Tuesday, July 29, 2008
NEW YORK (AP) -- Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in prison Tuesday for setting off a gambling scandal that tarnished the reputation of the league and raised questions about the integrity of its officiating. 
The sentencing in Brooklyn federal court culminated a case that hung over the league throughout the season and even into the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. League commissioner David Stern angrily denied Donaghy's claim that corruption among referees goes beyond him.
Donaghy's lawyer asked the judge for probation. Donaghy had faced up to 33 months in prison, but the judge gave him credit for his cooperation.
Folding his arms but showing no other emotion, the 41-year-old Donaghy apologized to the court. "I brought shame on myself and my family," he said.
Donaghy pleaded guilty last August to conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce for taking payoffs from a professional gambler for inside tips on games.
Last week, two of Donaghy's former high school classmates were sentenced to over a year in prison for their roles in the scheme.
James Battista, a professional gambler and admitted drug addict, got 15 months in prison for making bets based on inside tips. Thomas Martino, the scheme's middleman, was sentenced to a year and one day for paying the referee thousands of dollars for the tips. The three men attended school together in Springfield, Pa.
The league had demanded nearly $1.4 million in restitution. But the judge last week set the restitution at $217,266, to be paid jointly by the three defendants.
Associated Press/SI
The sentencing in Brooklyn federal court culminated a case that hung over the league throughout the season and even into the NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. League commissioner David Stern angrily denied Donaghy's claim that corruption among referees goes beyond him.
Donaghy's lawyer asked the judge for probation. Donaghy had faced up to 33 months in prison, but the judge gave him credit for his cooperation.
Folding his arms but showing no other emotion, the 41-year-old Donaghy apologized to the court. "I brought shame on myself and my family," he said.
Donaghy pleaded guilty last August to conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce for taking payoffs from a professional gambler for inside tips on games.
Last week, two of Donaghy's former high school classmates were sentenced to over a year in prison for their roles in the scheme.
James Battista, a professional gambler and admitted drug addict, got 15 months in prison for making bets based on inside tips. Thomas Martino, the scheme's middleman, was sentenced to a year and one day for paying the referee thousands of dollars for the tips. The three men attended school together in Springfield, Pa.
The league had demanded nearly $1.4 million in restitution. But the judge last week set the restitution at $217,266, to be paid jointly by the three defendants.
Associated Press/SI
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Details are still surfacing in the car crash involving TRINA & NBA'er KENYON MARTIN.
7 News Belize was first on the scene and took witness statements. The driver of the mini-van claims the white Excursion, which carried the rapper and her boyfriend, cut across the lane improperly and caused the crash which seriously injured his 12 and 9 year-old children.Neither Martin or Trina were driving.
“It was just…I don’t know,” Trina responded when asked moments after she walked away unhurt.
She was embraced by Kenyon Martin who was also unhurt. The driver of the Excursion, J.A. Jex says he received a minor injury.
For the rest of the interview CLICK HERE
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
A WNBA hen fight broke out last night between the LA Sparks and the Detroit Shock (I told ya'll quit messing with D-Town). I mean damn though, ole girl was goin out like a trooper. Damn shame.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
The ESPY Awards went down last night in LA, with cutie JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE taking the reigns.
ASHANTI was there in a stunning summer gown. However, didn't House of Dereon do a frock just like this? Anywhoo, chic actually looked fly!
VENUS WILLIAMS looks bomb herslef. Perhaps that glow is from that $1 mil, she just copped?Hmmm...I'd be cheesing too.
What is it about a Chocolate brotha in a cream suit? Mmmm. TYRESE, DEREK FISHER & T.O.
But I mean really T.O.? Really?
TOCCARRA rolled through, reppin the us thick sistas flawlessly. Well almost...
Boo? Did you forget to actually apply the lipstick? I mean you went through the trouble of lining them...
FORREST & KEISHA WHITTAKER were all smiles. 
Ok, who is that dude muggin' SAMUEL L. JACKSON?
And ya'll know SAUN ROBINSON is anywhere there are rich, fine black men.
KG and his wifey Brandi were there. That ish still looks funny to me. 
LALA & Carmelo were there
And PAUL PIERCE looked a mess on the red carpet with his beautiful wife.Wireimage
Monday, July 14, 2008
ALEX RODRIQUEZ will never here "You suck" again before approaching the plate. Now anti-fans have a more "personal" weapon.Tuesday, July 8, 2008
TWO PEOPLE IN CUSTODY FOR ATTACKING OAKLAND RAIDER JAVON WALKER
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 5:39 PM
A second man was arrested on charges of abducting, beating and robbing Oakland Raiders wide receiver Javon Walker in Las Vegas last month.
Deshawn L. Thomas, 40, was arrested Monday in Las Vegas and held without bail at the Clark County jail, police said Tuesday.
Thomas will be scheduled to appear in Las Vegas Justice Court to face felony kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy charges, police said in a statement. Jail officials said it was not immediately clear if Thomas had a lawyer.
Investigators did not immediately respond to messages seeking details of Thomas' arrest.
Walker was found unconscious on a side street near the Las Vegas Strip shortly after dawn June 16, police said. He was hospitalized for two days with facial injuries and a concussion, and told investigators that about $3,000 in cash and $100,000 worth of jewelry were taken. It was not clear Tuesday if any money or jewelry had been recovered.
Police released a grainy surveillance videotape June 24, identifying the man in it as a second suspect after the arrest of 30-year-old Arfat Fadel.
Fadel remained jailed pending a preliminary hearing July 16. His lawyer has said he will plead not guilty to kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy charges. A kidnapping conviction carries a sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Investigators have said Fadel and another man appeared on surveillance videotapes at some of the same casinos and clubs where Walker partied and gambled the night of June 15. Walker was photographed spraying champagne into a crowd at the Body English nightclub at the Hard Rock hotel-casino.
Early on June 16, police say Walker willingly got into the front passenger seat of a black Range Rover in the valet parking area at the Bellagio hotel-casino.
Fadel and the other man "clearly and methodically lured Walker into the vehicle as he represented (an) easy target due to his level of intoxication," police said in a report. Police say Fadel was driving and the other man got in the back seat.
Walker later told police he was grabbed by the neck from behind, and did not recall much more. He said he did not know who the men were.
Walker's agent, Kennard McGuire of Richmond, Texas, and a spokesman for the Raiders did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Walker was a first-round draft pick in 2001 by the Green Bay Packers. He was traded to the Denver Broncos in 2006, and released last February before he was signed by Oakland to a six-year, $55 million deal.
MSN.com
Deshawn L. Thomas, 40, was arrested Monday in Las Vegas and held without bail at the Clark County jail, police said Tuesday.
Thomas will be scheduled to appear in Las Vegas Justice Court to face felony kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy charges, police said in a statement. Jail officials said it was not immediately clear if Thomas had a lawyer.
Investigators did not immediately respond to messages seeking details of Thomas' arrest.
Walker was found unconscious on a side street near the Las Vegas Strip shortly after dawn June 16, police said. He was hospitalized for two days with facial injuries and a concussion, and told investigators that about $3,000 in cash and $100,000 worth of jewelry were taken. It was not clear Tuesday if any money or jewelry had been recovered.
Police released a grainy surveillance videotape June 24, identifying the man in it as a second suspect after the arrest of 30-year-old Arfat Fadel.
Fadel remained jailed pending a preliminary hearing July 16. His lawyer has said he will plead not guilty to kidnapping, robbery and conspiracy charges. A kidnapping conviction carries a sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Investigators have said Fadel and another man appeared on surveillance videotapes at some of the same casinos and clubs where Walker partied and gambled the night of June 15. Walker was photographed spraying champagne into a crowd at the Body English nightclub at the Hard Rock hotel-casino.
Early on June 16, police say Walker willingly got into the front passenger seat of a black Range Rover in the valet parking area at the Bellagio hotel-casino.
Fadel and the other man "clearly and methodically lured Walker into the vehicle as he represented (an) easy target due to his level of intoxication," police said in a report. Police say Fadel was driving and the other man got in the back seat.
Walker later told police he was grabbed by the neck from behind, and did not recall much more. He said he did not know who the men were.
Walker's agent, Kennard McGuire of Richmond, Texas, and a spokesman for the Raiders did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Walker was a first-round draft pick in 2001 by the Green Bay Packers. He was traded to the Denver Broncos in 2006, and released last February before he was signed by Oakland to a six-year, $55 million deal.
MSN.com
BALLERZ & SHOT CALLERZ: CHIEFS TE, TONY GONZALEZ SAVES A MAN'S LIFE
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 9:38 AM
A California man says Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez of the Kansas City Chiefs kept him from choking to death.
“Tony saved my life. There’s no doubt,” Ken Hunter, a shipping company manager, told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Huntington Beach, Calif.
“Tony came up behind me and gave me the Heimlich maneuver. Thank God he was there.”
Gonzalez, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who has set numerous NFL records, was having dinner with his wife, brother and 5-week-old daughter at Capone’s restaurant in Huntington Beach Thursday night. Hunter, 45, was dining with his girlfriend at the next table when suddenly a piece of meat stuck in his throat.
“I tried to take a drink of water, but I couldn’t swallow,” Hunter told The AP. “Then I couldn’t breathe. That’s a terrible feeling. I couldn’t breathe. Then I guess I started to panic.”
Gonzalez, sitting with his back to Hunter’s table, looked around when he heard Hunter’s companion yelling.
“She was screaming, `He can’t breathe, he can’t breathe,”’ Gonzalez said by phone from California, where he lives in the offseason. “The whole restaurant was quiet. Nobody was doing anything.”
Then I saw he was turning blue. Everybody in the restaurant was just kind of sitting there wide-eyed.”
The 6-foot-5 Gonzalez, about a foot taller than Hunter, jumped out of his chair and came up behind the stricken man and began to perform the Heimlich maneuver.
“After just a few seconds, the piece of meat popped out,” Hunter said. “I could breathe again. It’s a good thing Tony is so tall because I had stood up— I think.”
Diana Martin, a restaurant employee, said no one else seemed to know what to do.
“He was so lucky Tony was there,” Martin said. “In a situation like that, every second counts. It helped a lot that Tony’s a big, strong guy because you have to be able to apply some pretty good pressure. I don’t think I would have been strong enough to help him.”
Hunter went into the restroom to clean up and didn’t realize he’d been saved by a famous athlete until he came out.
“I’m a big NFL fan and I recognized him right away. I was still kind of dazed when I went over and thanked him and said, `What can I do for you?’ I guess I said it about 1,000 times.”
