DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS

Looking at this part of the schedule, Celtics fans may have cringed just a bit. Three games in four days against the Texas Triangle of San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas. But the Celtics have thus far shown that they are indeed the best team in the NBA.

After falling 22 points behind the Spurs Monday night, the Celtics rallied. They scored 82 in the final 3/4 of the game, triumphing 93-91. Pierce led the team with 22 points. Garnett had 21, Rajon Rondo had 20, and Sam Cassell added 17 off the bench.

But the road through Texas didn't get any easier. The C's had to take a 200 mile trip east to face the Rockets, who had won 22 straight. But a tied game at half-time was blown wide open in the 3rd as the Celtics opened up a 16 point lead. Paul Pierce once again led the team in scoring with 22 points. Garnett added 20 along with 11 boards.

The Celtics did all the things it takes to beat a tough opponent on the road. They outrebounded Houston 45 to 35. They got to the line often and went 15 for 17 from the charity stripe. And they got support off the bench. Leon Powe put up 21 points, and James Posey had 10 rebounds.

The Celtics have a well deserved day off, before travelling 240 miles north to face the Dallas Mavericks.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/David J. Phillip

COLON ROUGHED UP, "BUT HAD GOOD VELOCITY"

The newfound positivity in this town sickens me. Bartolo Colon can't even get out of the first inning, and the Glass Half Fulls out there are already ignoring the not so bright sides of his outing. And there was plenty on the not so bright side.

Colon's main problem was location troubles. I wouldn't say he was "wild" as indicated by his pitching line (0.2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 0 HR). Of the 41 pitches he threw, 21 were strikes, 20 were balls. But he wasn't crazy wild, he kept missing in the same place. I don't know if that's good or bad because that place was up.

He struggled in the count, seemed to labor with the high pitch total, allowed silly walks, and left a pitch up in the zone for Matsui, who slapped it the opposite way for a ground rule double.

But the positivity in this town sucks.

Here's an excerpt from Jackie MacMullen's article about yesterday's game:

"It's undeniable that Colon had command problems yesterday, but he did catch Jason Giambi looking at strike three with a nasty off-speed pitch on the inside of the plate. That was just after he engaged in a nine-pitch battle with Bobby Abreu before walking him."

Nine pitch battles are bad things for pitchers. And getting Giambi to look at strike three isn't a major accomplishment.

I don't mind the team being overly positive. They have to be. But when fans and journalists start glorifying a 4 run first inning because the misplaced fastballs Colon threw hit 95 on an unreliable Tampa radar gun; they've crossed a line into dreamland.

Colon HAS NOT done anything to make me or any other sensible Sox fan think he will be a decent starting pitcher. I'm not saying he won't be one, just that he has yet to demonstrate that he can be one.

Sources:
BostonRedSox.com
Boston.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Kathy Willens

DICE-K MIGHT GO TO JAPAN, BUT BECKETT WON'T

Josh Beckett is said to be "progressing" and has resumed throwing once more, but he will not make the trip to Japan later this week. Terry Francona officially announced this on Sunday.

Beckett will continue playing catch, and by Thursday could be throwing off a mound again. But with an exhibition game in Japan on Friday, and two real games next Tuesday and Wednesday; there simply isn't enough time to get him in good enough form to pitch in a meaningful game. Moreover, the 14 hour flight and general pain in the ass of going to Tokyo is unnecessary for a pitcher recovering from a back problem.

However, another Sox frontline starter may make the trip. Daisuke Matsuzaka's wife Tomoyo gave birth to a boy Saturday morning. This frees up Daisuke to make the trip to Japan.

There's no official announcement as to who will be starting the two games against Oakland in the Tokyo Dome. However, the logical choices now seem to be Lester and Matsuzaka. Wakefield is also a possibility, but he has said he'll be starting one of the exhibition games over the weekend.

Speaking of Wakefield, he threw 5 perfect innings against minor leaguers from the Cincinnati Reds' organization. Granted, it was a spring training game against AAA players, but 5 perfect innings is still impressive.

Sources:
Boston.com
Boston.com
Extra Bases

NEW ENGLAND TEAMS IN TOURNAMENTS

This is the week in which copy machines in offices across America will be working overtime, and the Todds from Sales will be collecting money for "the pool." Every March, the randomness, excitement, and difficult to predict NCAA tournament brings out the latent gambler in all of us. Just like those grids on Super Bowl Sunday.

But why not photocopy brackets for the NIT, and the new Collegiate Basketball Invitational? Why not collect $5 for the women's bracket, or the Frozen Four? Half the people in bracket pools aren't college basketball fans anyway, so just because it's Virginia Commonwealth vs. Alabama-Birmingham and not Kansas vs. Georgetown doesn't make it a less exciting thing to bet on. The games aren't as good, but the gambling action is just as good, if not better.

Here are the New England teams playing in the post-season:

NCAA Championship Tournament:
UConn
The Huskies are the 4th seed in the Western Region. But they'll be playing their fist games in Tampa. They open up against San Diego on Friday. If they win, they'll face either Drake or Western Kentucky. UCLA is the #1 seed they're grouped with. Not surprisingly, UConn got a somewhat favorable seeding and placement. I hate UConn and hope they lose to Drake.

National Invitation Tournament:
UMass
The Minutemen went 21-10 and finished 3rd in the Atlantic 10, which earned them a #2 seed in the NIT. They'll host Stone Cold Stephen F. Austin University on Tuesday. Their grouping doesn't have a name, but if it did, it would be called "How the Mighty Have Fallen Region." It includes Maryland and Syracuse.

