2009 October | The 3rd String Safety

Happy Halloween From The 3SS Family!

October 31, 2009, at 4:02 pm

Going to be a real slow day for us. Jason’s in Wisconsin, taking in the Badgers homecoming football game. Alex is probably still recovering from last night’s Hangover. I was there, it was bad. Jordan and Matt are still involved in the C.W. Post football game, where I would be, If I hadn’t completely lost my voice. Don’t ask me how.

So, just enjoy your All Hallow’s Eve and we’ll be back for Football Sunday tomorrow. If the Giants lose, I’ll be dressing up as a guy trying to hang myself.

As supposed to Stein, who stole the show last night with his Kimbo Slice.

MMA

Pellegrino Out of TUF 10 Finale, Matt Veach Likely to Replace Him Against Frankie Edgar…

By Anthony De Franco

October 30, 2009, at 7:13 pm

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I have written far too many of these recently. I remember a time when UFC fights actually went off as planned. That just sounds crazy now-a-days. Here’s the latest blow to a potential co-main event fight.

New Jersey’s Kurt Pellegrino is out of his fight against fellow Jersey native Frankie Edgar at The Ultimater Fighter 10 Finale on December 5th. Once again, Ariel Helwani of AOL Fanhouse let us in on it.

UFC lightweight fighter Frankie Edgar tweeted on Friday that his Dec. 5 fight against Kurt Pellegrino has been scrapped.

FanHouse has learned from sources close to the bout that “Batman” has three herniated discs in his back. Pellegrino, who is coming off an impressive unanimous decision victory against Josh Neer at UFC 101, has been ordered by his doctor to rest for at least three weeks.

Edgar is still expected to compete on The Ultimate Fighter Finale show. FanHouse has also learned that Matt Veach, who was scheduled to fight Mark Bocek on the undercard of the event, is currently the leading candidate to replace Pellegrino against Edgar, however, new bout agreements have not been issued or signed just yet.

This fight suddenly isn’t nearly as exciting. Veach is 11-0, but hasn’t faced any kind of real competition. Edgar, is on the edge of getting a title shot. There isn’t any real upside for Edgar here, because if he wins this fight, then he did his job. If he doesn’t he just upset by a guy who’s biggest win in over Matt Grice.

MMA

The Hits Keep Coming For The UFC: Alves Out of 107

By Anthony De Franco

October 30, 2009, at 3:26 pm

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This is getting ridiculous. If there was ever a time to feel bad for Dana White, it’s got to be right now. He’s losing main event quality fights left and right. Now, Thiago Alves is out of his UFC 107 fight against Jon Fitch with an injured knee. AOL Fanhouse’s Ariel Hewlani broke it.

A knee injury has forced welterweight Thiago Alves to pull out of his scheduled bout against Jon Fitch at UFC 107. FanHouse learned of the news Friday morning.

The Alves-Fitch fight was put together late last week after Fitch’s opponent at UFC 106, Ricardo Almeida, pulled out due to a knee injury as well. Alves was originally scheduled to fight Paulo Thiago at UFC 107, but once Fitch was left without an opponent, the UFC booked the rematch. No word just yet on who, if anyone, Fitch will be facing on the Dec. 12 show in Memphis, TN.

Alves suffered a torn posterior cruciate ligament while training. According to Alves’ manager Dan Lambert, Alves will be out 3-to-4 weeks, and will be ready to fight on any show after Jan. 1. Lambert mentioned that Alves was ready and willing to keep the fight despite the injury, but his management team at American Top Team in Florida felt that it was in his best interest to sit this one out.

So, now Fitch is without an opponent. Looking at the welterweight roster, I’m not really sure that there is anyone of any quality to take Alves spot. Most are locked into fights or recovering from bouts.

Dana and Joe Silva are going to have to work to get this one ready.

NHL

On Face(off) Value

By Bryan Berg

October 30, 2009, at 7:35 am

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When you’re a fan of a losing team, you generally don’t watch them expecting to win. Instead, you watch hoping you’ll see something amazing. For example, even though the Mets were out of playoff contention in July, I still watched them most nights, just in case they finally pitched a no-hitter (yeah, I know) or did something particularly special. In hockey, there are no milestones that would compare to a no-hitter, so I hope for very memorable games, the kind that transcend a losing season. Last year, beating Detroit and Chicago on the road were such games, and Opening Night would have been such a game had the Islanders pulled it out.

Wednesday night’s game against the Rangers would certainly qualify as what I’d call a memorable game. If the Islanders to produce a 2009-10 highlight video, highlights of Wednesday night would be heavily featured. The Islanders played their game, were intense throughout, and won their first regulation game by sheer will. The Islanders also won because of a growing trend in their play – their success in the faceoff circle.

