The Big East Conference is one of the most if not the most, talented conferences in the country. There are numerous talented players and teams that are playing their butts off every single night, just to hopefully have a spot in NCAA Tournament. But, what really is intriguing is that even though the conference is full of talented and amazing teams, there is no dominant team. However, that is not to say that not one of these teams do not deserve a chance to be chosen come selection Sunday. Here is an updated report on the top teams in the conference.

Syracuse – Jim Boeheim’s “2-3 Zone” is the best zone defense I have ever seen. Their 2-3 Zone defense shut down incredible teams including Villanova, which is one of the top shooting teams in the country. Syracuse is very athletic and could be a clear example of the old saying, “Defense wins championships.” Syracuse is ranked number one in the Big East in field goal shooting.

Villanova – Although they had a weak performance against Syracuse recently, the Wildcats still have a very tough team that can easily make it to the final four. Villanova is filled with slashing guards and tough big men. They also have a tremendous leader in Scottie Reynolds, who is fifth in the big east in points per game.

West Virginia – The wolverines are often overlooked in the conference. However, they have a very talented team that can easily take home the Big East Championship. Every team they have lost to in the Big East, they have also defeated. He is not very big in the paint, but there is no doubt that senior forward Da’Sean Butler, who is averaging 17.2 points per game, is a tremendous player. Even though Syracuse is the favorite in the Big East, West Virginia is not far behind and I would not be surprised if they win the postseason title.

Georgetown – They are not ranked very high in the Big East conference standings. Even though they have the talent, especially with top pro prospect Greg Monroe, Georgetown does not have a very good chance on winning the postseason title. However, they will most likely be playing in the NCAA Tournament later this month.

Moneyball, is the art of effectively managing a team’s finances (usually under a tight budget) in order to produce maximum results. This term was originally coined in Michael Lewis’s book Moneyball which was based off of the General Manager of the Oakland Athletics, Billy Bean.

While the term “moneyball” often refers to teams of limited resources such as the Oakland A’s and the Florida Marlins, just to name a few, what about the large market teams who have significantly altered the baseball market in a different direction?

When teams spend at will without repercussions they cause the balance in the league to shift. A good example of this was when Gary Matthews Jr. was signed to a $10 Million per year contract by the Los Angeles Angels. Is Matthews Jr. a $10 Million player? No, not even close, but the fact that a team was willing to pay him that much made him a $10 Million a year player. The point is, players are like stock, and as long as someone is willing to over pay for a player, they will then drive up the cost of all the other players in the league.

As long as there are teams that are not penalized for their excessive spending, the lower market teams will be unable to compete on the free agent market. It should be noted however that these lower market teams will be unable to compete on the free agent market, but these teams are still able to compete on the field.

This brings me to my final point, unlimited spending does not equal success. I know my readers are now thinking to themselves, so what is the point of this article then? The point is, as long as large market teams spend frivolously, the price of players will increase, small market teams will miss out, and the league will be inherently unbalanced.

This is a guest post written by Erik Eitel, the founder and owner of NumberOneBaseball.com

Last Sunday in Vancouver, something special happened in Olympic hockey. For the first time in 50 years, the United States beat the Canadian team. Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabers was absolutely sensational in goal and looked like a glorified version of Jim Craig from the 1980 USA Olympic gold medal team. They played with a sense of pride, passion, and most importantly; as a team. The Canadians are the favorite in every Olympics to win the gold in hockey. This is the sport they invented and worship. Their team is made of up of the best talent in the world hands down. No one expected much out of this United States hockey team coming into the tournament. Many predicted it would be a great success if they even medaled. After what I saw Sunday, we as Americans now have reason to believe and here is why.

Probably one of the greatest American underdog stories in sports is regarding the 1980 USA Olympic hockey team beating the overpowering and superstar talented Russians to go on and win the gold. The reason it was so amazing is because a bunch of college kids came together as a team and believed they could beat the greatest team in the world. That is power and a huge competitive advantage that no competitor can take away. After beating Canada Sunday, I believe these players now believe they can beat anyone in the world. That hasn’t been the case over the past three decades.

