The Trequartista Sweeper - Olympic Permutations

Today being a rest day for both men's and women's football, this would be the best time to figure out where each of the groups stand out and what needs to be done for each to make to the knockout phase of the competition.

According to FIFA's guidelines, here are how the group rankings are to be determined, and consequently, who gets to advance to the next round in the tiebreaker:

a. Points
b. Goal Difference in all group matches
c. Goals scored in all group matches
d. Points accumulated between the teams concerned in the group matches
e. Goal Difference between the teams concerned in the group matches
f. Goals Scored between the teams concerned in the group matches

The men are bracketed in Groups A - D, while the women comprise Groups E - G.

Group A: Great Britain 4 pts (+2), Senegal 4 pts (+2), Uruguay 3 pts (-1), United Arab Emirates 0 pts (-3)

Schedule: Great Britain vs Uruguay at the Millenium Stadium; Senegal vs United Arab Emirates at the City of Coventry Stadium

It is as if Luis Suarez has a great chance to even be more infuriating for the Brits, especially to the English fans. This would have been at maximum hatred level if the match was held at Old Trafford instead of being in Cardiff, with there being no love lost between he and the Manchester United fans after the drama of last season. The South American side simply has to win over the hosts to make it through. All the Senegalese will have to do to make it through is to make sure the UAE do not win against them. A draw might just suffice for Stuart Pearce's crew, to advance. Great Britain has scored one more goal than the African side, so that may be in play here.

Group B: Mexico 4 pts (+2), Korea 4 pts (+1), Switzerland 1 pt (-1), Gabon 1 pt (-2)

Schedule: Mexico vs Switzerland at the Millenium Stadium; Korea vs Gabon at Wembley Stadium

Mexico and Korea can breathe easy if they do not lose to their respective opponents. Gabon and Switzerland each need a two-goal victory to advance to the knockout stages. The African team, however, has the toughest mountain to climb, as the other three teams in the group have scored twice. They have only one goal to their credit.

Group C: Brazil 6 pts (+3), Belarus 3 pts (-1), Egypt 1 pt (-1), New Zealand 1 pt (-1)

Schedule: Brazil vs New Zealand at St. James' Park; Egypt vs Belarus at Hampden Park

Neymar has been sensational as always, while Manchester United fans were dreaming about Lucas Moura doing those things he is doing right now wearing their colors in his brief appearance as a sub. The task at hand remains to bring home the gold, and so far so good for these guys. At least a draw against the Oceania powerhouse will do to seal their standing on top of the group. As for the Olywhites, they still have a glimmer of hope for the next stage, but they'll need to win against the South American giants, AND preferably a draw between Egypt and Belarus. Belarus can make things easy with a win over the Pharoahs, whose only way to advance is to win.

Group D: Japan 6 pts (+2), Honduras 4 pts (+1), Morocco 1 pt (-1), Spain 0 pts (-2)

Schedule: Japan vs Honduras at the City of Coventry Stadium; Morocco vs Spain at Old Trafford
The biggest shock of the tournament has definitely been Spain not being able to advance to the next stage of the Olympics, losing on two narrow 1-0 results. David De Gea will have the chance to end their tournament on a good note playing at his club turf at Old Trafford. Japan and Honduras can easily advance with a draw, but considering the runner-up of this group will most likely have to face Brazil in the quarterfinals, both teams, especially the Central Americans, might go for the win here. The North Africans still have a faint chance, but they'll need to win against Spain, probably have to score twice against them, and hope Japan wins against Honduras.

Group E: Brazil 6 pts (+6), Great Britain 6 pts (+4), New Zealand 0 pts (-2), Cameroon 0 pts (-8)

Schedule: New Zealand vs Cameroon at the City of Coventry Stadium; Great Britain vs Brazil at Wembley Stadium

The favorites have marched into form, as the current and upcoming Olympic hosts advance with ease into the next stage. Both Cameroon and New Zealand still have a chance at making it to the next round, but the only way that happens is with a victory. A draw will not cut it, and even with a secured victory, that team will need some additional luck to fall their way, especially if it is the African team.

Group F: Sweden 4 pts (+3), Japan 4 pts (+1), Canada 3 pts (+2), South Africa 0 pts (-6)

Schedule: Japan vs South Africa at Millenium Stadium; Canada vs Sweden at St. James' Park

Canada currently has the best goal difference among the third-place teams, which helps them immensely. A draw will ensure their entry into the next round as one of the two better 3rd place sides. They still have an outside shot of winning the group, if they win against the Swedes and Japan somehow is unable to win against South Africa, which would be a feat in itself for them. The Swedes have a 2-goal edge over the Nadeshiko, but the reigning World Cup champions have a relatively easier opponent. Either way, whoever finishes third here gets either Brazil or Great Britain, or the United States.

Group G: United States 6 pts (+5), France 3 pts (+3), North Korea 3 pts (-3), Colombia 0 pts (-5)

Schedule: United States vs North Korea at Old Trafford; France vs Colombia at St. James' Park

The last spot to the next stage of the Olympic Women's Football tournament is currently in the court of North Korea. Considering they have the reigning Olympic champions as their upcoming opponent, it will be a colossal task. What will put them at ease will be a draw between Cameroon and New Zealand, which ensures safe passage. France still has an outside shot of getting through as the top of the group, but they will need to dispatch the South Americans first, which also has a slim opportunity to make it through to the next round as a third-place team.

The TQS predicts the bracketing to go like this:

Group A: Senegal, Uruguay
Group B: Korea, Mexico
Group C: Brazil, Belarus
Group D: Japan, Honduras

TQS' predicted QF matchups: Senegal vs Mexico; Uruguay vs Korea; Brazil vs Honduras; Japan vs Belarus

Group E: Brazil, Great Britain, New Zealand (as 8th seed)
Group F: Japan, Sweden, Canada (as 7th seed)
Group G: United States, France

TQS' predicted QF matchups: Brazil vs Canada; United States vs New Zealand; Great Britain vs Sweden; Japan vs France

NBA Coach Erik Spoelstra Live Video Facebook Chat and Meet and Greet Promo

We know Erik Spoelstra is coming to Manila. I even wrote about that. But what you really want to have a chance to personally around the head coach of the recently crowned NBA Champions.

Thanks to Gatorade Philippines, fans will have the chance to secure exclusive access to a LIVE STREAM VIDEO CHAT with him on the Gatorade Philippines Facebook page!

Not only that, but also ten (10) lucky fans will also be invited to the actual LIVE CHAT to meet Coach Spo in person, take pictures with THE Larry O’Brien trophy, and get cool Gatorade gear this Saturday, August 4, at The Marriott Hotel, Manila.

Join now and fuel your thirst for Basketball with Gatorade and The NBA!

Instructions on how to join are noted after the jump:

1. Become a fan of Gatorade Philippines by visiting www.facebook.com/GatoradePH 
2. Submit your question for NBA Coach Erik Spoelstra on the post that will be pinned on top of the Gatorade Philippines Timeline.
3. Gatorade Philippines will select the best Ten (10) questions. The people who fielded those questions will each receive the following prizes:

• Exclusive invitation to a Meet and Greet with Coach Spo on Saturday, August 4 at the Marriott Hotel (10 winners and each winner can bring one guest)
• Coach Spo autographed Gatorade Ball and Gatorade Elite Training Gear (Sports Bag, Hydration bottle, Towel and ID lanyard.

1. In addition, Twenty (20) winners will be randomly chosen from fans who posted questions on the Gatorade Facebook page and will each receive the following prizes:

• Two (2) tickets to the NBA Finals Viewing Party at the SM Mall of Asia Center Stage Cinema  (20 winners, each winner will receive 2 tickets)
• Gatorade Sports Packs (Sling Bag, Hydration bottle, Gym Towel and ID lanyard):  Two (2) Sports Packs per winner

Note: All winners will be required to secure their own transportation to the venues to attend or claim their respective prizes.

1. Promotion begins on Monday, July 30 2012 at 12:01 am and will end on Wednesday, August 1 2012 at 11:59PM. Winners will be announced on the Gatorade Facebook page on August 2, at 5:00pm and will be asked to email their contact details to ph.gatorade@gmail.com  so they can be notified how to claim their respective prizes. Winners who fail to confirm their details by 12 pm on August 3, 2012 will be deemed to have forfeited their prize. No substitutes will be selected.

