Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Latest Sports Buzz

Latest Sports Buzz

Czech Republic Bounces Team USA Soccer In Friendly

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:48 PM PDT

Hartford, CT, United States (AHN) – Martin Fenin slotted the second tie-breaker and eventual game-winner in the 78th minute, as the Czech Republic doubled up World Cup-bound United States 4-2 in a friendly Tuesday night at Rentschler Field.

The Czech Republic, which failed to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, got on board in the 44th courtesy of Tomas Sivok before Jan Polak hiked the lead to 2-1.

Bob Bradley left most of his key players out of the game, opting to sit the likes of Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard, while the coaching staff evaluated the players on the bubble for the final U.S. team to be sent to South Africa next month.

Maurice Edu drew first blood for the Americans, giving the host a 1-0 edge in the 17th.

Substitute striker Herculez Gomez then made it a 2-2 affair, but that was the last time the American squad would score.

Tomas Necid capped the scoring for the Czech team in stoppage time.

The final squad of 23 for Team USA Soccer will be announced Wednesday.

The U.S. will open its World Cup bid against England June 12 before facing Slovenia and then Algeria.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans: Bad Blood and Hard Feelings

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:47 PM PDT

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (AHN) – They're your two kids when there's one bucket seat left in the van. On a bad day.

They are what political talk radio would be, if the hosts were raised on a back-of-the-bus mentality and knew all the best "yo momma" jokes.

They are opposing counsel, if opposing counsel could drop you with a head kick, fracture an orbital with one punch, or choke you out, and, of course, knew all the best "yo momma” jokes.

Rashad Evans and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson have the most hatred towards each other of any pair of fighters in recent MMA memory, and they'll work it out in the cage Saturday night in the main event of UFC 114 in Las Vegas.

"I think these two have eclipsed any grudge match we've ever had," said UFC president Dana White. "You can tell this is genuine, and these guys really don't like each other, and they really want to fight."

A one-hour conference call featured "N'uh uh, you are," exchanges between the fighters on who had a bigger glass jaw, ("You say I have a glass jaw, but I remember your last fight. You got rocked too. Just saying," Evans said at one point), who had no heart, ("You're the Tin Man. Go see the Oz," said Evans), and who had the least impressive title reign (the two fighters asked each other "Where's your belt?" a total of six times in about 30 seconds).

Then things got ugly. Evans accused Rampage of playing to the stereotype of the dumb black athlete. "He does his little Sambo thing, man, he acts like 'Oh, I'm stupid. You can't use big words like that,'" he said.

Rampage responded by calling Evans gay. "Why do you portray the stereotype of a black gay man?" he asked, "act all gay, wear tight shorts, and (King Mo Lawal, Evans' training partner) has got nipple rings."

The two fighters were opposing coaches in Season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter, and their animosity threatened to spill over all season long.

Rampage and Evans literally do not agree on anything. The sky is blue. (You call that bleeping blue?) The sun rises in the… (…what do you know about the sun?) The earth is round. (So's yer mom.)

So it shouldn't come as any surprise that Jackson and Evans can't come to a consensus on the origin of their animosity.

"The day they walked on the set," said White. "You know there was some back and forth between them after Rampage's fight."

After defeating Keith Jardine, a training partner of Evans, at UFC 96, Rampage and Evans had a few tense post-fight moments in the cage.

"I had never thought nothing of him," said Jackson. "I thought he was a good wrestler and stuff back then, but I just didn't like his style. Then everything was cool until he got in my face after the Jardine fight."

Things erupted when the two rivals chose up teams of heavyweights on The Ultimate Fighter. They had to be separated on several occasions, and the edit bay made heavy use of the bleep button before any episodes went to air.

"I didn't know it was going to be what it ended up being on the season of The Ultimate Fighter," said White. "I think it sort of escalated. The first minute they walked on the set, it escalated from there."

Why?

"They don't like each other," said White.

For Evans, the origin of the feud goes back farther. "When I met Quinton in Gladiator Challenge (in early 2004) he was my favorite fighter," said Evans. "He was my dude. But when he got his (butt) whipped by Wanderlei Silva (in October of 2004), that kind of crushed me."

