Urbana Steals Bases And A Win Against Kenwood, Secures Spot In Quarterfinals

TIMONIUM, Md. -- After four days of rainy weather, game cancellations and unplayable field conditions, the Urbana Hawks boys baseball team got their chance to play May 20 and simply decided they didn't want to stop, taking the 5-3 win against the Kenwood Blue Birds.

The Hawks, riding the momentum of the day after closing a win against Dulaney earlier in the morning, opened up with a three-run first inning against Kenwood senior Shane Campbell. Campbell, who will play for the University of Maryland next year, seemed to struggle with his control in the first inning, resulting in four walks and one hit before he could retire the side. By then, the damage was done and Urbana took advantage of their speed, stealing multiple bases outright and several others off fielding errors.

Stolen bases were commonplace for Urbana throughout the game. When asked about the 15 total Urbana stole, Hawks coach Mike Frownfelter said, "In pregame, we looked at how strong their catcher's arm was. We saw a weakness and took advantage of it."

Kenwood countered Urbana's first-inning onslaught, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first to keep within striking distance. Over the next two innings, Campbell, who finished the game with 11 strikeouts, regained his ball control and was almost perfect over the next two innings, striking out four of six batters and grounding out the other two. Kenwood capitalized on his performance, evening the score in the bottom of the third with a walk-in run. 

That was the last run the Hawks Jeff Bynaker would surrender to Kenwood. Bynaker made the most of this opportunity, using it to finish his first complete game of the season.  The senior pitcher, who had six strikeouts for the game, allowed his team to do a lot of the defense for him, earning him high praise from his coach. 

"We just needed him to throw strikes," Frownfelter said. "Three games in two days, we just needed someone to eat up innings and Jeff did a great job of that."

Bynaker was also responsible for the Hawks final two runs, driving in one and then stealing home off an infield error in the fourth inning to help to lead the Hawks to victory.

Blue Birds coach Don Keener said there were no surprises in Urbana's style of play. 

"We were pretty prepared. We just didn't hit the ball," he said. "We had a chance to break this open or at least get the lead. There were just too many walks, four or five runs were walks.

"It's just a tough way to lose, but we fought them to the end. They're not a bad team."

Earlier in the day, the Hawks, who finished the season with a 6-12 record, defeated the 14-4 Dulaney Lions, 2-0, in a 10-inning game to advance to the third round of the Maryland 4A Boys Baseball Championships, setting them up for the matchup against Kenwood. 

Urbana will try to prove they are more than their record in the semifinals May 21, where they play the winner of Westminster v. Thomas Johnson.

Bulls Withstand Heat, Still Running Around in Miami's China Shop.

CHICAGO -- The rumors of the Bulls' demise may have been premature.

Going into Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, many critics gave the Chicago Bulls little chance to win the series. Most said they would be swept or only win one game, if only by some type of luck. But the Bulls had other plans Sunday, serving notice to the Miami Heat with a 103-82 drubbing. The message in the notice was simple: You've won nothing and this will not be easy.

The Bulls dismantled the Heat in Game 1 behind 28 points from Derrick Rose and a superb defensive effort by Luol Deng on LeBron James. The win gives the Bulls a 1-0 series lead with Game 2 coming up May 18. The Bulls, who swept the Heat in the regular season, will look to maintain their home court advantage in the playoffs with a win Wednesday.

How will they do it? With the same formula as Game 1: attack the offensive glass, plenty of man-to-man switching and a gritty, hard-nosed defense that has been the staple of any defense Tom Thibodeau is part of. In Game 1, Johkim Noah and Carlos Boozer wreaked havoc in the paint on the offenisive glass, providing the Bulls with plenty of second-chance opportunities. The two also provided great help defensively, while also providing some much-needed scoring.

The Bulls "Bench Mob," as they like to be called, also provided a spark by extending the lead and playing lock-down defense. But the plays that may have blown the lid off the game were two monster dunks by Taj Gibson late in the game. The Bulls, behind the energy of Gibson's two-handed slam and put-back tomahawk, gained a momentum the Heat would never overcome to finish out the game.

Miami's Chris Bosh had 30 points in the game, but it was not indicative of the defense being played on him or the rest of his team. Bosh was the option Chicago wanted Miami to use, and use it they did. As much as they feed Bosh, he was only capable of carrying the Heat so far without the help of Miami's two true stars in James and Dwyane Wade.

It may only be one game and one win for the Bulls, but in the scheme of things, it's really four games for the entire season. Four games that displayed a defense Miami cannot elude. Four games where the idea of a true team won over the idea of three self-entitled superstars. Four games where we saw the defense we expected from the Boston Celtics in the playoffs come shining through in the form of the Chicago Bulls. It's four games where the insecurities and self-doubt the Heat displayed early in the season has a chance to surface again. This time when it matters most.

One game can make a difference. One game can create doubt. One game can remind players there were three others they couldn't win as well. In that case, one game can really be four.

And that's just how these Bulls like it.

Blake Griffin: Rookie of the Year

LOS ANGELES -- For a season of brilliant numbers, highlights and rejuvenation of a franchise, Blake Griffin was rewarded on Wednesday, April 4, 2011 with the T-Mobile NBA Rookie of The Year Award.

