November 2007 Archives

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Knicks may not be in awe, but you might have heard some folks saying awe shucks, awe damn, and awe … well, you get the idea.

Despite New York Knicks swingman Quentin Richardson’s comments on how over-hyped the Celtics have been (see Friday‘s Sun for more on that), Boston greeted their visitors with a 104-59 dismantling at the TD Banknorth Garden. The 59 points was just one-point away from the Knicks franchise low.

The score pretty much speaks for itself, but Knicks president of basketball operations and head coach Isiah Thomas elaborated for anyone looking for a little added emphasis.

“We take two steps forward and one giant step back,” he said. “And I don’t know where this game came from. I thought we played extremely selfish tonight in terms of no ball movement. We didn’t screen for each other. We definitely didn’t see this type of game coming after the last two games that we played ant the way we were playing and moving. This was just not a good night.”

New York shot 30 percent from the field, and had just one player score in double digits (Nate Robinson, 11 points).

They were also out-rebounded (40-28), lost he turnover battle (forced nine, gave away 15), gave up more points in the paint (28 to 26), allowed more second chance points (11 to five), and scored six fast break points to the Celtics’ 17.

They were beat every which way, and they trailed by as much as 52 points at one time during the game.

Paul Pierce and Ray Allen recorded 21 points each, Kevin Garnett had eight points and 11 rebounds, Glen “Big Baby” Davis scored 13 and hauled in six boards. Rajon Rondo finished with 10 points and seven assists.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Knicks have been a soap opera in themselves this year with the off-season legal troubles, Stephon Marbury and Isiah Thomas’ feud, and Marbury leaving the team in the middle of a road trip.

Even with all of that, the Knicks have survived. At least as much as 4-9 can be called surviving.

One person who has definitely survived has been Thomas, the Knicks president of basketball operation and head coach.

A lot of heat for the lackluster play has been placed squarely at his feet.

“I feel for him,” Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said of Thomas. “I do think they’re playing harder. I told him that. They’re playing better now as well. It’s been a heck of a ride the last month. He’s still standing and I’m glad that he is.”

Despite what Rivers characterized as “distractions” he said he thinks the Knicks players are talented, like each other, and stick together.

Allen out
River said that Tony Allen will not play tonight, and that he does not expect him to be available for tomorrow night’s game in Miami.

Allen is listed as inactive with a bruised right thing. He did not play in the Celtics game on Tuesday night against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Rivers joked in his pre-game meeting with the press that he asked Reggie Miller on more time if he would come out of retirement and play for the Celtics. Miller, who flirted with the idea in the off-season, is part of TNT’s broadcast team for tonight’s game.

They’re getting their rest
The Celtics had yesterday off following Tuesday night’s game in Cleveland.

Paul Pierce said the rest is beneficial with a veteran team like the Celtics have this season, but he also added that guys are still shooting, lifting weights, and receiving treatment from the training staff.

The Celtic trio of Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Pierce have averaged 40.4, 38.2, and 39.0 minutes per game, respectively.

While acknowledging that getting off to a slow start was a concern because of all the off-season changes to the Celtics roster, Rivers added that being 11-2 at this point in the season is not what they’re playing for.

He also attributed a portion of the high minute totals to the overtime games (they’ve played two OT games) and the fact that minor injuries have sidelined players who would be in the regular rotation. Tony Allen, James Posey, Brian Scalabrine, and Eddie House have all already missed games this season due to injury.

TNT in Beantown?
Tonight’s game will be broadcast on TNT. To put into perspective how long it has been since the Celtics were featured in a national game just look no further than Danny Ainge. The Celtics general manager and executive director of basketball operations was an analyst for the station the last time the Celtics had a home game that was broadcast on TNT.

Before calling it a night, let’s check in with The Victim and find out who he likes in tonight’s key matchup between the Packers and Cowboys.

(As always, the Sunday picks will be posted sometime Saturday, and you can get the Monday night Patriots-Ravens selection on SportsTalk Live which will take place at Hookslide Kelly's this coming Monday, so stop on by and say hello!)

Tonight’s pick:

Dallas (-7) over Green Bay

Last week (including Thanksgiving): 5-3
Season record: 34-30-1
Monday night record: 8-4-1

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

We haven’t talked about the tragic death of Sean Taylor here, but after reading Jason Whitlock’s FoxSports.com article, I figured it might be good to open up a forum for it here.

I guess this was a big topic of discussion on the Dennis and Callahan Show this morning. I missed it because of my other morning duties, but did stumble across the article itself during my internet reading rounds. This is the second time I’ve linked to a Whitlock article instead of actually writing myself, because he says exactly what I was thinking and says it better, and with more credibility, than I could ever dream of. The death of Taylor, a troubled human being who was trying to put his past behind him, will remain completely senseless unless it leads to changes. I hope people look beyong the controversy of Whitlock's words (Black KKK certainly touches a nerve) and instead get the ball rolling in the right direction.

I urge you to visit the link and read the entire piece, then come back here and tell us what you think.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

It appears the Red Sox are front and center in the Johan Santana trade discussions. According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, a sister paper of the Lowell Sun, the Sox have offered a package consisting of Jon Lester, Coco Crisp, Jed Lowry and Justin Masterson, which the Twins consider the best offer so far.

So…let me get this straight…Boston would get a 2-Time Cy Young winner, in his prime, without giving up either Clay Buchholz or Jacoby Ellsbury? Sign me up for that one RIGHT NOW!!! Unfortunately, I’m thinking it’s going to take a bit more than that, starting with Mr. No-Hitter himself, Buchholz being included somewhere in that collection. (Minnesota would love Ellsbury, too, but I think he’s the deal breaker as far as the BoSox are concerned)

What I want to ask here is; what would you give up to get Santana? Let’s keep it reasonable, please. Remember, the Twins aren’t just going to give him away (if I see Julio Lugo’s name in any of your proposals, I’m immediately deleting the comment!), and the Yankees are in the mix with names like Hughes, Chamberlain, Ian Kennedy and Melky Cabrera mentioned. (Bet they could have him if Robinson Cano was part of the mix)

So put on your GM’s hat…make like Monte Hall…and Let’s Make a Deal!

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

A collection of notes, observations, facts and stats that didn’t find their way into the newspaper story.

Magic defense
The River Hawks defenders mastered the magic trick of appearing to be in two places at the same time. They were successful in both being in position to defend the outside shot (Merrimack came in averaging eight three-pointers per game) and not leave room for too many easy baskets inside.

Stonehill did outscore UML in the paint (32 to 22), but the River Hawks did salvage the win. Meanwhile, the Skyhawks only made 6 of 17 from downtown.

“We’re aware of where the shooters are so we get to them a little quicker, make them put it on the ground, try to take away one of their driving angles so at least we know, if they drive, where they’re going to be,” UML head coach Ken Barer said. “And I think what happened tonight too is we did stop the three pretty well, but guys weren’t getting blown by on drives. We were containing the ball well. It wasn’t like we were chasing like crazy.”

Right on rookie
Barer also sung the praises of freshman Max Kerman out of Watertown, Mass.

The youngster was 2 of 3 from the field with an assist and two steals in 19 minutes, but the effort plays like hustling for loose balls and playing good tough defense were what Barer called the “essence” of Kerman.

A couple strong jabs from Ali
Sophomore forward Ali Kanaan had one of those games that will get River Hawks fans riled up. The 6-foot-9 Canadian import scored 12 points and yanked down nine rebounds. He combined with Victor Colon to provide the inside presence that opened up room for the three-point shots (UML shot 42 percent from long range).

Kanaan was 1 of 2 from long range himself, and he shot 5 of 8 overall. Six of his nine rebounds came on the defensive end.

That inside play is even more important right now as the River Hawks other Canadian import, senior forward Jerreh Saidybah, is still shelved after knee surgery.

Numerology
Along with keeping the Stonehill shooters from getting hot, the River Hawks managed to toss in their share of points.

Efficiency out of the seniors in the backcourt is always a key. How about a combined 7 of 11 shooting (4 of 7 three-pointers) and just three turnovers from UML senior guards Dashon Harper and Jamael Lynch. The duo also went 6 of 7 at the free throw line.

