Heard in the Cheap Seats

The Sixers needed a win in the worst way tonight, and they came through with a 98-85 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.  They pretty much had a comfortable lead throughout the game, but the Hawks were able to fight all the way back and cut the lead to one with about 9 minutes left in the game.  But the old veteran Theo Ratliff would have no part of a Hawks comeback win.  His hustle and defense helped the Sixers to a 14-2 run to close the game. 

It was a nice substitution by Tony DiLeo to insert Ratliff for Samuel Dalembert.  The Hawks were able to consistently get easy buckets in the second half until Ratliff was inserted into the game.  As anyone who reads anything I have written knows, I am constantly harping on defense being the key for the Sixers to have any success.  The Hawks were on the verge of taking the game over and were scoring every time down the floor, especially Josh Smith, who had 33 points and barely missed a shot.  I wonder if Sixers fans were picturing what Smith would have looked like with his skills on the Sixers this year. 

But, here’s what the Hawks’ possessions looked like after Ratliff was inserted: missed jumper and shot clock violation, made basket, layup, missed 3, 2 made free throws, Ratliff block followed by a missed three, missed jumper, missed jumper, turnover, turnover on a Ratliff steal, offensive foul turnover drawn by Ratliff, 2 free throws, missed jumper, 2 free throws, turnover, missed 3, and missed jumper.

As you can see, Ratliff had a direct impact on the Sixers defense.  The Hawks missed their last 8 shots to go along with 4 turnovers, 2 of those directly caused by Ratliff.  The other thing Theo did so well defensively was how aggressively he hedged on screens and still got back to his man in the lane.  Marreese Speights also gave the Sixers good minutes off the bench.  I would love to say that he got those minutes because DiLeo finally realized that even though Speights makes mistakes, he brings more positives to the court than negatives.  Unfortunately, Speights got his minutes due to the fact that Thaddeus Young went down with an ugly looking ankle injury in the first quarter.  Young needed help getting to the locker room.  Just when the kid was coming into his own, he has to land on someone’s foot.  More on that later, but back to the game for a minute.

It was a big win for the Sixers.  There really is no margin for error at this point.  As I have said, it would be great for this team moving forward to make the playoffs and win a series, but if they don’t find a way into the 5 seed, that won’t be happening.  If they can get into the 5 spot, their opponent would be the same Hawks team that the Sixers have now beaten 2 out of 3 times.  There is no room to throw up a clunker like they did against Charlotte.  All of the remaining 9 games need to be treated like playoff games. 

There’s only one problem, and I hate to be so pessimistic…or do I?  The Sixers won’t be earning the 5^th seed in the conference or winning any playoff games without Thaddeus Young in the lineup.  Defense wins in the playoffs, and with no Young, the Sixers become an extremely easy team to defend.  According to the postgame reports, Young’s X-Rays were negative and he will be having an MRI Wednesday morning.  Let’s all keep our fingers crossed.

According to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, the Philadelphia Phillies have released outfielder Geoff Jenkins.  This move comes on the heels of the surprising news that the Detroit Tigers have released Gary Sheffield and will eat his $14 million salary.  Of course, speculation is swirling that the two moves could be intertwined.

Jenkins never quite provided the left-handed outfield pop the Phills were seeking when they acquired him last season and he was eventually replaced in the outfield by Jason Werth.  Going into this offeseason, talk ran rampant that the Phillies were in search of a right-handed bat to add to their bench.  Moises Alou and Nomar Garciparra were two of the early candidates to fill the void but neither of those deals ever materialized.

There are some serious questions that would have to be answered first if the Phillies do go after Sheffield.  The first is: would he even be willing to accept a bench role?  And the second is: is he still capable of playing the outfield?  His bat and power would be an asset off the bench, but his attitude and defensive decencies could be a liability.  More to come as any additional details emerge.

UPDATE: Again according to Todd, Chan Ho Park has won the fifth starter job over J.A. Happ.  Deteails to come.