ADDITIONAL RULES AND REGULATIONS

• The NBA and Gatorade will monitor the questions and take down any that are believed to be rude or inappropriate.
• Employees of Pepsi Cola Products Philippines Inc. (PCPPI), Pepsico International (PI), Pepsi-Cola Far East Trade Development Inc. (PCFET), NBA Properties, Inc., the National Basketball Association, its Member Teams and affiliates (collectively, “NBA Entities”), Pepsi Partners: EDS and Distributors, including their relatives up to the third degree of affinity and consanguinity shall be disqualified from joining and/or participating in this promotion.
• Winners and entrants agree NBA Entities may not be held liable for any claims or damages that might arise in connection with the promotion or related advertisement or any prizes or premiums awarded in the promotion or any incident that occurs during use of the prize won (during use of air and land transport, hotel services or during the basketball match or for any incident that occurs on these occasions).
• The winners hereby authorize PCPPI, PI, PCFET, and the NBA Entities to use their names and likeness for publicity purposes without this conferring any remuneration, right or benefit of any kind other than the award of their prize.

The Leo Awards for 2012

The Mythical 1st Team

List of Candidates and Winners (in Bold, for Mythical selection, 1st team = Bold; 2nd team in italics)

Congratulations to the nominees, and especially the winners.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

1. DAVID, Gary (34.00 SPs)
2. SANTOS, Arwind (31.1 SPs)
3. YAP, James (28.8 SPs)
4. CAGUIOA, Mark (28.2 SPs)

MYTHICAL SELECTION

GUARDS

1. ALAPAG, Jimmy
2. BAGUIO, Cyrus
3. CABAGNOT, Alex
4. CAGUIOA, Mark
5. CARDONA, Mark
6. CASIO, Jayvee
7. CASTRO, Jayson
8. DAVID, Gary
9. LEE, Paul
10. MERCADO, Solomon
11. MILLER, Willie
12. NORWOOD, Gabe
13. SIMON, PJ
14. TENORIO, LA

CENTERS/FORWARDS

1. CHAN, Jeffrei
2. DE OCAMPO, Ranidel
3. SANTOS, Arwind
4. THOSS, Sonny
5. WILLIAMS, Kelly
6. YAP, James

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

1. LEE, Paul (25.4 SPs)
2. CASIO, JVee (24.1 SPs)
3. LASSITER, Marcio (21.4 SPs)
4. ABABOU, Dylan (17.4 SPs)
5. SENA, James Ryan (16.8 SPs)

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

1. CHAN, Jeffrei
2. KRAMER, Doug
3. URBIZTONDO, Joshua

ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM

GUARDS

1. ARBOLEDA, Wynne
2. ANTHONY, Sean
3. IBANES, Jireh
4. LASSITER, Marcio
5. NORWOOD, Gabe
6. REYES, Ryan
7. ROSS, Chris

CENTERS/FORWARDS

1. BELGA, Beau
2. DE OCAMPO, Ranidel
3. HATFIELD, Rudy
4. HUGNATAN, Reynel
5. KRAMER, Doug
6. PINGRIS, Marc
7. SANTOS, Arwind
8. TAULAVA, Asi
9. THOSS, Sonny
10. WILSON, William

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD

1. CASIO, Jayvee
2. FONACIER, Larry
3. SIMON, Peter June

Kobe as armchair football analyst

That was posted on Kobe's Facebook page. Kobe is a fan of the sport and is buddies with some of the famous soccer players in the continent where he's at.

Think he's got that in him?

Encapsulating the UAAP - Week 2

Thanks to sir Philip Sison of Fabilioh.com

Rankings after the week's games:

UST - Quite simply, the third quarter was it for the Growling Tigers against the defending champions.
Ateneo - Would definitely be unbeaten had they had a couple of more minutes against the Growling Tigers, but more than made up for it by embarrassing the hosts.
FEU - Unbeaten, yep, but both of their wins could have gone either way.
NU - So, are they overrated? Which is the fluke?
La Salle - Will holding LA Revilla out pay off this Saturday?
UP - long wait, no thanks to Ferdie
Adamson - ditto for them
UE - Is Roi Sumang going to reprise Paul Lee's final season for the Red Warriors?

What lies ahead:

Thursday (at the Araneta Coliseum) - 2 PM University of the Philippines vs National University; 4 PM Adamson University vs Far Eastern University

Saturday (at the Mall of Asia Arena) - 11 AM University of Santo Tomas vs National University; 4 PM De La Salle University vs Ateneo de Manila University

Sunday (at the Mall of Asia Arena) - 2 PM Far Eastern University vs University of the East; 4 PM University of the Philippines vs Adamson University

Flag flap marks Day 1 of Olympics

The Opening Ceremonies have not yet started, and London 2012 is off to an embarrassing start.

Olympic competition has already begun, with women's football being one of the events that will commence before the actual parade of athletes and all that pomp. One should be pleased with the come-from-behind victory by the United States over France, 4-2, but the next match will probably take all the headlines away.

In Hampden Park in Glasgow, the North Korean women's football team refused to start their match against Colombia in protest for the South Korean flag being displayed alongside the North Korea players on the screen. Their match was delayed for slightly over an hour, as the organizers were able to persuade the team to eventually play.

Subsequently, the London Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) released the following statement:

Today ahead of the women's football match at Hampden Park, the South Korean flag was shown on a big screen video package instead of the North Korean flag. Clearly that is a mistake," organizers said. "We will apologize to the team and the National Olympic Committee and steps will be taken to ensure this does not happen again.

It is important to remind everyone that North and South Korea remain technically at war, thus this would be a really really sensitive matter that you do not overlook. I mean, how difficult would it be to know the difference between the two flags here.



Considering that Pyongyang has nuclear weapons and that South Korea's Pyeongchang is hosting the 2018 Winter Olympics, it is a reminder of reality setting in a little bit.

Erik Spoelstra to visit the Philippines

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is coming home. Again.

The National Basketball Association announced that Coach Spo will be returning to the Philippines for the third time, from August 2 to 5. This time however, he is bringing home some "pasalubong."

The Larry O'Brien championship trophy will be coming along with him in his homecoming, dubbed as the NBA Trophy Tour, presented by Gatorade.

Fans will be able to get a glimpse of the trophy that the Heat won in 5 games over the Oklahoma City Thunder on August 4 and 5 at selected SM Malls.

Erik and the trophy will be at The Block Atrium of SM North EDSA from 2-3pm of August 4, while on August 5, it will be at the SM Megamall Events Center at 230pm - 330pm and at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall from 430pm - 530pm.

Also on August 2, a NBA 3X Clinic will be overseen by Spoelstra for teen boys and girls as part of the NBA 3X event to take place a couple of weeks later. The clinic will be conducted at Jose Rizal University in Mandaluyong City.

One of the highlights of the Tour will be an interactive viewing party with selected fans, where either Game 3 or Game 4 of the just-concluded NBA Finals will be shown in the SM Mall of Asia Center Stage, while Spoelstra providing insights and a sort-of "director's commentary" of the game. These selected fans would then be able to have interactions with Erik and even ask him questions during it.

The game to be shown is subject to an online voting process on the NBA Philippines' Facebook page, with the voting period being from July 27 to August 2. 20 pairs of tickets will be given away to random people who share the poll during said time frame.

The NBA Trophy Tour is supported by SM Supermalls, SM Cinemas and SM MOA. Media partners include Basketball TV, NBA Premium TV, Studio 23 and philstar.com, with Marriott Manila as hotel partner.

For more information about NBA activities in the Philippines, visit www.nba.com, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/philsnba or follow us on Twitter at @NBA_Philippines.

Blog Outsourcing July 23, 2012 edition

Greetings and I hope you have had a happy Monday. Obviously, most, if not all of us, suffered some major buzzkill from the past few days, mostly from the Aurora shootings and the fallout from the Freeh report being applied onto the current and incoming batch of Penn State players.

To provide you with something positive to kickstart your morning, here is Michelle Jenneke (thank you to With Leather).




Here forth are the links after the jump.
Easy E takes the jug home. (c/o London Telegraph)

What now, Adam Scott? (c/o The Australian)

Tiger is not panicking. (c/o Scottish Daily Record)

Manchester's renegade did some caddie work. (c/o Daily Mail)

Britain being an overlord of France. Historical context. (c/o The Guardian)

The future of TdF? (c/o Bloomberg)

The quest to have "Play Ball" uttered in the Olympics with an interesting turn. (c/o Games Bids)

Fausto has returned. (c/o Cleveland Plain-Dealer)

One bat made unavailable? (c/o Chicken Friars)

Shuffle up and deal, shall we? (c/o Journal Review)

The sweeping A's (c/o New York Times)

Miggy Cabs at 300 mark. (c/o Sporting News)

New HoFers. (c/o Toronto Globe and Mail)

Now what in 2013? (c/o CBS Sports' Eye on Baseball)

Deconstructing the latest effort of Team USA. (c/o BallinEurope)

Remains the King of Akron. Sort of. (c/o Canton Repository)

The context of Olympic Theme Songs (c/o Salon)

Here is some Princess in China.

 ;

Powerade for Philippine Olympic Athlete

Powerade is proud to be a supporter of the Filipino athlete. As the official  sports drink for the 2012 London Olympics, Powerade ION4 wants to help in the effort of raising funds for the quest of the Filipino Olympic Gold.

