Dunk of The Week

Russell Westbrook with the ridiculous off the backboard smash on Marco Belinelli. Brought to you by You Got Dunked On.

More: Dunk of The Week

E-Mail Bag Mix: Steel City - Boaz, Cashis & Carlito Rossi Interview, & Verbal Kent and Kaz One

Steel City - Boaz

YO! Raps Interviews Cashis & Carlito Rossi - "The Usual Suspects"

YO! Raps Interviews Cashis & Carlito Rossi - "The Usual Suspects"

VERBAL KENT AND KAZ ONE TAKE YOU ON A JOURNEY WITH BRAVE NEW RAP

LP PRODUCED ENTIRELY BY KAZ ONE AND FEATURES GUEST APPEARANCES FROM ILL BILL, WORDSWORTH, BRAILLE AND COLD HARD OF CRUCIAL CONFLICT

Chicago, IL- Brave New Rap the long awaited collaboration album between Chicago Heavyweights Verbal Kent and Kaz One (who has previously worked with Sean Price, Sadat X, ED O. G and RA Da Rugged Man) is set to be released April 1st, 2009 on Gravel Records.

Verbal Kent has released three albums previously, What Box, Move With The Walls & Fist Shaking and been featured in XXL and Urb Magazines. Verbal has also collaborated with such artists as Ill Bill, Marco Polo, Wordsworth, One Be Lo, Oddisee, Pacewon and he’s also toured nationally with Sadat X, ED O.G, and Count Bass D.

Brave New Rap features production entirely from Kaz One, with guest appearances by La Coka Nostra Leader Ill Bill, EMC’s Wordsworth, Braille, and Coldhard of the legendary Crucial Conflict. Track after track, Verbal and Kaz team up on what many hip-hop connoisseurs are terming to be "the return of real tag-team rap". The chemistry boils as the album blasts off with “Dedicated” and never cools off. The old-fashioned boom-bap of “Wars R Us” and “Remove The Gag” follow, reminding fans of what happens when people who know each other well make music together (e.g. Wu-Tang, EPMD). Tracks such as “Questions” and “Suck A Grenade” ponder what Hip-Hop would be like if skills were the only thing that were relevant and later, Verbal examines the American way and challenges its course with “Identity Theft” and the epic “Power II.”

As Verbal Kent laments Brave New Rap is the culmination of a musical relationship that was fostered over nearly a decade “Me and Kaz met at a emcee battle at a club in Chicago in 2001. This album is the culmination of 8 years of getting to know each other musically. He has produced over half my music, but never a whole record; that's why this release means the most to me. We started off recording songs in a one bedroom apartment in Dekalb, IL. I would take the trip down from the city to build with him a few days a week and after recording a few songs together, we knew we had something good going. A year or so later, Kaz moved to Chicago above a coffee house a friend of mine owned and we just continued to bang out tracks. Kaz produced more then half of my first LP (What Box) and has also produced multiple racks on every record I have ever released and people have always told me I come across best over his beats…I think now I finally agree. Building with just one producer on a record is almost like having this pre-arranged musical outline that you get to weave in and out of when writing a song. It alleviates the pressure and replaces it with urgency. This album has easily been my favorite to work on and I think it shows thru the songs. You want to like a record for a few weeks then buy some other album. Cop this one and your going to memorize every track. That’s what I used to love about a great Hip-Hop album. I’m trying to bring that feeling back.”

Brave New Rap is exactly what the rap game needs---proving to the world that Hip-Hop is alive; and more then well.

Tracklisting and credits for Verbal Kent & Kaz One’s “Brave New Rap”:

1.) How We Figured It Out (Introduction)
2.) Dedicated
3.) Wars R Us
4.) Remove The Gag f/ Ill Bill & Wordsworth
5.) Questions
6.) Snake F*ckers & Androids f/ Soweto Kinch, Sunny Jim, Altruisms, Roadblok and Doomsday
7.) Friends (Interlude 1)
8.) Suck A Grenade
9.) Fast Rapping Time
10.) Identity Theft
11.) Verbal Assault f/ Cold Hard Of Crucial Conflict
12.) Silly Rapper, Vomiting Is For Kids (Interlude 2)
13.) Big Bang
14.) Fast Forward
15.) Faith f/ Braille
16.) Power Pt. II

(All tracks produced by Kaz One)

Longtime Eagle Brian Dawkins Signs With Broncos

I don't know about you, but seeing Brian Dawkins in a Broncos uniform just ain't gonna seem right to me. The Broncos signed Dawkins today, as well as, LB Andra Davis and DT Darrell Reid, via ESPN:

The Denver Broncos continued adding to their roster at a torrid pace on Saturday, making three key additions on defense.

