In Memory Of A Dear Friend And Neighbor

There are times when sports become secondary to every day life. Today is one of those days. In the past hour I have learned of neighbor’s death and a shooting at a synagogue in suburban San Diego. Two tragedies on two different levels. Two events which I wish had never happened.

I dedicate this blog to my neighbor and friend, Mark Weber. Mark was a fervent Giants, Rangers and Yankees fan. We went to a Giants home game in Giants Stadium. I gave his daughter Jets tickets when I could not go. Whenever we saw each other it resulted in a long conversation about our teams, town and family. I would always bust him about how the Devils were doing in the championship years or how badly the Giants would play on any given weekend and he would reciprocate about the Jets. We would commiserate about the Yankees woes and hope that the successes would continue. 

Mark was nearly a lifelong resident of Springfield and a graduate of its public schools. He was passionate about the town and kept track of its sports teams. One of his two daughters attended the high school here; the other went to Union Catholic. His girls competed on the sports teams, for which he was very proud. He had played football in high school, although he no longer kept up his football shape—then again, how many of us really do?

We were politically similar in our views. Both of us took joy in watching what went on in the neighborhood and laughing about something we had seen. 

Every Fourth of July we met in his driveway to watch the Springfield fireworks close by lighting up the skies, with the superior Millburn aerial show behind us. It was great fun to fight off the mosquitos and hope that any rain would not fall, or the temperatures would not be oppressive. After all, it was my way of celebrating his birthday as it concluded every July 4th.

I know that Mark would have had a fit about the Kate Smith/“God Bless America” scenario. First of all, he hated the Philadelphia Flyers, as all Rangers fans do. Kate Smith’s rendition of the anthem was a good luck charm for the team during crucial games or in the Stanley Cup playoffs, dating back to the 1970’s Stanley Cup winners, when the organization would even bring in Kate to sing the song live and rile up the already fervent Philadelphia mob inside of the Spectrum. Secretly, he would think it’s good—one less thing for the Flyers. 

But the compassionate Mark would have said what reasonable people would have said. This was a prevalent thing that happened in the times of the late ’30’s and ’40’s. As much as she sang politically incorrect songs, so did the Rutgers alumnus Paul Robeson, an All-American football player who was a distinguished civil rights advocate in a time when there were few. Robeson was black. 

Mark would agree that the removal of the statue outside of the Comcast Center was too much political correctness and a wrongfully belated attempt at political correctness involving  someone who was deceased and was an entertainer, not a social activist. If anything, Mark would have said, she raised a ton of money for the war effort in World War II with her singing “God Bless America.” She was a patriot, not necessarily a racist.

He would hope the the Yankees would rethink their removal of the song for the seventh inning stretch. However, he would have little faith that the management would restore it as part of the ballpark experience, even if the song was patriotic in nature because she was a patriot. 

We continually revisit the wrongs of the past and cast them in an unfavorable light by applying judgements to actions that weren’t applicable back then. I don’t know how many people look at Paul Robeson and apply the same standards to his singing and life when he sang the same song which is so inappropriate now yet not so much then.

If there is a backlash from this movement, it comes from the one email the Yankees supposedly received from a fan objecting to Kate Smith’s “God Bless America” which started the chain events which has banished the song from games. I can understand that if there was a solid agreement from the African-American community, those most offended by Kate Smith’s song about black people, then I can understand permanently shelving the song. Unilaterally deciding to take her statue away in Philadelphia as an exercise in revisionist history removes her rightful place in team lore and does nothing to cherish her good deeds as a patriot. 

Mark and I would have discussed the Giants shocking move of drafting Duke QB Daniel Jones as the sixth pick in this week’s NFL Draft. He would have noted that Jones had stats at Duke were not that impressive compared to Ohio State QB Dwayne Haskins. Jones threw for 52 TD’s but had 29 interceptions and 17 rushing TD’s in 36 starts. Meanwhile, Haskins accumulated 50 passing TD’s and threw for only 8 interceptions in his one season as a starter. Haskins threw for 20 TD’s and only 6 INT against ranked opponents. 

He would have excoriated Giants’ GM Dave Gettleman, who fell in love with Jones’ potential at the Senior Bowl, and saw him as the future successor to Eli Manning in—3 years—after sitting on the bench and absorbing the action like Aaron Rodgers did behind Brett Favre at Green Bay. Except that Mark would have agreed with the experts that Jones should have been ready to step in as the starter for the aging Manning given he was the sixth pick. Mark would have hated that the Redskins made a better move with Haskins and that New York didn’t wait until their 17th pick in the first round to take Jones, which would have been a more reasonable scenario and would have offered some great defensive talent to the team.

I am certain Mark would have placed Gettleman on thin ice. He would have shaken his head and said “What was he thinking?” Which echoes the sentiments of the legend of Giants’ fans opposed to this pick. 

For now it looks horrendous. One can only hope that Gettleman is right and remains in the front office to see this to fruition. After all, Gettleman traded star wideout Odell Beckham, Jr. to Cleveland, with whose antics, on and off the field, he was not enamored. Just because Gettleman believes his history with the Giants, Carolina as their GM among other teams qualifies him to be a savant, doesn’t resonate well in this market without success. The fans have seen Manning’s decline and, as beloved as Eli is in the annals of Giants fans, they are spoiled by prior success and demand what have you done for me lately.

In contrast, embattled GM Mike Maccagnan seemingly has done fairly well with his choices in the draft. He has addressed needs of the club starting with the #3 pick DT Quinnen Williams from Alabama. Mark would begrudgingly admit that, at least for this year, the Jets did better than his team. Of course, he would not too subtly remind me how many Super Bowl wins the Jets have had since Joe Namath led the franchise to its only win in Super Bowl III.

Mark was not a fan of the NFL and Roger Goodell. He thought that Goodell was paid obscenely and the product was not that good. Mark would not have been happy that Chiefs’ WR Tyreek Hill had allegedly committed child abuse and he would have said that a suspension from the team was a minimal response. 

