Dexter and the Answer

So last night I got a basketball double-header to go along with some Monday Night Football. In the early tilt, I watched the No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels outlast Rutgers, and then witnessed the Philadelphia 76ers somehow manage to pull away from the Portland Trail Blazers in the second half to win 104-93 in the Rose Garden. Neither game went quite as I expected.

It all began with Rutgers-UNC, which was tight in the first half, with UNC's young backcourt continuing to make freshmen/sophomore mistakes with turnovers and questionable decisions. As frustrating as it is watching the Tar Heels' guard play this season after being treated to three seasons of Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington, the thing that was bothering me the most was trying to figure out if Rutgers center Hamady Ndiaye is related to former UNC forward Makhtar Ndiaye.


From left to right: Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Makhtar Ndiaye and George Lynch


Carter, Julius Peppers, Ndiaye, Jamison

Now, there is no known relation between Makhtar and Hamady as far as I can tell, but they're both from Dakar, Senegal, both play/played Division I basketball and both went to prep schools. I have to believe they are related somehow. I refuse to believe otherwise.

Anyway, the game itself looked like it was getting out of reach for Rutgers, as UNC used its size and strength to build a 16-point lead. But that lead shrunk to four, as Mike Rosario went off. If you haven't seen the 6'3" sophomore from Jersey City play, trust me when I say this kid can ball. He has a stupid-ass semi-mohawk haircut, but the guy can fill it up. He was giving Carolina fits in the second half, along with Jonathan Mitchell.

During that stretch where a 16-point lead became 4, the Tar Heels looked plain awful. Ed Davis, who has been projected as a top 10 pick, looked tentative and uncharacteristically missed several easy bunnies, finishing just 3-9 from the field. The sophomore is nowhere near ready for the NBA. He hasn't even established himself enough on the college level as far as I'm concerned. He did nab 15 rebounds though, so that's a pretty damn good start, and down the stretch, he and Tyler Zeller pretty much gobbled up every board, which allowed UNC to take control at the end.

But the player who stood out for the Tar Heels was true freshman Dexter Strickland. Make no mistake, this team is run by Larry Drew II, who made some key plays, but Dexter Strickland is this team's wildcard in the backcourt. Last night, he took over the game down the stretch, hitting a back-breaking three that Rutgers was daring him to take after the Scarlet Knights had just cut UNC's lead to four. That trey pushed it back to 7, and Carolina never looked back.



The thing that was so impressive about Strickland last night was his speed and confidence. Now, very few human beings who pick up a basketball can match the speed and quickness that Ty Lawson displayed in his three seasons in Chapel Hill, but Strickland isn't all that far behind. Touted mainly as a shooter, that part of his game wasn't mentioned or perhaps wasn't there when he was in high school. Hell, it wasn't there early in the year, but since beating Michigan State, Strickland has shown the explosiveness that this backcourt desperately needs, especially in Roy Williams' run, run, run system. Strickland gave Carolina that last night, and he demanded the ball down the stretch, showing no fear as a freshman. You could see his confidence grow with each bucket. He finished with a team-high 18 points on 6-8 shooting and 5-6 from the line. And he was the best player on the floor wearing baby blue.

Of course, the Heels had the superior athletes and more depth, evident by the six players who scored in double digits (Drew 10, Davis 11, Deon Thompson 14, Will Graves 10, Strickland 18, Zeller 10). But that game continued to prove that this will be a trying year watching North Carolina. Even with Strickland improving and looking confident, and Larry Drew playing steadier ball, the guards simply aren't as good as people have grown accustomed to at North Carolina. But they're still a big team with a ton of depth and ranked in the top 10, so it's not exactly a down year either. We'll have to wait and see just what we can expect from this squad in 2010.

For the Sixers, however, it has been a down year. A way down year. My main reason for wanting to stay up and watch the game last night was to see Brandon Roy do his thing and see a talented Blazers team that had won four in a row. I don't get to watch nearly as many Portland games as I'd like.



But once the game started, I could tell the Sixers had come to play, not just concede a victory to the Blazers. Allen Iverson came out and scored six points in the first quarter of his first game back from knee arthritis, and the Sixers were hanging tough. Sure, Roy was getting his and the Blazers took a lead into halftime, but the Sixers were making Roy and the Blazers work for everything and sticking with them, heading into halftime a very confident team.

And that confidence carried right on over to the second half. The Sixers came out on fire, putting up 34 points in the 3rd while getting contributions from everyone: Brand led everyone with 10 in quarter, Iggy added 7, Dalembert and Lou Will each had four, Al and Speights each had 2 and Royal Ivey even had a cameo, scoring 5 points on a three and a buzzer-beating two to close out the quarter. The Sixers looked enthused, excited and good. As a result, a six-point deficit turned into a 4-point lead heading into the final 12 minutes. And this time, the team that couldn't close out games finally did. And they did so because of Allen Iverson.



All season long, this team has been in games, but they haven't been able to finish them. For all the good Andre Iguodala does, and he does plenty of good, he hasn't been able to carry a team on his shoulders down the stretch. Neither has Brand. Or Speights. Or Thad. Or anyone. Allen Iverson has been doing that his entire career, and he did it again last night, scoring a team-high 9 points in the final quarter. And the Sixers followed suit, closing out a talented Blazers team on the road.