The team announced it had signed seven-time Pro Bowl safety Brian Dawkins, who spent his previous 13 years with thePhiladelphia Eagles. According to a source the deal is for five years and $17 million. The deal could escalate to as much as $27 million if Dawakins can reach some achievable performance levels.

And the team reached a two-year deal with former Browns linebacker Andra Davis and a three-year, $6.8 million deal ex-Colts defensive tackle Darrell Reid, according to sources.

The Eagles and Dawkins were discussing a two-year contract offer when the Broncos entered the picture to lure him to Denver.

Over the first two years of his contract, Dawkins is scheduled to make $9 million. Of that total, $7.2 million is guaranteed.

Since the start of free agency, the Broncos have added Dawkins, Reid, Davis and safety Renaldo Hill for their defense. They added wide receiver Jabar Gaffney and running backs Correll Buckhalter and J.J. Arrington to their offense. And they signed Texans wide receiver David Anderson, a restricted free agent, to a three-year, $4.5 million offer sheet.

Davis, 30, is seven-year veteran starter. He had 90 tackles last season for the Browns.

Reid can play defensive tackle who can help out at fullback. He's also one of the best special teams players in the league.

More: NFL

New England Patriots Trade Matt Cassel & Mike Vrabel to Kansas City Chiefs

The Patriots sent Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel to the Chiefs for a second round pick in this year's draft. This is a great deal for the Chiefs, who look like they are getting a solid QB and also a veteran who can help their defense. What this means for the Patriots is that they must be pretty damn confident that Tom Brady is going to return on time for next season. Also, by acquiring the 34th pick in the draft, the Patriots now have 4 of the first 60 picks, which is the most of any team in the draft. Should be an interesting draft day for the Pats.

More: NFL

Stephon Marbury - 1st Game With Celtics - Post-Game Interview (Video)

Stephon Marbury had a strong debut with the Celtics scoring 8 points on 4-6 shooting. That's all the Celtics really need him to do off the bench.

Shaq Scores 45 Points vs. Toronto Raptors (Video)

Shaq had a huge night yesterday with 45 points against the Raptors.

Beat A Rapper Down - Jay Rock feat Busta Rhymes

New joint from Jay Rock featuring Busta Rhymes.

Beat A Rapper Down - Jay Rock feat Busta Rhymes

More: New Joints

On My Way - DJ Kitsune feat. Sheek Louch, Rasul, & Kaled Ibrahim

New joint featuring Sheek Louch.

On My Way - DJ Kitsune feat. Sheek Louch, Rasul, & Kaled Ibrahim

More: New Joints

Untold Story of Walter Reed - Killah Priest (Mixtape)

New mixtape from Killah Priest.

1. The Intro
2. The Covenant
3. The Killer
4. The Perfect MC
5. Growing pains (ghetto)
6. Gabriel’s palace the dybbuk
7. Never Existed
8. ME
9. G/Ciples feat. G/Ciples
10. My World
11. Sanskrit
12. Among Gangsters
13. Just some shit off the top
14. Numbers
15. Recognize
16. Live (for the moment)
17. Starkim freestyle feat. Starkim
18. Killah Man
19. 840 Babylon
20. Taking it back
21. Slaughter House freestyle

Download: Untold Story of Walter Reed - Killah Priest (Mixtape)

Fred Taylor Signs With New England Patriots

It looks like Fred Taylor's career will not be over just yet as he is expected to sign with the Patriots. Coach Belichick had some very positive words to say about Taylor, via ProJo Sports:

"Fred Taylor, you just can't say enough about him. He's a great runner. He's a strong, powerful guy. [He's] very nifty in the open field, excellent blitz pick up, one of the better blockers that we've seen in the league from his position. He's a complete player [and] does a great job," Belichick said.