Griffin was the first rookie in 21 years to be a unanimously receive the award.

Griffin, who missed his intial rookie season due to a fractured kneecap, was eligible for the award this year because he never played in a regular season game in 09-10.

Griffin received every first-place vote from a panel of 118 media members. Griffin is the first unanimous choice since San Antonio's David Robinson in 1990, and is just the third player in NBA history to accomplish the feat. The other was Ralph Sampson in 1984.

Griffin played all 82 games leading all rookies in scoring and rebounding. Griffin also finished 12th in the entire NBA in scoring (22.5) and fourth in rebounds (12.1) while ranking second among rookies in assists (3.8).

Lakers Game 2 Preview

LOS ANGELES -- Forget the blame game. It makes no sense to use it here. Although you could use it, if you really wanted.

The Lakers squandered a 16-point third-quarter lead. They were seemingly outcoached, ended up with Pau Gasol guarding Dirk Nowitzki on the perimeter while up by 1. One foul and two free throws later, they were no longer winning, and then the questionable call that would have sent them to the line, but apparently the ref lost his whistle.

No, there is definitely enough blame to go around, but what would be the point. It's over. The Mavericks stole one in L.A. and now it's the Lakers turn to redeem themselves. This is where they like to be after all. Backs against the wall, critics saying they can't do it, fans jumping off the bandwagon as if it were the sinking Titanic itself. This is right where they like to be.

The problem with Game 1 was simple: Kobe Bryant was hitting from everywhere and just destroying whoever Dallas threw at him, scoring 38 points in the process. How can that be a problem, you may ask? Because his teammates followed suit, choosing to, all of a sudden, shoot from the outside as their court leader was and stop feeding the post players, which was playing to their strengths early in the game. The rest of the Lakers fell in love with the three and that in turn allowed Dallas to get up-court faster, pushing the Lakers to the brink until the Mavericks saw their opportunity to seize the game.

If the Lakers are to win tonight, they will have to keep feeding their twin towers in the post, specifically Gasol. They will need to try and get Nowitzki in foul trouble early. Bryant will need to get to the basket a bit more and draw fouls on the opposition. The Lakers will also need to make sure they close out on defense and deny the ball to the Mavericks wings, forcing Nowitzki to take a full load on his shoulders and make him tired.

The Lakers should win this game easier than Game 1. It could be argued they got hosed in Game 1 and should have won that one, but that's in the past and tonight is the future. For the Lakers, the future is still bright and well-lit like the Santa Monica Pier.

Well, that and the red glow from Mark Cuban's face, but that's another post entirely.

Los Angeles Lakers: Round 2 Preview

LOS ANGELES-- The Lakers finished off the Hornets rather easily in their first-round matchup. But to hear the critics tell it, they struggled to win the series, 4-2.

In the Lakers' two losses, the Hornets played as close to perfect as a team and a point guard, Chris Paul, can play. And they won ... barely. In almost all of the Lakers' wins, the outcome was decided before the fourth quarter even started, something contenders like the Heat and Bulls cannot lay claim to.

Critics tell an entirely different story when it comes to those teams. They talk of their dominance and how easily they dispatched their opponents. It's a falsehood. Perhaps that is the reason so many critics have picked the Lakers to lose this series. Why they picked Dallas to win, a team critics said had no chance at making it to Round 2. They were too old, too tired, too disjointed. Now, after dispatching the Trailblazers, they are Laker killers.

What would prompt such outrageous claims outside of the world of jealousy and a hatred for dominance?

Maybe it's the make up of the Mavericks. True, they are old and slower, but they have their perks too. Dirk Nowitzki is damn near unguardable and was absolutely unconscious as a player to start this season. He is still hungry, he wants to win terribly bad and witnessing that means the Mavericks will go as far as he can carry them. And that might be the Mavericks downfall.

Jason Kidd is there, an older and slower version but still steady, smart, crafty and a now beyond capable outside jump shooter. Kidd can still lead a team and still has a knack for coming up big when it counts. His downfall is he is slow enough for someone like Derek Fisher to guard and for someone like Matt Barnes to dominate.

Tyson Chandler has emerged as a defensive presence in the paint, helping to anchor a Dallas defense that in previous years had been known as soft. Chandler should disrupt the paint for the Mavericks and help on the boards, but he won't prevent a bigger, stronger, faster Andrew Bynum from continuing his emergence as the league's second-best center. Chandler will not be able to match Bynum's offensive output.

From there, the matchup gaps become redily apparant, well, minus Mark Cuban's running snark and commentary. But honestly, who can possibly match up with that?

Pau Gasol will give Nowitzki just as much trouble on the offensive end, and the people who claim Shawn Marion, DeShawn Stevenson or a 70-percent healthy Caron Butler can hold Kobe Bryant in check are in for a rude awakening. Bryant may be aging, but that age has him at the third-best player in the world instead of first or second. Ron Artest will be a nightmare for Marion, or anyone else he guards, while Matt Barnes will finish you off what Artest doesn't do first.