Everyone has seen it a hundred times by now I’m sure.  The play that sent Villanova to the Final Four for the 4^th time in the school’s history and the first time since 1985 was as good as you’re going to get for the ending of a college basketball game.  The game itself was one of the most entertaining college basketball games I have seen in a long time, and was indicative of why I love Big East basketball.  To me, the best basketball games aren’t necessarily the games where both teams score over 100 points and the game goes up and down the court like a track meet.  I enjoy games like the Pittsburgh/Villanova contest.  I enjoy basketball games where both teams play physical, there is great defense on both sides, clutch shot making, and of course a game winning shot with less than 1 second on the clock certainly doesn’t hurt.  I am not going to break down the game because it’s a bit late for that, and it has been analyzed and broken down very well by many people already.  But, what I wanted to do is talk about that final play.  The one every Villanova fan will remember for the rest of their lives.  I have now had a chance to watch the Scottie Reynolds play about 50 times, and it is just amazing the 50^th time as it was when I saw it live.  As amazing as “The Play” was, it should have never worked.  As a matter fact, in a great article by Bob Ford in the Inquirer, Jay Wright and his players admit that it never works in practice. 

I have watched “The Play” frame by frame, and to be quite honest, it worked for two reasons.  The first is simply that Villanova executed to perfection, but the second is the reason why I say it should have never happened: Pittsburgh completely blew it on defense.  That game should have gone into overtime.  What is great about sports, though, is that we are able to get amazing moments that live on through stories and for generations.  I’m glad that Pitt was able to aide Villanova in writing another chapter in the college basketball history books.  Moments like “The Play” usually combine equal parts greatness by one side and we usually get a “goat” on the other side.  Pitt played a great game, but in order for Scottie Reynolds to produce his miracle shot, he needed the entire Pitt team to screw up defensively.  Well, they obliged.  Now, all that is left is the second guessing for Pittsburgh.

So, here is how I saw it all break down as I watched it frame by frame.  Levance Fields’ free throw goes through the net to tie the game up with 5.5 seconds on the clock.  Reggie Redding takes the ball and it all begins.  From the very beginning Pitt’s defensive set up is a little confusing.  Villanova sends Dante Cunningham to the center of the court just past the 3 point line and Pitt initially has no one guarding him.  Levance Fields has his eyes solely on Reggie Redding and is playing a bit of center field just below the free throw line.  Dixon is playing behind Scottie Reynolds in order to force him to catch a pass going away from the basket.  If you watch it slowly, Sam Young creeps in behind Cunningham, and Fields seems to be cheating over towards Reynolds.  It looks as if the first option is for Reynolds to get the ball, which really should be what Pitt wanted anyway.  He was the furthest away from the basket and he would have not had his momentum going in the right direction.  There would be no way for him to get a quality shot up in 5 seconds if Dixon just stayed on his hip and turned him one time while the other Pitt defenders stayed tight to their men.  The fatal moment for Pitt happens before the ball is even in bounded.  Young is simply playing behind Cunningham making him an easy target, and for some reason, as each second passes, Dixon moves from behind Reynolds (who is essentially in a post up position), to playing ¾ defense with his left hand in the passing lane.  I have no idea why Dixon shifted his position, but the fact that he did allowed Reynolds to break full speed towards the basket and catch the pass from Cunningham with momentum.  Pitt was doomed right there.  Reynolds should have never been that free.  What is even more crazy is that as Reynolds receives the ball Dejuan Blair is caught in no mans land and Villanova has a 3 on 1 developing.  Think about that!  Think about how bad you have to screw up defensively to have a 3 on 1, when the other team has to travel the length of the court in 5 seconds.  Once Reynolds catches the ball, 3 Pitt defenders were already completely out of the play.  That’s unbelievable!  The other big Pitt mistake was made by Blair.  Granted Reynolds is quicker than Blair, but instead of moving his feet at all, Blair simply reaches his arm out to try and poke at the ball.  If Blair moved his feet, he may have bumped Reynolds, but I doubt there would have been any kind of foul called to decide the game.  Instead, Blair essentially ushers Reynolds right to the basket, and allows the shot to be made over a much smaller defender.  From there, Reynolds makes a great play and I would never take that away from him, but every time I watch it, I can’t help but notice that both Andersen and Clark are wide open.  Clark may have had a dunk had Reynolds decided to give the ball up, but we all know the result so no one is complaining.

