11/20/2008 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NCAA has denied forward Alex Stepheson's waiver petition for immediate eligibility to compete for Southern California.
Stepheson, who transferred this fall from North Carolina, will not be eligible for competition for the Trojans this season. Stepheson played the last two seasons at UNC, where he appeared in 75 games. Last season, he averaged 4.3 points and 4.5 rebounds while leading the Tar Heels in rebounds six times.
"Alex would have really helped our team this season and would have had a big impact in the Pac-10, but we will have to move beyond this now," said USC coach Tim Floyd. "He practiced hard and showed us the kind of player he is. I'm confident he'll work even harder now and prepare himself for next season. Even though it appears he won't be suiting up for us this year, he'll be an integral part of our Trojan basketball team."
<< Raptors overcome Wade's 40-point night win in over Heat
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andrea Bargnani scored a season-high 25 points,
leading the Toronto Raptors over the Miami Heat, 101-95, in a tough road test
at American Airlines Arena.
Chris Bosh and Jermaine O'Neal both posted double-doubl
<< Kobasew and Chara lead fierce Bruins rally to down Sabres
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chuck Kobasew and Zdeno Chara both scored twice,
as the red-hot Boston Bruins scored the last five goals and defeated the
Buffalo Sabres, 7-4, at TD Banknorth Garden.
Marc Savard registered a goal and thre
<< Terry leads Mavs past hobbled Rockets
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Terry scored 31 points, and Dirk Nowitzki
added 24 points and 12 rebounds to pace Dallas to a 96-86 victory over the
injury-riddled Houston Rockets.
Jason Kidd contributed eight points, nine rebound
<< T'Wolves fend off Sixers to snap eight-game skid
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Al Jefferson led all scorers with 25
points, as the Minnesota Timberwolves snapped an eight-game losing streak with
a 102-96 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Craig Smith added 21 points off the benc
Ovechkin leads Caps past Ducks >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Ovechkin registered a goal and three
assists, as the Washington Capitals defeated the Anaheim Ducks, 6-4, at Honda
Center.
David Steckel had a goal and an assist, while Michael Nylander collected
Billups, Denver top Spurs for fourth straight win >>
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chauncey Billups scored 22 points, doled
out six assists and hauled in five rebounds to lead the Denver Nuggets in a
91-81 victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
"We've just come in every night focused
Boozer injured in win over Bucks >>
Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Utah Jazz forward Carlos Boozer suffered
a strained left quad tendon during Wednesday's 105-94 win over the Milwaukee
Bucks.
Boozer, who had 20 points and 11 rebounds, left the game in the four
Oden successful in home debut; Blazers blitz Bulls >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Roy scored 20 points and Greg Oden had
a successful regular season home debut, as the Portland Trail Blazers
dominated the Chicago Bulls to the tune of 116-74 at the Rose Garden.
The game mar
Trash talk has a place in every competitive endeavor (except baseball; those stirrup-wearers are too busy chewing on their sunflower seeds and their “supplements” to worry about what their opponents are doing).
Fantasy sports is no exception. Any intelligent discussion of the subject would probably start with a thesis statement or a definition of terms. Thankfully, this won’t be an intelligent discussion.
Let me just say that I am happy to take a place in this space alongside my talented colleagues, even our commissioner. (You should see how she bleats like a demented paper boy about league fees on our fantasy site).
Trash talking, I would argue, is primarily about amusing your friends, their sheeplike demeanors and sloping foreheads notwithstanding. The best place I have found for football trash talking is at www.SportsAlarm.com.
Beyond the entertainment factor, though, I would recognize that the sophomoric ritual has one advantage, when properly applied. It magnifies your fantasy triumphs and mitigates your fantasy failures by transforming the eventual point total into an afterthought. Winning makes it seem like your opponent really is a “truss-owning, lapel-pin-wearing nitwit.” And in defeat, trash talk can be the air bag to break the fall from your hyperbolic heights. “The plug-necked yahoos on your team,” you can say, “will be sacking groceries by the end of the season.”
The best trash talk, in my view, is layered and nuanced. And it doesn’t focus only on your opponent’s team. It picks apart your opponent. The idea is to create a shock-and-awe-scale blizzard of nonsense, and the goal is to make your opponent drop his hands from his keyboard in exasperation.
What team does your opponent root for? Accuse a Giants fan of having a Joe Namath pillowcase. Where’s your opponent from? Give a look of concern no matter his reply, then say, “I’ll try to type slower for you next time.” Is your opponent into politics? Label everyone a tax-and-spend corporate shill.
Cap all that with a liberal application of irrelevance. For instance, don’t just conclude by saying your opponent is a “twerp who drafts like my grandmother.” Say that your opponent is a “sweater-wearing, eyebrow-plucking twerp who drafts his team about as well as Zsa Zsa Gabor gave acceptance speeches at the Oscars.” By the time your foe makes sense of that, his starting running back will have had puppies.
But what about you? Hmm? Recall a memorable slam? Have a tried-and-true technique? Know someone who seems impervious to insult? Take a moment and tells us about it. Put together some (fit-for-publication) thoughts. You won’t be too busy returning phone messages from your friends, I’m sure, to reply.
In addition to the trash talking, the Sports Alarm has a huge gallery of high resolution pictures of beautiful women and models in bikinis. The most popular models are: Lindsay Lohan, Carrie Underwood, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Paris Hilton.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting