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Disputed last-second foul helps Colorado stave off Oregon [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 5, 2012, 7:00 am] It took a flurry of big three-pointers, a disputed last-second foul and a clutch game-sealing free throw, but Colorado managed to thwart Oregon's bid to be the first Pac-12 team to win in Boulder this season. When Colorado corralled the rebound of Olu Ashaolu's potential go-ahead free throw with the score tied and just a few ticks left on the clock, Nate Tomlinson furiously drove the ball up the court and drew contact from E.J. Singler as he attacked the rim. To the delight of the pro-Buffaloes crowd, referees whistled Singler for the crowd, enabling Tomlinson to sink the game-winning free throw for a 72-71 victory. The call sent Oregon coach Dana Altman into a rage when it was made, but it's pretty clear referees got this one right. Even though it's always preferable for players to decide the outcome instead of a referee's whistle, Singler's feet were far from set when Tomlinson crashes into him and his subsequent attempt to block the shot also appeared to result in further contact. Perhaps Altman had seen a replay before he spoke to the media on Saturday night because he'd calmed down considerably by then. "Part of the game," he told the Eugene Register-Guard. "We didn't shoot free throws well; they beat us at the free-throw line. That was a big difference." The victory was critical for surprising Colorado because it kept the Buffs (16-7, 8-3) within a game of first-place Washington for the Pac-12 lead. Five of Colorado's final seven games are on the road, however, beginning with a suddenly very significant game on Thursday at Arizona. Picked 11th in the Pac-12 preseason poll after losing four of its top five scorers from last year's team that narrowly missed the NCAA tournament, Colorado has relied on a youthful roster to emerge as the league's most pleasant surprise. Freshman guards Spencer Dinwiddie and Askia Booker combined for 33 points on Saturday against Oregon. The Ducks (16-7, 7-4) came closer than any Pac-12 team to winning in Boulder, but they nonethe Video: ‘Golf Boys’ reunite at the Waste Management Open [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 5, 2012, 6:50 am] It wasn't exactly the Beatles or R.E.M. getting back together, but on Saturday afternoon at the Waste Management Open, the "Golf Boys" got back together for a one day only concert -- OK, so it really had to do with Bubba Watson and Ben Crane being paired together -- that, shockingly, occurred on the stage ... I mean, 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale. While the impromptu concert only had two of the four members, Crane and Watson tried their best to serenade the crowd -- I can't type those words with a straight face -- with "Oh Oh Oh" (if you haven't seen the music video, check it out). Credit to the two guys for pulling this off on the rowdy 16th -- especially Crane who pulled out the helmet and goggles for the occasion. Golf has a tendency to be viewed as a stuffy sport, but this hole at the Waste Management Open continually proves that some of the guys on tour know how to have fun. But don't quit your day job, fellas. I'm not quite sure you're ready to go on tour with those voices. Video: Spencer Levin only 18 holes away from first PGA Tour win [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 5, 2012, 6:44 am] It's a different week and a different stop on the PGA Tour, but it's difficult to watch the Waste Management Open and not feel a little Déjà vu. That's because for the second tournament in a row, a relative unknown will be going into the final round of a PGA Tour event with a sizable lead over the field. One week after Kyle Stanley, who was looking for his first tour win, took a five-shot lead into Sunday at the Farmers Insurance Open, Spencer Levin -- he fired a solid 3-under 68 on Saturday -- will do the same thing with a six-shot lead in Scottsdale. He'll also be looking for his first win. Let's just hope Levin doesn't suffer the same gut-wrenching fate as Stanley. But if Levin does stumble on Sunday, he'll have some big names waiting in the wings to capitalize, including Webb Simpson (11-under) and Bubba Watson (10-under), who are both within striking distance. Of course, Kyle Stanley is also in contention at 9-under. Now I'm not saying he's going to win tomorrow, but if the golf gods want to throw him a bone after last week's train wreck, I don't think anyone would complain. Smarter Stats: Super Bowl Edition — New England’s offense vs. New York’s defense [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 5, 2012, 5:50 am] Of course, the big story surrounding New England's offense is the health of tight end Rob Gronkowski. He's been practicing on a limited basis, but if Gronk can't go at full speed, it's a problem -- he was targeted 15 times (a season high) against New York in Week 9, and caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. Just as important was the way the Giants reacted to the tight end -- they often shifted their coverages to match him if he moved from inline or went in motion from one side to another. Clearly, he is the focus point for every enemy defense. What Gronkowski can do, even if he can't run and plant and cut at his normal level, is block at a level that no other tight end in the NFL can match. In the AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens, Gronk was asked to take Terrell Suggs one-on-one and did that very well. But it was the extent to which he was able to either pull or slide inside and deal with Baltimore's interior pass rush -- specifically that brought by super-tackle Haloti Ngata -- that was so impressive. A half-healthy Gronk who could still block at his normal level would still be almost as valuable as if he was 100 percent, because two of the few carryovers from Super Bowl XLII are these: The Giants still bring furious pressure from the inside (especially with Justin Tuck), and Tom Brady still has trouble dealing with pressure right in his face. We saw far more of Gronk as a receiver than as a blocker the last time he faced the Giants, but that doesn't mean that he couldn't handle Tuck -- it just means that he'd be doing different things in this game. Actually, don't be surprised if the Patriots do a lot of different things to counteract New York's pass rush and multiple fronts. In Week 9, according to Football Outsiders' game-charting data, the Pats went with six offensive linemen on 13 of their offensive snaps. As the Ravens and Steelers do, New England likes running out of bunch formations, and they'll throw some interesting positi Sergio Busquets definitely did not fake this injury [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 5, 2012, 12:27 am] We've all made jokes about Sergio Busquets' habit of falling down and clutching his face for no good reason, but this time it was his knee and he wasn't faking. A mere seven minutes after entering Barcelona's 2-1 win over Real Sociedad in the 76th minute, Busquets was accidentally stepped on by Carlos Martinez, opening up a deep gash under his right knee. While the writhing Busquets was treated by team doctors, Cesc Fabregas was visibly sickened by the injury, which probably upset Xavi that much more. Luckily, the cut doesn't seem to be as terrible as originally feared and Busquets may even be able to play again in a few days. From Barcelona's official website: Sergio Busquets sustained an injury on the inside of his right knee that will require stitches. His recovery will mark his availability for upcoming Cup and League matches. And so, like any player truly committed to The Method, Busquets now has an experience to call upon the next time he needs it. Mario Balotelli performs a magic trick during Man City match [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:55 pm] While serving his four-match ban for stepping on Scott Parker, there really isn't too much Mario Balotelli can do during Man City matches besides watch from an executive suite...and perform magic tricks for his friends. As City eased to a 3-0 win over Fulham on Saturday, Balotelli made a Coke can disappear under his magical cloth. Kind of. Anyway, I've decided that unimpressive magic is definitely Mario's second calling. Every time he's banned from football, he needs to go on tour with an elaborate stage show where he shocks and amazes audiences with his easily solved illusions. Video via 101gg Marcus Denmon topples Kansas, then stops a court-storming [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:15 pm] As Missouri students prepared to flood the court just after their team's memorable 74-71 victory over rival Kansas on Saturday night, several Tigers players stood in their path and motioned for them to stay in their seats. It wasn't that Missouri wasn't excited about erasing a late eight-point deficit to beat the Jayhawks for just the fourth time in Bill Self's tenure. It was just that the Tigers didn't like the message that a court-storming against a team ranked lower than them would send. "We know Kansas is a great team but we're at home and we expect to win," senior Marcus Denmon explained to ESPN's Holly Rowe afterward. Missouri wouldn't have been in violation of court-storming etiquette by celebrating forging a three-way tie for first place in the Big 12 with a win over its fiercest rival, yet Denmon's gesture was both fitting and meaningful. It signified that this Tigers team believes it belongs in the Big 12 title chase with Kansas and Baylor, it belongs in contention for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and it belongs among the teams capable of making a deep run in March All that is certainly possible if Denmon can play close to the level he did Saturday night for the rest of the season. The Kansas City native emerged from an 18-for-63 slump in his last five games to erupt