Monday, December 31, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers began the New year in style tonight, continuing there road trip with a visit to Seattle to face the Supersonics. Offensively, five Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala, Rodney Carney, Samuel Dalembert, Lou Williams) with Iggy's 25 leading the way. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert was again the standout with 7 rebounds and 6 blocks. Additionally, although the Sixers were out rebounded by Seattle 46-35, they had a much better shooting night, shooting nearly 50% from the field and from beyond the arc. As for the game it was closer than the final score would indicate. Through the 1st quarter of play Seattle actually led 23-21. By the half however, the Sixers had exploded for a 12 point, 46-34 lead. The rest of the way they used that lead to hang on. Through three quarters Seattle had cut the lead, to 11 with the score 73-62. In the 4th quarter Seattle continued to rally, but the Sixers had just enough to hang on for a 98-90 victory. So the Sixers improve to 14-17 overall, but remain in 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers continued their road trip today with a visit to Portland to face the young Trailblazers. They came in looking to win their third game in a row, but after three solid quarters of play, the game slipped away from them in the 4th quarter. Offensively, only three Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Iguodala, Andre Miller, Rodney Carney) with Iggy's 24 leading the way. Additionally, Andre Miller had a great night with 11 assists to go along with his 17 points, but this time it went for naught. Defensively, the Sixers did not have a very good night, They were out rebounded 31-29, and turned the ball over six more times than the Trailblazers did. Additionally they shot under 40% from the field, but allowed Portland to shoot nearly 50% from the filed. That just won't get it done. As for the game it was all Sixers in the 1st half and all Blazers in the 2nd. Through the 1st quarter of play Portland led 21-16. By the half the Sixers had rallied to take a nine point, 45-36 lead. At one point in the 3rd quarter that lead ballooned up to 11, but Portland turned the tables,and by the 4th quarter they trailed by only one, with score 63-62. In the 4th quarter it was all Portland as they outscored the Sixers 35-9 and wound up winning easily 97-72. So the Sixers drop to 13-17 overall and back into sole possession of 4th place in the Atlantic division.
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles finished out their season today with a visit from the Buffalo Bills. Thanks to another tough defensive effort and just enough fireworks from the Eagles offense, the Birds pulled out the win. Offensively, Donovan Mcnabb completed 29 of his 41 passes for 345 yards and a touchdown and Brian Westbrook amassed 99 total yards from scrimmage, as the Eagles collected nearly 400 yards of offense. Defensively, the Eagles limited Buffalo to just 271 total yards of offense, and o TDs, exactly what they're coached to do. As for the game, it was one of those boring season ending games when you know you're not going to playoffs, but it was competitive nonetheless and as some might say it upheld the integrity of the NFL. In the 1st quarter Mcnabb hit rookie TE Brent Celek with a 2 yard TD pass, for the only score, to put the Eagles up 7-0. Late in the 2nd quarter the two teams traded short field goals for a 10-3 Eagles lead at the half. Late in the 3rd quarter Rian Lindell hit his second field goal of the day for Buffalo to cut the lead to 10-6. Then Reggie Brown caught what appeared to be a TD pass from Mcnabb, before fumbling into the endzone, where Kevin Curtis recovered it for 17-6 Eagles lead. Rian Lindell then ended the quarter with his 3rd field goal of the day to cut the lead to 17-9. The Bills had opportunities after that in the 4th quarter to put the ball in the end zone and tie the game, but the Eagles' defense stood stout and the Birds hung on to win 17-9. So the Eagles finish the year 8-8, which is not bad considering all they have been through, but it's good enough only for last place in the NFC East,where Dallas(13-3), NY(10-6), and Washington(9-7) all made the playoffs.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers are as hot as they're uniforms now, with this their 3rd straight victory, this time over the Florida Panthers. Antero Niittymaki got the start in goal, giving Marty Biron a rare night off, and saved all 38 shots he faced. So it was a rare good night for Niittymaki. As for the game it was largely uneventful thanks to the equally strong performance of Panther's goalie Thomas Vokoun with 19 saves out of the 20 shots he faced. The first period was scoreless. The second period was also scoreless. Finally, midway through the 3rd period Derian Hatcher finally made it 1-0 Flyers, with the only goal of the night. So that's how it ended with a 1-0 Flyers victory. So the Flyers improve to 19-14-4 overall and move back up into 3rd place in the Atlantic division.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The miracle has happened, the Flyers have actually won two in a row. Can you believe it? okay so maybe that's a little dramatic, but I mean it took them long enough didn't it. Anyway Joffrey Lupul was the star again with a goal and 2 assists to power the Orange and Black to victory. Lupul opened the scoring on a penalty shot midway through the 1st period. Then late in the period Vinny Lecavalier tied it at 1. Mike Knuble made it 2-1 late in the 2nd period. Early in the 3rd period, Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell each scored to make it 4-1 Flyers. Midway through the period, former Flyer Vaclav Prospal cut the lead to 4-2. From there Marty Biron and his 31 saves out of 33 shots faced closed out the 4-2 Flyers victory. So the Flyers improve to 17-14-4 overall and move back up into 4th in the Atlantic division.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers made their first big roster move under new GM Ed Stefanski, trading 3 point ace Kyle Korver to the Utah Jazz for guard Gordan Giricek and a 1st round pick. The pick is a conditional and can't be used until 2009 where it would be a late first round pick anyway and thus not necessarily that much of an asset. Giricek is a solid bt not great player, kind of like Korver, except he doesn't shoot 40% from beyond the arc. So the Sixers likely won't be hitting anymore three pointers anytime soon. If nothing else, the move does free up some cap room for Sixers, something they've been looking to do for a while. So while this move doesn't exactly help them now, it will help to improve the Sixers in the future, which is apparently all they are concerned with at this point.
Friday, December 28, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers began a long road trip today with a visit to Sacramento to face the shorthanded Kings, with Mike Bibby and Kevin Martin on injured reserve. The Sixers took advantage of their absence and notched their second win in a row. Offensively, four Sixers scored in double figures (Andre Iguodala, Andre Miller, Samuel Dalembert, Kyle Korver) with Samuel Dalembert's 19 leading the way. Defensively, it was another bannner for Samuel Dalembert with 11 rebounds and 4 blocks,as the Sixers out rebounded Sacramento 38-32. As for the game, it was tight for a while, then the Sixers pulled a way for the win. Through one quarter, the Sixers led 26-25. At the half, the Sixers led by 4, 50-46. Through three quarters the game was tied at 63. Then in the 4th quarter Sixers went on a 19-4 run and pulled away for a 12 point, 92-80 triumph. So the Sixers improve to 13-16 overall and move back into a tie for 3rd place in the Atlantic division with the Nets.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
Well, it had to end some time and it finally did tonight. Yes that's right after six agonizing games the Flyers finally snapped their 6 game losing streak with a victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Joffrey Lupul scored 2 goals and Marty Biron saved 34 of the 35 shots he faced to fuel the win. Late in the first period Jeff Carter made it 1-0 Flyers. Late in the 2nd period Lupul made it 2-0 with his first goal. Then Mats Sundin produced the Maple Leaf's only goal of the night to cut the lead to 2-1 heading into the 3rd period. There Danny Briere and Lupul scored a couple early goals to put away the 4-1 victory, as Biron held the Leafs out of the net the rest of the way. So the Flyers improve to 16-14-4 overall but remain in last place in the Atlantic division, as their divisional opponents all won while they were idle. Let's face it sometimes a 6 game losing streak can do things like drop you into last place. The Orange and Black will just have to put together a 6 game winning streak now if they want to get back into contention in their strong division before it's too late.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers returned to action against Shaq, DWade and the rest of the Miami Heat. The Heat have struggled thus far this season and they did so again tonight. Offensively, 4 Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Iguodala, Andre Miller, Kyle Korver, Louis Williams) with Iggy's 28 leading the way. Defensively, it was a team effort as they amassed 40 rebounds and 9 blocks to the Heat's 38 rebounds and 3 blocks, as well as limiting Miami to just 1 for 13 shooting from beyond the are which proved to be the difference. As for the game the Sixers jumped out to a big lead early and held on late for a relatively easy win. Through one quarter the Sixers led by 8 with the score 25-17. By the half, the Sixers lead was up to 17 and the route appeared to be on. Then in the 3rd quarter the Heat rallied and closed to within 10, with the score 74-64 heading into 4th quarter. They would not get any closer as the Sixers stopped the bleeding and hung on to win 95-86. So the Sixers improve to 12-16 overall, but remain in 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their off season yesterday by signing outfielder So Taguchi to a one year deal. Taguchi hit .290 last year for the St. Louis Cardinals and .406 as a pinch hitter to lead all pinch hitters. Taguchi has been one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball for a number of years now, so that's probably what we'll he be for the Phils, a late defensive replacement, most likely for the defensively inept Pat Burrell, basically what Shane Victorino did last season. Thus, once again all the Phils have added to their roster with this signing is depth. I guess they don't believe in upgrades.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
