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AROUND THE AREASAMSUNG MOBILE SCHEDULE

BASEBALLA LOOK AT THE RANGERS ROTATION

FISHERBREAKING DOWN CUBES & BSG

OPINION MAVS & STARS GOING OPPOSITE WAYS

GOLF TAKE A SEAT

COVER STORYBREAKING DOWN THE NCAA’S

HOCKEYMORROW’S MYSTERIOUS INJURIES

SPORT SHORTSMARCH MADNESS ALL AROUND

TICKET WINDOWNORM & THE GOOSE

DININGTHE FAIRMONT

March 9-15, 2012Volume 10, Issue 29

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TEXAS RANGERSBASEBALL

Assessing the Rangers rotation in Surpriseby DIC [email protected]

With Neftali Feliz's appearance Wednesdayafternoon, all seven of the Rangers' startingpitching candidates has made two appear-ances. All went two innings their first timeout. All but Colby Lewis went threeinnings in their second appearance, withLewis zipping through three innings soefficiently that his pitch count accommo-dated a fourth inning.

All seven have made at least one strongperformance. Certainly no one has pitchedthemselves out of consideration. Startingat the top with the announced opening daystarting pitcher, Lewis threw a perfect fourinning performance in his second outing.He struck out five of the 12 batters hefaced and needed just 36 pitches to getthrough four innings. It is clearly the bestpitching performance in this young seasonfor any Ranger starting pitcher. Lewis'sfirst outing did not go so well. He allowedtwo runs on three hits in two innings andtook the loss, so his second outing was awelcome site.

Derek Holland is five innings into springgames in his pair of appearances. He'sallowed six hits and one run in each outing,both of which were earned, walking no oneand striking out five. He was credited withone win, and for sure, has done nothing todispel his assumed place as the startingpitcher in game two April 7. Holland bythe way has been elected the team's newplayer representative, replacing C. J.Wilson.

THE DARVISH REPORT CARDYu Darvish has now pitched twice withmixed results. He was really good in his

first outing against the Padres in Peoria,Arizona. He needed 36 pitches to plowthrough two scoreless innings, a high pitchcount, but 26 of his pitches were strikes.He threw a first pitch strike to seven ofeight batters faced, allowed a pair of dou-bles and retired the other six batters. Thehardest hit ball came off the bat of WillVenable, a drive that hit a tall center fieldfence. Had it been a couple of feet furtherleft, it would have been a very long homerun.

An emphasis this spring has been on pitch-ers' fielding. Darvish made two nice playsin this outing, smoothly covering first baseon a ground ball to Michael Young at firstbase, and later fielding a tricky high hopcomebacker and throwing home to get arunner attempting to score from third base. He was not so good this past Tuesday, hav-ing difficulty finding the plate. He wasfortunate to allow just two runs, bothearned, in three innings. He began thegame by walking the first two Indians' bat-ters. Yorvit Torrealba threw both outattempting to steal second base, andDarvish struck out the third batter for animprobable and unimpressive three upthree down inning. He was better in thesecond, but was fortunate to finish the third

inning. The inning began with a single andtwo walks to load the bases. The Indiansfollowed with a run scoring single and agroundball double play that plated a secondrun, before being retired. Darvish threw 61pitches, another high total for threeinnings, and more than half (32) were ballsas he walked four batters. He ended upallowing seven of 13 batters faced to reachbase. His fastball was clocked at 91, downslightly from the 93-95 it tipped in his firstappearance.

Matt Harrison has been rumored to perhapsbe on the bubble for retaining a position inthe rotation. The Rangers are unsettled fora left-handed relief specialist in thebullpen, and Harrison has pitched in reliefin the past. He has made no bones that hewants to be and feels he deserves to be inthe rotation. His performances on themound have backed up his feelings. Hehas allowed a single run on four hits andno walks in his two stints totaling fiveinnings.

FELIZ STRUGGLING WITH TRANSITIONNeftali Feliz is the one pitcher that hasstruggled. He gave up three runs on threehits in his first outing of two innings. Allthree hits were well hit, including the third

that was an Adam Dunn home run. Felizsaid afterward that he was particularlyworking on his changeup in the outingwithout regard to the results. He was muchbetter this Wednesday. He went threeinnings, allowing a run (earned) on fourhits, but he struck out three and walkedonly one. His pitch total of 47 is accept-able, and 32 (68%) were strikes.

Most in the media have moved ScottFeldman (long man) and Alexi Ogando(middle relief) to the bullpen. Both havereported that no one with the Rangers hastold them they are not viable candidates tobe in this year's rotation. Both have beenreally good! Feldman is unscored upon infive innings, allowing just three base run-ners (two hits and a walk). The sink isback in his sinker, as he looks fully recov-ered from microfracture knee surgery.

Ogando has one appearance in an A gamein which he struck out two, walked one,allowed a hit and no runs. His secondappearance was moved to a B game lastSunday against the Royals, against a lineupsupposedly loaded with regulars to accom-modate the team brass getting a look atrelief candidates in the A game. Heallowed three hits and a run for the onlyscoreboard damage of the spring so far.Both Ogando and Feldman are making thedecision to move them to the bullpen verytough on the Rangers.

It's only two times out for each pitcher.The next time around, they'll be expectedto complete four innings. They'll be seeingsome batters in the opposing starting lineupas many as three times. A week or tendays from now when each has made a thirdappearance, the Rangers will have a muchbetter picture of what this rotation willlook like on Good Friday.


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by MIKE FISHERF I S [email protected]

Bill Simmons' podcast picked the brain of Mavs ownerMark Cuban at the MIT Sloan Sports AnalyticsConference. They talked sports analytics, the future of TV,the '3D Blueprint,' the Tyson decision and 'The RickReport.' We boil down the highlights of their discussion,and - because we 'Speak Cuban' - we analyze Mark'sremarks:

1: On the 2011 Finals - “The irony of it all” “Everywhere we went, people just said 'thank you'.”

