Playoff Preview: Thunder Vs. Nuggets

Here's a quick look at the most interesting matchups in the upcoming NBA Playoffs!

Oklahoma City Thunder (4) vs. Denver Nuggets (5)
Thunder Starters: The Thunder starting five is a potent blend of brushfire offense (Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook), quick and tenacious defense (Serge Ibaka, Thabo Sefolosha) plus monster rebounding (Kendrick Perkins). That lineup is very scary.

Playoff Preview: Celtics Vs Knicks

Here's a quick look at the most interesting matchups in the upcoming NBA Playoffs!

Boston Celtics (3) vs. New York Knicks (6)
Celtics Starters: The Celtics don't have a Big Three, they have a Big Four. Allen, Pierce and Garnett are getting more and more dependent on star guard Rajon Rondo every game. Unfortunately, that 5th spot (occupied before by the burly Kendrick Perkins) is getting to be problematic for the C's. They've tried the O'Neals (both injured), Jeff Green (ineffective) and even Glen Davis (mixed results) but that spot remains the chink in their armor. 

Playoff Preview: Heat Vs. Sixers

Here's a quick look at the most interesting matchups in the upcoming NBA Playoffs!

Miami Heat (2) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (7)
Heat Starters: Who hasn't heard, and hated, Miami's Big Three? When Lebron James callously and Chris Bosh whiningly joined Dwayne Wade in Miami, the Heat immediately replaced the Lakers as the team-to-hate. That being said, James, Wade and bosh are still one of the most potent and terrifying basketball threesomes around. Mike Bibby is serviceable as a PG while Zydrunas Ilgauskas will try to contribute whatever he can to the Heat cause.

Ginebra Gets Jump On Gilas, 97-96!

Dominating the regular season may not be easy but it's certainly easier than dominating the playoffs.

That was the lesson learned last night by the Smart Gilas team as they crumbled in the last few minutes against a veteran Ginebra team. 97-96.

Mosley Planning For Life After Pacquiao!

Shane Mosley may be 39 years old but he's certainly making some pretty big plans.
The first plan on his list may be the biggest one of all: beating Manny Pacquiao.

In recent interviews, Mosley has said that he believes he has what it takes to finally deal the Filipino champion his first defeat in 6 years. He points out that Manny Pacquiao has not fought anyone with his combination of size, power, skill, speed and style.

Olympic Beach Volleyball Slot A Possibility?

Yes...if you take Philippine National Beach Volleyball coach Eric Mclaine's word for it.

Mclaine firmly believes that the Pinoy women's pairs of Nerissa Bautista and Joveline Gonzalez (Pair A), Micmic Laborte and Aiza Maizo (Pair B), Pinoy men’s pairs Aly Tupas and Arnel Amadeo (Pair A) and Henry Pecante and Angelo Espiritu (Pair B) have what it takes to win berths for the London Olympics.

Smart Gilas Chooses To Join "Easier" Bracket!

Some will say it was a sliver of uncertainty peeking through.
Coach Rajko Toroman sees it as a way to build confidence.

The Smart Gilas National team chose to join Group A, composed of Jordan-ASU, Japan, Malaysia and possibly Kazakhstan or Afghanistan, in the upcoming 22nd FIBA-Asia Champions Cup.

Solar Sports Botches PBA Coverage...Again.

This is going to get messy.

Solar Sports, the PBA's official media partner who has already been penalized by the PBA for incidents involving the airing of matches, has gone and done it again.

Patrombon Loses First Pro Match!

He's now playing as a man. And he's got to grow up a lot more.

Jeson Patrombon managed to win only one game in a 6-1, 6-0 first round defeat to the second seeded Yuki Bhambri in the $10,000 India Futures held in Chandigarh, India.

Nerves played a huge part in the Pinoy netters defeat as he hit the ball and attacked the net poorly, succumbing to Bhambri in less than an hour. Bhambri is currently ranked #415 in the world.

But the Pinoy teener has already put the match out of his mind as he travels to Noida, India to prepare for the $10,000 India Futures second leg.  He was awarded a wildcard slot in the 32-man qualifying round.