The Olympics have changed since the 1980 United States team won the gold medal. Olympic hockey is now played with almost all NHL professionals. The competition and level of play has increased dramatically over the past decade. Most of the hockey talent is bread either out of Canada or Eastern Europe thus the reason the United States is always the underdog. Many called the win on Sunday the greatest underdog victory since we won in 1980. I have to disagree. These American players play with or against the best superstars in the NHL for 82 games every season.

We currently have the hottest goalie in the Olympics in Ryan Miller and a team that averages the age of 26 that is hungry for something none of them have ever tasted before. Many of the players have won Stanley Cups or been in big game situations so they know what pressure is. The management committee for USA hockey has probably put together the best group of players since the 1980 team. This team wants it and it showed in their play Sunday. Each player played every shift like it was his last. Players were diving in front of pucks and checking like they had something to prove. This was only a preliminary game though! What are the games that seriously mean something going to be like? With the win Sunday, the American players showed the rest of the world they are for real in these Olympic hockey games. They are here to win it and they now have the swagger and mojo to maybe pull it off. If you want to watch something special and players give everything they have for a country, help root our American’s in for another miracle! This kind of sports magic only happens every four years…

This is a guest post written by Rob Donatelli

What happened in the 1990’s that made Major League Baseball obsessed with “protecting pitchers” through a strict pitch count?

In my opinion, the pressure is coming from the front office. General managers and owners will do anything to avoid putting a star pitcher at risk of injury, even if it means putting the team second. With so much money invested in a single player –C.C. Sabathia is getting over $700,000 per start over the next 6 years—the fear is understandable. But does pulling a starter after 6 innings or 100 pitches make sense for the team? Usually not.

Along the same lines, innings pitched per season has witnessed the same downward trend. No pitcher has thrown 300 innings in a single season since Steve Carton in 1980. In fact, the leaders in innings pitched over the past 3 years have had totals in the 230’s and 240’s. Between 1962 (the year the schedule switched to 162 games) and 1980, the league leader in innings pitched exceeded 300 innings every single year, with totals regularly reaching the mid 300’s.

Starters are arguably the most skilled pitchers in the game. With an arsenal that typically includes 4 to 5 pitches and the stamina to throw for hours, it’s tough to make a case against your starter for being the pitcher most likely to get the batter out. And that’s the name of the game, right? Well it used to be. Maybe there are just more skilled pitchers in the game than there were years ago? One thing we can be certain of is that there are more pitchers in Major League Baseball than there ever were.

Over the past 3 years, the total number of pitchers used in a game was 660! Compare that to 1962 when just 300 different pitchers were used. It wasn’t a sudden jump either—the growth rate has been constant for nearly 50 years. Here’s the question, though: is the increase in the number of different pitchers and the decrease in the number of innings they pitch each game and throughout the season resulting in better overall pitching in the game? Let’s examine two basic pitching benchmarks: ERA (earned run average) and WHIP (walks + hits / innings pitched).

Since 1993, the average ERA has been over 4.00. Between 1980 and 1992, the average ERA was consistently between 3.70 and 4.00, going over 4.00 just once (1987). The years between 1962 and 1979 showed a wider range in ERA, with yearly averages as low as 2.98 and as high as 4.00. A similar trend can be found with WHIP, as averages below 1.3 cannot be found before the 1970s.

Before the end of the 20th century, pitchers like Cy Young, Christy Mathewson, Lefty Grove, Warren Spahn, Sandy Koufax, and Gaylord Perry had seasons of 30+ complete games in consecutive years. Did their arms fall off? Did they turn into Hall of Fame pitchers? So why are today’s pitchers treated so differently, even with the advanced training, conditioning, and physical build of the 21st century athlete?

Today’s top pitchers are treated with more caution and shown less confidence in their ability to go complete the game they started than the below average pitchers were shown half a century ago. Last summer, Austin Wood threw 13 scoreless innings in a 25 inning thriller for the University of Texas. Is it a coincidence that he isn’t tied to a multi-million dollar contract? I don’t think so. Starters today have been groomed to throw on a limited pitch count when they enter into professional baseball.

