Win or Go Home for the Butler Bulldogs

Well it all comes down to tomorrow night for Butler.  Not exactly the season they envisioned for this year, but it's hard to stay on top when you lose important parts along the way.  This season of the Bulldogs has been all about the young talent that's there, and some of the older guys trying to step up to lead this team.  It's been an up and down road that really hit hard in the beginning of this season.

But it all comes down to this Horizon League Tourney. Butler can get hot and win this league tourney to advance to the Big Dance, where the past two years have been amazing.  If Butler would be able to make a run to the tourney, that might be amazing enough since this will be a tough road alone.  Butler gets a home date tomorrow night with Wright State, but then that could be the last home date as Butler is at its lowest seed of this tourney in five years sitting in fifth place.

Tough hill to climb, but last year saw UCONN ride a league tourney win into the NCAA tourney and end up as champion against what team...oh yea the Butler Bulldogs. Can this be the Butler Way again?

On the Sidelines 36

On the Sidelines 36

Indianapolis Colts News
Luck in Indianapolis

Indiana Pacers News
Pacers First Half Recap
Paul George All-Star Debut

Butler Bulldogs News
Get Ready for Tuesday

Good Things Come in Three's

What a day in the NBA yesterday as there were three major things that jumped out to my eyes.

1.  The Heat are rolling along, and while that's not the best thing, there's no denying that they are looking more and more dominant. I believe they're on a winning streak that's been all on the road and has been all by double digits.  That's a pretty scary thought.  Of course this Heat team was dominant at times last season, and well they couldn't finish the job.  So maybe they will implode in the playoffs, and maybe Lebron won't show since that's happened before in the playoffs.

2.  The Thunder had some ridiculous stat lines yesterday night.  First off, let's look at Serge Ibaka had a triple double of 14 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 blocks.  That's right 11 blocks by himself, just to put that in perspective the Pacers TEAM yesterday had that many as a TEAM.  To me that stat line might be more impressive than Kevin Durant scoring 51 points and Russell Westbrook scoring 40, which is impressive enough. I believe I heard that Ibaka has had three games with over 10 blocks.  He's a defensive presence that guys won't be coming down the lane anymore.  But then you had Durant scoring his career high of 51 points and Westbrook gets overshadowed with his 40 points.  Another team that's looking to be very dominant is this Thunder team, even though this game went in overtime, and that pairing accounted for 91 of the Thunder's 122 points.

3.  Linsanity keeps moving along.  Now, I'm not trying to get on this bandwagon, but there's no denying that Jeremy Lin is becoming a great story for the NBA.  Through his first career eight games, he's off one the point total that Michael Jordan had. Believe it or not, Lin has the second highest point total through his first career eight games than anyone else in the NBA, but Jordan.  Pretty high company there.  Of course we have to see how it all plays out, I don't think Lin will end up near Jordan by any means, but for now, I am sitting back and enjoying this ride he's having. For me, the biggest thing about it is the fact that he was almost cut, and now look at what he's doing.  He's really making the Knicks a complete team.  But so much media on it is going to be tiresome, and I think things need to be done in moderation.

On the Sidelines 35- Catch me at AlwaysMillerTime.com

On the Sidelines 35

This week's episode features the ever exciting Peyton Manning and Jim Irsay Saga, the Pacers hit a fun, I got a new position, Lebron speaks on return to old team, and the Butler Bulldogs hit the end of their season.

Indianapolis Colts News
When is the Saga Over?

Indiana Pacers News
http://alwaysmillertime.com/
Third Loss in a Row
Lebron Open to Cleveland?
NBA Standings

Butler Bulldogs News
Butler Bulldogs Clubhouse on ESPN
Horizon League Standings

Lebron open to a return to Cleveland????

So Lebron James is open to the idea of returning to Cleveland? Which if you really think about this statement, it makes sense for him to say that.  I mean what else would Lebron say?

All along, he wants to be loved by fans, and he wants to be the best player he can be, so what better way to turn this tide than to say oh yea I could return to Cleveland if the fans will take me back?  I think there's not much of hatred as there was anyways since Miami lost last year. If Miami wins last year, then there's no way he's making this statement.

