Today's SPORTS ???? 4/25/2013

What NFL team has the best draft? Please comment and why.

Brought to you by Greg Crawford of CSNNW.com

Big Changes Coming To This Blog On May 1st, 2013

Big changes will be coming to this blog on May, 1st 2013. Just like our sister blog, crawscorner.blogspot.com, you will see new content almost everyday and some exciting new things. We will have some new writers, who will be dependable and offer great content.

This blog will always be about basketball, other sports will be covered on crawscorner.blogspot.com.

Some new things coming to this blog will be:

NBA Coverage
D-League
International Basketball
Canadian Basketball
Small College Basketball (NAIA, NWAACC and D-3) In-depth coverage of the West and South leagues of the NWAACC
NBA Draft Coverage

You will also see plenty of coverage from me, Greg Crawford on CSNNW.com for both NCAA basketball and golf. This is an exciting time in the sports business field, so please also turn to crawscorner.blogspot.com for your Craw's Sports Biz power moment, which will appear each morning.

Thank you and if you think you can write, please get ahold of me:

Greg Crawford
Editor of gregcrawfordbasketball.blogspot.com

Thank you for reading.

Nike Hoop Summit Preview

Did you think that High School basketball was over, after the championship game in March? Don't worry, the Nike Hoop Summit has you covered. On April 20th, some of the worlds best high school basketball talent, will face off in the Rose Garden. Last Year, the World Team upset the USA select Team which included Shabazz Muhammad and Nerlens Noel. Canadian Andrew Wiggins led the way for the World with 20 points, and expectations are even higher as he returns again for 2013.

Prepared to be amazed by Aaron Gordon for the USA select. Search him up on Youtube, and you will be bombarded with his emphatic dunks and blocks. This kid can jump out of the gym, his athleticism is almost unmatched at this level. Aaron and Andrew Harrison, who are identical twins, are a pair of dynamic guards that don't disappoint. Their finesse style of play, ability to shoot and pass effectively are a few reasons why they are Kentucky bound next year. But easily, my favorite player this year will be Andrew Wiggins. He is the complete basketball package, almost impossible to guard at 6"8 and agile. It wouldn't be a surprise if this guy led the world team to another victory here in Portland, thanks to his shooting and superb defense. We will see nothing less than a terrific game on Saturday. I expect this to be a back and forth game that will keep you on the edge of your seat, with the World coming up on top again.

Florida Gulf Coast Run Comes to an End

The Eagles Cinderella story came to a close on Friday at the hand of  Florida. After a early lead, FGCU began to commit costly turnovers due to the Gators pressure defense. Thanks to Florida's size advantage, the Gators held the advantage in rebounding (35 boards to 28) as well. With five and a half minutes left in the first with the score 24-14 , in favor of the Eagles, Florida went on a 16-2 run to close the half. Unlike the previous two tournament games, Florida Gulf Coast wasn't able to put together a big run in the second half. Florida coasted to a 62-50 win, and a spot in the Elite Eight.

Florida Gulf Coast exploded into the national spotlight this March, thanks to their explosive and exciting style of play. They also set a historic mark as becoming the only 15 seed to make it to the Sweet 16. This will go down as one of the most exciting tournament runs in history, and will be remembered by all who watched.

West Linn Wins Oregon Basketball Title

On March 9, West Linn won the Oregon 6A state basketball championship, breaking Jesuit's four year title reign. In the quarterfinals the Lions had a tough, and even questionable win over the Grant Commodores. After a back and forth game, it was evident that the game would be decided in the final minutes. After two made free throws from Diondre Bird, put Grant in the lead by one. On the ensuing drive by West Linn, Jared Howard missed a layup, then rebounded by the generals. After drawing up a inbounds play, Grant throws it away. What ensued was a mad scramble for the ball, with multiple players tied up on the ball, West Linn is awarded with the timeout. This was the first questionable call, that completely altered the course of the game. The Lions last possession ended up with another missed layup, however the Commodores do not secure the defensive rebound. Again there is a loose ball, with players diving left and right. What is different this time is that Grant is called for a holding call, when it appeared that neither team had possession. With only 4.7 seconds left on the clock, Jarrod Howard sinks two free throws to win 51-50. Should that foul have been called down the stretch, with the game so close? Probably not, but what could have helped was having a third referee present.

