by Jameson Fleming… NEW YORK — Big East bubble talk is in full swing with two of the conference’s squads notching victories on the first two days of the Big East Championships.

Notre Dame kept its hopes alive with a hard-fought victory over Rutgers 61-50 Tuesday night and will tip-off against West Virginia in a chance to pick up a solid win Wednesday night.

Providence struggled mightily to end DePaul’s attempt at a Cinderella run through the Big East Tournament. The Friars needed a 15-1 run in the second half to overcome a six-point Blue Demon lead.

After both games, coaches and players were talking NCAA chances.

“We haven’t won enough games to be in discussion, but I think we’re playing better and our frame of mind is better,” said Notre Dame coach Mike Brey. The Irish coach made a good point about his team’s schedule and results.

According to Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology on ESPN, ND has played six games against the current top seeds (Connecticut, Louisville, UNC, and Pittsburgh).

“Has that ever happened before with three on the road, two at home, and one at a neutral site?” Brey asked.

“We have 13 losses. Do we have a bad loss? Look at it and tell me if we really have a bad loss.”

Sorry Coach Brey, but you in fact have bad losses. Losing to St. John’s, who tallied just six wins in the conference, is a bad loss. Losing to UCLA by 26 points is a bad loss. The Bruins are a good team, but the selection committee won’t think very highly of you if you’re losing games by 26 points.

Losing to Cincinnati, the same team that opened the Big East Tournament with a loss to winless DePaul comes as close as you can to a bad loss.

Brey did admit his team’s shortcomings, “We don’t have enough good wins. Don’t get me wrong; we’ve got work to do.”

The Irish could use some more quality wins, but they aren’t hurting as much in that department. Thumping Louisville and beating Texas on a neutral court are pretty impressive wins. With games against West Virginia and then Pitt looming, if the Irish keep winning, ND can make some noise and get back on the bubble.

If Notre Dame keeps winning, and defeats the Mountaineers and Panthers, then loses in the semifinals, there is precedent to send a 20-14 team that would then be 11-11 in conference to the NCAA Tournament.

The Irish have fixed a major weakness that could make a deep Big East run possible.

“I think we’ve been unselfish defensively,” Brey said.

“We’ve rotated over and helped our teammates much more willingly and I think we’ve done that the last two games.”

Notre Dame has held its opponents to their lowest scoring totals since playing Delaware State in December.

While Notre Dame needs to keep on winning, Providence may have accomplished enough to go dancing even if the Friars don’t win another game in the tournament.

“I think we’re squarely on the bubble,” said Providence head coach Keno Davis.

“I know that playing Louisville, tomorrow, win or lose, I don’t think it hurts us if we lose.”

With bubble teams floundering across the nation, a victory over the Cardinals would make the Friars a virtual lock. Signature wins over Pittsburgh and Louisville would put Providence over the top because of its Big East play.

Providence beat who it was supposed to (and them some with wins over Syracuse and Pitt) and lost to who it was supposed to (no bad conference losses).

Taking care of business is what Keno Davis says Providence should hang its hat on.

“They’ll [the selection committee] remember those big-name games for us, but it’s really these kind of games [beating DePaul] that have set us apart from the other teams,” Davis said.

At this point, Providence is at a crossroads in its relationship to gaining an at-large berth. The Friars can’t really be too upset with the selection committee if they are left out because of a lack of quality non-conference wins. But they also shouldn’t be shocked if they get in because of their ability to take care of business in conference.

By Aaron Neely… The other night, I had the privilege of attending a Toronto Maple Leafs game, albeit facing the lowly New York Islanders—but a Leafs game none the less.

We had 12th row from the ice in the Leafs zone, right above the goal line on the Maple Leafs bench side.

As the introduction began and the game started to be played, an often heard phrase was not about the game but about the hopes of a fight breaking out right in front of us. Thanks goes out to Phil Oreskovic and Tim Jackman for being willing to dance and accommodate so many.

As Phil Oreskovic was skating towards the bench at the end of his shift, Tim Jackman gave him a little shot with his stick and a few choice words. Then came what has become sign language in hockey for “let’s fight”… the glove shake.