More on this story, here.

Kobe Bryant Fined $100,000 For Gay Slur!

Just what the Lakers needed to start off the playoffs: a little drama involving Kobe Bryant.

The Lakers superstar was fined $100,000 for uttering a homophobic slur at a referee during their game against the San Antonio Spurs.

Azkals To Train In Germany?

The Philippine Azkals are looking at playing in Germany as they continue preparing for their 2014 Fifa World Cup Asian Qualifiers matchup with Sri Lanka.

Originally, the Azkals were planning on training in either Qatar or Australia but plans fell through as neither country could guarantee that the Azkals will have quality teams to play against.

Smart Gilas Undaunted By FIBA-Asia Cup Draw!

"You can put me in any group."

That was the reply of Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman when asked if he was concerned about which group Smart Gilas falls to in the upcoming FIBA-Asia Champions Cup.

Antonio Lining Is New World #1!

His name is not as recognizable as Efren "Bata" Reyes or Django Bustamante.
He's not as well known as Alex Pagulayan or Dennis Orcollo
He's not as highly touted as Ronnie Alcano or Lee Van Corteza.
But he's now the highest ranked cue master in the entire world.

Antonio Lining has been living in the shadows of his more illustrious compatriots...but the time has come for his star to shine.

WWE Champion Edge Retires!

The rivalries may be fake.
The rhetoric may be fake.
The action may be fake.
But the physical toll it takes on its practitioners is all too real.

WWE superstar and Heavyweight Champion Edge is the latest in a long line of wrestlers to retire from professional wrestling due to injury or illness.

Hohmann Crowned 10-Ball Champion!

He may have been the last man to make it to the Philippine 10-Ball Open Championships roster but he is also the last man standing and holding the crown.

It has been a long and weird journey for Thorsten Hohmann but no one can argue with the results. It took a canceled US event, a sick Russian competitor, grueling matches against local and international pool masters and an epic match against compatriot Ralf Souquet, which he won 11-10, before Hohmann could claim the Philippine Open crown.

The championship match was another hill-hill match for Hohmann and one that he survived as well. He also endured hill-hill matches against the Philippines' Carlo Biado and China's Liu Haitao.

More on this story, here.

USLS Making Waves In V-League!

They may be probinsyanas but they showed they can hang with the big girls from Manila.

After winning their first match against against Saint Benilde, then losing a heartbreaker against defending champions Adamson, the USLS Lady Stingers stomped their class over National University, winning in straight sets 25-19, 25-18, 25-17.

Teen phenom Patty Orendain teamed up with USLS skipper Kay Aplasca in scoring in double digits with 16 and 12 points respectively while keeping the Lady Bulldog attackers at bay with excellent defense.

More on this story, here.

Philippine Open Final Four: Germany Vs The Philippines

When the Philippine Open started a few days ago, there were so many pool luminaries who had the credentials and experience to make it all the way to the top.

No one expected it to be a showdown between two countries.

Kiefer Ravena: The Real Deal?

Looks like it.

Rookie phenom Kiefer Ravena burnished his already sterling career even more with a scintillating performance in just his second collegiate game for Ateneo.

The gutsy youngster scored 25 big points, grabbed 3 rebounds, 2 steals and handed out four assists, including a highlight reel alleyoop pass to Greg Slaughter, who rattled the rim with a two handed dunk. This fastbreak play pushed Ateneo to the brink of victory over San Beda, putting the score at 87-82 with just 25 seconds left to play.

The 17 year old also shot magnificently from the field, going 10-12.

More on this story, here.

Gilas To Skip PBA Governors Cup!

One and done.

Thus is the case of the Smart Gilas National Team, as officials and coaches decided to skip the upcoming PBA Governors Cup.

The FIBA-Asia Championships are set in Wuhan, China on September 15-25. But Smart Gilas, in preparation for that tournament, has also committed to playing in FIBA-Asia Champions Cup and the Jones Cup, two international tournaments that will feature national teams that the Philippines may face in September.