We can either go Powerade's Facebook page and send our messages of support to our Olympic athletes, three of which (boxer Mark Barriga, long jumper Marestella Torres, and skeet shooter Brian Rosario) have been named as brand ambassadors. Or we could do what Powerade brand ambassador Coach Rio asks us to do on this video clip below.

 

Run 4 Gold Mechanics (more details after the jump):



1. Like Powerade ION 4 on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/powerade)
2. Go to the Run 4 Gold Tab and you will be directed to the promo application.
3. To participate, simply upload a video on Youtube and show yourself running from left to right for 15 seconds.
4. You can submit as many videos as you wish as long as each video you submit is unique.
5. Write a message for the Philippine Olympic Team. Message should not be more than 160 characters.
6. Powerade Philippines reserves the right to disapprove or delete offensive or obscene entries as well as those that do not follow the rules without prior notice such as:

a) Videos that are longer than 10 seconds
b) Videos with offensive or obscene visuals and messaging
c) Not complying with the theme and instructions of the contest
d) Users are not allowed to use parts and parcels of video clips, footages or images from copyrighted materials such as videos, movies, television shows, pictures, etc.

7. All videos will be pre-screened just to make sure that no violation is made. You’ll be notified within 24 hours if your video is approved or disapproved. Once approved, it will be embedded directly to the application. If your video has been disapproved, you will have to upload another video.
8. We will notify you on Facebook once your video has been uploaded.
9. For every video uploaded, we will donate P100 towards our goal of reaching one million pesos for the first ever Filipino Olympic Gold Medalist.
10. Powerade Philippines has the right to reproduce, exhibit, publish, or use all entries for promotional or publication purposes without remuneration of any kind effective 15 months from the announcement of
winners. Non-winning entries will not be used for promotional or publication purposes by Powerade Philippines without the permission of the contestant. Due acknowledgement will be given to the contestant
every time a video is used.

All video snippets will be collated to become one long video run for gold for our athletes, which will be released around the time of the London Games (which will take place from July 27 to August 14).

Dennis Rodman and His Dad

On Wednesday night, fans in the Philippines were treated to an exhibition involving legends from the Motherland and a team assembled by Charles Smith, who serves as the head of the Professional Basketball Alumni Association, but the true highlight lies with a simple acknowledgment.

During a TV timeout with 16 seconds left in the exhibition match, The Worm got his hand onto the public address system, said some words, and pointed his finger to his long-time estranged father, who was watching in the crowd, for the first time in his life (h/t to SPIN Philippines).

If you recall his Hall of Fame induction speech, he acknowledged that his father left him at an early age. Philander Rodman had been working with the United States Air Force, who at the time had a military base in Clark Field. In fact, this was quoted from him in his 1996 memoir... (h/t to Kelly Dwyer and Y!'s Ball Don't Lie)

"I never really knew my father, Philander Rodman. He was in the Air Force in New Jersey, where I was born, and when I was three we packed up and came back to Dallas where my mother is from. We did this when my father stopped coming home. My father isn't part of my life. I haven't seen him in more than thirty years, so what is there to miss? I just look at it like this: Some man brought me into this world. That doesn't mean I have a father; I don't. I could say, 'This is my father. This is my dad,' but that doesn't sound right to me. I grew up with my mother and two younger sisters, Debra and Kim. There wasn't a male role model in my life until I got to college and started getting my [act] together."

I actually managed to attend the press conference about the event, entitled the PLDT All-Star Basketball Challenge, which had taken place on Tuesday afternoon. Being in the Motherland, one of the topics inevitably raised during that conference dealt with Dennis and Philander.

On that moment, Dennis said if his father was present at the game, he would shake his hand.

Naturally, Philander was moved by the gesture, noting that it was the first time that it happened and that he is very proud of him. He now currently owns a burger stand in Angeles City, which is near where Clark AFB used to be and he is currently based. He also has 29 children from 16 mothers.

The actual news bit was done in the local parlance, but you'll get what Philander says here. (h/t Interaksyon)


The final score ended at 112-93 in favor of the visiting squad, with Jason Williams scoring 26 points and issuing 7 dimes. Pippen scored 20 points. Dennis scored the fewest with 4. Yours truly managed to get a glimpse of the game as well.

What Should Vinny Del Negro do? My LAC offseason wishlist (Part IV)

The Los Angeles Clippers finished with the 5th Seed in the Western Conference, needing seven games to fend off the Memphis Grizzlies, highlighted by their scintillating comeback from 27 points down in Game 1.

Unfortunately, they went up against the buzzsaw that is the San Antonio Spurs, thus ending their postseason.

Free Agency Fever has begun. Now what? Let's go through it...

The holdovers: Eric Bledsoe, Caron Butler,  Ryan Gomes, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Travis Leslie, Lamar Odom, Chris Paul and Trey Thompkins.

What exactly went on in the Odom deal? Here is the official wording from the Clippers themselves.

The Los Angeles Clippers today acquired forward Lamar Odom from the Dallas Mavericks as part of a four-team trade also involving the Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets.  The Clippers sent point guard Mo Williams to the Jazz and the draft rights to Furkan Aldemir, the Clippers’ second round selection (53rd overall) in the 2012 NBA Draft to Houston while the Jazz conveyed the draft rights of Tadija Dragicevic, Utah’s second round pick (53rd overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft to Dallas.  To complete the trade, Dallas sent the draft rights of Shan Foster, the Mavericks’ second round selection (51st overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft to the Jazz with Houston sending cash considerations to Dallas. 

What does Lamar Odom provide you? The former Clipper provides versatility with his size as well as his veteran experience. He'll also improve bench production that will be affected after the departure of Mo Will.

Why subject Ryan Gomes to the amnesty clause? Based on the current roster of the Clippers, only two players are eligible for that move, he and Eric Bledsoe. The move ensures the club is no longer in danger of exceeding the hard cap and paying luxury tax.

Who do we keep? Here are the Los Angeles Clippers' unrestricted free agents: Chauncey Billups Randy Foye, Kenyon Martin, Bobby Simmons, They do not have any RFAs.

Billups and Martin are vets that I'd like to keep around as locker room guys and role players. I value Foye's contributions, but definitely will not overpay for him.

Reggie Evans is also one of our free agents, but the Clippers arranged for a sign-and-trade to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for a heavily protected second round pick.

Nick Young has already agreed in principle for a one-year deal with Philadelphia.

Chauncey Billups has officially rejoined the Clippers.

Who should we chase? There are three tiers of players that the Clippers should be chasing.

1. Two-guards. It is very clear that LA needs height in its backcourt. Also a shooter. Ideally, the two should go together, but not really that necessary on the latter. A couple of interesting options being thrown around is Jamal Crawford and Jason Terry, but the former has some well-known issues and the latter is 34 and is probably on the decline. They have targeted Ray Allen as well, who is definitely on the decline, but his shooting is perceived to be an asset. If said two-guard can play small forward in a pinch, it would be an advantage.

2. Tall big. DeAndre is the only true center they have in the lineup, but there is a need to secure some height. We need also for that particular big man to be able to either mentor DeAndre or push him to play better. One of the free agent options would be to bring back Marcus Camby, who helped with the mentoring process in the early years. It would be of great help if the big has some workable talent at least on one side of the floor.

3. Bench depth. There is a need to upgrade team depth. It sometimes became too agonizing to watch non-production in our rotation. Whether Vinny Del Negro had anything to do with that, we are not exactly THAT sure, but having key pieces to surround our offensive core will really be welcomed.

Now, time to peruse the targets.

Philadelphia 76rs Lou Williams has already made the move to Atlanta. Jodie Meeks and Xavier Silas are tall guards who could fit LAC's needs, especially Jodie's shooting. Sam Young can serve as a backup to Caron. Craig Brackins would be an interesting option off the bench, while Tony Battie is a tall big that precisely could fit in the Clippers' budgetary plans.

Phoenix Suns: Robin Lopez is restricted, and more likely going to be retained by the Suns. Aaron Brooks and Shannon Brown are guards who are too small and too redundant for the Clippers' needs in the backcourt. Besides, Brooks is already headed to Sacramento. The same can be said for Ronnie Price. The Clips are more likely to go after Michael Redd and Grant Hill, given their needs.

Update: Grant Hill is going to be a Clipper.

Portland Trailblazers: Raymond Felton has agreed to a sign-and-trade to the Knicks, while Nicolas Batum has an offer sheet from Minnesota that Neil Olshey is taking his sweet time on. JJ Hickson has a deal set up for him to stay in the Northwest. Joel Pryzbilla would fit the tall big need, but with the current cap space available, he may possibly be out of the price range. Fans would welcome the return of former Clipper Craig Smith, but he is undersized for the position. Former lottery selection Jonny Flynn does not fit the need that the Clippers are looking for.

Sacramento Kings: Their free agent options are interesting free agent options.Terrence Williams and Donte Greene are wing options that would be handy in providing spot minutes for the team as relievers.

San Antonio Spurs:Tim Duncan will always be a Spur. Reports are that Spurs are to keep Danny Green with an offer. The former UNC Tar Heel proved to be an effective option for Popovich as an alternative starter to Manu Ginobili. Patty Mills will probably sign after his Olympic campaign with Australia, while the same can be said for Boris Diaw for France.

Toronto Raptors: Aaron Gray looks to be staying in Canada, but the other two tall big free agents in Solomon Alabi and Jamaal Magloire could be intriguing possibilities. Sonny Weems and Alan Anderson are cheap wing options for LA. As for Ben Uzoh, his skill set is pretty much already set by the current Clipper roster.

Utah Jazz: Josh Howard and C.J. Miles are interesting wing possibilities, while Blake Ahearn would be a luxury with the backcourt depth available.

Washington Wizards: Cartier Martin is staying in Washington. Brian Cook is no stranger to Clipper fans, as he was LA's throw-in for the deal that sent Nene to the nation's capital from Denver. Also familiar would be James Singleton, the hardworking forward who spent his first two seasons there. Morris Almond and Maurice Evans are two different kinds of swingmen. Morris can fill it up, while Maurice will make it difficult for you to fill it up.

Ateneo vs Adamson (return to context)

It is nice to see a photo of you in the actual event. Thanks to Philip Sison of Fabilioh.com for the photo.

If you want to know what went down statistically, see photo below.

PLDT All-Star Basketball Challenge

On Wednesday night, legends from the NBA and the PBA will face each other on the court, thanks to the people behind the Mall of Asia Arena for the PLDT All-Star Basketball Challenge.

The NBA Legends, put together by the Professional Basketball Alumni Association and its head, former New York Knicks forward Charles Smith, is currently on their Asian tour. They previously were at Kuala Lumpur, where they won 96-81 against a reinforced ASEAN Basketball League side KL Westport Dragons. They will then proceed to Taiwan after making an appearance here in Manila. They have been in the region before, having conducted a similar tour in Macau last year.

With Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson as the head coach, the team is led by multi-titled Chicago Bulls forwards Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant and Dennis Rodman. Joining them are fellow NBA vets Mitch Richmond, Jason Williams, Clifford Robinson, Bryon Russell and Jeff Trepagnier. Completing the roster are Alexis Foyle, Chris Campbell and Charoy Bentley. Richmond, Grant and Rodman had been previous visitors to Manila.

As for their opponents, the PBA Legends will be handled by playing coach Jerry Codinera. He will have at his disposal his fellow legends who had recently graced the recent Jaworski retirement ceremony, Bal David, Noli Locsin, Vince Hizon, Marlou Aquino and EJ Feihl. Completing the team are Kenneth Duremdes, Jojo Lastimosa, Bong Hawkins and Nelson Asaytono.

If you miss out on seeing the game live, no worries. AkTV will be broadcasting this game on July 23 at 8pm.

Here is the press conference as hosted by Vince Golangco of Mellow 94.7 and When In Manila.

The Jaworski Homage

Photo 1st seen @ Celest Flores' article on Inquirer.net

I was privileged enough to be able to be at the Araneta Coliseum on July 8, where 15,098 predominately Ginebra fans became witness to the retirement ceremony of the Living Legend, Robert Jaworski.

The Big J clearly remarked that this is merely a retirement of his iconic number 7, and that he will never ever depart the sport that blessed him all the way back from his collegiate days at the University of the East, where he was molded by the Maestro himself, Virgilio "Baby" Dalupan, to his MICAA days, to the iconic Toyota brand and to the Ginebra franchise.

The former senator personally gave thanks to those who helped pave the way to who he was then, and who he is now. For more details, watch the entire speech below.



It was a special night, graced by his former players at Ginebra, his former head coach at Toyota, Dante Silverio (whose jet-black hair still stands amidst the test of time), PBA Commissioner Chito Salud, Ginebra executives and SMC sports head Noli Eala, representing Ramon S. Ang.

Ginebra's Past meets its Current

The game that followed, Barangay Ginebra against Petron Blaze Boosters, had to come close to the pomp and drama of the ceremony. Instead, the match evolved into a modern illustration of the essence that is ang lahing Ginebra San Miguel, in fact, they were sporting throwback jerseys that night as well.

The Gin Kings suffered a sluggish start, trailing early they tried to find their form. But they kept themselves hanging around ensuring they keep themselves in a position for a possible comeback, anchored by the likes of Mark Caguioa and the wily veterans. And then in the fourth quarter, with the Spark firing on all cylinders, Ginebra's future shows up. SMART-Gilas alum Dylan Ababou scored all 13 of his points in the second half, while Rico Maierhofer snags a 10 and 10 performance.

And although Alex Cabagnot scores to even things at 85, it just sets up the drama.



And the postgame.

Blog Outsourcing - July 16, 2012 edition

 

Hello and hope your Bastille Day weekend went well.

I managed to get a taste of witnessing my first-ever Mixed Martial Arts event last Saturday night. I have been always accustomed to watching them on the television, on a delayed basis, too. But, thanks to some people I know, I managed to get in and see for myself what exactly goes on in such an event, considering that this could also be ongoing in boxing, too.

The event I watched is PXC 31. Its main event featured someone named Crisanto Pitpitunge becoming the 2nd ever homegrown Filipino to become a PXC champion, issuing a knockout victory on the former titleholder Justin Cruz in the bantamweight division. Seeing what goes on behind the scenes and looking around at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig was an interesting thing to observe on Saturday night.

Meanwhile, the UAAP opened it's 75th Season this weekend. Host National University, led by former Georgia Tech recruit Bobby Ray Parks, jr., issued a 90-55 beating over the University of the East. However, my alma mater also issued a 73-57 victory in their quest for a fifth straight crown in men's basketball. We face them this weekend.

Here forth are the links after the jump.

Borat's Mankini as prom wear? (c/o Buzzfeed)

Cuban vs Simmons skirmish. (c/o The Sports Geeks)

Luis Scola is chasing the sun. (c/o Valley of the Suns)

Bobcats get dibs on Haywood. (c/o Charlotte Observer)

Will they bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy there, also? (c/o Sun Sentinel)

There has to be a better means of venting frustration. (c/o Newsday)

Ray Allen thanks fans. (c/o Celtics Hub)

Is it ridiculous, Carmelo? (c/o Houston Chronicle)

Partying in the Hamptons, Jason? (c/o New York Daily News)

Best news for New Orleans all season. (c/o Shreveport Times)

We're still waiting for his contract issue to end. (c/o Chicago Tribune)

Fanning the flames. (c/o Boston Herald)

It's mid-July, the auctioning off should begin, starting off with him. (c/o Call to the Pen)

The drama that is John Terry. (c/o Spiked)

The momentous drop to depths unknown for Glasgow Rangers. (c/o Bloomberg)

Rosters finalized for Major League Soccer and Chelsea. (c/o Major League Soccer and News-Tribune)

Galaxy stars shine through. (c/o NBC Sports' Pro Soccer Talk)

Khan toppled. (c/o Queensberry Rules)

The incoming buzzkill on ice. (c/o Die By The Blade)

What to expect at The Open. (c/o Reuters)

NASCAR at Loudon was Rated K. (c/o Yahoo!'s From The Marbles)

Sportsmanship context in France. (c/o VeloNation)

Choice piece on Grantland for the week. (c/o Grantland)

Here is an interesting piece to end the day.

Encapsulating the UAAP - Week 1

Brief predictions: Ateneo to make it five-in-a-row. Ray Parks retains MVP title.

Useless Final Four Prediction: NU, Ateneo, FEU, La Salle.

My Preseason Picks for the All-UAAP 1st Team: Emmanuel Mbe (NU), Greg Slaughter (Ateneo), Ray Parks (NU), Alex Nuyles (Adamson) and Kiefer Ravena (Ateneo)

My Preseason Picks for the All-UAAP 2nd Team: Karim Abdul (UST), Norbert Torres (DLSU), Nico Salva (Ateneo), Jeron Teng (DLSU) and RR Garcia (FEU)

Rankings after the weekend games:

Ateneo - workman-like dismantling of the Falcons. Took a while to get themselves going, though.
NU - thorough annihilation of UE, protest notwithstanding.
FEU - come from behind win, anchored by the guard corps.
La Salle - Jeron Teng in the clutch, douses the comeback attempt. The inevitable Freshman of the Year.
UST - got the tools, but they got to remember to close it out.
UP - encouraging signs, but costly decisions did them in their near-comeback attempt.
Adamson - one thing for sure, Leo Austria will maximize everything he can get from his crew.
UE - long season for Jerry Codinera. He might possibly have better tools this Wednesday as the playing coach of the PBA Legends.

