Former colleague Don Hunt recently wrote me recently to point out that in 2003, a South Medford eighth grade AAU basketball team had four players who recently completed the season playing at the NCAA Division I level, and three of them were in the postseason: Kyle Singler (Duke), Michael Harthun (Washington State), Garrett Fiddler (Yale) [...]
Mike Wilson is off to a to a good start on his pro career, it seems, with a great trainer in Dickie Wood and a solid management group. It might be only a matter of time before he enjoys a bit of celebrity. In the meantime, he’s brushing against it now in the gym he’s [...]
I must admit, I woke up this morning looking forward to reading about the Oregon State-Oregon baseball game Friday and was dismayed at the lack of detail in the story provided by the Associated Press. I wasn’t in the office last night when it moved and I don’t know what constraints the AP was working [...]
After nearly three decades of being dormant, the Civil War between Oregon State and Oregon’s baseball teams resumes today with the first of three games in the Pac-10 openers for both teams. The Ducks resurrected their program this year after shutting it down in 1981. They’re 10-12 and will host the Beavers (13-5) at 3 [...]
Kyle Singler has been a contributing author to The Sporting News this season. I think he’s done seven or so columns for them, dictating to college basketball writer Mike DeCourcy on life in the Duke program. The Dookies play Villanova in the Sweet 16 tonight in Boston. Here’s Singler’s column today: http://today.sportingnews.com/sportingnewstoday/20090326/?sub_id=CR62kX7ziSTPw&folio=CGI
Is it too much to say this is turning into a miracle season for Oregon State basketball? A little overstated? Yeah, you’re probably right. But who saw this coming? The Beavers host Stanford Wednesday night in the semifinals of the College Basketball Invitational. I know, I know, the consolation of the consolation tournaments, someone said. [...]
The second Mail Tribune All-Star Basketball Classic is in the books, and it seems like everything went reasonably well. There were glitches, sure, but the games themselves were entertaining and the talent level on the court was obvious. I told my wife this project feels a little like what they go through on “The Apprentice.” [...]
Some observations from the shootaround we had Wednesday for kids in the Mail Tribune All-Star Basketball Classic. The games are Friday at 6 p.m. (girls) and 8 p.m. (boys) at Kids Unlimited: First off, the voting for starters is blowing up. We’re gonna cut it off at 2:30 p.m. Friday, then have the results posted on [...]
An ESPN poll today asks if this is the best or biggest day in sports, the start of the NCAA tournament. The Super Bowl was getting the most votes last I looked, and rightly so. If you look at it like, the nation’s best PR and marketing firms are supposed to have their fingers on [...]
I finally made it back to the gym today after one, a trip; two, a little sickness; and three, just getting out of a routine. While watching ESPN on the treadmill monitor, it occurred to me: Could the NIT have gotten any luckier than to have both Stephen Curry and Patty Mills in its tournament? [...]