The Mac Attack is back. For the second week in a row Donovan Mcnabb showcased the full set of skills that made him an elite Pro-Bowl QB up until 2 years ago when the Eagles lost the Super Bowl. It seems pretty clear now that he's finally full recovered from the knee injury that sidelined him last season. Kevin Kolb better get comfortable on the bench for a while. All told Mcnabb accounted for 300 of the Eagles 435 total yards(263 yards and 3 TDs passing, 37 yards rushing on 6 carries). He was not alone though, as Brian Westbrook rushed 17 times for 100 yards(surpassing the Eagles single season mark for total yards, previously Wilbert Montgomery's 2006) and Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown, each caught 6 passes for a combined 151 yards and 2 TDs,(Curtis for 78 yards and 1 TD, Brown for 73 yards and 1 TD). As for the Eagles defense it allowed the Saints to rack up over 300 yards of offense, but as always it kept New Orleans out of the endzone when it mattered most. In fact with 8:52 to go in the 1st half the Saints scored their 2nd TD of the game, and from there on they would not score another. Four times the Saints were stopped deep in Eagles territory in 2nd half. Three of those four times, the Saints settled for field goals, but other time was yet another Eagles goal line stand that resulted in a turn over on downs. As for the game it was a thriller for a while, but once the Eagles got control they never relinquished it. Early in the 1st quarter Mcnabb fumbled the ball after a long run from scrimmage and Curtis recovered it in the end zone for a 7-0 Eagles lead. Two Aaron Stecker TD runs later and the Saints led 14-7. Then late in the quarter Correll Buckhalter ran it in from 20 yards out to tie it at 14, and Brown caught a 31 yard TD pass from Mcnabb for a 21-14 Eagles lead. In the 2nd quarter the two teams traded field goals for a 24-17 Eagles lead at the half. Late in the 3rd quarter following the aforementioned goal line stand, the Eagles marched the near length of the field, and Mcnabb fired a 9 yard TD pass to Greg Lewis for a 31-17 Eagles lead. In the 4th quarter Martin Grammatica hit a pair of field goals to cut the lead to 31-23, but with a little under 3 minutes to play yet another long Eagles drive, capped off by a 7 yard TD pass from Mcnabb to Curtis, followed by an interception by the rookie Linebacker Stewart Bradley, finally put it away for the Eagles as they won 38-23. So the Eagles improve to 7-8 overall, but unfortunately, it is too little too late, for this season, but it does give hope for next season.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
After consecutive tough losses the Sixers needed a win tonight over the Memphis Grizzlies to get on track. Thanks to a hot second half from Andre Iguodala they did just that. Offensively, three Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver) with Andre Miller's 29 leading the way. Defensively, the star was once again Samuel Dalembert with 14 rebounds and 3 blocks as the Sixers out rebounded Memphis 40-37. As for the game it was pretty exciting and this time it ended right for the Philly squad. The Grizzlies lead 30-25 through the first quarter. After a tight 2nd quarter and an equally tight 3rd quarter the Grizzlies still led by 5 heading into the 4th quarter with the score 74-69. With five seconds to play it was tied at 97-97, as the Sixers got the ball for the final possession of the game. With one second to play Iguodala hit a jumper to sink the Grizzlies at the buzzer 99-97. So the Sixers improve to 11-16 overall, but remain in 4th place in the Atlantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers played their best game of the season tonight and it still wasn't enough as they lost their 6th in a row and 2nd straight to the Sabres in another home and home series. Hey, sometimes when you get stuck in a streak like this you're best just isn't enough. As for the game it was pretty exciting until the end at least. In the 1st period Maxim Afinogenov made it 1-0 Sabres early, and Jeff Carter tied it at 1 with a late goal in the period. In the 2nd period all heck broke loose. Ales Kotalik and Jay Pominville made it 3-1 Sabres. Then Jeff Carter and Mike Richards tied it at 3. Next Jon Spacek made it 4-3 Sabres. Finally, with just seconds left in the period Mike Richards tied it up again at 4. Kimmo Timonen gave the Flyers their first lead at 5-4 early in the 3rd period. Then with 2 seconds to play, Thomas Vanek followed an icing call by scoring immediately off the faceoff for a 5-5 tie and a trip to overtime. The overtime period went scoreless and in the ensuing shootout the Sabres' Ales Kotalik scored the only goal for a 6-5 Sabres victory. So the Flyers drop to 16-13-4 overall and remain in 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Friday, December 21, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Kobe and the Lakers visited the Wachovia center tonight and together with the Sixers they helped put on a show. Unfortunately, the final act didn't quite go the way the Sixers wanted it to. Offensively, five Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembet, Kyle Korver) with Andre Miller's 21 leading the way. Defensively, the star was once again Samuel Dalembert with 14 rebounds and 2 blocks. As for the game it was close and hotly contested throughout. Through the first quarter of play the Lakers lead 32-24 and Sixers appeared headed to a tough night. The Sixers had other ideas though and rallied to within 3 at the half, with the score 56-53. After a back and forth 3rd quarter the Sixers still trailed by 3 heading into the 4th quarter, with the score 84-81. The 4th quarter was equally topsy turvy, but with about 4:30 to play just as the Sixers closed to within 5, with the score 96-92, the Lakers finally began to pull away. L.A hit their free throws down the stretch and despite a late 3 pointer by Kyle Korver, hung on to win 106-101. So the Sixers drop to 10-16 overall and into 4th place in the Atlantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
The streak continues for the Orange and Black, with this their 5th straight loss tonight, this time to the Buffalo Sabres. Once again, it was a close game, the Flyers had the lead, and they gave it away late. It's beginning to look more and more like last season all over again. A long streak of misery with no end in sight. The Sabres led 1-0 after the 1st period. Early in the 2nd period the Flyers went up 2-1 on goals by Joffrey Lupul and Jeff Carter. Early in the 3rd period Alexander Kotalik tied it at 2 for the Sabres and Jonathan Hecht made it 3-2 Sabres with under 2 minutes to play. A bunch of saves from Ryan Miller later and Buffalo had won 3-2. So the Flyers drop to 16-13-3 overall and into 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phillies finally did something with their off season today signing veteran outfielder Geoff Jenkins to a 2 year 17 million deal, and pitcher Chad Durbin to a 1 year 900,000 deal. Jenkins will likely split time in right field with Jayson Werth. Considering he batted .255 with 21 homers and 64 RBIs last season he should only add to the Phils NL best offense. As for Durbin he went 8-7 last season with a 4.72 era, both as a reliever where he went 2-0 with a 4.18 era, and as a starter. So he's a versatile pitcher, who will only add depth to the Phils pitching staff whether it be as a starter in the rotation or a reliever in the bullpen. So neither one of these free agent pickups dramatically improves the Phils for next season, at least not on paper. Hopefully, the Phils will do some more wheeling and dealing this off season, because otherwise this will be another in a long line of disappointing off seasons.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers have been playing so well lately, you're almost surprised to see them go down as hard they did tonight, but not really. Considering they turned the ball over 18 times to the Pacers 8 turnovers, and shot just 34.6% from the field, to the Pacers 45.7%, it should come as no surprise that they lost. Offensively, four Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert) With the Andre's leading the way with 16 a piece. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert led the way again with 14 rebounds and 6 blocks, and Reggie Evans chipped in with 16 rebounds as the Sixers out rebounded Indiana 55-39. Early on, the Sixers held the winning hand leading 28-26 after the 1st period. From there, the rest of night belonged to the Pacers. By halftime Indiana led 50-47. After the 3rd quarter the route was on with Pacer lead at 81-67. By the bitter end Indiana had won easily 102-85, to drop to the Sixers to 10-15. However, the Sixers remain tied for 3rd place in the Atlantic division with the New Jersey Nets.
EAGLES NEWS
The Pro Bowl rosters were released today, and the lone Eagles' representatives will be Brian Westbrook and offensive tackle Sean Andrews. While it's no surprise Westbrook was selected, Andrews might come as a bit of a surprise to some, but make no mistake about it, he's had a great season so far. In fact, were not for Andrews protecting his backside, Westbrook would not be headed to the pro bowl. Trent Cole, 3rd in the NFC with 12 and 1/2 sacks got the big snub on defense, but realistically, he should have made it 3 pro bowlers for the Eagles season, but alas it's not always he who works the hardest and performs the best that gets selected to the pro bowl, but rather he who is most well known.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers have traded Ben Eager to the Chicago Blackhawks for defenseman Jim Vandermeer. Vandermeer was with the Flyers from 2002-2004, before being traded to Chicago for Alexei Zhamnov who helped the Flyers get within a game of the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals before succumbing to Tampa Bay. Now Vandermeer is back for a second stint with the Flyers, giving them a surplus of defenseman. Hopefully he'll help to assuage the problem that caused the Orange and Black to lose last night.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The streak continues for the Flyers who suffered their 4th straight loss tonight, this time to the Phoenix coyotes. Once again it was a close game and once again the Orange and Black gave it away down the stretch. This time though it's not Marty Biron's fault, as he racked up 39 saves on 42, yes 42 chances. Clearly it's the defense that allowed those 42 chances that's at fault. In the 1st period Scott Hartnell put the Flyers up 1-0 with a power play goal. In the 2nd period Mike Richards made it 2-0 early, then Keith Yandle and Fredrick Sjostrom both scored late goals for Phoenix tie it up at 2 heading into the 3rd period. There, midway through the period Peter Mueller put the Coyotes up 3-2 and again the Flyers could not answer. So they lost to the Coyotes 3-2 and drop to 16-13-3 overall and 3rd place in the Atlantic division.