What lies ahead:

Thursday at the Araneta Coliseum - Ateneo vs UST at 2pm, UE vs La Salle at 4pm.

Saturday at the MOA Arena - UE vs Adamson at 2pm, UP vs UST at 4pm.

Sunday at the MOA Arena - FEU vs La Salle at 2pm, Ateneo vs NU at 4pm.

PXC 31 this Saturday

Mixed martial arts fans in the Philippines will once again get to see some skirmishes again, as Pacific X-treme Combat (PXC) is to take place on July 14 at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City with PXC 31. It begins at 7pm, while those unable to go can watch it on a slightly delayed basis on AkTV at 9pm that night.

Highlighting the MMA event is reigning PXC bantamweight champion Justin "The Shocker" Cruz from Guam attempting to defend his belt against Team Lakay's Crisanto "The Slugger Pitpitunge. This is a classic styles-makes-fights matchup, with a striker going up against a technical submission machine.

Crisanto earned the right for the 135-lb belt thanks to his last three wins on PXC events, two of which came via stoppage. If he wins against Justin, he would be the second Filipino to win a PXC belt, after Ale Cali pulled it off in PXC 29 last February.

From L to R: Richie Redman, Justin Cruz, Crisanto Pitpitunge, Tristan Arenal

PXC 31 is presented by San Mig Strong Ice and Sports 5, with special thanks to e-Games, Best Western F1 Hotel (where the fighters are staying and where the press conference for the fight was held), Rogin-E, Fitness First, Beer Below Zero, Premiere Condoms, FHM Philippines, FHM.com.ph, Healthway Agility Phil., Real Sports Radio and Loqal.ph

Tickets are available via SM Tickets and Ticketworld.

Ringside = PhP 2450, VIP = PhP 1850, Lower Box = PhP 650, Upper Box = PhP 350

UAAP Season 75 Basketball Ticket Guidelines for Ateneo

The UAAP season for men's basketball is to commence this Sunday, and with that, we ought to know how do the Ateneo community handles the need for tickets. For Season 75, this is the protocol.

* Ticket Selling Schedule

    Thursday Games: Tuesdays, starting 9 am until supplies last
    Saturday Games: Wednesdays, starting 9 am until supplies last
    Sunday Games: Thursdays, starting 9 am until supplies last

* The Blue Eagle Gym Ticket Selling managed by the University Athletics Office will sell ONLY  to the following:

•     Alumni of ATENEO DE MANILA UNIVERSITY only.
•     Grade school students, parent representing the student, faculty and staff.
•     High school students, parent representing the student, faculty and staff.
•     Ateneo Professional Schools students, faculty and staff
•     Central Administration Staff

* Strictly NO PROXY.
*Ticket selling to LOYOLA SCHOOLS students, graduate students, faculty and staff, will be handled by the COLLEGE ATHLETICS OFFICE.

* Please present the following identification cards prior to purchasing.

•     Students, faculty, and staff of the Grade School, High School, and Ateneo Professional Schools: Ateneo I.D.
•     Parent representing child studying at the Grade School or High School: Child’s Ateneo I.D. and parent's government-issued I.D. with photo
•     Staff of Central Administration: Ateneo I.D.
•     Alumni of the Ateneo de MANILA : Ateneo Alumni Association card or any government-issued I.D. with photo

* Strictly 2 tickets ONLY per person.
    o For example:

    a.       Alumni parent representing the child = 2 tickets only.
    b.      Parent representing 2 or more children = 2 tickets only.

FOR ATENEO-LA SALLE GAMES, FINAL 4, FINALS

1.       Please follow selling days mentioned above.  Numbers for the ticket selling will be issued starting at 7:00 AM at the Blue Eagle Gym Ticket Booth.

    a.       Proper Identification mentioned above must be provided.
    b.      Only the following may buy tickets:

•         Students of the Grade School, High School, Ateneo Professional Schools
•         Parents representing their child studying at the Grade School or High School
•         Faculty and staff of the Grade School, High School, Ateneo Professional Schools
•         Staff of the Central Administration
•         Alumni of the Ateneo de Manila University    

2.       Be sure to be in your designated seats by 6:00 PM.  Ticket selling will commence at exactly 7:00 PM.

    a.       Strictly NO PROXY.
    b.       Present your I.D. along with your number.  Please use the same I.D. you presented to get the number.

3.       Other rules mentioned above will apply.
 
MANAGEMENT RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REFUSE TICKET SELLING.

ESPY nominees released

The rest of the world has the Laureus World Sports Awards, but the American consciousness has the ESPYs, where the world of sports and entertainment come together to recap the year in sports, giving recognition to the best performers and performances in that time.

As it has been the norm, the ESPYs honor the best players in a particular sport within itself, as well as the best athlete from different disciplines. They also honor an event, which signifies something that is special. The nominees were known to the public by the 28th of June.


This is also a means for the ESPN to continue its support for the Jimmy V foundation.

The [complete list of] 2012 ESPYS Nominees and Categories (after the jump)




BEST MALE ATHLETE

Novak Djokovic, Tennis

• Won three Grand Slams and a record five ATP Masters 1000 titles in 2011
• Enjoyed a 70-6 match record during 2011 season
• Became the sixth player in the Open Era to win three Grand Slams in the same season

LeBron James, NBA Miami Heat

• Named NBA MVP for 2011-12 season
• Finished third in scoring during regular season (27.1 ppg)
• Averaged 28.6 ppg., 10.2 rpg and 7.4 apg. in NBA finals

Aaron Rodgers, NFL Green Bay Packers

• Led Packers to a 15-1 regular-season record
• Threw for 45 touchdowns and just six interceptions during 2011 regular season
• Had a 122.5 QB rating in 2011 season, breaking Peyton Manning’s mark of 121.1, set back in 2004

Justin Verlander, MLB Detroit Tigers

• Won 2011 AL Cy Young Award and 2011 AL MVP
• Was the first pitcher to win MVP since Dennis Eckersley in 1992
• He is one of just three American League pitchers since the inception of the Cy Young Award in 1956 to have at least 24 wins and 250 strikeouts with an ERA of 2.50 or better

BEST FEMALE ATHLETE

Brittney Griner, NCAA Baylor Women’s basketball

• Led the Bears to the national championship and the first 40-0 NCAA mark ever
• Averaged 23.2 ppg, 9.4 rpg. and over five blocked shots per game
• Won Wade Trophy, Wooden Award, Naismith?Trophy and AP National Player of the Year

Maria Sharapova, Women’s Tennis

• Became 10th woman to complete career Grand Slam when she won 2012 French singles title
• Moved into world number one ranking after winning French Open

Lindsey Vonn, Skiing

• Averaged set a women’s record for the most World Cup points in a season in 2012
• Won her fourth alpine skiing overall World Cup title

Abby Wambach, USA Women’s Soccer

• Scored her USA-record 13th career women’s World Cup goal in championship game loss to Japan
• Is the first player to score in all three knockout rounds in a single women’s World Cup and the first American to score in four straight women’s World Cup games

BEST CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE

David Freese, World Series MVP

• Down to their final strike in Game 6, the Cardinals’ reluctant hero delivered a tying two-run triple in the ninth inning
• Freese then did one better: a leadoff homer in the 11th that gave St. Louis a dramatic win over the Rangers and forced the first World Series Game 7 since 2002
• Set the record for most RBIs in a single postseason, 21
• Batted .348 with seven RBI in World Series

LeBron James, MVP in NBA finals

• Averaged 28.6 ppg., 10.2 rpg and 7.4 apg. in NBA finals
• Won first career championship
• 10th player to win regular season MVP and finals MVP

Eli Manning, MVP in Super Bowl

• Earned MVP honors in Super Bowl win over the Patriots
• Became the fifth quarterback with at least two Super Bowl MVPs
• Was 30-of-40 for 296 yards, with one touchdown pass and zero interceptions in Super Bowl

Tony Stewart, winning NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship

• All five of Stewart’s wins came in the Chase
• Stewart became the first owner/driver to win the championship since the late Alan Kulwicki in 1992
• Won five of final 10 races of season

Jonathan Quick, Conn Smythe winner in the Stanley Cup

• Allowed just seven goals in six games in finals
• Finished the 2012 Playoffs with a 16-4 record, 1.41 goals against average and a .946 save percentage.

