Tue 25 Dec 2007
With today being Christmas Day and so many out there celebrating with family and friends, what better way for us to provide some classic videos for ya’ll to check out when you get a chance. 
So in no particular order:
Scrooged pretty funny 
It’s A Wonderful Life a classic ending
1776- A Christmas Story very well done
The Day After Die Hard watch the ending 
Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanza and a very Happy Holidays!
Sun 23 Dec 2007
Tonight’s quote of the day comes from my good angry Chicago sportsfan and Hard Hits co-host John Giagnorio.
This was just too good to pass up.
The self-proclaimed stat mastah came away impressed with my use of what else but some key stats in the latest Knick loss earlier this afternoon to the Lakers. It would’ve been perfect for a graphic.
I’m always supporting teams who have grit, moxie and intangibles while the JPGer is a stats analyst all the way. Just look at how excited the Stanford senior got here:
Da Stat Mastah [4:14 P.M.]:
“ah gritty. nice use of stats!!!!!“
Better recognize!
Sun 23 Dec 2007
It wasn’t pretty. But few of Big Blue’s 10 wins this season have. They don’t give you extra points for style. That’s for sure.
For the third consecutive year under Tom Coughlin, the Giants are heading to the playoffs after a hard fought come from behind 38-21 victory over the Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium Sunday.
In what was an emotional roller coaster which seemed to feature at least three different games within the 60 minutes in very poor conditions that included high winds, rain and hail, somehow Big Blue found a way to recover from a dreadful beginning where they spotted a charged up Bills team a two touchdown lead.
Just how crazy and unpredictable was this game? The teams combined for eight turnovers including nine fumbles (3 lost) and five interceptions. It added up to a couple of the NFL’s lowest scoring teams combining for an unlikely 59 total points. So, if you took the under on the low spread (32 pts), you got killed.
To be perfectly honest, I didn’t foresee any way there would be that many points on the board. But sometimes, that’s what happens in this league. Good thing I don’t gamble cause I probably would’ve laid down a few bucks.
Despite being eliminated from AFC playoff contention in last week’s 8-0 shutout defeat at the hands of the Browns in blizzard conditions at the Dawg Pound, Buffalo came out ready to play and had extra incentive to pull out a ‘W.’
Before the coin toss, injured tight end Kevin Everett came out to loud cheers from the crowd. The 25 year-old former Hurricane even addressed his teammates before the game in what was his first return to Buffalo since suffering a severe spinal cord injury on Sept.9.
Not surprisingly, the Bills came out pumped up. They immediately took advantage of an ill-advised Lawrence Tynes opening kickoff which went out of bounds by going 60 yards in seven plays for the game’s first score- a Trent Edwards three-yard TD pass to Michael Gaines only 4:36 in.
For whatever reason, the Giants were extremly flat for the second consecutive week. They went three-and-out giving Buffalo the ball again. It didn’t take long for Buffalo to go 66 yards for a second score. Following a nice Edwards 42-yard hook up with Roscoe Parrish, the rookie QB out of Stanford found a wide open Lee Evans from four yards out to put the Bills in front by 14.
Though Eli Manning converted a third-and-long with a nice 29-yard throw on the run to Amani Toomer for the offense’s first first down, the Ole Miss product lost control of a snap on a key third down in Buffalo territory falling on the ball to stall a drive. It would prove to be a big problem all day for the Giants’ quarterback as he fumbled fives times losing a couple.
The Giants finally caught a break when Buffalo’s special teams did them in on a botched punt due to a low snap giving Big Blue the ball at the Bill 23. Two plays after Toomer hauled in a tough pass from Manning to convert a key third down, Brandon Jacobs plowed in from six yards out to slice the deficit in half.
With some momentum, New York’s D stiffened forcing a three-and-out to give the offense the ball back. Once again, an undisciplined Bills’ play on special teams allowed the Giants to take advantage. After Buffalo had stopped them, they took a roughing the kicker penalty which gave the Giants an automatic first down. It didn’t take long for them to cash it as Jacobs picked up blockers for a 43-yard TD- his second of the game which knotted the score.