Monday, December 17, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
The Minnesota Vikings, holders of the NFC's 6th and final playoff spot, played the Chicago Bears tonight and rallied from behind to win 20-13. Thus, they improved their record to 8-6, which sadly eliminates the 6-8 Eagles from playoff contention, since the best they could do would be to finish in a tie, to which the Vikes would have the tiebreaker. Oh well, better luck next year boys.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
Who woulda thunk it? On the brink of elimination from the playoffs, but still Mathematically alive, the Eagles got the win they sorely needed this afternoon, defeating T.O and the Cowboys. It was not an especially pretty game, as both offenses struggled, but when it mattered most the Eagles' offense got the job done, while the Dallas offense came up short. For the Eagles, Donovan Mcnabb completed 23 of his 41 passes for 208 yards and a TD, while Brian Westbrook rushed 18 times for 81 yards, and caught 9 passes for 63 yards. For Dallas, on the other hand nothing clicked as the Eagles defense held them to just 240 total yards(187 yards passing, and just 53 yards rushing) and 0 TDs. Tony Romo hit just 13 of his 36 passes for 214 yards and 0 TDs as he was sacked 4 times and intercepted 3 times. Additionally, Marion Barber and Julius Jones combined for just 37 yards rushing and Mr. Owens caught just 2 passes for 37 yards. The only true sparkle out of the Dallas offense came from TE Jason Witten who caught 8 passes for 113 yards. As for the game it was largely uneventful, and yet still exciting. Until the final minute of the first half the only score of the game was a Nick Folk field goal for a 3-0 Dallas lead. Then the Eagles finally put together a long drive to finish half, capped off by a 27 yard run by Mcnabb and a 1 yd TD pass from Mcnabb to Reggie Brown, for a 7-3 Eagles lead. Midway through the 3rd quarter the Dallas offense seemed to finally get on track, driving deep into Eagles territory, but again they were forced to settle for a Nick Folk field goal to cut the Ealges lead to 7-6. The Eagles had a golden opportunity early in the 4th quarter to take charge of the game, but they too could not get in the end zone and had to settle for a David Akers field goal for a 10-6 lead. From there, the Eagles held Dallas in check until with just under 3 minutes to play Brian Dawkins intercepted Romo for the 3rd and final time. The Eagles were then able to run out the clock and walked away with a 10-6 victory. So the Eagles improve to 6-8 overall, and although they still need a lot of help to fulfill them, their playoff hopes stay alive for now.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers continued to go in the wrong direction tonight, with their third loss in a row, this time at the hands of Marty Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils. It started slow with a scoreless first period. Then after Mike Richards scored a power play goal to give the Flyers the 1-0 lead early in the 2nd period, the Devils exploded for 3 goals(2 by John Madden, 1 by Arron Asham) for a 3-2 lead heading into the 3rd period. There, Daniele Briere scored an early power play goal to cut the Devils lead to 3-2. Unfortunately, try as they might the Flyers could not get the equalizer to force the game into overtime. In desperation they pulled Antero Niittymaki from the goal(starting in the place of the now struggling Marty Biron), in favor of the extra attacker. The Devils and Brodeur snuffed it out though, and Jamie Langenbrunner scored on the Flyers empty net to put it away for good. So the Devils won 4-2 and the Flyers lost to drop to 16-12-3 overall, still good enough though for 2nd place in the Atlantic division.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers stayed hot tonight with a big win over Lebron and the struggling Cleveland Cavaliers, losers of 8 out of their last 9, while the Sixers have now won 5 of their last 6. Offensively, four Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, Kyle Korver), with the Andre's Miller and Iguodala leading the way with 20 points each. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert was once again the top contributor with 19, yes 19 rebounds and 3 blocks. This time however, he had some help in the form of Reggie Evans who pulled down 14 rebounds as well, as the Sixers out rebounded Cleveland 45-39. As for the game the Sixers actually fell behind early 26-18 after the 1st quarter. In the 2nd quarter the Sixers rallied ahead and took a 51-46 lead into the half. In 3rd quarter the Cavs forged back ahead 68-67 heading into the 4th quarter. There, the Sixers pulled back ahead with a late 8-0 run and held on to win 92-86. So the Sixers improve to 10-14 overall and move back into a tie for 3rd place in the Atlantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
While the Sixers have been streaking in the right direction, the Flyers are now streaking in the wrong direction, with this their 2nd straight loss. Despite yet another hat trick from Joffrey Lupul, the Flyers fell to the Carolina Hurricanes for the 1st time this season as the game went into a shootout and Marty Biron came up short allowing all 3 Hurricanes shooters to score, and that after having allowed five goals in regulation. As for the game it was exciting, well at least until the crushing climax. Lupul gave the Flyers the early 1-0 lead in the 1st period, but late goals in the period by Niclas Wallin and Scott Walker made it 2-1 Canes heading into the 2nd period. Matt Cullen made it 3-1 Canes early in the 2nd period, but Scott Hartnell and Lupul with his 2nd goal answered to tie it at three. Then late in the period Eric Staal made it 4-3 Canes. Daniel Briere scored early in the 3rd period to tie at 4. Scott Letowksi made it 5-4 Canes midway through the 3rd, and finally Lupul answered with his 3rd goal to tie it at 5 and send the game into overtime. The overtime period was scoreless and the game lurched into a decisive shootout. There, Daniel Briere made key mistake missing his shot on the opening round of the shootout. Allowing the Canes to go for the win in the 3rd round of the shootout(after Cullen and Jeff Hamilton were successful for the Canes in the 1st two rounds of the shootout). Accordingly Rod Brindamour, the former Flyer took the puck for the final round of the shootout and clanked a shot off the post and Biron's shoulder pad, and into the net for the win, capping off a 6-5 victory for the Canes. So the Flyers drop to 16-11-3 overall, and into a tie for 2nd place in the Atlantic division with the NY Rangers.
Friday, December 14, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Well it was fun while it lasted, but the Sixers 4 game winning streak came to an end tonight against the Sacramento Kings. Considering the Kings came into tonight's game with a nearly identical record (8-13) to the Sixers 9-13, you would think there would have been a good chance of the Sixers extending there winning streak to 5, but it was not to be. Offensively, five Sixers scored in double figures (Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver, Louis Williams) with Andre Miller's 24 leading the way. Additionally, Miller contributed 8 assists, thus supplying the Sixers with the offensive ingredients for a victory, but they alone were not enough. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert was again the top contributor with 9 rebounds and 2 blocks. Unfortunately he was also apparently the only contributor, as the Sixers were out rebounded 39-31, and allowed Sacramento to shoot over 50% from the field and over 40% from beyond the arc. Generally, if you allow a team to shoot that well against you they're going to beat you. As for the game it was actually pretty close for the most part. After the 1st quarter the Sixers actually led 28-24. By halftime it was all tied up at 51. Then the Kings shifted into a higher gear in the 3rd quarter, which the Sixers could not match, as Sacramento went up by 11, 85-74. The Sixers tried to rally back in the 4th quarter, but could not and fell by 10, 109-99. So the Sixers drop to 9-14 overall and back into 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
Well, it's official the Flyers will never win two in a row ever again. Okay, maybe that's a little dramatic, but I mean come on. They not only defeated Pittsburgh in their last game, they dismantled them 8-2. How can you come back from such a dominating performance which such a lame ass 4-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Apparently, Simon Gagne really is that important to them. If only he would come back from his injury already. Unfortunately, although he has been skating and working out with team, it is not yet known when exactly that long awaited return will be. Anyway, as for the game it was not fun to watch. Midway through the 1st period Christopher Higgins made it 1-0 Habs on a power play goal. By about the same amount of time into the 2nd period it was 4-0 Habs, as Andrei Kostitsyn scored one goal, and Mark Streit scored twice in the space of four minutes. Mike Knuble finally got the Flyers on the board late in the 2nd with a power play goal, but as mentioned that would be all for the Orange and Black. Thus, the 3rd period was scoreless. So the Flyers drop to 16-11-2 overall and back into 3rd place in the Atlantic division.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Minnesota Timberwolves visited the Wachovia center today and were rudely welcomed by the suddenly hot Sixers who won their 4th game in a row. This time it wasn't as comfortable a win as the first three, but the Sixers pulled it out, thanks to some stellar play on both sides of the floor. Offensively, four Sixers scored in double figures (Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, Willie Green) with Andre Iguodala's 25 leading the way. Defensively, it was Samuel Dalembert's night, as he pulled down 11 rebounds and blocked 9 shots, yes 9 and Sixers needed every single one of them, for a near triple double. Additionally, Iguodala pulled down 8 rebounds as well, as the Sixers out rebounded the T-Wolves 41-36. As for the game, it was a back and forth slug fest. After the 1st period the Sixers led 28-21. By the half the T-Wolves had rallied back to within 6, with the score 51-45. By the end of the 3rd quarter the T-Wolves had closed to within 5 with the score, 79-74. In the 4th quarter a 3 pointer by Antoine Walker briefly gave the T-Wolves the lead, but the Sixers clawed back ahead and with 7 seconds to play they lead 96-94 and the T-Wolves had the ball. It came down to Al Jefferson vs. Dalembert. Jefferson beat him off the dribble, but Dalembert stayed with him and blocked Jefferson's shot for his 9th and final block of the night. From there Iguodala sunk two free throws, Rashad Mccants missed a 3 pointer on the next T-wolves possession, and of course Dalembert rebounded the miss to cap off a 98-94 Sixers victory. So the Sixers improve to 9-13 overall and move into a tie for 3rd place in the Atlantic division.
PHILLIES NEWS
Bad news for the Phils today. Gold glove and All-star centerfielder Aaron Rowand will not return to the Phillies next season. Today he signed a 5 year 60 million deal with the San Francisco Giants. So rather than helping the Phils get back to the playoffs next season he'll be standing in their way. On a side note this means that Shane Victorino will be the Phils starting centerfielder next season (remember Micheal Bourn was traded away to the Astros for Brad Lidge) which means it should be an interesting season.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
Last season the Flyers couldn't buy a win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, this season they haven't been able to lose the Penguins and tonight it was more of the same. Thanks to a combined 6 goals and 5 assists from R.J Umberger and Joffrey Lupul(3 goals 3 assists for Lupul, 3 goals and 2 assists for Umberger) and 20 saves on 22 chances by Marty Biron the Flyers won easily. Additionally Philadelphia had twice as many shots on goal as the Pens and 3 times as many goals. That my friends is a truly dominating performance. In the first period Lupul scored twice early for a 2-0 Flyers lead, but late power play goals by Ryan Whitney and Peter Sykora tied it up at 2 heading into the 2nd period. In the 2nd period Umberger scored twice early for a 4-2 Flyers lead, and Mike Knuble added a late power play goal for a 5-2 Flyers lead. In the 3rd period it was all Flyers again with power play goals, from Umberger, Lupul, and Braydon Coburn for an 8-2 Flyers lead and that's how it ended. Interestingly it could and probably should have been more lopsided than that ,as the Flyers actually had 13 power play chances, but only 4 goals to show for them. Anyway a win is a win, and this one allows the Flyers to improve to 16-10-2 overall and into a tie for 2nd place in the Atlantic division with the NY Rangers.