He was in the sporting goods business, so he knew all about the lack of player safety at all levels of the sport. He wished that the NFL would more actively help those who played and suffered the consequences of the violent hits. While a part of the game, it still was tragic to see the level of mayhem which has grown in tandem with the speed and the size of the players. Physics is an exact science, and the level of physical activity exacts a tremendous toll on its participants—dare I say combatants. While not quite as barbaric as the MMA or UFC, the carnage in football and hockey has too much become an accepted part of the game. 

Mark would have been happy with the results of the substitute team the New York Yankees have fielded. The 10 wins in the last 12 games with this B-list cast of characters would have temporarily made him happy. Like me, he wondered when this will implode. He loved Aaron Judge, bemoaned Gary Sanchez, Luis Severino, Giancarlo Stanton and Dellin Betances for their underachieving. Mark would have shaken his head in amazement at Luke Voit’s 38 game on-base streak, the longest in the majors; he would have said bye-bye to oft injured Greg Byrd, anointing Voit as the starter at first base. Mark still would have questioned the moves of Manager Aaron Boone, who is already a candidate for Manager of the Year after 27 games, piloting the Bombers to a 16-11 mark. And he would have reminded me this is only the end of April; Boston has to get better and how many more injuries will occur like hot hitting Clint Frazier going on the IL after suffering an ankle injury in Anaheim. Such is the fragility of the true Yankees fan—even more so this year—just like the team…

More a Knicks fan than for any other NBA team, he would have said that the team is bound to either screw up free agency or not land top pick Zion Williamson in the NBA Draft Lottery. He, like I, knew the karma wasn’t there with James Dolan running the Knicks and Rangers. It infuriated him how the Rangers have risen to the level of a Stanley Cup finalist only once (2013-14) since their historic win in 1994 ended a 54 year drought. Remember, the Knicks have not won an NBA championship since 1972-73 and have not been in the Finals since 1999 when the underdog team lost in 5 to the San Antonio Spurs. He would have not been enchanted by the Knicks sending former star center Patrick Ewing to represent the team at the lottery, to attempt to replicate the luck of Dave DeBusschere when he was present and the Knicks landed the rights to select Ewing as the number one overall pick in 1985.

Nor would Mark have put much belief in the Golden State Warriors defeating the Houston Rockets in the next round of the NBA Playoffs. Having been extended to a tough Game 6 by the upset-minded Los Angeles Clippers and suffering a season-ending injury to DeMarcus Cousins along with some tweaks to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson on Friday night, we both would have thought that the chances of the Warriors beating the surging Rockets were diminished and that the great run of Golden State was likely coming to an end. I don’t think that he would like Kevin Durant joining the Knicks when free agency started, no matter how well Durant was playing, as demonstrated by his unreal 50 point effort versus the Clippers to clinch the series.

Mark would have thought it was good for Phillies’ slugger Rhys Hoskins to take Mets pitcher Jacob Rhame deep on Wednesday night at Citi Field after Rhame had fired two consecutive fast balls towards Hoskins’ head the night before. The leisurely stroll around the bases was a response to Rhame and the Mets. He would have said “c’mon” to the whole beanball attack and even to the trolling of Rhame after hitting the homer. “Play baseball” Mark would have said, indicating it was, after all, the Mets, followed by his pet phrase: “What do you expect?’

Mark was a religious man, Catholic by choice in support of his wife and daughters. He was active in his church community and naturally liked by all. He would have been appalled by another senseless shooting like in California today or in Pittsburgh exactly 6 months ago. His wife and one daughter are teachers and Mark was none too happy with any of the horrific automatic assault rifle massacres in schools. Like me, he cannot fathom how there isn’t more done to stop this new wave of violence, making peaceful people targets of deranged individuals, full of hate imbued in them, encouraged by counter culture political activity all too prevalent in our political climate today.

Like all rational men and women, Mark would have been disgusted with the machinations at the National Rifle Association, which had internal fighting within the leadership between President Oliver North, he of the Iran Contra infamy, and long time CEO Wayne LaPierre, who usurps the Second Amendment for the NRA’s advancement instead of agreeing to reasonable solutions to the epidemic of gun violence plaguing our nation. Mark and I have concurred that the politicians who are in lock step with the NRA based on PAC contributions, are just as much at fault as the NRA leadership. 

We suffered the loss of a great friend and neighbor on April 27th. I am going to miss those conversations and the July 4th fireworks. Our prayers go out to his wife, Barbara and their two daughters. 

My hope is that the Yankees win the World Series, the Rangers get better, the Giants exit this draft a better team, the Knicks land Zion and the world comes to its senses at some time. These thoughts will stay with me whenever I think of Mark Weber.

Differences

There were two sweeps in the NHL Playoffs opening round. Both were surprises to many. But if you look at the series, you would not be so surprised.

First, the New York Islanders downed the Pittsburgh Penguins with a display of goaltending, defense and scoring worthy of a Stanley Cup contender. To many, this is a surprise, for this is a veteran Pittsburgh team, two years removed from its last Cup win and led by Crosby and Malkin. 

Let that sink in—two years removed from its last Cup win.  A lot happens in a period of two years. Crosby and Malkin are two years older. The roster has had significant changes, including Marc-Andre Fleury going to Las Vegas in the expansion draft and leading the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup finals last season. This is a vastly different Penguins squad, a group that had to struggle to make the playoffs.

They were defeated by an Islanders team that lost its superstar, John Tavares, who elected to sign with his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs. There were numerous changes to the roster. But most importantly, the new coach was Barry Trotz, who guided the Washington 

Capitals to last season’s Stanley Cup and who coached quite well when he was in Nashville. He coached the hell out of his team from the start, pressing the right buttons and that has continued into the playoffs. 

And one more thing—the Islanders gave Washington a run for is money for the Atlantic Division crown. Plus they finished ahead of the Penguins. So even a sweep of the Penguins should have not been that much of a surprise.

Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning tied the NHL regular season record with 128 points. They were strong in every position and seemed to be a lock for a trip to the Finals, opening at home. Except their opponent, the Columbus Blue Jackets, were universally discounted even when outside of the state of Ohio, or for that matter, the Columbus area. 

