Whistle Stops

Tonight the OSU basketballers looked superb in a 93-75 win at #9 Florida.  The Bucks completely dominated the 2nd half, erasing a 3 point half-time deficit.  I was particularly impressed with freshman point guard Aaron Craft (#4 above, 7 pts, 5 asts).  His decision-making, especially against the Gators' full court press, seemed beyond his age.  It would appear that the Buckeyes have a solid floor leader for, at least, a couple of seasons.  Jared  Sullinger (26 & 10, 13-17 fg) looks unstoppable.  Another freshman who plays like a junior, Jared is considered one of the top 3 freshmen nationwide.  All of this and a stellar game from 5th year senior David Lighty, who knocked down 9-of-11 from the floor and 6-of-7 at the line on his way to 26 points.  Lighty's mobility is back to 100% following a string of unfortunate injuries and he might finally be the offensive weapon he was touted as 5 years ago.  For a team transitioning in a new PG and a new primary big man, Ohio State plays like a team in late February rather than mid-November.  Winning big, early season games (last year only 12 of like 10,200 D1 match-ups featured 2 top 10 teams) is not OSU's forte, but they sure as hell showed up tonight.  It's not all peaches and ice cream.  Jon Diebler was abused by Florida SF Chandler Parsons, the team was out rebounded 26-17 (that's right, only 7 non-Sullinger boards) and Lighty was the only player to make a free throw.  Still, should the Bucks continue to develop throughout the season, I look forward to the steam-roller that this squad can become by the time March rolls around.

Jake Westbrook has re-signed with the Cardinals thus killing my dream for his return to the tepee.  The deal is 2-years $16.5mil with an $8.5mil mutual option for 2013.  Also included is a "blanket no-trade clause," which, I would guess, requires Jake's consent on any trade.

The Marlins have traded Dan Uggla, the only 2B in MLB history to have 4 30+ home run seasons, to the Atlanta Braves for "all-star" IF Omar Infante and LHP Mike Dunn.  Inter-divisional trading?  Here, Beckham, Beckham, Beckham...

Expect All-Star catcher John Buck to be a Marlin soon, on a 3-yr $18mil deal.

Doc Halladay is your unanimous NL Cy Young award winner.

After 356 yards passing on Sunday, Troy Smith has asserted himself as the 49ers starting QB ahead of not 1, but 2, former #1 overall picks.  Over 2 starts Troy has completed 61.7% of his passes for 552 yards and 2 scores without a pick.  That translates to a 116.6 rating, which is friggin' awesome.  Smith also has a rushing TD.  Troy Smith made be a believer in "The Greatest Game Ever" and, with the offensive skill players (Gore, Crabtree, Vernon Davis) available to him in San Fran, he should be able to parlay this opportunity into a full-time gig.

Congrats to my Bobcats who are mere minutes from completing an upset victory over Temple in Philly.  With 4 minutes to go the 'Cats lead 31-10 against an Owls team that had outscored its opponents 100-10 over its past 3 games.  The win would put OU at 6-1 in the MAC and only a win over Kent State away from the Eastern Division title and a trip to the championship game.  They control their own destiny, which rocks.  The Bobcats were impressive to watch this evening, particularly the ground game and pass defense. 'Twas a shade different from their play at the Shoe in September.

Cheers.