Gonzalez, who has been active in charity and community activities during a brilliant career with the Chiefs, said he had no intention of having the incident become public.
“Tony saved my life. There’s no doubt,” Ken Hunter, a shipping company manager, told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Huntington Beach, Calif.
“Tony came up behind me and gave me the Heimlich maneuver. Thank God he was there.”
Gonzalez, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who has set numerous NFL records, was having dinner with his wife, brother and 5-week-old daughter at Capone’s restaurant in Huntington Beach Thursday night. Hunter, 45, was dining with his girlfriend at the next table when suddenly a piece of meat stuck in his throat.
“I tried to take a drink of water, but I couldn’t swallow,” Hunter told The AP. “Then I couldn’t breathe. That’s a terrible feeling. I couldn’t breathe. Then I guess I started to panic.”
Gonzalez, sitting with his back to Hunter’s table, looked around when he heard Hunter’s companion yelling.
“She was screaming, `He can’t breathe, he can’t breathe,”’ Gonzalez said by phone from California, where he lives in the offseason. “The whole restaurant was quiet. Nobody was doing anything.”
Then I saw he was turning blue. Everybody in the restaurant was just kind of sitting there wide-eyed.”
The 6-foot-5 Gonzalez, about a foot taller than Hunter, jumped out of his chair and came up behind the stricken man and began to perform the Heimlich maneuver.
“After just a few seconds, the piece of meat popped out,” Hunter said. “I could breathe again. It’s a good thing Tony is so tall because I had stood up— I think.”
Diana Martin, a restaurant employee, said no one else seemed to know what to do.
“He was so lucky Tony was there,” Martin said. “In a situation like that, every second counts. It helped a lot that Tony’s a big, strong guy because you have to be able to apply some pretty good pressure. I don’t think I would have been strong enough to help him.”
Hunter went into the restroom to clean up and didn’t realize he’d been saved by a famous athlete until he came out.
“I’m a big NFL fan and I recognized him right away. I was still kind of dazed when I went over and thanked him and said, `What can I do for you?’ I guess I said it about 1,000 times.”
Gonzalez, who has been active in charity and community activities during a brilliant career with the Chiefs, said he had no intention of having the incident become public.
AP/Yahoo!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
BALLERZ & SHOT CALLERZ: IS O'NEAL UP ON THE TRADING BLOCK?
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 9:40 AM
The Toronto Raptors and Indiana Pacers have agreed to a blockbuster trade the day before the draft. Or so it seems.
Multiple media outlets reported that Jermaine O'Neal was dealt to the Raptors for point guard T.J. Ford, center Rasho Nesterovic and the No. 17 overall pick. The Pacers also have the No. 11 pick in the draft.
But Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo wouldn't confirm the deal to the Canadian Press, saying the team was in the middle of "four or five" potential deals.
The players still must pass physicals, which could be a major hurdle in the deal considering the injury history of Ford and O'Neal. A deal can't be finalized until July 1, when Ford's base-year compensation tag comes off the books
Ford became somewhat expendable after the emergence of backup Jose Calderon in Toronto. He played in 51 games with 26 starts for the Raptors, averaging 12.1 points and 6.1 assists.
O'Neal hasn't played in 70 or more games in a season since 2003. He averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks during the '07-08 season, but he played in just 42 games.
FOX Sports
Multiple media outlets reported that Jermaine O'Neal was dealt to the Raptors for point guard T.J. Ford, center Rasho Nesterovic and the No. 17 overall pick. The Pacers also have the No. 11 pick in the draft.
But Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo wouldn't confirm the deal to the Canadian Press, saying the team was in the middle of "four or five" potential deals.
The players still must pass physicals, which could be a major hurdle in the deal considering the injury history of Ford and O'Neal. A deal can't be finalized until July 1, when Ford's base-year compensation tag comes off the books
Ford became somewhat expendable after the emergence of backup Jose Calderon in Toronto. He played in 51 games with 26 starts for the Raptors, averaging 12.1 points and 6.1 assists.
O'Neal hasn't played in 70 or more games in a season since 2003. He averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks during the '07-08 season, but he played in just 42 games.
FOX Sports
Monday, June 23, 2008
Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch will plead guilty to unspecified charges after a not-so mysterious hit-and-run that occurred last month, according to Erie County District Attorney Frank Clark.
A woman was struck by an SUV registered to Lynch in a Buffalo, NY intersection on May 31 -- and since then Lynch and his lawyers have been avoiding authorities.
The woman was left with a bruised hip and a cut that needed seven stitches.
A woman was struck by an SUV registered to Lynch in a Buffalo, NY intersection on May 31 -- and since then Lynch and his lawyers have been avoiding authorities.
The woman was left with a bruised hip and a cut that needed seven stitches.
NFL superstar defensive end Jevon "The Freak" Kearse was arrested and charged with a DUI near the Vanderbilt University campus in Nashville, Tenn. early this morning.We're told Vandy police pulled over Jevon's Escalade at 4:42 AM CT after it was spotted "swerving at a high rate of speed." After Jevon failed field sobriety tests, he refused to take a breathalyzer.
Cops immediately booked the six-foot-four, 265 lb. Tennessee Titans star into the Criminal Justice Center in downtown Nashville.
He was released on $1,000 bond.
Calls to both teams went unreturned.
