Tuesday, March 15, 2011

March Madness beings tonight

March Madness begins tonight......

Follow the two play-in games today, starting at 3:30pm when #16 seeds North Carolina-Asheville and Alabama Little-Rock face off, followed by a 6:00pm tip-off with #12 seeds Clemson and UAB.

Two more play-in games tomorrow, and then the Madness really gets started on Thursday with 16 games, and 16 more on Friday.

Who will claim the title on April 4?

Monday, February 14, 2011

MLB Pitchers and Catchers Report

A brilliant day with pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training in Florida and Arizona

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

The Shot Heard 'Round the Pavilion

One of the Power Blog guys was bored this past weekend, so he decided to enter a half-court shot contest during a UC Davis men's basketball game. He's the one who shoots second....in the white shirt.....




Hoorah!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Bummer of a Thursday Night NFL game

A dud NFL game tonight, with the Carolina Panthers (2-12) facing the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4). Quarterback woes for the Panthers spread like wildfire across the whole team, leading to a bad 2010 campaign. Panthers fans are praying for no miracle win tonight so that they remain in line for the #1 overall pick in April's NFL Draft.

The Steelers should come away with an easy win. Their offense has struggled lately, and I like their chances to work out a few issues despite the short week of preparation. Nothing better to feast on than the team with the NFL's worst record.

Poinsettia Bowl tonight

The San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl (what a name) kicks off tonight at 5:00pm PST in San Diego, California.

The Navy Midshipmen (9-3) face off against the San Diego State Aztecs (8-4) in one of the best pre-Christmas bowls. In regards to notable teams and an even matchup, its possibly the best game we'll have until Air Force and Georgia Tech face off on December 27 in what should be a quick game with a maximum of a combined 10 passes and 100 rushes.

As for tonight, we should see a game that deserves to trump the viewership of NFL Thursday Night Football (see 2-12 Carolina vs. 10-4 Pittsburgh...yuck).

Who Will Win: San Diego State
This game will be a terrific matchup between a team who seems to live and die by the passing game (SDS) and a team who lives and dies by the rushing game (N). San Diego State averages over 300 yards passing per game, good for 11th in the nation (out of 120 teams). Ryan Lindley is a tremendous quarterback and his two top receivers, DeMarco Sampson and Vincent Brown, are studs. However, the key to an Aztecs win will come if they can stop the Navy triple-option rushing attack. In October, triple-option threat Air Force rushed for over 300 yards against the Aztecs, and the San Diego State offense bailed on the rush defense in a 27-25 win. The Aztecs will need defensive success to hold off the Midshipmen.

How They Could Win: Navy
With nine wins, and a solid triple-option attack led by senior leader Ricky Dobbs, there are a lot of reasons to believe Navy can win this game. The Midshipmen were not dealt a brutal schedule this year, so the Aztec passing attack will be the best one that Navy has faced all season. My biggest concern for Navy is the field conditions. Over 10 inches of rain soaked the field over the past week, leaving a very saturated ground behind. Even though Navy rushes for a hair under 300 yards per game, I worry that the field will be a second enemy tonight. The wet ground will slow down the rushes, affecting everyone's footing. San Diego State can resort to a strong, vertical passing attack to counter the elements. The Midshipmen will have a shot if they can find vertical running success, taking time off the clock and keeping this score under 30. Force two turnovers or more, and the Midshipmen will come away with a win on the San Diego State's backyard.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl Preview

Tonight at 8:00pm ET, the Louisville Cardinals and Southern Miss Golden Eagles will face off in this year's Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Who Will Win: Southern Miss
The Golden Eagles, underdogs (3 pts) against the Cardinals, will be able to win this game courtesy of their offense. The last time I thought a strong offense would get slowed by a capable defense in a bowl game, Troy gave Ohio the business in a 48-21 victory. This high-powered Southern Miss offense averaging almost 38 points per game and over 458 yards of offense will be able to beat Louisville. Freshman Kendrick Hardy awoke the Golden Eagles rushing game late in the season, rushing for 676 of his 855 yards in the final six games of the season. Quarterback Austin Davis has numerous athletic targets to work with. Louisville, meanwhile, has named a starter at quarterback but hasn't ruled out two other quarterbacks from getting playing time, leaving a messy trio of guys to lead the Cardinals' offense.

How They Could Win: Louisville
Louisville has won four straight matchups against Southern Miss, including a 25-23 victory last fall. Bilal Powell rushed for 1,330 yards for Louisville, and will need to be at his best tonight in order to get the Cardinals a victory. If he can help keep Louisville's offense on the field, and consequently the Southern Miss offense off the field, the Cardinals have a chance in this one. Louisville needs to take advantage of an aggressive Southern Miss front seven, finding Powell and other receivers through screen passes and quick passes.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

UC Davis Women Win Causeway Classic

The UC Davis women's basketball team defeated Sacramento State 78-55 on Sunday afternoon to win the annual Causeway Classic matchup.

The Aggies improve to 8-2 on the season while Sacramento State drops to 3-10.

Heidi Heintz paced the Aggies with 14 points and Paige Mintun added 12 points and a team-high 8 rebounds.

The Hornets were led by 11 points from Sami Field-Polisso and 10 points from Mallorie Franco. Kylie Kuhns added 9 points and 12 rebounds.

The Aggies outrebounded Sacramento State 50-39 and forced the Hornets into 22 turnovers.

UC Davis trailed 7-2 in the early moments of the first half, but promptly went on an 18-5 run to build a lead, and would not trail from that point on. The Aggies led 38-28 at halftime.

UC Davis continues their short road trip with a game on Tuesday at San Jose State (0-10), with tip-off scheduled for 7:00pm.

Overall for the 2010-2011 athletic season, UC Davis now leads the Causeway Classic series 7-2. There are 8 match-ups remaining in Causeway Classic events throughout the remainder of 2010-2011.