Advancing to the semifinals, West Linn was slated to play undefeated conference foe Lake Oswego. In their two conference match-ups, the Lakers won in convincing fashion. West Linn went into the game with the strategy of slowing down the pace of the game. After a defensive slugfest all game, the Lions were in a tight game down by one with 35 seconds left on the clock. Freshman point guard Payton Pritchard finds post Ryan Shermire on the block, he power dribbles to the middle and completes a right hook shot to put his team in the lead. The Lakers inbound the ball to their star leader Calvin Hermanson, who quickly pulls up from deep beyond the arc, but comes up short of the make. After the miss there is a jump ball called, and possession goes to the favorited Lake Oswego. With one last chance to save their season, the Lakers inbound pass is intercepted by Pritchard, and as time expires West Linn celebrates the upset.

After two gruelling and tight games, they were well prepared for the Final against Central Catholic. Despite an early run from the Rams, West Linn came roaring back, hitting four consecutive threes in the second half, to steal the momentum. West Linn never looked back as Ryan Shermire sealed the win from the free throw line, as West Linn won their second boys basketball title in school history 45-41.

Oregon High School Basketball

On Wednesday the 6A Oregon High School Basketball Championships will move to the Rose Garden. After Saturday night, the 6A champions will be crowned out of the eight teams remaining. It is every high school player's dream to play on this stage, so there is no doubt we'll see some amazing games.

Previewing the slate of games on Wednesday one game that stands out is the Lake Oswego vs. Southridge match up. After being tested last Friday by Tigard, in arguably their toughest win of the year,the Lakers do not seem as invincible as they've been perceived. On the flip side, Southridge has won two close matches between Lakeridge and David Douglas. Both games decided by a combined five points, there is no doubt that the Skyhawks are riding a lot of momentum coming into this game, led by a strong class of seniors. However, with so many offensive threats with Hermanson, Griffin and Caslick producing at such a high level (Scoring a combined 75 points out of 153 in the last two playoff games) Southridge defensively will not be able to keep up with the Lakers.

After a hard fought game last Friday, Sunset defeated the upset minded Timberwolves of Tualatin. Led by a strong post duo pertaining of Tyler Gutierrez standing at 6"8, and Adam Mead at 6"7, they are key to the Apollo's success. Facing a familiar foe in Jesuit, a confernce opponent, Sunset know what to expect. After already being blown out twice already by the Crusadors, expect a tight game from Sunset. After struggling to contain Sprauge's Tanner Morgan at post (dropping 17 points in a low scoring game) the Apollos may be able to expose one of Jesuit's weaknesses tomorrow. With all this in mind, I'm calling upset here, the Apollos walk away with the victory thanks to outstanding post play and superb three point shooting.

In the other two games I see West Linn taking out Grant, in a game where the Lions of West Linn will take over offensively. Addiitonally Central Catholic will handle South Medford with ease in the least exciting game of the day.

Morning Snapshot: The Sixers End Their Losing Streak

(Photo: Paul Vathis/AP file photo)

I know this is going to hurt for all the west coast readers but the Philadelphia Sixers defeated the Golden State Warriors 104-97 on Saturday night. This was huge for the Sixers because they snapped their seven game losing streak. All of the Sixers starters were playing great basketball including guard Royal Ivey who got the start in place of Nick Young who had a sprain ankle.

What was also special about this game was that it was Wilt Chamberlain bobblehead night. If you remember Wilt played for the Philadelphia Warriors and then when they moved to San Francisco he continued to play for them. Also last night marked the 51 year anniversary of Wilt scoring 100 points in a game. Last night was a great night of basketball in the city of Philadelphia.

Follow me on twitter @Jovan10 for Sixers, College Basketball, NFL, MLB, and all sports updates.