Not sure what this signing means for Sammy Morris, Lamont Jordan, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis, but I would imagine that at least two of them might be out the door. Sammy Morris played well for the Pats last season, so I would be surprised to see them let him go.

More: NFL

Nate Robinson Interview With John Thompson (Video)

Check out this interview of Nate Robinson by John Thompson where Nate talks about being a little guy in the NBA, getting the crowd involved in the game, and his slam dunk championsip.

Albert Haynesworth Signs With Washington Redskins

Wow, talk about a BIG move by the Redskins by signing DT Albert Haynesworth away from the Tennessee Titans. Haynesworth is one of if not THE most dominant defensive tackle in the NFL. In a league where games are won at the line of scrimmage, Haynesworth is a phenomenal asset to have on your team.

I still think the Titans will be able to absorb the loss of Haynesworth because they have a GREAT defense, so the loss of one player will not make their defense bad, it will simply just make them a little less dominant. I'm sure they will find an adequate replacement for him as well. Most of their problems lie on the offensive side of the ball anyway, so they are probably better off spending some money on some offensive playermakers to complement RB Chris Johnson.

For the Redskins, this move is huge, because Washington had the 4th best defense in the league last year giving up just 288 yards a game, which mean they could go from a solid defense to a dominant one. They were 8th against the rush and 7th against the pass, so they really had no weaknesses and the addition of Haynesworth will only help them improve in both areas. While this move is great for them defensively it now puts a ton of pressure on the offense. They need to step it up, now that the defense looks like it will definitely be Super Bowl caliber. Can Jason Campbell continue to improve and lead the Redskins to a Super Bowl? I'm not so sure, but this definitely improves their chance of making the playoffs. I'm sure the Eagles, Cowboys, and Giants were not happy about this news. By the way, could the NFC East get any tougher?

More: NFL

Stephon Marbury's Impact On The Boston Celtics (Video)

EJ, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley discuss the impact that Stephon Marbury will have on the Celtics and of course they think it will be a positive one. I see a lot of haters out there with this move, but I mean come on, it's not like the Celtics are looking for him to do anything more than play 15-20 minutes a game. Charles also likes the addition of Mikki Moore, probably not as much as he likes blow jobs though. Can't say I blame him either!

I Get It In (Freestyle) - Sheek & Styles P

"...I used to move the rock and dish it off like Rondo..."

New freestyle from Sheek and Styles P over 50 Cent's Dr. Dre produced single, I Get It In.

I Get It In (Freestyle) - Sheek & Styles P

More: New Joints

Swagger (Street Leak Remix) - Grandmaster Flash feat Red Cafe, Snoop Dogg, & Lynda Carter

Another new remix/bonus joint from Grandmaster Flash's new album, The Bridge.

Swagger (Street Leak Remix) - Grandmaster Flash feat Red Cafe, Snoop Dogg, & Lynda Carter

Original: Swagger - Grandmaster Flash feat Red Cafe, Snoop Dogg, & Lynda Carter

More: Remixes & New Joints

Take It To The Streets - JR & PH7 feat Planet Asia & Rakaa Iriscience

Hot new joint from two of Cali's finest off the JR & PH7 album.

Take It To The Streets - JR & PH7 feat Planet Asia & Rakaa Iriscience

More: New Joints

Let's Move - JR & PH7 feat Skyzoo

Another new joint off the JR & PH7 album, this one features Skyzoo.

Let's Move - JR & PH7 feat Skyzoo

More: New Joints

Shine All Day (Remix) - Grandmaster Flash featuring Q-Tip, Jumz, & Kel Spencer

New remix/bonus joint from Grandmaster Flash's new album, The Bridge.

Shine All Day (Remix) - Grandmaster Flash featuring Q-Tip, Jumz, & Kel Spencer

Original: Shine All Day - Grandmaster Flash featuring Q-Tip, Jumz, & Kel Spencer

More: Remixes & New Joints

Hip Hop Lives - JR & PH7 fear Ed O.G.

