The weekend closes with a game between two of the best teams in the league. What’s also fun to consider that as long as Jason Kidd and Kobe Bryant stay in their respective uniforms we get to see two of the best players play each other at least four times a year in Western Conference battle. Barely anything separates the two teams in the standings, but hardly any team has played better than the Lakers, especially since the arrival of power forward Pau Gasol. Winner’s of 11 out of their last 12 leaves you considering that the Lakers aren’t even in full strength yet. When a knee injury sent emerging center Andrew Bynum down, Lakers fans thought their season was over. Well, now they have Gasol, and a fair chance that Bynum will be back in full strength before the playoffs begin. It’s a very scary thought for other teams in the conference. Bynum seems like he may be the next center in the long historic history of great centers to suit up for the Lakers.

As mentioned, the Mavericks now have true ball handler in Jason Kidd. Kidd is still one of the best point guards in the league, despite getting up their in age a little bit. On the Mavs’ he doesn’t have to be a point scorer, instead he continuing distributing the ball at a clip of 12 assists per game.

This game will probably go right down to the wire. Right now Bryant and company are finding ways to win close games, even on the road, that’s why I will favor the Lakers in this one by a slim margin.

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The Houston Rockets are having a great season, but because everyone seems to be having a great season in the West they still have a question mark surrounding their chances of making the playoffs. In almost an exact opposite scenario, the Chicago Bulls are having an off year, but because a lot of teams in the Eastern conference have a below .500 record, they still have an ok shot of making the playoffs. What a difference a conference makes. The Rockets have two surefire stars on their team in Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming. But, when you are playing Bryant, Anthony, Iverson, Nowizki, and Nash, you run into teams nightly with just as much talent as you. The Chicago Bulls on the other hand often times seem like a team with no identity. While they have pretty good players, they don’t seem to have great players. Ben Wallace is averaging almost nine rebounds a game, but his defense presence that made him a star on the good Detroit teams has declined noticeably. Their best player Ben Gordon is still coming off the bench in the sixth man capacity. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I still don’t understand that. I guess that’s why I’m not an NBA coach. Too me it would seem you would want your leading point scorer, at 20 points a game, on the floor to start the game.

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Baring any major upsets, the UNC Tar Heels seem a lock to get a number one seed heading into the March Madness tournaments. They are currently ranked second in the nation. Junior Tyler Hansbrough has been a beast all season, averaging a double-double consisting of 20 points and 10 rebounds a game. The junior is in the running for player of the year. Hansbrough does things that don’t show up in a stat book, and what could only be considered “hustle points.” UNC has two losses this season. The first one came as a bit of a shock to the University of Maryland, but the second came against their arch rival Duke. They weren’t at full strength at Duke in that contest, and they are hoping to repay the Blue Devils when they play them again at the end of the season.

Boston College is having an off year, sailing at right about a .500 record. They are most likely looking at an NIT bit, unless they are able to pull a near miracle, and win the ACC tournament. They got off to a decent start, but the ACC schedule had done them in, as they have lost eight of their last nine contests. Junior Tyrese Rice has tried his best to keep the team afloat averaging 20 points a game, but without much of a supporting cast the attempts have been futile. In the ACC, you never know, but I’m favoring UNC big in this one. The Tar Heels are looking for another deep run to at least the final four, and a loss to BC this late in the season would be embarrassing.

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The Big East hasn’t always been considered a great basketball league, but this year has changed that. For starters, they have five of the countries top-25 teams in the nation, led by number 10 Georgetown Hoyas. They also have a very good chance of bringing at least seven teams to the Big Dance, with a possible chance at eight, nine, or possibly even 10. The Hoyas are currently tied with Louisville at 12-3 at the top of the conference, and has showed some signs of slowing down recently, after playing tough all year. They dropped two of three, a few games ago, to Syracuse and to Lousiville. However, they’ve been able to turn it around recently, winning two in a row, including a victory on the road at the better than expected Cincinnati Bearcats.

