Archive for December, 2007
Gift Return Day
– Hope nobody got what they didn’t need from CompUSA; those folks are going out of business. The “All Sales Final” on the receipt means exactly that.
– If you’re returning an item to the Neutral Zone, good luck. Any quality U of L merchandise in that store is priced at least 30% higher than you would expect. I returned a $34.95 U of L football poster. Looked, searched and scrounged for a quality sweatshirt or jacket. You can get them at that price but you would not want to be seen in them. Sticker shock every time I found something likeable. Had to settle for a baseball cap and a coffee mug. The only good news was I got 3 dollars in change.
Merry Christmas
Season’s greetings and Merry Christmas to all. Rick Pitino delivered a wonderful Christmas Eve gift on his web site to U of L fans today, announcing that David Padgett has been cleared to begin working out with the team. If all goes well, Padgett could be playing again January 10 when the Cards square off against West Virginia.
Unless something bigger than Christmas happens, we’re taking off for a couple of days. Have a good one. Drive safely and go ahead, overindulge!
Tyreke Evans: Go Away
For months now, the focus of Louisville basketball recruiting has been on Tyreke Evans, a high school star at American Christian Prep School in Philadelphia. Evans, consistently ranked among the top three players in the country, averages 36 points per game.
The Cards should stop recruiting Evans immediately.
Tyreke Evans was involved in a drive-by shooting in Philadelphia on Nov. 25 that ended the life of a man allegedly involved in a rival gang with a grudge against one or more of the passengers in Evans’ vehicle. According to witnesses, shots were fired by Jamar Evans from the back seat in Tyreke’s sports utility vehicle toward the victim at a house across the street.
Not saying Tyreke Evans is an accomplice to murder, though any motivated prosecutor could easily make that charge. The vehicle did leave the area, however, and no assistance was provided to the victim, apparently just left to suffer or die. No 911 calls were made from the fleeing vehicle either, according to police reports.
Louisville should not be pursuing an individual unable to take the proper actions when the right decisions are so obvious.
Impressions vs. Aggies
– Trying to be sensational before you get the basics down pat is generally impeding the Cards’ overall development. Instead of making the easy pass, opting for the wow factor, blowing easy plays, looking not very intelligent, and letting opponents stick around in games.
– “We’re going to have that solved before the Morehead game (day after Christmas),” promises Rick Pitino in the post-game radio show. Ever wonder what Christmas is like for one of Pitino’s teams?
– Just happy Martin Iti, the big 7-footer, wasn’t playing on a North Carolina Charlotte team in Freedom Hall today. One of those typical UNCC teams would have destroyed the Cards, as they did so often a few years ago.
– No lack of camaraderie between Edgar Sosa and Andre McGee today. Reports of strained relations exaggerated.
– Where did McGee find that three-point shot? Where did Will Scott lose his?
– Juan Palacios was much more mobile and agile than anticipated, also bringing with him a sense of calm in midst of unnecessary confusion at times. Nice to have a senior on the floor for a change.
– Wonder if the rations order will be lifted for Derrick Caracter at the team’s Christmas dinner?
Billy Minardi Day
The week before the 9-11 tragedy in 2001, Rick Pitino played golf with his best friend Billy Minardi, anticipating the upcoming basketball season. Billy told his friend that he would be able to attend 14 of 17 U of L home games that season.
As Sports Illustrated noted, “The pair had been as inseparable as two men separated by geography can be, calling each other on the way to their jobs to talk about their New York Yankees, getting together for golf outings and vacations and holidays.”
Today’s game against New Mexico State is designated as the Billy Minardi Classic. Proceeds from the Classic continue to aid some of the more than 3,000 families affected by the unforgettable and unforgivable incident.
