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Post by milkman on Mar 27, 2008 21:21:15 GMT -5
What a GREAT SEASON!!! We've got a great start on next season!!
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Post by milkman on Mar 27, 2008 9:45:10 GMT -5
PHOENIX – West Virginia defeated Duke physically and mentally before any surrender on the scoreboard. It’ll get no such quarter against Xavier.
The Musketeers and Mountaineers are near mirror images. Both are averaging 75 points while allowing 63. Both grab 35 rebounds per game and have made about 260 threes. The assist and turnover numbers are similar. All that likeness extends even into the mindset of each program.
West Virginia attacks foes with man pressure and tenacity unmatched by any other school squad in recent memory. It has literally fought for rebounds in the postseason, Cam Thoroughman sending a forearm into the back of Duke’s Gerald Henderson after the two exchanged elbows in the lane. That came after Wellington Smith floored one Blue Devil with a screen and Joe Mazzulla answered the challenge of Greg Paulus by telling the guard he’d had enough of his lip – and that more comments might cause a fat one.
Xavier has used the same mixture to win a school-record 29 games. It has a prototypical swingman in 6-6, 220-pound C.J. Anderson and an athletic power forward with Derrick Brown. Guard play is controlled by savvy senior Drew Lavender, a pass-first player who can shoot the three. The center is serviceable and gets help off the bench in Josh Duncan, a 6-9 forward who can out-jump taller players. Interchange player names – and even attitudes – and it might as well be a West Virginia scouting report.
“They play hard, and that brings toughness to your team,” Thoroughman said. “Being deep and having guys that score have allowed both teams to get here. But we are similar, both tough teams that take what is there.”
While also dishing it out. The Musketeers beat up on a Cincinnati side used to doing the same, besting the Bearcats 64-59 by creating a stalemate in rebounding. They knocked off Indiana by 15 points and bashed Belmont, a team that played Duke within a point in the NCAA opening round, by 31. Xavier even held Kansas State’s Michael Beasley, arguably the most intimidating player in college basketball, to five points in a blowout win. The catalyst for all of it has been a defense-first philosophy and a value of rebounding and rugged play.
“They are much more physical than what they’ve been in the past,” WVU head coach Bob Huggins said. “They run great sets and they have great balance. A lot of that has to do with Sean (Miller, Xavier’s head coach). He has done a great job of exploiting people’s weaknesses.”
That’ll be the goal again. West Virginia handled Arizona and surprisingly soft Duke with more desire and grit. But shove Xavier and it shoves right back. The Atlantic-10 school has been spouting the same motivations as the Mountaineers: They are overlooked and undervalued, and don’t get due respect despite being ranked as high as 10th. A Big East team is a bull’s eye, with the Elite Eight being the eventual target.
“We’re completely consumed with being really good against West Virginia,” said Miller, who played point guard at Pitt in the 1980s. “Our team, our staff, we owe Xavier University to be at our best. … We’ve been led by great experience and togetherness and we’re hungry to continue to play. I think we recognize that getting here is one thing, but being able to stay here enters our team in a completely different category.”
The game, as several players noted, will likely come down to which team can make shots while creating hassles for the other. Xavier is 22-0 when four players reach double figures. West Virginia is 24-0 when outshooting foes. But both are getting trounced on the boards in losses, and have been handled physically in such setbacks.
“They are real physical and crash the glass, so we know they will bring that,” A-10 Defensive Player of the Year Stanley Burrell said. “Our level of intensity will have to be at a high level if we want to advance to the Elite Eight. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
There will be no intimidation, no mental edge to either team. Just a bitter battle in a round labeled as sweet.
“(Huggins) has told us that there were times they won games just on mental and physical toughness,” Mazzulla said. “That’s what he tries to get us to do. I think in the beginning, we didn’t do it as well. Now, we are playing like that every game. You might be knocked down on the ground, or bleeding, but you’re all right. So get up.”
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Post by milkman on Mar 25, 2008 10:43:37 GMT -5
Great read!! The thing that gets me is I'm hearing Duke beat Duke!! Not the WVU outplayed, out coached, or out hustled Duke!! If Duke was not that good then why OH why did they get a #2 seed!! That really heats me up!! If they would have beat us they would be favored to face UNC in the title game!!! That sucks!!!
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Post by milkman on Mar 25, 2008 17:50:37 GMT -5
Feel lucky my dog is to stupid to chew anything!!!!