TMZ
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
WTF? JAVON WALKER SAYS HE WAS ABDUCTED AT GUN POINT...
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 10:30 AM
"I was just back at my room and at about 5:30 in the morning, I got a knock at the door, I opened it and 3 guys with guns were there, they cracked me in the head a few times knocking me unconscious. They then robbed me of everything I had -- my watch, money -- everything! Somehow they got me to the car and dropped me off in the street. That's what happened."
Javon Walker spoke to The Dirty about the events that led to him eventually being found unconscious in the Vegas streets.
Javon also goes on o say that this was in NO WAY connected to his (quite gay) champagne feud with Floyd Mayweather earlier in the night.
Hmmm...Something about this just don't sound right. But I'm glad dude is OK though. I've be scouting him for my fantasy team.
Javon Walker spoke to The Dirty about the events that led to him eventually being found unconscious in the Vegas streets.
Javon also goes on o say that this was in NO WAY connected to his (quite gay) champagne feud with Floyd Mayweather earlier in the night.
Hmmm...Something about this just don't sound right. But I'm glad dude is OK though. I've be scouting him for my fantasy team.
BOSTON -- Cigar smoke.
The smell was unmistakable, wafting through the air some 15 feet from the Celtics' bench as Paul Pierce joined in on the Gino dance and Kevin Garnett bounded up and down with joy.
There were still two minutes and 21 seconds remaining in a Game 6 that for all intents and purposes had been over for at least an hour, the fans were chanting "Se-ven-teen," and coach Doc Rivers was still a few moments away from being doused with a bucket of orange Gatorade.
Security guards were already lined up along the perimeter of the court, holding a long rope that would serve as a crowd control device for any ruffians who dared try to rush the celebration, and a fan nearby was holding up a sign that read: "Light One Up for Red."
Somebody had already lit one up, though the source of the cigar smoke could not be located. And to me, that was just as well, because I'd like to close this season with just the slightest belief that the source of that smell was a ghost, a ghost with nine championship rings who will be able to rest in peace a little longer knowing that the man chasing ring No. 10, Lakers coach Phil Jackson, would be flying back to Los Angeles without the record for most NBA championships by a coach.
The game itself was extraordinary only for being so anticlimactic, the Lakers showing no urge to fight after Boston's lead grew from four at the end of one quarter to 23 at halftime to 29 at the end of three quarters and to 39 by the end -- making it the most lopsided Finals game since the Chicago Bulls destroyed the Utah Jazz by 42 in Game 3 of the 1998 Finals, and the most lopsided clincher ever.
"I thought we played on our heels from the get-go. They overran us," Jackson said. "Garnett knocked Pau [Gasol] down in the lane and scored an easy basket on one of the first four or five possessions, and it kind of set a tone that they were going to establish an aggressive form, and we never met that energy all night."
For a long time, the Celtics' steals total was keeping pace with the Lakers' field goal total. Rajon Rondo ended up with six of Boston's 18 thefts to go along with his 21 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and James Posey added three steals apiece, and Paul Pierce had a pair to go along with his 17 points and 10 assists (and the Finals MVP award).
The Celtics' 18 steals were a Finals record, Allen tied a Finals record by making seven 3-pointers (and 22 in the series, also a Finals record), and the championship came in Boston's 26th postseason game -- yet another NBA record. Let's also not forget that the Celtics won this title after making the biggest single-season turnaround ever, going from 24 victories a year ago (when fans were openly rooting against them, hoping to secure a better lottery pick) to 66 this season following the franchise-altering deals that brought Garnett and Allen aboard.
There was almost a sense of disbelief running through the building as the game got away from the Lakers in the second quarter, the signature stretch coming when Bryant threw away a pass and Garnett scored on a one-handed half-hook shot at the other end, drawing a foul and completing the three-point play to make it 56-35. Kendrick Perkins then blocked a shot at the other end, came downcourt and dunked off a fancy lookaway pass from the nether reaches of Garnett's repertoire.
Pierce, Allen and Garnett exited together with 4:01 left, the celebration already in full swing.
"I took a deep breath, looked up and said 'Hey, it finally happened, man,'" Pierce said. "So many things were running though our heads on the sidelines. We were just in awe over there, can't believe what was going on. I still can't believe right now that I've got a championship under my belt."
Every championship looks a little different, and not every title-clinching moment sounds the same.
But what's really different from time to time -- not every year, but often enough for it to strike me anew from time to time in the middle of each June, is the way a title can assault the one sense you wouldn't expect to be assaulted.
Two years ago in Dallas, the stinky-sweet odor of champagne emanating from the Miami Heat's locker room was so overwhelming it bordered on the repulsive, and that was just from outside the door. Once you got inside, the smell was so noxious you actually felt sorry for the poor cleaning people who were probably going to have to bathe the room in bleach to get rid of the stench and had to pick up the thousands of small pieces of paper bearing the words "15 Strong".
A year ago in Cleveland it wasn't champagne, it was beer. The visitors from San Antonio were flinging it around the place like it was a frat party, but their celebration was muted enough that you walked away not remembering one snapshot moment, but rather one snapshot smell.
This time, it was the cigar smoke.
And that smell stayed in my nostrils as the clock ticked down to 30 seconds and I made my way down an exit stairwell to the parking lot outside the new Garden, a parking lot that lies in the footprint of the old Garden, where the Celtics' first 16 championship banners were won. In that parking lot stood at least 100 police officers in riot gear, many carrying canisters of tear gas, all holding strips of plastic handcuffs and 4-foot long wooden billy clubs that thankfully they never needed to use.