Harper and Lynch each finished with 12 points. Lynch, a senior transfer out of the University of Rhode Island, also dished out five assists.

The River Hawks shot 51 percent from the field as a team, and seven players got into the scoring column.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

A collection of notes, observations, facts and stats that didn’t find their way into the newspaper story.

Reserves digging deep
The UML bench provided 25 of the River Hawks’ 74 points in Wednesday’s 80-74 loss to Stonehill.

Freshman Krissy Little from Concord, N.H., had 11 points in 23 minutes of play. The River Hawks also went on a 14-0 run at the end of the first half with a group comprised largely of reserves such as Little, Liz Desir, and Tamaria Menefee.

Jen Valente, who just came back from knee surgery, played 23 minutes.

“She played a lot of minutes,” UML head coach Kathy O’Neil said while expressing some concern after the game. O’Neil pointed to the foul trouble as a contributing factor.

Limiting the top threats
Stonehill forward Kelsey Simonds came into the game scoring 17 points per game, but she was held to 15 points (including overtime) on 3 of 11 shooting.

Of the five players for Stonehill who scored 10 points or more, only Meghan Driscoll shot better than 33 percent from the field. She was 5 of 6 with 12 points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes.

Numerology
Stonehill shot a paltry 29.6 percent in the first half, and 30.8 percent in the second half. So how did they come away with a win?

Aside from UML’s 31 turnovers which turned into 31 points for the Skyhawks, Stonehill piled up those hidden points with 28 points at the foul line, eight second chance points, and seven fast break points. The Skyhawks also netted three three-pointers in overtime.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

News Flash: The Patriots activate Troy Brown from the Physically Unable to Perform list and place Rosevelt Colvin on Injured Reserve, ending the Linebacker's season.

View from Mt. Olympus: Maybe if we're lucky, we'll even get to find out WHY Colvin is out for the season.

On a more serious note, this is a tough injury for the Pats to suffer, not so much because Colvin is so tough to replace, but because this is the one position New England can least afford an injury to. Remember, Tedy Bruschi and Junior Seau aren't exactly spring chickens, Adalius Thomas either hasn't performed up to snuff or is battling injuries (bet on the latter), and the depth behind those three and Mike Vrabel is paper thin. All you need to know is they signed Chad Brown, who couldn't cut it after Bruschi's stroke and has been cut from the roster...oh, I don't know, what would you say...185-times?

This injury to Colvin (wherever it is..foot, arm, ear lobe) doesn't signal an end to the Patriots hopes for an unbeaten season or Super Bowl title, but one more injury at that spot just might be the break the rest of the league has been waiting for.

As for Troy Brown, it's nice to have him back, though how he's used in the offense remains to be seen. The best bet; he and Jabar Gaffney fight it out for the 4th receiver slot.

That's the view from here...how do you see it? Are you as confident as I am that they'll survive this one? What if another linebacker injury strikes? Also, see if you can guess Colvin's exact ailment before it's announced...IF it's announced!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

First they offered up Gillette Stadium to the MIAA for the Eastern Mass Super Bowls. Now the Kraft family wants to make sure those who can’t make the trip to Foxboro can at least watch their favorite high school in action.

Kraft Sports Productions will professionally produce and televise the six games slated for Saturday December 1st. Coverage begins at 9:30am, with Mike Lynch, Gary Tanguay and Scott Zolak handling play-by-play. The first three games will be televised on Comcast SportsNet and the final three on WSBK TV38.

That means if Chelmsford and/or Littleton win tonight, they’ll not only get to play where Tom Brady and the rest of the big boys play, but will also be given the star treatment on television as well.

How’s that for a grand gesture on the part of Bob Kraft and company?

Picking at a few leftover thoughts from Thanksgiving weekend, while secretly rooting for Marie Osmond to break the jocks’ stranglehold on the Dancing with the Stars trophy:

So the pundits believe they’ve finally discovered the “roadmap” to beating the Patriots; pressure the quarterback. Well, duh! Was that supposed to be a big secret or something? Isn’t that a “roadmap” to winning every football game?

The trick is to have enough good players, particularly in the secondary, to bottle up Randy Moss and company until the blitz gets to Tom Brady. How many teams possess that quality? And in case John Madden and company didn’t notice, the Patriots STILL beat the Eagles and Colts, despite both those teams possessing the necessary talent and “roadmap” to pull off a victory.

Remember that camera shot during Sunday’s Pats telecast of Curt Schilling eating popcorn in a Gillette Stadium luxury box? Well, according to Schilling’s blog, 38pitches.com, that video snippet touched off a round of taunting text messages from teammates, including one from Theo Epstein that read; “Hey Schill, hope that popcorn is worth 2 million.”

As the proud owner of Adrian Peterson in two-of-three leagues, I’m ecstatic to have this year’s best fantasy football running back returning less than a month after tearing knee ligaments. If I’m a Vikings fan however, I have to question the wisdom of allowing a player with a bum knee to run around, on artificial turf, no less. I don’t want to jinx the already injury-prone kid, but this has disaster written all over it.

You have to hand it to Bruce Rich and his Chelmsford High football squad for the way they approached their Thanksgiving Day matchup against Billerica. The Lions had nothing to play for except pride and everything to gain by resting their key players to keep them fresh for a playoff game that comes after only four days rest. Instead, Rich’s troops played their hearts out. That they came away with a win was frosting on the cake. Just the fact they didn’t mail it in it tells you all you need to know about the way Rich runs things.

I watched Saturday night’s Celtics game in a restaurant with a small television set. People slowly filtered toward the monitor as the clock wound down to the precious few seconds, before erupting into a roar as Ray Allen drained the game-winning three ball after an improbable steal. Such a reaction has been fairly commonplace for Red Sox and Patriots games the last few years, but it’s been a long time since the Green Machine garnered such a response. For those of us who remember an estimated million and a half people turning out to City Hall Plaza in Boston to celebrate the 1986 championship, it was yet another indication that this sleeping giant of a basketball town is awakening from its slumber.

Have you caught a glimpse of the Hockey East standings lately? Northeastern is on top…Maine at the bottom. In between you’ll find a cluster of 8-teams, including the UMass-Lowell River Hawks, separated by just 3-points. Sure, there’s plenty of time for the favorites to break clear of the pack, but with more than 25% of the games ending in ties, something tells me a little bit of parity has finally arrived in a league long ruled by the big four of Boston University, Boston College, New Hampshire and Maine.

That’s the view from here…how do you see things?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Eagles 28
Patriots 31

View from Mt. Olympus: A little too close for comfort, if you ask me.

You have to give a lot of credit to Andy Reid and the Eagles. They came to town as a very mediocre team and without their starting QB (though I think they’re a better team without McNabb firing inaccurate passes). Yet they stood toe to toe with the Pats, never backing down. They went for it on 4th down. They tried an onside kick. They threw everything but the kitchen sink blitz at Tom Brady. Obviously, this is a very proud, veteran ballclub that didn’t like being designated an NFL record 24-point underdog. I have a lot more respect for Reid and his team today than I ever did before.

Philadelphia also refocused attention on the one chink in the Patriots armor; their defense can be pushed around a bit by a physical team that can run the ball and control the clock with a short, accurate passing game. For a team with such a wealth of talent on the defensive line, New England certainly is vulnerable to a physical offensive line. It’s the one thing that would make me nervous come playoff time, especially in a bad weather scenario in which Brady and company wouldn’t be able to run their Air Coryell offense and light up the scoreboard as effectively as they have thus far. Keep the Pats offense off the field and out of the 30+ point range, and they might be beatable. Of course, how many teams are capable of pulling that off? There aren’t many as tough as the Colts and Eagles, or with defensive backs who can keep Brady’s bunch in check over four quarters.

All that said, the Patriots are a well-coached, talented, veteran team that knows how to play in the clutch. Once they realized Moss wasn’t going to be allowed to decide the game, Brady and company switched to the short and quick passing game that had been a staple of the less talented New England squads of previous years. When they had to, they got the job done and in the end, a “W” is a “W” whether you cover the spread or not. It’s nice to see the Pats can still tough out victories when they have to. Chances are, they’ll be called upon to do so come January.

