ago. I am going with the upset, I am picking the Boston Celtics in six games. I am convince the Celtics can beat the Cavs this year. Cleveland is really overrated and I don't believe the Cavs will ever win a championship in my lifetime. I am sure the Celtics can punch the Cavs in the face and move on to the eastern conference finals.

No. 2 Orlando Magic vs. No. 3 Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks are not in the second round at the moment, but I picked them to beat the Bucks tomorrow in Game 7 and I am sure it will go as planned. But either way, who ever faces the Magic in the second round will not beat them. I am picking the Magic in five games no matter if it's the Hawks or Bucks. No one will be a threat to the Magic until they go further into the playoffs. It is just a nice walk to the conference finals for the Magic in these two first rounds.

So there you have it, those are my second round picks; come back to check out more NBA playoff blogs by me and my conference finals predictions in two weeks!

The Lakers beat their future competitors

2010-05-01T12:53:00.001-07:00

The thunder has cleared for the Los Angeles Lakers and the path to a repeat has taken a new jazz tune.

The Lakers took care of business last night in Oklahoma City and put away the Thunder in six games to move on to the western conference semi-finals, and a match up against the Utah Jazz.

For a sixth game, the OKC Thunder fought hard and gave the Lakers one last offensive surge, only to fall a point short from forcing a game seven in Los Angeles.

The Lakers are moving on, but the Thunder are not gone for good.

A team that surpassed its expectations and grew up in front of our eys in six games; have made a name for themselves in the years to come.

The OKC Thunder are the real winners of this series against the defending champs. They played their hearts out and proved they can beat any team in the NBA and can go much further into the playoffs in the coming years.

With the trio combo of Kevin Durant, Russel Westbrook and Serge Ibaka and the supporting cast made up of Jeff Green, James Harden and Nick Collison, only makes this team one big free agent away from being a NBA championship contender.

They have shown they can score at will, defend when called upon and play with the best anywhere.

The OKC Thunder should not leave this series with its head down, because they won millions of people's hearts and respect, including the fans of the Lakers, who wished to cheer on the young team, but only hoped it was against another team.

They made the Lakers work for every point, every game and every win. They made people believe they had a chance to upset the champs.

Respect ... respect ... respect is the only word that comes to mind when I think about these guys. Durant has made me a fan of his and Westbrook has become a NBA all star in my eyes.

The players from Oklahoma City, are a team who came into the series against Los Angeles as the inexperience boys, and left the series as NBA veteran men looking to get back to the playoffs next season and finish what they left on the court last night.

This team was expected to make the playoffs this year and lose in the first round to the Lakers with no wins, but they were not expected to force the Lakers to a nearly seventh game.

The Lakers and the rest of the NBA now know they must acknowledge this team as a contender for now on.

The scariest fact about this Thunder team is that they are young and ready to improve.