Rampage, already an established veteran when the two met in early 2004, didn't have much time for the 5-0 Evans.

"He fought my boy Hector Ramirez, and Hector broke his ankle in the cage," recalled Rampage, "and Rashad was dancing around with them little tight shorts on, acting like he was doing something. Then he came asking me, 'Hey, man, I want to come train with you.' I thought it was real disrespectful. I said, 'Man, I don't want to train with you. You just fought my teammate.'"

Whenever it started, however it escalated, the two fighters are here now, preparing for a grudge match Saturday night. Already, observers are talking about the possibility of a rematch and trilogy.

The fighter that emerges victorious has been promised a chance to regain his title as Shogun Rua's first defense. Just as important to each man at this point, is the chance to raise their arm in victory over their rival.

"The reality is that these two really don't like each other," said White. "There's a lot of bad blood between the two, and they really want to fight each other. When you get the two best in the world fighting each other, it's fun anyway, but when they don't like each other this much, it makes it a lot more fun."

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Reports: Bulls Trying To Lure Back Lakers Coach Jackson; Phil Not Biting

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:45 PM PDT

Phoenix, AZ, United States (AHN) – With Lakers owner Jerry Buss wanting Phil Jackson to take a pay cut, the Chicago Bulls are reportedly reaching out through back channels to lure the Lakers coach.

A report by ESPN.com Monday indicated that there had been no direct contact between the Bulls officials and the 64-year-old Jackson, but cited sources close to both parties indicating belief of a potential reunion in Chicago next season.

Prior to the Lakers’ Game 4 against the Suns In Phoenix Tuesday night, Jackson denied any interest.

Chicago, meanwhile, is considered the biggest threat to the Cleveland Cavalier's hopes of re-signing superstar LeBron James.

The return of Jackson, record owner of 10 championships, including six with the Bulls, would make Chicago much more attractive to the Cavs' two-time NBA MVP.

According to the same ESPN.com report, the New Jersey Nets, with whom Jackson had his first coaching experience, had made similar back-channel inquiries to gauge Jackson's interest.

Jackson served as player-assistant for the Nets under Kevin Loughery in the final two seasons of his 11-year playing career in the NBA.

Meanwhile, Jackson reportedly indicated before Game 4 of the Western Conference finals that he has no interest in making a second coaching stint with the Bulls.

When asked about the possibility of coaching elsewhere, Jackson said before Tuesday's game as reported by LA Times.com. “I’ve not entertained any conversations about that.”

Jackson, who is in the final year of his contract with the Lakers, added, “I just can’t imagine it."

He reiterated that the “the probabilities are great” that he would return to the Lakers, but later added, “I’ve always had problems committing,” ESPN.com reported.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Alabama Getaway: Tide Forward Transfers To UNC Tar Heels

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:44 PM PDT

Chapel Hill, NC, United States (AHN) – After sustaining a major blow with the recent transfer of the twin brothers David and Travis Wear to UCLA, the Tar Heels' frontcourt got a boost for next season in Alabama transfer Justin Knox.

On Monday, Knox reportedly informed the Tar Heels coaches he'd be coming to Chapel Hill to finish his college career.

The 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward has one year of eligibility remaining after three seasons with the Crimson Tide

In order to be eligible to play for the Tar Heels for the 2010-11 season, Knox plans to graduate from Alabama this summer and enroll at North Carolina for graduate school.

The Tar Heels had six big men in the rotation last year, but were left pretty thin in the post heading into next season following recent developments.

Apart from the transfer decision by the Wear twins, North Carolina lost Deon Thompson to graduation and Ed Davis to the NBA Draft.

Knox's arrival will help fill the void and provide relief to probable frontcourt starters Tyler Zeller and John Henson.

In his junior season with the Tide, Knox made 17 starts and averaged 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Despite Weather Concerns, Meadowlands Stadium Wins Bid To Host 2014 Super Bowl

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:43 PM PDT

New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Despite concerns over potentially poor weather conditions in the New York area, the NFL decided Tuesday to host the 2014 Super Bowl at the new Meadowlands Stadium, home of the Giants and Jets.