Came across this production album from JR & PH7 that has some tight beats on it. Here's a new joint from Ed O.G. off the album.

Hip Hop Lives - JR & PH7 fear Ed O.G.

More: New Joints

Dr. Gerard Leavenworth - The Football Obsessed Gynecologist - Global Sports Fraternity

I highly suggest you check out Global Sports Fraternity, which is a site that is "dedicated to bringing out the humorous side of sports through original characters." They got some funny vidoes on there, but my favorite character is Dr. Gerard Leavenworth, who is a football obsessed gynecologist, and hardcore Philadelphia Eagles fan.

Check out some of the videos below 'cause I promise you will be laughing your ass off:

Jimmy Rollins - Dick's Sporting Goods Commercial

Check out this funny new Dick's Sporting Goods commercial featuring world champion Jimmy Rollins.

More: Commercials

Rickey Henderson On Mike & Mike In The Morning (Video)

Check out Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson on Mike & Mike in The Morning, talking about whether some of the well known stories about himself are true or false.

Wobble Wobble - Capone N Noreaga feat Mobb Deep

Hot new joint from CNN featuring Mobb Deep.

Wobble Wobble - Capone N Noreaga feat Mobb Deep

More: New Joints

Circulate - Young Jeezy (Video)

New video from Young Jeezy for my favorite song off of his last album.

Audio: Circulate - Young Jeezy

Can't Stop Me - Jadakiss (Video)

New video from Jadakiss for the first single off his new album. Let's see how fast this post gets pulled.

Gerald Wallace Alley-Oop Dunk Vs. Kings (Video)

Check out this sick alley-oop dunk by Gerald Wallace against the Kings last night.

AJ Price Scores 36 Points, Helps Jim Calhoun Win His 800th Game (Video)

Damn, AJ Price was killing it last night, with a career high 36 points and 8 three's. He also crossed over Jerel McNeal pretty damn bad if you watch the 2nd video....and oh yeah, Jim Calhoun became the 7th coach ever to win 800 games.

Creepin Solo - Chamillionaire feat The Game & Ludacris

New joint from Chamillionaire featuring two of the big boys.

Creepin Solo - Chamillionaire feat The Game & Ludacris

More: New Joints

Come With Me - Ludacris & David Banner

This new joint from Luda and David Banner is pretty hot, now if we could just get a version without the DJ drops that would be perfect.

Come With Me - Ludacris & David Banner

More: New Joints

Internet Connection - Reflection Eternal feat Bootsy Collins

Some new music from Reflection Eternal. Not really feelin' this one too much though, hopefully the rest of the joints will be better than this one.

Internet Connection - Reflection Eternal feat Bootsy Collins

More: New Joints

Play My Music (Produced by Statik Selektah) - Reks

New joint from Reks.

Play My Music (Produced by Statik Selektah) - Reks

More: New Joints

NBA Weekly: Stephon Marbury To The Celtics?, Orlando Magic, Could The Pistons Miss The Playoffs?, & More

Boston Celtics: It looks like the Celtics have made their playoff moves, first by adding big man Mikki Moore and now they are looking to add Stephon Marbury as their backup PG. Both of these additions would improve the Celtics bench greatly. Moore is 6'11, but he weighs only 225 pounds, so I'm not sure how helpful he will be on defense or if he is even any good on defense. His defensive rating for his career is 108, which means he gives up 108 points per 100 possessions, and his rating has been getting worse as he gets older. Now that could partly be because the Kings are so bad on defense that no one individual defender is going to look good statistically on defense. The Celtics as a team have a defensive rating of 100.3, which means Moore is about 8 points worse than the Celtics per 100 possessions. Considering he'll probably only play 20-30 possession a game maximum, it shouldn't be too big of a deal. What he does provide is another big man who can hit jump shots, which is something Leon Powe and Big Baby can't do on a consistent basis. This should help spread the floor out some for the second unit. Yahoo Sports says this about Moore: Moore’s a hard worker and has some length, but isn’t a big rebounder/shot blocker type of power forward and he gets overpowered by bigger bodies. Guess that clears up the defensive part.