BEST BREAKTHROUGH ATHLETE

Anthony Davis, University of Kentucky basketball

• Led Kentucky to the national championship
• Earned Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA tournament and national Player of the Year honors

Robert Griffin III, Baylor football

• Won the 2011 Heisman Trophy
• Completed 72.4 percent of his passes, throwing for 4293 yards and 37 touchdowns
• Also ran for 699 yards and 10 touchdowns

Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots

• Had 90 receptions for 1327 yards and 17 touchdowns during 2011 regular season
• Set single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end

Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks

• Created Lin-sanity in an early stretch with Knicks
• Averaged 14.6 ppg and 6.1 apg. during 2011-12 regular season after signing with New York

Alex Morgan, USA women’s soccer

• Had a breakout performance at the Women’s World Cup, her first at the senior level
• Scored the third and game-clinching goal in the 3-1 victory over France in the semifinal and then tallied against Japan in the final

BEST RECORD-BREAKING PERFORMANCE

Drew Brees breaks Dan Marino’s single-season record for passing yards

• After the single-season pass yard record was broken four times in six seasons from 1979 to 1984, Brees was the first to have the mark change hands in 27 years
• Finished with 5,476 yards to break Marino’s single-season pass yard record of 5,084

Coach K passes Bob Knight

• Mike Krzyzewski won his 903rd career game to break the record for the most wins in Men’s Division I history. Krzyzewski broke the wins record held by one of his mentors, Bob Knight. Coach K played for Knight at Army from 1966 to 1969 and began his head coaching career in 1975 at Army

Mariano Rivera, breaks the save record

• Rivera broke Trevor Hoffman’s major-league record for career saves in style, excusing the Twins with a 1-2-3 ninth inning, for save #602 in September, 2011
• Currently has 608 saves

Lexi Thompson, Youngest winner of an LPGA event

• Was 16 years, 7 months and 8 days old when she won
• Shattered the age record for winning a multiple-round tournament, previously held by Paula Creamer, who won in 2005 at 18

BEST UPSET

Iowa State over Oklahoma State in football

• Iowa State, which came in 5-4, scored 17 unanswered points vs. number 2 Oklahoma State over the final 25 minutes to send the game to overtime
• Eventually beat the previously undefeated Cowboys 37-31
• Jeff Woody’s four-yard touchdown run gave the Cyclones the win in double-overtime

Los Angeles Kings winning Cup as an eighth seed, Stanley Cup

• Became the first team seeded eighth to win the Cup
• Went 16-4 in the postseason to win the Cup
• Beat the #1, 2, 3 seeds in the Western Conference playoffs

Lehigh over Duke, NCAA men’s basketball tournament

• The Patriot League team scored a 75-70 stunner in Greensboro, North Carolina
• Prior to this season, only four previous #15 seeds beat #2’s (105-4 all-time before these upsets)
• Duke suffered only its fourth first-game loss in 28 trips to the NCAA Tournament under Mike Krzyzewski

Norfolk State over Missouri, NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

• #2 seed Missouri entered the game with a 30-4 record and the Big 12 tournament championship
• #15-seed Norfolk State shot 54 percent from the field and won 86-84
• Norfolk State also became the first school to win in its first big dance appearance since Hampton in 2001

BEST GAME

Missouri at Kansas college basketball

• It was the last scheduled game in the Border War series, a rivalry which extended 105 years
• The Jayhawks rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit to win 87-86 in overtime

Niners-Saints, NFC playoff game

• Alex Smith completed a 14-yard touchdown pass to Vernon Davis with nine seconds left as San Francisco earned  a thrilling 36-32 playoff victory
• The teams combined for 34 points in the wild fourth quarter

Rangers-Cardinals, World Series Game Six

• St. Louis rallied from a 7-3 deficit in the bottom of the eighth inning, winning 10-9 in 11 innings
• The Cardinals were down to their last strike twice but still prevailed

BEST MOMENT

Derek Jeter’s 3000th hit

• He hit a home run off of David Price for the magical milestone hit
• He had five hits in that game including the game winning RBI
• Became the 28th member of the 3,000-hit club

Tebow to Thomas sudden death playoff touchdown

• Tim Tebow connected with Demaryius Thomas on an electrifying 80-yard touchdown pass on the first play of overtime
• The Broncos defeated the stunned Steelers, 29-23 in the AFC wild-card game

Bubba Watson winning Masters

• Defeated Louis Oosthuizen in the second playoff hole to win the Masters Tournament and his first major championship.
• It was the 1st-time since 2009 and the 15th-time overall that a playoff decided the Masters.

Final night of the 2011 MLB season

• The Rays beat the Yankees, the Red Sox lost to Orioles in game 162
• The Orioles use a two-run ninth inning to beat Boston 4-3
• The Rays came back from a 7-0 deficit to edge the Yankees in the game
• Tampa Bay rallied from a nine-game deficit in September to make the playoffs

BEST TEAM

Alabama football

• Avenged a regular-season loss to LSU, winning the BCS championship game

Baylor women’s basketball

• Won that national championship over Notre Dame in Final
• Became first team, men or women, to go 40-0 in one season

Kentucky men’s basketball

• Won the national championship by beating Kansas at Final Four
• Finished season with 38-2 record

LA Kings, NHL

• The first #8-seed to win the Stanley Cup since the conference-based playoff format was introduced in 1994
• The second team in the four major sports to win with as many as three different head coaches/managers during the regular season, joining the 1978 Yankees
• Won their first Stanley Cup in their 44th season

Miami Heat, NBA

• Earned their second NBA title in franchise history
• The 11th team in NBA history to win an NBA championship the next season after losing in the Finals
• They are the first team in NBA history to win a title after trailing in three different series in a single postseason

NY Giants, NFL

• Became the fifth team with at least four Super Bowl titles
• First team to win a Super Bowl with fewer than 10 regular-season wins since NFL went to 16-game schedule in 1978

St. Louis Cardinals, MLB

• Were 10 ½ games behind in NL wild card race in late August and rallied to win World Series
• Win 11th World Series title, second-most among all teams.

BEST COMEBACK

Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

• Came back from two separate battles of concussion-like symptoms to play during 2012 … sat out 10 months before his return … had 37 points in 22 regular-season games during 2011-12 season

Johan Santana, NY Mets

• Missed all of last season after undergoing shoulder surgery
• Threw no-hitter vs. Cardinals, the first no-hitter in New York Mets history
• It was a 134-pitch no-hitter, a first in the history of the franchise in its 8,020th game.

Maria Sharapova

• Returned to number one ranking in the world
• Enjoying her fifth stint as No.1, a position she last held in June 2008
• Won 2012 French Open, her first Grand Slam singles title since 2008

Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions

• After playing just three games during the 2010 season (shoulder injury), he passed for 5,038 yards and 41 touchdowns in 2011

BEST COACH/MANAGER

John Calipari, Kentucky basketball

• Earned his first national championship
• Led Wildcats to 38-2 record

Tom Coughlin, NY Giants

• Became the oldest head coach to win a Super Bowl (age 65)
• Giants beat Falcons, Packers, 49ers and Patriots in the postseason

Kim Mulkey, Baylor women’s basketball

• Led Lady Bears to 40-0 record and national championship
• Became the fifth coach in the NCAA era to win multiple national titles

Patrick Murphy, Alabama softball

• Led Tide to first-ever SEC national championship in softball
• Alabama finished season with 60-8 record

Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat

• Led Heat to franchise’s second NBA championship
• Heat are the first team in NBA history to win a title after trailing in three different series in a single postseason

Darryl Sutter, LA Kings

• The fifth midseason coaching replacement to win the Stanley Cup
• The Kings began with Terry Murray who was fired on December 12 and replaced by John Stevens on an interim basis (4 games) before they hired Sutter on December 20
• Led Kings to 25-13-0-11 record in 49 regular season games 

BEST NFL PLAYER

Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

• Set an NFL record for single-season passing yards (5476)
• Threw 46 touchdown passes and only 14 interceptions

Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots

• Had 90 receptions for 1327 yards and 17 touchdowns during 2011 regular season
• Improved on 42-catch season of 2010

Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions

• Led NFL in receiving yards during 2011 regular season (1681)
• Had 16 touchdown catches during 2011 regular season

Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

• Led Packers to 15-1 regular-season record
• Threw for 45 touchdowns and just six interceptions during 2011 regular season
• Won NFL MVP

Terrell Suggs, Baltimore Ravens

• Voted The Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year for 2011 season
• Recorded 14 sacks for the Ravens

BEST MLB PLAYER

Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers

• Won 2011 NL MVP
• Hit 33 home runs, drove in 111 and totaled 77 extra-base hits

Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

• Tied major-league record with four home runs in one game in 2012
• Also set AL record for total bases in one game (18)
• Had 25 home runs, 94 RBI, .298 BA in 121 games during 2011 season

Matt Kemp, LA Dodgers

• Led major leagues in RBI with 126
• Hit .324, seventh in the majors
• His 39 home runs finished tied for third in 2011

Clayton Kershaw, LA Dodgers

• Tied for the NL lead in wins (21) and led the NL in both ERA (2.28) and strikeouts (248), giving him pitching’s version of the Triple Crown.

Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers

• Won both AL Cy Young award and AL MVP
• Became the first starting pitcher since Roger Clemens in 1986 to win the Cy Young Award and MVP Award in the same season.