If pitch count were ignored, and the trips to the mound where the pitching coach asks the pitcher “How do you feel,” I strongly believe that we would see many more complete games, less blown saves, and less inferior middle relief pitchers eating up innings in close games.

This is a guest post written by Chet Kresge

Ever so often in sports you get these certain athletes that prove to be much more than the ordinary athlete. They tend to be superstars or trailblazers, if you will, creating a new path for the next generation. For example, the Michael Jordan’s, Magic Johnson’s and Wayne Gretsky’s of the world are prime examples of trailblazers during their time. Trailblazers in sports come with great rarity. This rare breed of athletes transcends the game, making their impact on the sport and culture over time and leaving a lasting impression. In today’s sports world, we have the opportunity to witness the impact of two of the biggest and brightest trailblazers we have yet to come across.

Venus Williams and Serena Williams are infamously known as “the Williams Sisters”. The Williams sisters have built legendary careers, which are far from finished, that has witnessed Venus Williams win five Wimbledon appearances to go along with seven slams overall and Serena Williams setting the Australian open record by winning the open five times, not to mention her total of twelve grand slam titles. Aside from having storied careers at only the ripe young ages of 29 years-old (Venus) and 28 years-old (Serena), the Williams sisters have single handedly revived Women’s tennis.

It was the two young ladies from Compton, California with their tenacity, work ethic, determination, and will to win that put tennis at the forefront of the sports world. The Williams sisters are truly trailblazers of women’s tennis. They have used tennis to spearhead their entrepreneurial spirit and spark their business savvy getting involved with fashion, entertainment, even becoming part-owners of the NFL Miami Dolphins franchise. Serena Williams recently had a fashion line with Puma and currently has a line with Nike, which appears to be worth $40 million.

Before the Williams Sisters came around, their was a young and fresh new teen with a golf club that hit the scene ready to make his impact, Tiger Woods. The impact Tiger Woods made was not only on his own sport but on sports in general. Think about it, there would be no Lebron James without Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods broke down numerous barriers that allowed for the likes of Lebron James, Sidney Crosby, and almost every other young and talented athlete to endure the financial opportunities they have.

If you remember it was Tiger Woods, with a $40 million endorsement deal from Nike and another $20 million endorsement deal from Titleist before he hit his first professional golf tournament. I think it’s safe to say that Tiger Woods influenced Lebron James receiving a $90 million endorsement from Nike before bouncing an NBA ball in some kind of way and the NHL’s decision to make 22 year-old Sidney Crosby the face of their league. Aside from Tiger Woods’ recent personal issues that have been publicly displayed, he has transcended the role of an athlete and significantly impacted all sports sending everyone on the search to find the next “Tiger Woods”. Oh, and did I mention Tiger Woods has won 71 official PGA tour events and 14 majors? Legendary!

The notion of a superstar athlete was birthed by Magic Johnson, lived its adolescent years through the eyes of Michael Jordan, and became a mature adult through the likes of Tiger Woods.

If you devour through every athlete that has come through any and every sport, it is hard to find any other athlete that has impacted their sport more than Tiger Woods has in golf and the Williams sisters in Tennis. Yes, Lebron James is one of the biggest and brightest sports stars and will one day be spoken in the same breath as possibly being “the greatest” basketball player ever. However, has he been a trailblazer creating a brand new pathway for the next generation of athletes, or is he simply stepping in the footprints of Magic Johnson and Michal Jordan? His career is in no way, shape, or form close to being over so we shall see whether the imprint he leaves on the sport and culture outshines that of Magic and Jordan.

Tiger Woods and the Williams sisters have each catapulted their sports to a new level of mainstream. They have opened doors for other athletes in their sports and other sports to receive various opportunities. They each have changed the culture of their sports in ways that were once unimaginable but are now sheer reality.