There were a couple high-fives among the cops as the game ended, but the scene outside remained strangely quiet aside from the noise produced by two helicopters overhead, along with a "Se-ven-teen" chant that eventually went up from the bar patrons who emptied out of the pubs across the street but were kept behind metal barricades on the other side of Causeway Street.
Most of the fans stayed inside to take in the celebration and the cops ended up not having to push or shove anyone.
The same couldn't be said of referees Bennett Salvatore and Joey Crawford, who were forced to move cameramen and photographers off the court in front of the Celtics' bench with 2:21 remaining in order to clear up a certain corner of the parquet floor where the victory celebration had already begun.
I trailed Pierce as he left the locker room and made the walk to the post-game interview area, the unmistakable scent of champagne emanating from his soaked jersey and cap.
But that's not the smell I'll forever associate this night with.
Instead, it's the smell of a cigar -- the source of which I'll never truly know, even though a part of me will always suspect it came from an area just above the Celtics' end of the court, right where Red Auerbach's spirit was floating.
Chris Sheridan for ESPN
Monday, June 9, 2008
BOSTON (AP) - The Boston Celtics left the comforts of home exalted and exhausted, halfway to hoisting a 17th NBA championship banner.
They're up 2-0 in the NBA finals.
But they needed some of their leprechaun's luck to get there.
Paul Pierce, darting around the parquet floor with ease, scored 28 points, unknown Leon Powe added 21 and the Celtics held off a remarkable rally by Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers for a 108-102 win Sunday night in Game 2 of these trip-down-memory-lane finals.
The Celtics had to work every second to get the win.
Up by 24 points in the fourth quarter, they nearly blew it.
"We're happy because we won, but we definitely learned a lesson," Pierce said.
The Lakers trailed 95-71 with less than 8 minutes to go, but used a 31-9 run to pull to 104-102 on two free throws by Bryant with 38.4 seconds left. Pierce, though, made two free throws, then blocked a 3-pointer by Sasha Vujacic, and James Posey made two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to ice it for Boston.
"We've got to play through the game for 48 minutes, and I didn't think we did that," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought we got cute when we got the lead."
The Lakers, who dropped 41 points on the league's defensive team in the final 12 minutes, simply ran out of time.
"It's something that we can take from," Bryant said of the furious but failed comeback. "We played with a sense of desperation and aggression. I think that's something to take home and learn from."
Boston enjoyed a huge free-throw advantage, going 27-for-38 from the foul line, while the Lakers were just 10-for-10.
The whistles were one-sided.
"I didn't notice," Bryant said, cracking a smile.
Pierce wasn't slowed by a sprained right knee suffered in the series opener, when he was carried from the court and plopped into a wheelchair. The Boston captain paced the Celtics, who are back in the finals for the first since 1987, when Larry Bird was the main man and gasoline cost 91 cents per gallon.
As usual, Boston's Big Three - Pierce, Ray Allen (17 points) and Kevin Garnett (17) - were the ringleaders but Powe, a second-year reserve had the game of his career, adding his 21 points in 15 minutes that may make him a Celtics fan-favorite for life.
Powe, who played a total of 68 seconds during one stretch of 13 games during the season, scored six points to close a 15-2 run ending the third quarter that gave the Celtics a 22-point lead. The quick burst had the Lakers California dreaming. At one point in the fourth quarter, Boston fans discarded the familiar chants of "Beat L.A." for cries of "Le-on Powe!"
"He was terrific," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said.
Rajon Rondo had a career-high 16 assists and Garnett added 14 rebounds for the Celtics, back in the finals for the first time since 1987.
Game 3 is Tuesday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where the Lakers are 8-0 in the postseason and have won 14 in a row at home since March 28. Bryant had better hope the rims there are a little kinder than the ones in TD Banknorth Garden.
Bryant, who pledged to bounce back from a sub-par Game 1, scored 30 points - 13 in the fourth - on 11-of-23 shooting. In four losses to Boston this season, Bryant is just 35-of-93 from the field and can't seem to get the same easy looks he enjoys against every other team.
Pau Gasol had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who were so far down in the fourth that many of their purple-and-gold clad fans who came to cheer them on, headed toward the exits and maybe to Logan Airport for the trip out West.
But Bryant brought them back - almost all the way.
His 3-pointer made it 102-91 and then the self-proclaimed "Black Mamba" slithered down the lane for two quick baskets that got the Lakers within 104-95. The Celtics, meanwhile, began to stand around on offense, thinking the game was in hand.
It was anything but.
After Vujacic hit a 3-pointer, Vladimir Radmanovic made a steal and dunk to make it 104-100 and Celtics fans, who had been dancing moments earlier, began to panic. None of Boston's players seemed to want the ball as it moved around like a hot potato before Rondo missed a jumper with 44 seconds left.
Bryant's free throws brought Los Angeles to 104-102 before Pierce slashed down the lane and got fouled by Derek Fisher. As a few of his teammates locked arms on the bench like a college team trying to advance in March, Pierce knocked down both foul shots. Then, on defense, he got just enough of Vujacic's shot from the left wing with 14 seconds left.
