5:39 left in 1st quarter: Rockets 17 - Blazers 15.
Damn, refs are calling this one tight. Blazers fans are getting pissed and rowdy, which is ruining my vision of Portland being a calm, bike-friendly, pot-smoking, progressive city. C'mon Portlandians. For the sake of my sanity, please toke up and tone down a little bit.
Bad news - Deke just went down. Doesn't look pretty at all. Heading out on a stretcher, at which point Portland fans offer support via a standing ovation. My sanity is back, but my heart goes out to the heart and soul of our team. Wishing Deke the best.
Just like that, we return to live action.
End of 1st Quarter. Blazers 28 - Rockets 26.
With that, I'm done blogging about this particular game for a little while. Need to just sit back and enjoy this game after dealing with a fairly nasty cold virus for the last two days.
3:39 left in 2nd quarter: Rockets 48 - Blazers 44.
Wow, great 2nd quarter for Rockets so far. I haven't looked at a box score for exact minutes played, but it seems like we've been able to take a small lead with several starters (Yao, Scola, Battier, and Brooks) on the bench for most of the quarter. I love how Adelman is keeping Yao on the bench as long as possible, especially now that Deke is probably gone for the game. We need Yao to be as fresh as possible in second half.
Halftime. Blazers 53 - Rockets 51.
Yao scored 5 points in 12 minutes yet we stayed in the game on the backs of Artest (15 pts), Lowry (6 pts), and Wafer (12 pts). If we can reestablish post game with Yao, I really like our chances.
Not sure we can do anything differently to stop Aldridge. Just play him man-up with Scola, Hayes, or Landry and hope he cools down. Despite being a fellow Longhorn, I don't see him carrying a team for an entire game. Roy, on the other hand, can carry a team on his back, just not when Artest or Battier is chasing him around all game long.
End of 3rd quarter: Rockets 72 - Blazers 72
Hell fu*k yeah! Brooks hits a huge 3 followed by Artest slamming it home to send the game into the 4th quarter tied at 72. Still need to get Yao involved in this game, but what a way to end 3rd quarter. Let's do it!
Damn it, Rockets end up losing a tight one 107-103. Hopefully we can head back to Portland next week with a controlling 3-1 lead. Need sleep, peace.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Nuggets-Hornets Game 1 Observations
1. Why does the media always laud Chris Paul for playing so well for being such a small player? He doesn't look that small to me. Look at him standing next to Billups, maybe an inch or two shorter at most. Am I the only one that feels this way?
2. Denver is a lot better than I thought. Billups, Melo, JR Smith can light it up at anytime. Nene, Martin, and Chris Anderson are fairly physical inside. Ok, maybe they're not that great but still better than I thought.
3. Dos Equis commercial. "I don't always drink beer, but when I do...I prefer Dos Equis." My life sucks!
4. This is a very physical game. I predict a fight before the series is over. Tyson Chandler will definitely be involved from the Hornets side. Nene, Melo, or Kenyon Martin from the Nuggets.
5. Speaking of fights, remember when Van Gundy held onto Zo's leg for dear life?!! Never would I have imagined him being one of my favorite NBA personalities at that time of my life (which he now is).
6. As I watch the NBA Playoffs, I wonder how anybody can like watching baseball better than basketball.
7. On that note, the NBA Playoffs beats March Madness by a landslide. Yeah, I said it.
8. Okay, back to the Nuggets-Hornets game. 94-69 Nuggets with 9:06 left in the game. Nothing to report here.
9. Just saw a commercial with Charles Barkley. Have met him twice and love the fact that he's a friendly, funny, down-to-earth guy but still find it funny that he aspires to be Governor of Alabama. If there is a state where he can make those dreams happen, states like Alabama, Arkansas, and Louisiana are definitely the ones to do it in. See Bobby Jindal.
10. Having just thrown Arkansas under the bus, I must say I am always perplexed that both Bill Clinton and Wal-Mart, two American icons, sowed their roots in such a crap hole of a state. What does this say about our country? Arkansans, don't mind me...I've never even been to your state. I'm just from Texas and have been told your state sucks.
2. Denver is a lot better than I thought. Billups, Melo, JR Smith can light it up at anytime. Nene, Martin, and Chris Anderson are fairly physical inside. Ok, maybe they're not that great but still better than I thought.
