Unless you’re a coach, games are always better when they’re close. On Friday night, San Luis Obispo and Mission Prep matched-up in at least four varsity sports.

Boys’ Soccer

San Luis Obispo (11-3-2, 5-1-1) scored early and often in a win at San Luis Obispo High School. By the time I got to the game, about six or eight minutes in, the score was already 2-0 and the Tigers were lining up for a penalty kick. SLO continued to score in the second half — Grayson Stewart earned and finished a penalty — and the Tigers rolled over the Royals (3-12, 0-6) by a final score of 5-0.

Photos by Owen Main

To View All Photos, Click here

Girls’ Soccer

The girls’ soccer match promised to be closer than the boys’ game. Mission Prep (9-4-2, 3-1-2) has had a great season so far. Unfortunately for the Royals, SLO was undefeated coming in and continued the trend.

Through light rain at SLO High, the Tigers got a goal apiece in the first and second halves, controlling play for a 2-0 league win.

The Tigers are now 15-0-1 overall and 7-0 in Pac 8 play.

Photos by Owen Main

To view all photos, click here

Girls’ Basketball

While San Luis Obispo dominated the soccer matchups, Mission Prep got a pair of basketball wins. On the girls’ side, Andrew Richardson’s Royals (11-7, 5-2) used tough defense to beat the Tigers (9-9, 2-5) 44-25.

Boys’ Basketball

When I arrived, the game was just beginning, the atmosphere was already electric. With both the Mission and San Luis Obispo student sections jam-packed into Mission Prep’s gym, ear plugs would have been in order if I’d had them.

San Luis Obispo kept the game close for most of the first two quarters before Mission used runs in the second and third quarters to extend the lead that they’d hold onto throughout the fourth quarter.

For their part, San Luis Obispo (12-9, 3-4) looked like the improved squad they are. It would be great for high school sports in SLO if this rivalry continues to heat up the next time they face one another and in coming years.

Mission’s junior forward Kyle Stewart had a great game to the tune of 20 points — his patented “eyes-closed” shot release seemingly dialed-in.

Mission (11-8, 6-1) maintained their one-game deficit behind St. Joseph with the second half of Pac 8 play starting this week.

Photos by Owen Main

To view all photos, click here.

All-SLO, all the time

I saw at least half of three games on Friday night and even managed to sneak in a burger at Franks between the two soccer games at SLO High. On February 12, all four teams will once again face-off in the final game of the regular season for all of them. I love rivalries.

One of the perks of writing for this site, is that I get to attend games, as like a member of the media. Silly, I know, and last night I was able to go to the Cal Poly/USC basketball game at the Galen Center in downtown Los Angeles (I live in LA, so this was not a hard thing for me to do). However, last night was December 17th, and for the rest of the world, that meant the premiere of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” I have my tickets for Saturday, so I was fine, but I figure if I am going to go to this game on the same date as the premiere of the most anticipated movie of the year, well, I should probably write my post about the game with some sort of “Star Wars” angle right? So, many thanks to Mike Still, the artistic director of the Upright Citizen’s Brigade, Los Angeles (the theater where I have performed for the last six years), for giving me the idea to cover the game as Han Solo, so that is exactly what I am going to do. From here on out, I will be writing as the outlaw, Han Solo.

Hey, where the hell am I?  Chewy?  Chewy?  Where are you? Hmm. Dare I say it? Jabba? Come on Han. He died thirty years ago. Sorry, I’ll never forget all of that time in carbonite. Come on Han, you’ve woke up in stranger places. You can get through this. Okay, so it appears I am in some sort of arena. Oh no, the Rancor? Han, Luke killed the Rancor like 30 years ago. Right around the same Leia killed Jabba. I guess Leia’s right, I am getting old. Hope you’re happy General, I just said you’re right.

Oh wait, the lights are dimming.  Wait, that music.  I know that music.  But he’s dead too.  And yes, it’s been for about thirty years now.  Cram it with the jokes friend.  But what are these guys doing?  Whatever they’re up to, I am going to keep my blaster close.