As for Marbury, well I don't think anyone would deny that having Marbury as your backup PG is going to help your team. Marbury can still score and should be able to create shots for the second unit as well. He also gives the Celtics another option if Rondo goes on a cold streak at the end of games or if the Celtics just want another 3-point shooter on the floor. I have no doubt that the Celtics will get the best out of Marbury, since KG alone should be able to motivate him. Now Marbury isn't guaranteed to go to the Celtics, because he still has to clear waivers I believe and it's possible someone like Miami might want to pick him up, but I'm pretty sure Marbury will choose the Celtics when all is said and done.

Orlando Magic: Unfortunately for NBA fans, Jameer Nelson is now officially done for the season, which means the Magic will not be 100% healthy to challenge the Celtics and Cavs in the East. However, they did trade for Rafer Alston to help ease the loss of Nelson and so far Alston has been playing well. The main thing Orlando needs Alston to do is distribute the ball and he is doing that for the Magic averaging 7.3 assists in 3 games. However, Alston is a terrible shooter from the floor percentage wise and typically shoots under 40% from the floor, so the Magic would do best to advise him to not shoot too much. He can knock down some open 3's, but even then he is just a 35.5% shooter from three for his career. The play of Alston, along with Courtney Lee and Anthony Johnson, will play a big part in just how deep this Orlando team can go in the playoffs.

Detroit Pistons: I mentioned a few weeks back that the Pistons were finished as a contender and you could write them off for this season. Since then, they have gone 1-7 after having lost their last 7 games, including 4 straight at home. Ouch, even I didn't think they would fall off THAT bad. Right now they are only two games up on Chicago who is in 9th place in the East, which means there's a very realistic chance that Detroit might not even make the playoffs. Things don't look like they will get better for the Pistons anytime soon either, since they have 3 straight road games against New Orleans, Orlando, and Boston.

Other NBA News:

- Bad news for anyone who picked the Nuggets to win the NBA Finals: Nene will out at least two weeks with a right knee contusion. By the time he comes back, the Nuggets might have slipped out of having home court in the West for the first round.

- The Cavs could be adding Robert Horry, who could possibly help them in the playoffs. He wouldn't be a bad option to try to suck away opposing PF's from the paint and he can guard a few different positions.

- One of my personal favorites, Ryan Gomes, is averaging 20.2 points and 16.2 shots per game while shooting 47.4 percent from the field, since Al Jefferson went down with a knee injury. Nice to see Gomes stepping it up, too bad it hasn't resulted in more victories for the T-Wolves though.

- Head Coach Patrick Ewing? Hell, I'd love to see that and so would he. Imagine the sweat he would work up on the sidelines though.

More: NBA Weekly

Old School Wednesday: Hell On Earth - Mobb Deep

With Havoc dropping an album this week, I thought I'd post up some classic Mobb Deep for Old School Wednesday.

Audio: Hell On Earth - Mobb Deep

More: Old School Wednesday

Evil Doers Beware - Last Emperor & MC Exposition

Another new joint off the Mass Movementz album.

Evil Doers Beware - Last Emperor & MC Exposition

More: New Joints

King of The Jungle - Blaq Poet, Jayshaun, & Termanology

New joint off the Mass Movementz compliation.

King of The Jungle - Blaq Poet, Jayshaun, & Termanology

More: New Joints

Shame - Cesar Comanche

Another new joint from Cesar Comanche off of his new album, Die In Your Lap. Produced by Khrysis.

Shame - Cesar Comance

More: New Joints

E-Mail Bag Mix: DJ CLUE TV Presents "WHO'S THE DJ" Reality Show Auditions

Thought some people might be interested in auditioning for this:

DJ CLUE TV presents "WHO'S THE DJ" Reality Show Auditions.

We are looking for The following people.

* DJ's "When we have 200 videos submitted we will close the doors for applying.
* 2 Hosts/Hostess
* 5 Models to represent DJ Clue TV

How to Audition: Go to http://linkbee.com/GCI2 for details.

