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Barack Obama says he delivers the promise of hope and change, but he already lost the play-in game on his NCAA Tournament pool, when Morehead State defeated Alabama State.

This is what we voted for?

When will he be impeached?

Also, picking North Carolina to win it all with Ty Lawson injured is not change I can believe in.

10-9-8-76ers

While today's Game 1 win against the mighty Detroit Pistons was admittedly the first Sixers game I watched all year, I'm on the bandwagon and proud of it. Not even really sure how they pulled it off with Iguodala and Dalembert looking so lost, though their supporting cast was very solid and Andre Miller basically owned the fourth quarter. I really liked the addition of Reggie Evans when they got him, and he was a difference maker today with 11 points and 14 boards.

Nice blogiversary present. I don't think they can take the series unless AI learns how to play against Tayshaun Prince, but I'll take the 1-0 lead for now.

This has been the obligatory monthly sports post, though if the Sixers keep winning it may be more than monthly.

Temporary Madness

OK, despite the fact that I have no more stakes than a $10 office pool, and that I haven't seen a college basketball game the entire year, let me just say that I'm a huge Davidson and Drake fan right now.

5.7 seconds left... don't give it to Brazelton... OK, who's Brazelton... wow, that was a nice finish. 30-footer to win, nothing but net?

OK, my bracket's busted, I'm done...

This has been your obligatory monthly sports post.

Site Notes

In an effort to decrease my work load, and more important, offer a fresh perspective to the site, I've decided to add a weekend contributor. Vernon Lee, who has her own site as well, will be posting on Saturdays and Sundays. I'm excited about having somebody else minding the store.

And now, I'm off. But first, here's some old school B-Rock hoops action. Obama has bad form on his jump shot, but a nice breakaway layup. And they got 6,000 out for a high school game? In Hawaii?

Whoops, There Was A Debate?

I completely forgot that there was a Democratic debate tonight, and ended up watching the NBA draft (and seeing my 76ers get a bunch of solid but unspectacular players to add to their unspectacular roster. By the way, why does anybody think the Knicks did well to get Zack Randolph? They already have Curry in the middle, so that'll be clogged, and the whole roster is still a bunch of malcontents. Francis for Randolph seems to me like cancer for cancer.)

Reuters has a recap of the debate, which sounds like it was pretty substantive. The issues certainly were more geared towards working people, in addition to blacks and Hispanics. And all of the candidates, from what I've read, were well-received and well-versed on the issues.

It certainly is a far cry from the Animal Cruelty Party:

The behavior of K'Lo's beloved Oven Mitt does raise the issue of why so many Republican politicians have a defective chip in their brains if not an outright cruel streak when it comes to animals. It's a most disturbing pattern.

For wholesome backyard summertime fun, George Bush used to blow up frogs with firecrackers.

His vice president, Dick Cheney, takes part in canned hunts and slaughters anything that flies in a maestrom of exploding feathers.

Former blight on the landscape Bill Frist earned the nicknames "the Kitty Kevorkian" and the "Meow-Mix Mengele" because of his exploits as a medical student: "Frist disclosed that he went to animal shelters and pretended to adopt the cats, telling shelter personnel he intended to keep them as pets. Instead he used them to sharpen his surgical skills, killing them in the process."

Rudy Giuliani was so possessed of rabid ferretphobia that he pathologized the entire lovable race of pet companions and their devotees.

Of the Republican contestants, the most pet-friendly by far is John McCain, whose sinking poll numbers indicate that the modern Republican party has no place for someone who practices kindness to animals as a way of life.

Democrats '08: We Love Puppies!

Chauncey Billups?

Really, you have 6'0" Chauncey Billups guard 6'8" LeBron James (without help) on an isolation play with 10 seconds left in double OT? When you have Tayshaun Prince, who's actually the same size as LeBron, on the floor? And you don't converge to make him pass but take a two-footer layup?

I think Detroit contracted the curse of Chris Webber.

(amazing game by LeBron. He scored the last 25 of Cleveland's points himself. That's Jordan-esque. However, I have not forgiven James for refusing to sign teammate Iraq Newble's letter to China regarding their indirect support for the Sudanese government and the genocide in Darfur. Maybe he doesn't want to mess up his Nike contract by criticizing the country where a lot of their shoes are made. Great basketball player, bad human being.)

Obligatory Monthly Basketball Post

After the great Golden State upset in Round 1, the NBA playoffs have started to wane. Expect as many 79-76 scores as there are games in the East, and expect Utah and Cleveland to go bye-bye, leaving us with Detroit and San Antone, again. I just can't get excited about that.

And I think they're going to have to expand the Western Conference playoffs to 12 teams now, seeing that Portland and Seattle just got Oden and Durant. My 76ers made the bold and inspiring move to win more than any non-lottery team in the second half of the season, leaving them with exactly what they deserved - a useless 12th pick. I'm so happy they pushed to 35 wins, that'll look really good on Mo Cheeks' coaching resume.

I am glad that the three teams that tanked the most (Memphis, Boston and Milwaukee) got shut out of the big prize. But man, the West is stacked for the forseeable future.

UPDATE: Just to throw a little politics into this, Cavs benchwarmer Ira Newble should be commended for pushing his fellow NBAers to petition China to help stop the genocide in Darfur. There are actually quite a few socially conscious NBA athletes; Adonal Foyle and Eton Thomas spring to mind.

Go Go Golden State Warriors

That's a fun basketball team. And when Baron Davis is on a roll, he's as good as any player in the league. Plus, I've never liked the Mavs.

Golden State-Houston would be perfect because Yao Ming would be guarded by someone a foot shorter than him.

This has been your annual sports diversion.