Heartbreaking

There are heartbreaking losses, then there are HEARTBREAKING losses. My Golden Grizzlies fell the other night to a good, experienced NDSU team. We basically had the game won, literally. We were playing good defense, we were scoring, we were up 12 with ten minutes left. Then it happened. NDSU went off for a 16-4 run to win the game. Woodside hit a jumper with 3.3 seconds left, Jones had a chance to win it with an NBA 3, but just barely missed. It took me a couple days to write about this loss, because frankly it still hurts. We had the game! We just gave it away. Thats twice in 3 years that we had the Championship locked, a trip to the NCAA's and lost it. If only Oakland would of kept feeding the ball to Benson and Hudson we would be conference Champs. Only if they didn't let tevidt hit a wide open 3 to take the lead would we be champs. UGH! The loss is still painful. I already can't wait till next year. We are going to be even better next with when Derek Nelson coming back. Transfer Larry Wright should fill in nicely in Kangas departure. Only 8 more months till the season starts....

ONE MORE GAME!!!!!

That is it. One more win, and Oakland is in! Tomorrow night 8 Eastern. Oakland will play North Dakota State for the Summit Conference tournament Championship, and a automatic bid to the NCAA tournament!!!! So far Oakland has cruised to its 2 victories, winning by double digits both games. Kangas hurt is ankle yesterday against IPFW, but posted 21 points tonight. Tomorrow should be a hard fought game going to the wire. I am excited, and can't wait to watch this game!! GO GRIZZLIES!!!!!!!

Lions Improving??? And Oakland's chance for the Big Dance.

As the days go by, I'm slowly getting more confidence in Martin Mayhew's ability to turn the Lions around. The Lions are not players for the "big time" free agents, but they are quietly signing good, quality NFL players. Something Mr. Millen could never do at a consistent bases. With that being said, lets take a look at the players that the Lions have Signed.

Grady Jackson. He is a bit old for my liking (37) but he is still a solid NFL player, and an instant upgrade at the DT position. Jackson comes in at 6-2, 345, is a very strong player. He signed a 3 year deal, which I believe is around $8 million. Jackson is not as dominate as a player as he used to, but I have total faith that he will definitely help stop the running, which the Lions could not do last year. Plus, he came from a playoff team last year (Atlanta) and started in 15 games. Instant Upgrade!!

Philip Buchanon. Lions signed him for a two year deal. At 5-11, 186 he comes from, (Hold your breath Lions fans!) Tampa Bay. However, I don't know much about him, but I do know he started in all 16 games last year. He should be an upgrade from the Lions horrible Secondary. I expect him to compete and start when the season starts.

Bryant Johnson. The Lions signed him from San Francisco. He had a lot of potential when drafted in the first round with AZ in 2003. (He was actually drafted before Boldin) However, Johnson has never lived up to his true potential as an NFL wide receiver. He had an OK year with the 49ers last year. Hopefully a change in scenery will do him good in Detroit. He should be a good complimentary receiver for Calvin Johnson. I see him being a number 3 receiver with the potential to be a number 2.

Other notable signings for the Lions are, Eric King, and Maurice Morris. Morris is a good solid back that is a good change of pace back for the Lions, and will be the backup to Kevin Smith.

The Lions traded Jon Kitna to Dallas, for corner Anthony Henry. Getting rid of Kitna was a good thing. He was a pick waiting to happen, and put up good numbers on bad teams, that only wanted to throw the ball.

Mayhew this off-season has brought in 3 DB's. Hopefully these 3 players will help make our secondary much much better, but only time will tell....

Oakland Basketball

This is part of the season that Oakland practices and lives for! The Summit Conference Tournament will start on Saturday. As NDSU will face Centenary, and ORU will face SDSU. Oh, that is my upset special!!! SDSU will knock off ORU, the 3 time defending champion in the first round.