Leads me to another thought that Lebron might as well return to Cleveland is Miami doesn't win it this year or next year. I mean why keep chasing after the title, and just go finish the career where you started?  To me, that would mend the bridge a bit, and maybe show that Lebron isn't a bad guy, which I think he isn't anyways.  He's looked at as a bad guy with the whole way he left, but who knows how much of that was his "decision" to have that tv special and what not?

And of course, this ultimately means nothing other than a discussion point since who knows the future holds for James? But Lebron is obviously wanting to be on the good side of fans, especially back in his home of Ohio, so this might be a step in that direction.

Third Loss in a Row for the Pacers

Where is that Pacers team that was rolling along and taking care of business?  They've hit a rough spot here, and it won't get any easier on Tuesday night when the Miami Heat visit town for a Valentines Day game.  Will there be love in the air for the Pacers?  Last night, they just got outplayed after giving up that 13 point lead, and never seemed to get going in the past three games.  Danny Granger had 18 points in the first quarter and finished only with 26 points.  I will say I predicted he would score 24 points, so kudos to me for almost getting that right!  But overall, the team had to scramble to make it interesting after getting down by 12 in the fourth quarter, and end up losing by 4 points 113-109.  These teams know how to put up the points when they meet as I believe I heard they average over 110 points each when playing.  It was a throwback game with the throwback uniforms on.  The Pacers let guys like Ty Lawson and Corey Brewer score at will as they each put up 27 points and 19 points respectively.  Time for the Pacers to get back to doing what they were doing, and what better time to do it then Tuesday night against the Heat.  Show that this Eastern Conference isn't all about the Bulls and the Heat.  Time to get back to playing smash mouth basketball and finding that open man.

On the Sidelines 34- Tough Stretch for the Pacers

On the Sidelines 34

Sticking to the usual discussions about the Indianapolis Colts, who had a quiet week with no news about the Peyton Manning situation, then jumping into the tough stretch for the Indiana Pacers and where they stand in the standings, and finishing up with some Butler Bulldogs talk. 

Indianapolis Colts News
Peyton Manning and Jim Irsay: When is the Saga Over?

Indiana Pacers News
Pacers Beat the Jazz Tuesday Night
Pacers Lose to the Hawks
Roy Hibbert Makes All Star Reserves
Pacers on Losing Streak After Falling to Grizzlies

NBA News
NBA Standings

Butler Bulldogs News
Butler Beats Youngstown State
Horizon League Standings

It Comes Full Circle for Mr. Hibbert

After a year of trying to get his head right, it looks like Roy Hibbert is finally making that stride towards the type of player Pacer fans thought he would be.  He just got that acknowledgement by the league as well in his first of what will hopefully be more All Star Selection.  He was picked to be a reserve on the team, which is a great statement to what turnaround Hibbert has had.  He is the type of player who needs that confidence to get going, and when he gets going, he's hard to be stopped. He has such a soft touch to his game I am surprised the ball makes it to the basket half the time.  But he really has improved his game on the low block, and can turn to face the basket or turn away for little hook shot.  It's amazing to think that last season he was laying on a couch asking a shrink to him help get his mind right, and now look at him.  He's definitely a big part of this Pacers team.  He brings a fun energy to the team that fans can get behind, especially with the fact that he has his own section, Area 55, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.  Like I've been telling people all along, the time is now to support this Pacers team, and having an All Star on there should help out.

Butler Takes out the Penguins of Youngstown State: 68-59

Chrishawn Hopkins stepped up his game scoring 19 points for the Bulldogs as they got a good win, and have some shred of hope to climb into the Horizon League Standings.  Still going to be a tough fight, but after seeing Cleveland State, the league leader, fall, there's an outside shot with a couple of wins and a couple of losses by the top teams this Horizon League Race could get interesting. But just like always, it's one game at a time.  And what a game was had by the young pups on this Butler team.  Jackson Aldridge and Roosevelt Jones, two freshmen, put up 15 points and 11 points.  Ronald Nored, the small point guard on the team, had 11 rebounds.  He has tried to do all he can in all areas of his game for this team.  He is one of the few if only senior on the team, so he's been a part of the past two Final Four runs, and I am sure would love to do that again.  But it's going to be a rough climb for this team.  The Butler Way could make an appearance and maybe this team works its magic in the Horizon League Tourney to get the automatic bid.  Then all bets are off at the Big Dance.