A quick note about the officiating; at some point, these phantom offensive pass interference calls on Randy Moss might actually cost the Patriots a game. And that refs huddle on the Eagles offsides penalty on 4th and 3? Exactly what took so long? That was a fairly obvious call. That it took so long and so much discussion to get it right will only lead to suspicions that the league has it in for Bill Belichick’s boys.

One final thing; next time the Pats are blowing someone out and Belichick wants to use the excuse that going for it on 4th down instead of kicking a field goal is because he wants to practice plays that might come up later in the season? Well, he might want to start practicing Stephen Gostkowski kicking field goals, because they’re much more likely to need that than a meaningless 4th and 2 dump pass with a 42-10 lead. At the time, Gostkowski’s 3rd quarter miss was a huge play.

Oh, one more thing (the final one...I promise!); anyone still think Asante Samuel isn't worth the money? Forget the TD (where he perfectly read the pass to Westbrook) that started the game. The better play was not biting on the pump fake that in essence ended the game. Shut down corners are a rare, rare breed. The Patriots have one just entering the prime of his career. It'd be an awful shame to lose him.

That’s the view from here…how do you see it? A bump in the road? Or a road map of how to beat this team down the line?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Leave it to Lowell Sun Sports Editor Dennis Whitton to stir the pot around the Lowell High Football coaching position.

In case you missed it, Whitton wrote a Sunday column criticizing Al Pare’s performance, while also throwing plenty of blame in former Athletic Director Brian Martin’s direction for forcing Scott Boyle out in the first place. It’s a must read article on many levels.

For starters, I agree with almost all of what Dennis says. There was no need to remove Boyle as football coach, not with the success his teams had on the field. This argument about not being able to do both the basketball and football job at the same time was ridiculous. Unless there’s something we weren’t told, Boyle’s players were doing just fine in school and weren’t filling up the Police Log in the newspaper.

Where Martin’s reason for the change really gets disingenuous is when he said he didn’t have a problem with Boyle taking that assistant’s job at Central. How could he not take issue with that if the point was to make Boyle accessible full-time to his basketball players? No way! I didn’t buy it then and I still don’t! There was some type of personality conflict there, and the shame is it was allowed to interfere with a football program that was on the right track.

I also agree with Dennis calling the injury excuses overblown. I was very uncomfortable reading week after week about Lowell’s injuries. Sure, they had them. But any great football coach will tell you when you give players an excuse to fail, they’ll fail. The coach should have banned any injury talk, not led the way with it, which I felt Pare sometimes did.

That said, I believe what’s done is done. We can rehash history and the hiring process all we want, but that’s not going to move things forward. Pare was hired to do a job. He deserves a fair amount of time to do that job. One year isn’t enough to initiate the changes in the program and feeder levels that a football coach needs to make to bring it in line with his philosophy. Whether that philosophy will prove successful is open to debate, especially after a 2-9 season, but one year is too soon to tell.

And this is where it gets tricky; because of a unique contract situation, Pare got a 1-year deal to start with. His next contract MUST be for 2-years…the one after that, for 3-years. It’s a Lowell high policy. So the choice is this; end the Pare era now or commit for two more years. There’s no meeting halfway and giving him one more year.

It says here that Pare, a great cheerleader for the program deserves another shot to show he can be a great leader as well. It’s not his fault a very successful coach was let go before he was hired. Give him a fair chance to prove a second mistake wasn’t made with his hiring.

That’s the view from here…how do you see it?

Celtics-Lakers games used to be a celebrity magnet, but that was mainly on the left coast, where Jack Nicholson, Dianne Keaton and the rest of "Plastic-ville" used to pretend they cared about hoops. However, if you need any indication just how far the C's have come since the big off-season trades to land Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, look no further than this photo of "Ahhhnold" at last night's game in Boston.

One more note; did you catch the box score? Kendrick Perkins poured home 21-points on 8-10 shooting from the floor. Now, Perkins is a nice player...don't get me wrong. He'd be a terrific backup center on most teams, though he starts for the Green because the salaries of the top three stars prohibit big money being spent to acquire a good starting center elsewhere and because...well, because there's nobody else on the roster capable of starting at the position and playing it full time. However, if Kendrick Perkins was the numero uno scoring option on an NBA squad and the defense's entire focus was on keeping him from scoring, I doubt the likeable big man would score 21-points in a month, never mind in one night.

Just another example of the effect having Pierce, Garnett and Allen on the floor has on the rest of the team. As they say; a rising tide lifts all boats!

What do you folks think of the Celtics start so far? Better than expected? About what you expected? Anybody out there still think this team isn't good enough to win a championship?

Who needs to battle crowds at the shopping malls or retail centers? You really want a quality gift? How about giving that special someone a license to print money!

OK, so maybe The Victim isn’t as automatic as he was last year, but our peerless pigskin prognosticator is still on the plus side for 2007. So forget that overpriced jewelry. Pass on the perfume. Don’t risk a stabbing for that video game system that’ll be obsolete next year anyway. Instead, buy a brand new wallet, follow The Victim’s instructions and watch that fine piece of foldable leather fill up faster than Rosie O’Donnell’s Thanksgiving dinner plate.

This week’s gifts…I mean, picks (Monday Night’s game can only be heard on SportsTalk Live):

Minnesota (+7) over NY Giants
Jacksonville (-8) over Buffalo
Baltimore (+9) over San Diego
Philadelphia (+24) over New England

Turkey Day record: 2-1
Season record: 29-27-1
Monday Night record: 8-3-1

Anybody want to go see the River Hawks game Saturday night?

First person to drop an email to tpanos@lowellsun.com gets a pair of tickets to see UMass-Lowell faceoff against Merrimack at 7pm. These are my season tickets, center ice, back row. No cost!

Be sure to include a phone number so we can touch base and make pickup arrangements. I'll be in the downtown Lowell area all night tonight and most of the day tomorrow!

Who wants them?

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have assigned rookie guard Gabe Pruitt to their NBA Development League affiliate Utah Flash. Pruitt is the team’s second assignment to the NBA D-League this season. Brandon Wallace was assigned to the Flash on Nov. 13.

Pruitt, the 32nd pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, appeared in two games this season for the Celtics and was on the inactive list for six games. The USC product averaged 5.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 22.4 minutes per game during the 2007 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.

I probably won’t be posting anything tomorrow, but I did want to provide an open thread for anyone who’d like to discuss the Thanksgiving Day football matchups.

There are only a couple of games with playoff implications for local teams. However, Turkey Bowl matchups are about much more than one-loss records, and anybody who’s ever played in one can tell you the rivalries alone make for a playoff atmosphere.

Hey, and if you want to post a score while bragging about the home team, feel free to do that as well!

Have a great Thanksgiving!

The three “F’s” (Food, Family & Football) make Thanksgiving my favorite holiday of them all. The only thing that could make the day better is to make a little money in the process of stuffing my gut, joking with the clan and watching a little NFL action.

To that end, our fearless football forecaster The Victim (notice I won’t call him peerless pigskin prognosticator after last week’s dismal 0-5 showing) has cooked up his Turkey Day picks for those who like to add a little wager to the day’s excitement. (We’ll have Sunday’s games later in the week) Of course, given this turkey’s all or nothing performances of late, wagering on his selections is a feast or famine proposition.

So say a prayer and gobble up these picks:

Green Bay (-3 ½) over Detroit
NY Jets (+14) over Dallas
Indianapolis (-11 ½) over Atlanta

Last week: 0-5
Season record: 27-26-1
Monday Night record: 8-3-1

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Continuing with the hockey posts (Boy, I sure do miss Gayle!)…has anybody been paying attention to the Hockey East standings? In case you haven’t, Northeastern sits atop the league, while perennial power Maine is bringing up the rear. (Cue Twilight Zone theme)

Granted, teams haven’t played the same number of games, but when you see the Huskies at #1 or UMass in second place, it’s a strange site. Conference favorites UNH and BC have had their struggles…BU isn’t scaring anyone with their 3-3-1 conference mark, and we’ve already mentioned the Black Bears disastrous start. Could this be the year someone breaks the Big Four’s stranglehold on league supremacy?

