Who knew that the whole time he was whining and crying and having mock funerals for his predecessor that Bruce Weber was really just lying in the weeds, setting a trap for the rest of the Big Ten?
OK, nobody knew that, least of all Bruce. But the facts are unmistakable. He’s got a 16-5 team within percentage points of the Big Ten lead and those of us who had Illinois pegged for a hosting role in the NIT opener look like dopes.
Oh what a difference a healthy Deron Williams and the Big Ten’s best defense can make.
Illinois doesn’t just guard people, they suffocate them. It certainly helps that in their last three games they’ve played the most inconsisent team in the league (Indiana), the worst team in the league (Minnesota) and a good team who can’t make a shot from more than nine feet away (Michigan State.) But you don’t hold Indiana scoreless for the final ten minutes, let Minnesota hit their first seven shots and still shoot around 40 percent for the game and beat MSU by 24 unless you’re doing something right.
It’s been said in this space before that Illinois has the most talent in the Big Ten. When the preseason conference player of the year is your fourth option on offense, you’ve got some talent. They’re playing just like that right now.
There’s an orange blur in Bo Ryan’s rearview miror and it’s closing fast.
Buckle up.
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Around 1600, a scientist named Dr. William Gilbert coined the term “electricity.”
In 1752, Benjamin Franklin did his famous kite experiment to determine that lightning contained electricity.
In 1878, Joseph Swan in England and Thomas Edison in America both invented electric filament lamps.
In 1880, a night baseball game was played by clerks from a pair of Boston department stores, Jordan Marsh and Co. and R. H. White and Co.
In 1935 the Cincinnati Reds hosted the Philadelphia Phillies in the first night game played in the Major Leagues.
In 1988 the Cubs finally installed lights at Wrigley Field.
In 2004 the Cubs got permission to gradually raise the number of night games they can have from 18 to 30, by increasing the number by four in 2004, 2005 and finally 2006.
Hey, it only took 400 years!
It boggles my mind that anybody gets to bitch about this. First, if you live near Wrigley, I agree that it sucks that morons like me park in front of your apartment where we’re not supposed to and then we pee in your yard before we drive home. But it’s a small price to pay for having your propery value go up exponentionally just because you live close to the coolest baseball park in the world.
At least the neighbors have a realistic complaint. But what about the ‘traditionalists’ who are whining about it, too? The Cubs are still going to play at least 51 day games a year, which is much more than anybody else.
Hey, there are a lot of traditions in baseball we can do without. We don’t need to go back to having only white guys play, do we? How about the dandy tradition of going on strike every three years? Let’s bring back the reserve clause and have the Yankees win a World Series every three years. Oh, wait…
Look, like I said yesterday, guys like me (and most likely you) who work for a living like to watch the Cubs on TV at night. It’d be nice if some of those were home games. So shaddup!
And how about Brian McRae chiming in at the end of the article that the reason the Cubs haven’t won isn’t because of the day games, but because they just weren’t good enough. Gee! Nobody ever thought of that, did they Brian! Maybe we just had lousy players…like Brian McRae!
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In the last two years, Illinois has beaten MSU by 54 points. Muahahahahahahahaha!
Rick Morrissey says that suddenly Bruce Weber is alright.
Ty Willingham wasn’t surprised that the alumns are pissed off. I’ll bet Bob Davie was.
Groucho says Randy Ayers never had a chance.
Rosey says the Cubs need a leadoff hitter. Every team has one. Just not every team has a good one. Damn, that’s sage.
John Jackson seems almost insulted that Notre Dame alumns be upset.
Mariotti puts down the doughnut to … oh, it’s just bad, and weak and you don’t need to read it. In fact, I’m not even linking to it. Screw him. Read this instead, it’ll make more sense.
More on the Illini rout.
Marcus Fizer, we hardly knew ye. Now put the gun away. And leave.
The Wizard of Roz wants Jarrett Payton to be a Bear. God, why? If you’re going to draft a former Bears’ kid to play running back, take a good one, like Quincy Wilson (Otis’ kid).
Oh, Karry!
Hello again, everybody, your old pal Karry Ling here, and I’ve got a link for you.
Not enough hand lotion in the world.
Scott Boras promised Kevin Milwood five years, and $75 million. He got one year and $11 million.
Scott Boras promised Travis Lee (TRAVIS LEE???) three years and $12 million. He might get one year and $2 million.
Who is Greg Maddux’s agent?
Disney’s up for grabs, and we know who is likely to gain full control.
He’s the one on the right.
Now Comcast wants to buy them. I should check and see if we’ve got anything left on the Corporate AmEx after our NBC purchase.
MTV is going to have a 24 hour network aimed at gays and lesbians. I thought that’s what Bravo did?
Michael Jackson’s maid says Jacko used to bathe with little boys. Guh.
What is that rattle? Herman, do you hear that?
A French woman married her dead boyfriend. If he was French, I’ll bet he actually smelled better dead.
I can’t believe I didn’t get recruited to Colorado to play football! Damnit!
America’s finest news source asks some people on the street about gay marriage.
Illinois controls its own destiny. If it wins out, the worst they can get is a share of the Big Ten title.
Yeah, I controlled Destiny, too! Woo hoo! Roll Tide, Baby, Roll Tide!
My mom’s been fuckin’ a dead guy for 30 years. I call him dad.
These damn night games will erode the fan base!
Remember those 18 wins I thought Illinois needed to get to get in the NCAA tourney? They are only two wins away from it.
Great minds think alike. I tried to bury the Nightgames dead horse today, too. This issue is, like, so 1988!! Let’s all just get over it!
I’m not even supposed to be here today!!!
I thought I was the genius.
It used to be me, Tony.
I’m going to buy a house near Wrigley, then I will complain that they play games at night and people go to these games. That would make me really smart
Hey Murf, I’ll come with ‘ya! I love it when you bring everything back to the Cubs. Like today when you used the mere mention that Ozzie Guillen used to be a third base coach to get Jeff Torborg to talk about Wendell Kim! Oh, that was brilliant! You the man!
I’m a pain in the ass, aren’t I?
Say whatever else you want to say about Glanville, he has a sense of humor
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=1730851
Murf, tell us again how you were one of the original bleacher bums, I can’t get enough of that story!
Somebody, please, tell me why these radio people are all of a sudden infiltrating our little discussions?
Radio people? Where???
Hello everybody…
It’s always a good night when you can send Tom Izzo back home to his wife/maid Lupe with a loss.
This is the WORLD’S finest news source!!!
Hey, Uncle Lar, get lost.
If Prior gets those last five outs in game six, my triple in game three makes me a legend for eternity.
Oh, well…
I love you, Karry.
God bless you, Levitra.
Well, at least I’ll get another chance to go down as a Cubs legend…
Don’t ask me about Travis Lee, the biggest bad attitude, completely unmotivated waste of ten million dollars the Diamondbacks ever had…He’d be overpaid at minimum wage, let alone $2 million! It’s official, Steinbrenner has gone insane…
Hey, I got an article coming in this evening! Now, if somebody will just read it and actually like it.
The fact of having been born is a bad augury for immortality. by texas hold’em