Playing Atlanta at home is the Pacers Kryptonite

Another loss for the Pacers on the road at Atlanta. That marks nine times the Pacers have lost there.  Nine times.  In a season where you need all the wins you can get, the Pacers needed that win.  To get off the losing streak in Atlanta, and to keep momentum going.  The past couple of weeks the Pacers have been a bit up and down.  At home the night before, the Pacers were up by twenty one at one point, and last night's game they were down by twenty one.  They tried to make it close getting the lead down to eight points, but it's just so tough to come back when you're down that much, and especially playing the night before.  Danny Granger put up twenty one points in the loss.  But nothing else highlighted this game.  The Pacers will travel to Memphis to play Friday night, and hopefully will get a win there to get moving back in the right direction.

First Win of 7 games in 9 nights for the Pacers

Well after a week of five games last week, the Pacers are off running into this week as they hit game one last night of seven games over the next nine nights. Getting a win last night did not come easy even after being up 21 points. I was at the game, and never realized it got as high as that much. I knew we were up 17 at some point, and never thought that we were up even more.  Tough to put that game away, but the Pacers did get the job done.  Danny Granger finally woke up, which I read about, and found out that he took some sleeping medication the night before that didn't wear off.  It wore off enough for Granger to get the job done in the fourth quarter when the Pacers needed him, and possibly helped his case for an All Star bid.  That probably won't happen, but still hard to look best him as the best player right now on one of the top teams in the East.  Roy Hibbert was definitely pulling on his shorts towards the end of the game, and I couldn't put my finger on what was wrong with him.  With Hibbert, he's always full of energy the whole game, but he ended up not making it down the court some of the game, and I hope that's nothing major.  Darren Collison was let loose, and boy did he take advantage of that. It was almost lay up drills at time as he got his best scoring of the season with 25 points.  Paul George was doing what he could do to help the team, and hit some three pointers as he is really improving that part of his game.  Just an all around great effort from the team as they were able to get the job done at the end.  Hibbert said it best as he stated that last year they would have lost that game.  That shows the great coaching job Frank Vogel is doing as he shows how much he believes in this team, and I will end this post as I've been ending a lot of my Pacers post: It's time for the FANS to believe in this team.

Peyton and Irsay: When is the Saga Over?

When does this whole thing actually end?  I mean I guess you can only talk so much about it, and sit back to let it go on its own terms.  But what a weird ride for it.  And I think if you would have told me when Manning first was drafted that there was a possibility he wouldn't finish his career here, I would have laughed in your first.  But now it's leaning towards that and what a bad thing.  Indianapolis got lucky we had Reggie Miller stay his whole career with the Pacers, and here we could have Manning play his whole career with the Colts. How many cities could say something like that?  Two legends, hall of famers, ambassadors for the city, and whatever other adjective you want to attach, going out with the teams they came into.  That would be quite the story line in my own eyes, and I am sure one that could be brought up if it is going to happen.  Even if Manning is not a Colt, that is all we will remember him by.  It's like the comparison of Montana, does anyone truly remember his days with the Chiefs? Reading an article today Manning, Colts Should Work it Out really brought all of this to light for me. I knew that Montana left the 49ers and Steve Young took over, but was too young to understand why it actually happened. Guys like that, you keep, no matter what the price. I know that's definitely the fan speaking out in me, but what else am I? In the long run, anyone involved with sports is a fan of some team and some player.  No one wants to think about the long term goals and the idea that sports is ultimately a business.  We want our teams to win, players to stay there, players to get their status, and then those same players to ride off in the sunset on their own terms.  Then we celebrate the great careers of those guys with our teams.  Just think if this all does work out, and Manning can stay a Colt, retire in whatever year, and the celebration that would follow.  Remember the Reggie Miller one, where there wasn't a dry eye in the house, this one would be even bigger because Peyton did get that championship that eluded Reggie.  So like Gene Wojciechowski said in his article as the last lines, and one that every Colts fan should state:

"If healthy, Manning belongs in one place in 2012.

