help during the madness

    The Journalist Toolbox on the American Press Institute website had a link to http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/. The website allows you to plan ahead for coverage of events and other important dates and times. For most sports fans, March Madness is one of the most exciting things about college athletics. There are up to five games a day sometimes. If you want to keep your bracket up to date, you don’t want to miss any of the action.

   With 65 teams, and one final champion being crowned, there’s going to be a lot of basketball games going on throughout the month of March. You can put the games and times into the calendar so you won’t miss any of the madness! Check it out 🙂

let’s dance!

     The madness has begun! The men’s basketball team is going dancing!!! The Rebs defeated Brigham Young University http://www.byucougars.com/basketball_m/ in the MWC championship game to clench an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Rebels are in the Midwest bracket as the eighth seed. They face Kent State Thursday at 11:55am in Omaha, Nebraska. I spoke with a few Rebel fans that were suprised with the seed the Rebels received. There were other fans that thought our strength of schedule may have hurt us.

   The NCAA tournament is a new season though. The seedings and rankings really don’t matter because in the end, only one champion will be crowned.

don’t forget about us!

    The UNLV Women’s Basketball team will face Colorado State University tomorrow night at six in the Thomas and Mack Center. The Lady Rebs are seeded 8th and the Rams are seeded 9th. The Rebels faced CSU a little over a month ago, and beat them by ten points.

    It’s been a up and down season for the Lady Rebels, but hopefully they will be able to put the regular season behind them and focus on post-season play.

Coach of the Year

    Men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger was named the 2007-08 Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year. Kruger has led this year’s Runnin’ Rebels to a 23-7 overall record and a second-place finish in the MWC with a 12-4 league mark. He has led UNLV to back-to-back seasons with at least 23 wins for the first time since 1990-91 and 1991-92. UNLV loss four starters from last year’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 team, and their 2006-07 MWC Defensive Player of the Year. UNLV is without 62 percent of the scoring, rebounding and minutes played from last season’s team and is competing with just a 10-man roster after the loss of three players from the program during the season. Additionally, UNLV is winning with a lineup that averages just 6-feet, 4.5-inches and whose tallest starter is only 6-foot-7-inches.

    The MWC Tournament starts Wednesday at 6pm for the number 2 seeded Rebels. They will face the number 7 seeded Horned Frogs of TCU.

March Madness Part 2

    Is there a more exciting time in college sports than March Madness? The upsets, the buzzer beaters, filling out brackets, and the crowning of a new national champion. There’s certainly going to be a new champion this year considering last years champion Florida Gators probably won’t even make the tournament this year. They loss just about all of their starters to the NBA, and head Coach Billy Donavan has spent more time teaching the freshman his coaching style than winning basketball games.  

   So who will be the new champion? North Carolina is number one right now but that doesn’t mean anything during the month of March. March madness is unpredictable and full of surprises. Let the madness begin.

march madness

     The Runnin’ Rebels finished up the regular season with a record of 23-7, 12-4 in the Mountain West Conference. The Mountain West Conference is the league that they are a part of. They finished second in conference behind Brigham Young University.

   Next Sunday the Rebels will be tuned in to the NCAA tournament Selection Show. They are hoping to be one of the 64 teams to make the NCAA tournament. They have a good record and their strength of schedule isn’t bad either but the Rebels are still a bubble team. The strenght of schedule is an important factor because it’s what the selection committee will look at. The “strength” of the schedule is referring to the teams that the Rebels have played during regular season. If they beat a nationally ranked school such as UCLA or North Carolina, our strength of schedule numbers would be good.

    The best thing for them to do is win the Mountain West Conference tournament which starts Thursday night at six for the Rebels. They play the seventh seeded Texas Christian University Horned Frogs. Winning would give them an automatic bid to the national tournament. BYU will most likely go to the tournament since they’re ranked 25th in the country right now.

   There are only 64 teams that make the NCAA tournament!

ncaa gone too far?

      At the University of Louisville’s Jim Patterson Stadium, Brian Bennett, a journalist from The Louisville Courier-Journal was kicked out of a baseball game for blogging. I’ve posted the link to the actual article from USA Today that explains the incident, so I won’t go into too much detail here. The question here is has  the NCAA gone a little to far with this one? Maybe someone should remind the NCAA exactly what those letters stand for…National Collegiate Athletic Association. It’s not some type of law enforcement agency that should be patrolling at games for journalist blogging.