Marquette is playing some of their best basketball of the year at the present time. There is no better time to get hot then when heading into the Big Dance. They have won four games in a row, and after dropping out of the top-25 temporarily, they are right back in at 21. While a Big East regular season title seems out of the question at this point, they could still make a serious run and get themselves a nice seed in the March Madness tournament. The Golden Eagles haven’t had this much hype surrounding them since they had a player by the name of Dwayne Wade on their squad. This team is not a one man team though, as they have four players averaging over ten points a contest. This is a very tough game to call, but because of the Golden Eagles playing so well, and the game being at home for them, I will take them in a mini upset.

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By the time the Detroit Pistons and Phoenix Suns, two of the best teams in the league, suit up, the Suns will be playing with their new star, “Shaq.” O’Neal has had a slow start to the season playing with the Miami Heat, but he believes that he will be revitalized as he helps march the Suns towards that elusive championship that’s seemed to always be just out of their reach the last few years. The Pistons on the other hand have “been there, done that,” but are hoping to return. So far the prospects of that happening are looking pretty well. They have the second best record in the Eastern Conference. They have also played well against the top team in the East, the Boston Celtics. People aren’t exactly sure how the “Shaq” experiment will work in Phoenix, but they felt strong enough to send away Shawn Marion. O’Neal will be expected to run up and down the court, as the Suns have one of, if not the most, explosive offenses in the league. At 34 years old, the big man may not have the energy to do that every night. O’Neal has mad a living out of proving “us” wrong and I have a feeling he is looking forward to the challenge again.

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When you usually see a battle between these two teams you think of a big time football game. While the rivalry on the hardwood isn’t as big as the one on the gridiron, it is still an exciting time when these two meet. Wisconsin is currently ranked 10th in the nation, and have compiled a 21-4 record. They are right in the mix of things in the Big Ten championship with teams. However, just a few games ago they lost to Penn State, at home. The Badgers are known for their stellar home record, and to think they have already lost twice their year is a fairly big shock. Wisconsin has three players that average right around 12 points a game, but the leader of the team is Brian Butch. Butch also leads the team in rebounding with seven a contest.

Ohio State is probably considered a bubble team this year, despite being the national runner-up last year. The Buckeyes seemed to progress well enough, steadily improving as the season wore on, but unexpected losses to Big Ten bottom dwellers Michigan and Illinois might have them on the outside looking in come tournament selection time. A victory over Wisconsin of course would be a huge boast to their resume, and their overall team moral, but despite them even playing at home, I think the Buckeyes will have their number in this one.

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The midway break of the NBA Season and here and with it comes the NBA All-Star Game. The teams seem pretty even, so lets take a closer look to see how the starting lineups match for each team.

Starting Centers
Dwight Howard vs. Yao Ming: This is a pretty even match-up in my opinion. Ming has the advantage in experience, but Dwight Howard is so explosive it may be better suiting for the tone the All-Star game usually takes. Early in the game it is usually a battle of athletic talents, and for as good as Ming is, you don’t really think of athletic when you think of him. In a normal game I might favor Ming, but in this game I lean towards Howard.

Starting Power Forwards
Kevin Garnett vs. Tim Duncan: Garnett and Duncan know each other well. Up until this season they met at least four times a year, as Garnett used to play for the Western Conference Timberwolves. This battle between big men is virtually a pick’um. You can make arguments for both sides on why they are the best power forward in the league. I would think any team would love either one of these players on their team. No advantage here.

Starting Small Forwards
LeBron James vs. Carmello Anthony: These two really do go well together. James came straight out of high school to become an overnight sensation, and Anthony played one season in college, winning a title for the Syracuse Orangemen. Despite the comparable stats, I favor James in this match-up. He’s a little more explosive, which makes a different in the All-Star game.

Starting Shooting Guards
Dwayne Wade vs. Kobe Bryant: Both of these players are obviously very good, but I think Bryant had the advantage here. If we are just taking this year into account, the Lakers are among the best in the West, and Wade’s Heat have nearly the worst record in the East. Both are great leaders, but to this point in their careers I feel Bryant is the better choice if deciding between the two.