The X-factor, as usual, is Lamar Odom. As he goes, so will the Lakers bench. When he gets going, so do they. With no one to guard Odom, the second string will see various opportunities open up for all the role players. As we saw this season, the Lakers bench is more than capable of lighting up opposition just like the first team does.

It comes down to depth as well as offensive and defensive weapons, and the Lakers have them in abundance, not even considering the Lakers' experience making it to the Finals or their success against the Mavericks throughout the last decade. Dallas may have three players who can make life tough for the Lakers, but Los Angeles has six or seven of their own, and that will prove to be too much for the Mavericks.

Of course if critics tell it, Lakers equals Kobe Bryant and he, according to them, is washed up, no longer consistently great. Only time will tell, but when the dust settles out west, the Lakers will be the only gunslingers still standing.

Series Prediction: Lakers in 5

Keys to Winning:
-- Establish the post presence early
-- Heavy focus on the defense of Jason Terry, Marion and possibly Butler, if he plays.
-- Getting Lamar Odom involved and productive. His productiviy will improve the rest of the bench.
-- Make Mark Cuban lose his mind. This should be the most entertaining part of this series.

Lakers v. Hornets Game 5 Recap & Preview

LOS ANGELES -- Asset or Liability. It was the question of the hour when Kobe Bryant took the court with a bad ankle Tuesday night in LA.

For about 15 minutes it looked as if he were a liability  and then it happened, early in the second quarter Bryant received a pass from Gasol at the top of the key and as Trevor Ariza closed the distance Bryant took two quick steps to the lane and then exploded through the air just as Emeka Okafor did the same. When the dust had settled Kobe was giving that same cocky look he had 12 years ago when he wore the No. 8 and Emeka Okafor had become another poster, victimized by the Mamba.

Bryants' dunk incited the crowd at the Staples Center and sent the Lakers players on a wave of mutilation that the Hornets would never recover from. Bryant scored 19 points including another highlight reel dunk in the third quarter as the Lakers beat the hornets 106 - 90 to take a 3-2 series lead and put the Hornets on the brink of elimination.

Game 6 is Thursday in New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS --

Andrew Bynum, who had 18 points and 10 rebounds in Game 5, will look to continue his emergence as the anchor of the Lakers front court and Pau Gasol, 16 points in Games 5, will look to continue his improvement in play as the Lakers try to eliminate the Hornets from the playoffs.

There will still be question about Bryants' ankle and whether or not he can give the Lakers the same boost he did in Game 5 but one thing is for sure, the Lakers seem to have that sense of urgency back. There isnt much to say about tonight other than what we know, we are in for a hell of a game and it's win or go home for the Hornets.

Can Chris Paul provide one more sting on the Lakers or will his great postseason play end tonight.

Lakers v. Hornets: Game 5 Preview

LOS ANGELES --  Game 5. Most Lakers fans would expect this to be an elimination game for the Hornets. Instead, the Lakers enter this game tied 2-2 in the series. The news doesn't get any easier from there. The Lakers' main scoring option, Kobe Bryant, has a severe left ankle sprain that occurred in Game 4.

Bryant, who has refused to have an X-ray or MRI performed, insists he will play in Game 5 no matter what and has received around-the-clock treatment in preparation for the game. With no question about Bryant's will to compete, the only question left is do the rest of the Lakers?

In their two losses, the Lakers have seemed anything but ready to compete. True, players like Ron Artest and Andrew Bynum have shown up for every game and posted great numbers, but the Lakers' normally steady and consistent players Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom have struggled in the series, even seeming passive and content at times.

The Hornets have been near perfect in their wins with their bench players and starting point guard Chris Paul posting career numbers in those matchups. To say they have been anything short of brilliant would be an insult. Aaron Gray has provided a huge lift off the bench, proving to be a disruption to Gasol's game. Jarrett Jack has played excellent as well with his high shooting percentage and heroics all contributing to the Game 4 victory.

The Lakers have been here before -- as recently as last year when they played the young, up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder. Again with the series tied 2-2, the Lakers found that sense of urgency and put together a great playoff run on their way to the title. This Game 5 will be pivotal for both teams. Whoever takes this game will control their destiny, forcing the other team to win two games in a row to get their playoff miracle.

The positon the Lakers are in is one coach Phil Jackson feels plays to the teams strengths, saying, "They certainly play better when they're in a desperate mode, there's no doubt about that." When asked about his teams demeanor toward Game 5, Jackson said, "They were somber. They understand the nature of we to have to do with this ballclub."

One thing is for sure, the Hornets are not taking this lightly, and they don't feel as though they have accomplished anything yet. Rather, they have been humble, almost fearful, that at any moment the Lakers could flip a switch and end the series with ease. It's with calm and catioun that they fight for every possesion, something the Lakers should take note of.

If Paul can come out and dominate the Lakers' defense as he has in Games 1 and 4, the Lakers may find themselves digging out of the grave in Game 6. But if history tells us anything, it is the Lakers will get themselves aligned for the next two games and make sure they deny Paul the opportunity to sting them any more than he has already.