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Post by milkman on Apr 1, 2008 15:40:49 GMT -5
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Richard Childress Racing will expand to four cars next season with General Mills as sponsor, a partnership that leaves Petty Enterprises searching for financial backing for its famed No. 43 for just the second time since 1972.
[+] EnlargeAP Photo/Rich Cohen
STP was the sponsor of the No. 43 car that Richard Petty drove to 200 victories. Now with General Mills moving on, the car needs a sponsor again.
General Mills has sponsored the No. 43 the past nine seasons, taking over when STP gave up its role as primary sponsor of the car Richard Petty drove to 200 victories. Bobby Labonte currently pilots the flagship Dodge.
But the car will need a sponsor for 2009, and perhaps even a driver.
Childress didn't say Tuesday who will drive his new No. 33 Chevrolet next season, but Labonte's deal with Petty Enterprises is up at the end of this year. As the 2000 Cup champion, Labonte is extremely attractive to Childress because his past champion status would automatically qualify the car for six races.
Robbie Loomis, executive vice president at Petty Enterprises, has previously said the team has offered Labonte an extension that the driver is considering. Loomis did not immediately return a phone call Tuesday from The Associated Press.
But Brian Moffitt, vice president of marketing at Petty, indicated the team will try to sell sponsorship of the No. 43 with Labonte as the driver.
"Bobby is one of the most marketable and popular drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series," Moffitt said in a statement. "He and his family share the ideals and values of the Petty organization and he remains a key component to the long-term future of Petty Enterprises.
"While there is substantial sponsorship interest in Bobby and Petty Enterprises, we will carefully consider our options to ensure the continuation of our rich tradition and to build on current momentum."
The announcement comes at the same time Kyle Petty has decided to climb out of the driver seat of the No. 45 Dodge this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway to allow Chad McCumbee a chance to qualify the car. Petty failed to qualify for last Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway, and doesn't want to risk the car missing another race.
"Everyone at Petty Enterprises believes in Chad and his abilities," Kyle Petty said. "Texas gives us a chance to get another good look at Chad without throwing him to the wolves. He should be relaxed because he knows he can get the job done there."
McCumbee replaced Petty in the car twice last season while Petty took a summer hiatus to call races for TNT.
All this movement comes at a time when Petty Enterprises is exploring taking on a business partner to help the team compete with the superpowers in NASCAR.
"I am proud of our organization's rich tradition," seven-time Cup champion Richard Petty said. "We look at bringing in fresh resources and new partners as a real opportunity to further grow and improve the Petty organization. Especially those who share in the same core values of integrity, dedication and winning that have come to define Petty Enterprises."
Medallion Financial Group is reportedly in talks to partner with Petty through its newly formed entertainment/sports acquisition group.
"There has been speculation of our interest in Petty Enterprises for Sports Properties Acquisition Corp.," president Andrew Murstein said in a statement. "We are very interested in investing in NASCAR and the motorsports industry in general should the right deal come along."
Meanwhile, Childress has finally succeeded in putting together the fourth team he's coveted. He tried to sign both Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch last season, and both drivers were presumably earmarked for a fourth team.
But neither driver signed with RCR, and sponsorship concerns hampered his movement toward a fourth car for this season.
General Mills now gives him the backing to field a new Chevrolet -- and Childress passed on resurrecting his famed No. 3 that has not been driven since Dale Earnhardt's death in the 2001 Daytona 500.
The ability to expand coincides with all three of his drivers ranking inside the top 12 in the standings, with Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick sitting first and second in the Sprint Cup points. But Childress still must find a new primary sponsor for Burton's car, as AT&T must leave the series at the end of this season because of a conflict with NASCAR's series sponsor, Sprint.
GO BOBBY GO!!!!
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Post by milkman on Apr 13, 2008 0:09:31 GMT -5
Great race!!! The fuel mileage gamble was awesome!! Bobby Finished 12th!!! Down a Cylinder for half the race!!!!