A third straight three-and-out along with a Kawika Mitchell sack and Bills’ five-yard penalty helped setup the Giants’ first lead of the day.
With good field position at their own 44, they quickly moved down the field thanks to Jacobs (13 total yds) and Toomer (19-yard reception on another third down). Even with winds gusting up to 30 miles an hour, Tynes was good from 42 to put the Giants up three with 2:24 left in the half.
The Giants got the ball back with 1:18 remaining and drove inside the Buffalo 40 thanks to two more Manning completions to Toomer. But on the next play, Eli lost a fumble courtesy of Aaron Schobel’s sack and recovery at the Bills’ 36 with two seconds left.
They got the ball first in the second half but a silly playcall by offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride saw Manning get picked off by Keith Ellison at the Giant 31. Why on God’s earth would you call that when your run game had plenty of success in the first half and got you the lead? It made no sense.
In any event, it took Buffalo rookie running back Marshawn Lynch two plays to get in the end zone and put the Bills back ahead 21-17.
That’s where the game changed because those were the last points Buffalo got.
On their next drive, the Giants tried to tease Big Blue supporters. Passing it just once, they drove from the 40 to the Buffalo 1 thanks to keeping it on the ground with Jacobs (28 yds), rookie Ahmad Bradshaw (36 yds) and Reuben Droughns.
Chewing up more than eight minutes on the clock, it looked like they’d go ahead. But Bradshaw’s knee was down at the Buf 1 before he got in. Droughns was then stopped just short on first and goal. He was pushed back on second down. Bradshaw gained back a yard to set up fourth and goal. Rather than kick a chipshot and cut the lead to one, Coughlin opted to go.
Out of a Buffalo timeout, a sad yet predictable Droughns center trap was stuffed for a loss of four giving the Bills the ball at their own five with a four-point lead and 5:37 left in the third quarter.
They proceeded to do nothing giving Big Blue another chance. But a great drive which featured Jacobs gaining 34 yards to go from the NYG 45 to the Buf 11 stalled when Manning lost another fumble.
At that point, I thought for sure they were going to lose. However, this wasn’t your normal football game. The turnover fest continued two plays later when Edwards was intercepted by Mitchell, who then went all the way for a 20-yard go-ahead score to put the Giants ahead 24-21 with 14:05 remaining in the final quarter.
The crazy quarter continued later when Eli was int’d for the second time by Terrence McGee after another questionable play selection at the NYG 43. Once again, the Giant D stepped up forcing a three-and-out. Just out of curiosity for any Bills fans, how many times can you see your offense accomplish zilch?!?!?!?!
Especially given how well they came out. There’s just no consistency and that’s why Buffalo is getting ready to pack up for the golf course rather than play next January.
With the Giants at their own 12 and just over six minutes remaining, Bradshaw who had been terrific all day burst through and went the distance for an 88-yard TD as snow came down which put his team up a dime.
This was just an awesome run by the very quick first-year player selected in the seventh round out of Marshall. Can you say steal people? Where’s all those so-called experts on this one? The same people also had this team winning five or six games because of the retirement of Tiki “Me-ki” Barber.
They really looked like they miss him on the ground, especially after gashing the Bills for 291 rushing yards including 151 from the 21 year-old Bradshaw along with a career high 145 from Jacobs.
“I’m very proud,” an excited Jacobs expressed to the Associated Press afterwards. “I’m proud of my team. I’m proud of the defense. It means a lot.”
Anyone who watched this topsy turvy contest had to figure the Bills still had a shot. However, Corey Webster erased any doubts by picking off Edwards for the second time and dashing down the left sideline for a fantastic 34-yard interception TD return which sealed the deal.
The rough quarter continued for the Stanford rookie as vet Sam Madison added further insult to injury with pick No.3 with 4:37 left.
Bradshaw then tacked on 20 yards before the Giants wisely turned the ball over on downs allowing Buffalo to run two more plays as the clock wound down which officially gave them a third straight postseason berth- matching the team record.
It might not have been pretty and was typically nerve wracking. But when push came to shove, this resilient group got the job done as they have all year when the doubters questioned them.