   There actually isn’t any type of rule or law that permits this at games. On the professional level, blogging at games is allowed. I personally have “watched” professional games via blog when I can’t be at home in front of my televison.

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2007/06/ncaa_tosses_blo.html

oh what a night

Last night I sat outside and watched about five and a half hours of Rebel baseball. I know what you’re thinking, “Why would I do that?” I’m a senior here at UNLV and I’ve never been to a game before, so I thought opening night would be a perfect opportunity to go to a game.
http://www.soundupload.com/audio/5kms3aro4uakv42

Well it seemed like a good idea before the game had three extra innings. Even before it was over I was freezing, hungry, and tired. Not a good combination. But I stuck it out and stayed, and it was definitely worth it. Junior shortstop Anthony Morel singled to left field with two out in the bottom of the 12th inning, giving UNLV a 6-5 win over Central Michigan. I’ll admit I was worried when Morel stepped up to bat, considering he was 0-4 thus far in the night. But as soon as he connected with the ball I knew he had won the game for the Rebels.

    I’ve never really been a huge baseball fan, but after going to the game and watching the players, and seeing how excited they were after Morel’s game winning play, I definitely have a new respect for the sport. Maybe baseball players don’t run as much as say soccer players or basketball players, but the heart and patience that I witnessed last night from those guys was worth sitting out there all night 🙂

Student-Athlete

   The women’s soccer team is tied for frist place with the overall highest grade point average for all UNLV Athletics. The UNLV Women’s Soccer Team was a part of a school-record 43 total athletics from UNLV on the Academic-All MWC team, according to conference officials. There were 13 women’s soccer players announced to the team. To even be considered eligible for the team, student-athletes must have completed at least one academic term at UNLV while maintaining a cumulative gpa of 3.0 or better, and be a starter or impact player.

    It’s important to point out academic accomplishments, especially with all the negative press UNLV athletics has been receiving lately from concerned citizens of the community and media. Contrary to the belief of many, being a college athlete is about more than just putting effort into the sport.  

Something Special

 The wait is almost over. UNLV Baseball is four days away from opening weekend. They are picked to finish fifth in conference, but after sitting down for an interview with  junior first baseman Xavier Scruggs, I think he has other plans for the team. Here’s what he had to say:

Q: How do you feel about you guys being picked to finish fifth in conference this year?

A: I really don’t pay too much attention to anyones predictions. I focus on my team and how my team can get better each and everyday to win a MWC (Mountain West Conference) championship.

Q: What do you want to be remembered for when your playing days at UNLV are over?

A: I want to be remembered as a student-athlete that was the hardest worker and able to lead his team and do something they’ve never done before, which is lead the team to Omaha, Nebraska for the College World Series.

Q: On February 3, 2006, you hit the second pitch you saw in your collegiate career over the fence for a solo home run against Pepperdine. Describe that feeling.

A: That was probably one of the best feelings I’ve ever had in baseball. Mainly because my parents were at the game and it was their anniversary and having that kind of success in your first at bat is pretty rare.

Q: Does each home run feel the same? When your bat connects does it feel the same each time?

A: No it does not. Some home runs feel better than others. Some balls that you don’t hit as well don’t go as far as you want them to so some clear the fence and others barely get over the fence. The ones that feel the best are the ones that you know are gone as soon as they hit the bat.

Q: Do you feel any added pressure because it’s a draft year for you? Are you approaching this season any differently than seasons past? If so how?

A: I don’t feel any added pressure. I try not to think about it. At the same time I am focusing on the smaller details in my game that will help me get to the next level this year.

Q: Do you think the steroids problem at the professional level affects young players like yourself?

A: Yes it does because it opens younger players eyes to the problem as well and helps them to realize that steroids is something that will not be accepted and should never be taken.

Q: Is there anything else you want to add or that you want the fans to know about you or the team?

A: The fans should know it’s going to be a special year for UNLV baseball and the more they come out and support the Rebels  the more success we will have.

       Meet Xavier Scruggs:

Year in School: Junior

Major: Business/Human Resources Management

Favorite Color: Turquoise

Favorite Music: R&B and Hip-Hop

Favorite Food: Chinese

Favorite MLB Team: San Diego Padres

Favorite Thing To Do On An Off Day: Take naps, play videogames