-The Knicks got a huge win over the Cavs at home- taking it 97-93 to stay afloat in the Eastern playoff race. Nursing a one-point lead with under 10 seconds left, Stephon Marbury drained a contested trey with 8.5 remaining to seal it. The ball rattled around the basket before going down. Isiah Thomas’ struggling club also got a big final quarter from center Eddy Curry, who scored 13 of his 25 in the last 12 minutes. The win was only their second in their last seven and improved the club to 31-40, enabling them to keep pace with the seventh place Nets who posted a 118-94 blowout victory over Indiana. The Knicks trail New Jersey by two games and gained a game on eighth place Orlando (lost to Boston in 2 OTs 105-96) to pull within one and a half with 11 games left.

It’s going to take a lot for the Orange and Blue to make the playoff cut. They still have two games against the Nets down the stretch and have yet to prove they can beat them when it counts. That must change if they are to get in. The fact that they can beat the LeBron James Cavs is proof they can play with anyone. Do they have what it takes to silence the predictable cynics? We’ll see.

-It might not have as much prestige as the men’s Final Four in Atlanta this weekend but if you want to see some big time hoops, tune into tomorrow night’s NIT championship between West Virginia and Clemson. Both teams posted one-point wins Tuesday to get into the title game. The Mountaineers rallied from 14 down in the second half to beat Mississippi State 63-62 on Darris Nichols’ three point buzzer beater. The Tigers held off a pesky Air Force bunch to post a 68-67 win to setup what should be an entertaining final at Madison Square Garden. While the NIT might not have as much media coverage or hype, it does boast the best stage for a big game at the Mecca in NYC. You want atmosphere. Watch tomorrow night’s game!

-The women’s Final Four is set for Cleveland. Top seeds North Carolina and Tennessee joined surprise semifinalists LSU and Rutgers Tuesday with respective wins over Purdue and Mississippi. UNC defeated Purdue 84-72 to advance to a match-up against the Lady Volunteers, who blew the doors off Mississippi 98-62. The Vols have beaten their four previous opponents (Drake, Pittsburgh, Marist and Mississippi) by an average margin of 27 points. They’ll take on the Tar Heels this weekend in what is their 17th trip to the Final Four under legendary coach Pat Summitt.

For LSU and Rutgers, they weren’t expected to be here. The Lady Tigers overcame the shocking resignation of their coach Pokey Chatman due to alleged wrongdoing with a former player. It’s a credit to assistant and temporary coach Bob Starkey and his players as they marched on to their fourth consecutive Final Four. Meanwhile, the Lady Scarlet Knights are still flying high after their stunning upset of Duke and then impressive double digit triumph over Arizona State in the Regional Final at Greensboro to make coach C. Vivian Stringer the first coach to guide three different schools to the Final Four. Can the Knights stun the country and take it all? Like the football team which took the nation by storm last year, they believe it’s their time! We’ll soon find out.

-Who ever would have believed that Carl Pavano would go from permanent DL man to Opening Day starter for the Bronx Bombers this Spring?!?!?!?!?! Thought so!

-Good for the Mets that they elevated impressive rookie hurler Mike Pelfrey over the washed up Chan Ho Park for that elusive final spot in their rotation. The 23 year-old distinguished himself this Spring and earned the nod. It’s not only a better choice for this season but longterm as well.

-How long before Lastings Milledge replaces Shawn Green in right?

-Kudos to Jonathan Papelbon for being a team player and returning to the closer role in Boston ending the failed Joel Pineiro experiment. As long as he stays healthy, this should make the Red Sox a better team instead of the rollercoaster adventure they would’ve been at the end of games.

-It really is ashame to see what’s happened to former Cubs’ ace Mark Prior. He hasn’t been the same since all his injuries and now was optioned to Triple A to start the season. A far cry from how dominant he was a few years ago at Wrigley. He had a rocky Spring and definitely could use a confidence boost. Hopefully, he’ll be able to regain the form he showed once before. We’re rooting for him.

-Say what you want about hockey no longer being on ESPN because outside of the self-explanatory HNIC’s Don Cherry, we can’t think of anyone else who’s more passionate about the game than Barry Melrose. It’s ashame that he’s not on a network which covers it because this man knows the game as well as anyone and always makes solid points. SC anchor John Buccigross who has his first book out on former NHLer Keith Jones is right behind! Try telling NBC and Versus pronto.

-After their 4-3 win over the Devils, the Sabres have pretty much wrapped up the East’s top seed and home ice. They got nice third period goals from Jochen Hecht and the returning Ales Kotalik to prevail over New Jersey- splitting the season series of what could be a possible ECF preview. Lindy Ruff’s club is finally getting healthy at the right time which might be bad news for the rest of the conference. Only Maxim Afinogenov, Tim Connolly and Paul Gaustaud remain out with injuries. Buffalo should take solace knowing they’ll be getting the dangerous Afinogenov back in time for the postseason. As for Connolly and Gaustaud, don’t expect them back anytime soon. In the mean time, rookie Drew Stafford continues to elevate his game and could be a factor this Spring.

Kudos to leading scorer and Hart candidate Daniel Briere on becoming the first Sabre since Pat LaFontaine back in 1995-96 to reach 90 points. His nifty backhand feed on Hecht’s second goal of the night helped the All Star Game MVP (31-59-90) the plateau. At 5-9, 177, he’s not the biggest in stature but try telling that to opponents as he dances around them and wins loose puck battles in the corners to setup goals. It’s hard to fathom that Buffalo GM Darcy Regier somehow stole this guy from Phoenix for career underachiever Chris Gratton (now with Florida). Already a lopsided deal, if the miniscule playmaker leads the Sabres to their first ever Stanley Cup, it will go down as one of the all-time heists.

-Meanwhile, for the Devils, they blew an opportunity to gain valuable ground on the Penguins. Both teams now have five games remaining as they duke it out for the Atlantic. Each has 98 points but the Devs still have two tiebreakers in their favor- one being wins (45-44)- the other being the season series (won 5 of 8). If they finish tied, it’s advantage New Jersey which also would mean the East’s second seed and home ice- avoiding a potentially dangerous opening round match-up with Ottawa. It should be interesting to see who prevails.

-With Martin Brodeur (44 wins) and Roberto Luongo (43 wins) not far off Bernie Parent’s NHL record mark of 47 victories, it’s worth noting that the ex-Flyer great established the record in 1973-74 while playing in 73 games. Back then, they played four less games and there was no overtime. Just imagine how many more wins he could’ve had. It’s hard to say how the record would be looked at if either netminder eclipse it. And while it would be a worthy accomplishment, it would also have been helped along by the shootout. It’s still quite amazing to think that Parent’s record has lasted this long.

-It’s nice to know the NFL is finally paying attention to how disorderly some of their players have been off the field. Let’s see how stiff they come down first on Pacman Jones before kissing their ass like all the networks.

-Vince McMahon vs Donald Trump (hair on line) in Wrestlemania XXV isn’t exactly bringing back classic memories of Hulk Hogan vs Andre The Giant.

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