The largest market in the country has never hosted a Super Bowl, mostly due to blizzard conditions and freezing cold that regularly festers there in the first week of February.

Super Bowl XLVIII was awarded the NY/NJ region by the league’s 32 owners, who also considered Miami and Tampa, both traditional sites.

Miami has hosted a record 10 Super Bowls and Tampa four, but both will have to wait their turn to host another.

The win marks the first time an open-air stadium in a cold-weather region will host a Super Bowl

The temperature could easily eclipse the current record low of 39 degrees in 1972 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Former Yankee Pitcher Irabu Arrested For Alleged DUI

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:39 PM PDT

Gardenia, CA, United States (AHN) – Former MLB pitcher Hideki Irabu, who won two World Series rings with the Yankees, was arrested in suburban Los Angeles early Tuesday morning for allegedly driving drunk.

According to the records, Irabu, 41, of Rancho Palos Verdes, was stopped at about 1:30 a.m. May 17 in the 3100 block of Redondo Beach Boulevard when officers saw him drifting outside of the traffic lanes.

The one-time rising star pitcher in Japan nearly smashed into a parked car on the side of the road.

After being booked just after 2 a.m., Irabu was released at around 10:30 a.m. after posting a $5,000 bail.

Irabu started his Major League career with the Yankees, whom he played with from 1997 through 1999.

He was later traded to Montreal, where he started only 14 games for the Expos in 2000 and 2001 before signing as a free agent with the Texas Rangers.

Despite dominating the Japanese Professional Baseball (NPB) for several years, Irabu failed to live up to his reputation in the United States.

At one point during his stint in the Bronx, George Steinbrenner, out of his disgust with his physical weight and for his failure to do his duties during a spring training game, called Irabu a "fat p*ssy toad."

Irabu, over the course of six MLB seasons, amassed career totals of 34 wins, 35 losses, 16 saves, 405 strikeouts and a 5.15 ERA in 126 games.

After his stint with the Rangers, he returned to Japan and joined the Hanshin Tigers, whom he helped win the Central League pennant.

Last year, he reportedly joined the Golden Baseball League’s Long Beach Armada, an independent professional organization.

He later returned to Japan and continued to play until a knee injury forced him out of action.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Nadal Claims Opener At Roland Garros; Sharapova Advances

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:38 PM PDT

Paris, France (AHN) – Former world No. 1 Spaniard Rafael Nadal, bidding to reclaim his title at Roland Garros, needed just over two hours in disposing of local bet Gianni Mina Tuesday to advance into the second round of the French Open.

Nadal, seeded second and a four-time champion here, overcame opening day jitters and battled off nine break points against his 18-year-old wild card Frenchman foe en route to a first-round win, 6-2, 6-2, 6-2.

The top-ranked Spaniard, who lost his first ever match at Roland Garros last year courtesy of Robin Soderling, shrugged off 28 unforced errors to extend his record to 32-1 on the Parisian clay.

In the second round, the six-time Grand Slam winner Nadal will play Argentine Horacio Zeballos.

Other advancers include No. 9 seed David Ferrer, No. 16 Juan Carlos Ferrero and former top-ranked star Lleyton Hewitt, currently seeded No. 28th.

Meanwhile, oft-injured American Robby Ginepri posted a minor upset on Day 3 with a 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 6-2 decision over 18th-seeded countryman Sam Querrey.

In the women's side, No. 12 and former world No. 1 Russian Maria Sharapova pummeled her 18-year-old compatriot Ksenia Pervak 6-3, 6-2 Tuesday to move into the next phase of the French Open.

Also posting first-round wins were No. 13 Marion Bartoli and No. 16 Yanina Wickmayer.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

NHL Reports Rising TV Viewership For Playoffs

Posted: 25 May 2010 09:36 PM PDT

NY, NY, United States (AHN) – NBC Sports' coverage of Sunday's decisive Game 4 between the Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks, earned a 2.0 overnight rating and a 5 share, a 33 percent increase over last year (Detroit/Chicago, 1.5/4), as Chicago advanced to its first Stanley Cup Final in 18 years by completing a sweep of San Jose. Hockey-mad Chicago delivered a 14.1/32.