In Indianapolis. In Colts blue and white. The succession plan can wait."

Super Bowl- Giants Win

The Big Game

That's about how I feel after last night's game. I felt it was just anti-climatic.  You look at the game winning touchdown, and Ahmad Bradshaw almost didn't go in and wanted to kneel it to run out more clock, so it just felt off.  The catch by Mario Manningham will be talked about more because it kept the drive alive, as did David Tyree's catch back in 2007. But we did get some history in the game.  Eli Manning went 9-9 in the beginning, which is a record for best start to a game.  Then Tom Brady threw 14 or 15 completed passes in a row, which is a new record.  Just not a lot of big plays to this game. Almost more of a grind it out, and get whatever score you can type win for the Giants. I expected the Giants to win, so that could be partly why I felt blah after it. I think too I didn't have a big invested interest in this one.  So we can talk about all the other stuff, like the prop bests, and that horrible halftime show.

Halftime Show

This was just bad.  Granted, I'm not a Madonna fan, but hey I enjoy her early early songs. They're catchy and fun.  But she looked bad out there, and I wish she would have fallen on her face as she tripped up during her set.  That new single of hers is garbage, and surely people don't believe that is a good song.  Not even close to good.  MIA threw the bird, but I missed that, so no excitement there.  Cee- Lo Green was out there, but did he do anything than look like a preacher.  LMFAO were out there, and sang what a verse or two and danced.  There was some cool graphics going, but other than that, halftime was nothing. 





On to the Bets     

How Many Times Will Peyton Manning Be Shown On Television During The Game?
Obviously this is something to think about as it's in Peyton's house. And his brother is in the Super Bowl. The whole family will be there. I'll go over four times Peyton is shown on tv. And possibly talked to once.

I don't know if Manning was even there.  There was the shot of the family up in some suite, but Manning did not show up on camera once, which surprised me a bit.  Maybe he had to stay home and take care of the twins.


How Many Times Will David Tyree's Catch Be Shown During The Game?
We all remember this catch as it was right on his helmet and at a crucial time. Now for this one, I think if the Giants are threatening to score, the odds go up this will be shown a few times. But if it's a Patriots blowout, I bet this doesn't get shown at all. I will say over two times this catch shows up.

This was once right after the Mario Manningham catch.


What Will The Color Of Gatorade Be During The Gatorade Bath?
People really bet on this??? Tell me they don't bet on this. I'm going to say clear, don't want to get the coach all weird looking with some red or blue gatorade. Even though those taste the best.

Purple, I wouldn't have thought about purple.


How long will it take Kelly Clarkson to sing the national anthem? (over/under 1:34)
I am going over and probably right at two minutes. She tends to belt out things longer than they need to.

Looked like this was right at the 1:34 mark, so wrong on this one. I thought with kids singing as well this could have been drawn out.


How about what songs will Madonna "sing" at halftime?
I'm going to say Music, Vogue, and her new single. 

Hey I was right, except I hadn't thought about Like a Prayer.  


Who will be the MVP?
Eli if the Giants win. Brady if the Pats win.

I was right!


Coin Toss?
Heads.

I don't even remember what this was. I know there was a stat that the NFC had got 14 in a row for the coin toss, but the Pats got this one.


Which team scores first?
Giants with a field goal.

A safety??? I wouldn't have thought that a safety would be the first score of a game. I did see some guy bet 1,000 bucks on that, and won $50,000.  Good for him.


Which team scores last?
Giants with a field goal to win or go up in the game.

Partly right because the Giants did score to go up, but it was a touchdown, and not a field goal.


Which team wins?
Giants in a nail biter just like 2007.

Giants win! And I can't find any good Little Giants clip to show here, but just think of that scene where the wife of the other team was chanting "Giants, Giants, Giants!"

Super Bowl Prop Bets

Admit it you don't care about the Super Bowl, you just want to bet on all the side stuff.  Here I present some of my favorite ones as I've been researching this aspect of the Super Bowl.