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Post by milkman on Mar 29, 2008 21:33:36 GMT -5
I understand that everyone thinks that Jack Roush is a idiot!! That may be but thift is thift and cheating is cheating!! With the penalty on Biffle a few weeks ago for a very questionable call from NASCAR makes you wonder!! If that was RCR, Hendrick, or Gibbs it would have never been brought up!! Now with this weeks sway bar being swiped just because its Roush everyone is like oh who cares!! Thats not right!! Waltrip had real problems with a additive being added at Daytona last year and never recovered!! Now with Toyota being larger in NASCAR now they are not going to make a big deal of this!! NASCAR is to busy trying to keep AT&T off of Burton car!! This is a real injustice and I think it kinda hurts NASCAR image!! I really don't want to know what happens in the garage but this is front and center so deal with it!! I'm not a Toyota fan and I'm not a Roush fan but I want fair play for every team!! NASCAR needs to come up with a fine or suspenision for the person that took the part and team!! NASCAR can fine and suspened crew chiefs for a wrong part or a wrong adjustment to the car!!! Like Jimmy Johnson last year he had to be without a crew chief for 6 races!!! If someone stole the sway bar then I think that is a bigger issue and its needs to be handled that way!!
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Post by milkman on Apr 2, 2008 11:21:06 GMT -5
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY ANNOUNCES PLANS TO BECOME FIRST SPEEDWAY WITH A RETRACTABLE ROOF
Alluring Project Requires Incredible Logistics For Oval Of Landmark Significance; Expansive Project To Dome TMS Expected To Cost $900 Million; Timetable For Completion Is 2011 Samsung 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race; AFD Construction Of Fort Worth To Handle Roof Design
FORT WORTH, Texas (April 1, 2008) – Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage announced plans today for construction of a massive retractable roof that is scheduled for completion by the 2011 Samsung 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race traditionally held in April. The expansive project is expected to cost $900 million to transform the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway oval into the first major domed speedway in the history of motorsports.
“The Houston Astrodome was known as the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World,’ so it is only fitting that Texas – and Texas Motor Speedway – will be the future home of the ‘Ninth Wonder of the World,’ ” Gossage said. “This will be a massive undertaking, but it will be a landmark project in the world of motorsports.”
The project is expected to take 24 months with daily construction crews in excess of 1,000 workers. It is scheduled to begin immediately following this season’s Dickies 500 Sprint Cup race on Nov. 2. Construction will be halted for Texas Motor Speedway’s 2009 and 2010 race weeks and resume following the completion of each of the three current major event weeks: The Samsung 500 in April, Bombardier Learjet 550k in June and Dickies 500 in November.
AFD Construction, of Fort Worth, will handle the design and construction of the retractable roof, additional exterior walls, air conditioning and heating systems as well as an elaborate exhaust system to remove fumes and smoke generated by the cars. The entire roof structure will be a staggering 3.7 million square feet, with the retractable portion being 1.3 million square feet. In comparison, the square footage for the roof – which also will be retractable – for the new state-of-the-art Cowboys stadium will be 745,800 square feet.
“We are extremely excited to undertake this project and make history with Texas Motor Speedway,” said Sidd Finch, who will serve as AFD’s project manager. “It will be truly remarkable to see a retractable dome roof on a speedway of this magnitude.”
Gossage is expected to unveil the specific details of the project later this week at a press conference during the Samsung 500 race weekend. “It’s only appropriate that we announced such an outlandish project like this on the first day of April,” Gossage said. “We’d be foolish to think it would be possible.”
Please note that the first headline bullet is a form of an acronym. Take the first letter of each of those words to find out what words it forms.
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Post by milkman on Mar 26, 2008 17:32:56 GMT -5
All signed up and ready to go!!
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Post by milkman on Mar 26, 2008 15:52:46 GMT -5
Bobby is going to be a new car that he is going to add!! If you notice that Bobby is driving a few races for RCR in the Nationwide Series!! Richard was on Smokes show on Sirus and dropped hints!!! Yeah send me a invite!!
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Post by milkman on Mar 26, 2008 10:56:43 GMT -5
I know everyone has their favorite driver! I've had mine for awhile!! My guy is Bobby Labonte!! Yeah the 43 but I will always see him in the 18 Interstate car!! Bobby is the only guy on the track that will give you a win if you ask for it!! When Dale Sr. won the Daytona 500 Bobby blocked Mayfield and kept the rest of the field off of him!! Dale never forgot that!!! Even Dale Jr. talks about it!! If you notice when someone needs drafting help they go to Bobby!! My thing is that I don't know why his own team can't help him!! He has a crew cheif that won't listen to what he needs!! But Bobby may not be as agressive as he once was but come on!! Finishing lower than 20th is not Bobby style!! I sure hope like hell that he takes the job at RCR and get back to at least one win a year!! Don't even get me started on NASCAR in general!!
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