NCAA Basketball Weekly: Kansas Improving, Oklahoma Still A Mystery, Willie Warren's Stock Is Rising, Mountain West Conference, & More

Here are the top 10 teams in Overall Efficiency this season with strength of schedule in parentheses:

1. Memphis .978 (12)
2. North Carolina .973 (48)
3. Pittsburgh .971 (8)
4. Connecticut .970 (21)
5. Duke .964 (15)
6. West Virginia .962 (3)
7. Louisville .961 (32)
8. Missouri .958 (86)
9. UCLA .956 (27)
10. Kansas .955 (26)

Last Week:

1. North Carolina .978 (12)
2. Memphis .976 (48)
3. Pittsburgh .974 (8)
4. Connecticut .973 (21)
5. Duke .968 (15)
6. West Virginia .962 (3)
7. UCLA .960 (32)
8. Missouri .958 (86)
9. Arizona State .951 (27)
10. Louisville .951 (26)

Kansas(10) has worked their way into the Top 10 for the first time this season, replacing Arizona State(12). Yes, the Jayhawks are good, but they are probably third level good at best. They still have an outside shot at making the Final 4, but they would probably need to be in the right bracket. I do like that they have been improving throughout the season, so Kansas is definitely a team to keep an eye on down the stretch, because they may show us even more than they have so far. A Big 12 tourney championship would mean this team is probably going to be a handful in the NCAA Tournament.

Teams To Keep An Eye On:

Oklahoma: The Sooner are a frustrating team for me because they have been ranked outside the Top 10 in efficiency for almost the whole season, despite being what many see as one of the favorites to reach the Final 4. I have held back on calling them an elite team, because their defense is holding them back somewhat efficiency wise. Their weaknesses on the defensive side are not being able to turn other teams over(283rd), defensive rebounding(148th), and guarding against the three(201st). Right now, if they do get a # 1 seed along with UConn, Pitt, & UNC, then they would look like the # 1 seed most likely to get knocked off. However, they certainly have some high quality NBA talent on their team with Blake Griffen and Willie Warren, which is why I am hesitant to doubt this team. Also, efficiency wise, this season is as close to the year that George Mason made the Final 4 than any other recent season, which means even if Oklahoma does not have a high caliber defense, their overall talent might be enough to get them into the Final 4. It would have been nice to see Griffen play against Texas and Kansas though, so we could gauge just how good this team really is. Right now their best wins are against Purdue(17) and Utah(27) and while both of those teams are solid, they are definitely not the benchmarks to use when judging if a team is great. I'm not sure they can matchup with UConn, Pitt, and UNC and unfortunately we won't know the answer until well after we fill out our brackets.

Mountain West Conference: With teams like Georgetown continuing to lose and a lack of high quality mid-majors teams that deserve automatic bids, the conference that could benefit the most is the Mountain West. They are ranked as the 7th best conference about even with the SEC and well ahead of Conference USA and the A-10. They will almost certainly get 2 and probably 3 bids and may have a chance to get even more. There are currently 5 teams in the conference ranked in the top 50 in efficiency: BYU(15), Utah(27), New Mexico(30), San Diego State(39), and UNLV(49). Utah is currently leading the conference and will definitely be in if they win it and at this point it looks like they will at least tie for the lead. Utah also has a win over Gonzaga(13). BYU, in my mind should be in, since they have a victory over Utah State(50) and played both Arizona State(12) and Wake Forest(18) extremely close to go along with victories over San Diego State and New Mexico. UNLV sports victories over Louisville(7) and Arizona(33) and has beaten BYU twice and will have a chance to beat Utah for the second time on Wednesday. ESPN even has San Diego State in the tournament right now, which would just leave out New Mexico.

Players Catching Wreck:

Willie Warren, Oklahoma: Despite the fact that Oklahoma has lost their last two games, it has been no fault of Willie Warren. Without Blake Griffen, Willie has really stepped his game up, which could be a plus for the Sooners come tournament time. If Warren can continue his good play from the last two games when Griffen comes back, then Oklahoma will greatly strengthen theirs chances of making the Final 4. In the past two games, Warren has averaged 25.0 points and 4.5 assists, while shooting 18 of 36 from the floor, including 9 of 18 from three. Warren is most likely going to be a one and done player and has worked his way into a projected lottery pick with his recent performance.