Rhode Island
The Rams had a promising beginning but couldn't take the big steps to get to the Big Dance. So they're stuck in the NIT as a 6 seed, facing Creighton on Tuesday night. URI began the season 14-1, with their only loss being a heartbreaker to Boston College. Losing close games would be a trend for the Rams, and they ended up 9th in the A-10 (which isn't as bad as it sounds, there are 14 teams in the A-10).

Collegiate Basketball Invitational:
Brown
The Brown Bears finished 2nd in the Ivy League and 19-9 overall. They're part of the 16 team CBI and will play Ohio University on Tuesday in Athens...Athens, OH.

Not listed is Boston College. That's not too surprising, but when you consider that 113 D-I teams made it into a post-season tournament, it really shows how much of a rebuilding season this was for the Eagles. Of the 12 teams in the ACC, 8 made it to a tournament (4 in the NCAA, 3 in the NIT, 1 in the CBI).

As a New England sports fan, I'm a little disappointed by these fields of tournaments. I'll root for URI in the NIT, but it's difficult to watch an entire NIT game and pretend to care. And UConn...well...the less said about them the better.

Remember the days when BC and/or UMass were forces in the NCAA tournament? Remember when underdog hopefuls like Vermont and Holy Cross would capture the imagination of New England for 2 hours? Now look what we're stuck with...UConn. Makes me sick.

Sources:
ESPN.com
College Basketball Invitational
National Invitation Tournament

CELTICS CLINCH ATLANTIC DIVISION

The Celtics have clinched their 26th divisional title, and their first since the 2004-05 season. I know I don't write about the Celtics too often on here, but that's mainly because there's not much to say after they play except "KG, Pierce, and Allen were great. Everyone on the team played well. The other team didn't stand a chance. Detroit sucks."

Just to demonstrate how well the Celtics have played this year (and how poorly they've played in years past), they could lose EVERY SINGLE GAME they have left, and finish with their best winning percentage since 1990-91.

The C's have a 4.5 game lead over Detroit for the #1 Eastern Conference seed. The Celtics have 17 regular season games left, Detroit has 16. The Celtics also hold the head-to-head tie-breaker against Detroit, so the Magic Number to clinch home court advantage throughout the playoffs is 12.

Source:
ESPN.com

BRUINS BEGIN PLAYOFF PUSH

After a thrilling 3-2 overtime win over the Flyers on Saturday, and a slightly disappointing 2-1 shootout loss to Washington yesterday, the End Game for the Bruins' regular season has begun. The B's are in the middle of a maelstrom of teams jockeying for the 8th and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. Six teams are in contention for the last three playoff spots, and are all within 5 points of each other. Here's how the situation looks right now:

6. New York Rangers - 83 points - 10 games remaining
7. BOSTON BRUINS - 83 points - 9 games remaining
8. Philadelphia Flyers - 80 points - 9 games remaining
9. Buffalo Sabres - 79 points - 9 games remaining
10. Washington Capitals - 78 points - 9 games remaining
11. Florida Panthers - 78 points - 8 games remaining

Here is the remaining Bruins' schedule:

3/20 vs. Montreal
3/22 @ Montreal
3/25 @ Toronto
3/27 vs. Toronto
3/29 vs. Ottawa
3/30 @ Buffalo
4/2 @ New Jersey
4/4 @ Ottawa
4/5 vs. Buffalo

So that's a pair of games against the top team in the East (New Jersey), two games against a team the Bruins haven't beaten this year (Montreal), and two MASSIVE games against a surging Buffalo team that's on the playoff bubble. If the Bruins can get ten points in these games (remember, it's two for a win, one for a loss in OT), they'll probably make the playoffs.

The Bruins haven't made the Stanley Cup playoffs since 2003-04. They haven't advanced past the first round since 1999.

Sources:
NHL.com
BostonBruins.com

SCHILLING ON 60 DAY DL

In a not so surprise move, Curt Schilling was placed on the 60 day DL. The difference between the 15 and 60 day disabled lists isn't just the length of time. Being placed on the 60 day DL clears a spot on the 40 man roster. The word is that Schilling won't be back until the All-Star break. Which to me means he won't be back until August.

But the news out of Fort Myers isn't all bad. The Red Sox clinched their 6th Mayor's Cup on Wednesday with a 12-7 win over the Twins. The last two times the Sox won the Cup (2004, 2007), they went on to win the World Series.

Source:
Hartfor Courant

SOX RELEASE MIRABELLI

In a bit of a surprise move, the Red Sox have placed Doug Mirabelli on irrevocable waivers. The 37 year old catcher has seen his solid offensive numbers collapse in the past few years. In 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 - his first seasons with the Sox - he hit .247, slugged .459, hit 33 homeruns. Those were very good numbers for a backup.

But the last three seasons have seen a considerable drop. He's hit .206 since 2005, with a slugging percentage of .363. He's still hitting the occasional homerun, with 17 in the past three years, but every other aspect of his game at the plate has fallen off. Last year, he struck out about 4 times as often as he walked, and once every 2.78 at-bats.

The Red Sox now have three candidates for the backup catcher's role. Kevin Cash did a solid job catching Wakefield last year, but he's having a mediocre Spring, and only hit .111 in limited time with Boston last year. George Kotteras is hitting .500 in Grapefruit League play, and Dusty Brown is hitting .556.

Although he wasn't that great, Doug will still be missed. Here is a video tribute to him, showing all of his homeruns from 2004 to 2007.



Sources:
Baseball-Reference.com
USA Today
ESPN
CBS SportsLine