Saturday's Philadelphia Flyers/Montreal Canadiens Game 4 earned a healthy 1.6/4 (no comparison in 2009). The Philadelphia market delivered a 12.0/27. Both games won every half hour against competition from the other networks.

Top Five NHL Markets of Weekend:

1. Chicago – 14.1 (Sunday)

2. Philadelphia- 12.0 (Saturday)

T3. San Jose – 4.4 (Sunday)

T3. Buffalo – 4.4 (Sunday)

4. Buffalo – 4.2 (Saturday)

5. Pittsburgh – 3.6 (Saturday)

Top Five Non-NHL Markets of Weekend:

1. San Diego – 2.8 (Sunday)

2. Sacramento – 2.5 (Sunday)

3. Richmond – 2.2 (Sunday)

4. San Diego – 2.0 (Saturday)

T5. Indianapolis -1.9 (Sunday)

T5. Las Vegas – 1.9 (Sunday)

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Teenager Spieth Gives Up A Monster Payday; Opts To Remain Amateur

Posted: 25 May 2010 12:34 PM PDT

Dallas, Texas, United States (AHN) – Can you remember the summer jobs you had during your teenage years?

No doubt they were nothing to brag about and no doubt the money was incredibly forgettable.

Now did you hear the one about the 16-year-old who gave up a $90,000 paycheck for four days work?

If you haven’t heard about the latest “it” kid in the world of golf, you will.

For now, it’s back to school for Jordan Spieth, a junior at Jesuit Collegiate Prep School in Dallas and he can talk to his classmates about the check he could have received last week at the Byron Nelson Classic.

How about $90,000-plus?

Spieth became the sweetheart of the Nelson galleries with rounds of 68-69-67-72 for a four-under par 276 total. The professionals who finished tied for 16th, guys like Kenny Perry and Steve Elkington, took home $94,350 each for their work.

Spieth took home the memories, the experience and the loud roars from his new fan base that included Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo among those who watched his outstanding effort at the TPC Las Colinas.

Spieth’s marvelous run practically made the young winner, 22-year-old Aussie Jason Day, an after-thought.

Spieth wasn’t the only famous teenager named Jordan last week.

A 13-year-old named Jordan Romero became the youngest person to climb to the top of Mount Everest. Lofty achievements by both.

Still Romero didn’t turn down $90,000-plus afterwards.

Spieth did, so he can retain his amateur status, attend the University of Texas and continue to sharpen his game which seems destined for the PGA tour a few years down the road.

He’ll try to play his way into the U.S. Open, which will be played in a few weeks at Pebble Beach. He’s in the sectional qualifier, along with his buddy Romo.

Spieth will get another shot at showing off his game on the PGA Tour when he plays at the Memphis stop , The St. Jude Classic, June 10-13.

If he gets through the sectional, then he’ll be at Pebble Beach the week after.

Until then, he’ll practice and get ready for the rest of a busy summer schedule.

But in the meantime, don’t think of him as “the amateur kid.”

“I don’t want to think of myself as an amateur out here,” he said of his PGA Tour appearances. “I want to think of myself as a contender.”

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.

Report: Yzerman Headed To Lightning As GM

Posted: 25 May 2010 11:26 AM PDT

Tampa, FL, United States (AHN) – Judging by his pedigree and resume, the Tampa Bay Lightning have pulled off a major coup in hiring Hall of Famer Steve Yzerman as its next general manager.

Yzerman, who played for the Detroit Red Wings and served as a team executive after his playing days, was expected to take over the Lightning front office after a Tuesday press conference, according to ESPN.com.

Tampa Bay has been undergoing a house cleaning under new owner Jeff Vinik, who fired coach Rick Tocchet and GM Brian Lawton in the wake of the Lightning missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

Yzerman reportedly was on the top of Vinik’s list of candidates.

Yzerman was the Red Wings vice president and also served as Hockey Canada executive director as the men’s hockey team won the gold medal at the Vancouver Games.

Copyright © 2003 – 2010 AHN – All rights reserved.
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