As Oreskovic and Jackman dropped them and began to size each other up, frantic mothers reached for their child’s face to block their eyes, men booed and yelled at the crazy hooligans on the ice for stopping play and ruining the game.

Children who didn’t have their eyes blocked began crying and screaming for their parents and many others looked away in disgust and put their coats on and left the building for the night.

Ya, freaking, right.

What really happened was immediately 20,000 people jumped up and began cheering, as suddenly Phil Oreskovic had 20,000 ring men in his corner to give him tips. Upper cut one senior man screamed!

Body shots, BODY SHOTS a little boy beside me yelled. People who had left early to use the bathroom or get food flooded back in to watch the fight and concession staff left their posts to fill whatever room was left.

Ok, maybe a little stretch…However, after about 10 punches in the fight were thrown, Oreskovic took him down to the delight of 20,000 pleased fans. A standing ovation was given, all the players were on their feet banging their sticks against the boards.

Only the cheers for a wounded Canadian soldier in attendance, rightfully got a far louder applause. But I am sure even he applauded what he saw.

Point is, not one person left the building. Not one person complained, and not one person sat in their seat listing off reasons why that was extremely dangerous and everything that could have happened to these two grown men who willingly took part.

Now for those of you who are not Toronto or New York fans, you probably have no idea who these two hockey players are. So here is a little introduction:

Tim Jackman is Minnesota State product. He was drafted in the second round by the Columbus Blue Jackets and comes in at a towering 6′4″, 215.

Now before everyone immediately starts thinking that he simply is in the NHL to fight consider this…In 44 games in the AHL last year, Jackman posted a respectable 36 points. He does have some offensive upside in his game as well as intimidating size.

As for Phil Oreskovic, he played his second career game against the Islanders and is a Brampton Battalion product from the OHL. He is also around 6′4″ but is about 225. This year with the Marlies (Leafs AHL team), the stay-at-home defenseman has nine points in 59 games as well as a team leading +15.

And before you start thinking he is simply the token boxer, consider this…In the OHL he won awards for the best open ice hitter as well as the best defensive defenseman.

My point is, these guys can play hockey and fighting is just a way of showing it.

Are they ever going to come in and put up hall of fame numbers? Absolutely not.

Recently, the NHL has, in the minds of many, begun the process of eliminating fighting from the NHL. They say that they are just making it safer by putting in place rules for all fighters, but someone tell me how punching someone in the face is safe and what legitimate rules can you fail with before you just take the action out.

The greater picture is that without fighting, guys like this are never going to be seen. Are they simply fighters? No. They have to bring to the table what they can with the assets they have, if that means fighting the so be it. Guys like this are not going to be at the tops of their teams prospect list and without showing they can do something more to help a team that few can do, they may be career AHL players.

These two guys are going to be bottom end hockey players on any NHL team they play for. They both know that. The contributions they do make by fighting will leave a positive impression in their coaches minds and give them a chance to show they belong with their skill after they get that chance.

When they fight, people take notice. I guarantee walking into the Air Canada Center, less then half of the people knew Phil Oreskovic. Walking out…20,000 were raving about his play. Simply put, after his fight, people took notice.

Tell me this, for those of you who had the once in a lifetime privilege to witness Aki Berg dawn the blue and white, think about his play. Now imagine if, with his size he fought maybe 12-15 times a year. I guarantee we would all be saying that he was a stellar defensive defenseman.

Point is, his defensive game was very good. Pat Quinn played him in all situations and because his offensive skill wasn’t there, the average fan would never notice him or notice his good side—if he fought, we would all have known.

As well, the effect that it has on the game and his teammates is also huge. When he was on the ice, Martin Gerber is not going to be touched or harassed because no body knows what he will do to them.

No 180-pound featherweight is going to take a run at Ian White because Phil Oreskovic just might dismantle their face and multiple other body parts..

On the other side of things, having a guy like Jackman will make rookies like John Bailey, Kyle Okposo among others on the young Islanders squad feel a lot safer.