Oakland has the number 3 seed. Oakland finished off the season as the hottest team in the conference. Winning 7 straight, not losing in February, and getting 20 wins for the first time in D-1 history. Nobody wants to play Oakland right now, their defense has improved a lot, and their freshman have really stepped it up. (Maynard and Cushingberry)

Sunday, Oakland will face off IPFW. Oakland beat them twice this year, but this game really, REALLY scares the crap out of me. David Carson is a senior for IPFW. Don't know who he is? Well, he was a freshman on Oakland's squad that went to the NCAA tournament in 2005. He transferred two years later to IPFW. (He couldn't handle being Vova's backup) Anyway Carson is the reason why this game scares me to death. David is a flat out player, and when he plays against Oakland he always puts up monster numbers. IPFW also has a pair of guards that can really shot the 3 ball. If Oakland can contain Carson, and limit his points we should win the game. However if Carson has a monster game, I will expect IPFW to pull off the upset. If Oakland forgets about IPFW's sharpshooters, that can also come back to haunt us. Jones is one of the better defensive players in the league, and he should shut done one of their guards.

In the end I expect Oakland to pull off the victory, but it wont be easy. Actually I am predicting by Tuesday night Oakland will be dancing again!!!!!

Here are my predictions.

First Round

(1) NDSU def. (8)Centenary
(7) SDSU def. (2) ORU
(3) Oakland def. (6) IPFW
(4) IUPUI def. (5) Southern Utah

Second Round

(1) NDSU def. (4) IUPUI
(3) Oakland def. (7) SDSU

Championship Game

(3) Oakland def. (1) NDSU

Tournament MVP-Erik Kangas. He will get his revenge for missing that 3 pointer two years ago that might of put Oakland in the NCAA. The best shooter in the Summit, and one of the best in the nation. Kangas will have a dominate tournament, and will carry Oakland on his back. This is his last rodeo, and he won't let his teammates down!

Congrats to Guards Erik Kangas and Johnathon Jones who were named to All-Summit first team. While Keith Benson was named to All-Summit second team. For more information go to www.ougrizzlies.com

Its Senior Night!

Its the last home game for my fellow seniors at Oakland University. The 3 seniors are Erik Kangas, Dan Waterstradt, and former walk-on Ricky Bieszki. Ricky will be making his first, and last career start tonight. Ricky has not played much in his Oakland Career but I've heard from multiple sources that he is a great teammate and a great practice player. This is rare in today's society. I'm sure he is more important to the team than we think. I really hope these seniors are going to graduate and do great things in their life. I fully expect Kangas to end up playing overseas for a few years. Who knows maybe the NBA one day?

Oakland is not going to Win the regular season crown, in fact they locked up the number 3 seed going into the conference tournament. However, they still have a lot to play for in this last regular season game. Currently Oakland has 19 wins, tied for most in D1 history, if they win today they will get win number 20, first time ever in D1 history. And maybe just maybe a lock to get into a postseason tournament if we fail to make the NCAA. Oakland has yet to lose at home this season. If they win tonight, it will be the first time Oakland has ever in its history finish undefeated at home. So yeah, Oakland has something to play for tonight. Not to mention they have won 6 straight games, and is undefeated in the month of February. We are the hottest team in the Summit League, and peaking at the right time. We are a very dangerous team, and I expect us to make it to the NCAA tournament again. So everyone come out and support our Golden Grizzlies! Today 6 PM at the O'rena!

QUICK THOUGHTS

The Pistons finally won a game! I am still in shock that they managed to beat Orlando. However, I still think it wont be enough, and Pistons will be on the outside looking in, once the playoffs start. Oh, if I were Joe D, I'd cut Rasheed Wallace. He is nothing but a cancer and has no value to the team now.

Dontrelle Willis made is spring debut yesterday against the Blue Jays. The results? Not pretty, the same old Willis as last year. However is defense did make an error behind him so only 2 out of the 4 runs were earned. I wont take to much stock into this game, but I expected better things out of Willis this year, hopefully he can become the pitcher he once was.

Oakland playing good basketball at the right time...

So far in the month of February, Oakland Men's basketball team is undefeated. This past week they had two road games. Lately the guys have been struggling on the road, losing 4 straight on the road. However, Thursday my boys dominated Western Illinois University, then yesterday they had to travel to a small but hostel environment at IUPUI. Again, the guys pulled off the victory, after almost blowing the lead late in the game.

Oakland has been on a roll thanks to our bench. Earlier in the year, our bench was a non factor, especially on the road. However things are starting to change. Freshman Blake Cushingberry came off the bench to score a career high 24 points and hitting 4 threes. Blake has become a more consistent score for Oakland in the month of February. The best part about him, is that he plays solid defense, and he is only a freshman.

