Thursday Take Twos

The New Jersey Nets lost to the Golden State Warriors in Oakland last night. Vince Carter ran into foul trouble and an early New Jersey lead dwindled into a Golden State come-from-behind win. The Nets are accustomed to feeding off Carter and when he became frustrated, it was clear the team had trouble alerting and adjusting without his enthusiasm. The Nets can’t expect to reach the playoffs and snag the East’s 8th seed if they can’t even put away a team like the Warriors. Golden State was led by their young stud, Anthony Morrow and free throw specialist, Jamal Crawford. Crawford’s fourth quarter play was magnificent and proved the difference as the Nets’ defense deflated down the stretch. They looked like a beaten team by the second half but Lawrence Frank’s team took a 14 point half-time lead. Devin Harris continued to show why he is one of the NBA’s best point guards. Harris had 31 points and 12 assists.
New Jersey has struggled on the road all year, including losing 5 of their last 6 away games. The team travels to Portland Friday night and the rest of the schedule doesn’t get any easier. The Nets still have to meet Miami, Cleveland, Los Angeles (Lakers), Milwaukee, Chicago, Orland and Boston during the next month. Essentially, last night’s late game was a must-win for the 28-38 Nets. Some positives to take from the game were another Brook Lopez supreme effort. Lopez’s 14 points and Harris’ double-double were highlights, but the Nets allowed the Warriors to score too many baskets. There is no excuse for the defense enabling Golden State to reach the 100 point mark. The Warriors are a team in turmoil but somehow managed to outrebound New Jersey by 16. The Nets need to gain momentum quickly or they won’t be gaining any ground in the East.
The World Baseball Classic hasn’t captured my interest. Nonetheless, it is baseball and there are some marquee matchups going on. I especially enjoyed the underdog Netherlands story. The Dutchmen came from behind Tuesday to eliminate the Dominican Republic team. This victory was a major upset in the D.R. and qualified the Dutch to play Round 2 in Miami. The Netherlands relied on a great bullpen and a quality pitching staff. That is all they really have. I guess that style of play is conducive to winning. At least the winning formula worked against the brash Dominicans. Five relievers scattered 5 walks in 7 innings Tuesday, but allowed only 2 hits and no runs. Tom Stuifbergen started for team Netherlands and threw four scoreless innings against one of the most talented lineups in the WBC. Last night, Puerto Rico beat the Dutch to earn the top seed in Pool D. The U.S.A. team lost to Venezuela but still advanced to the competition’s next round.
Critics knock the timing of the WBC, but is there really a “right” time? You can’t hold the event during the season, and having it occur after the World Series wouldn’t suffice. I think maybe it should be held during the All-Star break. Team USA would play the winner of the tournament. All the other countries involved could hold a round-robin setup similar to the one in place to determine the best team. That winner would then have a one-game playoff for the World Championship against the winner of the MLB All-Star game. Of course, that might night fly with the other countries because it automatically assumes the U.S.A. deserves to be one of the top teams in the world.

Parting points: Song of the moment: “Beautiful Women” by Boyz II Men
What the heck happened to Kansas? Baylor beat them this afternoon 71-64 in the Big 12 tournament. The Villanova Wildcats held on to beat Marquette 76-75. I just listened to the game’s finish on the radio and it was a close one.