Aside from the hometown team vs the 'other guys,' theDallas Mavericks' victory over the Heat in last June'sFinals took on a much broader narrative outside of Dallas.Indeed, it was painted as a struggle of 'good vs evil,'because the Mavericks stood in stark contrast to theovernight monster Miami had become. Beyond therematch of the 2006 Finals, the narrative of that seriesgained power because of the stark contrast between thetwo squads - the old, ringless veterans' last hurrah againstthe young stars who gamed the system. Indeed, there's anunwritten rule in pickup basketball that the best playersare split up amongst the teams.

This is "fair.'' James, Wade and Bosh circumnavigatedthis rule, and competitition itself. Yet somehow, despitehaving three of the best four players in the series, Miami'swhole was still less than the sum of its parts, and Dallasprevailed.

2: On Superstition and Letting Donald Carter Accept theTrophy

In the podcast, Simmons laments the loss of one of hisfavorite fantasies, watching Stern hand the Larry O'Briento Mark Cuban, historically an agitator of Stern's statusquo. Simmons has long been a supporter, from afar, ofwhat Dallas had built. He gushed about Dallas' potentialback in the Nellie Era withDirk/Nash/Finley/LaFrentz/Van Exel all on one squad. Heeven went so far as to predict that team to upset the mightyLakers Dynasty of the early 2000's when Simmons waswriting his “Page 2” colums for ESPN.

However, letting Carter accept the trophy was “the rightthing to do” according to Cuban because Donald had

recently had a heart procedure and admited that if Dallascould capture the title that year, it would be the “crowningachievement of [his] life.”

3: On the Lockout: “NBA really stands for Nothing ButAttorneys”

Cuban notes that the owner's ROI “in hours” from thelockout was “ridiculous.” “A whole lotta nothing toaccomplish nothin,” Cuban recalls the negotiations. “Theamout of time we spent vs. what we actually were able tocome to a conclusion on was the biggest waste of timeever.”

4: This Regular Season, the Importance of Practice andthe Value of Rick Carlisle

The “condensed schedule is even worse,” than the lock-out itself according to Cuban, especially for veteran-ladenteams like Dallas and Boston. Cuban notes that veteranplayers have a process of getting themselves ready for theseason, a process that was blown up by the lockout, con-densed training camp and season. Relative to the off-kilterolder squads, younger teams had an advantage beacause“22-25 year-olds are always in shape,” and can “just rollthe ball out there.”

“We won last year because we were able to prepare forteams and practice and implement things that Coach puttogether.”

5: Usefulness of Analytics: “The stuff you see in a boxscore is pretty much useless”

“All the data is dirty this season,” because of “how tiredteams are,” and how little time they've had to prepare. Theusefullness of analytics this season is skewed becauseteams are not able to always employ their best lineups dueto injury, fatigue etc.

That said, the Mavericks are still a team that carries thereputation of relying heavily on advanced analytics.Cuban hints that after each game, “The Rick Report,” ispublished internally that encapsulates what Carlisle didand reflects what lineup combinations succeeded or failed.

6: The Decision not to Retain Tyson Chandler: “Youdon't know sh** so I don't care”

Simmons believes the decision not to retain Chandlerwas a mistake. Cuban let it be known how little he caredfor Simmons' opinion.

“Tyson was critical and his value was just as strong inthe locker room as on the court,” said Cuban.

However, he doesn't believe Dallas would be better thisseason with Chandler in the fold and instead states that theMavs are a better team this year than last because of theimprovement in perimeter defense from Shawn Marionand Delonte West.

7: On The 3D Blueprint: “Is having two or three starsthe best way to build a team?” (hint: YES)

When Simmons begins pushing Cuban towards 3D,Cuban responds, “There's nothing that says we don't justkeep our same guys, right?”

“Again, there's a variety of options. It's pure market the-ory. You've got to see how the market prices itself. If youlook at it, this year, there's a ton of cap room. Chances arebecause everybody's got so much cap room, it's going tobe inflationary and that's not a good time to buy.”

8: "Despite what the media is writing. ...'' “Despite what the media is writing, we don't have just

one approach in mind,” Cuban notes at those who contin-ually hint at Dwight and Deron's potential to land Dallas.

Now that the trade deadline is passed … some thingshave changed. But the potential of what the Mavs frontoffice can do remains.

Check out Mike Fisher on Twitter atFishSports, on the Mavs telecasts on Fox SportsSouthwest, and at DallasBasketball.com

SPORTS TALK WITH MIKE FISHERTHE FISH

Cuban’s interview with The Sports Guy


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by MIKE [email protected]

All Star games in professional sports notonly act as mile markers for teams but canalso serve as a catalyst for the rest of theseason. The 2011 Texas Rangers startedthe season 44-41, won 7 games in a rowheading towards the All-Star break andthen came back to win 5 more games in arow. The 12 game winning streak helpedthe Rangers seize control of the AL Westand they never looked back on their wayto 96-66 record.

The Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Starseach took their All Star breaks inFebruary. The time off seems to have hada profound effect on both teams.

IF YOU THINK THINGS ARE BAD NOW...The Dallas Mavericks recently finished adaunting 9 games in 12 days span that sawthem go 2-7. Given the quality of theopposition, a 5-4 record in that span wouldhave been disappointing but understand-able. Going 2-7 (including 0-5 againstNew Jersey, New Orleans, Phoenix,Sacramento and Golden State) during thatstretch is unacceptable and may causeMavericks to miss the playoffs. The lasttwo NBA champions not to make the play-offs the following year were the '99Chicago Bulls and the '69-70 BostonCeltics.

Beginning on St. Patrick's Day, the sched-ule hits the fan and the Mavericks face athree week gauntlet - 12 games filled withnothing but good to elite NBA teams - thatwill shape their post-season future. Giventhe current state of the team both physical-ly and mentally, there's a very goodchance they're below .500 when thestretch ends on April 7.