I’ll say one thing, this guy Ridge Shipley, he just sounds like a guy who you would meet in Mos Eisley Cantina or piloting an X-wing next to Luke right? I like him. I have no idea what the hell is about to happen, but I like him. Okay, so five guys dressed in black with the words Cal Poly on their chests, and five guys dressed in white just came out with the name Trojan on their chest. I don’t know who I should be more worried about because the guys in black could be from the First Order, but the guys in white, could obviously be some sort of Stormtrooper. This may be some sort of two the death game being conducted by Imperial Forces. In fact, looking at one of the Trojan Stormtrooper arms, I honestly can’t tell if he is part snake or all human. Maybe a Slussi?  Seriously, what is the strange art on this man’s arms?

Anyway, so it appears this “game” has started, and from what I can tell the point is to put the ball in the round net, and the white team, specifically the snake-armed man, is doing a pretty well at that indeed.  But wait a minute, the game has stopped and now a voice comes can be heard, and a strange man begins to play some music while the First Order and the Stormtroopers talk to each other. Okay, this guy clearly is in charge. This guy has taken over for Jabba the Hut. He is ordering people to stand on their feet, to scream, to make some noise. He is a tyrant, begging his people to follow him, and it is clear this “game” is being played as some sort of entertainment for him.

I have been able to figure out that this twerp is named DJ Mal Ski. The guy just advertises it on his throne. Even Jabba wasn’t that full of himself, but this guy is clearly trying to one-up Jabba in a big way, so based on my relationship with Jabba, I gotta watch myself. Whoa, one of the stormtroopers took the ball and threw it into the net really hard.  Hadn’t seen that before. Oh, it happened again.  And again. It seems like the First Order guys need to do a better job of keeping the ball out of the net. Who cares though because this is all just big show for Master Mal Ski. Oh, here comes some dancers. I seem to recall Jabba just having one dancer with long tentacles coming out of her head. Some people try to say that it happened differently, as if someone changed how the original memory of the Jabba’s lair, but I was stuck in carbonite. That, unfortunately for me, did not change. Anyway, this Mal Ski is not satisfied with one dancer. He rolls out like twenty.  I can only assume they are slaves being made to dance.

I gotta do something about this guy. Oh no! He’s now putting people on the screen and making them kiss! These people are all his slaves, and he makes them do his bidding. You know, when I was younger, I wouldn’t have taken sides here. Well, I would have I guess. Whoever would have paid me the best. Not anymore though. You don’t fight against the Imperial Forces and don’t come out with a stronger sense of good and evil, and Mr. Mal Ski, it’s time to take you out. Wait, what’s that noise. All of the men playing are watching as one of the men throw the ball towards the net, and I hear something.

He’s got Chewy!  That giant furball gets on my nerves, but he’s my furball. Okay, this guy is going down. Oh, a horn just sounded, and everyone is leaving. There are guards preventing me onto the floor. It seems that the stormtroopers have more numbers than the First Order, whatever that means, but the crowd is keeping me away from Mal Ski. He’s gone. Gotta find Chewy. Gotta go.

William Jessup, the school’s first President, founded San Jose Bible College in 1939. Jessup’s great grandson Rich Jessup was the head boys basketball coach at my high school (North County Christian High School) from 2004-2006 and was the head girls basketball coach in the 2006-2007 season. In 1989, San Jose Bible College was renamed San Jose Christian College. In 2002 the school received regional accredidation by WASC. In 2004, the school became known as its current name (William Jessup University) and it is located in Rocklin, California.

The William Jessup Warriors are the newest members of the Golden State Athletic Conference. The GSAC is one of the best conferences in NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Division One. The Warriors play in the new Warrior Arena, which seats 1,100 fans.

The Warriors are coached by Lance Von Vogt who started out as the director of basketball operations at Georgia State. He served under Lefty Driesell who is the only coach to win 100 games at 4 different colleges (Davidson; Maryland; James Madison; Georgia State). Von Vogt is in his second season with the Warriors. In his first season he led the Warriors to a 15-12 record going 9-3 in conference (California Pacific Conference).

Quick Facts:

William Jessup University

Location:

San Jose, CA

Attendance:

1,100

2013-14 Record:

Overall Record:- 15-12

Record in California Pacific Conference: 9-3

Why fans should be hopeful:

The Warriors return six players including 6’2” wing Justin Downer who averaged 6.1 points per game a year ago. They have added eight recruits this season. The Warriors will rely on three transfers in particular.