How Many Times Will Peyton Manning Be Shown On Television During The Game?

Obviously this is something to think about as it's in Peyton's house.  And his brother is in the Super Bowl. The whole family will be there. I'll go over four times Peyton is shown on tv.  And possibly talked to once.

How Many Times Will David Tyree's Catch Be Shown During The Game?

We all remember this catch as it was right on his helmet and at a crucial time.  Now for this one, I think if the Giants are threatening to score, the odds go up this will be shown a few times.  But if it's a Patriots blowout, I bet this doesn't get shown at all.  I will say over two times this catch shows up.

What Will The Color Of Gatorade Be During The Gatorade Bath?

People really bet on this??? Tell me they don't bet on this. I'm going to say clear, don't want to get the coach all weird looking with some red or blue gatorade. Even though those taste the best.

How long will it take Kelly Clarkson to sing the national anthem? (over/under 1:34)

I am going over and probably right at two minutes.  She tends to belt out things longer than they need to.

How about what songs will Madonna "sing" at halftime?

I'm going to say Music, Vogue, and her new single.  

Who will be the MVP?

Eli if the Giants win.  Brady if the Pats win.

Coin Toss?

Heads.

Which team scores first?

Giants with a field goal.

Which team scores last?

Giants with a field goal to win or go up in the game.

Which team wins?

Giants in a nail biter just like 2007.

Butler and the Pacers both fall last night

Bad night for the teams here in Indianapolis as the Pacers fall to the Magic and the Butler Bulldogs fall to the Detroit Titans.

Indiana Pacers
How do you explain that the Pacers lose twice to the Magic both times at home?  Granted this was a back to back, and the Pacers played a tough game against the Mavericks the night before.  But it's just hard to figure out.  From the sounds of the game, this felt like one neither team wanted to win though.  The Pacers tried to make it interesting there at the end as they furiously came back from twelve down.  This seems to be the type of team that can make those runs to at least try to get back in the game, but they can't always finish that.  The offense sputters a bit at times too and those stretches are just bad to watch.  Things got a bit chippy in this one as well as a pair of double technical fouls, which lead to an ejection of Quentin Richardson. Looks like the Pacers reputation might be spreading around the league.  Doesn't surprise me that Danny Granger would be jawing away with someone, he tends to get frustrated when his game isn't going well, and that's what happened last night.  So these teams will meet again one final team in March, and it's at Orlando, which I will predict is going to be a Pacers win as the road team has won each time.

Butler Bulldogs
The fact that I couldn't even find an ESPN recap of this game goes to show how far down Butler has fallen. Just think two years in a row of making it to the National Championship game, and now this team might not even sniff the NCAA Tourney. It's going to take a run in their own league tourney to make it there and that's going to be rough as Butler is in the lower half of the Horizon League.  This loss puts them at 13-12 overall, 7-6 in the Horizon right around fifth place three games out of first.  Those top two spots are so important to earn, but I don't think Butler will be around there.  Just gotta finish this season strong, and do what they can in the league tourney.  This is another team that goes through those tough stretches of bad offense.  The defense can lock down and try to get some offense going.  But guys just can't seem to make baskets when they need to.  And they have guys like Andrew Smith who should be more aggressive about scoring.  But he dishes it out or waits too long to take it to the basket.  Chrishawn Hopkins had a great start to the season and then dropped off mightily as well.  Just hard to find the guy who can take this team on his back and get them going.   I like to think Roosevelt Jones can be that guy and maybe he starts it now because he has stepped up his game and he's only a freshman.  Just a rough season for the Bulldogs, but who knows what kind of magic they can find here in the final games.

On the Sidelines 33- Can the Pacers have a perfect week?

On the Sidelines 33

What a week that was for the Indiana Pacers.  So far they are perfect this week with a game to go tonight against the Orlando Magic at home.  Win tonight, and they will be 5-0 this week.  Jim Irsay and Peyton Manning take over the Super Bowl as this saga continues to get worse.  There's a Super Bowl tomorrow, and I give out my prediction on that.  The Butler Bulldogs need a win today and the rest of their season to get some momentum for the Horizon League Tourney and sneak into the Big Dance.  Action packed just the way I like my sports weekend.

