Miami Heat take game 3 in Indy over Pacers, 114 – 96

Posted on May 27, 2013 by susan

To say the Miami Heat took game three over the Pacers last night, 114 – 96, is being, well, just plain polite.  The Heat demolished the Pacers and put on a ferocious clinic in dominating basketball last evening.  LeBron scored 22 points but Wade, Bosh and Haslam all joined him in the scoring party; Wade had 18 points, Haslam added 17 points and Chris Bosh finished with 15 points.  This outcome of this game was never in doubt as LeBron and the Heat took control from the early stages of the first period, leading by double digits most of the game.  At one point in the third period the Pacers pulled to within 8 points, then 7 points, only to see the runaway freight train that was the Miami Heat scoring machine pull away again.  LeBron was dominant in the paint, even with 7’2″ Hibbert trying to shut him down, and the Heat shot a sizzling 54.5% from the field for the game.  This was against the Pacers who were arguably the best defensive team in the East this season.  Hibbert had 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Pacers, and David West added 21 points in the losing effort.  The 70 points scored by Miami in the first half set a franchise record for first half points in a playoff game.

All in all, a dominant win by the Heat to take a 2-1 lead in the series.  So, we have game three on Tuesday night from Indianapolis.  Can the Pacers respond and go back to Miami with the series at 2-2.  They better, or else it may all come to an end when the series does return to Miami.

Tonight, the San Antonio Spurs can close out the Western Conference finals with a win in Memphis.  They lead 3-0, but the games have been close.  Do not rule out the Grizzlies perhaps taking this game at home but have to think the Spurs are going to advance.  The question is, will is be time to bring out the brooms tonight?


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Tony Kanaan wins his first Indy 500!

Posted on May 26, 2013 by susan

Congratulations to Tony Kanaan, winner of the 2013 Indy 500!  It was his first victory at the storied brickyard in twelve attempts.  Tony was followed by 2. Carlos Munoz, a rookie making his first ever start at the Indy 500, 3. Ryan Hunter-Reay, 4. Marco Andretti, 5. Justin Wilson and 6. Helio Castroneves (racing partner of Kanaan).

It was an absolutely wild and crazy race at Indy today with over 66 lead changes.  There were crashes of course, Dario Franchitti being one of them much to my chagrin.  Dario crashed into the wall coming out of the pits with three laps to go.  What a bummer…just has not been a good year for Dario.  Charlie Kimball (Ganassi racing team) crashed out earlier.  Both Dario and Scott Dixon had really struggled with their cars this week so not a good Indy 500 for  the Ganassi Racing Team.  Dixon finished in 14th place and their big rival, Will Power, came in 19th.  The hometown boy and pole sitter, Ed Carpenter, finished in the 10th position.  (He should have plenty of time to get downtown to see the Pacers host the Heat for game three tonight in the NBA playoffs!)  It was an exciting race with rather cloudy and cool conditions, but I am disappointed in Dario’s lack of a good finish.  At one point, he had moved into the top four.  Oh well, much congratulations to Tony Kanaan, well deserved victory and a long time coming for him!


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Roger Federer wins first match at French Open with ease

Posted on May 26, 2013 by admin

The French Open got underway today and Roger Federer, seeded #2, advanced with ease over qualifier Pablo Carreno Busta, 6 – 2, 6- 2, 6 – 3.  The conditions are cool and are expected to stay that way, at least for week one of action.  How will that affect Federer?  Will not the best of conditions for a 31 year old champion with a sometimes bad back, but it will also result in lower bounces on the court of the ball which should favor Federer, as he struggles with high looping shots on clay to his one handed backhand.  So all in all, a wash.  I expect Fed’s back to be fine and he should advance into the second week.  Hope to see him in the final!  With Murray out, Ferrer is the number 4 seed so if things go as they should, that would put Fed’s matchup in the semifinals to likely be David Ferrer, with Nadal (seeded #3) and Djokovic (seeded #1) beating each other up potentially in the other semifinal.  It is only day one, so much to be done before we get to that discussion.

Also advancing today were American Sam Querrey, along with Gilles Simon, Kevin Anderson, M. Raonic and David Ferrer.  Expect to see both Nadal and Djokovic take the court tomorrow.

On the women’s side, Serena Williams cruised to victory over Anna Tatishvili, 6 -0, 6 – 1.  Sister Venus, lost to U. Radwanska in three tough sets.  Ana Ivanovic won in three sets and Sara Errani advanced in two sets.  Tomorrow will feature Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka and A. Radwanska.