It will give them more room to play without feeling like they will be run and if they are, whoever runs them will have to pay the price and be accountable to Tim Jackman.

In the NHL there are guys like Derek Boogard and Georges Laraque who, if fighting was not in the NHL—neither would they be.

But there are also guys like Phil Oreskovic and Tim Jackman who will make the NHL by fighting and then show the hockey world they can be assets with their hockey skills.

These large, mamoths of human beings who some think of as slow, actually make the game a lot faster due to the fact that the speedsters will be left alone by pests. When a heavyweight is on a team, no middleweight will ever take a shot at any skilled, notable player.

Early this year, Ryan Hollweg took a run at Zach Parise only to have Michael Rupp jump on the ice and bloody up his face. Michael Rupp is 6′5″, 230lbs, Hollweg a mere 5′11″, 200. Think he will do that again?

Fighting governs the game more than a referee does. Fighting brings accountability to the game of hockey and without it we would never see the highlight reel plays and the incredible speed that we see every single night around the NHL.

As well, without fighting—we’d never have Phil or Tim and the hockey skills that they will one day show. But for now, we’ll watch them shake their mits, grab on and watch as 20,000 people shoot out of their seats like a goal had been scored.

Days after the game had been played, when friends ask how the game was…I don’t tell them about Ponikarovsky’s top-shelf goal or Grabovski’s overtime winner, I tell them about Phil and Tim and the excitement that was injected into the game.

In all honesty, the game was pretty boring until they dropped ‘em. After they did, it looked like they were battling for one and two in the league rather than John Tavares.

Neely, Out.

by Derek Viveiros… “No matter what uniform I put on, I perform.”

Those were the words spoken by Terrell Owens, the most well-documented free agent signing in Buffalo Bills history.

Fans in Orchard Park and “north of the border” can very well expect that at best, a performance.

One question Bills fans must ask themselves is which Owens will arrive at “The Ralph” on opening day. Will it be the Best Lead Actor (see 49ers and Eagles Owens tenure) or Best Supporting Actor?

On Saturday, the Buffalo Bills signed the six-time Pro Bowl wide out to a reported one-year, $6.5 million contract. This acquisition makes for quite the debate amongst Buffalo faithful. This signing appears to solidify an offense, which managed only nine touchdown receptions last year.

Owens had 10. Enough said.

Many wonder what impact Owens will have on quarterback Trent Edwards. If he openly criticizes Edwards as he did past teammates, it could potentially sabotage Edwards career. On the other hand, this could give Edwards the opportunity to flourish. Owens will attract much attention from opposing defenses freeing up space for Lee Evans and the other receivers.

As long as Bills management fill the voids in the offensive line giving Edwards solid protection, Buffalo’s 25th ranked offense should significantly improve.

The AFC East, arguably the best division in the American Football Conference, is at an all time competitive high. The Bills needed to make an acquisition of this magnitude to at the very least compete in this division. This will help them because in New England, Tom Brady is returning, which turns the Patriots into the favorite to take the division title.

What impact T.O. will have on this organization on the field is yet to be seen, but one thing is certain, the Bills will profit from this on a financial standpoint. Season ticket sales should dramatically improve, even after a season where they broke records in sales. You can also bank on Buffalo getting at least one Sunday night game this season along with a ”Monday Night” prime time broadcast.

Lets hope for the Bills that the future Hall of Famer can end the franchise’s longest playoff drought and bring some much needed pride back to Buffalo.

by polo giovani… In a ludicrous attempt to increase revenue for the organization, the NBA’s Toronto Raptors have signed fictional Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones character Jar-Jar Binks to a five-game contract. The team’s president and GM Bryan Colangelo stated that he had become increasingly poorer in the past couple of months and that he needed a way to boost revenue to support his trendy habit.

“Personally, I’m at the end of my rope,” said Colangelo. “I had to sell my hot air balloon and both of my life-size wax replicas of the Stay Puft Mashmallow man just to cover the nose candy.”

