'Nasty News - Traversing Time & Space' Vol: 27

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/TheWireStory.asp?id=17067

Celtics G Pruitt arrested on DUI charge
Boston Celtics guard Gabe Pruitt was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving early Thursday morning.

Pruitt, a second-year player out of Southern California, was arrested just after 3 a.m. in Hollywood, a police spokesman confirmed. Late Thursday morning, Pruitt posted $5,000 bond on the charge of suspicion of misdemeanor driving under the influence.

Pruitt also apologized in a statement released by the team early Thursday afternoon."I sincerely apologize for my actions which have caused unnecessary embarrassment to my family, my team, and the Celtics organization," Pruitt said. "I used poor judgment and I am really disappointed in myself. "I understand what an extraordinary opportunity it is to play in the NBA and how fortunate I am to be a member of the Celtics. I am sorry to my team, my family, the fans and everyone who believes in me. I made a mistake and I have learned a valuable lesson." The seldom-used Pruitt is averaging 2.3 points for the defending NBA champion Celtics. He played 5 1/2 minutes, scoring three points, in Boston's 93-91 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.

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http://www.hoopsworld.com/TheWireStory.asp?id=17071

Bulls great Norm Van Lier dies
Former Chicago Bulls guard Norm Van Lier was found dead in his apartment Thursday. He was 61. The cause of death was not released, pending a report by the Cook County medical examiner's office. Van Lier had been working as a Bulls analyst for ComcastSportsnet Chicago after a 10-year playing career (1969-1979).

The Chicago Fire department was sent to check on him Thursday morning after he did not appear on the Bulls' postgame show the previous night. A three-time All-Star, Van Lier was a tenacious defender and one of the most popular Bulls of the 1970s. A teammate of current Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, Van Lier was All-NBA first team defense three times. "I was saddened to learn of Norm's passing and offer condolences to the Van Lier family on behalf of the entire NBA family," NBA commissioner David Stern said in a statement. "Norm was passionate about the game of basketball and a great competitor on the court. He will be remembered by many for teaming up with Jerry Sloan to form one of the best defensive backcourts of any era."

Aside from being a terrific defender, Van Lier was a skilled passer. He led the league in assists with 832 in 1970-71 as a member of the Cincinnati Royals. "Norm was a complete player, a wonderful passer, a tenacious rebounder and an original character in the 1970s," Stern said in a statement. "We are all fortunate that Norm continued to share his passion and insight as a broadcaster for the Bulls since the early 1990s. The NBA lost a great ambassador and friend today."

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http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290572603

Derrick Brown had 18 points and 10 rebounds and B.J Raymond scored 18 points to lead Xavier (No. 22 ESPN/USA Today, No. 19 AP) past skidding Saint Joseph's 68-54 on Thursday night.

Ahmad Nivins scored 24 points for the Hawks, who lost their fifth straight game. Saint Joseph's (14-13, 7-6) played without point guard Tasheed Carr (13.0 ppg), who sat out because of a concussion suffered Tuesday in practice.

The Hawks are on their longest streak under coach Phil Martelli since they dropped nine straight in 1998-99.

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http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290572086

Matt Howard had 25 points and 10 rebounds Thursday night and Butler (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 24 AP) beat Youngstown State 78-57, clinching at least a share of its third straight Horizon League regular-season championship.

Freshman Gordon Hayward added 14 points for Butler, which led by 10 points at halftime and went on to lead by as many as 24 points.

Sirlester Martin hit his first seven shots and finished with 15 points to lead Youngstown State (11-17, 7-10), which can finish no higher than sixth in the conference but could still play a first-round game at home on March 3.

[nasty daddy]

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570356

Mike Davis scored 14 points and Trent Meacham added 13 to lead No. 20 Illinois to a 52-41 victory over Minnesota on Thursday night.

Demitri McCamey added 10 points for Illinois, which took the lead for good and closed the game with a 14-2 second-half run.

Damian Johnson had 18 points for the Gophers (20-8, 8-8), 14 in the first half.

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http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570154

James Johnson had career highs with 28 points and 18 rebounds to lead Wake Forest (No. 14 ESPN/USA Today, No. 13 AP) past North Carolina State 85-78 on Thursday night.