Please don't romanticize what could havebeen and that the Mavericks should havebrought everybody from last year's cham-pionship roster back. Tyson Chandler(who I loved as a Dallas Maverick) tookall his charismatic leadership and 11points / 10 rebounds per game to a Knicksteam that just fired their coach. JJ Bareahas spent most of the season injured and isshooting 36% from the field. Caron Butlerstarted well with the Clippers but has beenhorrible (shooting less than 35%) the lasttwo months.

Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson did theright thing. Instead of letting the teamgrow even older together, they made thebold decision to be competitive in thepresent with the hope of making runs ateither (or possibly both) Deron Williamsand Dwight Howard this summer.

Jason Terry said earlier last week thatchange needed to happen and I couldn'tagree with him more. Be patient, Jet.

MEANWHILE, ON THE ICEIn contrast to the Mavericks, the DallasStars came out of their All Star breaksmoking hot and haven't looked back. A

team that was a question to make the play-offs and about to be broken up suddenlycouldn't lose and quickly seized control ofthe Pacific Division.

Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk made the deci-sion to stand pat at the trade deadline andkeep the team together. Both sides of thatdecision are easy to present. The Starshaven't made the playoffs since 2008 anddealing vets like Steve Ott or MikeRibiero as the first steps to a painfulrebuild would have been understandable.It may have also sent the wrong messageto the fans at a critical time who are start-ing to find their way back to the AmericanAirlines Center.

Tony Soprano once said there was nothingmore pathetic than old guys sitting aroundsaying “Remember when…” but man,back in the mid to late 90's, Dallas Starsgames at Reunion Arena were somethingspecial.

Reunion Arena was home to 17,000 fansand a very entertaining hockey team thatwas easy to cheer for not only becausethey were so good but because they wereso likeable.

Mike Modano, Brett Hull, JoeNieuwendyk, Eddie Belfour, Pat Verbeek,Derian Hatcher helped make up a teamthat was filled with both character andclass.

It was a giddy time because Tom Hickswas flush with cash and winning was hisnumber one priority. Reunion Arena soldout nearly every night, became the bestbar in town and was the place to be seen.

Time waits for no one and the Stars lost abig part of their identity when they movedfrom Reunion Arena to AAC in 2001. BobGainey left and Ken Hitchcock was fired.Several key players moved on or retiredand then Hicks stopped caring about win-ning, the product on the ice and the fans.That good vibe feeling the fans had for theteam was gone.

The owner of one of the crown gems ofthe NHL turned the organization into anembarrassment and the Stars became ateam that couldn't make the playoffs nordraw 10,000 fans to a game.

The last several years have been painfulbut it appears that the Stars have finallyshaken off the Tom Hicks Stench thatgripped them for so long. There's newownership, a new coach and unlike theglittery superstar teams of the 90's, thisseason's Stars team is filled with workerbees that got through adversity togetherand are now seeing the rewards.

The Western Conference of the NHL is acar crash and a bad streak could cripplethe post-season chances of any team notnamed St. Louis or Vancouver, but withten games left in the season, the Stars arepoised to make another run at the StanleyCup.

OPINION

Stars and Mavs going in opposite directions


by TOM WARDS PE C IAL CO NTR I BUTO Rtompward@sbcglobal .net

Well, It’s that time of the year again inwhich an annual sporting rite of passageoccurs- the NCAA College Basketballtournament.

The next few weeks the sports headlineswill be dominated by this event, howeverthe other type of March madness I’m talk-ing about is happening right now on golfcourses all across the country.

With an unusually mild winter golfers arechomping at the bit to get out and play.The courses aren’t in tip top shape, butneither are the majority of the golfer’sgames either. Just like in the NCAA bas-ketball tournament no player wants to beriding the bench at this time and gettingsplinters in their backside, that is if theyhave any competitive bones in their body.

Golfer’s need to get off their backsides aswell and get pumped up about playing asif it’s ShowTime. Real golfing madnessinvolves trying to do too many things atonce while swinging a golf club. So nexttime you’re out playing or practicing andthe wheels start coming off, take a seat. Idon’t want you to get high blood pressureby going mountain climbing over mole-hills. However, I do have a helpful exer-cise that actually requires you to take atime out and sit on the bench.

No, you’re not be penalized for poor play.Instead, by riding the pine you’ll be ableto get the proper feeling back in yourswing to get your game back on track. Ihave one of my college age studentsdemonstrating the drill. As seen in photo-graph, I have the golfer with club in handsit his backside touching the bench frombehind. You can do this same exerciseactually sitting on the bench, but I like thisversion better.

The key here is to make sure your buttcheeks are making contact with the toppart of the bench, but you’re not reallycompletely sitting down on the bench.This setup will help you establish a terrif-ic spinal tilt over the shot by keeping youmore bent over from the waist than you’reprobably accustomed to. This is reallyimportant in the overall scheme of thingsin your golf swing. By having your buttcheeks touching the bench you’ve auto-

matically established great posture andengaged your lower body( legs) to becomemore active and alive in your swing. Thismove will help your legs maintain won-derful knee flex as you begin your take-away because your legs will act as a bracefor your body. Too many times golfers areguilty of squatting or sitting down as theyget into their setup forcing their bodies toremain too erect or upright, thus negatingthe power of their lower body.

Next, as the golfer makes his takeawayyou can see that he has not manipulatedthe club head with any unnecessary handor wrist action, like trying to preset or pre-maturely cock his wrists. That’s a real no-no in the golf swing. He’s allowing hisarms to have a nice, natural extension,going back without straining or forcingthe club. This move will allow the golfer’sclub head to remain on the correct swingpath as well.

TAKE A SEAT, ANYTIMEBy the way you can do this drill at anytimeon the course when you have the opportu-nity to sit down during your round. If youwant to actually sit on the bench instead ofdoing the drill like shown in the picture,all I ask is that you scoot your butt cheeksall the way to the edge of the bench. From

that position you’ll feel much morerestricted as you make your backswing,and I would recommend only going slight-ly above waist level high to get the maxi-mum benefits of this drill. One big prob-lem this drill will help curtail is over-swinging which is a real chronic issue forgolfers everywhere. Once you attempt thisdrill you’ll see and feel what I mean.