Meanwhile, our River Hawks sit in 9th place with 6-points (Northeastern leads with 11), but have recently shown signs of life. Blaise MacDonald’s squad has four ties, and last night avenged an early season loss to Merrimack by trouncing the Warriors 3-0 last night in North Andover. That’s the same Merrimack team, by the way, that recently completed a weekend sweep of Maine for the first time in school history.

A more indicative sign of league parity is the goals differential in conference play. It’s all over the place. Northeastern may be in first place, but they’ve only outscored the opposition by a 26-23 margin. Meanwhile, the largest differential (31-23) belongs to BU. Even UMass-Lowell, with just that one victory over Merrimack, has only been outscored 21-18.

Perhaps as the season goes along, the cream will rise to the top. Then again, perhaps the cream is already there.

What do you think? Is this just an early season phenomenon or has the balance of power in Hockey East shifted?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

For what seems like a lifetime now (OK..Only since Andy Moog patrolled the pipes, but you get the drift), the Boston Bruins have been searching for a #1 goalie worthy of the title; #1 goalie. It’s only one game, but maybe the savior has finally arrived.

Tukka Rask made his first NHL start last night, and the 20-year old Finnish sensation made quite a first impression. Rask turned aside 30 Maple Leafs shots to lead the Black and Gold to a 4-2 victory in Toronto. Making it even sweeter was the fact the “W” came against the team that traded him to the B’s last year in exchange for Andrew Raycroft.

For the first time in a while, I’m getting excited about the Bruins. With all due respect to Tim Thomas, as long as he’s playing the majority of games in net Boston isn’t going anywhere. Ditto for Manny Fernandez, who I thought was a horrible free agent acquisition when you consider age, injury, money and the fact he’s not a true #1. It’s been so frustrating to watch all these other teams finding goaltending gems (usually, someone with a name impossible to pronounce, never mind spell) from time to time while the Bruins continued their revolving door policy in net. In Rask, we finally have someone with the potential to be the long-term answer.

Here’s hoping management and the coaching staff provide every opportunity for Rask to prove he’s up to the task.

That’s the view from here…how do you Hockey Krishnas see it? One-hit wonder or The Future?

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Adam Byron, 15, a freshman at Tyngsboro High School, will appear on camera as a Comcast SportsNet FanCaster during tonight's Celtics-Warriors game. Byron auditioned for the FanCaster program by preparing an audition tape of himself and sending it to Comcast SportsNet.

Just before tip-off, Byron will tape a “standup” on the newly renamed Red Auerbach parquet floor that will introduce Comcast SportsNet viewers to the Celtics “Hero”. The Celtics present the “Heroes Among Us” Award during a special in-game presentation to individuals who have made exceptional and lasting contributions to the community.

The FanCaster program helps the Celtics extend the Heroes Among Us Program beyond the TD Banknorth Garden as Comcast SportsNet will show Byron’s on-camera introduction and footage of the Hero Award presentation during the New England Ford Dealers Post Game Live Show.

Byron will also tour the Comcast SportsNet high definition production facilities and meet the Comcast SportsNet telecast team of Mike Gorman, Tommy Heinsohn and Greg Dickerson.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Lowell Spinners, Class A Affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, are hosting a book signing with Joshua Papelbon, the Spinners closer in 2006, and his twin brother Jeremy, brothers of 2007 World Champion Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, at LeLacheur Park on Thursday, November 29 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Those attending will receive a copy of children’s book Pitching with the Papelbons, and the chance to meet the Papelbon twins, get their autograph and pose for photos.

The event costs $25 with five dollars of each purchase will go to the Joann Weber Foundation, a Lowell Spinners charity initiative to better the community.

Pitching with the Papelbons is children's story written by Spinners Vice President of Corporate Communications Jon Goode and his wife Lauren, which chronicles the year in which all three Papelbon hurlers Jonathan, Joshua and Jeremy played on the Little League Red Sox and learned an important lesson as they embrace success.

Serving up a feast of opinions while debating whether to pierce one extra notch in the belt or two (my Turkey Day eating exploits would make the shark in Jaws envious!);

Four years ago, Theo Epstein “cooked up” the Curt Schilling deal over Thanksgiving dinner in Arizona. This time around, the GM “stuffed” the Red Sox roster nice and early with another year’s “helping” of Schilling, plus three more “servings” of Mike Lowell, “squashing” any chance of the veterans’ departures ruining the holiday. The “gravy” would be if Theo lands a reliable, veteran reliever to “gobble” up the innings Eric Gagne was supposed to devour, though that task will probably be “leftover” till after Thursday. If it all “pans” out, Epstein will have had the most productive Thanksgiving since the original Pilgrims. And since I’ve now exhausted all my “corn”-y food related puns, I can resume writing in my normally incoherent style.

It would be great to have Johan Santana pitching Game 2 of the playoffs behind Josh Beckett, but the smart money is on the 2-time Cy Young winner landing in the Big Apple (hey, there’s another food reference). Santana would be a luxury in Boston, albeit a nice luxury to have, but I can’t see Theo parting with both Jacoby Ellsbury and Clay Buchholz, which is what I think it would take. On the other hand, the Yankees NEED Santana. They’d be much more likely to include Robinson Cano and either Joba Chamberlain or Phillip Hughes, unless of course, they’re perfectly happy trotting out Chien-Ming Wang as their ace again. Yeah, I didn’t think so, either.

Three consecutive trips to “football’s” title contest and four overall. Three consecutive losses in “football’s” title contest and four overall. I’d jump on the bandwagon with all the other writers comparing the New England Revolution to the Buffalo Bills, except people in Buffalo actually cared about the Bills.

Apparently they still do, because that was a pretty vocal chorus of boos raining down on the Patriots as they kept going for it on 4th down Sunday night. Like it or not, the once beloved Pats are now hated by the rest of the country. Whether they’re running up the score or not, public perception is they are, so Bill Belichick’s boys will gladly wear the black hats and use every insult to fuel an even worse beating for the next victim on the schedule.

Which brings us to New England’s December 16th home date against Eric “Benedict Arnold” Mangini and the J-E-T-S, Jets-Jets-Jets! Since the NFL frowns upon gambling, the league doesn’t keep records of point spreads, so it’s a rather inexact science. The best research shows only 5-games since 1980 featuring a spread of 20-points or more, with the biggest number being the 1993 49ers as a 23-point favorite over Cincinnati (San Fran prevailed by a score of 21-8).

Already, the Wiseguys are speculating the Pats will be giving 25-points or more that Sunday. Judging by what you’ve seen so far and knowing the animosity that exists between Belichick and Mangini (a mentor-disciple feud hasn’t gotten this ugly since Darth Vader and Obi Wan Kenobi swung light sabers at each other), how big of a favorite would Tom Brady and company have to be before you’d even consider betting on the Jets? 30-points? 40?

Before answering, let me remind you they just annihilated the Bills by 46-points on the road, the same Bills coached by Dick Jauron, a man Belichick loves and respects.

Do I hear 50?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Final Score
Patriots 56
Bills 10

View from Mt. Olympus: Think about this; a team that had won 4-games in a row and was playing at home was a 16-point underdog, yet no one batted an eyelash, and the spread was never in doubt. That’s sick!

It’s great to listen to national announcers like Al Michaels and John Madden spend 3-hours talking about how great this team is. Michaels, at one point, said what most of us have been thinking for about a month now; that this could very well be the greatest team in history. Madden also said Tom Brady is playing quarterback better than anyone in history has ever played the position. No argument from me on either point.

What I will disagree with Madden on is his frustration that the Bills were just letting Brady stand in the pocket and shred them. Um, John; they weren’t LETTING him. The offensive line wasn’t LETTING them get close to him. Yes, credit Brady for his incredible pocket presence. When all hell is breaking loose around him, Giselle’s boy-toy is cooler than a glass of water after an Altoid. But that shouldn’t take away from the fact the O-Line rarely lets Brady get hit and manages to pick up any and all blitzers, giving their playmaker just enough time to find an open receiver. And Mr. Madden, when you do blitz Brady, that leaves nothing but open receivers.

Oh, and while we’re at it, let’s make sure to credit New England’s players and coaches for their intelligence and decision making. The Pats are prepared for every game situation, every scenario, and make the right choice an incredibly high percentage of the time. As I watch the rest of the league, this point is reinforced even more.