“We’ve won some tough games, done a good job, and it’s a relief,” Manning admitted after completing only seven of 15 passes for 111 yards while turning it over four times. “We all knew we wanted to do it this game.”
Their seventh consecutive road win was a franchise record. Most importantly, they don’t have to play New England next week facing a must win as the undefeated Pats aim for history in East Rutherford.
Ironically enough, the last time an NFL team looked to be going for history, it was the Giants who stopped Denver several years ago.
We’ll see if they play for pride next weekend.
For now, they’ve got a date with either Seattle or Tampa and that’s all that matters.
Sun 23 Dec 2007
Earlier today, a little history was made at the Mecca. No. Jim Dolan didn’t axe Isiah Thomas. It’s not April Fool’s yet!
But there was an actual remarkable accomplishment on a basketball court at the Garden which will most likely be the only time all season that probably happens. Playing his first game at MSG in almost two years, Los Angeles Laker superstar Kobe Bryant became the youngest player to reach 20,000 career points.
The historic moment took place when the 29 year-old Philadelphia native hit from downtown in the opening minute of the third quarter which gave him the milestone at the tender age of 29 years, 122 days.
Only NBA legends Wilt Chamberlain (29, 134) and Michael Jordan (29, 326) had reached the mark before turning 30. Pretty elite company for one of the league’s most prolific scorers on a day his 39 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists led Phil Jackson’s club to a 95-90 victory improving them to a surprising 17-10.
The Knicks’ second consecutive defeat and eight in their last 10 dropped them to a dismal 8-19. Merry Christmas Dumb and Dumber Management. Keep up the good work!
I was just glancing at this boxscore and noticed two common trends. The Knicks were a combined minus-31 with both Eddy “Fat Albert” Curry and Zach Randolph on the court.
Here’s something else for ya:
Andrew Bynum: 37:59 Min, 6-of-8 FG, 1-of-4 FT, 13 pts, 8 reb, 2 bs, +2
Eddy Curry: 21:04 Min, 2-of-8 FG, 4-of-6 FT, 8 pts, 1 reb, 0 bs, -13
What else about this one? How in the world were the Knicks a combined plus-35 with scrubs Jared Jeffries and Malik Rose in the game? They only had eight between them and 10 boards. Could it be that they actually tried at the defensive end unlike a couple of lazy starters?!?!?!?!?! Nah.
Two other stats from this game which sums up the complete difference between these teams. And we’re talking basic fundamentals which help you win:
A TO Diff.
Lakers 18* 8 +10
Knicks 7 17 -10
*Bryant’s 8 dimes were one more than the Knicks.
“Knick basketball. How Not To Ball 101 coming to a university near you!“ :lol:
Sat 22 Dec 2007
Zach who? That’s what Blazer fans are saying these days. While former Portland star Zach Randolph continues to make excuses for why his new team in New York continue to stink it up to the tune of the East’s second worst record (8-18) behind only the Heat, the Blazers aren’t missing him at all.
After a slow 5-12 beginning to a rebuilding season without 2007 first overall selection Greg Oden due to right knee surgery, the NBA’s youngest team has caught fire reeling off 10 straight improving to 15-12 after a hard fought 99-96 home win over first place Denver Friday night to suddenly pull within half a game in the Northwest Division.
Many of those victories have come on their home floor where they improved to 12-3 thanks to a balanced attack which had five players in double figures including leading scorer Brandon Roy who finished with 18 points, five assists and three rebounds.
Their 12 victories at Rose Garden rank fourth in the NBA behind defending champion San Antonio (13-1), Dallas (13-2) and the revamped Celtics (13-1) who are all tied with 13 W’s on their respective home courts. Pretty elite company, huh?
“Who would have thought Portland would do that?” the 23 year-old Roy pondered to the Associated Press about the franchise’s longest winning streak since 2001-02 when they won 12 in a row. “You’d think it would be Dallas or Phoenix.”
During the streak, the Blazers have won seven of 10 in front of their supporters who must be ecstatic with the direction this promising club is heading in.