What Columbus had done to secure the final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs was merely go 9-1 to finish the regular season. They were red hot. Coach John Tortorella had lit a fire under his team and the players responded. CBJ shut down and frustrated the Lightning repeatedly, but that was only after Tampa Bay went ahead 3-0 on the first game. CBJ’s epic comeback fueled the charge and it was lights out for the team that so many thought would win the Stanley Cup. 

Tampa Bay Coach John Cooper’s hollow statement that his team didn’t rise to the occasion because the team faced very few challenges in this nearly record setting season was exactly that—vacuous. There are plenty of people who want a scapegoat, and Cooper certainly fits the bill.

Calgary secured the top seed in the Western Conference. That didn’t matter to the Colorado Avalanche, who took down the Flames in five games, finishing off the trouncing in Calgary Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday night. It was the superior goaltending of the Avalanche coupled with the so-so net minding of Calgary which made the difference. 

A resurgent St. Louis team eliminated Winnipeg on Saturday night. In the remaining series, which are Boston-Toronto, Washington-Carolina, Nashville-Dallas and San Jose-Vegas, they all are far more competitive. With the losses by the two top seeds, this is a wide open chase for the Cup.

Looking at the NBA, the big story has been the gargantuan collapse by the defending champion Golden State Warriors in Game 2 of their series, allowing the Los Angeles Clippers to get into the minds of the supposedly sturdy Warriors team. Patrick Beverley has been a big pain in the rear for Kevin Durant, even getting himself tossed from a game with Durant. 

Steve Kerr had to challenge his team and particularly Durant to meet the challenge when Game 3 was played in Los Angeles on Thursday night. The team and Durant responded in a big way, rolling over the undermanned Clippers behind Durant’s 38 points in 29 minutes—he didn’t have to play at all in the fourth quarter. 

The question is this—was this a momentary lapse by Golden State and was it enough of a wake up call, or will the Clippers get back into the series? Moreover, will the loss of DeMarcus Cousins in the post after he suffered a torn quad injury in Game 1, hurt the Warriors in the short and long run?

The only small surprise in the NBA Playoffs was how easily San Antonio is handling Denver. The Nuggets chased the Warriors for the top spot in the West, losing out by just a few games. The team’s performance has been shoddy thus far, while Greg Popovich has his players right where he wants them to be. Still, Denver evened the series on Saturday.

Eastern Conference giants Boston and Milwaukee are imposing their way on their opponents. Philadelphia has  the upper hand on Brooklyn, but star big man Joel Embiid has been hobbled with a balky knee, which could be troublesome for the 76’ers prospects this series and beyond. Orlando upset Toronto in Game 1 and has been pesky for the Raptors.

Houston behind James Harden has been magnificent and looking invincible thus far. Portland dominated Oklahoma City at home, shutting down Russell Westbrook; in Game 3 at home, Westbrook elevated his play to lead the Thunder. That series might be one of the few series which goes the full seven games.

The Yankees lost first baseman Greg Byrd to a leg injury. Byrd has been injury-riddled  his entire stay with New York. The Yankees have muddled through the schedule thus far, although in their first meeting with Boston, the Yanks swept the equally foundering Red Sox. Gary Sanchez is close to returning to the lineup. Clint Frazier has been the best player so far, but the big guns are far from ready to return to playing. Which is why New York is about a .500 team 20 plus games into the campaign.

Then it happened. So quick and unexpected. En route to a 9-2 thrashing of the Royals, on a routine swing which resulted in a single, Aaron Judge hurt his left side and barely was able to run to first. He was removed from the game and taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital for an MRI on what looks to be an oblique injury. 

While there had been hope in the lineup with the emergence of Frazier, Gleybar Torres, Brett Gardner and Luke Voit among others holding down the fort unit the starts started to return, this is a gut punch to the Yankees hopes. I have been uneasy since the injury occurred. It is a Yankee fan’s nightmare. I hope it is not a portend of more bad things this year when the team has so much promise. No matter the severity of the injury, the time lost with the cumulative loss of manpower is near devastating. This season has dramatically become almost unbearable. 

Milwaukee and the Dodgers are meeting again this weekend, this time in Wisconsin. They appear to be the two strongest NL teams in the early going. Each has a 10 homer hitter—Cody Bellinger for the Dodgers and Christian Yelich for Milwaukee, who hit his 11th off of the Dodgers Ross Stripling on Friday night.  Yelich leads the NL in R.B.I. while Bellinger leads in runs scored—are we looking at the front runners for 2019 NL M.V.P.? And it was great to see a strong performance by Clayton Kershaw in his first start of 2019 against the Reds on Monday night in LA; the Dodgers need him to win.

Jacob deGrom of the Mets has elbow discomfort. He started out well this season, but his last two starts have been disastrous. His elbow pain is alarming yet not surprising given his strenuous pitching last season en route to the Cy Young Award. This injury comes after his large contract extension, again showing why paying big bucks to a pitcher is a tough thing to do with the fragility of the arm.

An interesting note— Saturday night Albert Pujols of the Angels passed Babe Ruth for fifth place on the all time R.B.I. list. While he is no Babe Ruth, Pujols has been a superb hitter in the clutch for years, both in St.Louis and with the Angels. Could this be his last year?

And MLB history was made on Friday night at Yankee Stadium when Yankees reliever Adam Ottavino faced Kansas City outfielder Terrance Gore in the seventh inning. This was the first matchup of a pitcher wearing the number 0 facing a batter wearing number 0. Ottavino struck out Gore on a 2-2- pitch. 

Resulting from the Tiger Woods Masters win, commentators tried to give perspective to this achievement so many years removed form his last win in a major tournament. Two names were mentioned—MIchael Jordan and Muhammad Ali. 

Jordan took off a few years to pursue a career in baseball after winning three NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls. When he returned to the Bulls, Jordan won three more.

Ali was the heavyweight champion when he refused to enter the military when drafted for the Vietnam War. He stayed true to his core beliefs despite major impediments. Eventually, after a number of years away from boxing, he returned to the ring and re-captured the heavyweight championship.