1. Chris Murry is a 5’ 11” 175 lb. guard transferring from West Valley College, averaged 16.3 points, 4.4 assists, and 3.5 rebounds per game in his two seasons as a Viking while shooting 40% from the three-point line. His ability to impact the game as a scorer, passer and rebounder will be a challenge to whoever is guarding him.

2. Djuan Smith is a 6’3” 200 lb. wing transferring from Peninsula College. While at Peninsula College he played for head coach Mitch Freeman who was an assistant coach on Joe Callero’s coaching staff at Seattle University as well as Cal Poly. During the 2012-2013 season, Djuan was named to the NWAAC’s (Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges) All-Defensive team as well as NWAAC’s Second Team. His size and strength will allow him to drive past defenders and finish through contact.

3. Desmond Floyd is a 6’6” 240 lb. forward transferring from Mid-Continent University where he redshirted for the Cougars. In high school he averaged 13.8 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in his senior season at Chandler High School in Phoenix. Coach Von Vogt is looking forward to Desmond’s ability to defend post players and rebound missed shots.

Why should fans be concerned:

The Warriors are projected to finish last in the GSAC because it is their first year. As one of the toughest conferences in the NAIA, the GSAC consistently has 3 or 4 teams make the National Tournament. The teams that make the tournament have go to players and depth on the bench. I believe depth is developed over time while in the GSAC. The competition level of the Cal Pac is a notch below that of the GSAC. A team jumping up a level will have difficulty winning in its first season. While the Warriors may not win many GSAC games I expect them to remain competitive by following the diligent leadership of their head coach.

7’6″ Mamadou Ndiaye will continue where he left off, anchoring UC Irvine’s defense and shutting down the lane. By Owen Main

Last season was supposed to be UC Irvine’s year. The stars were aligned for the Anteaters to take control of the Big West Conference and enter the NCAA tournament for the first time school history. The Anteaters led the Big West in defense thanks to their shot blockers, 6’8″ Will Davis III and 7’6” freshman Mamadou Ndiaye. Along with now-graduated leading scorer Chris McNealy, Irvine featured the 2013 and 2014 Big West freshman of the year Alex Young and Luke Nelson in their starting backcourt, which was talented enough to take the Big West regular season title. However, the team collapsed before the hot-shooting Cal Poly in the Big West Tournament final, leaving the Eaters to settle with an NIT tournament birth.

UC Irvine kept up with Larry Brown’s SMU Mustangs in the first half of their opening NIT tournament game, but the Mustangs’ efficient scoring and rebounding proved to be too much for UCI to handle as SMU pulled the game away in the second half for a 68-54 victory.

Gone: Chris McNealy (Graduated), Ege Mala (transferred to Amherst College), Conor Clifford (transferred to Saddleback College)

New Additions: Jonathan Galloway (Freshman; PF; Salesian High School), Spencer Rivers (Freshman; PG; Winter Park HS), Haroldas Saprykinas (Freshman; G; West Oaks Academy)

Coach Turner is expected to take UC Irvine where it hasn’t gone before; to the NCAA tournament. By Owen Main

High Expectations: The Anteaters have never made an NCAA Tournament appearance, but Sports Illustrated pegged UC Irvine to enter the NCAA tournament for the first time as a thirteenth seed this season. NBC Sports listed them as one of the “Ten Possible Cinderellas” and there is a good reason why UC Irvine fans should be optimistic coming into this season.

“We’re more experienced and hopefully more mature. We learned a lot of lessons along the way with the seasons of college basketball the guys on this team accumulated,” said head coach Russell Turner.

The talent on this squad stands out amongst their opponents in the Big West, but their biggest strength in their continuity. No chemistry is lost as four of last season’s starters will return to bring back one of the top defenses in the nation.

“Last year we had one senior, this year we have three,” head coach, Russell Turner commented. “Last year we started two freshmen so those guys have a full year of experience and a full offseason of improvement. I feel like the offseason improvement this team has made is significant. Most of the improvement is individual, but I think our team will be better too because we have some continuity.”

Alex Young and Luke Nelson played together for Great Britain in the FIBA U-21 Europe Championship, which has allowed the two to build confidence and chemistry as they faced the best young talent in Europe. Will Davis III has been working on his midrange jumper and face-up game to help space the floor for Mamadou Ndiaye, while the 7’6” sophomore has added more muscle to his already giant frame.