After a second half TD that made the score 28-26 Arizona, Bengals “Einstein” Marvin Lewis kicked the extra point instead of going for two. Totally inexcusable, yet poor decision making and time management on the part of coaches happens time and time again.

Did anyone watch the Lions-Giants game? Why does genius Mike Martz keep the #2 overall pick in the draft on the bench at the expense of Shaun MacDonald? Why does John Kitna, with a pair of 6’4” receivers like Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson, throw jump balls to midgets like MacDonald and Mike Furrey? Why does a receiver, trailing by 6 with a little over 2-minutes remaining, stay inbounds on a catch, then when he realizes he’s about to get tackled, try to fumble the ball out of bounds intentionally, where it almost got picked up by the Giants defense? You know why? Because the players either a) aren’t smart enough to know better and b) haven’t been coached well enough to know better. You don’t see that kind of stuff in Foxboro.

Thank you, oh football God, for Bill Belichick and the 2007 New England Patriots…the greatest team in history!

That’s the view from here…how do you see things? Shappy? You still think this team’s going to get beat somewhere along the line? How about you, DB? How about the rest of you? Want to come out on that limb with me and call this the greatest team in NFL history?

It was a good news-bad news type of week for The Victim.

The bad news was an 0-3 start which guaranteed a rare losing slate. The good news was our fearless football forecaster cashed in on his Sunday night & Monday night selections, which any experience gambler will tell you are the “recovery” games. You know; if you get buried during the day on Sunday, load up on your prime time matchups to crawl out of the hole and perhaps even end up on the plus side of the ledger.

Of course for our purposes, each bet counts the same, so there’s no denying our pigskin prognosticator was down for the week, a situation he’s vowed to rectify with the following selections (as always, the Monday night pick is only disclosed during SportsTalk Live):

Indianapolis (-14 ½) over Kansas City
Detroit (+3) over NY Giants
Dallas (-10 ½) over Washington
Buffalo (+16) over New England

Last week: 2-3
Season record: 27-21-1
Monday Night record: 8-2-1

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Boston Celtics improved to 8-0, but it took Dwyane Wade missing a shot in the closing seconds for the Celtics to pull out a 92-91 win against the struggling Miami Heat (1-8).

Boston led by as much as 15 points at one point during the third quarter, but Miami never went away. Wade finished with 23 points, former Celtic Ricky Davis turned in a 20-point night, and Shaquille O'Neal had 17.

The Heat came back to take the lead with 33 seconds left on a free throw by Udonis Haslem.

Paul Pierce's lay-up with 25 seconds remaining turned out to be the deciding basket in the game.

Pierce had 12 points in the game, while Kevin Garnett recorded another double-double with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Ray Allen 19 points, and James Posey had 13 points and five rebounds in his first game against his former team. Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo (nine points, 10 assists, seven rebounds) came one shy of his career-high in assists.

The Celtics will next play in Orlando on Sunday evening as they travel to take on the Magic.

Eight consecutive wins to start the season is the fourth-best start in franchise history.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Despite what seems like a lopsided affair on paper, Celtics head coach Doc Rivers is taking the Bill Belichick approach to tonight’s game with the 1-7 Miami Heat.

“The Heat as far as we’re concerned are still the team to beat,” said Rivers. “They won a title most recent in the East. If not been for injury last year, I think they would’ve been back in the finals. If it had not been for injury this year, I think they’d be off to a great start.”

Rivers also pointed to the trade that brought Ricky Davis and Mark Blount to town as another big factor in the early struggles. The trade took place on October 24, one week before the Heat’s regular season opener against the Detroit Pistons.

Heat head coach Pat Riley, who coached Rivers from 1992-93 through 1993-94, applauded the Celtics for they way they've played this season, saying, "They definitely found something special."

As for his team, Riley said Davis and Jason Williams need to shoot more. Overall, he said everybody needs to have more solid and consistent performances.

In the house?

Celtics guard Eddie House will dress for tonight’s game, but it is not clear whether or not he will be available to play. He sprained his left ankle against the Nets on Wednesday night.

House said his ankle is still stiff, but he plans to warm-up and see how it feels. He said how his ankle responds to warm-ups will likely be the determining factor of whether or not he’ll be able to play tonight.

Rivers said he didn’t even know House was going to try to play tonight until about an hour before the start time of tonight’s game. Rivers said he will try to rest House if at all possible.

“Until I see him run or move, my thought right now is not to play him,” said Rivers.

Wade coming back strong
While he had tried to limit the minutes for Wade in the first game, Riley said before the game that Dwyane Wade has shown no ill effects in his first few days back after rehabbing from knee and shoulder surgeries.

“You’ve got to remember he’s been doing conditioning,” Riley said. Riley also pointed out that Wade is in “great” cardiovascular shape.

He played 24 minutes on Wednesday night against the Charlotte Bobcats.

“He felt great the other night,” Riley said. “He felt great the next day.”

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Miami Heat enter play with a record of 1-7 (1-3 on the road), and they’ve lost their last two games.

Head coach Pat Riley has been critical of his team in recent days, saying earlier in the week that he could play better than some of his players. He also said there could be some shakeups to the lineup and rotation following a 91-76 loss to Charlotte on Nov. 9.

Tonight will be Dwyane Wade’s second game back after rehabbing knee and shoulder surgeries. Wade missed the first seven games of the season. He played 24 minutes and scored 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting Wednesday night in Seattle.

Former Celtic Ricky Davis, who Miami acquired from Minnesota prior to the start of the regular season, has been the leading scorer through the first eight games with 15.3 points per game.

Miami’s 84.75 points per game is the lowest offensive output in the NBA this season. On the flipside, the Boston Celtics defense is allowing a league-low 87.14 points to opponents.

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

While there were multiple suitors in pursuit of Alex Rodriguez, it appears the Red Sox never really got involved in the chase.

The Lowell Sun and SportsTalk have learned that Boston never made the free agent a contract offer before he worked things out with the Yankees. Sources close to the third baseman also say he had multiple offers on the table, including a more profitable deal from a west coast team.

In the end, Rodriguez opted to take a sizable discount to remain in New York, ending weeks of acrimony with Yankees management by initiating a face-to-face meeting on his own. A-Rod’s agent, Scott Boras, was not present for the session, which included Rodriguez’ wife Cynthia and another family member. Parameters of the deal were ironed out at that meeting, with Boras likely finalizing the details and writing up the contract for his client in the coming days.

With Rodriguez not an option, the Red Sox may have to look elsewhere to fill the void at third base should Mike Lowell find greener pastures elsewhere. Despite re-signing A-Rod, the Yankees are still in pursuit of Lowell, offering him a chance to play first base for them.

Well, looks like the Yankees huffed, and puffed…and then their whole house blew down.

The New York Daily News reports the Evil Empire is indeed talking with Alex Rodriguez about returning to New York, despite their pledge that they wouldn’t negotiate if the 3rd baseman opted out of his deal, which he did. Of course, this won’t come as news to loyal SportsTalk readers who read our October 24th post saying the smart money was on A-Rod staying with the Yankees.

Of course, the Yanks are trying to pretend they’re still in control of the situation by saying they’ll only talk to A-Rod in person, and not to his agent Scott Boras. Right! Right! Like Boras is going to let Rodriguez put his signature on anything without his approval. It’s good to see George Steinbrenner’s sons, now believed to be running the franchise, are big blowhards just like their old man!

Face it boys…Rodriguez holds all the cards here. He’s your only everyday player (other than Robinson Cano) not in decline, plus he’s a legitimate money-making machine for a team about to open a very expensive new stadium. Talk tough all you want. You’ll dance the tune Boras and Rodriguez orchestrate for you, and you’ll do so willingly.

Just shut up. Get the deal done. And stop looking even more foolish than you already do every time you back off a hollow threat.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have assigned rookie forward Brandon Wallace to their NBA Development League affiliate Utah Flash.

Wallace is the team’s first assignment to the NBA Development League this season and the fourth NBA player to be assigned to the Development League this season.

NBA teams can assign players to the D-League during their first two seasons. Boston Celtics D-League designees in recent years have included Gerald Green (Fayetville, Florida), Allan Ray (Austin), Dwayne Jones (Florida).