Over the summer, I read Moneyball by Michael Lewis. Moneyball, for those who don’t know, explains how the small-market Oakland A’s of Major League Baseball were able to stay competitive with teams like the Yankees by building their team around undervalued assets like walks and on-base percentage. As I read Moneyball, I tried to figure out what statistics in hockey could be the basis for a winning team in today’s NHL. One of these days, I’ll post my thoughts. For now, though, perhaps the most important stat I’d build around would be faceoff percentage.

Think about it. There are approximately 60 faceoffs in a game. The average team, of course, wins 50 percent of those faceoffs, meaning that they begin play with the puck 30 times a game. A team that wins 60 percent of their faceoffs, on the other hand, begins with the puck 36 times. That’s twelve times more than their opponent. So, not only do you have the edge twelve more times than your opponent, that’s twelve times that your opponent can’t score until you give up the puck.

As of right now, the Islanders sit at third in the NHL with a success rate of 54.1% in the faceoff circle, with the Isles dominating faceoffs in their past few games. And while this success hasn’t resulted in wins just yet, there’s plenty of reason for optimism – aside from the Islanders (.409), Minnesota (.250) and Nashville (.458), every team over 50% in faceoffs has earned more than half of the points it could have possibly earned so far this season. What’s particularly telling about the Islanders’ success is that it’s been widespread. Every eligible Islander is over 50% in faceoffs this year, including John Tavares at 50.3%, Josh Bailey at 53.9%, and both Doug Weight and Nate Thompson at 58.8%.

What does all of this mean? Simply put, if the Islanders are better than their opponents at controlling the puck off the draw, they’re that much more likely to control play and potentially generate good scoring chances. In addition, their opponents will have to make more plays on defense than usual in order to get the puck. And if the Islanders can get past their third period hiccups – as they did on Wednesday night – their faceoff skills can help them become a truly dangerous team.

MMA

Urijah Faber Back In The Cage At WEC 46…

By Anthony De Franco

October 29, 2009, at 5:22 pm

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YES! The best looking man in MMA, Urijah Faber, is finally back from his two broken hands and will be fighting Raphael Assuncao at WEC 46 in January. Some people were suggesting that he wouldn’t be back in the cage until March, but never count out “The California Kid.” MMA Weekly broke the news.

The long-awaited return of World Extreme Cagefighting fan favorite Urijah Faber is now set.

MMAWeekly.com sources on Thursday confirmed that Faber would return at WEC 46 on Jan. 10 to face fellow featherweight contender Raphael Assuncao. They have verbally agreed to fight when the promotion returns to Faber’s backyard of Sacramento, Calif., at the ARCO Arena.

Faber (22-3) last fought in a loss to current 145-pound champion Mike Brown at WEC 41 in June, also in Sacramento. He fractured his right hand in the bout and has spent the past few months healing.

“That would be perfect timing for me,” Faber told MMAWeekly.com earlier this month when asked about a January return.

Faber is stuck in one of the weirdest situations in MMA. He lost his first fight with Mike Brown because he was being stupid and threw a spinning back elbow against a damn good fighter. Then, after beating Jens Pulver before getting a rematch, he broke one hand and seriously hurt his other during the fight. Even with that, he was to land some funky elbows, and held Mike Thomas Brown to a somewhat unimpressive victory.

Now, people are still calling Faber one of the best featherweight fighters in the world, which is not something that you would normally say about a guy who has lost two out of his last three fights. I think that he needs two fights before getting back to Brown, and he’ll get his first win against a fighter that just isn’t in the same class.

NBA

Thoughts From Wednesday Night in the NBA

By Matt Soldano

October 29, 2009, at 2:22 pm

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With most teams having played their first game of the season, here are a couple things that stuck out in my opinion from each game and which player stood out to me from each team (negatively or positively)

Atlanta Hawks 120, Indiana Pacers 109 – Josh Smith 18 points, 8 assists, 5 stls – Danny Granger 31 pts, 4 rebounds.

I think this is the beginning to a huge season for Josh Smith and he can finish as a top 10 fantasy player. I was surprised how long Indiana was in the game but I guess that’s what happens when you make 10 three’s and shoot over 53%.

Orlando Magic 120, Philadelphia 76ers 106 – Dwight Howard 21 points, 15 rebounds – Elton Brand 8 points, 6 rebounds.

So far, same old Brand as he cannot get accustomed to Philly’s run and gun style. An awful second quarter in which the Sixers were outscored by 21 put them in a hole they could never get out of.

Toronto Raptors 101, Cleveland Cavaliers 91 – Andrea Bargnani 28 points, 5 rebounds – Lebron James 23 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists.

Two games in and the King already has one triple double however, the Cavs also have two losses. Right now the Cavs are looking sluggish on both sides and Lebron is not getting any help from the supporting cast. Barganani was a huge matchup problem that Cleveland had no answer for.

Boston Celtics 92, Charlotte Bobcats 59 – Shelden Williams 12 points and 9 rebounds – Gerald Wallace 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Congrats Charlotte! You managed to get in the record books on Day One for the lowest amount of points on opening night in the shot clock era. The Bobcats managed to shoot just 31% went 0-10 from downtown and shot 52% from the charity stripe. Wow. Kudos to Boston for shutting them down but in the words of Ed Lover, “C’mon Son!”