It was an amazing play and Villanova did a great job of executing it to perfection, but Pitt simply had a bad defensive possession at the worst possible time.  “The Play” should have never happened.  But, it did, and I don’t think anyone could have thought of a better ending.

The only thing we continue to know about the Philadelphia 76ers is that they are painfully inconsistent.  Beat the Lakers one night; lose to the Bobcats the next.  Dominate the boards for a stretch; get thoroughly outmuscled in another.  Make smart decisions with the basketball; turn the rock over at inopportune times.  This is the only sense that can be made from an otherwise nonsensical team.  As was stated on this blog before: the Sixers are consistently inconsistent.

So what does that mean for their playoff hopes and their chances at securing the coveted fifth seed?   

Let’s keep it simple: if the Sixers do not move up a spot in the Eastern Conference standings they will lose in the first round of the playoffs where a date with the Boston Celtics would await.  They currently trail the Miami Heat by 1.5 games in the standings with 10 games left on the schedule.  That 10-game stretch is no cake walk either.  The Sixers play the Hawks, Cavs (x2), Celtics, Raptors, Pistons, Bobcats, Bucks, Nets and Bulls.  If you break it down, the Sixers would be fortunate to finish 6-4 and far more likely to close out going 5-5 or 4-6. 

The Heat on the other hand also have a demanding schedule down the stretch with games against the Magic, Mavs, Bobcats, Wizards, Hornets, Celtics, Knicks, Hawks, Pistons.  In this case, the Heat would be fortunate to finish 6-3 with 5-4 appearing more likely.  But the Heat have one major factor on their side and his name is Dwayne Wade.  Wade has been through the wars and knows what it takes to win a title.  He will not let his team falter down the stretch.  The same cannot be said for the Sixers as we have already begun to learn.  Given the schedule, I think it is fairly safe to say the Sixers are not getting into the 5 spot. 

You can thank their inspired play against the Bobcats and Pistons for that gift.  But simply because the Sixers won’t move up a spot does not mean they may not slide down a slot.  The Pistons are lurking only 1.5 games behind the Sixers with a contest looming on Saturday.  Outside of a game against the Cavs, the Pistons have a fairly soft schedule down the stretch that makes it within the realm of possibility that they go 7-2 down the stretch.  I know that places a lot of faith in a team that has struggled this season but they might just find their stride as the playoffs approach.  Couple that with the Sixers gauntlet and I fear Philly fans might be staring a 7-seed square in the face.

Two games ago the Sixers were sitting pretty in the fifth spot of the Eastern Conference and in control of their own destiny.  A couple of lackluster efforts later and they are now stumbling into the homestretch.  My hunch is they stumble right into the seven seed.  What’s yours?

There have been three popular questions around the Phillies camp in Clearwater the last few weeks.  Who will be the fifth starter?  Will the front office move Ronnie Paulino? And, will they get another left-handed reliever?  All three may have been answered in one fell swoop when the Phillies traded catcher Ronnie Paulino to the San Francisco Giants for left-handed reliever Jack Taschner. 

Taschner is hardly the lefty specialist Phillies’ fans were hoping for and won”t stir any memories of J.C. Romero.  Over the course of four seasons in the big leagues, Taschner has a 5.01 ERA and last season, left handed hitters batted .279 against him.  But with the Phillies looking for bullpen depth, they are taking a low-risk chance that a change of scenery might help Taschner develop into a reliable lefty specialist.

One of the consequences of this move is it may clear up the race for the fifth starter position.  Some people believed that J.A. Happ would lose out on the role simply because the Phillies needed left-handed depth in the bullpen.  But with the addition of Taschner, that is no longer an issue. 

The front office may have just paved the way for J.A. Happ to win that final spot in the Phillies rotation.

41-23.  That’s the stat that tells you all you need to know about last night’s Sixers versus Bobcats game.  41-23.  That is the startling rebound edge held by the Charlotte Bobcats over the Philadelphia 76ers last night at the Wachovia Center in a 100-95 victory over the Sixers. 