As a matter of fact, you can do it now sit-ting in your chair at home or the office.You don’t even need a club if you don’thave one nearby. Once you swing yourarms sitting down with or without a clubto the halfway mark, which is about waistlevel high, you should feel your uppertorso starting to get a good stretch. Holdthat position for a few seconds and thengently increase your range of motiongoing a little further back. It’s a greatworkout for your core muscles.

GOOD TO THE COREYou’re going to do yourself a world ofgood by “feeling the burn” so to speak.This will strengthen an area of the bodythat most golfers neglect. It’s important toremember not to force the club back, soswing within yourself or you’re going todefeat the purpose of the exercise.

The bench represents the ultimate degreeof lower body resistance. Now in youractual swing your lower body won’t havethat kind of tension. What the bench cando is help you keep your hips in check atleast until the halfway back portion ofyour swing.

Listen, words can’t adequately describewhat a few minutes of your time trying

this exercise will accomplish. Finally, toavoid the pitfalls of golfing madness givethis drill a try and I would recommendtaking time to visit a local golf pro in yourarea to get a quick check up before youstart your journey playing this season.

Sometimes you have to be a bench warmerand take time to re-organize your thoughtsto get your feel back. You play best whenyour mind isn’t cluttered with too manyswing thoughts; spending a few momentstaking time out on the bench could be thebest remedy for your ailing game. That’smy slam- dunk tip of the week!

Tom Ward can be reached at www.teetimewithtom.com

WITH TOM WARDGOLF

March Madness: getting benched is good


NCAA TOURNAMENTCOVER STORY

South Division

Georgia Dome, Atlanta Georgia (Host:Georgia Tech)

The Kentucky Wildcats, as has been expect-ed for quite some time, is the top overallseed and they will begin their (hopeful)journey to New Orleans on the floor of bit-ter rival Louisville. That won't be a problemhowever as Big Blue Nation likely plannedmonths in advance for their first two gamesbeing at the KFC Yum! Center.

First up for them is the winner of the FirstFour game between Mississippi Valley Stateand Western Kentucky, with both possibili-ties offering up subplots that will certainlybe discussed.

That 8/9 game looks like a very good battleas Iowa State takes on Connecticut. TheHuskies are one of the nation's biggestunderachievers, going from preseason Top 5to a team that some asked whether or notthey'd end up in the NIT.

The two-seed in the region is Duke, and ifthe bracket plays out according to seeds wecould end up with Kentucky/Duke for a tripto the Final Four...20 years after they met inPhiladelphia in one of the greatest gamesever played.

The Blue Devils will need a healthy RyanKelly to be at their best offensively, andtheir perimeter defense needs to be better aswell. They'll have to beat Lehigh (C.J.McCollum) followed by Notre Dame (EricAtkins and Jerian Grant) or Xavier (TuHolloway and Mark Lyons) in order to reachthe Sweet 16.

As for the three-seed, that distinctionbelongs to Scott Drew's Baylor Bears andtheir presence adds to the South Region'sedge in the "projected NBA lottery picks"department. Quincy Acy and Perry Jones III

are the leaders up front and the Bears can gofive deep there, and guard Pierre Jacksonhas been one of the nation's best newcom-ers.

The Bears get South Dakota State and NateWolters first, and the Jackrabbits are capa-ble of pulling off the upset. And that 6/11battle between UNLV and Colorado couldend up providing more suspense than thecasual fan would think given the strugglesof the Pac-12.

Indiana makes their return to the Big Danceand while Tom Crean's club is more thancapable of stringing together some wins thecommittee didn't give them the easiestmatchup. New Mexico State features the tal-ented Wendell McKines and they've gotsome size inside as well.

The biggest "wrong" in the region: the 5/12matchup, as both Wichita State and VCUhave the potential to do some special thingsthis month. Instead, one of them is guaran-teed to head home. Kentucky will be theclear favorite to get through the region, butdespite the Louisville to Atlanta path theydidn't receive a road that's smoothly paved.

Winner: Kentucky

EAST Division

TD Garden, Boston, Mass. (Host: BostonCollege)

Just like Kentucky, there was an assumptionthatSyracuse would find themselves on theone line regardless of what happened thisweekend. And not only is that the case butJim Boeheim's team will get the travel pathexpected, beginning in Pittsburgh with a tripto Boston on the horizon if they reach theSweet 16. First up for Syracuse are theBulldogs of UNC Asheville, who are led byBig South POY Matt Dickey and J.P.

Primm. Eddie Biedenbach's club was a 16-seed last year as well, falling to another BigEast team (Pittsburgh) after winning a gamein Dayton.

Ohio State earned a two seed as a result oftheir sharing of the Big Ten regular seasoncrown and getting to Sunday's title game,with wins over Duke and Florida helpingtheir non-conference slate. The Buckeyessaw their season come to a painful end in theSweet 16 last year, and despite losing somekey cogs from that squad there's more thanenough talent to get to New Orleans. Loyola(MD) is deep and will have the most enter-taining coach in the field (Jimmy Patsos) buta third round matchup with either Gonzagaor West Virginia will likely be of more con-cern for Buckeye fans.

The three-seed is ACC tournament champi-on Florida State, who has defeated Dukeand North Carolina twice apiece for the firsttime in school history. Leonard Hamilton'steam is a tough group to crack defensivelydue to their athleticism and effort on thatend of the floor, but turnovers have been aproblem for much of the season. If LukeLoucks and Ian Miller take care of the bas-ketball the Seminoles can go a long way. St.Bonaventure will counter with A-10 Playerof the Year Andrew Nicholson, but the Nolesmay have too much depth for the Bonnies(who are a great story, by the way) in thepaint.