for 29 points on Saturday including nine straight after the Jayhawks had taken a 71-63 lead with less than three minutes to play. First Denmon drove hard to the rim, absorbed contact from Thomas Robinson and finished a three-point play to trim the deficit to five. Then after a very questionable charging call on Robinson, Denmon buried a pair of threes on back-to-back possessions to suddenly give Missouri a one-point lead with 56 seconds to play in a game that seemed lost just seconds earlier. Kansas fans will bemoan the blown charging call that cost Robinson a chance at perhaps a game-sealing three-point play, but the truth is the Jayhawks wasted numerous chances to clinch a victory e Missouri topples Kansas, then stops a court-storming [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:15 pm] As Missouri students prepared to flood the court just after their team's memorable 74-71 victory over rival Kansas on Saturday night, several Tigers players stood in their path and motioned for them to stay in their seats. It wasn't that Missouri wasn't excited about erasing a late eight-point deficit to beat the Jayhawks for just the fourth time in Bill Self's tenure. It was just that the Tigers didn't like the message that a court-storming against a team ranked lower than them would send. "We know Kansas is a great team but we're at home and we expect to win," senior Marcus Denmon explained to ESPN's Holly Rowe afterward. Missouri wouldn't have been in violation of court-storming etiquette by celebrating forging a three-way tie for first place in the Big 12 with a win over its fiercest rival, yet Denmon's gesture was both fitting and meaningful. It signified that this Tigers team believes it belongs in the Big 12 title chase with Kansas and Baylor, it belongs in contention for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and it belongs among the teams capable of making a deep run in March All that is certainly possible if Denmon can play close to the level he did Saturday night for the rest of the season. The Kansas City native emerged from an 18-for-63 slump in his last five games to erupt for 29 points on Saturday including nine straight after the Jayhawks had taken a 71-63 lead with less than three minutes to play. First Denmon drove hard to the rim, absorbed contact from Thomas Robinson and finished a three-point play to trim the deficit to five. Then after a very questionable charging call on Robinson, Denmon buried a pair of threes on back-to-back possessions to suddenly give Missouri a one-point lead with 56 seconds to play in a game that seemed lost just seconds earlier. Kansas fans will bemoan the blown charging call that cost Robinson a chance at perhaps a game-sealing three-point play, but the truth is the Jayhawks wasted numerous chances to clinch a victory ev Saturday’s Three Stars: Reimer, Vokoun post shutouts; St. Louis nets hat trick [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:12 pm] No. 1 Star: James Reimer, Toronto Maple Leafs Two straight starts and two straight shutouts for the 23-year old Reimer. After blanking the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night, Reimer followed that up with a 49-save performance during a 5-0 win over the Ottawa Senators. It was his sixth career shutout. Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel each had a goal and two assists as Toronto dropped Ottawa to their sixth straight defeat. No. 2 Star: Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning Playing in his 900th NHL game, St. Louis notched a hat trick as the Lightning downed the Florida Panthers 6-3. St. Louis now has a nine-game points streak, in which he's compiled six goals and 16 points. Vincent Lecavalier pitched in a four-point night and Mathieu Garon stopped 17 shots for his sixth win in seven starts for Tampa. No. 3 Star: Tomas Vokoun, Washington Capitals Earning his third shutout of the year, Vokoun made 30 saves as the Capitals blanked the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. Dennis Wideman, Matt Hendrick and Alex Semin (via a penalty shot) all recorded the goals for Washington as the Capitals posted their third consecutive shutout at Bell Centre. The shutout was Vokoun's 47th of his career. Honorable mention: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' goal in the sixth round of the shootout was the decider as the Edmonton Oilers got by the Detroit Red Wings 5-4. Sam Gagner kept his hot streak alive scoring twice, adding an assist and scoring in the shootout. He's now tallied a point on 11 straight Edmonton goals. Devan Dubnyk stopped 35 shots for his third straight win. Jordan Eberle scored a pair including one with 39 seconds left in regulation to force overtime ... Matt Cooke's goal early in the third period stood as the eventual game-winner as the Pittsburgh Penguins edged the Boston Bruins 2-1. Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves and Evgeni Malkin recorded his 60th point of the season as the Penguins won for the ninth time in 10 games ... Brooks Orpik laid possibly the hit of the year on Daniel Paille in the Carlos Condit pulls upset on Nick Diaz to take UFC interim welterweight title, loser says he’s done [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:02 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Nick Diaz is brilliant at playing mind games with his opponents. Carlos Condit never took the bait before or during the fight, stuck to the gameplan and outsmarted Diaz to get himself a share of the UFC welterweight title. Condit moved beautifully all night and landed 60-plus kicks. He never stood in front of Diaz for more than a few seconds. It all added to a unanimous decision victory, 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, in the main event of UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Condit picks up the UFC's interim welterweight belt. The champion Georges St-Pierre is sidelined until late 2012 after undergoing surgery for a torn ACL. UFC president Dana White couldn't say for certain before the fight if the winner tonight would sit out 8-9 months until GSP is ready. Condit was a pretty big underdog at plus-185. The Diaz-GSP fight was expected to be one of the fights of 2012. A St-Pierre-Condit fight won't have the sizzle, but it should be a helluva fight based on what the new interim champ showed tonight. Diaz's behavior is nearly impossible to predict. He shocked few by complaining about the decision, but then threw everyone for a loop saying he's had it with the sport. "I'm not going to accept this as a loss. I pushed him back all fight. I'm happy for Carlos and his family, but I think I'm done with MMA," said Diaz. Diaz is just 29 years old and one of the rising stars of the sport. He's got a bright future with massive earning potential. "I don't need this [expletive]. He ran from me this whole fight. I landed the harder shots.. He kicked me in the leg with little baby kicks. I don't want to play this game no more. I'm out of this [expletive]," said Diaz. The judges made the right call. The first round was tough to call with Condit starting out strong and Diaz closing well. Condit ran a little too much in the second and lost the round. He corrected his mistake from there and was simply brilliant in the final three rounds. Diaz stalked him for 15 more minutes Carlos Condit pulls upset on Nick Diaz to take UFC interim welterweight title, loser says he’s done with fighting [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 11:02 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Nick Diaz is brilliant at playing mind games with his opponents, but it didn't work on any level tonight. Carlos Condit never took the bait before or during the fight, stuck to the gameplan and outsmarted Diaz to get himself a share of the UFC welterweight title. Condit moved beautifully all night and landed 60-plus kicks. He never stood in front of Diaz for more than a few seconds. It all added up to a unanimous decision victory, 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, in the main event of UFC 143 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. It was a difficult fight to score. Cecil Peoples scored it 49-46 (Condit 1, 2, 4, 5), Patricia Morse Jarman had 49-46 (Condit 1, 2, 4, 5) and Junichiro Kamijo 49-46 (Condit 1, 3, 4) Diaz was shocked when the decision was read. His behavior is nearly impossible to predict, but he threw everyone for a loop during his postfight discussion with UFC analyst Joe Rogan. He complained about the decision and then said he's had it with the sport. "I'm not going to accept this as a loss. I pushed him back all fight. I'm happy for Carlos and his family, but I think I'm done with MMA," said Diaz. Diaz (26-8, 7-5 UFC) is just 28 years old and one of the rising stars of the sport. He's got a bright future with massive earning potential. The loss ended an 11-fight, four-year win streak. "I don't need this [expletive]. He ran from me this whole fight. I landed the harder shots.. He kicked me in the leg with little baby kicks. I don't want to play this game no more. I'm out of this [expletive]," said Diaz. Condit (28-5, 5-1 UFC) picks up the UFC's interim welterweight belt. The champion Georges St-Pierre is sidelined until late 2012 after undergoing surgery for a torn ACL. UFC president Dana White couldn't say for certain before the fight if the winner tonight would sit out 8-9 months until GSP is ready. Coming into tonight's tilt, Condit was sizable underdog at plus-185. The Diaz-GSP fight was expected to be one of the biggest UFC fights of 2012. A Roy Nelson is tough as hell, but it’s not enough to compete with Fabricio Werdum at UFC 143 [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 10:07 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Roy Nelson is slowly shedding the blubber around his midsection, but he still has a ways to go. Fabricio Werdum showed that tonight. The Brazilian, fighting for the first