Say what you will about Allen Iverson's age, his past, his deficiencies. Last night proved that with a full complement of players, the Sixers are better with Allen Iverson than without him. He knows how to close, and he showed his younger teammates how to do just that last night.

Uncoincidentally, the Sixers played perhaps their best game of the season last night. Everyone contributed, everyone chipped in. And Allen Iverson was a big part of that. A.I. scored 19 points on a very efficient, very unselfish 7-11 from the floor. He got to the line a game-high seven times (tied with Brandon Roy), nabbed three rebounds and dished out five assists in 31 minutes of action. He looked a lot like the Iverson of old, swishing home jumpers, attacking the rim … and looked a lot like a newer, older, wiser Iverson at the same time, dishing out 5 assists, not taking any wild, contested shots, playing selfless basketball, not selfish basketball. And the whole team benefitted.

Elton Brand was aggressive, assertive and dominant. He scored a game-high 25 points on 11-16 shooting, nabbing 9 boards in the process. Andre Iguodala had an insane floor game, putting up 14 points, 7 boards, 9 assists, a steal, two threes, and shooting 6-13 from the field, all while playing 43 minutes and hounding Brandon Roy on the defensive end. Samuel Dalembert continued to show he absolutely loves playing with Iverson, putting up 14 points and 8 boards himself on 7-9 shooting, and not committing a slew of boneheaded fouls. He just seems to be more interested, to play harder, better when Iverson is in the lineup. Lou Will didn't have a great game stats-wise, but he did play 35 minutes, wasn't forcing the issue, and added five boards, five dimes and 3 steals to his 9 points. And Speights and Ivey were fantastic. Marreese rebounded from his awful game in Utah by hitting 7-8 from the field for 14 points, and Ivey came in, hit those two buckets in the third, nabbed three boards and dished out two assists in 16 and a half minutes of play, putting up a +15 for the night.

Iverson's presence helped everyone out last night. If you watched the game, that was abundantly clear. Yes, it did take away playing time from Jrue Holiday, who only saw 11 minutes of action, and yes, Willie Green and Jason Kapono got DNPs, and yes, in the end, this may hinder the draft position and slow up the progress of Holiday. But dammit, it was fun to watch the Sixers play such a great game. To beat a good team on the road. To show signs of the team that for two seasons running has made the playoffs and given far superior teams a scare in the first round. Even in the midst of a terrible season, even with the hopes of scoring a high draft pick, even while dreaming of John Wall or Derrick Favors, losing is never fun to watch, never fun to expect, never fun to accept. Last night was fun. And if it wasn't fun for you, maybe you aren't as big of a Sixers or basketball fan as you thought.



No, Allen Iverson isn't the answer to a championship. He may not even be the answer to turning the season around, to making a playoff push. But he is the answer to more entertaining basketball, and he makes the 76ers better. Last night was proof of that.

As Cool as the Other Side of the Pillow

Remember back when Sportscenter was truly Sportscenter, doing nothing but showing awesome highlights for an hour instead of putting talking heads on to debate the most inane topics over and over again? I do, and that's when Sportscenter was the shit. Since then, it's become nearly impossible to watch a Sportscenter in its entirety because the highlights are few and far between, instead opting for talk, talk and more talk. Give me my highlights back!

Back then, not only were the highlights plentiful, but the anchors were awesome: Dan Patrick, Keith Olbermann, Craig Kilborn, Charley Steiner and, yes, Stuart Scott. Since those early years, as ESPN and Sportscenter have deteriorated, so too has Scott. Now, he seems like an aging man who is trying way too hard to be funny and hip and relate to the youth, instead of just being himself. But back in the heyday of Sportscenter, Scott was the man, and he had the greatest catch phrase of all time: as cool as the other side of the pillow.



I bring this all up because watching North Carolina defeat Michigan State again last night — 89-82 —  and watching Ed Davis play for a year-plus now, UNC alum Stuart Scott's catch phrase describes the sophomore power forward's game to a tee. Ed Davis simply is as cool as the other side of the pillow.

Last night, seemingly without trying, Davis led all scorers with 22 points on a ridiculously efficient 8-10 from the floor and nabbed 6 rebounds … and he hit some clutch free throws down the stretch. The 6-10 super sophomore didn't even look like he broke a sweat, but make no mistake, he was putting in work. It's just the way he plays makes it look as though he's not even trying. That's how scary talented this kid is. He can dominate a game from start to finish and make it look like a walk in the park. His smooth stroke, silky touch, intimidating length — they all go hand in hand with a cool demeanor that makes it seem as though Davis is just gliding out there.



In a way, he is. Davis isn't a demanding presence, an aggressive, assertive beast. He's more of a relaxed superstar, never pressing the issue, happy to share the spotlight on a roster full of super talents. Perhaps that will come in time. After all, he's only 20 years old and coming off a season where he was the fourth or fifth option behind the likes of Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green. If he develops into a more domineering presence this season and beyond, his potential is limitless. As Dickie V. put it last night, he may not even realize how good he can be, and at times he can be a little too passive. My guess is he will assert himself in time. But in the meantime, we should all appreciate what he's doing right now and just how easy he's making it all look.