Drew Maynard is another freshman that is starting to pick up is pace again. Earlier in the year Maynard was playing very solid, averaging around 8 points a game. However in the month of January, it seemed like Maynard hit a brick wall and you could tell he lost his confidence. He started to pass up open shots, and when he would shoot, it seemed like it didn't really want too. However that changed against IPFW last week. He knocked down 3 threes, and played a very productive game. After that game Drew seems to have is swagger back, and its back to the Drew of old. Drew has not been lighting the world on fire, but he is being productive. If he can average around 7-11 points per game in the tournament, we will be tough to beat.

Over the past couple of years I have been very critical of Dan "the man" Waterstradt. Dan did get hurt against ORU the first go around. The injury seemed to be effecting him the next few games, he was very unproductive, and he couldn't do anything right. Now Dan seems like he is 100% and is playing much better basketball. I have to give Dan is credit. He is playing like he wants an NCAA Bid. He is playing much better defense, and is getting boards when earlier in the year he wouldn't be. He is also starting to produce on the offensive end. Thursday against WIU he scored 10 points. Dan is not much of a scorer, but if he cant get us around 5-6 points a game during the tournament, and play good defense, it will be a bonus.

I believe these 3 guys hold the keys for us in the NCAA tournament. If they can be productive in the conference tournament, and supplement Kangas, Jones, and Benson we wont be stopped. Likewise if these guys fail to show up, we wont make it far in the tournament. Oakland's faith lies with these guys.

Its spring training!!!

Holy cow, spring training has already arrived! Its an exciting time of the year, and the Tigers enter camp with a ton of question marks. I fully expect Verlander to return to form. I think Bonderman will have a break out year. Before you start laughing at me, remember he had a blood clot in his pitching arm. Now that its gone, his arm is going to feel like a million bucks! Break out year!!! I expect 14-17 wins from Edwin Jackson. Miggy is well Miggy. Ordonez is steady as a rock. Curtis Granderson is our spark plus and is only going to get better.

What really worries me is the bullpen. However, I think Dave did a good job in adding pieces to the pen. He didn't go after any big names, but he brought it solid major league pitchers. My surprise pick is going to be Ryan Perry. The Tigers first round draft pick of last year. This guy has a cannon, throws 100 MPH, and is just a stud. I expect him to make the club, and be an impact like Joel Zumaya was in 2006. As for Zumaya, if he can return to form like he did in 2006, and the beginning of 2007, look out!! Seriously if Zumaya, and Perry can produce right away the tigers will be a contender this coming up season. Now, if our new pitching coach can fix Rodney's mental problems, then well, we will win the division.

Speaking of which, the new Tigers pitching coach is Rick Knapp. Never heard of him before? Your not alone. He never has been a pitching coach for a major league team before. However, he was the head pitching coordinator the the Twins Minor league system. Rick knows the ins and outs of pitching like the best of them. He helped bring up all those stud pitchers from Minnesota. Knapp has already found delivery flaws in Verlander, Robertson, and Willis! Rick is going to be a great pitching coach for us, and he is a 100 times better than his predecessor.


Quick Thoughts.

Pistons suck. They have no chemistry, and Joe Dumars is going to do nothing before the trade deadline tomorrow. Big shocker, attendance is crashing worse than the price of gas, and Joe is sitting around doing nothing. If you ask me Joe D is overrated as a GM. I said it before and I'll say it again, don't be shocked if they miss the playoffs.

A source telling Dave Birkett said the Lions have talked to Jeff Backus, about the prospect of moving to guard. He said he was open to the idea. About time I thought. I have been telling myself this a couple years now. At best he is an average left tackle. Being an average tackle in the NFL wont cut it, especially if your covering your quarterback's blind side! Hopefully this means they will go over a tackle in the draft. (Andre Smith!)

Tomorrow night, Oakland University is traveling to Western Illinois for a conference clash. Last time these two teams met, Oakland spanked them by 40! Oakland will look for win number 17, and if they win out they will have 20 wins, the first time in Division 1 history. Oakland Men's and Women's swimming and Diving teams are hosting the conference tournament this Thursday through Saturday. They are a power house, and both teams have beaten Michigan State this year. I believe tickets are free, and if you want to see some great swimming, I recommend going!