time in the UFC since 2008, actually picked apart Nelson on the feet to cruise to a unanimous decision victory, 30-27 on all three cards. With a giant belly and a mullet, Nelson is the everyman and the crowd at Mandalay Bay roared in approval of the Las Vegas native. He came into the fight at just 246 pounds, his lightest weight in years. But even minus the extra 20 he used to fight with, Nelson was still taking big deep breaths midway through the second round. He was a sitting duck. Werdum is generally regarded as one of the best Brazilian jiu-jitsu artists in the division, but he tore up Nelson on the feet. The 6-foot Nelson played perfectly into the 6-5 Werdum's gameplan of working head control to throw knees. Nelson (16-7 , 3-3 UFC) took a beating to the chin and body along the cage over the first five minutes. It just worse from there. An exhausted Nelson tried to throw the home run overhand right for the next 10 minutes. In doing so, he moved forward and kept ducking his head. Werdum landed more knees and pounded Nelson to the face with his jab. Reality is that Nelson is a tweener. If he really got in great shape, he'd probably still weight 220 pounds. That's too small for heavyweight and way too big for the 205-pound division. Werdum is a massive guy, but still quick enough to avoid the plodding Nelson. Puppy Bowl VIII: The Scouting Report [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 9:47 pm] The Puppy Bowl, the world's finest example of counter-programming, has become a Super Sunday staple. Puppy Bowl VIII debuts on Sunday at 3 p.m. on Animal Planet. What follows is a brief and 100% false scouting report of the top competitors in Sunday's competition. Prancer. Female. Shih Tzu/Chihuahua Mix. Prancer has been a lonesome drifter since Jerry Garcia's death in 1995 and the time of her last bath in unknown. Prancer lacks the aggression of some of the fiercer animals in the field, but her toughness is legendary. This will be Prancer's first Puppy Bowl, but she's competed for years in the underground equivalent, the Cage of Puppy Mayhem, which is contested on a concrete floor in a dirty basement in Queens (Spike TV counterprograms it against the World Series of Poker). Prancer is a two-time CPM champion, winning once with two broken legs. They have never healed. Friday. Male. Maltese/Poodle Mix. Friday's foofie appearance belies an inner anger born out of years of trying to convince people that he's a boy. He's not a powerhouse and his mouth is small â just big enough to bite off the tip of a human pinky. Friday has 53 human pinkies in his collection. Malie. Female. Pit Bull Mix. The rumor on the Puppy Bowl sidelines is that Michael Vick once looked at Malie and said, "Nope. I ain't messin' with that one," and then peed on himself. Vick had a mistaken impression, though â Malie isn't a vicious, ill-tempered, dog-beast; she just looks like it. She'll fare well in the competition based on intimidation alone, but inside, she's nothing but a well-meaning sweetheart who loves children, because people get really mad when you say that Pit Bulls are mean. Leroy Brown. Male. Chihuahua/Terrier Mix. Leroy Brown may one day be an inspiring story about an alcoholic who turned his life around, but for now, Leroy Brown is still just an alcoholic, and a dangerous one at that. Leroy's lack of a conscience or anything to live for make him dangerous inside the Puppy Bo With UFC 143 crowd against him, Josh Koscheck takes decision [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 9:47 pm] LAS VEGAS -- It wouldn't be a Josh Koshceck fight without the fans trying to boo him out of the building, would it? Everyone's favorite UFC villain was it again on Saturday night at UFC 143, frustrating the crowd during his fight against Mike Pierce and taunting them on the mic afterwards. Koscheck took a split-decision victory every bit as close as it sounds, taking two of three 29-28 scores on the judges' card. "Hey, you guys boo me all the time," Koscheck said in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. "I'm the most hated guy in MMA, guess what, deal with it man! I find a way to win." Round one was a very close affair, a tight positional battle with lots of grappling. According to Compustrike, Pierce outlanded Koscheck 22-16 in the round. In round two, Koscheck picked up the pace and opened up a deep cut in Pierce's scalp, above his left eye. Koscheck landed a late takedown fairly easily, but couldn't do much with it. At the start of round three, the Mandalay Bay Events Center crowd serenaded Koscheck with a "Koscheck sucks" chant, then another close round ensued. Koscheck further aggravated the crowd with an apparent eye poke late in the round. Judge Junichiro Kamijo gave Pierce rounds one and two; Jeff D'Amato and Jeff Collins both gave Koscheck rounds two and three. "Mike Pierce is a tough guy," said Koscheck (19-5) "I knew this going in." Koscheck has won both of his fights since returning for the broken