There's a New Sheriff in Town

First of all let me just say, I hate Duke. I hate the Duke Blue Devils. I was tempted to make today’s bloggin’: “10 Reasons I Hate Duke”, but that would be rather one dimensional of me. So before we get this Shaq-Attack under way, just incase someone wasn’t paying attention, I hate Duke. I hate Duke more than the Pats, more than the Yankees, and more then Manchester United and Chelsea combined.

Criminals of Phoenix beware, there’s a new sheriff in town. Well, sheriff may not be accurate. Anyway, the big news out of the NBA yesterday was that Shaquille O’Neal has been traded to the Phoenix Suns, for forward Shawn Marion and guard Marcus Banks. Eastern Conference teams will sigh in relief, they will be seeing less of O’Neal at center. The real question is, after being a reserve police officer in his previous cities of Los Angeles and Miami, will Shaq take-up the badge in Phoenix? I don’t know. The news left LeBron James speechless, "Unbelievable," James said after practice Wednesday. "That's all I got. It's unbelievable."

From professional hoops news to college hoops we go, and if you couldn’t tell earlier, Duke beat North Carolina last night 89-78. The Tar Heels were with out injured guard Ty Lawson, out with an ankle sprain. Tyler Hansbrough did his best to pick up the slack, shame the rest of the team could get on the same page as Hansbrough. He might not have been able to win the game for his team, but he did get one reward: Passing Michael Jordan as the number 11 North Carolina All-Time Scoring Leader. He’s still got a ways to go before he catches “The Big Smooth”, Sam Perkins, who sits at number two, and Phil Ford North Carolina’s All-Time Scoring Leader. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said, "We know who we are. We're a very unconventional team. We're not a strong physical team, but we are strong team emotionally, a real together group". I hate Duke, and I hate “Coach K”. Duke remains number one in the ACC, North Carolina number two.

On to some good news, the Maryland Terrapins beat the Boston College Eagles 70-65. Good old “Grumpy” Gary Williams got win 600 last night, and is the Terrapins' all-time winningest coach. Coach Williams also retains all-time highest blood pressure in active coaches. Our “’fro-watch” continues, Bambale Osby's ‘fro can only be a few games way from a block of it’s own. Osby’s stocking must have been filled with ‘fro-picks this past Christmas, thanks Mrs. Osby. The good news, besides Osby’s continued hair growth, is that with the win, the Terps move up in to third place in the ACC.

Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee, Clemens former personal trainer, seem to have different views on events a few years ago. Clemens continues to deny the use of any performance-enhancing drugs. "I'm ready for Wednesday to get here," Clemens said referring to the committee's public hearing next week. Where he and current Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte are set to testify. The only problem for Clemens might be, word emerged that McNamee's representatives turned over gauze pads and syringes they said had Clemens' blood to IRS Special Agent Jeff Novitzky in early January, McNamee's lawyers did not want to publicly discuss details. If this is true Clemens' self-righteous defense might not hold water much longer. The funny part is, McNamee is rumored to have had the gauze pads and syringes since 2000-2001. That sounds a little premeditated to me, it’ll be very interesting to see how all of this plays out for the seven-time Cy Young Award winner.

Quick news from the Redskins head coach search, New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has decided to stay with the Giants. Spagnuolo got a new three-year contract in excess of $2 million per year, that makes him the highest paid defensive coordinator in the NFL. This puts former Giants head coach Jim Fassel as the leading candidate for the Redskins head-coaching job, sorry Skins fans.

From the field to the ice, the Capitals beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 last night and moved into first place in the Southeast Division. C-A-P-S. CAPS! CAPS! CAPS! Alexander Ovechkin scored his 46th goal of the season and continues to lead the league in scoring. The Caps face the second place Carolina Hurricanes tomorrow night as they attempt to stay top of the Southeast Division.

Some quick news from yesterdays slew of football friendlies, The U.S. national team tied Mexico 2-2 in Huston last night. Jozy Altidore made his first start for the U.S. national team and got his first goal, in the draw. Oguchi Onyewu had the other goal, the U.S. national team moved to 10 games unbeaten at home against Mexico. Good news for England, Fabio Capello started his run as head coach with a 2-1 win over Switzerland. The Three Lions still have a way to go to reach their full potential, however, this puts Don Fabio’s reign off to a good start.

Tomorrow’s Friday so that means another “10 Things”. ‘Till Tomorrow. I still hate Duke.