George Foreman was another name some people brought up. Once a heavy weight champion until dethroned by Ali, Foreman later retired, returned and retired again before he re-emerged in his 40’s to fight Evander Holyfield for the heavyweight title, going the full 12 rounds against the younger champion. At age 45 he defeated 26 year old Michael Moore for a share of the crown.

On Pardon The Interruption, the name of Rick Ankiel was brought up. Ankiel had been a star pitcher with the Cardinals before succumbing to a streak of wildness which rendered him ineffective. For two and a half years, Ankiel reinvented himself as an outfielder in the St. Louis farm system. He ultimately was the only player besides Babe Ruth (another Babe Ruth reference!) to have won 10 games as a pitcher and hit 50 homers as a player.

Another individual who had experienced success then failure, only to come completely back, was Andre Agassi. Agassi was ranked number one in the world in 1995. Taking drugs and falling into a deep depression took its toll on his superb game. By 2002 with a dedication to reversing his misfortunes, Agassi was the oldest person in history to reach the number two ranking.

Magic Johnson, once the great leader of the Los Angeles Lakers, tested positive for HIV. He left basketball, returning in 1995-96 after four years away from the game to play credibly for the Lakers.

Monica Seles was the top-ranked women’s tennis player when a deranged man stabbed her in the middle of a match in Germany. She returned over two years later to win the Australian Open.

Add Serena Williams to the list. After winning the Australian Open while 8 weeks pregnant, she survived life-threatening complications in association with the birth of her daughter. In 2018, she made it back to the U.S. Open finals.

While not the length of time experienced by Tiger Woods, golfing legend Ben Hogan was the king of his sport until he was gruesomely injured in 1949 in a car-bus accident. Not given the chance to walk again, Hogan not only walked again but returned to golf, winning the U.S.Open in 1950 and 1951 along with the Masters in 1951before becoming the first player in 1953 to win three majors in a year, until Tiger Woods came along.

I would have mentioned Lance Armstrong in this group of incredible athletes. He survived cancer and became an unbeatable cyclist. Until it was discovered that he used drugs to enhance his competitive status and left the sport in disgrace.

These are iconic names in professional sports, even Ankiel, whose name is known by those who follow the game. Their courage and determination in the face of injury, illness and uncertainty are incomparable. 

Which is why what Tiger Woods did captivated the world—and for good reason.

This Is What Happens In A Week

I went silent for a week and a ton of things happen—not very good for me or for the sports world I treasure. When I was away from the keyboard and in New Orleans visiting our daughter, I was merely out of town but not out of touch.

So I have been asking myself some questions during this period. Some were answered, but not necessarily to my satisfaction. I am sure that you may have many of these same questions.

In college basketball, I can ask this—how did Virginia manage to win the NCAA Championship? Did they really deserve to win the big prize?

The Cavaliers were lucky to have escaped even the opening contest against Gardner-Webb, immediately evoking memories of last year against UMBC, when UVA became the first #1 seed to lose to a #16 seed. Could this happen to this squad again? With a second half performance more worthy of a top seed, UVA won going away.

Did this erase the doubters? Not exactly. This UVA team was eliminated early in the ACC Tournament by Florida State. Despite a gaudy record with only 3 losses, the faithless were aplenty. 

Although they dispatched Oklahoma in the second round, the Cavaliers had plenty of trouble disposing of #12 seed Oregon in the Sweet Sixteen. A low seed and a Pac 12 school—synonymous with mediocrity.

Up next was a Purdue team which had UVA beaten but for star Carsen Edwards making 2 of 3 foul shots at the end of the game which went to OT instead of cementing the win for the Boilermakers. Did this do enough to propel Virginia into the Final Four?

Which is where they met a hungry Auburn team. Auburn, without its top player who suffered a season-ending ACL injury in the Elite Eight OT victory over SEC foe Kentucky. This Auburn team was the first real pedigreed test for UVA. Auburn was white hot, having won the SEC Tournament in trouncing favored Tennessee. While the Tigers escaped a very good New Mexico State team by one in the first round, they subsequently defeated Kansas, and North Carolina as well as the aforementioned Kentucky team. Their #5 seed was way too low.

Auburn should have won the game. They came from 10 points down with 5:20 left and were ahead when UVA dribbled the ball up court in the waning seconds on last Saturday night. That’s when the referees missed an obvious double dribble by Ty Jerome, allowing the Cavaliers’ Kyle Guy, a deadly three point shooter to get off a shot from the left corner. He was bumped by Samir Doughty, who attempted to put up some resistance to Guy’s shot, but instead struck him with his body. Guy sank the resulting three free throws to send the Cavaliers into the title match.

Auburn was disheartened but gracious in an agonizing defeat. Virginia was lucky, and they felt they were a team of destiny, set to erase the year’s memories of the UMBC 

debacle. There was one hurdle left—Texas Tech, victorious by 10 over #2 seeded Michigan State, many people’s favorite to win the tournament.

It took OT, but the championship did go to Virginia. Again, Virginia squandered a 10 point second half lead, needing a three pointer with 12 seconds left in regulation to tie the Red Raiders. Based on an 11-0 run and flawless free throw shooting, UVA won its first ever NCAA basketball championship. 

UVA never played a team higher than a #3 seed, and that was Texas Tech. Were they a worthy champion? In the end, the Cavaliers beat whomever they played. They lost sizable leads, came from behind or played OT and still won. The players believed they were on a mission.

If they had won convincingly, would their championship have been viewed at differently? Of course. What makes them special is that, with an elephant on their back from last year’s disaster, this team took advantage of every conceivable break to win the title.

Yes, doubters, the University of Virginia is this year’s NCAA men’s champs. Very few in the Commonwealth of Virginia or in Charlottesville would think otherwise. There will be little doubt when the banner is hoisted next season in their arena and the trophy is displayed for all to see. In the end, that is all that matters. 

On the women’s side, my interest waned after UConn and Oregon lost in their Final Four games. Baylor was destined to win the tournament, even if it squeaked by Notre Dame. Playing with the heart of a champion, the Lady Bears defeated a game Oregon team, holding Sabrina Ionescu in check just enough to win. This was a UConn team that was a half step behind the rest, and it showed.

