The Sixers welcomed Dwight "Superman" Howard and the Orlando Magic to the Wachovia center tonight. After outlasting the Knicks last night they were looking for back to back wins. Thanks to some hot shooting from beyond the arc, and stellar defense on the Magic three point shooters, and Howard himself, who went without a rebound in the 1st half, they nearly pulled off the upset. Then late in the 2nd half they just ran out of gas and that was that, as Magic rallied to victory. Early on the Sixers jumped out to a 6 point lead through one quarter of play, a 12 point lead at the half, and still a 10 point heading into the 3rd quarter with the score 80-70. Then in the 4th quarter rookie Courtney Lee starting hitting threes , the Magic turned on the D and before you knew it the lead was gone and Orlando had hung on to win by 6 with the final score 106-100. So the Sixers drop to 29-29 overall and miss out on a golden opportunity to move up in the Eastern conference standings as they remain in 6th.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
EAGLES NEWS
The Birds changed their feathers today in a big way. First an emotional Brian Dawkins signed a 5 year deal with the Denver Broncos which means there will be a new team leader on defense next season. This basically is in keeping with Eagles management and their policy of not paying for players in their 30s, not even future hall of famers apparently. So most likely Quintin Demps will take over for BDawk in the Eagles secondary but don't expect the 2nd year man to be a leader. In other news the Eagles offensive line is now a family affair, as the Eagles signed Stacy Andrews that is Shawn's older brother to a 6 year deal. The elder Andrews is a versatile o-lineman capable of filling any hole on the line, right, left, guard or tackle. If the Eagles don't re-sign current Free Agent Tra Thomas, Andrews will start on right side next to Shawn. Otherwise he'll likely fill in on the left side for Jon Runyan, who is both a free agent andd coming off major knee injury, which means it is unlikely anyone other than Eagles will sign him, and also that he may not play much this season anyway.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today with a World Series rematch against Pat Burrell and the Tampa Bay Rays. Ryan Howard slammed his first homerun, and Kyle Kendrick, yet another competitor for the 5th spot in the Phils rotation, allowed just 1 run on 4 hits, in 2 and 2/3rd's innings of work, as the Phils picked up their first win of the spring 12-5.
Friday, February 27, 2009
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers continued their road trip tonight as they traveled to the Garden looking for their 4th win a row over the Knicks and 2nd straight win overall. Thanks to clutch shooting down the stretch by the Andre's and some very bad defense by the Knicks, they were able to hold off New York yet again. Defensively, the Sixers were adequate again and again that was all they needed to be, as they outrebounded them 47-36 and held the 3 pointer loving Knicks to just 10. Offensively, Andre Miller led the way with 25, while Thaddeus Young added 23 and Andre Iguodala posted 15. Early on the Sixers jumped out to 18 point lead with the score 29-11 after a quarter of play. The lead was still 17 at the half with the score 54-37. In the 3rd quarter Knicks made some inroads cutting the lead to 6 with the score 77-71. Finally in the 4th quarter the Knicks closed to within a basket several times, or at least it seemed like several times, but each time one of the Andre's had answer until the Sixers finally hung on to win by 5 with the final score 108-103. So the Sixers move back over .500 at 29-28 overall and remain 6th in the Eastern conference.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the Montreal Canadiens to the Wachovia center tonight in a possible playoff preview. The Flyers goaltender see-sawing continued as Antero Niittymaki got the start in goal. He performed well saving 32 of the 36 shots he faced, nearly carrying the Flyer's to victory yet again, before a bogus penalty call in overtime doomed him. Early in the first period Joffrey Lupul scored for a 1-0 lead. Then about halfway through the period Mike Richards made it 2-0. Late in the period Tomas Plekanec, Tom Kostopoulous, and Alexei Kovalev all scored in the span of 2 minutes for a quick 3-2 Habs lead. Late in the 2nd period Simon Gagne scored off a breakaway to knot it up at 3. That tied score remained for through the rest of regulation and into overtime. There a little over 3 minutes in, after Lupul was cited for a seemingly phantom goalie interference penalty, Matheiu Schneider slapped home a power play goal for a 4-3 Habs win. So the Orange and Black technically improve to 33-17-10 overall for 76 points and still 4th in the Eastern conference.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today with a game against the Cincinnati Reds. Non-roster invitee Andy Carpenter got the start and was shellacked, failing to even retire a single batter as Joey Votto homered and singled in a run in a 10-3 Reds route. Still, it's only spring training so this really doesn't mean anything. In other news the Phils released pitched Adam Eaton today, not surprise considering how poorly he has pitched the last few seasons. It kinda makes you wonder though why they paid so much money to sign him as a free agent in the first place. I guess even Pat Gillick can't always sign right guy.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued with spring training today with their first game of the season in clearwater at their home stadium, Brighthouse field, against the Toronto Blue Jays. Promising young pitcher Carlos Carrasco got the start and retired all 6 batters he faced in 2 shutout innings. J.A Happ, who is competing with Carrasco for the 5th spot in the Phils rotation, followed with 2 shutout innings of his own. Meanwhile, Jimmy Rollins had a hit and an RBI in the early going to help build a 2-0 lead. Then non-roster invitee kids came in from the bullpen and wheels fell off as A Toronto rallied to a 5-2 win. It's okay though, because the Phils are just happy to see Carrasco and Happ pitching well.