As a team, there will always be nights when your shot is not falling but there should never be nights when you stop working.  The Sixers stopped working last night.  In most circumstances, rebounding gives you a pretty clear indication of effort.  The 18-rebound margin held by the Bobcats tells you that they were simply playing with a greater sense of desperation than the Sixers.

I said before the game I felt this was a dangerous matchup.  Now you can see why.  Larry Brown surely had his team focused on sneaking into the final playoff spot and coming off of two tough losses, they possessed an extra source of motivation.  But it’s not like the Sixers should have had to search for their motivation.  They are locked in a dogfight with the Miami Heat for the fifth spot in the Eastern conference and the right to avoid a first round mathcup with the Celtics, Cavs or Magic.  Last night, they couldn’t seem to muster the desire to bury the Bobcats.  And once they did find it, it was too little, too late.

As in many nights prior to this one, the team lost its ability to knock down shots in the first half.  But that is no excuse for the stinker they continued to put out on the floor.  They did not defend, they did not rebound—they simply did not hustle.  It’s a shame too, because lost in all of this is Thaddeus Young’s continued solid play.  Young was again quietly efficient going 10/14 from the floor for 21 points and filling up the rest of the stat sheet.  It seemed like Young was the only player on the floor most of the time that realized what was at stake.

It’s a sad commentary on your basketball team when a second-year player that is 20-years old seems to be the only one not dogging it. 

If the Eastern Conference playoffs started today, the Sixers would be sitting pretty in the fifth spot.  But the team is locked in a battle with the Miami Heat and has to continue winning games against teams it should beat.  That means there is no time for a letdown tonight against the Charlotte Bobcats.  With the Pistons on a sharp slide and the Bobcats remarkably only 3 games out of a playoff spot, you can bet that Larry Brown will have his team ready to go tonight.

This is a dangerous game for the Sixers and one that will provide an indication of where this team’s maturity level stands.  They showed their evolution by shaking off the rust and jet lag of a five game road trip by beating the Timberwolves.  Tonight they will need to continue that evolution by dispatching of the Bobcats.  The Sixers and Bobcats have been going in opposite directions.  The Sixers come into tonight’s game winners of 7 of their last 9 while the Bobcats are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Wizards and a drubbing at the hands of the Pacers.

These Bobcats are not as bad as their record indicates.  They have a lot of high-energy players in the likes of Gerald Wallace, Emeka Okafor and Raymond Felton that give them the ability to get out and run with the Sixers.  However, the Bobcats are prone to prolonged shooting droughts and turning the ball over—providing the Sixers with ample opportunity to get out in run.  In addition, the Bobcats are a terrible free throw shooting team so the Sixers should not allow any easy buckets around the hoop and make them earn those points at the line.

The best indication of how this game will play out will be the defensive intensity of the Sixers from the opening tap.  As we have chronicled before, this team has a nasty habit of letting defense fall by the wayside against teams that do not slow the game down.  We saw it against the Suns and we saw it against the Warriors.  The Bobcats will look to get out on the break and the Sixers need to ensure they don’t have any lapses in defensive intensity and commitment.

The last few games have showed us that the Sixers are on the verge of turning the corner from a young, immature team, to one that understands what it takes to win in this league on a nightly basis.  If the Sixers continue to play the brand of basketball that has propelled them to this string of success, that transformation will continue.

In the history of the NCAA tournament, no team has knocked off more higher-ranked teams than Villanova.  That is an accomplishment Villanova cemented last night with a 77-54 drubbing of the Duke Blue Devils at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston.  Think about what this Wildcats teams has accomplished thus far in the tournament in knocking off UCLA and Duke—two of the most storied programs in college basketball.  It is not a feat to be scoffed at, yet you get the feeling there is more to come from this Villanova team.

After a poor first half against American to open the tournament, Villanova has been steamrolling its opponents.  Duke simply was not prepared for the defensive intensity that Jay Wright’s team brought to the table.  Prior to the game, it seemed that the toughest matchup for Villanova would be slowing down Episcopal Academy product Gerald Henderson.  Villanova did not just slow him down, they slammed the door shut.  Henderson was 1-14 from the field for 7 points.  Duke just can’t win a basketball game with that kind of production out of its leading scorer.  Even the smooth shooting Jon Scheyer was missing all night, finishing the evening with 13 points on 3-18 shooting. 