Ishmael Smith added a season-high 18 points and Chas McFarland had 15 for the Demon Deacons (21-5, 8-5 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Tracy Smith scored 18 points to lead five double-figure scorers for the Wolfpack (15-11, 5-8), who were denied their second sweep of Wake Forest in coach Sidney Lowe's three seasons.

[nasty daddy]

http://deadspin.com/5161079/how-about-a ... times-sake

How About A Rasheed Wallace Flip Out For Old Time's Sake?
The Detroit Pistons are free falling and when a tenuous group of aging veterans begins to run out of gas late in the season that's usually a perfect time for an embarrassing on-court temper tantrum.

Of course, we're dealing with Rasheed Wallace, for whom nothing is embarrassing or extraordinary. Last night against New Orleans he was called for a technical foul—his 15th of the year—and got pulled from the game. Angry about the benching, he swatted a ball boy's towel into the stands, got called for another technical (earning an automatic ejection) and then threw another towel at his own coach! Classic 'Sheed! Did I mention that there were about eight minutes left in the game, his team was down by two and they would end up losing by three? So not so great on the timing. The Pistons have lost eight games in a row, 17 of their last 22 and 10 of the last 12 at home, are two games below .500 and 17.5 games behind Cleveland in the Central. The Iverson trade has been underwhelming and some are wondering if they should start cutting their losses on the season now.

Here's the funny thing though—they are in second place in the division and still have the seventh spot in the playoffs! Imagine how far they could go if they were actually good.

[nasty daddy]

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570005

Doneal Mack and Antonio Anderson hit consecutive 3-pointers to help spark a decisive run by No. 5 Memphis in a 71-60 victory over UAB on Thursday night, clinching the Tigers' fourth consecutive Conference USA regular-season title.

Memphis trailed by a point before suddenly pulling away from its top league challenger with a 16-2 run. Memphis allowed only two field goals over the final 4 minutes while holding Robert Vaden, UAB's leading scorer, scoreless on 0-for-17 shooting.

Mack had 17 points for Memphis, while Anderson had 16 and Robert Dozier 15 points and 10 rebounds.

[nasty daddy]

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570130

DeShawn Sims scored a career-high 29 points and Manny Harris had 27 points and eight rebounds to lead Michigan to an 87-78 victory over No. 16 Purdue on Thursday night.

Robbie Hummel scored 24 points for the Boilermakers (21-7, 10-5), while E'Twaun Moore had 18 and Keaton Grant 11.

The Wolverines (18-11, 8-8 Big Ten) improved to 3-4 against ranked opponents and added an important victory to the ones it had over Duke and UCLA, when both teams were ranked fourth in the nation. Michigan is trying to be in the NCAA tournament for the first time in more than a decade.

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http://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... 60504/1127

Cavs' Ben Wallace leaves game with broken right leg
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Ben Wallace left Thursday night's game against the Houston Rockets with a broken right leg.

Wallace, guarding Yao Ming much of the game, left in the third quarter. He was playing his fourth game since missing Cleveland's Feb. 18 win over Toronto with a right arm laceration that required 14 stitches.

The 6-foot-9 Wallace was averaging 6.6 rebounds and 3.0 points in 53 games this season.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/02/26/wall ... index.html

Wallace will miss 4-6 weeks after breaking leg
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Ben Wallace will miss four to six weeks after breaking his right leg in Thursday's 93-74 loss to Houston. Wallace said Yao Ming kicked him as the two were running down the court in the second quarter. The 6-foot-9 Wallace managed to play midway into the third quarter before leaving for good with 6:19 left. "I thought it was like a calf bruise or something, that would probably let up eventually," Wallace said. "But it didn't. It was one of those freak accidents that happen in basketball."

Wallace saw the X-rays taken at the Toyota Center that showed the broken fibula. "I know what that little white line means," he said. Wallace, who guarded Yao for most of his 17 minutes, was playing his fourth game since missing Cleveland's Feb. 18 win over Toronto with a right arm laceration that required 14 stitches. Wallace was averaging 6.6 rebounds and 3.0 points in 53 games this season. His loss could be devastating and continues a run of bad injury luck for Cavs, who have played without Zydrunas Ilgauskas (left ankle) and Delonte West (broken wrist) for extended periods. "It's a tough blow for us," said Cleveland coach Mike Brown.