Posey was fouled on the play and calmly made his two free throws. The Lakers rushed the ball down but missed on a couple jumpers, and when the final horn sounded, a collective sigh of relief rushed through the exits as the Celtics and their fans left the building confident, if not shaken.
"We're not settling on a 2-0 lead," Garnett said. "We want to go out there and win two games in L.A."
Called "unstoppable" by Lakers coach Phil Jackson, Bryant got off to another slow start. He missed his first two shots, one an uncontested layup underneath and was unable to get the looks he wanted as the Celtics followed the MVP around like a pack of hungry wolves on the hunt.
Bryant was just 1-of-4 from the floor when he was called for pushing off on Allen - his second personal foul - and spent the final 1:59 of the opening period a few seats away from Jackson. Soon, Bryant was joined by Lamar Odom and Jackson was forced to give his reserves extended early minutes.
They weren't good ones.
The Lakers' heralded bench bunch struggled, and the Celtics took advantage. Trailing by two after one, Boston opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run, capped by Pierce's 3-pointer. As bad as Los Angeles was playing, the Lakers hung around and closed within 41-37 on Gasol's three-point play.
But Pierce knocked down another 3, Allen followed with one of his own and the Celtics closed the half with a 13-5 burst to open a 54-42 halftime lead.
They're up 2-0 in the NBA finals.
But they needed some of their leprechaun's luck to get there.
Paul Pierce, darting around the parquet floor with ease, scored 28 points, unknown Leon Powe added 21 and the Celtics held off a remarkable rally by Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers for a 108-102 win Sunday night in Game 2 of these trip-down-memory-lane finals.
The Celtics had to work every second to get the win.
Up by 24 points in the fourth quarter, they nearly blew it.
"We're happy because we won, but we definitely learned a lesson," Pierce said.
The Lakers trailed 95-71 with less than 8 minutes to go, but used a 31-9 run to pull to 104-102 on two free throws by Bryant with 38.4 seconds left. Pierce, though, made two free throws, then blocked a 3-pointer by Sasha Vujacic, and James Posey made two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to ice it for Boston.
"We've got to play through the game for 48 minutes, and I didn't think we did that," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought we got cute when we got the lead."
The Lakers, who dropped 41 points on the league's defensive team in the final 12 minutes, simply ran out of time.
"It's something that we can take from," Bryant said of the furious but failed comeback. "We played with a sense of desperation and aggression. I think that's something to take home and learn from."
Boston enjoyed a huge free-throw advantage, going 27-for-38 from the foul line, while the Lakers were just 10-for-10.
The whistles were one-sided.
"I didn't notice," Bryant said, cracking a smile.
Pierce wasn't slowed by a sprained right knee suffered in the series opener, when he was carried from the court and plopped into a wheelchair. The Boston captain paced the Celtics, who are back in the finals for the first since 1987, when Larry Bird was the main man and gasoline cost 91 cents per gallon.
As usual, Boston's Big Three - Pierce, Ray Allen (17 points) and Kevin Garnett (17) - were the ringleaders but Powe, a second-year reserve had the game of his career, adding his 21 points in 15 minutes that may make him a Celtics fan-favorite for life.
Powe, who played a total of 68 seconds during one stretch of 13 games during the season, scored six points to close a 15-2 run ending the third quarter that gave the Celtics a 22-point lead. The quick burst had the Lakers California dreaming. At one point in the fourth quarter, Boston fans discarded the familiar chants of "Beat L.A." for cries of "Le-on Powe!"
"He was terrific," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said.
Rajon Rondo had a career-high 16 assists and Garnett added 14 rebounds for the Celtics, back in the finals for the first time since 1987.
Game 3 is Tuesday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where the Lakers are 8-0 in the postseason and have won 14 in a row at home since March 28. Bryant had better hope the rims there are a little kinder than the ones in TD Banknorth Garden.
Bryant, who pledged to bounce back from a sub-par Game 1, scored 30 points - 13 in the fourth - on 11-of-23 shooting. In four losses to Boston this season, Bryant is just 35-of-93 from the field and can't seem to get the same easy looks he enjoys against every other team.
Pau Gasol had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who were so far down in the fourth that many of their purple-and-gold clad fans who came to cheer them on, headed toward the exits and maybe to Logan Airport for the trip out West.
But Bryant brought them back - almost all the way.
His 3-pointer made it 102-91 and then the self-proclaimed "Black Mamba" slithered down the lane for two quick baskets that got the Lakers within 104-95. The Celtics, meanwhile, began to stand around on offense, thinking the game was in hand.
It was anything but.
After Vujacic hit a 3-pointer, Vladimir Radmanovic made a steal and dunk to make it 104-100 and Celtics fans, who had been dancing moments earlier, began to panic. None of Boston's players seemed to want the ball as it moved around like a hot potato before Rondo missed a jumper with 44 seconds left.
Bryant's free throws brought Los Angeles to 104-102 before Pierce slashed down the lane and got fouled by Derek Fisher. As a few of his teammates locked arms on the bench like a college team trying to advance in March, Pierce knocked down both foul shots. Then, on defense, he got just enough of Vujacic's shot from the left wing with 14 seconds left.
Posey was fouled on the play and calmly made his two free throws. The Lakers rushed the ball down but missed on a couple jumpers, and when the final horn sounded, a collective sigh of relief rushed through the exits as the Celtics and their fans left the building confident, if not shaken.