Stats: 15.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.3 steals, 49.3% FG, 38.7% 3FG.

Unheralded Player of The Week:

Ryan Rossiter, Siena: You may or may not know that Siena is leading the MAAC right now with a 15-1 record. You probably should remember Kenny Hasbrouck from last year's team that upset Vanderbilt in the NCAA Tournament. However, chances are that you have never even heard of sophomore forward Ryan Rossiter, but he could be the key reason why Siena might be even better than last year. The 6'9 Rossiter is the 24th most efficient offensive player in the country and is 14th in true shooting percentage. He is a double-double threat and also active on the defensive end. He could be a key to any cinderella tourney run that Siena makes.

Stats: 9.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.3 steals, 2.0 blocks, 61.9% FG, 80.9% FT

Other Thoughts:

- Florida State is currently being projected as a 4 seed, but they rank 48th in overall efficiency, so they are clearly not even close to being one of the top 16 teams in the country. History tells us that teams that are seeded too high compared to their overall efficiency rankings generally get knocked off early in the tournament. If Florida State is given a high seed that is a 5 or better, look for them to be a strong candidate to lose in the first round, and I would not expect them to get past the second round, unless they are matched against another poorly seeded team. I will be doing more analysis like this again this year once all brackets are set next month, so be on the lookout for that.

Games To Checkout This Week (Overall Efficiency Rank):

Tuesday:
BYU(15) at San Diego State(39)
Florida(41) at LSU(40)
Florida State(48) at Boston College(59)

Wednesday:
Dayton(85) at URI(60)
Duke(5) at Maryland(66)
Kansas State(37) at Missouri(8)
UConn(4) at Marquette(21)
UNLV(49) at Utah(27)
Kentucky(26) at South Carolina(55)

Thursday:
Minnesota(47) at Illinois(22)
Purdue(17) at Michigan(69)
West Virginia(6) at Cincinnati(63)
Memphis(1) at UAB(36)
Arizona State(12) at Washington(16)
USC(35) at California(31)

Friday:
Siena(64) at Niagra(68)

Saturday:
Clemson(14) at Florida State(48)
Duke(5) at Virginia Tech(76)
Texas(25) at Oklahoma State(46)
Georgetown(23) at Villanova(20)
Notre Dame(32) at UConn(4)
Utah(27) at BYU(15)
Arizona(33) at Washington(16)
UCLA(9) at California(31)
LSU(40) at Kentucky(26)

Sunday:
Michigan(69) at Wisconsin(29)
Michigan State(11) at Illinois(22)
Ohio State(44) at Purdue(17)
Missouri(8) at Kansas(10)
Cincinnati(63) at Syracuse(34)
Marquette(21) at Louisville(7)
Tennessee(42) at Florida(41)

Monday:
Baylor(53) at Texas(25)
Villanova(20) at Notre Dame(32)

More: NCAA Basketball

Nate Robinson Scores Season High 41 Points Vs Pacers (Video)

Slam Dunk champ Nate Robinson went off last night for a season high 41 points against the Pacers. Some people like to get on Nate for his"antics," but come on he's 5 foot nothing and probably heard his whole life he was too small to play in the NBA. I bet he thinks about that everytime he steps out on the court and that's why he's so emotional throughout the game. I love to see that type of enthusiasm out there on the court.

Nate also showed some love to actor Will Ferrell. Gotta love Nate.

Devin Harris Half Court Game Winner Vs. 76ers (Video)

Check out this ridiculous half court game winner by Devin Harris last night.