Monday, December 10, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The last time the Sixers went up against the Houston Rockets at the comfy home confines of the Wachovia center the results were downright embarrassing, in fact more embarrassing than ever before, as the Rockets defeated the Sixers by 50 points. Tonight, the Sixers gained a measure of revenge and their third straight victory, nearly returning the favor in the process. Offensively, five Sixers scored in double figures (Andre Miller, Willie Green, Reggie Evans, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver) with Willie Green's 20 leading the way. Also for the fourth game in a row Andre Miller reached double digits in assists with 12, and again the Sixers performed in sync with their play maker hitting on all cylinders. Thus, it seems it is finally Miller time again at the Wachovia center. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert was dominant again with 13 rebounds and 2 blocks. Still despite his best efforts the Sixers finished on the short end of the rebounding stick, 43-35, but conversely had nearly twice as many assists as the Rockets and shot for a higher percentage from the field and from beyond the arc, which was ultimately the difference. As for the game, the Sixers jumped out to an early 6 point 30-24 lead through 1 quarter. By halftime that lead was up to 14 (56-42). In the 3rd quarter the Sixers continued to dominate leading by 31 at one point, before settling for a 26 point lead (86-60) heading into the 4th quarter. There the Sixers almost gave it away, as the Rockets rallied to within 10, but they regained composure at the right moment and ran away with an easy 100-88 victory. So the Sixers improve to 8-13 overall, but remain in 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Sunday, December 09, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
Another day another close call for the Eagles, and yet another loss, this time to the hated NY Giants. Unlike last week's 28-24 shootout loss to the Seahawks, it was all about the defense today. Neither team scored more than one touchdown, even though both put up over 300 yards of offense. The Eagles defense had another standout day, sacking Eli Manning twice, forcing 2 turnovers, putting together a goal line stand on the Giants first scoring drive, and limiting Brandon Jacobs to just 70 yards rushing and 0 TDs. Unfortunately, they didn't have an answer though for Plaxico Burress, who caught 7 balls for 136 yards and 1 TD, and proved to be the difference on this day. As for the Eagles offense it was about as abysmal as the Eagles defense was good. Donovan Mcnabb was sacked 3 times and limited to just 179 passing yards, as his receivers either couldn't or wouldn't get open for him. The only bright spot for the Eagles offense, was surprise! Brian Westbrook who rushed 20 times for 116 yards and caught 5 balls for 38 yards and 1 TD. As for the game, it actually looked initially as if it would be an Eagles blowout, as they took the opening kickoff and marched down the field on a marvelous drive capped off by an 18 yard pass from Mcnabb to Westbrook for 7-0 lead just 4 minutes into the game. From there, however, the Eagles offensive dissolved into frustration and missed opportunities and never again crossed the goal line for the remainder of the game. Still, by the half NY could only manage a pair of Lawrence Tynes field goals and the Eagles still led 7-6. David Akers made it 10-6 with a 29 yard field goal early in the 3rd quarter. Late in the 3rd, with the Eagles still ahead 10-6, Westbrook procured a rare miscue and fumbled the ball away at his own 39 yard line, after taking a pass from Mcnabb out of the backfield. The Giants took advantage as Eli Manning tossed a 20 yard TD pass to Burress, for a 13-10 Giants lead. Lawrence Tynes than hit a 39 yard field goal for a 16-10 NY lead heading into the 4th quarter. Midway through the 4th quarter Akers made it 16-13 with a 39 yard field goal. Then with about 6 minutes to play NY seemed poised to put the game away as it drove deep into Eagles territory, but Brandon Jacobs fumbled at the Eagles 10 and Philadelphia recovered. They failed to score on the ensuing drive as a 4th and 6 pass from Mcnabb to Jason Avant fell incomplete, after the officials overlooked an obvious pass-interference call. Still, the defense held and the Eagles got the ball back one last time. Mcnabb hit Reggie Brown with a 13 yard pass with 12 seconds to play to the Birds in position for a 57 yard game tying Akers field goal attempt. Although it had the distance it faded to the right at the last moment and clanged off the goalpost, falling harmlessly to ground as Akers despondently sank to his knees. So the Eagles lost 16-13, to drop to 5-8 overall. While they're still mathematically alive in the wildcard playoff race, the odds say they won't be in the playoffs this year after all.
Saturday, December 08, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
It happened, it finally happened. For the first time this season the Sixers won two games in a row. Granted, it was against the same atrocious team, the Knicks(in a home and home series, last night was in Philly, tonight was in New York), but in my book that still counts right? Anyway, offensively five Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver, Thaddeus Young) with Willie Green's 18 leading the way. Additionally, Andre Miller once again had double figures in assists with 10, and surprise! the Sixers played well again and soared to victory. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert had only 6 rebounds tonight, but again compiled 2 rejections. Reggie Evans also contributed with 14 rebound as the Sixers dominated the glass 47-27. As for the game it was all Sixers this time. After the 1st quarter they led 24-19. By halftime, they led by 12, 49-37. Through 3 quarters the lead ballooned up 18, with the score 75-57. Finally, the Sixers ran away with it in the 4th quarter and won a rare laugher 105-77. So the Sixers improve to 7-13, and for now they move out of the cellar and into 4th place in the Atlantic division.
Friday, December 07, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Well it had to end sometime didn't it. After three abysmal games, the Sixers losing streak mercifully ended tonight at home against the equally attrocious New York Knicks. Offensively, 5 Sixers scored in double figures(Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Reggie Evans, Samuel Dalembert, Louis Williams) with Samuel Dalembert's 20 leading the way. Additionally, Andre Miller reached double figures in assists with 11, which seems to be a key stat this season, as the Sixers oddly play better when their point guard gets them involved. What a concept. Anyway, on the defensive side of the ball Samuel Dalembert was once again a standout with 8 rebounds and 3 blocks, but this time he had some company, as Reggie Evans pulled down 12 rebounds, and even Andre Miller managed to pull down 7 rebounds, meaning he nearly had a triple double. Hmmm, why doesn't he play like that every night. As for the game, well it was almost all Sixers. Through one period the Knicks actually led by 1, 27-26. The Sixers forged ahead in the 2nd period, and took a 4 point, 53-49 halftime lead, which they would never relinquish. Through three quarters ,the lead was up 72-67. Finally in the 4th quarter the Sixers pulled away and won easily 101-90. So the Sixers improve to 6-13, but remain in last place in the Atlantic division .5 games behind the Knicks.
FLYERS NEWS
Well, apparently the Flyers can't win two in a row anymore. After defeating the Dallas Stars in their last game, the Flyers traveled to Colorado to faceoff against the Avalanche. Like the Flyers the Avalanche have not been very good on the road this season, but they've been cup worthy at home. Thus, it would be the Avalanche winning on this cold Friday night. In a rare defensive battle, the Avalanche's Jose Theodore out backstopped Marty Biron, with 28 saves on 29 chances, to Biron's 30 saves on 32 chances. The First period was scoreless. Early in the 2nd period Jaroslav Hlinka ended the stalemate and put Colorado ahead 1-0. Late in the period, Daniel Briere tied it at 1 for the Flyers, but just 2 minutes later Milan Hejduk made it 2-1 Avalanche. The two goaltenders traded saves from there, as the 3rd period was also scoreless and the Flyers fell 2-1. So the Flyers drop to 15-10-2 and into 2nd place in the Atlantic division behind the New Jersey Devils.
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
After a tough loss to the Dallas Stars in their last game, the Flyers traveled to Minnesota tonight to faceoff against the Wild. Thanks to 28 saves out of 29 chances by Antero Niittymaki, and a goal and an assist by Jeff Carter the Flyers prevailed. Early on, it was all Flyers in the 1st period with Scottie Upshall and the aforementioned Jeff Carter scoring to give the Flyers a 2-0 lead. The Wild's Pavol Demitra cut it to a 2-1 Flyers lead with a power play goal in the 2nd period. In the 3rd period Braydon Coburn blasted in a goal from the blue line, for a 3-1 Flyers lead, early in the period. With Antero Niittymaki(Marty Biron got a rare night off), making save after save the rest of the way, the Flyers hung on for an important 3-1 win to improve to 15-9-2 overall and move into a 3 way tie for 1st place in the Atlantic division, along with the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers. Now if only they could win a couple in a row now, instead of winning one and then losing one and then winning one again and so on and so forth.
SIXERS NEWS
After a humiliating loss to the Atlanta Hawks in their last game, things only figured to get worse for the Sixers tonight as they continued their home stand against the Boston Celtics, holders of the NBA's best record, and 1st place in the Sixers own Atlantic division. Not, surprisingly the Sixers were no match for Boston, but they played them close. Offensively, 5 Sixers(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, Louis Williams) scored in double figures with Andre Miller's 26 leading the way, as he combined those 26 with 12 assists for a rare double-double. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert had another stellar night with 9 rebounds and 2 blocks, allowing the Sixers to hang in there with Boston from start to finish. Early on the Sixers actually led 32-26 after the 1st quarter. At the half the Sixers were still clinging to a 57-52 lead. The 2nd half then belonged to Boston. After the 3rd quarter the Celtics had rallied back to take an 83-80 lead. The Celts kept pouring it on in the 4th quarter, and upped their lead to 10 winning easily, 113-103. So the Sixers drop to 5-13 overall, and well they're still in last place.
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Well, apparently Ed Snider has had enough of the Sixers futility this season, as he fired GM Billy King today. Perhaps, with a rebuilding team, King should be given the benefit of the doubt, but he's already been given several chances to prove himself and it hasn't really worked out. Taking King's place will be ex-Nets GM Ed Stefanski, architect of the Nets teams of the mid 2000s that reached the NBA finals two years in a row. Maybe he can help to turn around the Sixers as well.