In the championship battle, Baylor lost star Lauren Cox  to a knee injury and had four players saddled with 4 fouls apiece. This led to the Fighting Irish to overcoming a first half 17 point deficit to take a one point lead in crunch time. Baylor regained the lead on a jumper by Didi Richards with 33.2 seconds remaining in the contest, only to surrender it back to Notre Dame. With everything on the line, Richards snaked her way to the basket and scored the winner on a scoop layup.

These were the four best teams. Three head coaches with Hall of Fame resumes were leading their players—the legendary Geno Auriemma from UConn, Muffet Mc Graw for Notre
Dame and the victorious Kim Mulkey, who also won a championship as a player. That is some star power. Oregon has kept improving with Ionescu. It would be no surprise to see the Ducks back in the Final Four next season, since Ionescu turned down the lure of being the top draft pick in the WNBA Draft held this past week in order to return to Eugene for her senior year.

I have a profound respect for Auriemma and what his UConn program has meant to women’s college basketball. While I dislike Mc Graw for her angry demeanor, she is a great coach. As for Mulkey, she personifies the gym rat who can understand and dissect a game as well as any coach in men’s or women’s hoops. Besides, her hot pink outfit for the Oregon game was worn very well. How can I root against a woman who can pull that off in front of national TV audience?

Keeping with the basketball theme, we saw the Golden State Warriors play the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Arena on Tuesday night. Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr elected to rest Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Anthony Bogut and and Andre Iguodala. He started DeMarcus Cousins, Draymond Green and, thankfully, Steph Curry.

At least I thought that. In this meaningless contest since the Warriors had already clinched home court for the Western Conference playoffs, I was happy to see Curry hoist three pointers and dribble, steal passes and do what he does best. 

Except that Curry fell awkwardly with a bit over three minutes left in the first quarter after scoring five points. He played on for about a minute, then took himself out of the game and ran up the tunnel.  I was crushed and thought the worst—that I was there and was a Golden State jinx when Curry hurt himself and couldn’t play in the series against the Clippers. I watched Cousins and the reserves pull away from the undermanned New Orleans team, but my thoughts were all about Curry’s condition. Mercifully, it was only a tweaking of his ankle. I felt relieved, but it took until Wednesday morning to learn Curry was okay. 

My final basketball note is from the dysfunctional franchise called the Los 

Angeles Lakers. Unexpectedly and shockingly, Hall of Fame Lakers’ icon Magic Johnson abruptly left his position in the organization to—in his words, “become Magic again.” His announcement surprised owner Jeannie Buss, man-in-charge Rod Pelinka and the real power on the team, Lebron James.

Who can blame Magic for leaving? The team became a circus, replete with distraction upon distraction. His power was usurped and he could not stand to see the disarray that was the norm. 

Then, to top off the bad week for the proud Los Angeles franchise, came the firing of Luke Walton—a really good coach who was thrown into an impossible situation with the uncoachable James, the Bell family side show and injuries to key players including James all which led to a disastrous conclusion to the season. Walton deserved better than this. Maybe Sacramento, which immediately hired Walton, will be a good destination for him.

On a side note—we did see two Warriors on Canal Street in their sweats on Monday night—i think Jordan Bell was one of them. We almost caught up to them. I was going to wish them good luck for the next night. I wonder what their response would have been? We also saw the Warriors board the early bus for the arena on Tuesday. Cousins was the only one we knew. What we did see was how much luggage accompanied them on a two game , three day jaunt. Enough to fill a small truck and both undercarriages of the buses, including at least one set of golf clubs. I guess NBA teams do not travel lightly. 

After the first two weeks of the baseball season, the Yankees resemble a M.A.S.H. unit. Beset with injuries to 12 of its players, with salaries of over $88 million but unavailable to play, the team is hurting in all aspects of the game. They can hit and score, but the pitching is not good enough. 

Brett Gardner shows the wear and tear of a veteran. Greg Byrd and Luke Voit collectively do not enthuse me. Gary Sanchez is enamored with his power; otherwise he remains the same enigmatic player from past years. Gleybar Torres is a solid hitter, prone to mistakes in the field. Clint Frazier possesses the talent to stay in the majors, yet he is a victim of a numbers game once Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks return. J.A. Happ and James Paxton have been mildly disappointing. Maybe the starting corps will be bolstered by the arrival of C.C. Sabathia for his final season Sabathia, Domingo German, Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman combined for a one hitter versus the White Sox. And the relief pitching is under fire, missing the key component of Dellin Betances. The Yankees have almost become unwatchable except for the obligatory Aaron Judge at bats (Including the shortest HR for his career, going 335 feet), and he is not lighting the baseball world on fire in the early going.

As much as the Yankees are not a pretty sight, they still have a small lead over Boston. Returning home from the disastrous opening road trip, having Baltimore visit Fenway has helped. I expect the Red Sox to get better, although they have to be troubled by the loss of velocity in Chris Sale’s fastball. To me, it is no surprise that Tampa Bay is in first place so far. Kevin Cash is an excellent manager and they were a good team, albeit not a playoff team last season.

While very few anticipate Brad Ausmus to change the Angels into a playoff team, the fact that all-world Mike Trout is skipping the series with the Cubs at Wrigley Field is of concern. The last thing the Halos need is to lose Trout, especially with his torrid start. 

Surprising to me is the start of the Seattle Mariners. They jump started their season with wins over Oakland in Japan and have played to a 11-3 record behind solid pitching and the awakened home run bat of Jay Bruce, formerly of the New York Mets. I don’t know if they will continue this pace, or even be contending as the calendar hits September, given that Houston and Oakland reside in the AL West. For now, they have been tough.

In the National League, the Milwaukee Brewers sit atop the Central Division as expected, with the revamped St.Louis Cardinals and Paul Goldschmidt right on their tails. There have been rumblings in Chicago that Joe Maddon is on the hot seat, for Cubs management and fans expect the Cubs to win the NL pennant with the veteran cast they have.

