Blog Outsourcing - 3/7/11

Welcome to today's edition of The Victory Formation.

I knew the importance of the game between the Bulls and the Heat and its significance. The Bulls needed a win to sweep the Heat, and the Heat are fresh from the embarrassment of that comeback the Magic pulled off and then the evisceration they got from San Antonio, so I watched the game live at 2am in the morning.

I was not alone in watching this game. Lots of people in the Motherland were up as well, not just because of the magnitude (lots of Lebron and Wade fans, as well as Bulls fans), but also the game that followed it had a team with a decent following here (Lakers)



I knew some of you watched it, and saw the result, and its repercussions.

My concern has been the endgame situations, where the ABC graphic showed they were 1/14 (now 1/16). Sometimes, one has to man up and admit that there is something wrong. Lebron already acknowledged his woes, saying he'll try to be better. Stats show a shard of the truth, and the 1/16 in clutch situations is a major concern.

The other concern... The Heat are currently in the midst of brutal run of teams. They lost to the Knicks, the Magic, the Spurs and the Bulls. They still have to face the Blazers, the Lakers, the Grizzlies, the Spurs, the Thunder, the Hawks and the Nuggets before the reach the oasis that is the Detroit Pistons on March 23 (24 in the Motherland). Their last win against a .500 or better team was Orlando on February 3. They better find 3 wins from that stretch, and especially the game against Portland is a must-win, if only to diffuse the increasing tension on South Beach.

Before I finish, I missed listening to the SpartaCast, so someone participated in one with a few of his friends. Please support him. It's a discussion of basketball.

Off to the links, then:

How many T's will Dwight Howard cross? Portland gets a break. (c/o Orlando Sentinel)

Bulls also get a break, because they should be are holding CP3 out. (c/o New Orleans Times-Picayune)

Either the Lakers flexed their muscles, or the Spurs lulling them into a state of false security. (c/o Houston Chronicle)

Mark Cuban must be smelling Tigerblood. (c/o Forbes)

And the beat goes on for the Love Machine... (c/o Kevin Love)

The NBA was actually in London. Who knew. (c/o BallinEurope)

If there is a team that Alabama should not face after the Toomer debacle, it would be the Indiana State Sycamores. (c/o Alton Telegraph)

Congrats to the first batch of autobid winners: Belmont (c/o Jacksonville Observer), UNC-Asheville (c/o Searching for Billy Edelin) and Morehead State (c/o Lexington Herald-Leader).

Speaking of bids, Harvard might be dancing (c/o Harvard Crimson). Whether Princeton will allow the to get away scot-free is another. (c/o Philadelphia Inquirer)

George Mason might have just shrunk the bubble bids. (c/o Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Vols get felled by the Wildcats (c/o The Tennessee Journalist). It spoiled a ceremony honoring Allan Houston. (c/o TriCities Sports)

Sparty gets swept by the Wolverines. (c/o Detroit Free Press)

Yes, we were deprived of what-could-have-been a Gus Johnson moment. (c/o Kansas City Star)

Will he make it in time? Remains to be seen. (c/o Sporting News)

Buckeyes avenge their defeat in smashing fashion. (c/o Washington Post)

Purdue collapses (c/o The Sports Bank). But if you want to talk collapse, what the hell happened with Louisville (c/o Opposing Views)?

It is hard to imagine one can score only 30 pts (c/o The Herald Journal) or 107 pts (c/o Rochester Democrat & Chronicle) in 40 minutes.

Pitt (c/o Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) and North Carolina (c/o The Independent Weekly) are your regular season conference champs in their own little way.

Let's see if David Haye will push through with this fight (c/o BBC). Meanwhile, both the young Saul Alvarez (c/o Bozing Dispatch) and the old Zab Judah (c/o Newark Star-Ledger) grabbed belts.

Manchester United got shellacked, with a FA Cup match against Arsenal looming in the horizon. (c/o Liverpool Daily Post)

Now if Liverpool did not make John Henry feel good, well this would definitely would have made him do backflips. (c/o Charlotte Observer)

Iowa State enters the race for the Fulmer Cup (c/o Ames Tribune).

30 goals in 10 straight seasons. You must be good. (c/o Ottawa Citizen)

The Rangers really put it on the Flyers. (c/o The Faster Times)

Major concerns hounding the Philly bats. (c/o The Olympian)

Bart Scott apparently not only knows how to wrestle (c/o The Fifth Down), but also how to trademark (c/o Shutdown Corner).

Tebow and Amar'e give moral support to the BYU kid. (c/o NESN)

I still think that there is hope that the season is still salvageable, so make sure the extension you gave yourselves to discuss is squeezed like heck. (c/o Real GM)

The Chris Webber timeout stands the test of time, apparently. (c/o Ballin' is a Habit)

It's nice to go out in style like this. (c/o The Ledger Independent, video c/o Fark)

This guy went out in a blaze of glory. Really. (c/o Holland Sentinel)

Someone inspired me to go old school with the parting shot today. Hope you enjoy it as we delve into the madness.