The Sixers went into Houston tonight and earned a convincing road victory over a good Rockets team, 102-95. The team played well, shooting 22 of 23 from the free throw line, took 24 three-point shots, and battled their way back from a significant deficit. This is their fourth straight win.
Thad scored 17 points for the team, while Willie Green got 15.
Also impressive was the team’s ball guarding and the play of Andre Iguodala, who had 10 rebounds and 14 points, with 10 of those points coming in the fourth quarter.
What was your New Year resolution? We all know the drill. I’m gonna lose 40 pounds. I’m gonna make it rich. I’m gonna ask that girl out in the office. Whatever the goal was, few of us have pulled through on the big plans. We have hope.
The Philadelphia Phillies begin their new season this year with a new batch of members that they hope can get us over the hump this year. The Sound of Philly is here now to give you a rundown of the newest members of the team. Please hold your applause until the end of the lineup…
Roy Halladay - If you don’t know who this man is, then you must have been out of the country for a while (and Canada), but we’d be glad to fill you in. Halladay has been the ace of the Toronto staff since about 2002. His record since 2002 has been 130-59 with an overall career E.R.A. of 3.43. Impressive stuff considering that he has been pitching in the more offensive American League. The Phillies may have had to give up a bunch of prospects, including pitching stud Kyle Drabek, and they had to depart with ace Cliff Lee in the blockbuster three team trade done this offseason, but the Phillies have stated that they are committed to winning during this golden window of opportunity that they have. The front office made a move that will ultimately save money (Cliff Lee is looking for Sabbathia money next year) and in return for making the move, they are getting arguably the best pitcher in baseball in the peak of his career who has not been injury plagued. Knock on wood.
Another quick dose of Phillies new leading up to pitchers and catchers reporting in a couple of weeks. The Phils have signed six players to minor league contracts.
The most well known of the bunch is outfielder Freddy Guzman, who spent all of last season bouncing around between several teams’ AAA affiliates – Baltimore, New York Yankees, Seattle, and Boston. His numbers were kind of ho-hum. In 101 games, he hit .223 with 2 home runs, and 17 RBIs. The lone bright spot was that he stole 45 bases in 54 attempts – could he be our guys to come off the bench in close games during the late innings?
The Sixers announced today that Allen Iverson would miss tonight’s game against the Chicago Bulls. This absence is related strictly to personal reasons as one of his children is ill. He’ll likely be back for Friday’s game against the New Orleans Hornets.
While this wouldn’t normally be worth a post in and of itself, I did want to take the time to send some appreciation Iverson’s way. Leading up to his signing, many people thought he’d be a distraction or that he wouldn’t come to play, but I’ve been rather impressed with it. He’s not the player he was during his heyday, but he’s been solid, averaging 32.7 minutes per game, with 14.7 points, and a 43.5 field goal percentage. He’s also pulling down just under three rebounds each game.
Not an all-star, but a solid player who has achieved what many of us never expected – he’s become one of the guys, mixing in as part of the team.
This week I am finally working “the sound” into the Sound of Philly, something I’ve been meaning to do since day one. I’ve experimented a bit with indie rock, but it just did not fit the fabric of the site.
It’s seems like a no-brainer to feature some Philly soul, and there is no one better to start with than recently fallen soldier Teddy Pendergrass. This video is from a performance on “Soul Train” in the late ’70s, and like a commenter said on YouTube, he definitely had the women losing their minds.
In an announcement from the team today, former defensive back Tom Brookshier died Friday night at the age of 78. He joined the Eagles in 1953 after being drafted out of Colorado, spending 7 seasons in Philly including the Birds’ last championship team. He earned All-Pro honors twice. Tom was also a former CBS announcer.
In a statement today from Andy Reid:
“Tom Brookshier is one of all-time greats, both for what he did on the field and for the kind of man he was off the field. I will always remember him for his booming and bright personality. He had an uncanny love for life, a love for his family and a love for the game of football, especially for the Philadelphia Eagles. He bled green and I will always cherish our conversations and the relationship that we fostered throughout my tenure in Philadelphia. Our deepest condolences go out to his wife, Barbara, and the rest of the Brookshier family.”
Not to be a cynic, but there’s only one reason why a player signs with Drew Rosenhaus – to get as much money as possible. I am not faulting anyone in the NFL for doing this, because if I were in the same position, I’d try to make the most out of my opportunity.
When DeSean signed with Rosenhaus last year, we all knew what was up despite what anyone said to the media. Number 10 knew he was good and worth the money, and he was going to do his best to get it. So it was no surprise this week when he hinted at wanting a new contract.
I haven’t done one of these in awhile, and since baseball is right around the corner, it would be good to look at the Phillies. Believe it or not, pitchers and catchers report in less than a month and our own shortstop Young James recently tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend.
We’re all familiar with the SportsCenter ads that the Leader shows. They’ve become less about actual promoting the show, cuz it’s not like anyone who’s into sports doesn’t know about it, and more about being cheeky and self-referential.
In this ad, Jimmy Rollins is paired up with Scott Van Pelt and the topic is slumps, which J-Ro knows quite well. Our shortstop gives SVP some pointers while they’re watching some tape, and although everyone goes through slumps, the great ones are able to find their way out. Jimmy did.
After two convincing wins, including a confidence builder against the Dallas Mavercks, everyone seemed to hail the new lineup that coach Eddie Jordan was throwing onto the court. Throwing the starting lineup of Jrue Holiday, Allen Iverson, Andre Iguodala, Elton Brand, and Samuel Dalembert out there seemed to move the team in a positive direction. While the win in Dallas may have been an aberration, the convincing win in Indiana was not.
Tonight, going for a season high third-straight win, the team fell back down to Earth with a familiar problem – they unraveled after 3 quarters. This is not a bad team – that is a quality starting five whose ceiling is the bottom end of the playoffs, but Eddie Jordan does not know how to use his lineup.
The Phillies have avoided arbitration again as yesterday they announced that catcher Carlos Ruiz has been inked to a 3-year extension worth $8.85m, first reported by Todd Zolecki.
Definitely good news for the team as Chooch has been a solid, if not spectacular member of the team the past few years. On top of that, the recent trades of catching prospects Jason Jaramillo, Lou Marson, and Travis d’Arnaud made this a necessity.
His line in four seasons with the team is .246/.337/.379, but his flashes of brilliance are what make this deal all of the more intriguing. For example, if we regularly see the beast from 2009 and last year’s playoffs, this will be one hell of a deal. Hopefully the team sweetened the pot with some ice cream.
This means that the team will not go to arbitration with any of its players.
The Sixers went into Houston tonight and earned a convincing road victory over a good Rockets team, 102-95. The team played well, shooting 22 of 23 from the free throw line, took 24 three-point shots, and battled their way back from a significant deficit. This is their fourth straight win.