Playing alongside last year’s NBA Rookie of The Year is second-year power forward LaMarcus Aldridge who chipped in with 18 (8-of-16 FG), eight boards and five assists last night. The 22 year-old second-year big man who starred at Texas has improved leaps and bounds more than doubling his scoring from 9.0 PPG to 18.5 PPG and hiking his rebounding from five to almost eight (7.7 RPG).
“We’re a young team but we’re growing up. We’re maturing a lot during this win streak,” Roy also noted. “If you watched tonight it wasn’t just a young team that’s hot. We had to work for this and face adversity, but we came through.“
Just like the Knicks circus on Seventh and 33rd where the real life version of Dumb and Dumber (Jim Dolan and Isiah Thomas) continue to ripoff and disenchant fans?!?!?!?!?!
Wait till Oden joins the Blazers next season.
In their three-point win over Denver, they outscored the Nuggets 39-10 off the bench with James Jones (14 pts) and Travis Outlaw (12 pts) each getting into double digits.
Even ex-Knick Channing Frye is contributing these days putting up a respectable eight, 10 boards and two assists in over 20 minutes. Oh btw, the Blazers were plus-eight with him in the game while on the same night at Charlotte, the Knicks were suffering their latest defeat where they were minus-16 with Eddy “Fat Albert” Curry and minus-13 with Randolph.
How much of a non-factor has Curry become? He only played 18:21 last night scoring 11 and five rebounds. Here’s the kicker. He didn’t even pickup a foul while the Bobcats were opening up as much as a 27-point lead before hanging on for a 105-95 win.
The Knicks are the NBA laughingstock. Mean time, the Blazers continue to earn respect from peers.
“They are very confident and I think they’ve matured very quickly. They have very good composure for close game situations,” Nuggets coach George Karl pointed out after his team fell by three. “They also have the ability to explode on you with the 3-ball. When you’ve got [Martell] Webster and Jones, they’re always able to hit three to four threes on you in any situation.”
Even Carmelo Anthony came away impressed:
“It’s hard to say they’re creeping up on teams. They are a hot team and they are playing well right now. Everything they throw up is going in and they are playing together right now.“
It proves that if you use your head, you can actually successfully rebuild a team the right way. Try telling that to the two leading bozos at Penn Plaza.
One other thought. Who would you rather have? Aldridge or Tyrus Thomas? I wonder what my Chicago buddy John Giagnorio would have to say.
Never mind.
Fri 21 Dec 2007
It’s been a while since our last Hard Hits show. Over a month in fact before Thanksgiving where a couple of real turkeys were continuing to live in an utter state of denial at Seventh Avenue and 33rd.
More about that probably later tonight along with a variety of topics which could range from the Mitchell Report to Week 18 of the NFL, why the local city college and pro hoop teams stink and also why Jaromir Jagr is getting on my last nerve.
But you have to figure it will be the usual chaos with our show cause there are no boundaries and I don’t boss my co-hosts around ordering them to stick to topic like some people.
Here is a link if you want to catch our act:
If it doesn’t work, please refer to our main page.
Fri 21 Dec 2007
Or let’s just call this more cool songs/videos from Weezer. They’re not like most bands and are a little odd. But their videos absolutely kick total ass.
Here are a few others to check out which come to mind:
Weezer: “Perfect Situation”
Weezer: “We Are All On Drugs”
Weezer: “Beverly Hills“ (watch this one, trust me)
Weezer: “Island In The Sun: Spike Jonze“ (I like this one)
I could go and put up the two most popular songs/videos but the point of this was to show that this band is so much more than those two great hits.
Fri 21 Dec 2007
Today’s comes from Weezer’s first album back in 1994 which featured hits like “Undone- The Sweater Song” and “Buddy Holly,” best remembered for video featuring the hit shot Happy Days.
But to myself, the best song on the album is “Say It Ain’t So.” Here’s a little more info on who produced it and how it was shot courtesy of Wikipedia.
The video for Weezer’s third single “Say It Ain’t So” was directed by Sophie Muller. It featured the band performing in their original rehearsal space in California known as the Garage as well as footage of the them playing hacky sack.[10] A photo of the Garage is featured on the inside cover of the album.[11] The house featured in the video has since been demolished.
