Knicks Losing Grip of Series

After leading the Celtics 3-0 in the best of 7 series in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.  The New York Knicks have lost their grip on the stranglehold they once had.

The Celtics have made it a 3-2 series, and are looking to tie it up tonight at the TD Garden in Boston.

Ever since the elbow JR Smith threw on Celtics' guard Jason Terry, the momentum has shifted to the men who bleed green.

The Knicks need more consistency from Carmelo Anthony, their star forward who won the NBA's scoring title.  The pick and rolls have been effective since Kevin Garnett can no longer hedge and stay in front of agile and speedy guards.

I still expect the Knicks to win the series.  However, the Celtics are attempting to accomplish what no team has before, come back from an 0-3 deficit, and it's quite possible they will.

PHOTO CREDIT - JONAH KANER

Harlem Shake Videos

This craze got so big that it seemed as if on every news television, I was seeing a new Harlem Shake video with a group of kids bring their own unique style.

If you haven't seen the videos yet, it is one person starting the dance out for about 12 seconds or so wearing some sort of disguise and at the moment the music changes, the scene changes to everybody dancing and some of their wardrobes change.  Here is my favorite one :

People need to keep doing this, it's too funny.

Penguins/Habs March 26

Took a spontaneous trip to Pittsburgh to meet my buddy Matt Talbot down at Consol Energy Center for last night's game vs. the Montreal Canadiens.

This was my first ever NHL hockey game attending and it did not disappoint.  It was worth the trip and the little sleep I got.

Only one goal was scored, but damn was it loud in the building!  Sidney Crosby potted one in, and it was a beauty.

I hope to make it down soon again, the tickets were not bad for the seats that we got.  Luckily, I have a friend who's Uncle is the Vice President at CVS and scored us sick tickets for a low price.

Miami Heat Video Bombing

It's an art, and the Miami Heat have perfected the craft with impeccable timing and trolling.

LeBron James was the most recent Heat to make his muppet-esque face into the lens while Ray Allen was in the midst of a post-game interview.

Chris Bosh though has been the KING of these moments so far this season.

The Miami Heat have won 27 games in a row, the second longest streak in NBA history.  They are having a great time doing it as well.  They go for 28 tonight vs. the Chicago Bulls on ESPN at 8 PM.  

 

Bess To Hampden?

BANGOR - According to Marc Calnan of the Eastern Maine Sports Blog in Dexter, Isaiah Bess could be transferring to Hampden Academy next season to play basketball for the Broncos.

Bess was the Class C MVP of this year's tournament and led the Penquis Patriots to the State Championship in the final game played at the Bangor Auditorium.

The Hampden Academy Broncos won the State Championship as well after pulling off an undefeated season with a victory over the South Portland Red Riots in Augusta.

"I think the move will help me in terms of education and will help me prepare for college in a few years," said Bess to Eastern Maine Sports Blog.

Bess went over the 1,000 career point mark as a Junior (this past season) and would be an added bonus to an already loaded Hampden Academy basketball team with brothers Nick and Zach Gilpin leading the way.

There are still numerous details that have to be worked out before the move can be made official but Bess plans on finishing out his school year at Penquis High School in Milo.  

This will benefit Bess as he will have numerous Division I schools recruiting him and seeing the 6'3 star compete against top level competition will only help him as he moves on to the next level.  He has already received a scholarship offer from the University of New Hampshire but I'm sure Bess plans on keeping his options open before making a decision after the 2013-2014 basketball season.  

PHOTO CREDIT - Terry Robichaud

Tournament Begins Tomorrow

BANGOR - Three months of waiting, three months of constant practice, and three months of preparation will finally be presented upon the Bangor Auditorium floor.

The final Eastern Maine basketball tournament will commence at 5:00 PM tomorrow night with Nokomis and Belfast girls matching up in the first quarterfinal matchup.

This is considered the greatest time of the year to many natives of Bangor. The excitement and atmosphere the auditorium provides will be heard and experienced for one last time, and patrons will cherish it to the fullest.