Album Release Tuesday: Hidden Files - Havoc, Padded Room - Joe Budden, Smoke N Mirrors - B-Real, Blaq Out - Blaq Poet, Troubadour - K'Naan, & More

New albums this week: Hidden Files - Havoc, Padded Room - Joe Budden, Smoke N Mirrors - B-Real, Blaq Out - Blaq Poet, Troubadour - K'Naan, & Die In Your Lap - Cesar Comanche

Joints: You Treated Me - Havoc ft Cassidy
On A Mission - Havoc ft Prodigy
Heart of The Grind - Havoc

Joints: Everything U Want - B-Real ft Buckshot
Smoke N Mirrors - B-Real
Don't Ya Dare Laugh (Remix) - B-Real feat Xzibit & Young De
Fire - B-Real ft Damian Marley

Joints: Ain't Nuttin' Changed (Prod. by DJ Premier) - Blaq Poet
Too Strong (Prod. by DJ Premier) - Blaq Poet

Videos: Ain't Nuttin' Changed (Prod. by DJ Premier) - Blaq Poet

Joints: Now I Lay - Joe Budden
Do Tell - Joe Budden
The Future - Joe Budden ft The Game

Joints: Hands High (Prod. by 9th Wonder) - Cesar Comanche

Joints: ABC's - K'Naan ft Chubb Rock
I Come Prepared - K'Naan feat Damian Marley

Topless - Dr. Dre feat T.I. & Nas

New joint from Dr. Dre that has T.I. spittin' Dr. Dre's verse and Nas spittin' a verse that is probably gonna be his own on the final version of this track.

More: New Joints

Rakim Joint (DJ Booth Freestyle) - Jon Hope

New freestyle from Jon Hope.

Rakim Joint (DJ Booth Freestyle) - Jon Hope

More: New Joints

MLB Weekly: Ken Griffey Jr Back In Seattle, Could Twins Be Favorites In The AL Central? & More

Ken Griffey: I had originally suggested that Griffey go to the Braves because I felt like he would have a better chance to win there. I also feel like Griffey's return to Seattle is going to make him the story there all year long, since the team isn't going to be any good, the focus will be on him and it will seem like a farewell tour. However, after looking over the situation, Griffey probably has a better chance to stay healthy with an AL team since he will get most of his at bats at DH. This is something that I didn't consider and it seems to be the major factor in where Griffey decided to play. If Seattle is out of things early though, we still might see some team try and trade for Griffey around the trade deadline, but honestly I think he finishes the season in Seattle.

Minnesota Twins: The Twins signed 3B Joe Crede and are looking at possibly dealing for reliever Juan Cruz to be their setup man for Joe Nathan. If Crede can stay healthy than he will definitely be a productive player for the Twins. With the addition of a healthy Crede and possibly the live arm of Cruz to the bullpen, I am getting very close to predicting that the Twins will win the AL Central this year. I think they have a couple players on their team who could have breakout seasons offensively and their pitching is always solid, especially with Joe Nathan closing games for them. I think the Twins main competition in the AL Central will be the Indians, although I still think the White Sox will be in the mix too. Detroit needs to shore up their pitching before I consider them a contender for the division and I think Kansas City is still a .500 team at best. I'm not ready to make a prediction just yet, but I'm definitely leaning towards the Twins right now.

Other MLB News:

- After missing out on Griffey, the Braves signed OF Garrett Anderson, who could platoon in LF with Matt Diaz. Anderson will provide the Braves lineup with another solid and reliable bat. The Braves also signed pitcher Tom Glavine, who will get to end his career where he started it.

- The Dodgers were able to improve their team by signing 2B Orlando Hudson. The O-Dog is one of the better 2B in baseball and superb in the field, so for the Dodgers to sign him for just 1 year and $3.4 million is a steal. Now if they could just wrap up that Manny deal.

- Pitcher Dontrelle Willis has completely revamped his pitching motion and is throwing with an increased velocity that has him hopeful that he can make the Tigers rotation this season. I was a big Dontrelle fan, so I'm hoping that he can make it back this season and pitch well for the Tigers.
- The Rays signed Jason Isringhausen to a minor league deal and he could compete for their closer job if Troy Percival is unable to pitch.

- The Rangers signed pitcher Kris Benson to a minor league deal. Benson missed all of 2007 with a rotator cuff and elbow injury and spent last season in the minors.

- Nomar Garciaparra is drawing interest from the A's and Phillies, with the A's being the favorites at this point. Nomar is also said to be strongly considering retirement.

More: MLB & MLB Weekly