The Blue Album is currently certified triple platinum in the United States,[2] making it Weezer’s all-time best seller. It is ranked 297 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums.[12] It was re-released and repackaged in 2004 as a Deluxe Edition, which included a second disc of b-sides along with other previously unreleased rarities.[
Fri 21 Dec 2007
It’s rare that an athlete puts on a memorable performance that teammates, opponents, coaches and fans will remember for a long time. Everyone who was in St. Paul, Minnesota at a packed capacity Excel Energy Center got a treat courtesy of star Wild left wing Marian Gaborik.
The 25 year-old Slovak torched the Rangers for a franchise best five goals and matched his career high with six points factoring in on every Minnesota goal in a 6-3 victory last night.
It was the first five-goal performance from an NHL player since Sergei Fedorov accomplished the impressive feat with Detroit in an OT win over the Capitals 11 years ago back on Dec. 26, 1996.
It started when he was the beneficiary of a Pavol Demitra pass for an easy one-timer past Ranger netminder Henrik Lundqvist which tied the score at one in the first.
He’d score twice more in a 1:51 span to start the second period via the man-advantage for three straight goals and the hat trick less than 26 minutes into the contest.
After netting his second from Demitra again stationed perfectly in front, Gaborik received a pass from defenseman Brent Burns and then came out of the left wing corner maneuvering around a couple of Rangers before deking Lundqvist and flipping a backhand into the top of the net for his ninth career hat trick and first since April 9, 2006 against the Avalanche.
With his team nursing a 3-2 lead after Martin Straka tallied from Jaromir Jagr and Scott Gomez, Minnesota’s best player helped restore a two-goal lead when he perfectly setup teammate Pierre-Marc Bouchard’s power play slapshot for point No.4.
The show continued in the final stanza. When his team needed it most, Gaborik again stepped up. He immediately responded to rookie Nigel Dawes’ fifth with his fourth of the night by being in the right place at the right time to rebound home an Aaron Voros shot just 41 seconds later to give the Wild a 5-3 lead with 12:04 left.
Amazingly, it wasn’t over as Gaborik put the exclamation point on a vintage performance by beating Lundqvist cleanly on a breakaway deking him and going stickside 1:34 later which completed the scoring on what MSG Network’s Sam Rosen termed, “Marian Gaborik Night in St. Paul.”
A simple but effective description of what took place as the Blueshirts took a step back after their 4-0 home shutout over Pittsburgh. They’ll look to bounce back tonight against another tough Western Conference foe at Colorado.
As for Gaborik’s big night, it could’ve been even more. Number six was on his stick a couple of times during a late man-advantage with only Ranger backup Stephen Valiquette preventing it.
Afterwards, the No.1 Star saluted the crowd and was then mockingly carried off the ice by teammates Sean Hill and Keith Carney.
Here was Gaborik after his special performance expressing what it felt like to the Associated Press:
“One time I got five goals when I was playing back home for a pro club back there, but this is just totally different. You score five goals in the NHL it’s just a totally different experience. To reach it here with these guys in front of our fans is just unbelievable.“
“It was pretty amazing,” Wild captain Mark Parrish added. “He was banking ‘em in out of the air, scoring on breakaways, skating through everybody with it, making highlight-film goals. My God, he was doing it every which-way tonight.
“When a guy like that’s feeling it, it gets pretty scary for the other team.”
You betcha. All you can do is tip your cap to Gaborik. It was his night.
Thu 20 Dec 2007
Our video of the day combines two of the greatest rappers of all-time as East coast meets West in this classic produced by Eminem entitled, “Runnin’ (Dying To Live)” featuring deceased rappers Biggie and 2Pac.
Both dead way too early a decade prior due to the East vs West nonsense. Just imagine if they were still around.
They might be gone but the sick ass lyrics will always remain as their legacies will live on forever. Timeless like Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon and Bob Marley.
Creativity at its best. Why is it always the legends who die young? Guess it just has to be that way for some reason. Only the man upstairs knows.
I was looking at some other cool videos and figured I’d link a few:
Biggie: “biggie freestyle”- rare footage at age 17 in Brooklyn
That is off the charts!!!!! 
Enjoy!
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