Cincinnati and Texas has the potential to bean interesting 6/11 matchup, but outside ofJ'Covan Brown and Clint Chapman theLonghorns are a very young basketballteam. Losing Alexis Wangmene to a brokenwrist hurts in the depth department, as eventhough the Bearcats play small they've gotdepth inside led by Yancy Gates. MickCronin's guards will take a high number ofthree-pointers, and if they're fallingCincinnati can do more than win just onegame.

And the East is also a region where morefolks would line up to pick the five-seed asopposed to the four. Vanderbilt's the five,and despite their recent issued in the BigDance this feels like a different group. Themain reason being their SEC tournamentcrown, won by beating Kentucky on Sunday

As for Wisconsin, the Badgers live and dieby the three. Bo Ryan's team shoots just32% from beyond the arc but scores 36% oftheir points by way of the shot, making itvery important that Jordan Taylor and com-pany are knocking those down at a solidclip. Enter 13-seed Montana, who allowsopponents to score just 24% of their pointsfrom three. Guards Will Cherry and KareemJamar are two of the best in the westernUnited States, and big man Derek Selvighas the ability to match up with Wisconsin'sbig men as they like to play inside or out in

Breaking down the NCAA’s region by region

the swing offense.

Winner: Syracuse

WEST DIVISION

US Airways Center, Phoenix, Arizona(Host: Arizona State)

The West Region is where the S-curve, atool used to rank the teams from 1 to 68,went to die apparently and that means sometough matchups on the way to NewOrleans. Top-seed Michigan State wasrewarded for their non-conference slate andwinning the Big Ten tournament crownwith the fourth number one seed, and whileLIU Brooklyn can pose some problems a16-seed has never beaten a one. Of greaterinterest is the 8/9 matchup, which consistsof a battle between Memphis and SaintLouis.

Memphis has to be considered one of themost underseeded teams in the field, butwhile they receive a two-seed the MissouriTigers likely belong in the discussion aswell. Their pod features a seven-seed inFlorida that has enough talent to get to NewOrleans, provided guards Kenny Boyntonand Erving Walker make sound decisions.One of those would be to make sure thatwing Bradley Beal and power forwardPatric Young get more touches. Virginia'sbeen hit hard by the injury bug and outsideof Mike Scott really aren't playing well, and15-seed Norfolk State has Kyle O'Quinnbut the Tigers should be fine there. Andshould Missouri reach the Sweet 16, there'sa matchup with a similarly-sized powerconference team on the horizon.

Also in Louisville is six-seed Murray State,who's led by junior point guard IsaiahCanaan and he's going to be on more than afew All-America teams. They may not bethrilled with their seed but the Racers diddraw a similarly-sized team in ColoradoState, but don't sleep on Tim Miles' guardseither.

The four-seed in the West is Louisville,who likely jumped a couple lines with theirwinning the Big East Championship. Butwhich team makes the trip out the Portland:the one that struggled with turnoversthroughout the regular season, or the onethat tightened things up in New York?Either way the Cardinals had better be waryof Davidson, as the Wildcats have a verygood frontcourt tandem (De'Mon Brooksand Jake Cohen) to go along with a verygood guard in J.P. Kuhlman.

The 5/12 battle will also be fun to watch asNew Mexico, who is playing arguably theirbest basketball of the season, takes on LongBeach State. The Lobos feature DrewGordon inside and guards Tony Snell andKendall Williams on the perimeter, but the49ers can counter with Casper Ware and

T.J. Robinson. How well they defendGordon will be a key factor as will thehealth of Larry Anderson, who missed theBig West tournament with a knee injury.Michigan State may be on top of the brack-et, but there are a number of teams with thetalent needed to take them down.

Winner: Missouri

MIDWEST DIVISION

Edward Jones Dome, St Louis, Missouri(Host: Saint Louis University)

The Tar Heels are the top seed in the regionand will begin in Greensboro with two winsmeaning a trip to St. Louis. KendallMarshall is one of the best point guards inthe country and Harrison Barnes and TylerZeller two of the best players. Henson willimprove them defensively, and if they canwork as well on that end as they do offen-sively Roy Williams' charges can win anational title.

They'll get the winner of Lamar/Vermont,with the Cardinals on a roll since headcoach Pat Knight called them out and theCatamounts winning the America East tour-nament final on the road. No 16 has everbeaten a one, so it's better to focus on the8/9 matchup that offers a contrast in styles.

Kansas gets the two-seed with the route(possibly) through St. Louis instead of rivalMissouri, likely because of their superiorstrength of schedule and winning the Big12 regular season title. Thomas Robinsonand Tyshawn Taylor are both known com-modities, but what will Elijah Johnson andJeff Withey bring to the table?

The 7/10 game matches WCC regular sea-son and tournament champ Saint Mary'swith Purdue, who did enough down thestretch to ensure themselves of a bid.Three-seed Georgetown has, like Kansas,exceeded preseason expectations as manypegged the Hoyas to finish 10th in the BigEast back in October The 6/11 matchupbetween San Diego State and NC State willbe tough to pick as the Aztecs are very goodon the perimeter, but the Wolfpack cancounter that with superior inside depth.

The four-seed in the region is Michigan,who finished in a three-way tie atop the BigTen. Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. arethe most recognizable names but seniorsStu Douglass and Zack Novak shouldn't beignored either. The Wolverines will havetheir hands full with a talented Ohio squadhowever, led by point guard D.J. Cooper.John Groce has done a very good job withthe program, which whipped Georgetownin their last NCAA appearance back in2010.

Winner: North Carolina


8 TOURNAMENT SLEEPERS

By collegehoops.net

One of the tricky aspects of filling out abracket is figuring out which team(s) canjump up and spring a surprise or two. Lastseason two teams from non-Power 6leagues (Butler and VCU) reachedHouston, and throughout the history of the64/65/68-team era there have been teamswho have made runs. Below are eight teamswho can make surprising runs in the brack-et, some to win a game or two and a coupleothers capable of getting to New Orleans.