Against an admittedly undersized Michigan State squad last night, Davis was the best player on the floor, no question about it. He dominated both ends of the floor, altering shots on defense and creating offense with his insane efficiency down low and the opportunities he opened up on the perimeter. The Tar Heels shot the lights out of the basketball in large part due to the attention the Spartans had to pay to Davis and his fellow mates on the block. UNC finished the game shooting 57.9 percent from the floor and 50 percent from three.

The thing that makes Davis so fun to watch is how unselfish he is. For all the calls for him to be more aggressive, perhaps that isn't what the team actually needs right now. The Tar Heels run 12 players deep. Everyone who takes the court can score. Davis is the right kind of superstar to fit such a team. He's content to let his teammates get their shots, get their buckets. But when push comes to shove, when crunch time rolls around, Davis isn't shy to take over, which is exactly what he did last night. When Michigan State made their push and turned a 16-point halftime deficit into a tight contest late, Davis made sure his Tar Heels wouldn't let the game get away at home.

Not that Davis had to this all on his own. Make no mistake about it, this North Carolina team is nowhere near as good as last season's squad. How could it be? The Tar Heels lost their top four players to the NBA, four of the best players in the nation. They're young and for the most part inexperienced. But as Vitale said last night, this isn't the UNC squad that followed up the 2005 championship with a cupboard that was relatively bare. Far from it. This team has talent lining up next to talent. Sure, the guard play isn't the best the school's seen, but as the season wears on, the likes of Larry Drew II and Dexter Strickland look more and more comfortable, and less and less like liabilities.



Strickland and especially Drew were impressive last night, looking far better and more confident than they had in Madison Square Garden against the likes of Syracuse. Drew was poised and lethal with his shot all night. Next to Davis, he may have been the best player for the Tar Heels last night — no small feat considering he played much of the game matched up against reigning Big Ten Player of the Year Kalin Lucas. The biggest thing for Drew was how well he ran the team and took what was there. He finished with 6 assists, and more impressively, he consistently nailed his jumper, going 6-7 from the field for 18 points and 5-6 from the line. His foul shooting in final minutes iced the game for Carolina, when his teammates were struggling from the line.

Strickland also had a breakout game. For the first time in this young season, the freshman looked confident and was attacking the defense. He looked significantly faster with the ball in his hands than he had in previous games, and his confidence grew leaps and bounds in that game. In 14 impact minutes, he went 3-5 from the field and 2-3 from beyond for 9 points, and he even got some big-time minutes at the end of the game, which will no doubt serve him well down the road. He did miss three of his four free throws though, which was maddening considering he's supposed to be a pretty good shooter. But he was a pleasant surprise last night and played really well, as did his fellow freshman.



The star recruit for the Tar Heels was John Henson, the wiry 6'10 forward. His transition to the college game has clearly shown he has some work to do, most notably a need to get bigger and stronger. His slight frame makes it difficult for him to bang inside at the moment. But his freakish athleticism was on display on two insane blocks thanks to his length and a bad-ass putback slam. His minutes aren't that of a super-recruit just yet, but the potential dripping from this kid is off the charts. Add in the steady play of the Wear twins, who both do a little bit of everything, and this young front line will give teams fits all season long. They sure did last night.

And that's without even mentioning Deon Thompson, the senior who is leading UNC is scoring and got the Heels going last night with a very fast, very impressive start. UNC was able to jump out to a 19-point lead in the first half mainly due to Thompson, who was killing anyone Tom Izzo put on him.

But it wasn't all domination for Carolina. The ugly turnover head sprouted again, as Michigan State forced 17 from North Carolina. And that allowed the Spartans to climb back in it. Raymar Morgan was a force for Michigan State, and this team is no joke. They have a ton of talent and it wouldn't be a shocker to see them back in the national championship game, especially with Kalin Lucas running the show.



I'm not the biggest proponent of Big Ten basketball, but any time Lucas takes the floor, he's must-watch TV. As he showed last season, he's lightning quick, fearless going to the rim and is no slouch with his jumper. He's for sure an NBA guard, even with his short stature. He's strong, aggressive and unafraid of anyone. Late last night, he was just killing whoever Roy Williams assigned to defend him: Drew, Marcus Ginyard, Strickland. Didn't matter, Lucas was going to shake them. He didn't have a great game early on, but he nearly led Michigan State to an improbable comeback. He's definitely the real deal.

But it wasn't enough. The young Tar Heels used their size and strength (and surprising outside shooting) to get a big victory against a highly ranked opponent early in the season. That's a confidence booster that should frighten the rest of the country. Although North Carolina was ranked in the preseason top 10, and surely will be back in the top 10 after last night's victory, they are thought to be more vulnerable this year after losing so much from last season's championship team. But as the year wears on, they will undoubtedly get better as they mature and Roy Williams has more time to develop them. This was the time when the likes of Michigan State were supposed to feast on Carolina. If they're winning games like last night's this early on, image how tough they'll be to beat come February and March.