Baily's Sports & Stuff

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Florida Marlins (brief) After struggling, Roy Halladay just wanted to leave the game with a win for his team. However, he got much more. Halladay threw a perfect game Saturday, striking out 11 in a 1-0 win. Although Halladay did get some good outfield plays, none were superb, like in Ubaldo Jiminez's no-hitter. Josh Johnson of Florida pitched well, and Philly only scored on an error. But Halladay was superb, throwing pitches in the right place. He became just the 20th perfect pitcher in Major League history, and the second in 20 days. Halladay is now 7-3 with a 1.99 ERA, and now he has something else to add to his resume. LA Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns While Kobe Bryant had had big performances vs. Phoenix, he had never exactly come up clutch. Make that end tonight. Kobe Bryant scored 14 of LA's 16 points (in 2 different streaks), and he picked apart Phoenix with his tough jumpers. With LA up 5 late, Kobe nailed a fadeaway jumper over Gr...

MLB Update Matt Cain throws complete game, 1-hitter in Giants' 5-0 win over D-Backs. Miguel Cabrera's 3 homers aren't enough as Landon Powell's homer helps Oakland beat Detroit 5-4. Manny Ramirez caps 5 run rally with 2 run 6th inning homer to help the LA Dodgers beat the Rockies. 3 run homer helps Washington beat San Diego 5-3, improve to 25-24. San Diego is losing their lead on the NL West. Celtics vs. Magic After Orlando gained the momentum back, and once they had everything going, many people thought history was going to be made. But 1 team kept believing. Who? The Boston Celtics. Paul Pierce scored 31 and grabbed 13 boards, Nate Robinson scored 13 second quarter points, and the Boston Celtics finished off the Orlando Magic 96-84. Pierce was key for Boston to hold their big lead, and after Rajon Rondo got injured in the first (he finished the game) Nate Robinson stepped in to score 13 in the second. The C's led 55-42 at halftime. Ray Allen hit som...

The championship that we have here may have been predcited by 0.1 percent of the world, or maybe even less. Maybe a lot of us had the Chicago Blackhawks stationed here, but almost no one had the Phialdelphia Flyers making the Cup Finals. The Flyers needed to win their last game of the season against the New York Rangers to make the playoffs. The seventh seeded Flyers breezed through New Jersey in 5, then outstanding goalie play by Michael Leighton and clutch goal-scoring by Simon Gagne helped Phialdelphia rally from down 3-0 to beat the Boston Bruins in 7. They beat Montreal in 5, and here they are now. The Chicago Blackhawks had more trouble in the first round. The Blackhawks were even with the Nashville Predators after 4 games, and they were down 4-3 with :30 in Game 5. But Patrick Kane scored with :14, and Chicago won the game in OT and the series. Chicago went 3-0 on the road to beat Vancouver in 6, and Antti Neimi allowed only 7 goals in 4 games of a sweep of the San...

Once the Orlando Magic fell behind 3-0 to Boston with a road game coming up, most people thought Boston would grab the broom. But they couldn't do it, thanks to 32 points and 16 boards from Dwight Howard. Jameer Nelson scored 24 and had 5 boards and dimes, and now Orlando is down 3-2. Let's see how Orlando could complete the improbable comeback. 1 Momentum: When Orlando took Game 4 in OT to send the series back to Orlando, Orlando racked up the momentum. After the Game 5 blowout, they have enough momentum to win by 10 in Boston. Jameer Nelson is averaging 23.5 PPG in Orlando's wins this series, and Dwight Howard is averaging 26.5 PPG and 13 RPG in Orlando wins. Now that Orlando has their groove, they could easily handle the C's in Game 6. 2 Belief: Even when they fell behind 3-0, Dwight Howard had Orlando believing. It helped him and his teammates (especially Jameer Nelson) perform better to squeeze out an OT win. Belief carried over to Game 5, where the Magic easil...

Baily Deeter’s Newspaper May 24, 2010 Chicago Blackhawks make the Stanley Cup! Well, it’s just about time. 1 team has booked their ticket to the Cup and they did it easily. After winning in 6 games over Nashville and Vancouver, Chicago held San Jose to 7 goals in a 4 game sweep to book their ticket to the Cup. Jonathan Toews scored at least 1 point for the 13th straight game (a franchise record) and Anti-Neimi, the goalie, continued to play well. Let’s break down Chicago’s 16 game road to the final stage. Chicago vs. Nashville The Hawks didn’t look like the team that had scored 112 points in the regular season. In Game 1, they were sloppy. Nashville scored 4 third period goals to take Game 1, but Anti-Neimi shut out Nashville in Game 2 to tie the series. Chicago lost Game 3, but they took Game 4 to even the series. After Patrick Kane’s goal with :14 left in regulation to send Game 5 into OT, Chicago knew they had the momentum and they won 5-4 on Marian Hossa’s goal. Chicago ca...