3. Dos Equis commercial. "I don't always drink beer, but when I do...I prefer Dos Equis." My life sucks!
4. This is a very physical game. I predict a fight before the series is over. Tyson Chandler will definitely be involved from the Hornets side. Nene, Melo, or Kenyon Martin from the Nuggets.
5. Speaking of fights, remember when Van Gundy held onto Zo's leg for dear life?!! Never would I have imagined him being one of my favorite NBA personalities at that time of my life (which he now is).
6. As I watch the NBA Playoffs, I wonder how anybody can like watching baseball better than basketball.
7. On that note, the NBA Playoffs beats March Madness by a landslide. Yeah, I said it.
8. Okay, back to the Nuggets-Hornets game. 94-69 Nuggets with 9:06 left in the game. Nothing to report here.
9. Just saw a commercial with Charles Barkley. Have met him twice and love the fact that he's a friendly, funny, down-to-earth guy but still find it funny that he aspires to be Governor of Alabama. If there is a state where he can make those dreams happen, states like Alabama, Arkansas, and Louisiana are definitely the ones to do it in. See Bobby Jindal.
10. Having just thrown Arkansas under the bus, I must say I am always perplexed that both Bill Clinton and Wal-Mart, two American icons, sowed their roots in such a crap hole of a state. What does this say about our country? Arkansans, don't mind me...I've never even been to your state. I'm just from Texas and have been told your state sucks.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Rockets 108 - Blazers 81 - YES!
Great start for the Rockets in Game 1 of the 2009 NBA Playoffs. Besides winning the game, they were able to rest Yao the entire fourth quarter and must've sucked just a tad but of life out of the Blazers. Even after Yao got off to such a great start, I love how Adelman decided to stick Mutumbo in the game and gave him plenty of minutes tonight (I advocated for this on both Facebook and an earlier blog post this week). Landry and Hayes are great, but we need a guy who can control the defensive paint like Mutumbo. Other than that, all of the Rockets really stepped up, even after the Blazers put up a very good fight in the first half. I assume Game 2 will be tougher but love seeing the Rockets turning it up a notch in the playoffs.
Also happy that I stuck to my plan and started to blog about NBA Playoffs by writing about the 1st quarter. By doing so, I learned a very important lesson - no way in hell I can do live basketball blogging. In addition to being boring, it's way too time-intensive for the writer in question. Furthermore, it's hard as hell to watch the game and type at the same time. Having said that, I'm not throwing in the towel for my NBA playoff blogging. Instead, I'm simply adjusting. I'll be looking for interesting stories to follow throughout the NBA playoffs and add a little touch of Vilasinator Analysis to equation. One way or another, I just want to practice writing and give myself something productive to do. Okay, maybe not productive, but you get the point.
Game 2 is Tuesday, 9 PM CST. Let's do it!
Also happy that I stuck to my plan and started to blog about NBA Playoffs by writing about the 1st quarter. By doing so, I learned a very important lesson - no way in hell I can do live basketball blogging. In addition to being boring, it's way too time-intensive for the writer in question. Furthermore, it's hard as hell to watch the game and type at the same time. Having said that, I'm not throwing in the towel for my NBA playoff blogging. Instead, I'm simply adjusting. I'll be looking for interesting stories to follow throughout the NBA playoffs and add a little touch of Vilasinator Analysis to equation. One way or another, I just want to practice writing and give myself something productive to do. Okay, maybe not productive, but you get the point.
Game 2 is Tuesday, 9 PM CST. Let's do it!
Live from...Houston, Texas
Covering Houston Rockets vs Portland Trailblazers. Game 1 of 2009 Playoffs in Portland, OR.
8:41 left in 1st quarter: Yao already has 9 points. They're going to him early and often. McMillian calls timeout. Expect them to adjust, possibly front Yao. How will the Rockets respond? Gotta minimize dribbling, maximize passing. Swing it to man at top of key, look for passing lanes to get it into Yao inside. Nothing there? Swing again to man on weakside, again look for passing lane to Yao, who should be moving back and forth between the lane. Here we go...
Coming out of timeout, Blazers go straight to Roy, who responds with 4 relatively easy buckets, going right by Artest each time. As good as Ron-Ron is, maybe we should switch Battier on him?