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Spurs how their superiority with 104 – 93 win over Grizzlies in OT

Posted on May 26, 2013 by susan

They play “Don’t Stop Believin” by Journey in the home arena of the Memphis Grizzlies.  I was really trying to believe after two close games in San Antonio.  After last night, I believe the San Antonio Spurs are going to play for the NBA title as the Western Conference Champions.  Now I know, they are up 3-0 and there are more games to be played (1, 2,?) but that performance last night put a stamp on the greatness of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, the maturity and savvy of this team and the brilliance of their coach, Greg Popovich.  They took the 1st period blow from Memphis and trailed by as much as 18 points.  In the second period they battled back to close the gap to 4 points at the half, trailing 44 – 40.  By early in the fourth period it was tied 67 – 67 and then the battle was waged as regulation wound down with the result, OT.  This was largely due to an unbelievable display of defense put on by the Spurs down the stretch in regulation.  OT resulted in Spurs dominating and now 3-0 lead with game four in Memphis on Monday night at 9:00 pm EST on ESPN.  Take nothing away from the effort of the Grizzlies, Prince was raining three point shots at will in the first period.  Marc Gasol has been tremendous, 18 points, 14 rebounds, Mike Conley has become a very good point guard, and Zach Randolph is a beast.  But the Spurs have that intangible that makes teams special, like the Lakers’ dynasties, and Tim Duncan at age 37 is the leader of the pack.  He finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds and the Spurs had 58 points in the paint, and the game was not over yet.  Perhaps the Grizzlies can pull off a home court win on Monday and send the series back to San Antonio, but you have to expect San Antonio to advance out of the West!

In the East, the Heat visit the Pacers in Indianapolis tonight for game three, series is tied 1-1.  Thinking perhaps, Pacers vs. Spurs for the NBA title?   We shall see…


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Spurs how their superiority with 104 – 93 win over Grizzlies in OT

Posted on May 26, 2013 by admin

They play “Don’t Stop Believin” by Journey in the home arena of the Memphis Grizzlies.  I was really trying to believe after two close games in San Antonio.  After last night, I believe the San Antonio Spurs are going to play for the NBA title as the Western Conference Champions.  Now I know, they are up 3-0 and there are more games to be played (1, 2,?) but that performance last night put a stamp on the greatness of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, the maturity and savvy of this team and the brilliance of their coach, Greg Popovich.  They took the 1st period blow from Memphis and trailed by as much as 18 points.  In the second period they battled back to close the gap to 4 points at the half, trailing 44 – 40.  By early in the fourth period it was tied 67 – 67 and then the battle was waged as regulation wound down with the result, OT.  This was largely due to an unbelievable display of defense put on by the Spurs down the stretch in regulation.  OT resulted in Spurs dominating and now 3-0 lead with game four in Memphis on Monday night at 9:00 pm EST on ESPN.  Take nothing away from the effort of the Grizzlies, Prince was raining three point shots at will in the first period.  Marc Gasol has been tremendous, 18 points, 14 rebounds, Mike Conley has become a very good point guard, and Zach Randolph is a beast.  But the Spurs have that intangible that makes teams special, like the Lakers’ dynasties, and Tim Duncan at age 37 is the leader of the pack.  He finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds and the Spurs had 58 points in the paint, and the game was not over yet.  Perhaps the Grizzlies can pull off a home court win on Monday and send the series back to San Antonio, but you have to expect San Antonio to advance out of the West!

In the East, the Heat visit the Pacers in Indianapolis tonight for game three, series is tied 1-1.  Thinking perhaps, Pacers vs. Spurs for the NBA title?   We shall see…


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Pacers down Heat in Miami, 97 – 93 to even series!

Posted on May 25, 2013 by susan

How about those Pacers!  The Pacers cheerleaders were out in full force yesterday for Carb Day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (you know that little race, the Indy 500 takes place tomorrow on ABC).  Anyhow, they were cheering on the Pacers and so was I last night at they beat the Heat in Miami, 97 – 93 to even the Eastern Conference finals at 1-1.  The series moves to Indianapolis for game three on Sunday night.  It was another great game, Pacers led at the half, 53 – 47.  The Heat were always within one or two, or up one to two as the game wound down and then David West worked his magic, taking the ball away from LeBron twice with time running out.  LeBron had 36 points and 8 rebounds but he also had five turnovers, two in the last minutes of the game (thank you David West).  Roy Hibbert led the Pacers with 29 points, 10 rebounds, Paul George had 22 points (including one highlight reel worthy dunk in the 3rd period), George Hill added 18 points and David West had 13 points.  But West’s biggest contribution occurred in the final minute with the take away of LeBron’s pass.  Pacers survive to win one of the two games in Miami and now, folks, this is going to be a series!!  Can the Pacers take down the “mighty Heat”?  We shall see as action continues Sunday from Indy.  This will take place after the big race from Indy which starts at 11:00 am EST on ABC.

Tonight, game three between the Spurs and the Grizzlies from Memphis.  The Spurs lead 2- 0 after winning both games in San Antonio, but they were close.  Grizzlies need to take their home games so they can make the Western Conference finals a real battle.  Stay tuned….it is all happening tonight and tomorrow!


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Carb Day from Indy 500

Posted on May 24, 2013 by susan

Today was Carb Day from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  It is sort of the last day of fun for the drivers and the fans before the greatest race in all of motorsports this Sunday (Indy 500 of course!).  The Pitt Stop Challenge offers the crews of the racing teams an opportunity to showcase their expertise and be appreciated!  The quarterfinals were as follows: Dario Franchitti over Will Power (always a good thing as far as I am concerned when Dario beats Will!); Hunter-Reay over Briscoe; Castroneves over Tony Kanaan; and Oriel Servia over Scott Dixon (last year’s winner).  Semifinal action saw Dario advance over Hunter-Reay and Castroneves over Servia.  So the final: Dario Franchitti vs. Helio Castroneves (Ganassi vs. Penske), and the winner, Helio Castroneves for the 6th time.  Congrats to Helio.  I was of course rooting for Dario!  Well, let’s see if Sunday can bring Dario Franchitti his 4th Indy 500 championship.  I am rooting for him!