Indianapolis Colts News
Manning Vs. Irsay

NFL News
Super Bowl Stuff
ESPN Super Bowl Picks

Indiana Pacers News
Pacers Beat the Nets
Pacers Beat Minnesota
ESPN Recap Mavs and Pacers

NBA News
Standings

Butler Bulldogs
Butler Gets Past Wright State
Horizon League Standings

Butler Gets a Win

Butler took care of business last night as they put away the Wright State Raiders, and left a sliver of hope that the Bulldogs could at least climb into the second place spot, and take a bye in the Horizon League Tourney.  Three guys had double figures in scoring for the Bulldogs, as Chrishawn Hopkins lead the way with 13 points.  Andrew Smith had 11 points and Erik Fromm had 10 points. I  think Hopkins and Smith need to pick up their scoring for the Bulldogs to have a chance these last seven games, and in the league tourney.  Those are two guys that can score when they want to, and need to be more aggressive for points.  Roosevelt Jones came up big on the boards grabbing 11 rebounds. He's definitely be a catalyst for most of this season. I'm looking for big things from him the rest of his Butler career.  This team has had an up and down season, but that could have been expected after losing so many key guys from last year's team. This is a young squad, but one that looks full of fight.  Just need to get that confidence going in the beginning of the game, and things will be fine for this team.  Seven more games left to show the Butler way, and then hope for some magic in the postseason tournament.

Let the Wins Keep Coming

Another win for the Pacers as they took care of business up in the state of Minnesota.  Apparently, you don't want to anger Danny Granger as he went for 36 points, with 29 of those points in the second half. A little skirmish with Kevin Love got things going even more for Granger.  Love mentioned he doesn't like the Pacers at all, and thought they were a soft team. I've seen this team play, and they're definitely not a soft team.  Love is realizing that as well, and so have the Bulls.  So add two teams now that have disdain for the Pacers, and that tells me they are doing something right. If you're not getting "love" from teams for playing hard, then you're playing the smash mouth basketball this Pacers team needs to do. They will get another test tomorrow night against the defending champions in the Dallas Mavericks.  This is obviously not the same Mavs team that won last year, but still a tough team to play.  If the Pacers can pick up the win, that would be 4-0 this week with a game at home against yet again the Orlando Magic.  We've played them two times already and split the first two games with a home loss by 19, but a road win by 21.  Explain that to me, but with this shortened season, it's going to be full of those type of occurrences.

Pacers Beat the Nets, but Lose George Hill

This was a game I didn't think would be as close as it was.  But maybe it was one of those the Pacers just played down to the competition, and hopefully we won't see that again.  The beginning of the game the Pacers were very flat, and couldn't seem to do anything.  Then things started turning around the team was up at halftime.  They even built an 18 point lead, but the Nets were scrappy and tried to make it interesting down the stretch.  Play of the game goes to a diving Danny Granger as he soared out of bounds to save a ball and keep a Pacers possession alive at the end.  Dunk of the night goes to Paul George who had a ridiculous backwards dunk that looked like Jordan out there.  Low light of the night goes to the chip fracture in George Hill's ankle.  It didn't look good at all as he was laying on the ground and pounding away.  Really tough to see him go, but hopefully there's some sort of time table for his return as it sits now he's out indefinitely, and no one likes that term.  But this goes into my surprise of the night and that's Lance Stephenson.  Anyone who has talked to me about the Pacers know I've been very down on him, but after last night and seeing the plays he was making, I am starting to turn around. I think someone is in his ear about growing up and becoming this great player that Bird has talked about.  And I think that is Bird himself. I wouldn't be surprised at all if Bird sat down with him and talked out everything.  Also noticing that coach Frank Vogel when he brought out Lance went right over and said somethings to him. Just those little things can help get Lance in that right frame of mind.  With George Hill's injury, I can see Lance getting more playing time, and it would be in his best interest to make the most of that time.  Overall, a win is a win for this Pacers team, and they can build on that experience again that you have to put a team away.