I need to watch the NBA more.  Since when did players start doing 360 alley oop dunks anyway?

Irregardless, this is freaking priceless.

One YouTube commenter summed it up nicely…

“sick wicked and nasty”

Indeed.

[Image]

This has to be the end all, be all of Kentucky Wildcat memorabilia.  A $71,000 Roush Mustang (or the more reasonably priced $43,000 GT version) customized and labelled the “Coach Cal Edition,” for the Wildcats dapper head coach, is soon to be  available at Paul Miller Ford in Lexington, Kentucky.

Better hurry though…the dealership is only making five available.

And I can almost guarantee that their are five UK fans out there, with more money than brains, who will snatch these cars up.  Who am I kidding–if I had the cash, I’d snag one too.  They are, as the kids used to say, “real boss.”

Here’s how the creative process breaks down…

1. a 2010 Mustang, either a Roush 427R or GT version, is given a UK blue paint scheme, similar to the “Bill Keightley” jerseys the team wore last season
2. a “C” is added to the rear of the vehicle, which obviously stands for Calipari
3. each of the Mustangs is then autographed by Coach Calipari himself

One final tidbit of information–each of the cars will, at some point, be driven by Calipari, until they are sold…or given to potential recruits.  Boom!  Roasted!

More pics of the “Coach Cal” Mustang…

First there was the John Calipari Maker’s Mark bottle of bourbon, and now this.  Let’s just hope that Coach Cal never pulls a “Billy Gillispie,”  because the irony would be too much for UK fans to handle.

[Kentucky.com, Image]

I am in no way anything close to a political pundit, so I feel absolutely no shame in asking…what the hell is a Libertarian anyway?  Scratch that, I don’t need to know that bad.  Really I don’t.  What I can infer though is that Libertarians from the great state of Oregon must really love Rick Nash.

How else to explain why U.S. Senate candidate Marc Delphine’s campaign logo is eerily similar to the one used by a middling NHL team from central Ohio.  And by similar I mean it’s a blatant rip-off stunning likeness of the logo employed by the Columbus Blue Jackets, only backwards and slightly modified.

You can see Delphine’s campaign logo (since removed) in the banner above–now compare that to the Blue Jackets logo…

I’m usually the kind of guy who gives someone the benefit of the doubt, but come on, put a little effort into it, will ya?  The only thing worse would’ve been to photoshop Delphine’s head onto the Penguins logo and call it an original.

Delphine, for his part, had the offending logo immediately removed when told of the similarities, and suggested a volunteer named “Aaron” designed and submitted the logo.  But not one to throw a campaign volunteer under the bus, Delphine took full responsibility for the look-alike logo, while at the same time reiterating that he was, in fact,  not the logo’s creator.

The NHL is unlikely to pursue any legal discourse, since the logo was removed from all aspects of the campaign almost immediately after the discovery was made.

When all is said and done, I’m willing to chalk it all up to an honest mistake.  Let bygones be bygones and all that crap.  I mean honestly, who expects anyone from Oregon to know who or what the Columbus Blue Jackets are, let alone what their emblem looks like.  And Delphine, being the political animal that he is, had one final spin to put on the whole thing…

“If anything, I hope this raises awareness for the Columbus Blue Jackets,” said Delphine.

Me too, so that we can eradicate crappy, uninspired hockey once and for all.

[Oregon Live]

Just when you think the human race can’t sink to lower depths than it already has, along comes  a story such as this which completely reaffirms that yes, humanity is going to hell in a hand-basket.

The whole Michael Vick fiasco showed the world the barbarism and inhumanity that is the culture of dog fighting.  Cockfighting has been around for centuries, and despite Wilford Brimley’s best efforts, is illegal in all 50 states.

But laws and ethics aren’t much when it comes to fighting animals for entertainment and profit.

The newest craze…finch fighting.

Yes, you read that right.  No, that is not a typo.  Tiny little saffron finches, all of six inches, are having their bills edged to razor sharpness, then forced to battle to the death with another finch, while gamblers and thrill-seekers alike cheer on the bloody carnage in front of them.

Finch fighting only recently came to light after a pair of bird-fighting rings–one in Connecticut, and one in Massachusetts–were busted by animal welfare agencies.  Experts believe that there are many, many more of these bird-fighting rings all over the U.S., but are worried that many will go undetected because of how easy it is to transport and hide the diminutive finches.

Which brings me to my final point–please, please never get involved in animal fighting rings of any kind, but if you are so inclined, remember…

• the first rule of Finch Fight Club is, you do not talk about Finch Fight Club.
• the second rule of Finch Fight Club is, you do not talk about Finch Fight Club.

That is all.

[NY Daily News, Image via Wikipedia]

Isn’t that much better than a generic title, along the lines of “Softball Player Hit in Head With Ball,” or something similar.  See, what my title does is spice things up a bit, gets the reader’s morbid curiosity aroused, then draws them into the interwoven tapestry that is this article.  And once the reader is in–there’s no getting out.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way–here’s a video of a softball player getting hit in the head with the ball.  Sorry, despite my cleverly worded title, it’s still just a video of some girl getting hit by a ball.

Not to be sexist or anything, but I never understood co-ed leagues.  There are no sports that I can think of where men compete against women (except for bowling, but is that really a sport?), and it’s painfully obvious from the video, that poor girl who took the ball to the head probably wouldn’t have dropped like a bag of dirt had a girl been playing shortstop.  I’m just saying is all.

One thing’s for sure–slow motion replays of some poor schmuck going down in a heap after taking a softball to the melon never, ever gets old.