NHL, NBA Conference Final Previews (Note: NHL post was written 5/16) Montreal Canadiens vs. Philadelphia Flyers Both teams barely made the playoffs (by 1 point), and now both teams are playing for a Stanley Cup bid. The Canadiens rallied from 3-1 and 3-2 deficits to knock out the Presidents Cup winner and the defending champ, while Philadelphia rallied from a 3-0 series deficit to beat Boston in 7 games. Road To The Playoffs Montreal Canadiens The Canadiens were the last team in the playoffs, and they were rewarded with the top-seeded Capitals, who had scored 33 more points in the regular season. Tomas Plekanec scored the GW goal in Game 1 for Montreal, but Washington took the next 3 games. Montreal won on the road, and Jaroslav Halak staved off a rally by Washington in a 4-1 Game 6 win to tie the series, then Halak stopped every single shot for the first 57:44, and Montreal won 2-1. In the second round Montreal lost Game 1, but Halak returned to form and helped Montreal...

So, it's time. It's time for the NHL and NBA Playoffs. They are all in full swing, and in around a month a champion will be crowned. Let's predict the champions. NHL Remaining teams: Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks San Jose has finally broken the playoff jinx. They scored with :31 left in Game 2 in Colorado, changing the momentum for a 4-2 series win. They came back from down 3-1 in the 3rd to beat Detroit in OT in Game 3, and they won that in 5. Chicago scored with :14 in regulation to beat Nashville in Game 5, and they won the series in 6. They went 3-0 on the road in Vancouver to win the series in 6, and now they are here. Montreal rallied from a 3-1 deficit against Washington and a 3-2 deficit against Pittsburgh to be here. Boston and Philadelphia's series is still on, and Philadelphia tied the series at 3 by winning the last 3. Boston won close games 1 and 2 to stay in the series. Game 7 is ...

Down 3-1 to the best team in the league in the first round of the playoffs, you would think Montreal was done. But they won. Down 3-2 to the team with the most playoff experience, you would think they were done. But, they won again. Brian Gionta scored 32 seconds into the game, Montreal built up a 4-0 lead that Pittsburgh couldn't overcome as Montreal stunned Pittsburgh 5-2 to advance to the Eastern Conference Final. Pittsburgh was called for a penalty :10 into the game, and Brian Gionta scored :32 into the game. Dominic Moore scored 14:23 into the period to give Montreal a 2-0 lead after 1. In the second period, Jaroslav Halak continued his amazing goaltending, and Mike Cammalleri scored 3:32 into the period, and Travis Moen scored a short-handed goal. Montreal thought the game was in the bag, but Chris Kunitz scored 3:22 later for Pittsburgh. Jordan Staal scored 16:30 into the period, and Pittsburgh started coming back. Pittsburgh had the puck in their offensive zo...

This year, 1 bowl folded this year (the International Bowl), while another 2 bowls were added to the lineup. The New Era Pinstripe Bowl in the Bronx kicks off December 30 at 3:20 PM ET, while the Dallas Football Classic takes place January 1 at 12:00 PM ET on ESPNU. New names include the Kraft Fight Hunger (Emerald) Bowl, the Bridgestone Education (Pacific Life) Holiday, the Reese's (FedEx) Orange Bowl, and the 2 new bowls. The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco will become the latest ever non-BCS game on January 9, 2010. The GMAC Bowl takes it's normal place on 1/6/11, while the Cotton Bowl follows on 1/7/11. The Papajohns.com Bowl is a day later, then the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl takes place on 1/9/11. The BCS Title follows on January 10 in Glendale, Arizona. The Outback Bowl will move back to 1:00 PM ET, while the Gator Bowl moves to ESPN2. The Liberty and Meineke Bowls move to New Year's Day. The Dallas Football Classic is the only bowl on non-basic cable,...

