Bleacher Report - Articles by Chris Varner

NBA Playoffs: Cleveland Routs Washington in Physical Game 2

Chris Varner — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 23:05:07 -0400

Although LeBron was not able to record his third career triple-double, he was able to put the Washington Wizards on the short end of a 30-point blowout.

The level of physicality went through the roof as Brendan Haywood was ejected in the third quarter because of a flagrant foul that sent LeBron James flying to the ground. (Although he was quick to regroup and get back on his feet.)

I would expect the game to be called a lot closer in Game 3 because the NBA has been trying to improve its image and the refs probably aren't going to tolerate any of this nonsense much longer.

There was talk after the game about the flagrant and whether or not it was intentional.

"It was not a basketball play in any shape or form," LeBron said.

There was no comment from Haywood, as he didn't speak to reporters and was escorted out of Quicken Loans Arena by security guards.

There was a previous altercation in Game 1 between LeBron James and Brendan Haywood. Haywood may face further discipline by the front office of the NBA.

I wouldn't go bragging, though, if I were a Cavaliers fan. That's mostly because they have been in a couple of previous series when they have had wins of 25 points or more and ended up losing the series on both occasions. However, that was before the King James era.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas chipped in with 16 and Wally Szczerbiak threw in 15 for the defending Eastern Conference Champion Cavaliers.

Gilbert Arenas was 2-of-10 from the floor and was a non-factor, as was pretty much the entire team. The Wizards' big three—Caron Butler, Gilbert Arenas, and Antawn Jamison—combined to go 10-for-36 for a total of 28 points.

LeBron opened up in the third quarter going for 14 points and helped the Cavaliers open up a 25-point lead. This allowed LeBron to head to the bench with 6:12 left in the game, and he was able to rest his body after the beating he took from the Wizards defenders.

I'm sure he'll be ready for the physical play again in Game 3. The only question to be answered is…will the Wizards be ready for LeBron?

Bracket Buster - University Of San Diego Toreros

Chris Varner — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 04:30:26 -0400

The sleeper in the NCAA tournament this year is going to be out on the West Coast.

USD has a very legit shot to pull the upset on UConn. USD has the speed to keep up and they have an inside presence in their Power Forward Rob Jones. (who is the son of late cult leader Rev. Jim Jones) Rob is averages 8.8 points per and 5.8 rebounds per however, those are kind of deceptive because he is gutsy and doesn't like to be pushed around especially on the baseline.

This pick on my part is partially biased because my fiancee is attending law school at USD but, this is actually a good team and I wouldn't waste my energy writing about them if I didn't truly believe this. So, I will be sending out my upset alert to all the No. 4 ranked UConn fans out there and let you be aware now that if you're lucky I will be wrong and the slipper won't quite fit on the foot of the Torerro and the Huskies will still get to dance.

Although if the men don't get it done I can always root for the women who are going up to Northern California to play Cal Berkley which should be a good game as well especially since Cal is ranked No. 3.

GO TORERO'S!!

The Best and Worst of March Madness

Chris Varner — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 19:15:02 -0500

Well, it's almost tourney time and the nation has already been declared in a recession. So you wonder in about a month, or so, how much worse is it going to get?

You're probably going to have about one million people slouched over at their desks crying in joy or agony. People will be bracket-watching minute by minute, and being as un-productive as possible; mostly because they have to know if they are winning in their bracket tournaments or if they should just give up, pack it in, and start making side bets on who's actually going to win it all because their pick got dumped by some small school that hardly anyone has ever heard of.

In case you're wondering I'll be rooting for my Tarheels.

However, I know that they have more injuries than a blind person trying to get out of a room made of razors. It's going to be great to watch and root for the tiny schools like Creighton, just because you wanna see the upsets go down (unless you need them to lose in your bracket, then see above comments). These upsets are great because it proves that talent cannot always match hard work and desire.

I hope that this month comes to a close soon, I'm jonesing for the tourney and I know that I'm not the only one. Rivalry games, upsets, blowouts, buzzer-beaters from 48 feet away, full court alley-oops, and undiscovered talent—what a rush.

Hope you're ready because the madness is coming, and it's coming soon!

The New-Look Oakland Athletics

Chris Varner — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 13:28:31 -0500

Some people have bashed Billy Beane for trading key players such as Nick Swisher and Dan Haren, and have asked the question, "Does he know what he's doing?"

Well, Billy has been doing this for quite some time now, and if I recall correctly nobody complained when he brought a few 20-something pitchers named Barry Zito, Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder up, and won 100 games with them.

This new-look Oakland Athletic team is going to be very young once again this year and will most likely struggle

However, they have talent with enough potential to make them team to beat within the next three years.

With up-and-coming stars in the organization such as Joey Devine (acquired from Atlanta in the Mark Kotsay trade), a very hard throwing right-hander; Carlos Gonzalez, acquired in the Dan Haren trade and newly acquired Emil Brown, who has come over from the Royals and is going to get a very good opportunity to replace Mark Kotsay in center field. This is a kid who could be a great fit as long as Oakland elects to play some hit and run this year which is something they have shied away from in years past.

Brown led the Royals the previous two seasons in stolen bases, and led them in RBIs last year with 62. He was only a part timer in Kansas City and was off to a slow start on a consistent basis but picked it up a notch after the All Star break batting .296, so this is a kid who has the potential to step up into a situation as a full time player and develop nicely.

Pitching, which Oakland is known for, probably won't be that great this year—but I believe within the next two or three years the A's pitching will, without a doubt, be once again the benchmark in the American League. Especially now that Johan Santana is in the National League and Oakland dealt one of their key starters, Dan Haren, to the National league earlier this off-season as well, managing to get four of Arizona's top-eight prospects in return—including two lefties

So for all who doubt Beane and are going to complain about the A's this year—you should keep a very sharp eye on this up and coming Oakland franchise over the next three years, and be patient.

Super Bowl XLII: Easy Does It for Eli Manning

Chris Varner — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 04:11:12 -0500

At some time, almost everyone in the nation thought, either out loud or to themsleves, "Well, the Patriots have locked this one up again."

Or, "There's no way the Giants are going down the field in two minutes."

Yet, Eli "Easy E" Manning moved his team down the field with determination and poise. He looked like the quarterback that he was supposed to be when he was drafted.

Manning had what appeared to be an average night statiscally speaking, going 19-34 for 255 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

His preformance was nothing short of an Oscar-worthy performance for best drama. He proved to all his doubters that he can keep his team in the game and come up clutch when asked to do so.

Manning took huge steps this season to develop the skills necessary to be an effective quarterback in the NFL.

The Patriots managed to set records all year long, including the only team to go 18-1 and NOT win the Super Bowl. Congratulations to them on that spectacular feat.

Most importantly, I would like to extend my congratulations to the New York football Giants on an amazing run to end their season by doing what most said could not happen, and what few believed would.

I'm excited to know that the NFC finally has arrived to compete with the AFC and this amazing victory will have me wanting more—unfortunately, I'll have to wait until next year!