orbital bone he suffered in his Dec. 2010 loss to Georges St-Pierre. Follow Dave Doyle on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/davedoylemma Renan Barao proves he’s for real with easy win over Scott Jorgensen at UFC 143 [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 9:03 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Still doubting Renan Barao? No need to anymore. The young Brazilian cruised by a pretty game fighter in Scott Jorgensen taking a unanimous decision, 30-27 on all three cards, on the pay-per-view portion of UFC 143 at the Mandalay Event Center. Barao entered the fight with a brilliant 27-1 record. That includes winning the last 27 straight. The 25-year-old is now a perfect 4-0 in the UFC with wins over Brad Pickett and now Jorgensen. He wasa minus-250 favorite and brought home the victory with ease. Jorgensen is generally regarded as a top seven fighter at 135 pounds. He went the distance in a five-round loss against UFC champion Dominick Cruz. Barao picked him apart on the feet the entire fight. Even more impressive was his takedown defense. In a division, with plenty of former college wrestlers, Barao showed he's not going to have an issue of fighting from his back. Jorgensen, a three-time Pac-10 wrestling champion at Boise State, never came close to threatening Barao for a takedown. He tried three times in the opening round and Barao powered out of the attempt in each case. Twice, he controlled Jorgensen and turned the clinch to his advantage along the cage. That left Jorgensen (13-5, 2-1 UFC) with almost no path to a victory. The shorter fighter with a less developed striking game, Jorgensen couldn't reach Barao with most of his shots. When he did, the power just wasn't there. Barao's jab landed just about every time he threw over the first two rounds. He pieced together some beautiful three-punch combos. "Barao's a tough guy, he's a very well-rounded fighter. I had no sense of urgency and I felt too comfortable in there. It's a tough loss," said Jorgensen. Ed Herman continues win streak with UFC 143 win [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 8:44 pm] LAS VEGAS -- If there was ever any doubt that Ed "Short Fuse" Herman was back, he likely erased them with his victory over Clifford Starks at UFC 143 on Saturday night. Herman missed all of 2010 after a knee injury. But he won both of his bouts in 2011 and looks ready for a step up in competition in the middleweight division after finishing Starks. Herman (20-8) absorbed several big right hands from Starks in a first round that was mostly a tight positional battle. But in the second round, "Short Fuse" found his opening, scoring a trip and using textbook positioning to get Starks' back and sink in a rear-naked choke. Starks tried to roll out of it, but Herman tightened his grip and Josh Rosenthal called off the fight at 1:42. "You know, he was landing some good right hands on me," said Herman. "Luckily, I've got a strong chin. I pulled it off." Follow Dave Doyle on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/davedoylemma Giants get ahead of themselves with ‘Super Bowl Champions’ home page … on Saturday [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 8:05 pm] The "Dewey Defeats Truman" headline is the most famous example of premature jocularity in media history, but on Saturday, the New York Giants inadvertently came a little too close to that mistake for a while on their official homepage: Uh, yeah. They haven't kicked anything off just yet, guys. Of course, the web team for each franchise has to prepare these graphics in advance so that they can go right up for the winning side, someone on the Giants' tech group clearly put this up on the real site when they were looking for the back door. Of course, the page was taken down quickly. "It is common practice for both teams to create web pages in advance of the conference championship games and Super Bowl," the NFL said in a statement. "In this case, the hidden URL for the page was inadvertently available for a brief period of time while it was being positioned on the NFL server for possible post tomorrow night." I don't know ... the Giants have been cocky all week about their chances. Maybe the web guys just caught the fever. On Tuesday, Giants defensive lineman Chris Canty said that New Yorkers should get ready for a victory parade. Pats receiver Deion Branch responded that, well, anybody can throw a parade. Perennially braggadocious safety Antrel Rolle said that the Giants wouldn't have boarded the plane for Indianapolis if they expected to lose. And during Tuesday's media session. Rolle laid it out like this: "We're going to win this thing. We're going to win this thing for a lot of good reasons." Makes sense, of course, You don't want to come to a Super Bowl thinking you're going to get waxed. Even a few Buffalo Bills had to think they had a shot in the days before their fourth straight Lombardi loss in the early 1990s. But that