"We're not settling on a 2-0 lead," Garnett said. "We want to go out there and win two games in L.A."
Called "unstoppable" by Lakers coach Phil Jackson, Bryant got off to another slow start. He missed his first two shots, one an uncontested layup underneath and was unable to get the looks he wanted as the Celtics followed the MVP around like a pack of hungry wolves on the hunt.
Bryant was just 1-of-4 from the floor when he was called for pushing off on Allen - his second personal foul - and spent the final 1:59 of the opening period a few seats away from Jackson. Soon, Bryant was joined by Lamar Odom and Jackson was forced to give his reserves extended early minutes.
They weren't good ones.
The Lakers' heralded bench bunch struggled, and the Celtics took advantage. Trailing by two after one, Boston opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run, capped by Pierce's 3-pointer. As bad as Los Angeles was playing, the Lakers hung around and closed within 41-37 on Gasol's three-point play.
But Pierce knocked down another 3, Allen followed with one of his own and the Celtics closed the half with a 13-5 burst to open a 54-42 halftime lead.
Fox Sports
Saturday, June 7, 2008
BALLERZ & SHOT CALLERZ: CEDRIC BENSON MAY HAVE A DRINKING PROBLEM
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 11:57 AM
A Texas newspaper reported that Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson has been arrested on drunken-driving charges in Austin, Texas.
According to the Austin American-Statesman, Benson was arrested Friday night.
He was arrested last month in Texas on suspicion of boating while intoxicated.
I'm so sure coach Lovie Smith and the rest of the front office are seriously contemplating an exit strategy. The RB has not only underperformed since donning the blue and orange, but lately his antics off the field have become a distraction they already don't need.
If I were back-up RB, (the very cute) Matt Forte, I' be polishing my game helmet right about now.
According to the Austin American-Statesman, Benson was arrested Friday night.
He was arrested last month in Texas on suspicion of boating while intoxicated.
I'm so sure coach Lovie Smith and the rest of the front office are seriously contemplating an exit strategy. The RB has not only underperformed since donning the blue and orange, but lately his antics off the field have become a distraction they already don't need.
If I were back-up RB, (the very cute) Matt Forte, I' be polishing my game helmet right about now.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
New BFF's (I'm uncomfortable with this) LUDA & rocker/hep C spreader Tommy Lee rocked out for their new MTV series "Battleground Earth: Ludacris vs. Tommy Lee" yesterday.
The two performed together as wellas did eco-friendly charity and awareness raising events.
CEDDY CED was there to lend some funny.
And TOMMY DAVIDSON crawled out of somebody's crack den to do a little stand-up.
Damn KEENEN where you been? He was there to support Tommy no doubt.
USHER took some time away from his, 'Quit hatin' on my wife" media tour to announce his new partnership with Sony Erricson. the singer will lend his voice, likeness, name and design to a variety of products, including their crappy phones.
And just for shits and giggles, let's take a sec to look at what's going on with T.O.'s mid-section. Dammit the man may be a self obsorbed nut job whom I cannot stand but damn if he wouldn't get it.Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Let me broad stroke this for you...
Journalist Laura Lane (ESPN) apparently wrote a piece a few weeks ago in which she mentioned Vanessa Bryant's outfit (pictured above).
Vanessa apparently took offense to the article and proceeded to cuss her the f**k out in front of the Lakers locker room the other day. So Laura being the journalist that she is, what does she do? She blogs about it. But after some apparent heat applied to the NBA friendly ESPN, they remove Laura's blog detailing what actually happened.
But not to fear...We've got the posting. CLICK THE PICS TO READ
Journalist Laura Lane (ESPN) apparently wrote a piece a few weeks ago in which she mentioned Vanessa Bryant's outfit (pictured above).
Vanessa apparently took offense to the article and proceeded to cuss her the f**k out in front of the Lakers locker room the other day. So Laura being the journalist that she is, what does she do? She blogs about it. But after some apparent heat applied to the NBA friendly ESPN, they remove Laura's blog detailing what actually happened.
But not to fear...We've got the posting. CLICK THE PICS TO READ
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
FIRST IT WAS THE ASHTON MARTIN, NOW KOBE'S JUMPIN SNAKES
0 comments Posted by THE fly GIRL at 12:55 PMMonday, May 19, 2008
Dwyane Wade sat in the first pew Sunday afternoon, looked at his mother, and simply couldn't hide his emotions.
She had made him cry often before. This time, it was different.
"This is tears of joy," he said, beaming. "Tears of joy for my mother."
Before she was known as the mother of the Miami Heat superstar and 2006 NBA finals MVP, Jolinda Wade was known as an inmate, a fugitive, a drug user and drug seller. Her life turned around seven years ago when, after years of urging by her children, she got help and got clean. Along the way, she devoted her life to spreading the word of God, starting her first ministry while doing time in state prison.
Now, that ministry has a new home, called the Temple of Praise.
Jolinda Wade's very own church.
Her son bought it, and her children and her congregation gathered to dedicate it Sunday.
"I respect my mother so much, from the life that she used to live and to see her today in the life that she lives. I'm so proud of her," Dwyane Wade told The Associated Press before the service. "Everybody thinks I'm the miraculous story in the family. I think she is. I think what I've done means I've been very blessed, but she's been more than blessed. She's been anointed."