Starting Point Guards
Allen Iverson vs. Jason Kidd: I know technically Iverson is a point guard, but most of the world has always seen him as a two guard. When you see Jason Kidd, you automatically think point guard. If the question is who is the more exciting, and better scorer you take Iverson. If it’s who is the better point guard, you take Jason Kidd. For an All-Star game however, Iverson’s play may be more effective.

These comparisons are of course hard because both teams are so good. Instead of picking a winner, I’ll just ask you to turn in on Sunday and enjoy all the festivities from New Orleans.

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If this was a football game it would probably get more recognition, but nevertheless it’s still a good way to end a weekend with a nice basketball game. Ohio State is having a fairly decent year, but nothing compared to their run to the national title game last year. Of course when you lose your top player, Greg Oden in Ohio State’s case, which is to be expected.

The Buckeyes are 16-8 and right in the middle of the pack of the Big-Ten conference. Senior guard Jamar Butler is averaging over 14 points a game. He is also finding teammates very well, averaging over six assists a contest, among the best in the conference. Ohio State if four of six in their last games, but have lost the two games against the tougher competition, including games against Iowa and Indiana. At this point is seems that Ohio State would probably make the Big Dance, but a few more wins down the spot will help solidify their spot. That would also include winning all games they should win, including this game against Michigan.

Michigan is having a tough season, which includes just a 6-17 record, and only two conference wins. Freshman guard Manny Harris has been trying everything he can do to add more W’s to the win column, but it’s apparent the team needs more than his 16 points a game. In their last 13 ball games they have been only able to win two. Ohio State should win this game, and probably by 10 to 15 points.

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Texas A & M is currently 20-4 and sitting at 18th in the nation’s top 25 pool. They are in the very tough Big 12 conference, and they are one of four teams in it ranked in the top 25. Despite the great start, they are currently in fourth place in the Big-12. Did I mention that it’s a tough conference?

Oklahoma State is currently second from the bottom in the league, and are most likely just a product of being in a tough conference. They are losers of seven out of their last eight ballgames. However, they did play Texas A & M tough earlier in the season at home, losing by only three points. The challenge will be tougher now that they are the road team, but they have a couple of players that will be up for the challenge. Freshman James Anderson is probably a year or two away from having a huge impact, but even now he’s leading the team in scoring with nearly 15 points a game.

The Aggies are lead by Junior Josh Carter. Carter is averaging over 13.3 points a game from a guard and forward position. Winners of their last five, they hope to keep the winning streak going before they hit a tough stretch in their schedule, including games against Texas, and Oklahoma.

Oklahoma State seems like they will pretty much falter the rest of the year, with an eye on next year. Being basketball any team can beat another at anytime, but of course I’m favoring the Aggies in this one, and by about 10 points or so.

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The Miami Heat will be looking a lot different when they hit the road against the Bulls. For starters, Shaquille O’Neal is out at the center position, now suiting up for the Phoenix Suns, and will be replaced by Shawn Marion. Also joining the Heat from the Suns is guard Marcus Banks. It is still too early to tell if this trade will help either team, but it was apparent the Heat needed a change. Miami has only one a single game since Christmas. Losing 20 of 21 will make anyone want a change.

The Chicago Bulls are fairing a little better, but not by much. Ben Gordon, Ben Wallace, and Kirk Hinrich are all suffering from minor injuries that have seen them in and out of the lineup. Despite being nine games under .500 the team is still in the playoff race. One decent run, when they get healthy, would put them back in the eight position no problem, but first they have to get their. The Bulls were expected to be among the top of the pack, but then again, so were the Dwayne Wade led Miami Heat.

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In the early portion of the season the Heat had talked about acquiring Kobe Bryant from the Lakers. That obviously didn’t happen, and for good measure, the Lakers are among the top teams in the West. Maybe Marion will be the shot in the are that this team needs to start playing respectable basketball, and prepare for a better next season.�

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