[H/T to the Sportress of Blogitude]

No, not that kind of slumpbuster, sickos.  I would never consider someone’s mother a slumpbuster of any sorts, least of all one whose offspring resembles the lovechild of Richard Kiel.  And if you don’t know who Richard Kiel is, Google him, or watch Happy Gilmore and/or Moonraker–Kiel’s the ginormous cretin with the heart of gold, or something.

But vague movie references aside, Alex Ovechkin’s mom did help her amazingly talented son break out of a recent goal-scoring slump he was in.  So yes, technically the woman is a slumpbuster.  See, Alex was in a six-game goal scoring funk, which is unusual for a guy who averages 54 goals a season.  In 57 games this campaign, Ovie has already netted 42 goals, but like I said, zero in the last six games.

So Ovechkin decided it was time for a change.  Not an equipment change, or a philosophy change, nope, it was time for a change…in hairstyle.  As reported by Versus’ Charissa Thompson (via DC Sports Bog)…

“That’s right, six games without a goal and he decided to switch it up,” she reported during Monday night’s broadcast. “You know, usually he sports that very shaggy hairdo, but today he’s a little bit more cleaned up, courtesy of his mother. That’s right you guys, his mom gave him that haircut. And not that that guy needs to worry about saving money, but hey, can’t beat the price. It’s free, and obviously it worked.”

Damn right it worked–two goals in a shootout loss to the Stars on Monday night ended Ovie’s goal-scoring drought.  The game tying goal, his 44th of the season, was pure Ovechkin.

No word yet on whether Mama Ovechkin has been hired on as the team’s official hairdresser.

[DC Sports Bog, Top Image via Wikipedia, Second Image via SI]

Remember that good feeling everyone had after the men’s Gold Medal game between Canada and the United States?  Remember how the excitement generated from that game was going to carry over to the National Hockey League, once the Olympics were done, and how NHL television viewers would increase in numbers for the remainder of the season, and beyond?

Yeah, ain’t gonna happen.

Exactly one week, one stinkin’ week, after that epic showdown between the Yanks and Canucks drew an unheard of (well, unheard of for a hockey game) 17.6 rating overnight, and a 15.2 final rating, the Red Wings/Blackhawks tilt, NBC’s NHL Game of the Week, drew a meager 1.2 overnight rating.

Sure, that 1.2 rating is better than last year’s Bruins/Rangers game (1.0 rating), but somewhat lower than the Pens/Capitals game on February 7, the final NBC broadcast heading into the Olympic break (1.3 rating).  Of course, the February 7 game had the added benefit of a showdown between the leagues top two stars in Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin.

But still, this doesn’t bode well for fans hoping to see NHL stars at the 2014 Winter Olympics.  Increased viewership, courtesy of the Olympics, is pretty well the only benefit the NHL and the team owners receive from NHL participation.  And it’s fairly obvious from these latest numbers that casual fans that get caught up in the excitement of Olympic hockey, realize that the NHL product is far less entertaining an animal, and would rather watch Golden Girls reruns on a Sunday afternoon, than sit through an NHL game.

[Sports Media Watch]

And that’s not great, because Shane Battier really, really loves karaoke.  It’s almost unhealthy, the Rockets forward’s affection for off-key singing–the man considers himself a “huge karaoke aficionado.”

Battier gives a little more detail on his karaoke love affair in this video, which is both a joke (I think), and a promotion for an upcoming charity night he’s hosting…

Wow.  Gotta love when Battier breaks out a little “Ice Ice Baby.”  When was the last time you heard an athlete use the words “aficionado” and “cotillion” in the same interview?  Or ever, for that matter.  But Shane Battier is one of the most articulate and well-spoken athletes I’ve ever seen.  Plus he has the temperament to laugh at himself, while others laugh at him and his karaoke skills.

So, if you find yourself in or around the Houston area on April 8th, you should definitely try and get tix for Shane and Heidi Battier’s Clutch City Karaoke, to hear Shane and some of the other Rockets players badly singing other people’s songs.

[H/T Ball Don't Lie, Image via Wikipedia]

Even Joe Buck’s wife can’t stand him anymore. [Deadspin]

What the hell is futsal?  I have no idea, but it sounds dangerous.  How dangerous?  Some dude died while playing it. [Sportress of Blogitude]

Ron Artest has a freaky new haircut that has to be seen to be believed. [The Big Lead]

The Angry T has 22 pics of the most inappropriate mascot in sports history–the Cleveland Cavaliers Moondog. [The Angry T]

Great video of Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds going through the Spanish announcer’s table. [Can't Stop the Bleeding]

******************************

If Monday is giving you problems, call this dude…Trouble Man can help you out.  Remember–he has one edge, and that’s his cool.  And that’s all he needs.  Damn.

Like the band’s drummers in the cult classic This is Spinal Tap, the Portland Trail Blazers are having a tough time keeping their center’s knees healthy–first Greg Oden is lost for the season after fracturing his patella, then just over two weeks later, Joel Pryzbilla ruptures his patella tendon, thus ending his season as well.

Marcus Camby, you are on notice.

But wait, it gets even worse for Pryzbilla and the Blazers.  Almost 2 1/2 months since having his knee surgically repaired, Pryzbilla looks like he will have to go under the knife again, after a freak accident at his Milwaukee home caused him to re-rupture the already damaged patellar tendon.

What happened you ask?

Pryzbilla slipped in the shower.

Man, how much does that suck for Pryzbilla?  You can pretty well put a big bow on Pryzbilla’s career and kiss it goodbye.  It’s going to take some kind of miracle for the 30-year-old center to come back from this most recent setback.

And if I was you, Marcus Camby, I’d start washing your knees in Holy Water if you can find it.

[Fanhouse, Image]