This is a guest post written by Jonathan Velez

It is rumored that the Cleveland Cavaliers are in the market to acquire Amar’e Stoudemire from the Phoenix Suns. Is this the missing piece to a Championship for LeBron and Co? In my opinion this is the missing piece, but there are two sides of every story, so let’s take a look at all the aspects:

The first thing that must be considered is talent. Does Stoudemire bring more talent than what the Cavs currently have at the position? The answer to this question is absolutely yes. Stoudemire averages 21.2 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 1 APG, 1 BPG. Currently, the Cavs have Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Shaq at center. The Big Z averages 7.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.7 APG, .75 BPG and Shaq averages 11.7 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.1 BPG, so clearly Stoudemire is a step-up from both of them, not to mention he is younger and more athletic.

Verdict: Make the trade

The second thing that must be considered is team chemistry. The Cavs have the best record in the NBA by two full games over the L.A. Lakers and they are on a 13 game winning streak. It seems that the Cavs are doing just fine with what they have. But, last season the Cavs had the best record in the NBA heading into the playoffs and they didn’t win the Championship, in fact they didn’t even make it to the NBA Finals. Nothing has happened in Stoudemire’s career to make someone believe that he will hurt the chemistry and therefore I don’t see his presence being a problem. In fact, he has played with Shaq in the past and they didn’t have any problems.

Verdict: Make the trade

The third thing that must be considered is team needs. The Cavs are 9th in the league in scoring, 3rd in points per game allowed, 2nd in field goal percentage, 1st in opponent’s field goal percentage, 2nd in 3PT field goal percentage, 9th in opponent’s 3 PT field goal percentage, 27th in free throw percentage (73%), 9th in assists per game, and 2nd in opponent’s assists per game. The Cavs main weakness is free throw percentage and Stoudemire would raise the team’s free throw percentage (he shoots 77%), although not by much.

Let’s take a look back at last season’s playoff match-up against the Magic. The player that destroyed the Cavs was Dwight Howard, the Cavs didn’t have anyone that could match-up against him down in the post. This year the Cavs have Shaq, although he is not as athletic as Howard, he is much more physical than Anderson Varejao and Ilgauskas. Stoudemire is not known for his defense, but he is a solid rebounder that will definitely improve the Cavs front-court.

Verdict: Make the trade

Clearly, the Cavs should do everything they can to make this trade. Not only will it improve them for this season, but it almost guarantees that LeBron will stay in Cleveland after this season (I’m tired of hearing him going to the Nets- they have 4 wins and he wants a ring, he has already rebuilt a franchise. It is time for a ring).

With a starting line-up of LeBron James, Amare Stoudemire, Shaquille O’Neal, Anthony Parker and Mo Williams (sorry J.J. Hickson but your stat line of 7.4 PPG, 4.4 RPG, .3 APG, .4 BPG in 54 games [48 starts] is demoted to the bench), the Cavs will be in the NBA Finals this season and they will be hoisting the trophy when the Finals are over.

Even without Stoudemire, you have to like their chances to make and win the Finals. This season they are 4-0 against the Lakers and Magic (both teams in last year’s Finals).

Now you have heard my opinion, but do you think this trade is the right move?

“Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.” – Taras Brown.

It is this quote that has defined the second leading scorer in the NBA, Kevin Durant. In his third year, Kevin Durant is averaging more than 28 points per game, his career high. There is no doubt between anyone that Kevin Durant is one of the top players in the NBA today.

Kevin Durant grew up in Washington D.C and started playing basketball at a young age. Kevin and his brother would both participate in sports at their local Boys & Girls club, specifically basketball. As a child, Kevin was best friends with Michael Beasley, Miami Heat Forward, and often would ride the bus with each other. Richard Wyatt Jr., also a friend of Durant, stated that Kevin “was not that good” in basketball and that “he had to work at it.”

Kevin Durant would practically live in the gym, as he would practice nearly 9 to 10 hours a day. It would only be a matter of time before that hard work would pay off. According to his website, Kevin would run up and down a nearby hill frequently and would also do 500 push-ups and 1,000 toe raises. In an interview with The Seattle Times, Kevin stated that he honestly did not know how he did all those things when he was younger and that he “just wanted to be great.”