Monday, December 03, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The rough days continued for the Sixers tonight, as they returned home to the Wachovia center to face the Atlanta Hawks tonight. Coming into tonight's game the Sixers had won 7 straight games at home against the Hawks, and that streak only figured to continue. Unfortunately it didn't. Offensively, 4 Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver) with Willie Green's 23 leading the way. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert had another fruitful night with 10 rebounds and 2 blocks, and Reggie Evans chipped in with 10 blocks as well, as the Sixers outrebounded Atlanta 44-41. Unfortunately, the Sixers also turned to ball over 5 more times than the Hawks(17-12), with 12 fewer assists than the Hawks(26-14). Thus Assist -turnover ratio was the big factor tonight. Early on the Hawsks lead 24-17 after the 1st quarter. The Sixers rallied back in the 2nd quarter to take a one point 46-45 lead at the half. In the 3rd quarter Atlanta began to pull away, taking a 4 point ,66-62, lead through 3 quarters. Atlanta then put it away in the 4th quarter, running to a 9 point , 88-79 win, as the Sixers shooting cooled down. So the Sixers drop to 5-12 overall, and remain in last place in the Atlantic division.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
After there near miss against the Patriots last week, the Eagles returned home today, to face the Seattle Seahawks, and were given a dose of reality. Let me just say reality bites. Perhaps last week wasn't so much the Eagles excelling as it was the Patriots simply performing poorly,but at any rate that was not the true Eagles that showed up last week. The Eagles that showed up today, resembled more the Eagles that had shown up all season until last week . Suffice it to say, between A.J Feeley misfiring on passes, when he wasn't being intercepted and the Eagles secondary missing tackles, when they weren't dropping their own interceptions, it wasn't much of a contest to watch from an Eagles standpoint. Still, thanks to 139 all purpose yards of offense alone, from Brian Westbrook was able to keep it close. Seattle Struck first on a 2 yard run by Shawn Alexander, early in the 1st quarter, and following Feeley's 1st interception. Minutes later on the Eagles next possession, Correll Buckhalter picked up his teammate with a 30 yard TD run to tie it at 7. Later in the quarters Seattle when back ahead 14-7, on a 12 yard TD pass from Matt Hasselback to Bobby Engram. The Eagles then finished the scoring in the 1st quarter with a David Akers field goal to cut the lead to 14-10. In the 2nd quarter Seattle struck first again with another Hasselback TD pass, this time 43 yards to Nate Burleson for a 21-10 lead. The Eagles answered yet again with 24 TD pass from Feeley to Kevin Curtis, to cut the lead to 21-17. Then Eagles then got ball back late in the 2nd quarter, and drove down to the Seattle 1 yard line with a chance to take the lead into the half. Unfortunately, the Seahawks made a stand, and the Eagles failed to punch it in, turning it over on downs to end the half. Not unnerved by the goal line stand, the Eagles forced and recovered a fumble on the Seahawks 1st possession of the 3rd quarter. Minutes later, Brian Westbrook raced in with an electrifying 29 yard TD run, to put the Eagles up 24-21. The Seahawks responded on their next possession and after a long drive, Maurice Morris scampered 45 yards for a TD run and a 28-24 Seahawks lead. From here the Eagles went 7 straight possessions without a point scored and nary a yard gained. Finally, with just under a minute to play Westbrook broke open a 64 yard punt return to Seattles' 14 yard line. Once again the Eagles appeared destined to steal victory , but again they would come up short. Their 1st two plays here went, nowhere, and Feeley was then intercepted again to seal the Seahawks 28-24 victory. So the Eagles drop to 5-7 overall, but with all of the instability in the NFC the Eagles are actually stilling in the running for a playoff spot, however, unlikely that may seem now.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Another night, another tough loss for the Sixers. Tonight they traveled to New Jersey to face the Nets. Offensively, four Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala, Kyle Korver, Louis Williams.) with Andre Iguodala leading the way with 26. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert was once again a standout. Dalembert pulled down 16 rebounds, to help the Sixers outrebound the Nets 43-36, and blocked 5 shots. Early on, after the 1st period the Sixers lead 28-19. In the 2nd period the Sixers upped there lead to 51-35(that is a 16 point lead). The Nets rallied back to within 1 through 3 quarters(61-60). The 4th quarter was once again an up and down battle, but the Nets had just enough resolve to forge an 83-83 tie at the end of regulation and force the game into overtime. In the overtime period defense reigned supreme as the two teams combined for just 20 points. At first it was all Nets as they pushed out an 88-83 lead. The Sixers rallied back several times and with 2 seconds to play they got to within 1, with the score 93-92 . From here though, the Nets made their free throws and the Sixers were not able to score again, losing 94-92 in a heartbreaker. So the Sixers drop to 5-11 overall, and remain in last place in the Altantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers returned home tonight to face the Dallas Stars. Okay so Flyers-Stars isn't exactly Eagles-Cowboys, but its still Philadelphia vs. Dallas and a Flyers win would have been just as sweet. Unfortunately the Flyers did not produce much offense on the night and goalie Marty Biron did not have one of his better nights, allowing 4 goals(3 in the 2nd period), and the Flyers fell. Early in the 1st period Randy Jones made it 1-0 Flyers. Later in the period Jeff Halpern knotted it at 1 and the Starts never trailed agan. The 2nd period belonged to the Stars, as Jussi Jokinen, Antti Miettinen, and Mke Ribeiro each scored to make 4-1 Starts. Finally, in the 3rd period, the goalies put uo matching shutouts until the game had ended in a 4-1 Stars victory. So the Flyers drop to 14-9-2 overall and 2 points out of fist place in the Atlantic division
Friday, November 30, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
A little over a week ago the Sixers traveled to Washington to face the Wizards and were embarrassed 116-101. Tonight at home in the wachovia center, the Sixers exacted revenge. While the last game was a shootout, tonight's game was a sloppy defensive stalemate. Despite poor shooting(under 40% from the field, 0-14 from beyond, and only 73% from the free throw line) the Sixers still managed to post 4 scorers in double digits(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Reggie Evans, Samuel Dalembert). with Samuel Dalembert leading the way with 19. Defensively, Dalembert was the star again with 11 rebounds and 3 blocks. Andre Iguodala also contributed 12 rebounds and 2 blocks as the Sixers outrebounded the Wizards 42-40. Perhaps more importantly though, the Sixers won the turnover battle with just 8 to the Wizards 18, just enough of a factor to help the Sixers pull out a win. Early on the Sixers led by as much as 11, but had to settle for a 5 point lead after the 1st quarter(25-20). Washington stormed back to take a 1 point lead at the half(43-42). The Sixers rallied back in the 3rd quarter to forge a 68-68 tie through 3 quarters. The 4th quarter was a tight back and forth tussle throughout. The Sixers led 85-81 with 45 seconds to play. Then the Wizard's Caron Butler nailed a 3 pointer to cut the lead to 85-84. From there, Sixers milked the clock down to 12 seconds, but Andre Iguodala missed a layup and the Wizards had a final possession to steal victory. Fortunately rookie Nick young jacked up a 3 pointer with 1 second to play and missed it, to give the Sixers an 85-84 win. So the Sixers improve to 5-10 overall, but remain tied for last place in the Atlantic division.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers continued to play hard tonight as they returned home to face the Utah Jazz. This time, however hard work was not enough, and the Sixers ultimately fell to the Jazz. Offensively, 4 Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie greene, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert) with Miller leading the way with 20 points. Defensively, the Sixers outrebounded the Jazz 39-36, but turned the ball over 4 more times than the Jazz and allowed them to shoot over 50% from the field. Early on the Sixers lead by 2 through the 1st quarter(27-25). The Jazz then rallied to take a 5 point lead into the half(49-44)l. By the end of 3 quarters that lead was up to 9, with the score 77-68. Although the Sixers kept fighting they would not get any closer than they'd been back in the 1st half and lost by 11, 106-95. All in all it was a pretty disheartening loss coming after such a satisfying win. So the Sixers drop to 4-10 overall and back into sole possession of last place in the Atlantic division. What a team.
FLYERS NEWS
The Orange and black returned to Carolina for the 2nd time in a week tonight, and for the 2nd time they prevailed over the Hurricanes. Marty Biron was the man of the hour with 40 saves of the 41 shots he faced on the night. Early on the Flyers jumped out to a 2-0 lead as Derian Hatcher(his 1st goal of the season), and Kimo Timonen each scored in the 1st period. The 2nd period was scoreless. Then early in the 3rd period Mike Knuble scored to make it 3-0 Flyers. The Hurricanes attempted to mount a comeback as Corey Stillman scored on the power play midway through the 3rd period, cutting the lead to 3-1. However, Biron was impenetrable the rest of the way and the Flyers got the win, 3-1. So the Flyers improve to 14-8-2 overall and assume sole possession of first place in the Atlantic division by two points over the Rangers.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers came out firing against the Milwaukee Bucks tonight and were not disappointed. Offensively five Sixers scored in double figures(Andre Miller, Willie Green, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, and Kyle Korver), and 3 of those 5 scored 20 points or more(Iggy and Korver each had 20, and Dalembert had 22). After sitting out the last 4 games Korver returned with a vengeance hitting 4 of 5 from downtown. Also for once, Andre Miller with a near double-double(18 points, 9 assists) actually distributed the ball amongst his teammates, and a funny thing happened. The Sixers won the assist to turnover battle, with 31 assists, to 9 turnovers, to the Bucks 20 assists and 14 turnovers, and shot over 50% from the field. In other words the Sixers offensive actually flowed together the way its supposed to for about the first time all season. If only Miller would play like that every night instead of just when he feels like it. Anyway, defensively it was once again the Samuel Dalembert show, as the center pulled down 8 rebounds to help the Sixers outrebound Milwaukee 39-35, blocked 3 shots, and likely redirected countless others. Basically, just about every statistical category went the Sixers away tonight and its hard to lose when that happens, even for the Sixers. Early on the Sixers raced out to a 32-18 lead after 1 quarter of play, but by the half Milwaukee had cut the lead back down to 4(56-52). Tonight however, the Sixers would not fall off in the second half. By the end of 3 quarters, the Sixers' lead was back up to 9(85-76). Then in the 4th quarter the Sixers just kept pouring it on and finally wound up winning by the laughable final score of 114-99. So the Sixers improve to 4-9, but for now remain tied with the Knicks for last in the Atlantic division.