Davidson: Bob McKillop's Wildcats maynot have a shooter along the lines ofStephen Curry or a distributor the caliber ofJason Richards, but that doesn't mean thatDavidson won't bring some talented piecesto the Dance. Forwards Jake Cohen andDe'Mon Brooks have played very well thisseason, and guards Nike Cochran and J.P.Kuhlman were two of the best perimeterplayers in the SoCon. Going eight deepwith five players in double figures can betough for opponents who aren't familiarwith Davidson, who is more than capable ofpulling off an upset.

Detroit: The Titans finished third in theHorizon League during the regular season,but they played very well in grabbing theconference's automatic bid. And RayMcCallum Sr. doesn't lack for talent, begin-ning with his point guard (and son) RayMcCallum Jr. McCallum Jr. has improvedas the season's worn on, doing a better jobof picking his spots when it comes to run-ning the show. Big men Eli Holman andLaMarcus Lowe are athletic interior playersyou don't always see in a conference likethe Horizon. Depending on the two-seed, itwouldn't be a surprise if the Titans were togive their opponent fits.

Harvard: Not sure if the Crimson count asa true sleeper given the amount of attentionon Tommy Amaker's program this season,but in favor of the argument they are mak-ing Harvard's first NCAA appearance since1944. Forwards Kyle Casey and KeithWright are one of the best front courttandems that doesn't get enough press, andOliver McNally and Laurent Rivard leadthe way on the perimeter. Harvard certainlydidn't duck anyone in the non-conferenceportion of their schedule, doing so with thistime of the year in mind.

Lehigh: Brett Reed has one of the bestplayers in the country in guard C.J.McCollum, who leads the Mountain Hawksin points and rebounding while ranking sec-ond on the team in assists. But it's not justMcCollum that teams should be worriedabout, as forwards Holden Grenier andGabe Knutson are both averaging doublefigures. Lehigh's problem is that theirstrength of schedule could land them a seed

lower than anticipated. But unlike last sea-son's Patriot League representative(Bucknell), Lehigh has a guard inMcCollum who can make plays on his own.If they can stay above the 16 line, theMountain Hawks will have a shot at gettinga win.

Memphis: The Conference USA champi-ons took some swings at big non-confer-ence wins early in the season and missed,with the conclusion of many being thatthey're too immature to turn things around.Well, Josh Pastner's team is playing theirbest basketball of the season at the righttime. Knock them due to their conference ifyou like, but that shouldn't erase the factthat according to Ken Pomeroy's numbersthis is a team in the Top 25 in both adjustedoffensive and adjusted defensive efficiency.Will Barton's played like an All-Americafor much of the season and the emergenceof Chris Crawford has relieved some of thepressure on Joe Jackson to run the offense.

Montana: Wayne Tinkle's Grizzlies areexperienced (and most everyone will beback next season) and led by a pair ofguards who can cause fits in Will Cherryand Kareem Jamar. Cherry was named BigSky Defensive Player of the Year and it oneof the nation's leaders in steals, and the ver-satile Jamar was named Big Sky tourna-ment MVP. Add in two quality frontcourtplayers in Derek Selvig and Mathias Wardand you've got a team capable of winning inthe Big Dance. Montana's hot as well asthey've won 14 straight games, and accord-ing to Ken Pomeroy's numbers they had thebest adjusted defensive efficiency in the BigSky (41st nationally).

Saint Louis: Rick Majerus' Billikens havebeen the second-best team in the Atlantic10 this season, but to be fair they may haveflown under the radar nationally thanks tothe presence of Temple and Xavier. Butthere shouldn't be any doubt as to whetheror not SLU can play, with the tough BrianConklin being the anchor inside andKwamain Mitchell leading the way on theperimeter. Before their loss to Xavier in theA-10 semis the Billikens won nine of tengames, and in Majerus they've got one ofthe best game coaches in the country.

South Dakota State: Nate Wolters didn'tplay his best game of the season in theJackrabbits' win over Western Illinois towin the Summit League, but he's beenenough of a constant to where what he didagainst WIU shouldn't matter much. ScottNagy's got an experienced team who helpedgrow the program this season, their first asa full Division I member. Griffan Callahanand Jordan Dykstra are both averaging dou-ble figures, and their presence has helped toimprove the performance of both Woltersand the team as the season's worn on.

A GREAT TIME OF YEAR FORFANS OF BASKETBALLAND FOOTBALL

by KATE DELANEYS PE C IAL CO NTR I BUTO [email protected]

COWBOYS CRUNCH THE NUMBERSLet the games begin! Finally, March mad-ness is here both in college hoops andNFL free agency. Since the mood swingsin DFW can definitely be attributed to thefates and fortunes of the Dallas Cowboys,let's start with the Boys.

GOOD BYE, NEWMAN!Did I hear a collective sigh of relief hover-ing over Arlington when TerranceNewman was let go? Let's face it he was aclassic case of woulda, coulda, shouldaand this year was make or break. He endedup in the broken category so he needed togo. Newman spent 9 years in Dallas, had32 career interceptions and leaves withsome nice parting gifts from the club that

unfortunately doesn't include a SuperBowl ring.

Cutting Newman frees up $6 million dol-lars or so under the salary cap and thatleaves money to chase Brandon Carr. TheFree Agent corner played for Kansas Citysince being drafted in 2008, he's a perfectfit with opposite corner Mike Jenkins.

The Cowboys have one of the worst passdefenses in the league; Carr will turn thatstatistic around if they can sign him. JerryJones brought him to town earlier thisweek for a meet and greet let's hope heliked what he saw. San Francisco alsowants Carr and I heard through a friendwho covers the team that they are willingto write a pretty big check.

MORE CUTS The Cowboys really needed to get out thescissors though to make more room for the2012 version of the team. Goodbye kickerDavid Buehler, his departure adds another$1.26 million to the pot. Then a few dealswere restructured. Orlando Scandrick'sbase salary went from $7.1 million to

$1.2; Doug Free's base was dropped from$6 million to $1.2 million. Other contractswill most likely be re-worked to try andsign the prize - Brandon Carr.