In addition to their returning starters, the Eaters’ other key strength is their front court rotation. Senior John Ryan could fill in for Ndiaye with his burly 6’ 10” frame while freshman power forward Jonathan Galloway can bring energy and athleticism off the bench.

Sophomore Luke Nelson has shown potential to be a leading scorer for UC Irvine last season. The team will need him to be assertive on the offensive end this season. Photo courtesy of UC Irvine Men’s Basketball Facebook Page

Concerns: One glaring issue last season was the number of turnovers from Luke Nelson, Alex Young, and Mamadou Ndiaye. While Young’s turnover total (70 in 2013-2014 season) has remained the same the last two seasons, Nelson must protect the ball better as he accepts a larger role on the offensive end. Ndiaye had trouble keeping possession in the post, let alone putting the ball on the ground, given his underwhelming hand-eye coordination. This is likely the reason why the team don’t go to him as a primary option in the post despite his height.

Irvine will need to make major improvements on the offensive end. Although the ball distribution is evened out among all positions, the Anteaters struggled with a lack of go-to scorer during offensive lapses. While Will Davis is doing what he can to space out the floor with a midrange jumper, Coach Turner will need Luke Nelson to make a major leap in shouldering the offensive load. When his team goes through a scoring drought, Nelson must be confident in his shot-creating abilities to keep his team in the game.

The Eaters also struggled at making their free throws last season, an issue that has plagued their offense in close games. The four returning starters shot a combined 61.5% from the charity stripe last season, making two free shots look anything but automatic. This will be a problem for a team that struggles with stagnant lapses on the offensive end.

Schedule: UC Irvine boasts an intriguing pre-conference schedule heading into this season, which includes Arizona and Oregon. Sports Illustrated projects Arizona to finish runner-up in the NCAA Tournament this season due to their athletic wing players and a much-hyped freshman named Stanley Johnson. UCI has the toughness and experience to be a challenging matchup for the Wildcats, and will do all they can generate a lot of buzz around their mid-major program.

“No matter if they’re the number one team in the nation or a D-2 school, we still come with the same attitude that we’re going to win the game,” said Davis regarding the schedule. “When we play a team like Arizona or Oregon, I feel like that pumps us up and brings out a better performance from all the players.”

The Anteaters cannot afford to underestimate the Big West Conference. Irvine certainly learned their lesson after losing to Cal Poly, a team that finished 6-10 in the Big West Conference, in the Big West Tournament final. Although it’s unlikely that Cal Poly will repeat their Cinderella run, the Anteaters still should be on their toes. Cal State Northridge have improved under head coach Reggie Theus while both UC Santa Barbara and Long Beach State retained their leading scorers.

The Anteaters know they cannot take the season for granted and will look to march to the tournament one game at a time.

“We can’t look straight into the postseason and take it one game at a time,” Davis commented. “Especially for us seniors, me, John Ryan, and Travis (Souza), we just need to live in the moment because every game is just one less game left for us in final season.”

Prediction: This is a focused UC Irvine team that will find ways to win games, whether it’s by grinding it out on the defensive end, going to the post, or relying on streaky shooting from the perimeter. This team is versatile, which is good enough to take the Big West regular season and tournament title. The Anteaters will enter the NCAA tournament for the first time this season.

Recently the Los Angeles Lakers made a coaching change from defensive minded Mike Brown to offensive powerhouse coach Mike D’Antoni. While Phil Jackson was rumored to be the favorite and frontrunner for the vacant coaching position, Lakers management decided to go in a different direction and choose D’Antoni.

Mike D’Antoni has his work cut out for him as the floor general in the win-or-bust culture of the Los Angeles Lakers. Thank goodness he doesn’t have to deal with Smush Parker or Kwame Brown. By malingering (http://www.flickr.com/photos/malingering/100354196) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The buzz around the NBA is that the Laker players are all bummed about the non-hiring of Phil Jackson. Can D’Antoni get the job done? While people question D’Antoni, they also forget that from 2004-2008, he was one of the most highly-regarded coaches in the league, leading the Phoenix Suns to either the first or second seed in the Western conference each year. He and the Suns never went to the finals or won a title but he also didn’t have the players for it. Now, in Los Angeles, he is re-united with two-time MVP Steve Nash and the future looks bright.