Wallace has been Cleveland's best interior defender and has played well in his second season with Cleveland, which acquired him in a trade from Chicago last February. The Cavaliers passed up chances to acquire a big man before the trade deadline. Now, they'll have to rely on Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejao and maybe even 6-9 rookie J.J. Hickson to handle opposing centers inside. "We just have to have somebody step up and play some quality minutes for us," Brown said. Wallace had a protective boot and crutches next to his locker after the game. He was hoping to play again before the postseason. "I haven't had a broken arm, broken leg, anything major like that since I've been playing basketball," said Wallace, in his 12th season. "For it to happen now, it's just tough. I'm 34 years old. I don't need no broken bones."

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http://www.nba.com/2009/news/02/26/nash ... index.html

Suns' Nash misses game with ankle injury
Steve Nash missed Phoenix's game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night because of an injured right ankle.

The All-Star guard hurt himself during the third quarter of Tuesday's victory over the Charlotte Bobcats. He is listed as day to day.

Nash is averaging 14.1 points, 9.7 assists and 3.1 rebounds. He is three points from amassing 13,000 in his NBA career.

[nasty daddy]

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570356

Damian Johnson, had 18 points -- only four in the second half -- for the Gophers, who made just eight of their 28 shots in the second half (28.6 percent) and didn't score over the game's final 6:21.

Mike Davis had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Trent Meacham added 13 points and Demitri McCamey had 10 for Illinois.

Illinois held Lawrence Westbrook, Minnesota's leading scorer, to four points, 8.5 below his average and the Gophers finished 1-of-14 from 3-point range.

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http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570024

Josh Shipp hit four 3-pointers while scoring 24 points, and No. 22 UCLA stayed in the race for its fourth consecutive Pac-10 Conference title with a 76-71 victory over fading Stanford on Thursday night.

Alfred Aboya hit four free throws in the final 14 seconds to finish with 16 points for the Bruins (21-7, 10-5), who hung on despite making just one field goal over the final 4 1/2 minutes and won for the second time in their last five games.

The slump has endangered the chances of another conference crown for UCLA, which trails Washington and Arizona State. With 9-of-12 shooting, Shipp made sure the Bruins didn't fall any farther, beating Stanford (15-11, 4-11) for the eighth time in the last nine meetings.

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http://www.hoopsworld.com/TheWireStory.asp?id=17069

Bulls visit President Obama
The Chicago Bulls became the first professional sports franchise welcomed to the White House by President Barack Obama on Thursday. A trip to the White House is usually reserved for the team that wins the championship game of its respective sport. But Obama, a former senator of Illinois, is a lifelong Bulls fan. The Bulls are in town to face the Washington Wizards on Friday.

Bulls rookie point guard Derrick Rose was in awe of the opportunity to meet the President. "It was crazy just being here," the No. 1 pick of June's draft told NBA.com. "I've never had the chance to be at the White House, but the President gave us the opportunity to come, so that's what we did. I was nervous just to stand next to him, but then for someone like him to even know my name was just amazing." Rose said he was impressed with Obama's knowledge of the team. "He knew just about everyone on our team and you could tell he's a real Bulls fan," said Rose, who is second among rookies in scoring (16.6 ppg).

The former Memphis standout also spoke of the importance of Obama becoming the first African-American president in the history of the United States. "He gives you hope," Rose said. "Just like no one thought he would become President, no one thought that I could grow up and become the first pick in the draft. I think it gives people everywhere a little extra hope." The Bulls released a statement earlier in the day on visiting Obama. "The opportunity to visit President Obama at the White House is a great honor for the Chicago Bulls organization," executive vice president of business operations Steve Schanwald said. "The President has been a fan of the Bulls for many years and we are very appreciative of this opportunity to say hello to him and pay our respects."