BEARS AND HORN'S ROLL ONDid you fill out your brackets yet? Hereare some fun facts that I've dug up, akaresearch that I thought would help me. Didyou know that in the last twenty years onlyone team west of the Mississippi has wonthe NCAA tournament? Arizona in 97' andUCLA in 1995!

How about this since 1985 there has beenan average of about 8 upsets, you have togo back to 2001 for the record a whopping13. While I am praying for a lucky 7 whileI'm at the craps table in Vegas I never picka seven seed in the tournament. Not one ofthem has ever gone to the Championshipgame and only one team, Virginia, made itto the Final Four in 1984. I could go onand on but let's talk about Texas; the teamis headed to its 14th straight tournament.How far do you think they'll go? As the11th seed in the East Regional, Texas

takes on Cincinnati - the six freshmen andthe upperclassmen on the court have tohave their Mojo working against theBearcats on Friday. The biggest obstacleto the Longhorns advancing is a 260pound guard Sean Kirkpatrick who leadsthe team in scoring. Longhorn coach RickBarnes is pushing the guys to work oninside moves, which is exactly whereKirkpatrick will be waiting. I have a goodfeeling about the two hour practices andquest to prove that they belong; Texas overCincy in the first round.

Baylor also makes it into the tournament.They are a three seed taking on 14th seedSouth Dakota State in the South Regionalin Albuquerque. The Bears are on a rollheading into the tourney and should easilyget by its first round opponent. Go Bears,the Sweet Sixteen is waiting.

Kate Delaney hosts "America Tonight,"which airs from 11p.m. - 2a.m. on KKGM1630AM.


March madness in hoops, and in the NFLSPORTS SHORTS WITH KATE DELANEY

by RICHARD S. POLLAK,The Hockey AttitudeSPECIAL [email protected]

MORROW RETURNS:Now that Dallas Stars Captain, BrendenMorrow has returned with the appearance ofbeing healed, we can let it out of the bagregarding a mysterious trip to a mysteriousdoctor specialist in California.

The media has been hush, hush about theMorrow injury situation since before thetrade deadline. No one wanted to let anyinformation out about how serious theMorrow injury was and only a select few ofus in the Stars Media contingency knew.

"It's really great to be back,’says number#10, jokingly. "Not that the team seemed toneed me since the All-Star break." Morrowwas last seen at the exclusive Meet & Greetwith Owner Tom Gaglardi coming out partyfor the Dallas VIP's.

LISTEN TO WHAT THE STARS COACHSAID:

Dallas Stars New Head Coach GlenGulutzan, was caught saying" I had a feel-ing that this team would start a streak afterthe ALL-STAR break."

ROBIDAS REJOICESDefensive gem Stephane Robidas says that"everyone is doing their assignment. Wedidn't know what it would be like with anew coaching staff and many new players.Now, everyone knows their roll and are allplaying together.” Then he added, "TheStars’ goaltending has been superb. Kari hasto be playing as the best goalie in the league,right now! We can go to Vancouver, Chicagoand San Jose confident that we can win."

Robidas is in the best physical condition inyears. He had a few extra days off during theAll-Star break to refresh in anticipation fora long playoff run. He added, “Yes, it's beena couple of years and I'm ready and so is theentire team ready for a run in the playoffs.”

THE NHL FUTURE WATCH:Taking a sneak peek at the 2013 NHLProjected Draft, a familiar name in theDallas area pops up on top as the number#1 prospect: Seth Jones, son of former

Dallas Mavericks rebounding machinePopeye Jones. Seth, according to the NHLScouting Combine, “has had excellent sea-sons since leaving amatuer hockey inDallas,Texas and looks to be the first DallasStars territory product to play in the NHL.Had it not been for a late minor injury,Joneswould have been the star of theU.S.National Team.”

According to former NHL scout, Dave "Bubba" Kolb, "he's the complete packageand really handles the puck well." Manywant to compare him to Former NHL Hallof Fame and All-Star defenseman LarryRobinson from the Montreal Canadiens.

DALLAS STARSHOCKEY

Questions about Morrow’s health linger

ROUGHRIDERS LOOK TOBUECHELE FOR ANOTHERSMOOTH SEASON

By Alex Vispoli

For the third straight season, a formerRanger will aim to prepare future ones atDr Pepper Ballpark. RoughRiders andRangers fans should recognize the manleading the charge for Frisco this season, asmanager Steve Buechele returns to pilotTexas' Double-A affiliate.

Last year, Buechele led Frisco to its sixth-ever playoff appearance and second in arow. The 'Riders finished the campaign 79-61 overall, the second-best record in theTexas League and the eighth time in nineyears that the club has risen above the .500mark. Frisco was bounced from the post-season by eventual league champion SanAntonio, but the season remained a suc-cess. Buechele's RoughRiders teams haveposted a 147-124 (.542) record and witheight more wins, he will pass Tim Irelandas the winningest manager in RoughRiders

history.

Before his managerial days, Buechele wasa constant for the Rangers at third basefrom 1985-91. He was drafted out ofStanford University with Texas' fifth roundpick in the 1982 amateur draft. While inPalo Alto, Buechele roomed with futureNFL Hall of Fame quarterback John Elwayand helped lead the Cardinal to the 1982College World Series.

Buechele, who is affectionately known as“Bue,” played in 889 games for Texas, hit-ting 94 of his 137 career home runs while

with the Rangers. Prior to a trade toPittsburgh during the 1991 season, he com-piled a .991 fielding percentage which is astill a single-season major league recordfor third basemen.

Buechele suited up for the Pirates and theCubs before returning to the Rangers in'95, his final season in the big leagues. Tothis day, his 835 starts at third base for theRangers trail only Buddy Bell's 901.

Buechele will be joined by another familiarface on the coaching staff, as Jeff Andrewsreturns for his fourth season as the

RoughRiders pitching coach. Andrewsrejoined to the Rangers in 2009, returningto the organization that gave him his firstexperience as a coach from 1986-91.Between 1992-2008, he worked as a coachin the Mariners, Marlins, and Piratesorganizations, including a stint asPittsburgh's big league pitching coach in2008.