As it has been shown in his last few years in New York, the other main player that D’Antoni had while in Phoenix, Amare Stoudemire is more of a liability in D’Antoni’s system than a star player. D’Antoni now has Nash again but also has a mixture of other great players. D’Antoni has never coached anyone like Kobe Bryant and he also now has something that he never did in either Phoenix or New York — a dominant center. Dwight Howard is considered the best center in the NBA and he is playing alongside Pau Gasol, who D’Antoni believes is the most skilled big man of his generation. He is an Amare Stoudemire-type player, but better. Pau might not be as dominant and physical but he can score like Stoudemire and can shoot better. The combination of these four players, not to mention the crazy, yet loveable, Metta World Peace puts D’Antoni into a good place as a coach just with his starting lineup.

Since D’Antoni is known as an only offensive coach, questions have surfaced about the Lakers once vaunted defense. Howard and Bryant both have sterling defensive credentials, though, and I think the defense will be just fine. The best defense is a good offense and that is something that the Lakers will surely have. The bench play has been lackluster thus far this season, so with D’Antoni’s system it really can’t get any worse. D’Antoni is clearly stating guys’ roles, which should help the bench guys. He told Jody Meeks the only good shot he should be taking is when he has the ball.

The Fact Of The Matter

The Lakers management showed that they were serious about the post-Phil era by hiring both Mike Brown and now Mike D’Antoni. I guess they decided to see how a defensive minded coach would work for them and since that “failed,” and I strongly use the quotation, now they look to an offensive minded coach to see if that can turn things around in Laker land. While I would have loved to see a return from Phil Jackson, D’Antoni was the next best option that the Lakers had and I expect the Lakers to still contend for a championship and ultimately make the finals.

But, as D’Antoni said himself, “If we’re not at least in the hunt [for a championship], a serious hunt, then I’ve failed as a head coach. I’m comfortable with that.” D’Antoni realizes that he is no longer in Phoenix or New York where failure to win a title and just making the playoffs can be considered a sign of good things to come but he is now in Los Angeles, with the most storied franchise in NBA history, where failure is not an option.

Any person who follows basketball has seen that the biggest disappointment five games into this young NBA season has been the Los Angeles Lakers, who currently sit at the bottom of the league with a 1-4 record. Their most recent defeat came last night at the hands of the 2-3 Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. After the home-opening loss to the Dirk-less Dallas Mavericks, many fans and people around the league have looked to the head coach as the problem and have been calling for Mike Brown’s job. But Mike Brown isn’t the problem and shouldn’t be getting all the blame for the lack of success the Lakers have been having so far into this season. And I, for one, am not calling for Mike Brown’s job just yet.

The Lakers aren’t exactly running the triangle anymore, and Pau Gasol seems lost on offense. By Ben Chaney (http://www.flickr.com/photos/epioles/5359481072/) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

The problem so far this season isn’t Brown, nor is it the players’ fault. It is a mixture of the offense being run under Eddie Jordan, the lack of bench production and the lack of time this team has had to play together. The main problem for the Lakers so far is their running of the Princeton offense. I think the frustration of the offense has led to lack of defense. Last season, the Lakers were regarded as one of the better defensive units. That shouldn’t be any different this season since the team traded for three-time defensive player of the year Dwight Howard. The frustration on offense has led to many fast break points and points off of turnovers for Lakers’ opponents. But when the Lakers actually get to set up their defensive schemes, it looks pretty looks with nice switches and interior defense.

A Solution:

If the Lakers want to fix their problems on offense, they need to ditch the Princeton offense, fire Eddie Jordan and bring on offensive minded coach Mike D’Antoni as assistant coach. While D’Antoni ran himself out of New York, his teams were still some of the most explosive offensive teams in the NBA. Keep Brown as head coach and let him run the defense and use D’Antoni as strictly offense. D’Antoni used his fast paced offense with average point guards in New York and it worked, so why would it be any different in Los Angeles where he would have such players as Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol at his disposal. Of course D’Antoni would be the reunited with Steve Nash as well. The two spent time together in Phoenix for six years, two of which were Nash’s back-to-back MVP seasons. Yes, Nash is older, but the 39-year old can still run and gun as he showed last season in Phoenix, averaging 17.8 points a game and 10.1 assists per game with a mediocre Suns team. Bringing in D’Antoni won’t solve all the problems but it would sure up the offense, something the Lakers desperately need as they sit at 1-4 in the standings.