The Dodgers have gone into a tailspin, losing the last 5 games. The season debut of Clayton Kershaw on Monday will be a welcome sight. And who is in first place in the NL West but those San Diego Padres, winners of the Manny Machado sweepstakes. Machado leads the Padres with 4 homers and 8 RBI, while outfielder Will Myers leads the team with a .296 batting average and below outfielder Hunter Renfroe has a .282 average. Kirby Yates has 8 saves and is pitching to a 1.00 ERA. San Diego looks formidable.

The NL East was projected to be a dogfight among NewYork, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Washington. The Mets lead the division for the moment at 9-4, behind solid pitching, including the reemergence of Steven Matz, and despite Jacob deGrom actually having a bad start after 29 straight quality starts. Michael Conforto, newly acquired catcher Wilson Ramos and powerful rookie and budding star first baseman Peter Alonso, who is hitting .370 with 6 home runs, including a 550’ shot in Atlanta, and his 16 RBI offset a slow start by Robinson Cano, who historically heats up in May. Relief pitcher Edwin Diaz, who came over in the trade which brought Cano to the Mets and sent Bruce to Seattle, has been everything the Mets have expected of him.

Right behind the Mets are the Phillies. Prized addition Bryce Harper is batting .325 with an OBP of .491 by way of 4 home runs, 9 RBI, 13 BB and 28 total bases, but also has 15 strikeouts. Jean Segura, Rhys Hopkins and Obdubel Herrera have also started out well for the Phils. Starting pitchers Jake Arrieta and Zack Elfin have been impressive so far. The two teams square off in Philadelphia on Monday for the first time this season.

It is a long season and we haven’t even seen 10% of the 162 game schedule. When the stars return and the weather turns from cold (the Tigers and Twins were snowed out on Friday in MinneapolIs) to more seasonal temperatures, expect the baseball world to heat up.

Two quick notes on Stanley Cup hockey. The Columbus Blue Jackets have opened up a surprising 2-0 lead in their series with the Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Lightning’s best player and probable M.V.P. Nikolai Kucherov is suspended for the next game. The Islanders have gone up 3-0 on the Pittsburgh Penguins.

And a salute to the UMass Minutemen, who lost to Minnesota-Duluth in the NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey title game. In a state where Harvard, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern and even UMass-Lowell have been the recognized powers, it is good to see the flagship state school being successful in a sport the people of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts adore.

Of all of the Majors in golf, I love The Masters because it is so picturesque and so important to the golfing community. This is despite my despising the people who run the Masters and Augusta National Golf Club. They have always been a shallow, misogynistic, bigoted, self-centered bunch who care only about their own egos and the profits they can derive. Yet they have the prettiest tournament and a player joins the elite of golf by winning The Masters. Which is why it was thrilling to me and to millions as well as CBS that Tiger Woods sat two shots behind the leader entering Sunday’s final round. Wouldn’t it be nice if Tiger won again—how good for golf would that be?

The answer is that it was tremendous theater from 9:20 a.m. until about 2:30 p.m. to watch Woods gain the lead on the back nine and never relinquish it on the way to his fifth Masters title. He defied the field and beat the impending weather which forced the early morning start. Woods only trails Jack Nicklaus by 3 major titles, and many thought he would never won another given his back issues and off the course problems. It may have taken 11 years for Woods to win number 15, but in may not take that long for him to capture number 16.

One last remark. The WWE held the Hall of Fame induction for wrestler Bret Hart at the Barclays Center on Monday. In the midst of Hart’s speech, a 26 year old MMA fighter stormed into the ring and attacked Hart. At first, the crowd and some at ringside thought this was another scripted stunt. But it wasn’t and wrestlers intervened to pull away the assailant, who now faces assault charges. Think WWE owner Vince Mc Mahon isn’t privately happy over this?

Just like the Yankees getting hurt all over the roster, the Mets and Phillies taking the early lead in the NL East and UVA and Baylor winning their titles, why am I not surprised about the bizarre WWE fracas? Or Tiger Woods buzzing near the leader on Saturday? In a week where Magic Johnson leaves his beloved Lakers for normalcy, there is little that isn’t surprising.

This is what happens in a week.

Baseball-Basketball Time Of Year?

Baseball. Basketball. Basketball. Baseball. That’s what you get when it’s the end of March. The collision of the two great global sports in the U.S. Which keeps the airwaves of CBS, ESPN and FOX very occupied.

With that in mind, my first topic is…wrestling. Last weekend in Pittsburgh, Rutgers finally had its first two NCAA titleholders. Nick Suriano, a NJSIAA champion while at Bergen Catholic, transferred to powerhouse Penn State, but returned to New Jersey and Rutgers to complete his collegiate career. Last year, Suriano had medical problems which cost him a chance at the title. This season, after a couple of losses to highly-ranked opponents, Suriano came through at both the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA’s, defeating some of his tormentors along the way. His last-second escape in sudden death won the title along with redemption.

Anthony Ashnault was a four time state champ from South Plainfield. He was the most-heralded recruit Rutgers wrestling had ever garnered. Ashnault’s career at RU landed him 4 All-American spots. He also had a series of significant injuries and surgeries which hampered him and got him another chance this season via a medical redshirt from the NCAA.  

Still, going into this final season of eligibility, there were significant questions which were unanswered as he sought the one elusive NCAA title he had come to Rutgers to obtain. Ashnault shed the doubters by racking up the #1 ranking in his weight class heading into the Big Ten Championships and then the NCAA’s, winning both, thereby cementing his legendary status in NJ wrestling lore.

RU scored the most points it has ever put up in an NCAA championship. Coach Scott Goodale made his team into a top Ten team and was rewarded with recognition as the Coach of the Year. Finally something to really cheer about at Rutgers.

Let’s turn to baseball. Both New York teams won their openers. The Yankees, on the strength of homers by Luke Voit and Greg Bird, the two men battling to be the full-time first baseman, downed the Orioles. Masahiro Tanaka won his first Opening Day start in three tries; New Yankee Adam Otttavino, a re-signed Zach Britton and Aroldis Chapman provided nearly perfect relief in support of the Yankees bats. A very nice opener on a sun-splashed afternoon in the Bronx.