2:03 left in 1st Quarter: Blazers came hard, Rockets weathered the storm. Despite giving up quite a few buckets to Roy (who is a lot better than I thought), Artest looks a lot faster than he looked during regular season. Rockets are playing at a very high level. Coming out of this timeout, Rockets' bench will need to keep it up because Blazers are young and deep.
End of 1st Quarter: Wow, high-flying first quarter. This is intense. The way the Rockets have played on offense, they'd be destroying most teams during a typical regular season game. Kind of worries me. In other news, I'm realizing how hard blogging a freakin' basketball game is. Ready for a nap but will settle for a little break during 2nd quarter. Be back soon!
8:41 left in 1st quarter: Yao already has 9 points. They're going to him early and often. McMillian calls timeout. Expect them to adjust, possibly front Yao. How will the Rockets respond? Gotta minimize dribbling, maximize passing. Swing it to man at top of key, look for passing lanes to get it into Yao inside. Nothing there? Swing again to man on weakside, again look for passing lane to Yao, who should be moving back and forth between the lane. Here we go...
Coming out of timeout, Blazers go straight to Roy, who responds with 4 relatively easy buckets, going right by Artest each time. As good as Ron-Ron is, maybe we should switch Battier on him?
2:03 left in 1st Quarter: Blazers came hard, Rockets weathered the storm. Despite giving up quite a few buckets to Roy (who is a lot better than I thought), Artest looks a lot faster than he looked during regular season. Rockets are playing at a very high level. Coming out of this timeout, Rockets' bench will need to keep it up because Blazers are young and deep.
End of 1st Quarter: Wow, high-flying first quarter. This is intense. The way the Rockets have played on offense, they'd be destroying most teams during a typical regular season game. Kind of worries me. In other news, I'm realizing how hard blogging a freakin' basketball game is. Ready for a nap but will settle for a little break during 2nd quarter. Be back soon!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
NBA Playoffs
Yesterday, I questioned my blog and searched for a central theme. Saturday, the NBA Playoffs begin. How convenient. I'm set! I'm covering the playoffs, beyatches.
For starters, here is my Facebook status today:
Playoffs have arrived. Rockets. Blazers. Please post Yao up over and over again. If fronted, please swing the ball to weak side. Please give Barry (composure for 2nd unit), Deke (intensity), and Cook (shooting) just a little bit of court time to keep other guys fresh. Yes, I just pushed for a 12-man rotation. It's do or die! Please, please advance to round 2.
This is second time I've referenced a Facebook status on my blog. Wonder if this will be the norm of the world one day. We be gettin' dumbed down everyday this world turns. Don't believe me...just yesterday, there were tea parties all across our country, probably organized by same people who supported a trillion dollar war in Iraq. Something's gotta give, geniuses.
Ok, went off tangent, but I'll be focusing on NBA Playoffs during next few weeks. Rockets baby!
For starters, here is my Facebook status today:
Playoffs have arrived. Rockets. Blazers. Please post Yao up over and over again. If fronted, please swing the ball to weak side. Please give Barry (composure for 2nd unit), Deke (intensity), and Cook (shooting) just a little bit of court time to keep other guys fresh. Yes, I just pushed for a 12-man rotation. It's do or die! Please, please advance to round 2.
This is second time I've referenced a Facebook status on my blog. Wonder if this will be the norm of the world one day. We be gettin' dumbed down everyday this world turns. Don't believe me...just yesterday, there were tea parties all across our country, probably organized by same people who supported a trillion dollar war in Iraq. Something's gotta give, geniuses.
Ok, went off tangent, but I'll be focusing on NBA Playoffs during next few weeks. Rockets baby!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Questioning my Blog
Recently, I've had a very difficult time coming up with things I want to write about. Sooo, I asked a close friend what he thought about my dilemma and my blog in general. His response - "There's no structure. Nothing that pulls me in or leaves an impression." Ouch. Thanks Katutu.
In all honesty, I agree with Katutu. Just like my life, my blog needs structure. A central theme that holds it all together during thick and thin. Kind of like Phil Jackson's triangle offense.
When I find the theme I'm looking for, I'll be challenged to stick to the script. Let's see what happens...
PS - Suggestions are welcome.
In all honesty, I agree with Katutu. Just like my life, my blog needs structure. A central theme that holds it all together during thick and thin. Kind of like Phil Jackson's triangle offense.
When I find the theme I'm looking for, I'll be challenged to stick to the script. Let's see what happens...
PS - Suggestions are welcome.
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