Many people also forget that the team has played only has three games where all the players were on the court together and Dwight Howard and Jordan Hill weren’t even fully healthy. That isn’t much time together to learn how to play cohesively and get it clicking. Chemistry plays a huge part in any team sport and that is something that the Lakers are lacking at the moment and will continue to lack until after the All Star Break, when everything will be clicking and all this talk will just be a thing of the past. Also, this is a very new group of players, many of whom need more than a few games to come together. Once Dwight Howard is fully healthy and can do the things on the court that we as basketball fans are accustomed to him doing and when Nash gets back on the floor, this team will be fine.

Bench Play:

The Nash injury also hurts this team very much. While Steve Blake is an above-average backup point guard, he isn’t meant to be a starter and playing so many minutes. He is meant to come off the bench and shoot — that’s it. He shouldn’t be running an offense that includes Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol. If the Lakers want to make sure that they get at least a decent point guard to plug into their starting five while Nash is hurt or is Nash gets hurt at any other time throughout the season, they need to either trade for Jose Calderon of the Toronto Raptors or sign veteran Delonte West whom they had interest in during the offseason.

With Blake starting, the bench production is even lower than it should regularly be. The Lakers have never had super-strong bench play (even in their championship seasons), but with the depth many NBA teams have, it’s something that they need to work on. Antwan Jamison, the biggest name the Lakers added to the bench during the offseason, has been a bust so far, averaging 3.8 points a game after exploding last season in Cleveland for 17.2. Jamison isn’t a “go to” guy anymore, but that still doesn’t excuse his lack of production. Another player the Lakers signed and expected to be a part of the bench was Jodie Meeks who hasn’t really seen much playing time for some odd reason, playing in only three of the five games this season. Jordan Hill has been the only consistent bench player for the Lakers this season. If the bench play doesn’t become more productive, the entire Lakers team will be in trouble when they get later into the season.

While many people in Laker town are worried or concerned about the slow start for the team, they shouldn’t be yet. It is still VERY early in the season and the Lakers will get it clicking, give this team time, that’s all they need. It probably doesn’t help the team that all their fans and all the writers have turned on this team five games into the season. IT IS ONLY FIVE GAMES. If they are 3-17 or anything like that after twenty games into the season, then there should be cause for concern and Brown should be fired but until that happens (and I don’t think it will), Laker fans and all the writers should do what Kobe Bryant says and “Shut up!”

I caught-up with J.D. Scroggin of the San Luis Obispo Tribune on Monday night. J.D. is gearing up for his fifth season covering Cal Poly sports.

Coming off his second appearance on the C.J. Silas show, J.D. took some time with us to talk Fall sports at Cal Poly, in particular Volleyball, Men’s Soccer, and especially football.

The podcast either evolved or devolved, depending on your point of view, toward the end when Luke joined the podcast and J.D. started talking about his days as a rapper.

Hope you enjoy the podcast!

Dave Grant primarily calls men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, women’s basketball, and softball for Cal Poly on gopoly.com

Most Cal Poly fans can recognize the voice of Tom Barket, who is the play-by-play announcer for football, men’s basketball, and baseball. He is, fairly clearly, the voice of the Mustangs. But, in the words of Yoda, there is another.

Less than one year ago, Dave Grant was brought on to announce play-by-play for Cal Poly Athletics. The first game he called was a men’s soccer game vs. UCSB. After Cal Poly won the match on a late dramatic goal, he was reminded that “not every game is going to be this exciting.”

While that is true, you might not know it talking to Grant. He is all-energy and you can tell he really has a passion for calling live sports.

I first heard Dave’s voice when Joe Callero’s men’s basketball squad won a low-scoring victory over USC in the Galen Center last season. To keep anyone listening during such an offensively bereft game was certainly a challenge, but Grant painted a solid picture of the game.

We’ll try to catch up with him more as the Fall season progresses. Hope you enjoy.