Duke lives and dies by the outside shot, and last night, its fate was sealed by poor perimeter shooting.  But don’t be fooled, this was not a mere case of a team-wide shooting drought.  The poor perimeter shooting was more a product of Villanova’s stifling defense than it was Duke’s bad night.  It seemed every time Duke had even an ounce of daylight to get a shot up from the perimeter a Villanova player was closing out on the play.  When Jay Wright looks at the game film today, he won’t see many wide open looks allowed by his boys. 

Duke shot 26% from the field and 18% from beyond the arc.  It was those numbers that gave Villanova fans pause at the end of the first half.  Despite Duke’s shooting ills, they only trailed the Wildcats by 3 at the half.  You had to assume that the shooting would improve in the second half and Villanova would need to find a better rhythm on offense.  But it never happened.  Villanova continued to attack on defense and was able to convert that into an insurmountable lead.

This Villanova team seems to be clicking on all cylinders at just the right time.  It will face a stiff test in fellow Big East foe Pitt for the right to play in the Final Four.  Villanova will once again be playing as the underdog in that game; a role it seems to relish.

There has been some chatter over the last couple of days that Buffalo Bills left tackle Jason Peters could be available via a trade if the Bills cannot work out a contract.  Of course, because the Eagles currently do not have a LT on the roster (not counting Todd Heramanns or possibly Shawn Andrews) they have been rumored as one of the teams that could get involved in the bidding. 

Granted, much of this is speculation at the moment, but it bears some closer consideration as to whether or not Peters would actually be an upgrade over the Birds current options. 

Jason Peters is an undeniable talent.  At 6’4”, 340 pounds, he certainly does not lack the size to play the position.  In 2007, Peters dominated opposing defensive ends and catapulted himself to elite status at the position.  In his eyes, this earned him the right to be paid as one of the top left tackled in the game.  But the Bills would not oblige.  After a lengthy holdout, Peters returned to action but never quite displayed the same level of dominance as he had in 2007.  In fact, Peters was so shoddy in 2008 that he led the league in sacks allowed with 11.5.  That is a startling number that would make even Winston Justice cringe.  Despite those meager stats, Peters still earned a Pro Bowl invite largely on reputation only.

Of course, you do have to take that 11.5 number with a grain of salt.  For starters, sacks allowed is a rather arbitrary measure of an OLs production.  The guy in the booth responsible for stat keeping has the sole discretion on where to place blame.  Not to start conspiracy theories, but wouldn’t the Bills stand to benefit from deflating Peters’ stats to gain an edge at the negotiating table?  And even if that is not the case, the stat also hinges greatly on the play of the quarterback.  A quarterback like Peyton Manning that gets rid of the ball quickly can make any offensive lineman look good.  But when you are hesitant to make decisions like Trent Edwards, he often leave your linemen out to dry.  But no matter how you spin the story, it is fairly obvious to even the most casual observer that Jason Peters was not at his best in 2008. 

If you are the Eagles, would you be so eager to fork over the number of picks and pile of cash it would take to bring Peters to Philadelphia?  It depends.  If you believe that you are getting the 2007 version of the massive lineman, it just may be worth the steep price.  Acquiring a productive Peters would create one of the biggest and most feared offensive lines in the game.  With a line like that, Andy Reid just may stick to the running game.

On the flip side, if you get anything back remotely resembling the 2008 version of Peters it would not be worth the king’s ransom required to get a deal done.  The Eagles have two viable internal options to move to left tackle in Shawn Andrews and Todd Herremans.  Let us not forget that both Andrews and Herremans played tackle in college and have apparently been itching to play it in the NFL.  Surely both of these options could match the play of Jason Peters cica 2008.  In addition, the Eagles would have to strongly way the apparent “attidue factor.”  This team has a long history of run-ins with players that wanted to rework deals before it expired.  In most cases, those clashes do not end well for the player.  Who is to say the three years down the road, Peters isn’t going to look around and call for another deal? 