BEST NHL PLAYER

Claude Giroux, Philadelphia Flyers

• Third in the NHL in points (93)
• Second in NHL in assists (65)

Henrik Lundqvist, NY Rangers

• Won 39 games during 2011-12 regular season
• Posted 1.97 goals against average
• Won Vezina Trophy as Best Goaltender

Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins

• Won Art Ross Trophy as leading scorer (109 points) and Hart Trophy as MVP
• One of two players to score 50 goals during 2011 regular season

Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning

• Led NHL in goals with 60
• Finished second in points with 97
• Joined Alexander Ovechkin as the only two players to score 60 since 1996

Jonathan Quick, LA Kings

• Allowed just seven goals in six games in Stanley Cup Final
• Finished the 2012 Playoffs with a 16-4 record, 1.41 goals against average and a .946 save percentage.

BEST DRIVER

Dario Franchitti

• Won 2012 Indianapolis 500, his third victory at the Brickyard
• Earned his fourth IndyCar title in 2011, Franchitti moved into a tie for second place on the all-time list for most IndyCar Champioships

Tony Stewart

• Became just the third active driver (Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon) with at least three NASCAR Cup Series titles
• Became the 1st owner/driver to win a title since Alan Kulwicki in 1992
• The 1st driver to win the final race and the championship since Jeff Gordon in 1998
• Edged Carl Edwards for the title
• Won final race of the season at Homestead, Florida to earn Sprint title
• Won five of final 10 races of season

Sebastian Vettel

• Youngest double world champion in F1 history
• Scored 11 wins and a record 15 pole positions in 2011.

Del Worsham

• Won the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series top-fuel national championship
• Clinched the title by beating Tony Schumacher at the National Hot Rod Assn. Finals in Pomona, California

BEST NBA PLAYER

Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers

• Averaged 27.9 ppg. during 2011-12 regular season, second in NBA
• Averaged 38.5 minutes per game during regular season

Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder

• Averaged 28.03 PPG this season, 0.17 ahead of Kobe Bryant
• Became eighth player in NBA history to win at least three scoring titles

LeBron James, Miami Heat

• Averaged 27.1 ppg. 7.9 rpg. and 6.2 apg. during the 2011-12 regular season
• Shot 53.1 pct. from the field during regular season
• Averaged 28.6 ppg., 10.2 rpg and 7.4 apg. in NBA finals
• 10th player to win regular season MVP and finals MVP

Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves

• Led NBA in double-doubles during regular season
• Averaged 26 ppg. and 13.3 rpg

Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs

• Helped Spurs to top Western Conference regular-season record
• Averaged 19.3 ppg and 7.7 apg. during 2011-12 regular season

Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics

• Led NBA in assists in both regular season and postseason
• Averaged 20.9 ppg. , 11.3 apg. and 6.9 rpg. In Eastern Conference finals vs. Miami
• Averaged 11.7 apg. in regular season and 11.9 apg. in postseason

BEST WNBA PLAYER

Seimone Augustus, Minnesota Lynx

• Averaged 24.7 ppg. during WNBA finals after averaging 16.2 ppg. during the regular season
• Shot 58.7 pct. in finals vs. Atlanta
• Earned MVP of WNBA finalsTamika Catchings, Indiana Fever

Tamika Catchings, Indiana Fever

• 2011 WNBA Most Valuable Player of the Year, led the Fever to the top seed in the Eastern Conference
• Averaged 15.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals during 2011 regular season

Tina Charles, Connecticut Sun

• Captured her second consecutive rebounding title )11 rpg.)
• Recorded 10 or more rebounds 23 times
• Surpassed her previous league record of 22 double-doubles last season, with one more this year (23)

Angel McCoughtry, Atlanta Dream

• Ranked second in The League in scoring, averaging 21.56 points, to go along with 5.2 rpg and 2.2 spg.
• Helped Atlanta reach the WNBA finals

Diana Taurasi, Phoenix Mercury

• Edged Atlanta Dream forward Angel McCoughtry by less than one-tenth of a point — 21.63 to 21.56 ppg. for the WNBA scoring title
• Averaged more than 20 points for the fifth time in her career and shot 44.9 percent from the field
• Led The League in three pointers made (81)

BEST FIGHTER

Jon “Bones” Jones, MMA

• Beat Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans to retain his MMA championship
• Became the youngest fighter in UFC history in a title defense at 24 years and 67 days old
• Also scored second-round victory over former champion Lyoto Machida in UFC 140

Floyd Mayweather Jr., Boxing

• Scored a unanimous decision over Miguel Cotto to win the WBA junior middleweight title, a championship in his six different weight class
• Also scored a controversial fourth-round knockout to take the WBC Welterweight Title from Victor Ortiz
• Improved to 43-0 (26 KO) overall and 20-0 in title fights

Anderson Silva, MMA

• Extended his win streak to a UFC-record 14, including a record nine-straight title defenses with his TKO win over Yushin Okami
• Scored a second-round TKO to extend his record

Andre Ward, Boxing

• Reigning WBA and WBC super-middleweight champion
• Defeated Carl Froch to win Super Six championship
• Has career record of 25-0

BEST MALE GOLFER

Luke Donald

• Became the first golfer to win the U. S. and European money titles in the same season

Bill Haas

• Won the 2011 Fed Ex Championship
• Won the 2011 PGA Tour Championship by beating Hunter Mahan in a playoff

Rory McIlroy

• Had four top 10 finishes in 10 PGA Tour events in 2011
• Earned number one ranking in world golf ratings during season

Webb Simpson

• Earned his first major championship by winning 2012 U. S. Open
• Finished second in 2011 in FedEx Cup standings and money earning list

Bubba Watson

• Earned his first major championship, winning the 2012 Masters
• Earned over $3.47 million during 2011 season

BEST FEMALE GOLFER

Cristie Kerr

• Finished second on 2011 LPGA money list with over $1.4 million
• Became the top American money winner in LPGA history in 2011

Yani Tseng

• Became the youngest player (age 22) to win five LPGA majors
• Went on to win Women’s British Open
• Led the LPGA in money earned in 2011

So Yeon Ryu

• Defeated Hee Kyung Seo in a three-hole aggregate playoff to earn her first major win and her first LPGA Tour win at the 2011 U.S. Women’s Open

BEST MALE TENNIS PLAYER

Novak Djokovic

• Won the 2011 Wimbledon singles championship
• Won the 2012 Australian Open
• Finished as World No. 1, winning a career-best 10 titles in 11 finals en route to a 70-6 match record
• Won three  Grand Slams and a record five ATP Masters 1000 titles  in 2011
• First  player with at least 10 titles in a season since Roger Federer (12) in ‘06

Roger Federer

• Won the season-ending ATP Tour championship in London
• Finished in Top 3 for a ninth straight year
• Compiling a 4-2 record in finals during year, capping season with 17-match winning streak

Rafael Nadal

• Finished in Top two of the world rankings for a seventh straight year
• At 24 years and 10 months old, he was 2nd-youngest to win 500 matches, only behind Bjorn Borg
• Won a record seventh French Open singles title in 2012

BEST FEMALE TENNIS PLAYER

Victoria Azarenka

• Won her first career Grand Slam title, capturing the 2012 Australian Open
• Spent time ranked #1 in the world in 2012

Petra Kvitova

• Won her first Grand Slam singles championship at 2011 Wimbledon
• Beat Maria Sharapova in the straight sets in the final

Maria Sharapova

• Became 10th woman to complete career Grand Slam when she won 2012 French singles title
• Moved into world number one ranking after winning French Open
• Enjoyed her fifth Top 5 season in 2011

Samantha Stosur

• Won her first Grand Slam title, beating Serena Williams in the final of the 2011 U. S. Open
• Became the first Australian woman to win a major championship since Evonne Goolagong Cawley at Wimbledon in 1980 

BEST MALE COLLEGE ATHLETE

Jack Connolly, Minnesota-Duluth hockey

• Won 2012 Hobey Baker Award
• Finished the season second in the nation in scoring with 60 points (20 goals, 40 assists) playing in all 41 games for the Bulldogs

Anthony Davis, Kentucky basketball

• Won Wooden and Naismith awards as Player of the Year
• Won Most Outstanding Player at NCAA championship

Robert Griffin III, Baylor football

• Became the first Baylor player to win the Heisman Trophy
• Completed 72.4 percent of his passes, throwing for 4293 yards and 37 touchdowns
• Also ran for 699 yards and 10 touchdowns

Andrew Luck, Stanford football

• Threw 37 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions during 2011 season
• Led Cardinal to 11-2 record during 2011 season

Mike Zunino, Florida baseball

• Won the Dick Howser Award, which goes to college baseball’s best player
• Finished with .322 batting average, 19 home runs and 67 RBI during 2012 season 

BEST FEMALE COLLEGE ATHLETE

Brittney Griner, Baylor basketball

• Led Baylor to 40-0 record and national championship
• Averaged 23.2 ppg, 9.4 rpg. and over five blocked shots per game

Alex Jupiter, USC Volleyball

• An outside hitter who also excelled in defense, was named the 2011 American Volleyball Coaches Association National Player of the Year

Caitlin Leverenz, University of California, Berkeley swimming/diving

• Led her team to a second straight national title
• Set an American record along with NCAA, U.S. Open, and Pac-12 records in the 200 IM and established a school record in her 200 breaststroke victory

Teresa Noyola, Stanford soccer

• The senior midfielder scored the game-winning goal in the national championship game vs. Duke
• Three-time All-American

Jackie Traina, Alabama softball

• Led Crimson Tide to first softball national championship
• Finished 42-3 on the season
• Named the WCWS Most Outstanding Player, threw a complete game four-hitter in championship series-clinching game

BEST MALE ACTION SPORT ATHLETE

Travis Rice

• Won Supernatural, his own groundbreaking big mountain-with-artificial-obstacles contest
• Named Rider of the Year by Snowboarder Magazine and an Adventurer of the Year by National Geographic.