I'll be there all day tomorrow, and all next week doing 32 out of the 43 games that will be played.  It's a big commitment that will more than likely leave me sick of basketball and not wanting to watch a single game for about two months after this.

I'm looking forward to it though, it should be a great experience.  I was first a fan, then a player, and now I will experience the tournament as a member of the media.

All tournament games will be streamed on WZON Radio (AM 620) or online at www.wzonthepulse.com

Eastern Maine Boys Preliminary Predictions

BANGOR - The regular season is officially over for high school basketball, and now teams will begin preparing for the final tournament at the Bangor Auditorium.

However, with certain teams receiving byes to the tournament, certain teams will have to get ready for the preliminary round.  If you're not familiar with the MPA system, this is similar to the NCAA play-in game where two teams matchup to see who gets into the tournament.  It varies from class to class between how many teams receive a bye and how many teams needs to play a preliminary game.  I'm now going to go through and give my predictions on who will win these preliminary matchups.

Class B
Byes - #1 Medomak Valley, #2 Presque Isle, #3 Mount Desert Island

#4 Oceanside vs. #13 Foxcroft Academy - KVAC vs. Big East in this one and you have to give the advantage to Oceanside.  However, Foxcroft is a talented team with some offensive talent and Oceanside can be sloppy at times.  But, Meklin will be too much.  Oceanside by 12.

#5 Caribou vs. #12 Hermon - Savage vs. Thayer should be a doozy.  Both were close games during the season but I expect Caribou to come out on top by 8.

#6 Winslow vs. #11 Washington Academy - Winslow has some impressive wins this season, and some ugly losses to lesser teams.  WA has talent with Feeney, Varney, and others and are scrappy defensively.  I'm predicting an upset in this one, WA by 5.

#7 Waterville vs. #10 Old Town - Old Town relies so heavily on Garrett Libby that it can become detrimental to their team as a whole.  Waterville can compete with anyone when their shooters are locked in from long range, and I expect that to be the case for them in this one, Waterville by 11.

#8 Camden Hills vs. #9 Nokomis - Camden Hills is always in the thick of things, they went 4 OT's with #1 Medomak.  Although they ended up losing, they have the best coach in Class B and will come out on top in this one, Windjammers by 9.

Class C
Byes - #1 Houlton, #2 Penquis Valley, #3 Lee Academy, #4 Sumner Memorial, #5 Calais

#6 Dexter vs. #11 PCHS - Dexter has more talent, shouldn't be much of a contest.  Dexter by 21.

#7 Stearns vs. #10 George Stevens Academy - Should be an incredibly close game, basically a toss up so I'll go Stearns by 4.

#8 Bucksport vs. #9 Fort Kent - FK by 7.

Class D
Byes - #1 Jonesport-Beals

#2 Washburn vs. #15 Ashland/Van Buren - So much talent on Washburn with Worcester, the Bragg brothers, Olson, and Caron.  Should be a steamroll, Washburn by 32.

#3 Central Aroostook vs. #14 Schenck - CA has struggled as of late but Coach Brewer is always at his best this time of year and I expect the Panthers to claw their way to victory by 7.

#4 Deer Isle-Stonington vs. #13 Woodland - The return of Grindle has done wonders for the Mariners.  He is so valuable to that team offensively and defensively, he's the leader.  Mariners by 20.

#5 Hodgdon vs. #12 LCS/MSSM - Hodgdon defeated Limestone by 31 during the regular season, just a couple weeks ago actually, and I expect a similar outcome.  Hodgdon also had two close games with Houlton, who go into the tournament at the Class C rankings 17-1  Hawks by 27.

#6 Machias vs. #11 Katahdin - Machias has lots of size, they will utilize that.  Machias by 12.

#7 Bangor Christian vs. #10 Fort Fairfield - The Tigers landed Washburn's its only loss of the season.  BC struggles against size and Lewis will be a handful.  FF by 9.

#8 Easton vs. Southern Aroostook - 20-year-old Dillon Kingsbury has done a tremendous job in only his 2nd year of coaching building a solid program in Aroostook County.  Look for Turner to have a big outing, Easton by 8.

I'll update Thursday to update the outcomes of the games, and how right or wrong I was.