In his Junior year in High School, Kevin transferred to Oak Hill academy where he would play with point guard Ty Lawson, 2009 ACC Player of the Year. In his junior year in High School Kevin averaged 19.6 points per game and nearly 9 rebounds per game as well. As his senior year approached, Kevin then went on to play under renowned high school basketball coach Stu Vetter in National Christian Academy. There Kevin averaged a double double with 23.6 points per game and 10.9 rebounds per game. He was named to the McDonald’s All American Team.

As his high school career began to end, Kevin Durant was one of the top high school basketball players in the country. He would later go on to play for the University of Texas where he would player under Rick Barnes. Kevin would stay in Texas for one year, but in that one year he established himself as one of the nation’s top players in the nation. In his freshmen year, Kevin set the single-season school as well as Big 12 record for points in a season with 903. He also set the single-season record for most rebounds in a season with 390. Kevin Durant would end his freshmen year losing in the second round in the NCAA Tournament to the University of Southern California. However, Kevin was virtually at the top of every NBA teams list in pro prospects.

Kevin Durant left the University of Texas after one year and would enter himself in the NBA Draft where he was drafted second to the Oklahoma City Thunder franchise. In his rookie year Kevin averaged 20.3 points per game and was named in the first team All-Rookie Team as well as winning the coveted Rookie of the Year award.

Now, with only three seasons under his belt, Kevin Durant is now one of the top basketball players in the world. Presently, Kevin is having an incredible season and his best yet. The Oklahoma City Thunder is ranked 5th in the Western Conference and is currently riding on a six game winning streak. It is safe to say that the team’s success is partially due to Kevin Durant, who is living proof that success comes with hard work.

When you think of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, you think of Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Phillip Rivers, Drew Brees and Peyton Manning. Peyton Manning also gets in the discussion as one of the greatest QBs of all-time, a list that includes Joe Montana, Johnny Unitas, John Elway and Tom Brady. But to me, the Super Bowl cemented the fact that Peyton Manning is not the greatest QB of all-time.

Manning has had a history of not winning the big one. He has a career record of 9-9 in the post-season doesn’t compare to the 3 championships of Johnny Unitas, the 4 Super Bowls victories of Joe Montana, the 2 Super Bowl victories in 5 appearances for John Elway, or the 14-4 postseason record (including 3 Super Bowl victories) for Tom Brady. At least Manning has one ring, the same cannot be said of Dan Marino, who some say was one of the best pure passers in NFL history. On the other hand, even Jim Plunkett, Jeff Hostetler, Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer have one Super Bowl ring and no-one is mentioning their names as the greatest QBs of all-time.

Peyton Manning does have four MVPs and his share of NFL records, but in the NFL it is about winning the big one, something that Manning is lacking. Even the season that he did win the Super Bowl, he had a 70.5 passer rating during the playoffs, a full 25 points below his regular season career passer rating.

I do respect Manning as a person and he is a great influence on younger fans, but to be the best you need to play the best when it matters the most.

Manning still has some seasons left, and he will need to win at least one more ring to even be mentioned in my top 3 quarterbacks of all-time. Only ten quarterbacks in NFL Super Bowl history have won more than one ring, but even that list doesn’t automatically make you a great QB (ie: Jim Plunkett has two rings). Two or more rings with all his records and MVPs gets him in my top 3 quarterback conversation, until then he is top 10, but not the greatest (maybe the greatest regular season quarterback of all-time, but then again who remembers what seed the Super Bowl Champions were?).

Who is the greatest QB to you?
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With only one month until “March Madness”, the college basketball scene is heating up. Every week it seems as if there is a new number one team that loses to an unranked team. This year in College Basketball, there is no real “number one” team in the country. This year, we do not have the “it” team that would be the favorite to win the NCAA Tournament. Here is a preview of some of the teams to watch out for and teams that are just overrated.

Texas – Texas has a decent chance of winning it all this year. They are probably the most overrated team in the top ten. The Longhorns are very big, but they tend to struggle towards the end of the game. Dexter Pittman and Damion James are two outstanding big men. However, they easily fall into foul trouble, which leads to the rest of the team looking for players to help out down low. They are also going to have to step it up defensively down the stretch.

