General

Shanoff’s W.U.C.: UConn, Griffin, Lincecum

Apr 8, 2009, 12:07 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: UConn women vs. UNC men, Blake Griffin vs. DeJuan Blair, Tim Lincecum vs. Josh Beckett, Lions vs. Rams, Rockets vs. Magic, Dan Shanoff vs. Dan Levy and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: You might THINK the UNC men were dominant. Compared to the Connecticut women, the Tar Heels were modestly successful.â†µ

â†µâ†µUConn was just as good as UNC in rolling to an NCAA Tournament title. The difference: The Huskies capped an unbeaten season.â†µ

â†µâ†µAnd not just any unbeaten season (as if those are so common): UConn won every game — every game — by double-digits. (UNC may have won every NCAA Tournament game by double-digits, but six of its wins during the regular season were by 9 points or less ... not to mention those four losses. Four losses! Amateurs!)â†µ

â†µâ†µHard-core women’s hoops fans may be tired of the UConn-Tennessee stranglehold on the sport, but for casual fans, dominance is appealing. I don’t know enough about women’s hoops, but I know UConn is freaking awesome. You don’t have to know anything about sports and you could still recognize “39-0” as something spectacular.â†µ

â†µâ†µWas this team as good as UConn’s own 2002 unbeaten champ? Probably not, but this team has earned its way onto the all-time women’s teams list, somewhere.â†µ

â†µâ†µUnbeaten — and, on top of that, untouchable — wins you that much. â†µ

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â†µâ†µMLB Mania:â†µ

â†µâ†µ— Dustin Pedroia’s MVP was apparently no fluke, and the Red Sox start this season against the Rays like they did last season — beating Tampa at Fenway. (Pent-up ALCS frustration, much?)â†µ

â†µâ†µ— How did Tim Lincecum do in his ‘09 debut? Iffy: 3 IP, 3 ER, 5 K. But the Giants won.â†µ

â†µâ†µ— Defending champs start 0-2: Phillies fans shouldn’t be worried. Philly started 0-2 last year, and that worked out pretty well for the franchise.â†µ

â†µâ†µ— Fantasy Studs:â†µ

â†µâ†µJosh Beckett (7 IP, 1 ER, 10 K)â†µ

â†µâ†µJim Thome (3-for-4, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R)â†µ

â†µâ†µErik Bedard (5 IP, 3 ER, 8 K, 0 BB)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Draft: Blake Griffin is turning pro, and he’ll be the consensus No. 1 overall pick. I don’t think it’s even close. (No. 2: Hasheem Thabeet? Eh, not enough upside; I bet Tyreke Evans rises up to pass the UConn center.)â†µ

â†µâ†µDeJuan Blair turning pro, too? Call him the anti-Tyler Hansbrough — he shows enough NBA potential that he really has no reason to stay in college. Blair will measure up short, but his butt is pro-sized. Is he a poor man’s Charles Barkley?â†µ

â†µâ†µCBB: Mike DeCourcy reviews the 2008-09 season. (My only issue: “Last college player who dominated like Blake Griffin?” DeCourcy says K-Mart in 1999-00, but the stats say you don’t have to look any further than last season, Michael Beasley or Kevin Durant the year before.)â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL Draft: What would YOU do with the No. 1 overall pick if you were the Lions? Given that I have no interest in Matthew Stafford (and certainly in not paying him the premium for being a quarterback taken No. 1 overall), I kind of like the “take my pick, please” option. â†µ

â†µâ†µ(Guess what: The Rams want out of the No. 2 pick, too. Wouldn’t it be wild if the first two teams of the draft BOTH passed on their draft slots?)â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Instant History: Was I too quick to write off the Rockets last week? They just beat the Magic, who actually have something to play for (that No. 2 seed in the East and home-court advantage over the Celtics in the East semis). ... Meanwhile: Who needs Ginobili?â†µ

â†µâ†µCFB: It must be nice to live in an alternative reality where Texas won the Big 12.â†µ

â†µâ†µMe-me-media: If you want a combination of high-talking and Tim Tebow-worship — with some Hansbrough analysis and sports-business forecasting thrown in — check out my long interview on today’s edition of Dan Levy’s terrific On The DL podcast. (To subscribe through iTunes, click here.)â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: “These people can’t handle it.” — Tigers OF Josh Anderson, on fans in Toronto who had to watch yesterday’s Jays-Tigers game without beers, after the Rogers Centre temporarily lost its license to sell alcohol after Monday’s season-opening debacle.â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

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