The chatter has largely been that Jason Peters would be a huge upgrade for the Birds and a move they need to make if the price is right.  I’m not so sure.  There are just too many risks in the equation that outweigh the potential return.  If I were Andy Reid and his cohorts, I would take my chances with the guys already sitting in the locker room.

If Villanova needs a comparison of the tempo and style of play it will see against Duke in the Sweet 16 showdown tonight in Boston, it needs to look no further than their own practices.

Villanova and Duke are strikingly similar teams that rely heavily on guard play and defensive pressure for the length of the court.  Neither Coach K nor Jay Wright stick to conventional wisdom and run out a lineup that includes 2 guards, 2 forwards and a center.  It is not uncommon for Wright to go to a 4-guard set that uses 6”8? Dante Cunningham as its de facto center.  For Wright, this allows him to turn up the defensive intensity for the length of the court and spread the floor on the offensive end—giving the solid guards of Villanova room to operate.  Against many teams this causes matchup problems but Duke has the personnel to counter with a similar look.  Duke will often go to sets that have the-yep you guessed it-6” 8? Kyle Singler playing the center spot.  Singler is a more versatile player than Cunningham in that he can knock down shots from beyond the three-point line.

Duke comes into the game off a dramatic win over a scrappy Texas team that refused to let the Blue Devils pull away.  On the other hand, Nova is riding the wave of an easy victory against UCLA in which the Wildcats played perhaps there best basketball game of the season.  This will be a tough test for Villanova that will require an effort similar to the UCLA game if they hope to advance to the Elite 8.

Here are the four keys to the game:

#1 Disrupt the Duke Offensive Rhythm: Outside of Gerald Henderson, Duke is a jump shooting team that lives or dies by the outside shot.  Villanova should look to apply some full-court pressure in an attempt to disrupt the flow of the Duke offense.  As the seconds on the shot clock dwindle, the Blue Devils can be forced into a poor shot from the perimeter.  If Villanova is able to force Duke to make difficult shots with a hand in their face, it could be a long night for Coach K and his boys.

#2 Strike Early and Often: There has been a lot of talk this week about the Duke mystique.  And it is true that Coach K has built one of the most storied programs in college basketball.  But for this matchup, the Villanova Wildcats actually have more postseason experience.  Duke has bowed out of the tournament before the second round each of the last two seasons, while Villanova just notched its fourth consecutive trip to the Sweet 16.  Greg Paulis is the only player on the Duke roster that has meaningful postseason minutes to his credit.  So what does this all mean?  Villanova needs to strike early and jump out to a quick start and force Duke to prove their mettle in tough situations.

# 3 Make Gerald Henderson Work: Gerald Henderson is what makes the Duke offense tick.  His athleticism and ability to get to the rim create opportunities for his teammates.  This is the one player that Villanova cannot let go off tonight.  When Henderson is penetrating at will, it opens up shooting lanes for the likes of Jon Scheyer and Singler.  This is a tough matchup for Nova.  If they over commit on the help, there are plenty of shooters for Duke that will be toeing the three point line.  At the same time, Henderson is too good for any one player to shut down entirely.  This means the Wildcats will need to play an intelligent brand of defense, helping in the lane when it does not let a shooter roam free and rotating to the open man.

# 4 Get a Third Contributor: Villanova has five guys that are capable of putting up big numbers: Cunningham, Scottie Reynolds, Corey Strokes, Corey Fisher and DeWayne Anderson.  In order to defeat Duke, you can almost certainly count on solid games out of Cunningham and Reynolds.  But the Wildcats will need a third player to turn up big tonight.  My gut tells me that guy will be Corey Strokes.  At 6”5?, he has the length to give Henderson some problems so I expect him to see significant minutes.  This is nothing more than a hunch, but I wouldn”t be surprised to see Strokes come up with 15 points and some solid defensive stops.

Many so-called pundits want you to buy into the Duke hype machine and view this as a mismatch.  It is not.  If Villanova is able to do the above things well, they just might be dancing their way into the Elite 8.