Wallace has not appeared in a game for the Celtics during the regular season. He averaged 4.2 points and 5.0 rebounds in 22.4 minutes during the 2007 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.

Time change
The NBA announced a time change for the January 12, 2008 game between the Washington Wizards and the Boston Celtics. The game in Washington, DC at the Verizon Center was originally scheduled to be played at 7:00 p.m. ET is now scheduled for a tip-off at 7:30 p.m. ET.

A couple of quickies from the baseball world:

1) Congratulations to the major league baseball writers on their stellar Cy Young voting. C.C. Sabathia earned the award over Josh Beckett, and the race wasn’t even close. What a joke!

It seems a lot of national guys were “wowed” by Sabathia’s innings pitched and 4-complete games, since all the other stats were nearly identical. (Too bad they didn’t take into account that Beckett missed a couple of starts yet still matched Sabathia number-for-number and even topped him in the most important one…wins!) Of course, it might have been nice of those writers to consider Beckett’s huge September victories, especially the one over the Yankees that clinched the AL East for Boston. Sabathia, on the other hand, didn’t have to pitch a pressure game (and we all know how he fared when he eventually had to). Can anyone point to his "signature" victory this year in a game the Indians HAD to have? I know baseball is a game of numbers, but sometimes, you need to look beyond them to get a true picture of who’s a better player.

Oh well, I’m sure Beckett would rather have the ring anyway. And the fools who vote solely on numbers instead of what their eyes tell them look pretty stupid today, don’t they?

2) Anybody change their mind on A-Rod yet?

It doesn’t look like Mike Lowell will be back (he definitely shouldn’t budge of his demand for 4-years, and I’m not sure the Red Sox should budge of their 3-year offer, either) so if/when Lowell is gone, who would you like to replace him? Joe Crede? Scott Rolen? Miguel Cabrera? Kevin Youkilis? Brooks Robinson?

Remember, Manny’s gone in a year, too. So at some point, you’re going to have to spend big money on a bat to protect David Ortiz, not to mention the money and/or prospects to replace Lowell in the lineup. I still say the best option is the guy who’s going to a unanimous MVP selection in a couple of days.

That's the view from here...how do you see it?

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett was named the NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday.

The Celtics are off to a 5-0 start. Last week (November 5 through Sunday November 11), the Celtics were 3-0 with victories against Denver, Atlanta and New Jersey. The 5-0 start is the best start that the Celtics have had since the 1987-88 season when the Celtics started 6-0.

Garnett had double-doubles in each of last week's games while averaging 22.7 points, 15.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 2.67 steals and 1.67 blocks per game.

OK all you youngsters out there. Time to gather around Uncle Teddy for a little chat about the good old days and what to do now that they’re here again.

I realize you’re spoiled, with Red Sox World Series titles and Patriots Super Bowl championships becoming second nature at this point. Your impressionable minds can’t fathom the ill will names like Schiraldi and Eason conjure up, so for the most part, you know how to act during baseball and football season. Though I do wish you’d tone down the destructive celebrations and obnoxious behavior toward fans of other, less privileged franchises.

What you need to learn now is how to root for a championship caliber pro basketball team. For most of you, waking up to the morning paper and seeing the word “Boston” atop the NBA standings is as foreign as a Roberto Benini film. However, I’m here to tell you that it’s not a sign of the apocalypse, but a sign that all is right in hoops heaven.

You see, like the Sox and Pats of today, the Celtics used to be the team all others measured themselves against. Whereas brides and grooms now try to avoid October and January weddings, they used to shy away from May and June nuptials in the 80’s, lest all their male guests disappear for hours to huddle around the nearest television. I was the most popular guy at my college Senior Ball in 1987, not because of the snazzy tux I donned, but because of the little Sony Watchman I brought along to catch the Eastern Conference Finals against Bill Laimbeer and the dastardly Pistons. (Needless to say, things didn’t work out long-term with my date that evening)

So what I’d like to do is give you a few friendly pointers on the do’s and don’ts of following a team that could very well give us a third victory parade in less than 9-months (yes, the Pats celebration is a foregone conclusion);

For starters, lose those Shaq and LeBron shirts, or any other superstar’s uniform you own. It’s not cool to walk around town with the game jersey of a player from another team. You don’t see Patriots and Red Sox fans wearing Peyton Manning’s and Derek Jeter’s numbers on their backs, do you? I realize the Celtics have been awful for a while now, but a Lakers shirt used to be cause for a beating, not a Christmas gift. In your letter to Santa, make sure to ask for a Kevin Garnett jersey.

You also must learn that a big game in April is one that decides home court advantage in the playoffs, not ping-pong balls in the draft lottery, so cheer accordingly. Oh, and for you old-timers going to the Gah-den for the first time since Bird, McHale and Parish walked through that door; those people in tight shorts are called cheerleaders, not the Big Three.

My final words of advice for the young ‘uns out there is to enjoy this while it lasts. Revel in KG’s fierce competitiveness. Admire Ray Allen’s sweet shooting stroke. Cherish Paul Pierce sacrificing his ego for the greater good. You may think the good times never go away, but believe me, they do. Nothing lasts forever. Before you know it, you’ll find yourself getting all nostalgic and quoting Bon Jovi songs.

Just like your crazy Uncle Teddy.

Wanted to briefly touch on a few newsworthy items from the last few days and provide you folks a forum to chat about them:

1) Don Shula’s asterisk comments make him sound like a bitter, old man. But thank you coach. Just in case the Patriots had a notion about letting their guard down during the bye week (not that I think it…this team is angry and plays like it), you certainly throw a little gasoline on the fire. We’ll have to send you a thank you card after 19-0.

2) Dustin Pedroia was able to put up those playoff numbers with a broken bone in his hand? WOW! I think we’ve found the new face of the franchise.

3) Remember when I mentioned UMass-Lowell’s Field Hockey team and the nice, little dynasty coach Shannon Hlebichuk has developed down by the river? Well, they play for another NCAA Championship at home Sunday against Bloomberg, thanks to an overtime victory yesterday over Bentley. With the Patriots on their bye week, you could do worse than heading out there to see the game.

P.S. Win or lose, the coach and a few of the players are going to stop by the Lowell Sun building to appear on Monday's SportsTalk Live program. Hop on the phone lines with us to talk to the ladies or just listen in.

Maybe you folks are too lazy to pick up the phone when someone’s trying to hand you money. Or maybe you don’t have a telephone. Or maybe you aren’t degenerate gamblers.

But if you don’t fall into either of these groups, there’s no excuse. Why more of you aren’t burning up the SunTalk Live phone lines Monday night to catch the last 15-minutes of the show and get The Victim’s “guaranteed” Monday Night Football winner is beyond me.

Our peerless pigskin prognosticator continues to bury bookies against the spread, pounding out an overall record 7-games above the breakeven point. As if that’s not impressive enough, our fearless forecaster is a scorching hot 5-games over on Monday nights, a number that includes the current 4-game winning streak he’s on.

So you can continue to watch “King of Queens” reruns, or whatever the hell is on TV Monday’s between 7-8pm. Or you can dial into SportsTalk Live and find out who The Victim picks. It’s your call.

Till then, here are Sunday’s selections:

Pittsburgh (-10) over Cleveland
Washington (-3) over Philadelphia
NY Giants (+1 ½) over Dallas
San Diego (+3 ½) over Indianapolis

Last week: 3-2
Season record: 25-18-1
Monday night record: 7-2-1

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Boston Celtics announced on Thursday that forward James Posey had an MRI that revealed his low back spasms were a result of a lumbar disc herniation. The MRI took place at New England Baptist Hospital.

Posey sustained the injury during the second quarter of Wednesday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets at the TD Banknorth Garden. Posey is undergoing appropriate treatment by the medical staff and is listed as day to day.

The Celtics host the Atlanta Hawks tonight at the TD Banknorth Garden before playing the Nets in New Jersey on Saturday night.

Click the comments link below to weigh in on how much an injury to Posey could potentially impact the Celtics.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

The Boston Celtics completely dominated the first half in just about every way imaginable.

The Celtics ran up 77 points and held Denver and their scoring tandem of Carmello Anthony and Allen Iverson to a total of 38 points.