The final member of the 2012 Friscocoaching staff is a new one, but is also afamiliar name to Rangers and 'Riders fans.Jason Hart will begin his first season asFrisco's hitting coach and his fourth as aninstructor in the Texas farm system. Afterplaying five minor league seasons in theAthletics organization, Hart joined theRangers and made his major league debutin 2002. He hit .267 with three doubles inten games with Texas. In 2005, he wasFrisco's everyday first baseman, leading theteam with 28 doubles, 21 home runs, and77 RBI in 128 games.

With Buechele, Andrews, and Hart leadingthe way, Frisco hopes for a smooth ride toanother trip to the postseason.


“Riders have high hopes with BuecheleBASEBALL ROUGHRIDERS


The Goose on With Norm

Norm Hitzges ShowWeekdays, 10:00 AM - Noon

Rick Gosselin on with NormDiscussing the Mavs and Stars

Norm: What is happening to theDallas Mavericks?

Goose: I think it's all about the oldlegs. I thought it would be tough torepeat this year, given the age of theteam, if they had a full schedule and hadthe training camp. But playing a com-pressed schedule, and asking the olderplayers to play so many consecutivenights has really taken it's toll. I thinkRick Carlisle did a great job of jugglingminutes early on in order to keep theteam as fresh as he possibly could, but Ithink the schedule has caught up with theage of the team and this is a fading teamright now.

Norm: How much of this struggle doyou also attribute to the fact that every-body on this team can read the handwrit-ing on the wall that the vast majority ofthem are going to be playing somewhereelse next year?

Goose: That's the tough part thatRick Carlisle has, holding this thingtogether. I mean you're still playing infront of crowds of 20,000 at theAmerican Airlines Center. People arebuying tickets and going to games andexpecting this club to win. Carlise isgoing to have his hands full holding thistogether, because right now they're fad-ing. If they get into the playoffs it'll beas a lesser team. He's got to find a wayto juggle minutes to have some kind offresh legs for the playoffs, but at thesame time he's got to find a way to winenough games to even go to the playoffs.This could be a better job of coachingthan last year, just because he has to holdthings together.

Norm: Even though the Dallas Starsaren't nearly as talented as many of theother teams in the league, doesn't KariLehtonen give them some hope?

Goose: Yes. Look at the Sabres withDominek Hasek in the net. That wasn't agreat team, but that was a great goal-

tender, and there they were going to theconference finals and Stanley Cup Finalsevery year.

The goalie is like a franchise quarter-back in football. If you've got him andhe's hot, then you can go a long way. Ithink what's good about the Stars is thatthe backup is capable of winning. Theystuck Bachman out on the ice atVancouver against the best team in hock-ey and won.

Last year, they didn't trust the backupand they wore Lehtonen out. He hadnothing left at the end of the year. Theycan spot Bachman now, and still have achance of winning games.

I think this could bode well for theStars in the playoffs.

TICKET WINDOW




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Two new grill concept spots you can’t missby RICHARD POLLAK,The Traveling GourmetSPECIAL [email protected]

Dallas is a trend setting foodie euphoria and2 new concepts have come to DFW with a‘Go to the Grill” attitude.

At the Renaissance Hotel on StemmonsFreeway, across from the Apparel Mart, isAsador, the Modern Farm to Fire concept ofExecutive Chef/ Owner Dean James Max.

In Addison, Lazaranda Mexican SeafoodGrill has opened up at Addison Walk, in thesame parking lot as Kenny's Wood FireGrill. Both concepts are setting new trends.

Don't be afraid to travel to Asador at theRenaissance, even if you're not staying atthe hotel. It is well worth it! Enjoy thenewest of Chef Max's Restaurant EmpireConcepts which span from Cleveland to theCaymans.

Here in Dallas, his outpost finds the great-

est naturally raised ingredients. AtLazaranda, everything is grilled in aMexican BBQ hand rack. The double sidedgrate holds the delicate fish, poultry andvegetables to a perfectly blacked grilledchar.

At Asador, everyone dives into a jar of pick-les cucumbers, cauliflower, carrots andradishes which are marinated in a HabaneraVinegar.

Lazaranda presents a Serrano grilled PepperGuacamole then pleases your palate with anAztec Fish or Tropical Seafood Ceviche.Asador's "snacks" are smartly constructedsmall plate appetizers where Chef Max canoffer BBQ Texas Quail,braised Pork

Medallions and grilled Lamb Sliders foronly $6-$8 bucks!

Both concepts receive praise for theirSalads. At Asador, the Crispy BrusselsSprouts with smoked Bacon in AgaveNectar and Lemon are a Marquee menuitem. Lazaranda makes the best Fresh TunaTostada in Texas. Their large volume forcesthem to buy the perfectly fresh Tostada fromthe premium Tortilla factory in North Texas.I enjoyed the fish courses of BlackenedShrimp Tacos at Asador as much as theMahi Zarandeado ( Grilled in a house sauce)at Lazaranda. But I went totally GAGA forthe Wood Grilled Tenderloin at Asador andthe Rib Eye Chicharron at Lazaranda.

Asador has a full menu to please the Hotelbusiness travels with Steaks,Chops,Chickenand Salmon as Lazaranda,which also has afull Tex-Mex Style of Mexican Grilledselections.

Desserts are worth sacrificing an extra hourat the gym and don't even get me startedwith the Cocktails. Mojitos and CustomMargarita's are a hit at both.

Rush on out to Asador and Lazaranda ASAPbecause the world is going to spread likewild fire as both new concepts GO TO THEGRILL

Lazaranda Mexican Seafood GrillAddison Walk

5000 Belt Line Rd., Suite 850Dallas, TX 75254

972.866.8900www.lazarandadallas.com

Asador2222 Stemmons Freeway

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DINING


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