Miami Heat 115, New York Knicks 93 – Jermaine O’Neal 22 points and 12 rebounds – Danilo Gallinari 22 points (7-13 3PT).

For the Heat, it is real nice to see O’Neal get off to a start as he was such a disappointment last year and has been for the past few years. O’Neal is going to be a key for the Heat to win a playoff series. For the Knicks, Gallo did drop 20+ but I have a problem with how he got them. He took one two point shot! If Gallo is going to be this type of player, give me Jason Kapono for less money and I would have drafted Eric Gordon with the 6th overall pick.

Minnesota Timberwolves 95, New Jersey Nets 93 – Johnny Flynn 18 points and 4 rebounds – Terrence Williams 15 points 10 rebounds.

Flynn absolutely tore ish up in the 4th quarter scoring 13 of his 18 points and leading a Timberwolves comeback. I really enjoyed watch Flynn play in his first game and is my runner-up for ROY if Harden doesn’t play as much as I think. Williams was one of three Nets to record double doubles (Lopez and Yi) but his was most surprising. He got his minutes once Jarvis Hayes went out with a hamstring injury and obviously made the most of it.

San Antonio Spurs 113, New Orleans Hornets 96 – Dejuan Blair 14 points and 11 rebounds – Chris Paul 26 points and 9 assists.

Looks like I was right about Blair (hah Nick Malone!) He would have played more if he didn’t commit 4 fouls but in 23 minutes, Blair had a double double and in 6 minutes, he had 6 boards. He put up better numbers than Tim Duncan and will be an absolute force. For the Hornets, my oh my, they look awful. Chris Paul is looking for the closest escape route and its no where in sight right now. As Max Caster put it brilliantly last night on Off the Glass, “Anytime your team needs Stephen Jackson to stay in the playoff race, you know your team sucks.”

Oklahoma City Thunder 102, Sacramento Kings 89 – Kevin Durant 25 points and 11 rebounds – Kevin Martin 27 points (5-19 shooting, 14-14 FT).

Durant is off to a solid start and put all the negative talk about how he has a career -7 when he is on the floor by posting a +17. Take that haters! Russell Westbrook continues to impress by posting 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 13 assists. The key stat: 2 turnovers. However, they were playing the Kings, and let’s not forget that. Tyreke Evans really struggled in his debut shooting 5-16, kudos to Russ’ for that shutdown D. Long long season for Sacramento follows…

Detroit Pistons 96, Memphis Grizzlies 74 – Ben Gordon 22 points off the bench – O.J. Mayo 9 points (2-12 shooting) 6 rebounds.

While Gordon looked great the Pistons other prized free agent, Charlie Villaneuava did not, scoring just 7 points. Rumors are swirling that the Pistons are looking hard in trading Rip Hamilton so we will keep our eyes on that. The Grizz were just as unimpressive as the Bobcats because they do have scorers who just flat-out were terrible last night. Those die-hard Grizzlies fans are praying for an Iverson sighting, and that can never be a good thing. Stick to BBQ and not basketball, Memphis.

Denver Nuggets 114, Utah Jazz 105 – Carmelo Anthony 30 points 8 rebounds – Deron Williams 28 points and 13 assists.

One of the more entertaining games of the night as both teams went back and forth and some of the game’s elite talent battled it out for 48 minutes. In the end, Williams could not get enough help from his sidekick in Carlos Boozer, just 12 points, than Melo got with his in Chauncey Billups who dropped 25. Also, big ups to Ty Lawson dropping 17 and six dimes in his debut. Here’s to UNC!

Houston Rockets 108, Golden State Warriors 107 – Trevor Ariza 25 points, 5 rebounds – Stephen Curry 14 points, 7 assists, 4 stls.

I hate Don Nelson, officially. Why the hell does Ronny Turiaf start ahead of Anthony Randolph? Can someone please tell me?!? Other than that, Curry scored the team’s final six points to keep the game close but the Rockets made some big stops at the end and pulled out with the win.

Phoenix Suns 109, Los Angeles Clippers 107 – Steve Nash 24 points, 8 assists – Baron Davis 12 points (4-11), 12 assists.

Through two games Davis is shooting 5-21, a stretch that must get turned around especially without Blake Griffin. Nash’s game winning lay-up with 5 seconds was the difference maker as Eric Gordon couldn’t connect on the buzzer beater three.

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Happy Halloween From The 3SS Family!

Pellegrino Out of TUF 10 Finale, Matt Veach Likely to Replace Him Against Frankie Edgar…

The Hits Keep Coming For The UFC: Alves Out of 107

On Face(off) Value

Urijah Faber Back In The Cage At WEC 46…

Thoughts From Wednesday Night in the NBA

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