Iverson led all Denver scorers with 13 points. He was the only player in double digits for the Nuggets.

Paul Pierce had 20 points in the first half, while Kevin Garnett tallied 14 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists.

Boston appears unable to miss, hitting at a 72 percent clip from the field in the first half.

The Nuggets trail by 39 points at the half.

Injury updates: James Posey left the game for the Celtics with lower back spasms. His return is doubtful.

Denver big man Nene left the game with a left thumb sprain and will not return. Preliminary X-rays were negative. An MRI will be scheduled.

Posted By Lynn Worthy, Sun Staff

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers will be on the sideline tonight for the first time since his father Grady Rivers Sr. died over the weekend.

Rivers initially traveled with the team to Toronto for Sunday’s game, but he left the team when he received word that his father had passed away. Assistant coach Tom Thibodeau stepped in as head coach for Sunday’s game.

The team did not practice on Monday, and Rivers was at practice on Tuesday. He does plan to be on the sideline for Friday night’s game at the TD Banknorth Garden against the Atlanta Hawks.

Martin will play
Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin will play tonight after sitting out last night’s game against the New York Knicks.

Nuggets head coach George Karl said Martin will not see action on back-to-back nights for the immediate future as he’s working his way back from knee surgery (right knee) that caused him to miss 80 games last season.

Last night the Knicks handed Denver a 119-112 loss at Madison Square Garden. New York got 20-point performance from Stephon Marbury (21), Zach Randolph (22), Eddy Curry (24), and Jamal Crawford (25).

The Defensive King comes to town
The Celtics will have to contend with last season’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year in former UMass standout Marcus Camby.

Camby, now in his 12th season, led the league in blocks last season and enters tonight’s game as the league leader in rebounds per game (17.5) and blocked shots per game (4.0).

The Lowell Spinners have confirmed Jonathan Papelbon as the featured guest at this year’s Spinners Alumni Dinner. The event takes place Friday, November 30th at the Doubletree Hotel in Downtown Lowell.

Papelbon, the “dancing machine” of the Red Sox 2007 World Series Champions played for the Spinners in 2003 before moving on to national fame as Boston’s closer and leader of all victory celebrations. His twin brothers Jeremy and Joshua will also be in attendance, as will Luis Alicea and Gabe Kapler.

The famous first base from Game 6 of the 2004 American League Championship Series, the location of Alex Rodriguez’s infamous slap, will also be on display after being used in every Lowell Spinners game this summer. There will also be a silent and live auction. The silent auction will run from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. with the program to follow.

Tickets are on sale now for $55.00 (adults) and $35.00 (kids 12 & under) which includes a dinner and autograph session from 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Only 400 tickets are available for the event and can be purchased online at lowellspinners.com or by calling 978-459-1702. All tickets must be purchased in advance and will not be made available the date of the dinner.

P.S. It’s B.Y.O.K. affair…..Bring Your Own Kilt!

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

A quick note for you Lowellians (or interested political observers anywhere else):

TheSunBlog's Community Forum blog will post live election results of the Lowell City Council and School Committee races as tonight unfolds. I'll be lugging my laptop and lightning-quick typing fingers down the street to the Blue Shamrock Pub where Senator Steve Panagiotakos hosts his election party. The Senator has a pretty nifty setup where results are phoned in the second they're tabulated at each precinct, and he posts them almost instantly on a computer, which is then projected onto a big screen at the Shamrock.

Those of you who can't get there in person should stay with TheSunBlog, as we'll instantly post results online. In addition, Sun Editor Jim Camapanini will be on-hand beginning at 7pm to analyze the results and answer your questions on what promises to be an interesting night for the city of Lowell.

It’s not too often a pro athlete stays true to his/her word when the dollar signs start flying around. But it appears Curt Schilling was telling the truth when he said pitching one more year in Boston was his first choice.

The soon-to-be 42-year old righty confirms on his 38 Pitches blog that he and the Red Sox have reached agreement on a one year deal. Schilling goes on to give the salary figures…$8-million guaranteed, $2-million in weight incentives and $3-million in Innings Pitched incentives, plus another $1-million should he even receive one Cy Young Vote. Schilling goes on to write he could have gotten more elsewhere, even possibly two years.

I’m glad this is done…and a bit surprised. Reading his blog in the days after the World Series, I got the feeling this was a guy saying goodbye. It’s great to see his efforts acknowledged and rewarded. Schilling pitched his heart out for the Sox. Sure, he may be a bit of a blowhard, but he’s OUR blowhard. Sacrificing his career for a championship earns him a place alongside every other member of that 2004 squad, with his perch just a tad bit loftier, right there near Keith Foulke in my eyes. He’s a great leader and a good influence on the young power pitchers, not to mention a money pitcher.

Welcome back Curt…glad you never went away!

What’s your view of the Schilling signing? Are you as surprised as I am? Is the money right? Too much? Should the Sox have just gone with the younger arms?

Perfection.

In the real world, it’s hard to define. Like beauty, it’s in the eyes of the beholder. Bo Derek may have been a “10” in the movies, but the proliferation of plastic surgery in Hollywood has the same effect as beer-goggles in a nightclub; that 2 at 10:00 can easily become a 10 at 2:00. (Besides, I’ll take Michelle Phifer in a Catwoman costume over Bo Derek any day of the week. Now that’s Purr-fect!)

In the professional sports world, perfection is much easier to define, though much more difficult to find. Nadia Comaneci scored the first ever “10” in Olympic gymnastics, but was she really perfect? How do we know for sure if one of her toes didn’t bend during a landing? Nope, sorry to all you gymnasts and figure skaters watchers! Subjective events decided by often-biased judges are more art than sport.

Rocky Marciano is one of the few examples of perfection from an individual competitor, retiring from the ring wars a perfect 49-0. Now you might wonder why I don’t lump boxing with figure skating, since The Brockton Blockbuster only recorded 46 of his victories by knockout, meaning a judge’s scorecard was responsible for three of those conquests. When Scott Hamilton stays upright through a routine while someone is trying to punch him in the face, we can talk.

There’s a book about Roger Federer called The Quest for Perfection, but the current king of men’s tennis still drops a match or two per year. Ditto for the ruler of the other rich man’s sport, Tiger Woods, who despite his links dominance can’t even come close to capturing half the tournaments he enters, never mind all of them.

Forget professional baseball, basketball and hockey. Multiple games per week over a 6-8 month period mean we’ll never see a perfect team in any of those endeavors. The ’86 Celtics, with Larry Bird and Bill Walton trying to outdo each other with back door passes were about as close as you could get, though that was only in an aesthetic sense.

Walton was part of a UCLA dynasty that posted a few zero loss seasons along the way, but that was before scholarships were slashed and the college basketball talent more evenly distributed. Bobby Knight’s ’76 Hoosiers were the last squad to achieve perfection, while Bird’s ’79 Sycamores and Jerry Tarkanian’s ’91 UNLV Running Rebels took unblemished records into the Final Four before chalking one up in the loss column.

College football regularly produces undefeated teams. Too bad uneven scheduling and the lack of a true playoff system render those accomplishments meaningless. Take “I’M a Pushover State” off the schedule and let’s see how many perfect seasons those football factories end up with.

The Holy Grail of perfect seasons remains the ’72 Miami Dolphins. 14-regular season wins. Three more in the playoffs. 17-0. NFL teams have been chasing that mark ever since, a goal made even more difficult by the expansion to a 16-game regular season. Not that 17-0 is anything to scoff at, but in this day and age of parity and harder schedules for elite teams than also-rans, 19-0 would make the long road taken by Don Shula's fish seem like a cake walk.

Every so often, a team makes a run at it, only to stumble along the way. The 2005 Indianapolis Colts started off 13-0 before losing to San Diego and then getting bumped by Pittsburgh in the playoffs. At least Chicago’s 1985 squad regrouped to win the Super Bowl after Dan Marino’s ‘Fins defended the honor of their predecessors by mauling the 12-0 Bears. That unlucky Week 13 matchup was the most anticipated regular season contest until two days ago.