P.S. Happy 55th birthday to Chip Ganassi, owner of Ganassi Racing Team.  And, Happy Memorial Day weekend to everybody!


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Nashville season one finale ends with a crash, literally!

Posted on May 23, 2013 by admin

Season one of the ABC awesome hit drama Nashville concluded last night and it ended with a crash, literally, a horrible car crash.  Of course, non other than Deacon and Rayna, newly reunited, were in the car.  Rayna was behind the wheel as Deacon has fallen off the wagon (thirteen years of sobriety out the window) upon finding out that Maddie is in fact his  daughter, and that Rayna has hidden it from him all this time (Maddie is 13).  Teddy finds out that his girlfriend, Peggy, is pregnant, and has refused to give any testimony against him in the investigation into the fraudulent Cumberland project they were both involved in now that the US Attorney General has decided to reopen the case.  Yikes!  This is not going to be a good thing for the newly elected mayor, Teddy.  First, Maddie finding out that Deacon is her biological dad, the car crash which he does not yet know about, really bad night for Teddy as well as many other characters.  Juliette grieves the loss of her mother, while winning the coveted CMA award (0ver Rayna) and comes to understand that her mother killed Dante and then herself to protect Juliette from any damaging information coming out.  Avery is now playing guitar for her and something tells me they might explore a relationship next season?  We shall see as Avery still has feelings for his old flame, Scarlett.  They meet up but Gunnar comes clean about “stealing” his deceased brother’s lyrics and proposes to a surprised Scarlett.  Will she say yes?  Lamar promotes one of his lackeys over daughter Tandy so Tandy quits.  She tells him he can apparently only like one daughter at a time.  He is currently on team Rayna.  Will be interesting to see how he reacts when he finds out Rayna and Deacon have been in a car accident and Deacon is drinking again.  What will happen to the girls?  Both parents are in a bit of a traumatic tailspin?  Then there is Juliette, all alone, but likely not for long.  The show returns in the fall and will answer all these questions.  Really sad to see Deacon spin so out of control after finding out he had been deceived, but one can understand his pain.  Interesting guest star last night was Brad Paisley (husband of Kimberly Williams-Paisley who plays Peggy).  He sang a duet with Rayna (Connie Britton).  Both Connie and Hayden Panettiere (Juliette) do their own singing on this show along with Scarlett, Gunnar, and they are all spectacular.  Until the fall…


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LeBron’s uncontested layup lifts Heat over Pacers in OT, 103 – 102

Posted on May 23, 2013 by admin

WOW!  What a game one in the Eastern Conference finals last night between the Pacers and the Heat.  As a fan, I hope this is a measuring stick for how competitive this series will be.  The Pacers led the Heat in Miami for a good bit of the game, with the Heat pulling in front in the 4th period.  Then the game began the see saw back and forth with either LeBron or Paul George making one great play after another.  Now the Pacers had way too many turnovers, but the Heat were not without their mistakes.  Take Dwayne Wade fouling Paul George attempting a three point shot with time running out, and eventually fouling out!  The game had ended in a 92 – 92 tie.  (George had made a gorgeous three point shot at the end of regulation)  Paul George made all three free throws and the Pacers go up 103-102. In OT, Tyler Hansbrough came up big for the Pacers but the burning question all day today on ESPN, why was he in the game at the end, and not Roy Hibbert (remember the block on Melo’s shot?).  Well, Coach Vogel had decided to go small, and hey, if it works, he is brilliant, if not, he’s an idiot.  Isn’t that the way it always goes?  With the OT winding down, 2.2 seconds left the Heat inbound the ball to LeBron who drives uncontested into the lane for a layup and game over, Heat win 103 – 102.  What can you say, could Hibbert have stopped him?  George Hill could not guard him, who can?  All I can say is what a great game, what a great effort by both teams, and I hope the next game is that good and/or better.

P.S. I am pulling for the Pacers and I am not crucifying Vogel.


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Wednesday, Surviving “Paradise” the book day!

Posted on May 22, 2013 by susan

It is Wednesday, the day devoted to Surviving “Paradise” book_cover_c_rev1the book!  This book is available at Amazon.com for $9.99 in paperback, $3.03 in kindle edition, and $4.99 at Barnes and Noble nook.  It is a witty and humorous story about a southern woman who relocates to Sarasota, FL and is met by a ridiculous set of people and circumstances.  It should be a sitcom, a movie, even a reality TV show (gosh, did I just write those words, “reality TV”).  Heaven help me.  No, seriously, please check out this very funny story.  With summer vacations just around the corner, pick this book up.  It is a great beach read, a great airplane read, and/or just a great read by the pool, on your deck or patio. wherever, it is enjoyable.  Thanks!


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