Down in D.C., Jacob deGrom, who recently signed an extension worth just over $137 million, recorded his 30th consecutive start allowing less than 3 runs while notching 12 stakeouts in 6 innings. Notable new addition Robinson Cano belted a homer in the first inning against Nats’ ace Max Scherzer in support of deGrom, as the Mets won, 2-0. Scherzer racked up 10 K’s in this duel of two of the best pitchers in baseball.

The Phillies won without Bryce Harper recording a base hit, although he did look snazzy in his green Philly Phanatic cleats. Seattle started now 3-0 after smashing Red Sox ace Chris Sale, another pitcher who recently signed a lucrative extension, en route to a 12-4 victory. The Dodgers smacked an Opening Day record 8 home runs in beating Arizona at Dodger Stadium. Justin Verlander out dueled last season’s AL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell as the Astros beat the Rays 4-1. Oakland shut out Mike Trout and the Angels. 

In total, 48 home runs were hit on Opening Day. This new MLB record must mean the ball is juiced.

Boston won on Friday night, so they avoided two losses to start the season. Ditto Arizona, Tampa Bay, St. Louis and the Angels. The only teams without a win entering Sunday’s contests were Atlanta, the White Sox and Washington.

On Saturday, the Phillies won again, with Harper getting a curtain call from the fickle Philadelphia fans who had booed him on Thursday with his first hit—a home run. The Dodgers rebounded from an extra inning loss on Friday night, led by Clay Bellinger, who hit 2 homers and drove in six as the Dodgers plated 18 runners. 4-1 Seattle beat the Red Sox again, to the delight of Yankees’ fans soured with the loss to Baltimore. The Giants won their first game after two losses to the Padres. Manny Machado hit for a .273 average in his first three games for San Diego.

Christian Yelich, the reigning NL M.V.P., hit another home run on Sunday, making him the 6th player to homer in each of the first four games of the season. He also drove in the game winner on a walk off hit in the same game. The Dodgers scored another 8 runs on Arizona to win 3 of 4. But the supposedly moribund Orioles, who might match last season’s disastrous low in wins, took 2 of 3 at Yankee Stadium. Yankee fans are still unfazed—Boston lost once more in Seattle.

Remember, the season is a marathon. Teams which get out of the gate fast can fizzle out—look at the Mets last year—11-1 to open the season and they didn’t come close to winning the NL East. So I guess that the Yankees aren’t a good March team at home. Blame it on the change of weather?

This week marks the 50th anniversary of my first baseball game wearing the grey flannel uniform of F&M. We traveled to Elizabethtown College for a freshman team encounter. I remember little from the trip in the vans to the western part of Lancaster County. I don’t recall if we won or lost. What I do vividly remember is that, on the first pitch I saw on the collegiate level, I hit a hard line drive to right field for a single. I was stunned—it could have been a double  for anyone else. Nobody was happier than me—and for good reason.

Shunned in Highland Park by a coach supportive of his “boys” who had unmercifully hazed me during my freshman year, resulting in a clash on the bus back from Bernardsville with several of my tormentors, my baseball career was definitely sidelined and I was destined to be a basketball manager. Playing baseball at F&M was vindication from persecution and bullying. 

Before I start in with the NCAA tournament, I have to talk briefly about the Colgate Red Raiders. The team made the tournament as the winners of the Patriot League. They lost to Tennessee,  the #2 seed in the South Region in a game held in Columbus, Ohio. Unlike every other school, the administration at Colgate elected to send the basketball team but not the pep band. Instead, they paid bring in members of the Ohio State band, outfitting them in Colgate gear and passing them off as Colgate students. Except that the administrators failed to tell the members of Red Raiders pep band that they weren’t going to Columbus with the team. Colgate’s lame excuse—the existing pep band was too small. 

I still think that Colgate is a fine academic institution. However, the administration leaves a lot to be desired. This was a classless act and deprived the band members of the thrill and adventure of a lifetime. To me, the essence of college—is to learn and experience things that will remain with the student for a lifetime. Despite their efforts during the season, those Colgate pep band members were unfairly deprived of this tremendous experience.

Thursday night provided some thrilling college basketball. Gonzaga was tested by Florida State but survived. Texas Tech, a team which has made some Sweet 16’s recently, handily defeated last year’s runner-up, the Michigan Wolverines. Virginia had its struggles against #12 seed Oregon but still prevailed.

The most compelling game was between #2 seed Tennessee and #3 seed Purdue. The Boilermakers raced out to a lead which mushroomed to 18 points. The Volunteers rated back and actually led near the end of the game by three, when Purdue star Carsen Edwards was fouled on a three point attempt. Edwards missed the first free-throw and sank the last two to tie the score. In the overtime, it was all Purdue as the Boilermakers made the Elite Eight.

Friday night was not a good night for North Carolina. Bruce Pearl’s Auburn Tigers eliminated the Tar Heels, to the chagrin of TNT analyst Kenny “The Jet” Smith as opposed to his colleague and former Auburn star, Charles Barkley. While Auburn ran away from Carolina, they suffered a great loss with the seemingly gruesome injury to the left leg of Chuma Okeke. This brought Coach Pearl to tears in the post-game interview. This puts Auburn in a vulnerable position when they face off on Sunday.

Michigan State fought off the challenge from LSU to move to the East Region final. Their opponent in that game would be Duke, which barely outplayed a valiant Virginia Tech team. Kentucky fought off a rugged Houston team to move on.

Thus the pairings in the Elite Eight became Virginia-Purdue, Gonzaga-Texas Tech, Duke-Michigan State and Kentucky-Auburn. Three #1 seeds made it to this round along with two #2 seeds, two #3 seeds and a #5 seed being close to a Cinderella team for this year’s tournament.

Texas Tech was the first to punch its ticket to the Final Four. By holding Gonzaga to under 70 points and limiting the Zags to 43% shooting the Red Raiders deservedly earned their spot. This is a hot team—it has been on fire since the start of 2019 and it has the potential to reach the Championship game.