Kentucky – The Wildcat’s head coach John Calipari may be a bit controversial, however, you must give credit where credit is due. He has taken a very young team, many of which are freshmen, and has made them play as a team. The Wildcats are very young and athletic. They have an amazing point guard in John Wall, a tremendous shooter in Eric Bledsoe, and an athletic big man in DeMarcus Cousins. However, their biggest strength may also be their biggest weakness. They are indeed very young, with 8 freshman and sophomores, and can struggle under pressure. I really want to see what is going to happen to Kentucky after this season as John Wall seems to be another “one and done.”

Villanova – Villanova is without a doubt the most consistent team in the country. They are in a very tough conference and definitely have the experience to back them up. Senior guard Scottie Reynolds has average 14.8 points or more in each of his seasons. This year he is averaging 18.7 points per game. They have help in the front court with Antonio Pens and Duke transfer Taylor King, who can also shoot the ball as well anyone in the country. In addition to that, they also have McDonalds All American, freshman guard Dominic Cheeks, coming off the bench as well.

Kansas – Although Kansas may seem to be the favorite; I have a very hard time believing the hype. As of today, they have only faced 3 top 25 teams, one of which they lost and another they barely won. There is no doubt that they have the talent both in the front and back-court, but they have not established themselves as the best team in the country. In their loss to Tennessee, the Volunteer lineup was very weak as they lost key players due to injuries, dismissals, and suspensions. Yet, Tennessee still came out and defeated Kansas who seemed to have played only the first half. Even though it was their only lost, Kansas still is not convincing enough must make a statement by winning their conference championship towards the end of the season.

Duke – As much as I love them, Duke is without a doubt, the most overrated team in the country. Defensively, they are absolutely terrible. It seems as if anyone can drive past them. Also, they can often at times get really cold from beyond the arc, which is their first option. John Scheyer has been playing great. However, their bench is very weak. The only upside to their bench is the young freshmen Mason Plumlee, who is one of the most athletic forwards in the country. Andre Dawkins, who started off the season great, has lost his shot ever since he lost his sister due to a car accident. He has not played the same since. Duke really needs to step it up defensively and really needs to find some help off the bench if they want to make it all the way this year.

Barring any injuries, Allen Iverson will start for the Eastern Conference in the All Star Game on Feb. 14th, 2010.

I can’t believe this is the case. I mean he played 3 games off the bench for the Grizzlies before complaining to the team and media, going on a leave of absence, retiring, and finally being resigned by the 76ers in December.

His numbers for the season are 14.6 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 4.3 APG, 0.6 SPG, and 2.5 TO per game while shooting 45.3% from the field, 37.5% from three, and 80.2% from the free throw line. An all-star? I don’t think so.

From a Fantasy Basketball perspective, according to Yahoo! Fantasy Basketball rankings he is not even a top 50 point guard in the NBA. He is ranked 236 overall and 182 overall when looking at his per game averages.

All three reserve guards easily could have started over him, and several guards that are not even on the All-Star team, including Bucks’ rookie Brandon Jennings, Toronto guard Jose Calderon, and Bobcats’ guard Raymond Felton. If Iverson was not voted in by the fans, I am confident that he would not even be on the team.

This situation brings to light several flaws with the All-Star balloting (not just the NBA, the MLB has the same problem). There needs to be some sort of rule to determine who can be on the ballot. For instance, if you retire from the NBA, your name should be removed (Iverson). Also, more practically, you should only be an all-star if you played in more than half of your teams’ games. It is an all-star game, not a popularity contest, there is no way that Iverson should have received more than 1.2 millions votes. This number tells me that people either don’t care and just want Iverson in the game, or they don’t pay attention to the NBA at all and just go by the names they know from past success.

Iverson was not the only player receiving abnormally high votes that should not have. Tracy McGrady was almost voted into the game, and he only played in 6 games (none as a starter).

What are your thoughts? Do you think Iverson deserves to be in the All-Star game?