This last Monday I called around. Who wants a run? Who wants to get a game together? Who wants to at least shoot around? Almost a dozen local calls and no one was up for it. That wasn’t going to keep me from trying to sustain some kind of jumper and keep up on my post moves. I set out for a one-on-nobody, gym-rat-type workout.

One hour before dusk, I jog-dribbled up the street to the school, mixing in between the legs and around the back staggers with my bull-terrier trying to guard me up the street. He still fouls way too much.

When I got to the entrance of the black top, I heard an unfamiliar voice across the street shout out to me, “aye mayne, aye mayne where you goin’ to?”

While heeling my dog I turned to see who was shouting in my direction. It was a young, well-dressed African-American man that I didn’t recognize. I replied, “just going to head over here and shoot.  Why, you want me to show you something?”

With his phone stuck to his ear he began to laugh and proclaimed to whoever was on the other end of the line, “yo, you hear dis? This kid over here says he wants to show me something! You hear dis over here?”

I jogged onto the court that was the grammar-school recess stadium of my youth, dressed for the sweat-drenched occasion. My challenger, adorned in his slacks, tie and cardigan, with the phone still stuck to his ear, slowly followed.

We shot around with respectful ball-returns. There were a lot of them because we were both splashing the bottom of the net from twenty or more continuously. I knew I was in for a challenge. He knew he was in for one too.

We exchanged backgrounds. Jamal was 25 and from Durham, North Carolina. He said he had only been in the area for a very short time. When I mentioned “The Dukies” to him, he raised an eyebrow and said, “you could get beat up where I’m from by calling them that.”

He was surprised that I also had visited his hometown some five years ago, and that the smoke-snorting bull in left field was never hit at the game I attended. I was ticked off that I didn’t win a steak at the Durham Bulls game.  He laughed.

When I told him about my life, he couldn’t get over how lucky he thought I was. This gave me a small sense of pride, yet at the same time, made me feel like I might be taking my fortuity for granted.

First to seven. Visitor gets first. Ball in.

He whizzed by me in dress clothes and I backed him down in my Adidas. Soon the score is point-four, advantage, me. A back-down, turn-around from the elbow. Game. We were both winded. He isn’t happy with the outcome, as he catches his breath to utter, “best two outta three.”

We got a quick drink from the nearby water fountain. We exchanged plights. I quickly learned that mine didn’t even compare to his. He was dressed as he was because he was selling magazine subscriptions door-to-door for an organization that supplies sporting goods to underprivileged youth.

Game two. My endurance wasn’t what I thought it would be. Jamal scored by going by me to the hole and hitting mid-range, fade-away jumpers after sagging my defense to my heels, as I was seemingly unable to challenge his shots. Home team loses, seven to three.

I talked about Cayucos and the Central Coast. He talked about how he is slowly getting used to the way things are here but still misses home. Its a tough way to go, 3,000 miles away from home, out there on your own.

He expressed how stingy he thought everyone here was. I told him, “welcome to the world of being a salesman during tough economic times, regardless of where you are.”

People are used to what they are used to, be it a lot or a little, which may very well be a socio-economic fault of our capitalistic system. He seemed to understand and yet rebel at the idea at the same time.

Rubber match.

Ball. Jab. Shot-fake. Jab. Cross. Lay-up.

I then conserve some energy and hit a jumper after the same initial jab fake. 2-0 big fella.

Back and forth. He scores while I admit fouls and I back him down with a few Shaq-esqe, drop-step gimmies. I then channel Mr. Leary on the same court in which we used to play. “Four to three, good guys.”

Jamal snickers in frustration and tosses the ball underhand to me a little harder than he has been. Sundown is saturating a low, foggy haze on the top of Cayucos Drive.

Bricks and rebounds ensue.

As the result lags to the finish, the home team ultimately prevails with slow, measured back-downs that end in jump hooks and an up-and-under. The winner “showed him something,” yet is humble about it, and the loser is just appreciative for the game.  Funny how a game can mirror life, personality and circumstance.

We gathered our goods and walked out onto the street as darkness sets in. We shared a genuine handshake and parted ways by wishing good luck to each other.

When most would feel comfort in this, I felt guilt that even in these hard times, my advantages were something that I may take for granted, and he was going to need a lot more luck than me to make it here through no fault of his own.