Monday, November 26, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers maddening inconsistency continued tonight as they returned home to face the Boston Bruins. After getting the night off against the Senators, Marty Biron returned to the ice for the Flyers today and he didn't fare so well. In just 14 shots faced and 23 minutes played he allowed 3 goals and was yanked in favor of Antero nittymaki. Niittymaki didn't fare to well either, allowing two goals despite facing only 15 shots on goal. Early on Boston jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Glen Murray and Marc Savard in the 1st period. In the 2nd period Boston jumped out to an eaven bigger lead on goals by Murray and Glen Metropolic. Late in the 2nd period Mike Knuble and Mike Richards finally got the Flyers on the board to cut the lead to 4-2 Bruins. With about a minute to play in the 2nd, Pete Schaefer scored yet another Bruin's goal to up the lead to 5-2 heading into the 3rd period. Finally, early in the 3rd period Scottie Upshall scored on a power play to cut the lead back to 5-3. Then Chuck Kobasew scored on the Flyer's empty net to put it away for good with the final sc0re 6-3 Bruins. So the Flyers drop to 38-7-2 overall but remain tied for 1st place in the Atlantic dvision with the Rangers.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles came oh so close to pulling what would have been the biggest upset in NFL regular season history, in terms of the point spread. Unfortunately thanks to a couple late interceptions of A.J Feeley, starting in place of a banged up Donovan Mcnabb, the unbeaten Patriots survived and improved to an NFL best 11-0. Even without Mcnabb the Eagles offense clicked on all cylinders. Feeley completed 27 of his 42 passes for 345 yds and 3 TDs, Brian Westbrook rushed 17 times for 52 yards and a TD, and Greg Lewis made 5 catches for 88 yards and 2 TDs. Meanwhile, the Eagles defense played about as well as they could have against the Patriots #1 offense. They sacked Tom Brady 3 times, made Randy Moss and the deep pass largely a non-factor and limited the Patriots running attack to just 48 yards. Unfortunately, with the Pats unable to go deep, the underneath reciever, speedy Wes Welker, emerged with 13 catches for 149 yards, which proved to be the difference. The Patriots struck on the 3rd play of the game, as Asante Samuel intercepted Feeley deep in the Eagles own territory and returned it for a TD. The Eagles responded with a long drive capped off a by 1 yard Brian Westbrook TD run to tie it at 7. The Patriots came back to score on their 1st offensive series on a 1yd TD run by Heath Evans for a 14-7 lead heading into the 2nd quarter. Early in the 2nd quarter Feeley fired a 28 yard TD pass to Greg Lewis to tie at 14. The Patriots answered with a Stephen Gostkowski field goal for a 17-14 lead. Feeley fired another TD pass to Lewis, this time from 18 yards out for a 21-17 Eagles lead. After a long drive to end the half, it appeared the Eagles would hold the Pats to a field goal a retain a 21-20 lead at the half. Instead, with 8 seconds left Brady hit Jabar Gaffney with a 19 yard TD pass for a 24-21 halftime lead for the Pats. Late in 3rd quarter following a missed field by Gostkowski, Feeley fired an 8 yard TD pass to Reggie Brown for a 28-24 Eagles lead. The defense gave the Eagles the ball back with a chance to boost their lead heading into the 4th quarter, but they went 3 and out. Then in the 4th quarter with 7 minutes to play, after another long Patriots drive, Laurence Maroney plowed in from 4 yards out, to put the Pats up 31-28. The Eagles drove down to the Patriots 29 yard line with 3 minutes to play. They had a 2nd and 4, but rather than slowing down, milking the clock and going in for the winning score with little time on the clock they choose to go for it all, and Feeley was intercepted in the endzone by Asante Samuel. The Eagles defense held and Feeley and offense got the ball back one last time with 19 seconds to play, but Feeley was intercepted again, and the Pats ran out the clock for the 31-28 escape. In the end it was the greatest loss in Eagles history and hopefully a springboard to a playoff run down the stretch of this season, as the Eagles at 5-6 now, remain just one game out of the final playoff spot in the NFC, held precariously by the struggling Detroit Lions.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Losses don't get much more heartbreaking than this one. The Sixers returned home to the Wachovia center tonight to face the Golden State Warriors. Offensively, Andre Iguodala with 26, Andre Miller with 23, and Louis Williams off the bench with 18 led the way. Defensively the Sixers held Golden State to just 39.1% shooting and turned the ball over just 16 times to the Warrior's 18 turnovers. However, Golden state outrebounded the Sixers 54-47, and shot better down the stretch. The Sixers jumped out to a quick start leading by 7(30-23) after the 1st period. The Sixers upped the lead to 12 at the half with a season high 57 points to the warriors 45. Unfortunately they cooled off in the 2nd half, as the Warriors cut the lead to 1 by the end of the 3rd quarter(76-75). Still, the Sixers kept fighting and hung on to force the game into overtime tied at 90 after Andre Iguodala missed a shot at the buzzer. In overtime the lead jockeyed back and forth between the two teams. The Sixers took a 98-97 lead with 13 seconds to play on layup by Iguodala. Then with 6 seconds to play Kelenna Azabuike hit a three pointer to put Golden state up 100-98. The Sixers had one last chance to tie or win, but as he was driving to the basket Louis Williams turned the ball over with one second to play and the Warriors hung on to defeat the Sixers 100-98. The Sixers drop to 3-9 overall and into a tie for last place in the Atlantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
While the Eagles face the NFL's best tomorrow, the Flyers faced off against the NHL's best tonight as they traveled to Ottawa to face the Senators. Thanks to 3 points from Daniel Briere(1 goal and 2 assists) and 29 saves by Antero Niittymaki in a rare start, the Flyers surprised the Senators and prevailed. Wade Redden scored early in the 1st period to put Ottawa up 1-0. R.J Umberger knotted it up at 1 for the Flyers a couple minutes later. Late in the period Danny Heatley scored to put Ottawa up 2-1. Early in the 2nd period Scott Hartnell scored to tie up again at 2. A few minutes later Chris Schubert put Ottawa back ahead 3-2. Mike Richards tied it up again at 3 a couple minutes later. Finally, late in the period Briere put the Flyers up 4-3 heading into the 3rd period. From there Niittymaki kept Ottawa from lighting the lamp and the Flyers hung on to win 4-3. So the Flyers improve to 13-7-2 overall and move back into a tie for 1st in the Atlantic division.
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles are in a world of trouble now as they get ready to face the New England Patriots tomorrow night. Donovan Mcnabb will not be play in the game, as he is nursing a sprained ankle and a sore thumb. Instead A.J Feeley will get the start. So the Eagles chances of shocking the world by defeating the mighty Patriots have now gone from slim to none.
Friday, November 23, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Detroit tonight to face the always tough Detroit Pistons. As usual against the Pistons defense was the name of the game, but the Sixers were still productive offensively with Andre Iguodala's 17 points, leading 5 Sixers players scoring in double figures(Iguodala, Andre Miller, Samuel Dalembert, Willie Green, Louis Williams). Defensively, the Sixers ruled the boards with 47 to Detroit's 36. However the Sixers also turned the ball over 14 times to Detroit's 6, and shot just 39.1% from the field, while Detroit shot 41.5% from the field. Thus Detroit prevailed. Early on it was all knotted up at 17 after the 1st period. The Pistons led by 2 at the half, with the score at 40-38. By the end of the 3rd quarter Detroit was ahead by 10 with the score at 64-54. Finally, in the 4th quarter the Sixers rallied back and actually cut the Pistons lead to 1 with just under 15 seconds to play, as Iguodala nailed a 3 pointer. Unfortunately from there the Sixers did not score again and the Pistons made their free throws to hang on for a hard fought 83-78 victory. So the Sixers drop to 3-8 overall, but remain 4th in the Atlantic division.