"Today is one of the highest of the highest moments in my life," Jolinda Wade said.
For so long, Jolinda's life was a waste, marred by abuse of alcohol and drugs. Whenever Tragil Wade, one of Jolinda's three daughters and the person who essentially raised her brother, would get word that someone died in one of their Chicago-area neighborhood's many abandoned buildings, she feared it was her mother -- and even thought about saving for what she assumed would be a fast-arriving funeral.
"I can't even tell you what it was like," Tragil Wade said, choking up. "It's beyond words."
One day, in a teary tirade, Tragil Wade talked her mother into accompanying her to church. That moment, they say, is the one that convinced Jolinda Wade to make some radical changes.
She got sober, turned herself into Illinois authorities to serve a prison term that she skipped out on under auspices of joining a work-release program, and repaid her debt to society.
"My mother is a miracle to me and to our family, to see from where she came to where she's at now," said Tragil Wade, who at 30 is only four years older than the brother she has looked over for virtually his entire life. "I can't even describe it. It's like, if you didn't believe in God, this right here would make the belief strong."
Today, Jolinda Wade turns those tragic times into a powerful message.
"I feel reborn," said Jolinda Wade, who arrived for Sunday's service head-to-toe in purple, matching the newly redesigned decor of the sanctuary of the church that bears her name on the streetside sign. "Matter of fact, I feel reborn every day. There's always something new every day. I just thank God for the experience."
This is how she shows her thanks, preaching to people filling row after row of pews and hanging on her every word. They danced in the aisles and threw their hands in the air, shouting "Amen!" over and over, so many people turning out that the parking lot was overflowing and some latecomers had to park up to three blocks away.
"It's a blessing," Jolinda Wade said.
Her church, which was formed in October with just 47 original members, welcomed hundreds to Sunday's service, including the mothers of Shaquille O'Neal and Magic Johnson.
"All I can say: Hallelujah!" Tragil Wade said.
SOURCE
She had made him cry often before. This time, it was different.
"This is tears of joy," he said, beaming. "Tears of joy for my mother."
Before she was known as the mother of the Miami Heat superstar and 2006 NBA finals MVP, Jolinda Wade was known as an inmate, a fugitive, a drug user and drug seller. Her life turned around seven years ago when, after years of urging by her children, she got help and got clean. Along the way, she devoted her life to spreading the word of God, starting her first ministry while doing time in state prison.
Now, that ministry has a new home, called the Temple of Praise.
Jolinda Wade's very own church.
Her son bought it, and her children and her congregation gathered to dedicate it Sunday.
"I respect my mother so much, from the life that she used to live and to see her today in the life that she lives. I'm so proud of her," Dwyane Wade told The Associated Press before the service. "Everybody thinks I'm the miraculous story in the family. I think she is. I think what I've done means I've been very blessed, but she's been more than blessed. She's been anointed."
"Today is one of the highest of the highest moments in my life," Jolinda Wade said.
For so long, Jolinda's life was a waste, marred by abuse of alcohol and drugs. Whenever Tragil Wade, one of Jolinda's three daughters and the person who essentially raised her brother, would get word that someone died in one of their Chicago-area neighborhood's many abandoned buildings, she feared it was her mother -- and even thought about saving for what she assumed would be a fast-arriving funeral.
"I can't even tell you what it was like," Tragil Wade said, choking up. "It's beyond words."
One day, in a teary tirade, Tragil Wade talked her mother into accompanying her to church. That moment, they say, is the one that convinced Jolinda Wade to make some radical changes.
She got sober, turned herself into Illinois authorities to serve a prison term that she skipped out on under auspices of joining a work-release program, and repaid her debt to society.
"My mother is a miracle to me and to our family, to see from where she came to where she's at now," said Tragil Wade, who at 30 is only four years older than the brother she has looked over for virtually his entire life. "I can't even describe it. It's like, if you didn't believe in God, this right here would make the belief strong."
Today, Jolinda Wade turns those tragic times into a powerful message.
"I feel reborn," said Jolinda Wade, who arrived for Sunday's service head-to-toe in purple, matching the newly redesigned decor of the sanctuary of the church that bears her name on the streetside sign. "Matter of fact, I feel reborn every day. There's always something new every day. I just thank God for the experience."
This is how she shows her thanks, preaching to people filling row after row of pews and hanging on her every word. They danced in the aisles and threw their hands in the air, shouting "Amen!" over and over, so many people turning out that the parking lot was overflowing and some latecomers had to park up to three blocks away.
"It's a blessing," Jolinda Wade said.
Her church, which was formed in October with just 47 original members, welcomed hundreds to Sunday's service, including the mothers of Shaquille O'Neal and Magic Johnson.
"All I can say: Hallelujah!" Tragil Wade said.
SOURCE
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Soooo...Titans QB VINCE YOUNG went to a party the other night in Texas...And apparently had a little too much to drink and then got hot and decided to take his shirt off.
Well apparently he inspired som other drunk fools to do the same. And before you know it, there's a bunch of topless, sweaty dudes standing around, swaying back and forth.
Now take a second to look around, I'll wait.
Now riddle me this: Do you see ANY chicks in the background?
Nope, not here.
Not here either...
Vince, I'm gonna go ahead an warn you, you are aout 1 quart and 1 spin of the Lollipop remix away from loosing your inhabitions. You've been warned...
Thanks to Blogxilla for the pics!
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