I know who the champion of this year’s tournament is going to be. Could it be Duke, a number-one seed with all the moxie that a defending national champion should have? Is it Notre Dame, with their rich football tradition and their more-than-budding basketball dominance? Does a team like St. John’s have a chance? They’ve played a really tough schedule all year and proven they can beat anyone. Is there a star ready to emerge? Who is really favorite this year?

The favorite, and undisputed champion of the tournament every year is, in fact, The Unexpected.

Last season, it was Butler, whose poise and talent led them to the final and a half-court heave away from a National Championship. Though the perennial Horizon League heavyweights are always good, they are still from the Horizon League and yet, they still made it to the championship game.

When talking about the unexpected, we can talk all about Bryce Drew’s Valparaiso team making it through to the Sweet 16. Western Kentucky, Davidson, and George Mason all come to mind when talking about tournament surprises. When Princeton beat UCLA, it was my first experience of being, literally, upset by the outcome of a game (Go Bruins).

Upset City?

Though there will be some upsets this year—there always are—I want to make an argument for going “with the chalk” while filling out your brackets. In the 24-hour news cycle sporting world, there is so much information that it’s hard to sort it out. This is the untenable job of the selection committee.

Where there might have been systems in place 20 years ago to ensure correct seeds, it was an inexact science. Committee members had to tout the teams that they saw from their region. Perennial powers were given the benefit of the doubt because there just weren’t as many opportunities to watch basketball or gather the statistical information that is now available.

Like the rest of America, I’m left in the dark about the exact process for seeding the teams, but I think it’s safe to say that the gentlemen in the room have more information at hand than ever before. This is why I am predicting that, starting about five years ago, there was more “chalk” than people expect, despite the parody we have seen in college basketball over the past 10-20 years.

This was my prediction in the past as well. A few years ago, the one 12-seed I picked to win was the only one that lost. While my general “when in doubt, go with the chalk” mantra might not ring true over one year or even two, I think it will start to move more and more that way.

Look out West in 2011

I’m not revealing all of my quality picks (sure to go wrong) yet, but I will say this: The Pac-10 will surprise people. Everyone has been so down on the conference all year, and for good reason. Games seem long, teams grind, and there aren’t a lot of flashy stars. But UCLA, Arizona, and Washington all have a realistic chance of some upsets.

UCLA could match-up with Florida in the second round, and you know that Ben Howland would like nothing more than to get Billy Donovan’s team back for the butt-kickings they took in the championship game and the Final Four in recent years past.

Washington is, without question, the most talented team coming from the Pac 10. Lorenzo Romar and Steve Lavin were both assistant coaches on the 1995 UCLA championship team, and Romar seems to have channeled Lavin in his ability to recruit top-notch talent. While Romar’s teams still manage to lose games they shouldn’t throughout the year, they are too talented to be ignored. Having a very good, experienced, and talented point guard in Isaiah Thomas doesn’t hurt either.

Arizona is on the rise too. While I don’t have them going as far as UCLA or Washington, Derrick Williams (The Whole Enchilada from La Mirada) is a dominant player. Talent usually prevails in the tournament and, like Washington, Arizona has a lot of talent.

Look for the Pac-10 to offer some surprises.

Are there too many teams in the tournament?

While amid conversation this week, I realized that there are games starting on Tuesday night and that the four games that are being played before Thursday aren’t just the eight worst teams. Two of the games will be played by four at-large teams; presumably the four ‘last’ teams to get into the field of 68. I’m still trying to process how I feel about:

a) the first “round” of the tournament now being 6 days long, and..

b) 12-seeds who have to play a “play-in” game.

Call me a purist, but I think I’d prefer to stay with the 64-team field. Long and spread-out events like the NFL Draft (is it 3 days now?) or the BCS, seem to water-down the actual event for me. Part of what makes the tournament fun is that we haven’t had any basketball for a week now, and then there are 48 games crammed into 4 days on the first weekend – all of which are important.

In it’s “new” format, the tournament loses some of that “excitement” and “frenzy,” as the games are spread out over an entire week. I’m 29 and probably the demographic that the tournament committee wants watching the games, but I’m also busy. I have other things in my life, including a job. Being focused on the tournament for six days instead of four is a little too much for me.

I’ll take my four days of joy – tracking who gets upset and who can achieve what every team strives for – to survive. And advance.

owen@fansmanship.com