Suprisingly, the public support of Colangelo’s plan has been strong. A fan-based coalition has even been formed, and they plan on trying to prolong Jar-Jar’s contract past the five games the creature has already agreed to. Even some of the local pubs and bars are getting into the act. Larz Kleemen, owner of the Cozy Satchel Pub had this to say:

“I’m hoping this string of games will provide much-needed fiscal relief for my business. As of now, the typical crowd at my bar consists of gay men and their pets. Hopefully Mr. Jar-Jar can bring in a slightly broader crowd…the kind with cash pants.”

Jar-Jar is scheduled to land in Toronto later this evening. His contract won’t start until after the Raptors take on Philadelphia, but he did have this to say when we spoke with him via a phone call earlier today:

“Meesa happy and love basketball. Meesa ready for a new chapter in meesa’s life and meesa grateful to Mr. Colangelo for this mosted greatest opportunities. Meesa ready to show what meesa can do.”

Well, I’m sure the “Canadian Basketball Stadium” will be jumping with fans and critics alike when the Raptors host the Pistons this Friday, March 13. One thing’s for sure: The buzz this has created thus far has Colangelo up to his bow-bows in …. and endorsement deals for his new mutant acquisition.

by Stoker Dafire… My fellow combat sports writers and fans who read my articles are well aware that I’m able to stir up a tad bit of controversy over any given topic.

So it should come as no surprise that the question I’m about to ask is a controversial one. And so without further delay so as not to ruin my bad reputation, I will go ahead and ask it.

What does it say about the state of our beloved sport that a one dimensional 135 pound south paw is at the top of boxing’s–historic and highly regarded–pound for pound list?

Boxing’s pound for pound list used to be reserved for legendary combatants, who could do it all and leave no doubt in the minds of fans and critics alike.

Among them were pugilistic warriors like Roy Jones Jr, Pernell Whitaker, Floyd Mayweather Jr, Bernard Hopkins, and the great Felix Trinidad.

These fighters were constantly placed in the lions den and time after time they would emerge without a scratch.

Many hardcore fight fans–including myself–had Manny Pacquiao clearly losing his two matches with Marquez.

Sports writers and critics–who know the sport well–see Pacquiao as a man standing on some very shaky ground.

A third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez could cause the boxing fortress he has created to suddenly cave in around him.

Which brings me to my next question; why is Freddie Roach protecting him from a third fight with Marquez?

Are we to believe what Roach has stated–that he doesn’t want to see Pacquiao in any more wars?

In his home country of the the Philippines, Pacquiao has become an ambassador for the sport of boxing.

No Philippine boxer has caused so much stir since Pancho Villa.

Paquiao hasn’t surpassed Villa yet, but in this wired era of information it seems all but a fore-gone conclusion that he eventually will, so wouldnt it make sense for him to finish the trilogy with Marquez?

Pacquiao has all but ended the careers of boxing legends like Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, and Oscar Dela Hoya.

He has also given the withering sport some life-inducing sunlight and and a few drops of fresh water.

The so-called dying sport of boxing was being choked by some very bad weeds, but thanks to Pacquiao and some great match-ups, it now looks to be experiencing some regrowth.

So why does “the pacman” closely resemble humpty dumpty–perched high on a crumbling wall that used to represent the best fighters the world had to offer?

Could it be that Pacquiao is merely in the top spot due to bad judging, and as a side effect from the recent retirements of Joe Calzaghe and Mayweather?

I have been predicting that Ricky the “hitman” Hatton will beat Pacquiao in their May showdown; and I stick to that prediction like a cheap bottle of glue.

A fellow sportswriter pointed out that Hatton has the type of “smack-talk” that could potentially lure Mayweather out of retirement for another go round.

Fans might want to see a Pacquiao vs Mayweather super fight..but if “Pacman” cant beat Hatton then he has no business being in the ring with a superstar like Mayweather.

Like those popular and well hidden wild flowers that only bloom in May, I’m sure much will be revealed in the coming months.

“I believe more in precision, when you have the capability, like when you see a mosquito fly and you’re able to hit it, you’re able to hit it with a couple of short sharp shots… it’s a beautiful thing.“

—Alexis Arguello