Kelly Slater

• Won his 11th ASP World Tour title in 2011 at age 39 … he’s the youngest person to win surfing’s top title (captured at age 20) and also the oldest.

Ryan Villopoto

• Won both the 2011 Motocross and the 2012 Supercross titles … claimed the latter in dominant fashion, winning 9 of the first 14 events and clinching the crown with four races remaining, which was unprecedented.

Shaun White

• First Vert gold since 2007 and just his second Summer X Games gold medal in eight appearances
• Earned his fifth consecutive superpipe gold at Winter X, earning a perfect 100 on his third and final run 

BEST FEMALE ACTION SPORT ATHLETE

Jamie Anderson

• Dominated for gold at Winter X 2012 and Winter X Games Tignes 2012
• Also won four Burton Open Slopestyle comps, the overall Burton title and the TTR Slopestyle title

Kelly Clark

• Won 2012 winter X games Women’s Snowboard SuperPipe
• In 2012 she became the first snowboarder to repeat gold in Tignes

Carissa Moore

• Became the youngest woman in history (18) to win the ASP (surfing) title
• Won three of the seven events

Kaya Turski

• Defended her 2011 SKI Slopestyle gold at both Winter X 2012 and Winter X Tignes 2012
• She now has three-peats at both events. Won both Dew Tour women’s ski slopestyle comps and the overall Dew Tour slopestyle crown

BEST JOCKEY

Javier Castellano

• Rode 11 grade one stakes winners in 2011
• Concluded 2011 fifth in victories with 278, and third in earnings, with his mounts making $15,675,977
• In March 2012, he broke the record at Gulfstream for most wins during the meet

Ramon Dominguez

• 2011 Eclipse Award winner for best jockey
• $20,264,822 in purse money, 348 wins, 24% win percentage and 60% in the money

Mario Gutierrez

• Won in his first-ever Kentucky Derby mount
• Rode I’ll Have Another as he became the first horse ever to win the Kentucky Derby from the 19th post position
• Then rode I’ll Have Another to Preakness win

John Velazquez

• Rode Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf winner Stephanie’s Kitten and Breeders’ Cup Filly And Mare Turf winner Perfect Shirl
• Rode Union Rags to 2012 Belmont Stakes win 

BEST MALE ATHLETE WITH A DISABILITY

Baxter Humby

• Muay Thai current champ and has one arm
• Scored a great knockout of the night at The League’s debut event, earning a one-shot knockout with a roundhouse kick to the stomach of his opponent.

Ray Martin, Track & Field

• Won two gold medals in the 800m and 200m men’s (T52) wheelchair division races … also won two silver medals in 100m and 400m dashes at the 2011 Parapan American Games, Guadalajara, Mexico

Kyle Maynard

• Climbed to Mt. Kilimanjaro’s peak, becoming the first quadruple amputee to get to the top without assistance

Oz Sanchez, Cycling

• Won two gold medals – in the men’s road time trial and road race events (H4) at the 2011 Parapan American Games, Guadalajara, Mexico
• Won three gold medals in the men’s time trial, road race and mixed team relay at the 2011 UCI Para-Cycling Road World Championships, Roskilde, Denmark
• Won three gold medals in the men’s time trial, road race and mixed team relay (H4) at the Road World Cup
• Was crowned the Overall World Cup Winner

Tyler Walker, Alpine Skiing

• 2012 SG and DH U.S. Paralympics Alpine National Champion, Aspen, Colorado
• 2011-2012 World Cup season Won – three medals:
• Gold medal, Super Combined– IPC World Cup Finals, Panorama, British Columbia
• Second in overall World Cup Speed standings (Super-G, Super Combined and Downhill)

BEST FEMALE ATHLETE WITH A DISABILITY

Jessica Long, Swimming

• Won seven gold medals (400 free, 50 free, 100 fly, 100 free, 200 IM, 100 back, 100 breast) and set world records in The Following women’s S8 events: 400m Free, 100m Fly, 50m Fly, 100m Free,  and 200m IM events
• In addition, she is also the current world record holder in The Following events:  50m breast, 200m back, 200m fly, 200m IM, 400m IM, 800m, 1500m

Chelsea McClammer, Track & Field

• Won the most U.S. medals of any team member at the 2011 Parapan American Games; McClammer racked up five gold medals (5000m, 100m, 200m, 400m and 1500m) and a bronze medal in the women’s 800m (T54) at the Parapan American Games, Guadalajara, Mexico
• Was a member of the U.S. Team that competed at the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships

Tatyana McFadden, Track & Field

• Won first place in the women’s wheelchair division of the 2011 Chicago Marathon in 1:45:00 – just narrowly missing having set a new course record; the win qualified for her for the marathon event at the 2012 Paralympic Games
• Won four gold medals (200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m) and a bronze medal (100m) in the women’s T54 division of the 2011 IPC Athletics World Championships, Christchurch, New Zealand

Alana Nichols, Alpine Skiing

• Won overall World Cup Speed Globe (most overall points in downhill and Super G
• 3 gold medals in World Cup Finals
• Member of the US Wheelchair basketball team that is competing in London in the Paralympics.

Melissa Stockwell, Paratriathlon

• Won her second straight ITU Paratriathlon World Championship (2011, 2010)
• Named 2011 USA Paratriathlon Athlete of the Year
• 2012, won Inspirational Comeback Award from USA Triathlon
• Won 2011 Accenture USA Paratriathlon National Championship in New York City (TRI-2 division)

BEST BOWLER

Jason Belmonte

• Won three tournaments during 2011-12 season
• Finished second in money winnings·

Mike Fagan

• Had second-best average (227.73)
• Had most match play appearances (14)

Sean Rash

• Led the PBA tour in money winnings ($140, 250)
• Had high average on tour (228.19)
• Won PBA Tournament of Champions

BEST MLS PLAYER

David Beckham, Los Angeles Galaxy

• Second in MLS in assists in 2011 (15)
• Helped Galaxy win MLS Cup

Brad Davis, Houston Dynamo

• Led MLS in assists in 2011 (16)

Dwayne De Rosario, DC United

• The League’s highest scorer in 2011 (16 goals, 12 assists)
• The only athlete in the history of North American professional sports to win an MVP award for a season in which he played for three different teams

Chris Wondolowski, San Jose Earthquakes

• Tied for MLS lead in goals with 16 during 2011 regular season

BEST TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETE

Walter Dix

• Won the 100 and 200-meter sprints at the 2011 U. S. Track and Field Championships
• Finished second in the 100-meter race at the 2011 World Championships

Carmelita Jeter

• Won the 100-meter race at the 2011 World Championships
• Became the first American to win that race since Lauryn Williams in 2005

Jason Richardson

• Won the 110-meter hurdles at the 2011 World Championships

Christian Taylor

• Making his first appearance at the worlds, the 21-year-old American jumped a world leading 58 feet, 11 1/4 inches to win gold, beating defending champion Phillips Idowu of Britain

BEST INTERNATIONAL ATHLETE

Novak Djokovic, tennis

• Finished as World No. 1, winning a career-best 10 titles in 11 finals en route to a 70-6 match record
• Won three  Grand Slams and a record five ATP Masters 1000 titles  in 2011

Lionel Messi, soccer

• Became the first player to score five goals in a Champions League match
• Smashed the all-time world record for most goals in one season last night – reaching an astonishing 73. The previous record was held by Scotland-born US international Archie Stark, who banged in 70 goals for Yankee side Bethlehem Steel in 1924/25

Cristiano Ronaldo, soccer

• Had 46 goals in 38 games for Real Madrid in 2011-12 season

Yani Tseng, golf

• Led the LPGA in money earned in 2011
• Became the youngest player (age 22) to win five LPGA majors