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http://www.mlive.com/pistons/index.ssf/ ... ord_t.html

Skidding Pistons can't afford to quit on themselves
The Detroit Pistons are bruised physically and mentally. Detroit's current leading scorer, Allen Iverson, has a sore back and is questionable for tonight's game.The Pistons' leading scorer for the past six seasons, Richard Hamilton, is sore about coming off the bench. "Something's gotta give, something's gotta change," Hamilton said. "I'm all for doing whatever for the team, but coming off the bench and we're not winning, that's something totally different." And don't forget Rasheed Wallace's meltdown in the fourth quarter of Wednesday's loss to New Orleans, or the struggles that almost every Pistons player and their rookie coach Michael Curry have endured in what is shaping up to be some of the darkest days this franchise has seen in years. It all adds up to a team going nowhere fast, with no signs of turning things around anytime soon. The fear isn't whether they will quit on Curry, it's whether they will quit on themselves, which is much worst. The disappointment they feel with losses mounting is clear.

But the Pistons should be more than just disappointed, they should be hurt, which is disappointment amplified. It should burn at their core that they are on the frontline of a once-proud franchise that looks to be getting pushed and punked around on a nightly basis. You wouldn't expect Detroit to have the same kind of swagger its had when it was among the NBA's best teams. But few would have envisioned how much the constant losing would erode Detroit's armor of confidence, which has exposed the Pistons as a team with talented players who can't play well together for long enough stretches to win. Night after night, opponents exploit Detroit's lack of cohesiveness. And the young players the Pistons count on to help ease the pain associated with this transition period haven't played with the kind of consistent effort or effectiveness they need.

So what does it all mean? There's the obvious: The Pistons are not very good. But what isn't quite as clear is what it will take for them to return to the league's upper echelon.Chris Bosh? Carlos Boozer? Sure, they would help. But there has to be some internal growth, too.Rodney Stuckey has to get better. Amir Johnson has to get better. Arron Afflalo has to get better. Curry has to get a lot better. Otherwise, this season will be the first of many in which the Pistons no longer are relevant when conversations center on the NBA's best teams.

[nasty daddy]

http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290572541

Josh Heytvelt scored a career-high 29 points and Matt Bouldin added 23, helping No. 17 Gonzaga defeat Santa Clara 81-73 on Thursday night and remain undefeated in the West Coast Conference.

Freshman guard Kevin Foster led Santa Clara (14-16, 6-7) with 20 points, while center John Bryant and James Rahon both had 16.

The game was tied 56-56 with 7:50 to play. Gonzaga went on an 11-2 run that started with a three-point play by Heytvelt. Two of Gonzaga's points during the run came on two free throws by Bouldin when Santa Clara was hit with a technical foul after fans threw objects on the court, protesting a foul call.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/TheWireStory.asp?id=17080

Suns G Nash out vs. Lakers
Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash missed Thursday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers with a right ankle injury.

The talented guard sustained the injury during the third quarter of Tuesday's triumph over the Charlotte Bobcats. He is listed as day-to-day.

Nash is averaging 14.1 points and 9.7 assists this season for the Suns.

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http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290570264

Jon Brockman scored on the first two possessions of overtime and finished with 21 points, and No. 21 Washington survived a wild finish to regulation and kept control of the Pac-10 race with a 73-70 victory over No. 14 Arizona State on Thursday night.

The Huskies (21-7, 12-4) moved 1 1/2 games clear of everyone else in the conference with only two league games remaining on their schedule, and snapped the Sun Devils' five-game winning streak.

Pendergraft had 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Sun Devils (21-6, 10-5), while James Harden added 19 points, four points after halftime, and he fouled out in overtime.

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http://www.hoopsworld.com/TheWireStory.asp?id=17081

Cavaliers F Wallace breaks right fibula
The Cleveland Cavaliers lost Ben Wallace for four-to-six weeks after the power forward suffered a broken right fibula in the team's game with the Houston Rockets on Thursday.

Wallace was kicked by Yao Ming during the second quarter. He attempted to play through the pain before heading to the locker room, where the injury was diagnosed. "It happened in the second quarter. I thought it was a calf bruise at first. It's broken," Wallace said. "I saw the X-ray. I know what that little white line means. Yao kicked me a little bit. It was a freak accident. I'll definitely be back for the playoffs, hopefully before then. I don't know how much I can realistically help the team. "I didn't know it was broken. I was disgusted when I heard (the news)."

Wallace played 16 minutes but did not record a point in the game. "It's a tough blow for us. We don't want to lose anybody," Cavaliers coach Mike Brown said. "Somebody will have to step up and play quality minutes for us. I'm confident in all my guys. Whatever number we call, I feel they can step up."