EAGLES NEWS
The NFL free agent signing period started tonight at midnight. Despite reaching the NFC championship game last season the Eagles have some needs too fill particularly on offense. A good place to start filling those needs would be to start signing some free agents now, in particular WR T.J Houshmanzedah and RB Derrick Ward ,sorry G-Men he's ours, among others.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Washington tonight looking to end a 4 game losing streak and get back to .500. Thanks to a near triple double by Andre Iguodala with 22 points, 11 assists, and 9 rebounds and to the fact they were playing the Wizards, who ,let's face it, stink this season, they were able to do just that. The Sixers actually shot well for a change, at 50% from the field, and 46% from beyond the arc, once again thank you Washington. Defensively, the Sixers were solid and that's all they needed to be as Washington beat themselves with 21 turnovers and consecutive missed shots in a terrible 3rd quarter. Early on Washington came out playing well with a 29-26 lead after a quarter of play. The Sixers pushed ahead in the 2nd quarter and never looked back, with a 3 point, 56-53 lead at the half and a commanding 15 point lead heading into the 4th quarter with the score 82-67. Finally in the 4th quarter the Wizards put together a rally but it was too little too late, as the Sixers eventually held on to win by 8 with the final score 106-98. So the Sixers get back to .500 overall at 28-28 and move into 6th in the Eastern conference, past some guy named Iverson and the Detroit Pistons who have now lost 8 in a row.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the L.A Kings to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to win their 2nd game in two nights. Apparently Antero Niittymaki's sterling performance last night, gave Marty Biron quite the kick in the butt. So much so that he felt he had to one up Niittymaki tonight and did he ever, saving all 34 shots he faced for his 25th career shutout. Meanwhile, Jeff Carter posted a goal and an assist to lead the Flyers to an easy win. Late in the 2nd period Carter scored for a 1-0 lead. Then with seconds to play in the 3rd period Carter assisted Simon Gagne on an empty netter to close out a 2-0 win. So the Orange and Black move to 33-17-9 overall for 75 points and still 4th in the Eastern conference, now just 4 points out of 1st in the Atlantic division and 3rd in the Eastern conference.
PHILLIES NEWS
The World Champions played their first spring training game of the year today against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Jamie Moyer got the start and pitched two scoreless innings. The champs wound up losing anyway 8-2 as some non-roster invited kid named Shelby Ford slammed a pinch 3 run homer. With Pedro Feliz, Jayson Werth, and Chase Utley all not in the lineup you couldn't have expected much from them today anyway, but there's still plenty time for the champs to get healthy again and get back to winning.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers looked to get back on track tonight as they traveled to Washington for a key matchup with the Capitals, currently 2nd in the Eastern conference. Antero Niittymaki got the start in goal and boy did John Stevens pull the right string, as Niittymaki saved 33 of the 35 shots he faced, including 4 clean shorthanded breakaways. Can you say clutch? Meanwhile, Scott Hartnell, Jeff Carter, and Joffrey Lupul hooked on successive goals to lead a late rally to victory. Early in the 1st period Nicklas Backstrom scored off the power play for a 1-0 lead. Early in the 2nd period Alexander Ovechkin scored for a 2-0 lead. Then about halfway through the period Claude Giroux scored off the power play to cut the lead 2-1. Late in the 3rd period Hartnell, Lupul, and Carter hooked up for the first time, with Hartnell scoring and Lupul and Carter assisting to knot it up at 2. A couple minutes later they did it again, this time with Carter scoring and Hartnell and Lupul assisting for a 3-2 lead. Finally a couple minutes later Aaron Asham scored to put the Orange and Black up for good 4-2. So the Flyers move to 32-17-9 overall for 73 points and still 4th in the Eastern conference.
Monday, February 23, 2009
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers continued their road trip tonight as they traveled to New Jersey for a matchup with the Nets. For once the shots started falling for the Sixers, as they shot 48% from the field with Andre Iguodala's 21 points leading the way. However, although they did shoot well from the field, they missed 14 free throws, several at key times late in the game, which proved to be their ultimate downfall in a tight game. After one half of play the two teams were tied at 51. After 3 quarters of play the the Sixers were clinging to a one point lead with the score 75-74. With 1.8 seconds to play they were still leading by 1, with the score 96-95 after Andre Miller and Iguodala had each missed1 of 2 free throws in successive trips to the line. Devin Harris then received the inbounds pass, dribbled to half court, fumbled the ball around in his hands with Iguodala draped over him, and somehow got off a prayer less than a second before the buzzer, which you guessed it, went in. So thee Sixers lose another heartbreaker at the buzzer 98-96 and drop back under .500 again at 27-28 with their 4th straight loss. The Sixers do at least remain 7th in the Eastern conference though.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
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