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Oakland A's (brief) Last year, to many, Dallas Braden was an unknown pitcher who either started or closed. Now, he has something to be known well for. A perfect game. Braden pitched the 19th perfect game in baseball history, striking out 6 and allowing the field to record the other 21 outs. This is the second straight perfect game thrown against Tampa Bay. When Gabe Kapler grounded out to short (short to first), Braden threw his arms up in the air. His infielders then joined in, then the outfielders came. The Oakland crowd roared like crazy, although not many people were there. Dallas Braden's words after the perfect game "Pretty cool". "I don't know what to think about it just yet. There's definitely a select group. I'd like to have a career more than today. As reported on ESPN.com Rays manager Joe Maddon's words "I'm a bad omen. That's the third perfect game and the fourth no-hitter I've been on t...

The NHL has had it's twists and turns, with Montreal winning 3 straight to knock out top-seeded Washington and Philadelphia beating New Jersey in 5 games. But, that was then, and now it's time to step up. Let's check out who is and who isn't. Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Montreal Canadiens Game 1 Montreal scored first, but Pittsburgh went 4/4 on power plays and forced Jaroslav Halak to be pulled with 14:42 left. Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski scored a goal and had an assist in the 6-3 win. Game 2 Montreal wasn't ready to fall behind 2-0, so they avenged a 1-0 deficit to take a 2-1 lead. The go-ahead goal was by Mike Cammalleri on a power play. Cammalleri scored again on an empty-netter, and the Canadiens took the game 3-1. Game 3 Marc-Andre Fluery was spectacular, making only 18 saves but he had about 10 fantastic ones. It was the first playoff shutout at home since 1983 (118 games)! Evgeni Malkin scored on a one -timer and Pascal Dupuis scored on an emp...

The NBA Playoffs have been going very well; we don't have any very close games or series in the second round, but still, a lot is going on. Let's take a look. Phoenix Suns vs. San Antonio Spurs Game 1 San Antonio was favored to win this series because of their past with Phoenix, but Phoenix didn't think that would happen. Phoenix took an early lead, but San Antonio tied the game in the third. However, Steve Nash overcame a hip injury to score 33 and dish out 10 assists in a 111-102 Phoenix victory. Game 2 Phoenix trailed early 32-21, but they came back and tied the game at halftime thanks to Jason Richardson and Steve Nash's passing. And Phoenix held on in the second half, led by 23 points and 11 boards from Amare Stoudemire. The Suns won 110-102. Game 3 Phoenix again fell behind by 9 after 1 quarter, but they didn't give up and the score was only 50-44 at halftime. But Goran Dragic then took over. He helped Phoenix cut the lead to 72-71 after 3, then he t...

Sharks vs. Red Wings The San Jose Sharks were never known for winning Game 1 or Game 2. But if they won Game 2, they would have a chance to take a 2-0 series lead over the Red Wings. They wouldn't resist. Evgeni Nabokov was fantastic for the last 38 minutes, Joe Pavelski scored 2 goals and Joe Thornton scored the winning goal as San Jose became the first team to take a 2-0 series lead this playoffs. Pavel Datsyuk scored first, but then Joe Pavelski scored on a power play. Joe Thornton assisted on Ryane Clowe's through-the-legs goal that put San Jose up 2-1. But Tomas Holstrom scored on a power play, and the score was 2-2 after 1. Nicklas Lidstrom scored 2 minutes into the second, but then Evgeni Nabokov was fantastic. He made 28 saves in all, and once he did his job, the offense got going. It took some time, but Joe Pavelski scored on a power play. With about 7:30 left, Dany Heatley skated down and missed. But Joe Thornton was in the right place in the right time, an...

NHL Roberto Luongo made 36 saves and he destroyed all thoughts of last year's embarrassing loss to the Blackhawks as Vancouver destroyed Chicago 5-1. The Canucks lead the series 1-0. NBA LeBron scored 35, Mo Williams scored 20 and Cleveland rallied from a 66-55 deficit to beat the Boston Celtics 101-93. LeBron took over down the stretch, scoring layups and nailing 3's. He sealed the game with a 3 with 22 seconds left. Cleveland leads the series 1-0. Kentucky Derby Super Saver and jockey Calvin Borel sped up at the middle of the race and Super Saver never gave up the lead as Borel won his second straight Kentucky Derby. Super Saver was tied for the favorite according to the odds, which gave him 7-1 chances. Collegiate Rugby Championships Eric Fry scored a try and made some key goal line stops for Cal, Keenan Englebrecht made 3 penalty kicks (3 points each) as Cal regained the title from BYU with a 19-7 win over the Cougars. Neill Barrett scored at the end of the...