FLYERS NEWS
In their usual post Thanksgiving matinee this afternoon the Flyers welcomed Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals to the Wachovia center. Thanks to 31 saves by Marty Biron the Flyers were able to make it a close game but Washington ultimately prevailed. Early on it was all Washington. Mike Green made it 1-0 Capitals early in the 1st period. Early in the 2nd period Chris Clark made it 2-0 Caps. Then late in the period all heck broke loose. Former Flyer Donald Brashear made it 3-0 Caps, but Daniele Briere and Jeff Carter scored goals minutes apart from each other and suddenly it was only 3-2 Caps heading into 3rd period. Late in the 3rd, Mike Richards knotted it at 3 to complete the Flyers rally and force the game into overtime. There, just under 2 minutes in Nicklas Backstrom scored for a 4-3 Capitals victory. So the Flyers drop to 12-7-2 overall, but remain in 2nd place in the Atlantic division, just 2 points behind the Rangers.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
So far this month with one of their top goal scorers, Simon Gagne, on ir the Flyers had struggled. They hadn't been getting many shots on goal ,and very few goals. The defense had likewise begun to slow down somewhat, leaving Marty Biron to fend for himself against a barage of shots. So all that said, as the Flyers traveled to Charlotte, to face the Carolina Hurricanes and their former comrade Rod Brindamour, they sorely needed a win and a clean performance to restore their own belief in themselves. Thanks to a hat trick by Daniel Briere and 32 saves from Biron the Flyers got their win and perhaps some much needed confidence. In the first period Brindamour put the Canes ahead 1-0 with a power play goal late in the period. In the 2nd period the Flyers forged ahead 2-1 on goals from Mike Knuble and Kimmo Timonen. The 3rd period was a sea saw battle. First Briere scored 21 seconds in for a 3-1 Flyers lead. Eric Staal answered for the Canes with a power play to cut the lead to 3-2. Briere responded with his 2nd goal 1 minute later for a 4-2 lead. A couple minutes later Matt Cullen scored another power play goal for the canes, cutting the lead to 4-3. Briere responded again late in the period with his 3rd goal for a 5-3 lead. later with under a minute to play Scott Hartnell fired yet another goal into the Canes empty net to cap off the 6-3 Flyers victory. So the Flyers improve to 12-7-1(the one refers to an overtime loss, rather than a tie) overall but remain 2nd in the Atlantic division two points behind the NY Rangers.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
After a key win over the Trailblazers in their last game, the Sixers were looking to keep things rolling tonight against the Washington Wizards. Unfortunately the Wizards were just red-hot tonight from the field, shooting a combined 57.3%, and the Sixers just had no answer for this stellar offense, falling to Washington in a laugher. Offensively, Louis Williams led the way with 25 points off the bench, Thaddeus Young chipped in with 14 points off the bench, and Andre Iguodala, and Rodney each added 10 points. Defensively, due to the above shooting stats, the Sixers were nothing short of abysmal. Early on the Sixers actually led 26-24 after the 1st quarter. Then Washington took over. By halftime the Wizards led by 16 points. By the end of the 3rd quarter Washington was up 30 points and a Wizards victory was all but a formality. Still the Sixers kept fighting in the 4th quarter and actually managed to cut the lead down to 15, but it was to no avail, as the Sixers fell to Washington 116-101. The Sixers now drop to 3-7 overall, and stay in 4th place in the Atlantic Division just the ahead of the struggling New York Knicks.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils have brought in a lot of hardware this offseason, but today they got the big prize as Jimmy Rollins was named NL MVP by a slim margin over Matt Holiday of the Colorado Rockies. Rollins wins largely on the strength of becoming just the 4th player in major league history to have 20 homers, 20 doubles, 20 triples, and 20 stolen bases in the same season(Curtis Granderson, Frank "wildfire" Shultze, and the Say Hey kid, Willie Mays were the others). Rollins becomes just the 5th Phillies player to be named NL mvp, after Ryan Howard, Mike Schmidt(3 times), Jim Konstanty, and Chuck Klein. Also JRoll, and Howard are the 1st teammates to be named MVP in back to back seasons, since the San Francisco Giants Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent in 2000-2001. In all, this off season Rollins has been awarded with a silver slugger award, a gold glove award, and now the NL MVP. It seems the only thing missing is that world series ring. We'll have to fix that.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
For the second week in a row, it wasn' t pretty but against the winless Dolphins the Eagles did just enough to win, clinching their first back-to-back wins of the season. On offense the key contributors were as usual Brian Westbrook with 32 carries for 148 yards, and A.J Feeley with 13 completions out of 19 pass attempts for 116 yards and a TD(Mcnabb went down late in the 2nd quarter with a knee sprain, but chances are he'll be back next week against the Pats). On defense the Eagles simply played well as a whole, keeping the Dolphins offense out of the endzone, and limiting it to just 186 yards. Initially, the winless Dolphins actually led 7-0 on an 84 yard punt return by Ted Ginn early in the second quarter. After 3 consecutive turnovers in the redzone, the Eagles finally got on the board late in the 2nd quarter as David Akers booted a 34 yard field goal to cut the lead to 7-3 at the half. The Eagles then opened the second half with a long drive capped off by an 8 yard Touchdown plunge by Correll Buckhalter for a 10-7 Eagles lead. It stayed that way until the Eagles opened the 4th quarter with another long time consuming drive, capped off by Feeley's 4 yard TD pass to Jason Avant, for a 17-7 Eagles lead. Later after the Eagles held the fins on the 4 downs at the Eagles 1 yard line, Feeley and the offense ran out the clock for win. So the Eagles improve to 5-5 overall, just 1 game out of the final playoff spot in the NFC. They're chances of getting that spot are still pretty slim though, as the brutal final stretch of games to finish their season can attest.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
After a tough loss to the Rangers in their last game, the Flyers were looking to rebound tonight against the Devils, but they did not. In the battle of the Martys the win went to Brodeur who saved 26 of the 28 shots he faced, while Biron allowed 4 goals in the first 2 periods and was yanked to start the 3rd period in favor of Antero Niittymaki. Even Niittymaki had no answer for New Jersey as he allowed 2 more goals to complete the Devils onslaught. Early on in the 1st period New Jersey jumped out a 2-0 lead on goals by former Flyer Danius Zubrus and Karel Ruchanek. Early in the 2nd period Patrick Elias made it 3-0 Devils. Then late in the period after Mike Richards finally got the Flyers on the board, Jay Pandolfo scored yet another goal to put the Devils up 4-1. Early in the 3rd period Scottie Upshall cut the Devils lead to 4-2 and provided momentary hope of a Flyers comeback but it was not to be. Brian Gionta made it 5-2 Devils minutes later and a minute after that Zach Parisse ended the scoring to seal a 6-2 Devils win. So the Flyers drop to 11-7 and into second place in the Atlantic division, 2 points behind the Rangers.
Friday, November 16, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Tonight's game pitted two of the youngest teams in the NBA in the Sixers and the Portland Trailblazers and surprisingly it was a well played game. Thanks to a massive rebounding edge, and despite 21 turnovers, the Sixers prevailed. Offensively, Andre Iguodala led the way with 22 points, Andre Miller posted 13 points, Louis Williams dropped 19 points off the bench, and the rookie Jason Smith chipped in with 12 off the bench. Defensively, no one player shined but the Sixers as a team ruled the boards, with 43 to the Trailblazers 30. Early it was all Blazers, with a 7 point lead after 1 quarter and an 18 point lead at the half. At one point in the 3rd Portland led by as much as 25 points, but Iggy and the Sixers chipped and charged back to within 17 at the end of 3 quarters. The 4th quarter then belonged to Sixers as they ripped off 36 points, outscored the Blazers by 21 points, and pull out a thrilling 92-88 win. So the Sixers improve to 3-6, but remain in last place in the Atlantic division.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers engaged in a thriller at the Wachovia center with the New York Rangers tonight. Prior to tonight, the Flyers had been undefeated at home, so when they forced the game into overtime, it seemed a safe bet that they would pull it out. Unfortunately, the Orange black came up short at home for the first time tonight, losing in a shutout. In the end, 26 saves out of 30 shots faced by Marty Biron were not enough and Denis Tolpeko's first career goal went for naught. Early on the Flyers led 1-0 early in the 3rd period on a goal by Jim Dowd. New York tied it up at 1, later in the period. Early in the 2nd period Brendan Shanahan put the rangers ahead 2-1. However, Daniel Briere tied it up again, with a goal later in the period. Early in the 3rd period Peter Prucha pushed New York ahead again, 3-2. Then late in the period Tolpeko poked in his first career goal to tie it at 3. From here Biron and his counterpart Henrick Lundquist shut it down and pushed the game first, into overtime, and then into a shootout. There the Flyers failed to score, while Brendan Shanahan scored the lone goal for a 4-3 Rangers win. So the Flyers drop to 11-6 overall and into a tie for 1st in the Atlantic division with the Rangers.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers were back on the road again tonight in New Orleans to face the Hornets. With this being there 3rd game in 4 nights, they were understandably weary and it showed in the 2nd half as the Hornets pulled away and prevailed. Offensively, Willie Green led the way for the Sixers with 20 points, Andre Miller added 17 and Samuel Dalembert quietly dropped 13. Defensively, the Sixers simply had no answer for Morris Peterson, who pumped in a game high 27 points, while shooting 58.3 % from the field and 66 % from the three point line. The only real positive for the Sixers on this side of the ball is that they outrebounded the Hornets 41-35 as Dalembert pulled down 13 rebounds. Early on the Sixers looked spent, falling behind by 12 twice, and trailing by 6 after the 1st quarter. Somehow they mustered up enough steam to rally back to a 43-43 tie at halftime. Then the Hornets took over, as the exhausted Sixers ran out of gas. New Orleans led by 8 after 3 quarters, and then turned it on in 4th quarter to roll to a 19 point win, by a final score of 95-76. So the Sixers drop to 2-6 and remain in last place in the Atlantic division. They'll probably be down there for a while.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
Against the tough Dallas Mavericks tonight at the wachovia center, the Sixers chances of winning were slim from the onset, and not surprisingly despite a near triple-double by Andre Iguodala, the Sixers fell hard. Offensively, 5 sixers scored in double figures(Iguodala who also had 8 assists, Samuel Dalembert, Willie Green, Andre Miller, and Kyle Korver). Defensively, Iguodala and Reggie Evans each pulled down 12 rebounds as the Sixers matched Dallas with 47 rebounds. Unfortunately, aside from the rebounding, the Sixers defense was no match for the high-powered Dallas offense which shot nearly 45% from the field. The Sixers actually led early, with a one point lead after the 1st quarter and a 7 point lead at the half(50-43). The Mavericks then went on a 16-2 run to open the 2nd half and looked like they were going to run away it. However, the Sixers battled back one more time, and got back within two late in the 3rd quarter. Then the Mavs turned it up again and pulled away for good, with an 8 point lead heading into the 4th quarter. By the time the smoke finally cleared, the Mavs had rolled to a 15 point win, 99-84. So the Sixers drop to 2-5 overall, and remain in last place in the Atlantic division.