Which brings us to this year’s New England Patriots and their quest for perfection. What began as a running gag is an all-too real possibility now that the Colts have been vanquished. Aesthetically, the Patriots are as close to a perfect football team as you’ll see. Yeah, I’m a sports geek, but I’ll put a Tom Brady spiral to a leaping Randy Moss up against any work of art hanging in the Louvre. Bet Da Vinci never had to complete his paint brush passes with 60,000 zealots and piped in crowd noise blaring down on him!

After Sunday’s game, Indy coach Tony Dungy said the Patriots “force you into playing perfect.” Unfortunately for Dungy, only one NFL team is up to that challenge. It just so happens the Colts played against that team Sunday.

Perfection. That’s exactly where the 2007 New England Patriots are headed. And no, I don’t have my beer goggles on.

Final Score
Patriots 24
Colts 20

View from Mt. Olympus: The path to perfection is now paved!

The Patriots beat their only real competition…on the road…in a horribly officiated contest where every single call (and even the phantom ones) went against them…and with the “saintly” Colts apparently piping in crowd noise to help disrupt New England’s offense (something that’s against the rules, by the way, so the NFL is investigating). So if Peyton Manning and company couldn't derail the Patriots, who do you see on the schedule that’s going to stop this team’s Sherman-like, destructive march through the league?

Big players come up big in big games. Tom Brady had an off day but was clutch when he needed to be. Randy Moss was a man amongst boys (not that we didn’t already know that, but it was nice to see in a game where the opposition actually stood up to the Pats and didn’t cower)…Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth and Kevin Faulk all came up huge when they needed to…Rodney Harrison played like a man possessed (notice how the Colts tight ends didn't destroy the Pats like they did in the AFC Championshiop?)...and the defense did what it had to do in the 4th quarter (though I am curious why Adalius Thomas, acquired specifically for this matchup, didn't play very much).

For the first time since last January, the Patriots actually took a punch from an opponent, and fought back to win. They responded like champions…not that we doubted it, but until you actually see it, there’s always that question in the back of your mind (I know there was in mine as the Colts were running it down New England’s throat). The play that speaks volumes for me was when Welker caught the game clinching first down, then immediately dropped to the ground before his momentum carried him out of bounds. I’m willing to bet 95% of players in the league don’t make that play. That Welker did shows me how detail-oriented the Pats practices are and how heads up the players are.

In all, it was a fantastic victory that all but cinches home field advantage in the playoffs. Now, I don’t think New England will blow out the Colts in January, even in Foxboro, because Indy is actually a better running team than the Patriots and the Pats passing game is more likely to suffer in poor weather than Indy’s. However, I still think there’s enough talent on the Patriots, along with big game January experience, to beat the Colts again no matter where they play or under what conditions. And I think you saw that in the faces of both teams' players as they walked off the field.

Quality Quote: “They played with championship effort, championship big plays down the stretch and they made them and we did not. So that was disappointing. Usually you want to feel like you can close people out in the fourth quarter and we couldn’t do it. We didn’t have an answer for Randy Moss today. We had a lot of attention paid to him trying to stop him from catching the deep balls but he caught the deep one at the big time of the game. That really was the play of the game, got them a quick score. We played hard. We didn’t play maybe as well as we would have liked, but I think you have to credit them. They force you into playing perfect.”—Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy

“Perfect.” The 9-0 Patriots still are. The 7-1 Colts no longer are.

That’s the view from here…how did you see it? Surprised at how much of a struggle it was? Do the Colts have any chance should there be a rematch in January? You think the path toward perfection is now clearly paved?

Figured I'd chime in quickly here on the big game, which has all the feel and hype of a great Heavyweight Boxing Match.

I'm surprised at how many Patriots fans are predicting a blowout here, as if the 7-0 Colts are just going to roll over and die on their home field. Folks, it's OK to root for the Pats and think they're going to win, but when you start predicting 47-21 finals, I think you're crossing the line into yahoo territory...and I don't mean the internet giant.

Let me put it to you this way; remember about 3-4 years ago, when the Colts were the offensive juggernaut and the Patriots were the defending Super Bowl champs who did nothing but win? Weren't you a tad insulted when people just assumed the Colts were going to steamroll over New England? Indy is a great, great team that knows how to win big games and has won 3-in a row over the Patriots. Don't make the mistake of thinking, even for a second, that they don't stand a chance today.

That said, I, too, like the Patriots today. However, I've reversed course from earlier in the week and don't believe it's going to be as high scoring as most think. I think New England is going to have a tough time running the ball, so the passing attack will have to be on in a very loud dome. I see the Colts trying to play ball control with Joseph Addai running and Peyton Manning's dump passes. I see both defenses making some big plays to slow down these very potent offesnes (in case you haven't been watching, the Colts have a very good defense this year). I se the key being which defense is able to come up with key stops.

Finally, I see a 27-24 Patriots victory. Just don't be too devastated or surprised if that score is reversed.

That's the view from here...how do you see it?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

22-points, 20-Rebounds.

It's just one game, but there will be many more like it this season. If Kevin Garnett could dominate in the Western Conference with all those monster power forwards, just imagine what he's going to do to the East.

Not so much you folks, because most SunBlog visitors were in favor of the Garnett trade when it happened. You might not have believed it would happen, but when it did, you were pretty unanimous in your joy. However, on sites devoted specifically to the Celtics, the overwhelming sentiment was against trading Al Jefferson, while questioning what on earth Danny Ainge was thinking. Most people weren't won over until the deal actually happened and they saw the three superstars on the podium together, smiling and looking like they'd just hit the lottery. Then in true New England fashion (remember this if/when A-Rod comes to Boston), everyone jumped on the bandwagon and wanted to raise Ainge the rafters as a GM.

Kevin Garnett is a bona fide superstar in this league. I like Al Jefferson, but on his best day he'll be lucky to become 75% of the all-around player KG is, and will continue to be for another 3-5 years. Offense is nice, but defensive intensity and intimidation are more important when you're gunning for a championship, which is exactly what Boston will be doing come May and June. That was a playoff atmosphere last night. And even on those nights when the crowd gets a bit quiet, KG's intensity will light the fire.

Garnett brings the entire package, and it showed in his teammates' play.That Wizards team the C's demolished last night had been a nightmare for the Green previously. It's just one game. Keep telling yourself that. I'll keep telling myself that.

But if that sign in the picture above read 60-22, it might not be too far from the truth!

What did you think of the new look Celtics?

Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

As Noel barrels through the Bay State, bookies throughout Massachusetts better batten down the hatches. No, not because this supposed Nor’Easter is dangerous, but because The Victim is devouring point spreads like a Hurricane devouring huts on a Caribbean Island.

A perfect 4-0 mark was punctuated by a rousing Monday Night Football cover which saw Brett Favre connect on a long TD, taking a spread-tying field goal out of play. If you gambling folks haven’t taken this man’s advice yet, now might be the time to start if you want to fatten the Christmas shopping savings account. Then again, if you’ve followed our peerless pigskin prognosticator’s picks lately, you’ve noticed a good cop-bad cop routine, with Week 9 in line for a down week.

With that in mind, here are this week’s selections (Monday Night’s pick can be heard by dialing into SportsTalk Live):

Green Bay (+2 ½) over Kansas City
Minnesota (+7) over San Diego
New England (-5) over Indianapolis
Philadelphia (+3) over Dallas

Last week: 4-0
Season record: 22-16-2
Monday Night record: 6-2-1

Caught about a period and a half of the UMass-Lowell vs. Merrimack Hockey East contest last night…was a very disappointing game in two areas (read Chaz Scoggins' game story here);

The River Hawks can’t afford to lose games to Merrimack if they’re going to crawl out of the 9-10 spot and qualify for the playoffs. It’s hard to tally points against Hockey East’s elite clubs, so squandering a chance at two points against a squad you’ve owned in the recent past (0-8-2) is really going to hurt down the line.

More disturbing was the team’s performance. Lowell’s play was totally uninspiring, and I’m not sure if that’s because of a lack of effort or a lack of talent. If it’s the former, Blaise MacDonald needs to crack the whip and wake his young players up fast. Every game is far too precious to turn in a stinker, especially at home. If it’s the latter case, this could be a long, long conference season for the River Hawks.

Did anyone catch the game? What did you think? Off night or a sign that this team isn’t very good?