splash page? Not so much. The Giants may indeed be using that page sooner than later, but you know what they say about counting your chickens... Fouls lead to an Alex Caceres loss while Matt Brown is back on track at UFC 143 [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 7:50 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Twice, Alex Caceres landed kicks to Edwin Figueroa's groin that looked like he was attempting to nail 60-yard field goals. But they cost him an extra point and the decision in their bantamweight bout on Saturday at UFC 143. Caceres landed his first kick early in the first round at Mandalay Bay, which sent Figueroa rolling across the mat in agony. Referee Herb Dean issued Caceres a "strong warning" after Figueroa signaled he was able to continue. The rest of the first round was wild, as Figueroa connected with a head kick and nearly finished the fight, but Caceres rallied and went for several submission attempts late in the round. Midway through the second, Caceres struck again. This time, Dean took the highly unusual step of docking the fighter two points for the infraction as the fight continued. Figueroa won round three on all three cards. The scores were 28-27 across the board, two for Figueroa and one for Caceres. If there had been a standard one-point deduction, the bout would have been a majority draw, with two 28-28 cards and a 29-27 for Caceres. "I felt like it was a hard earned paycheck," said Figueroa. "He was a good fighter. I had to dig deep for this one. He came out and landed a few shots early. It was a tough fight but I came out the winner." The loss was the third in four fights for Caceres, the former "TUF" standout. Figueroa was won two straight. "Immortal" Brown back on track. Matt Brown may or may not be "Immortal," as his nickname suggests, but he sure has managed to hang around in the UFC's welterweight division. Brown has grinded his way through 11 UFC fights since 2008, showing promise, but never quite building enough momentum to break through. But he's hoping to turn the page in 2012 after scoring a knockout victory over Chris Cope at UFC 143 Saturday. "That's exactly what I need to be doing," said Brown (13-11) "I got away from who I am." Brown controlled the action in round one against a tentative Cope (5-4), but never got Poirier schools young Holloway with wicked submission at UFC 143 [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 7:43 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Dustin Poirier dealt with Max Holloway's standing onslaught for close to two minutes. That's when he had enough. Time for Plan B. Poirier took the fight to the ground and taught the 20-year-old a lesson. He mounted him, tried an armbar, switched it to a triangle and then wounded getting the submission finish with a nifty armbar from a topside triangle at 3:23 of the first round. Give Holloway some credit. He took the fight on less than two weeks notice against a guy who's one of the brightest prospects in the division. Poirier's finish is currently the lead candidate for Submission of the Night. That could be good for $65,000. Holloway's standup attack was pretty slick. Working behind both hands, some flying knees and plenty of kicks, he had Poirier on his heels. Poirier went for his first takedown with 3:06 left. He got it easily and lifted the slim Holloway into the air before slamming him to the floor. He moved to mount immediately. Poirier simply overpowered Holloway on the ground pinning his arms down on several occasions. Dustin Poirier schools young Max Holloway with wicked submission at UFC 143 [Yahoo! Sports: Blogs: February 4, 2012, 7:43 pm] LAS VEGAS -- Dustin Poirier dealt with Max Holloway's standing onslaught for close to two minutes. That's when he had enough. Time for Plan B. Poirier took the fight to the ground and taught the 20-year-old a lesson. He mounted him, tried an armbar, switched it to a triangle and then wounded getting the submission finish with a nifty armbar from a topside triangle at 3:23 of the first round. Give Holloway some credit. He took the fight on less than a month's notice against a guy who's one of the brightest prospects in the division. Poirier's finish is currently the lead candidate for Submission of the Night. That could be good for $65,000. "I never underestimated Max. I was in his shoes before. He's a tough fighter and good kickboxer. He was quicker than I expected though and hit me with a few shots," Poirier said. "I came here to get a win, and I got the finish. I'm one step closer to being a champion." Holloway's standup attack was pretty slick. Working behind both hands, some flying knees and plenty of kicks, he had Poirier on his heels. Poirier went for his first takedown with 3:06 left. He got it easily and lifted the slim Holloway into the air before slamming him to the floor. He moved to mount immediately. Poirier simply overpowered Holloway on the ground pinning his arms down on several occasions. |