Saturday night’s second game was an epic. Neither team had been to the Final Four since 1984. It took OT for Virginia to stop Purdue’s bid to be the second #3 seed headed to Minneapolis. Despite 42 points again by Purdue’s Carsen Edwards (he scored 42 against Villanova), Virginia used a miracle shot at the buzzer in regulation time to catapult them to the elusive Final Four. Finally a #1 seed made the Final Four in 2019. One year ago, UVA was eliminated by a #16 seed. How do you spell liberation? 

As for Edwards, the junior’s next move should be to the NBA. He set the tournament record for most 3 pointers with 28 in four games and he can score at will and play tough defense. I thoroughly enjoyed watching him play. 

Kentucky had gone to the Final Four 34 times, winning 8 titles. Auburn had never gone to a Final Four. That has changed with the Tigers first win over the Wildcats this season in the game that mattered the most. With Okeke wheeled into the area in Kansas City, he provided an inspirational lift for his teammates. A classic struggle between two highly talented teams went to OT before Auburn could claim victory. Charles Barkley is one happy camper. Bruce Pearl is one of the most animated coaches in the NCAA and he was on full display, sweating profusely through his suit jacket and shirt while imploring and disciplining this Auburn team. Although Auburn was given a #5 seed, they are as close to a Cinderella team as this tournament has produced. 

The final game of the Elite Eight was another barnburner. Back and forth, battling, making unbelievable shots, playing stout defense, the two teams traded leads and emotions. In the end, Michigan State, the Big Ten champs, ruined Duke’s run to the Finals by a 58-57 score. Zion Williamson could not will his Blue Devils to a victory. He is so ready for the NBA, as evidenced by his outstanding double double. His resume will lack one thing he covets—an NCAA title.

The matchups for next Saturday are: Virginia-Texas Tech and Michigan State-Auburn. From what I have seen, any of these team is a worthy champion. Since my bracket is totally eviscerated, let me hazard a guess: Auburn-Virginia is a real possibility here. Of course, so is Michigan State-Virginia or Texas Tech-Auburn or Michigan State-Texas Tech. 

You probably share my feelings here. The best thing to do is simply be by your TV next weekend and again on Monday night to see how this evolves.

The UConn women survived a scare from UCLA in their Sweet Sixteen match. The Huskies trailed heading into the final quarter. Notre Dame, Baylor, Louisville, Oregon, Iowa, Mississippi State and Stanford make up the rest of the Elite Eight. 

It didn’t end for UConn on Sunday in Albany, NY as they were better than #1 seed Louisville. I don’t know if they are the best team in women’s basketball this season, but they sure are in the discussion. It is a record twelve straight Final Fours for Geno Auriemma.

Oregon, behind scoring machine Sabrina Ionescu, took down #1 seed Mississippi State to reach the Women’s Final Four. Notre Dame plays Stanford for the right to meet UConn while Baylor and Iowa meet, the winner to take on Oregon.

We have a winner in Division II Men’s Basketball after the Elite Eight week in Evansville: the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats won 64-58 over the Point Loma Sea Lions, becoming the fifth D II school to finish the season undefeated. California Lutheran is the DII Women’s champ.  Wisconsin-Osh Kosh earlier won the D III Men’s title with a win over Swarthmore. Thomas More stayed undefeated in beating Bowdoin for the DIII Women’s prize. 

The women and men are down to their Final Fours. The NIT Final Four consists of Wichita State, Lipscomb, a winner over NC State on a last second shot, and old friends and Big 12 combatants Texas and TCU. And the NBA is in its final stages with Golden State and Denver tied for the Western Conference lead. The West is all but wrapped up as to the teams making the playoffs. In the East, Milwaukee looks to be the team with most wins overall, but there is a dogfight for the last three spots among Brooklyn, Detroit, Miami and Orlando. 

I abandoned the Yankees game on Saturday after the first inning when Miguel Andujar could not deliver with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning, grounding into a 1-2-4 double play. Sure enough, I came back to the game in the bottom of the ninth to see Andujar strike out to end the game as New York absorbed a 5-3 loss to the Orioles.

Instead, we took the short ride to Oratory Prep in Summit on a 75 degree Saturday to watch Morristown-Beard and the hosts tangle in boys’ lacrosse. We know the Mo-Beard Head Coach Sal Tromonda from our gym at Brooklake Country Club. Interest in this season started early this year as Coach Tromonda excitedly talked about taking his charges to Arizona in March for a week. So we wanted an early peak at the team, and we were afforded a beautiful day.

Mo-Beard lost their first game to Columbia H.S. by a two goal margin. The team seemed to be focused from the start for this game. At the half, the score was 5-4 in favor of the visitors. In the second half, Mo-Beard took control, with some solid hits, takeaways, winning more face-offs, stellar goaltending and some real accuracy in their shots. 

Ultimately Mo-Beard prevailed 10-7 to even its NJ record. Coach Tromonda has a relatively young team and they will make their mistakes, but the talent is evident and the coaching is excellent for the high school level. 

Special Olympics has a funding reprieve by, of all people, President Trump, after Education Secretary Betsy de Vos made like a villain before Congress in her attempts to justify cutting Federal funding for this most worthwhile organization. I saw a powerful rebuke of de Vos on ESPN’s Around The Horn by host Tony Reali, a strong supporter of the Special Olympics, which was one of the most compelling statements I have heard in a while. 

And former Rutgers football head coach Greg Schiano, who was the defensive coordinator under Urban Meyer at Ohio Stage last season, abruptly resigned his new position as Defensive Coordinator for the New England Patriots, citing the need to spend more time with his family and to regain his faith. The embattled Schiano, once beloved in New Jersey but who was unsuccessful as the headman in Tampa and was forced not to take the head job at Tennessee due to his ties to Joe Paterno and the Sandusky debacle while he was an assistant at Penn State, seems to have more trouble ahead. I wish and hope for the best in this unforeseen turn of events. 

I have ignored the NCAA Hockey Sweet Sixteen, Tiger Woods’ reaching the quarterfinals in match play and pro football in general. For good reason.

I am worn out and VEEP returns to HBO tonight for the final season. There is only so much sports even I can be saturated with…after I switch the channel from NBA TV and the Hornets getting demolished by the Warriors at Oracle Arena…