The semifinals of tomorrow's Quaker Summer Slam will be pretty awesome:
Franklin vs. Kentwood, 4pm, Franklin High court #1.
Rainier Beach vs. Jefferson (back-to-back Oregon state champs), 4:15pm, Franklin High court #2.
Two of the top seniors-to-be in the nation will be in action: Josh Smith of Kentwood, rated #7 overall in the class of 2010 by Scout.com, and Terrence Jones of Jefferson, ranked #43. Both are being recruited by Washington.
Also playing, Anrio Adams of Franklin, who's been terrific in the tournament. He's ranked among MaxPreps' 2012 players to watch.
In a consolation game that should be fantastic, Garfield will play Bellevue at 5:25pm on court #2.
The final is at 6:20pm on court #1.
Tickets are $6, and reasonably-priced concessions are available.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Tomorrow's Quaker Slam Semis
Friday, June 5, 2009
NBC Sports Classic
NBC, UR doing it wrong.
The New York Times tells me that the French Open men's semifinal between Roger Federer and Juan Martin del Potro is the fifth set.
However, when I tune to NBC, I get the first semifinal, which concluded several hours ago. With NBC only showing tennis until 1 p.m., safe to assume we won't be getting to see all five sets of the Federer semi, which evidently has the makings of a classic.
Apparently East Coasters aren't getting to see any of the Federer match, just a tape delayed, edited version of the first semi between Robin Soderling (who?) and Fernando Gonzalez (howzits?).
This is not the 1970s, NBC. If you aren't going to show sports live, why bother?
Let the Seahawk Stalking Commence!
Ever feel the need to talk to your favorite Seahawk, but can't because of all those pesky Qwest Field security guards? Fear not, as your gridiron heroes will be appearing in a far more collegial atmosphere over the next couple of weekends.
For example, Friday night (6/5), Seahawks defensive lineman cum musician Craig Terrill will be performing his unique brand of countrified rock at The Triple Door. Tickets are $25.
Terrill will also be performing Saturday June 13 at the Lake Chelan Riverwalk Pavilion. That show is free. Here's the deets.
Also on Saturday the 13th, former Seahawk Bobby Engram is holding a celebrity softball game to benefit his foundation. Tickets are $10-45. Expected to attend, among others, are: Nate Robinson, Jamal Crawford, Nate Burleson, Deion Branch, Marcus Trufant, Deon Grant, Seneca Wallace, Aaron Curry and Leonard Weaver. Most surprising guest? Longtime Colts backup QB Jim Sorgi. For God's sake, I hope they let the poor guy start.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Why I'm Glad My Mom Doesn't Manage the Orioles
So I'm watching tonight's M's/Orioles game with my mom, when Adrian Beltre comes up with the bases loaded in the ninth inning against O's flamethrower Jim Johnson.
We had this conversation...
Me: So this is interesting--most teams get Adrian Beltre out by throwing curveballs, but this pitcher is only going to throw fastballs.
Mom: Why won't he throw a curveball?
Me: Because his strongest pitch is a fastball, he doesn't have a good curve.
Mom: Well why don't the Orioles bring in a guy who does?
Me: [long pause] I...don't...know.
My mom, in case you don't know her, is not even remotely a baseball fan, I think she's been to about two M's games in the past ten years.
Yet, she's right! Why the hell would you let Adrian Beltre, a pure fastball hitter, decide the game against a guy who can't throw a breaking ball? Especially when Beltre was having no trouble getting around on Johnson's heat.
I'm really glad the Orioles hired Dave Trembley instead of my mom, because if she were in charge we might be lamenting another close Mariner loss.
UW Recruits at Quaker Summer Slam
With temps in the eighties and the sun shining, it can mean only one thing: Time to duck inside a musty high school gym and watch some basketball!
On the for-real tip though, some fantastic players--including two Lorenzo Romar has his eyes on--should be playing in this weekend's Quaker Summer Slam. If you can duck out of work early on Friday, check out this doubleheader:
Garfield (with Tony Wroten, Scout.com's #1-rated SG among juniors-to-be) vs. Eastside Cath., 4:15 p.m.
Kentwood (with Josh Smith, Scout.com's #2-rated C among seniors-to-be) vs. Bainbridge, 6:20 p.m.
Both games are at the Franklin High gym.
UW is recruting Wroten and Smith; so is practically every major program in the country.
In between those games, Franklin itself will be playing. Check out the next in that long line of stellar Franklin guards, sophomore-to-be Anrio Adams -- who MaxPreps lists #1 on their national list of 2012 players to watch.
Also making that list, and appearing in this tourney -- Seattle Prep's Mitch Brewe, O'Dea's Jalen Ward, and Garfield's Pierre Wright.
The other player of note who'll be competing is Bellevue's Aaron Bright; Bright is a recruiting target for Cal, Arizona, Stanford and Wazzu, according to Scout.com.
If you can't make it on Friday, each team will play two games on Saturday and a game on Sunday. Can't tell you the matchups yet, it'll depend on who wins in the first round.
I went to the first round of this event last year, the games were very competitive. Tom Wyrwich of the Times attended the final day, and wrote that the intensity rivaled that of state tourney games.
Below is the full list of Friday's games, held at Franklin and at Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club. Check my Twitter feed for updates about the tourney. Here's the full bracket.
Games at Franklin (map):
Jackson vs. Seattle Prep, 4:00 p.m., Court #1
Garfield vs. Eastside Cath., 4:15 p.m., Court #2
Franklin vs. Sammamish, 5:10, #1
Federal Way vs. Blanchet, 5:25, #2
Kentwood vs. Bainbridge, 6:20, #1
Kings vs. Lincoln, 6:35, #2
Jefferson vs. Wilson, 7:30, #1
Foss vs. Renton, 7:45, #2
Mead vs. Mark Morris, 8:40, #1
Bellevue vs. Eisenhower, 8:55, #2
Games at Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club (map):
Rainier Beach vs. Ballard, 5:00 p.m., Court #1
Enumclaw vs. West Seattle, 5:00 p.m., Court #2
O'Dea vs. Curtis, 6:10, Court TBA
Mt. Si vs. Bethel, 6:10, Court TBA
Lakes vs. Eastlake, 7:20, #1
Puyallup vs. River Ridge, 7:20, #2