Monday, November 12, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers continued their home cooking tonight against the Islanders. Marty Biron saved 24 of the 26 shots he faced, Scottie Upshall scored twice early, and Mike Richards scored shorthanded to cap off a Flyers victory. Late in the 1st period Upshall scored to put the Flyers up early 1-0. New York tied it early in the 2nd period on a goal by Mike Sillinger. Late in the 2nd period Upshall scored his 2nd goal on a spectacular breakaway for a 2-1 Flyers lead. Chris Simon scored a fluky goal with about 2 minutes to play in the 2nd period to forge a 2-2 tie. Finally, early in the 3rd period, with the Flyers down 2 men, Mike Richards scored shorthanded for a 3-2 Flyers lead. From there, Biron shut things down for the Islanders, and the Flyers got the win, 3-2. So the Flyers improve to 11-6 overall and remain firmly entrenched in 1st place in the Atlantic Division.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
EAGLES NEWS
It wasn't pretty, in fact it didn't even look good at times, but the bottom line is that when push came to shove, and the Eagles absolutely had to have a play, they got it, while the Redskins did not ,and that ultimately proved to be the difference in today's game. In the end, thanks to 251 yards and 4 TDs from Donovan Mcnabb, and 183 total yards(100 rushing, 83 receiving) and 3 TDs from Brian Westbrook the Eagles prevailed. The Early lead belonged to the Eagles as Westbrook scored from 4 yards out on a shovel pass, midway through the 1st quarter. In the 2nd quarter Jason Campbell fired a pair of TD passes to James Thrash(yes the former Eagle) to put Washington up 12-7 at the half(the PAT failed after the 1st TD and the 2 point conversion failed after the 2nd TD). Shaun Suisham booted a field to open the 3rd quarter and push the Redskin lead to 15-7. Late in the 3rd Mcnabb hit L.J Smith with an 8 yard TD pass, to cut the lead to 15-13(the Eagles attempted the 2 point conversion for the tie and it failed). Jason Campbell opened the 4th quarter with at TD pass to veteran Keenan Mccardell for a 22-13 lead, and for a fleeting moment it appeared the Eagles were headed to anothe debilitating loss. Then 2 minutes later Mcnabb hit Reggie Brown with a 45 yard TD pass to cut the lead to 22-20 and the Birds were right back in it. Then on their ensuing possession the Skins drove it deep into the Birds territory but fumbled it away, seemingly handing all the momemtum to the Eagles. Unfortunately, Mcnabb was sacked seconds later and fumbled it back. Somehow from there, the Eagles defense stopped the Skins on 7 straight possessions from inside the Eagles 10 yard line. Washington settled for a field goal, to push their lead to 25-20. A minute later on the Eagles ensuing possession Mcnabb fired a screen pass to Westbrook, who then proceeded to zig-zag his way 57 yards for a TD and 26-25 Eagles lead(after another failed 2 point conversion). On the ensuing Skins possession Campbell was sacked and fumbled it away to the Birds deep in Redskin territory. A minute later, Westbrook ran it in from 10 yards out to put the Birds up for good 33-25 ,and that was all she wrote as the Eagles improve to 4-5 overall. So for now their season is saved, but they will have to string together some wins if they still hope to make a run at the playoffs.
SIXERS NEWS
One thing is undeniable about this edition of the Sixers, they're fun to watch. Unfortunately, they're just not very good yet and New Orleans Hornets made sure they knew it tonight. For the Sixers Andre Iguodala led the way with a game high 17 points, Samuel Dalembert had a double-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds, and a pair of blocks, and Kyle Korver chipped in with 13 points off the bench. However, after that there wasn't much scoring for the Sixers, as the Hornets defense locked them down, forcing 18 turnovers and countless bad shots. The Sixers actually led early 24-23 after the 1st quarter. Then New Orleans took over from there with a 14 point lead at the half, and a 23 point lead after 3 quarters. The Sixers rallied in the 4th quarter to at least make it respectable, but the Hornets still won easily by 21, 93-72. So the Sixers drop to 2-4 overall. Looks like they're not so good after all.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
Finally back at the Wachovia center, after aa grueling 8 game road trip, the Flyers let out their frustrations on the Pittsburgh Penguins and got their 10th win of the season. Marty Biron saved 29 of the 31 shots he faced, and Kimmo Timonen, Joffrey Lupul, Daniel Briere, Mike Knuble, and Scott Hartnell each scored on night. The Flyers lead early 2-0 as Timmonen(his 1st as a Flyer) and Knuble each scored a power play goal in the 1st period. Lupul upped the lead to 3-0 with a shorthanded goal early in the 2nd period. Pittsburgh rallied as Evgeni Malkin, and Sergei Gonchar each score power play goals late in the 2nd period. Briere upped the Flyers lead to 4-2, with a goal early in the 3rd period. Finally Scott Hartnell put it away for good, with yet another power play goal, this one an empty netter, and Flyers won 5-2. So the Flyers improve to 10-6 and stay in first place in the Atlantic Division.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued their active off-season today by re-signing reliever J.C Romero to a 3 year, $12 million deal. Romero joins Tom "Flash" Gordon and newly acquired Brad Lidge in the back of Phils revamped bullpen.
EAGLES NEWS
After a humiliating loss to Dallas last week the Eagles must get a win this week as they head to Washington to face the Redskins. If they lose again they'll be in a hole to deep to dig out of.
Friday, November 09, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
In rematch of their season opener the Sixers once again forged a furious second half comeback against the Toronto Raptors, but again they came up tantalizingly short. Offensively four Sixers scored in double figures. Andre Iguodala led the way with 26 points, followed by Louis Williams off the bench with 21, Andre Miller with 14, and Kyle Korver off the bench with 10 points. Defensively the Sixers didn't do so well, as they were out rebounded for about the first time this season, and allowed the Raptors to shoot 45% from the field and 50% from three point range. The Raptors pushed ahead early in the 1st quarter and by the half they led by 7, with the score at 47-40. The Sixers began their rally in the 3rd quarter cutting the lead to 3, with the score at 71-68. In the 4th quarter the Sixers rally continued, as a 4 point play by Louis Williams cut the Raptor lead to 1, 101-100, with 21.8 seconds to play. After clutch free throws from Chris Bosh, Williams had a chance to complete a 3 point play and knot it up at 103, but he missed his free throw attempt, and after Toronto sunk two more three throws, Iguodala was fouled missed his first three throw, and hit the 2nd one even though he was attempting to intentionally miss it, and that was it for the Sixers as they fell 105-103. So the Sixers drop to 2-3 overall as their up and down season continues.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phillies racked up some more hardware today, as Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley were honored with silver slugger awards for their excellence at the plate, for their position. Once again it is nice to see some players get what they deserve.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers finally ended their road trip tonight, fittingly in New Jersey against the Devils. Marty Biron has had great season thus far, but that wasn't the case tonight. If the Devils had a chance to get the puck by him tonight, they did, scoring 4 times with their first 15 shots, 3 of which in the 1st period alone. It got so bad that Antero Niittymaki replaced him in the 2nd period and oddly enough Niittymaki saved all 24 shots he faced the rest of the way, but it was to no avail as the Flyers scored only once on the night and had just 14 shots on goal. The Flyers actually led early 1-0, on a power play goal by Mike Knuble midway through the 1st period. From there it was all New Jersey. Brian Gionta scored to tie it at 1 2 minutes later. Then Dainius Zubrus, yes the former Flyer, scored twice in the next 5 minutes to put New Jersey up 3-1 after the 1st period. The Devils added a 4th goal early in the 2nd period and that was about all she wrote. From there, Niittymaki and Martin Brodeur shut it down the rest of the way and New Jersey got the win 4-1. So the Flyers drop to 9-6 overall, but that's still enough to keep them in first place in the Atlantic Division, barely. All I can say is thank god it's over and there's no place like home.
Wednesday, November 07, 2007
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers up and down season continued tonight If you remember, they were down in their last game falling to the Nets, so tonight, you guessed it, they were back up again in a big way against the Charlotte Bobcats. Willie Green poured in 14 points, Andre Iguodala scored a game high 19 points and off the bench Rodney Carney chipped in with 11 points, rookie Jason Smith added 10, and heck even top rookie Thaddeus Young scored 6 points in just 11 minutes. Defensively, Samuel Dalembert ruled the boards again with a game high 13 rebounds, and as a team the Sixers were relentless forcing the Bobcats into 26 turnovers, leading to easy Sixer's points. The Sixers got off to a fast start and led by 9(23-14 at the end of the 1st period). By the half the Sixers had upped their lead t0 17, 49-32. By the end of the 3rd quarter the Sixers had pushed their lead to 22, 70-48 and it was all but over. In the 4th quarter, backups began entering the game, but the Sixers kept playing hard and when all was said and done, they had won by a whopping 31 points, with the final score being 94-63. Obviously the Sixers can't expect to win like this in every game, but it's nice too see it every once in a while, even if the Sixers committed 20 turnovers of their own in the process. So the Sixers even their record at 2-2 and for now at least there's still hope for them this season.
FLYERS NEWS
In 8 games against the Penguins last season, the Flyers went 0-8 and were blown out nearly every time. Tonight, as they continued their 7 game road trip the Flyers gained a measure of revenge against Pittsburgh. Marty Biron had a spectacular night saving 26 of the 27 shots he faced. Meanwhile Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, and Joffrey Lupul each scored for the Flyers as they won nearly as easily as they had lost all last season. Lupul and Carter scored in the 1st period to give the Flyers an early 2-0 lead. Late in the period Ryan Malone scored to help Pittsburgh to cut the lead to 2-1. In the 2nd period Richards added a power play goal for a 3-1 Flyers lead, and Biron blanked Pittsburgh the rest of the way for a 3-1 Flyers win. So the Flyers improve to 9-5 overall, to move back into 1st place in the Atlantic division over the idle New York Islanders. Let's hope they can keep it that way.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phillies made their first big offseason move today, acquiring utility infielder Eric Bruntlett and closer Brad Lidge from the Astros for Micheal Bourn, Geoff Geary, and minor league 3rd baseman Mike Costanzo. Bruntlett is a good fielder, but only an average hitter. So like Abraham Nunez was last season, he'll be a key defensive replacement late in games, but don't expect him to pinch hit to often. Lidge, was the NL's best closer, in 2005. Then he had a horrible world series, twice allowing the White Sox to score the winning runs, in a laughable 4 game sweep for Chicago. Until this past season he appeared to be mentally fractured by that world series experience, and even lost his closer job to setup man Dan Wheeler. Then midway through the 2007 season, something clicked within him and he suddenly found his groove racking up 19 saves in the final months of the season, while holding opponents to a .218 batting average, and striking out 11.8 batters per 9 innings. At last, he finally appeared at least partially like his old self, during this time and should once again be a premier closer for the Phils this season. Also, since they now have Lidge, Brett Myers will likely return to the Phils starting rotation, which should be interesting.
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