Happy 420!

Talk about great timing and creativity. Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane never ceases to amaze or make us laugh our asses off.

Last night, Family Guy continued to break barriers with its 420th episode. If you missed it....what the hell were you thinking. We all know how infamous MacFarlane is with his song and dance routines, but last night's performance wins the pot.

Check it out.

Same Old Song

A month ago, the Utah Jazz were the hottest team in the NBA and in line for a possible number 2 seed. The Jazz had battled injuries all year but finally got healthy looked to be a threat in the West.

But things fell apart for Utah down the stretch. The Jazz had were terrible on the road and even had a hard time winning in Salt Lake City.

In a preview of this first round match up, Utah was again held in check last Tuesday night by Lakers, 125-112. These two teams met in the conference semifinals last year, with the Lakers having no problems beating the Jazz 4-2.

With the way Utah has been playing of late, they'll be lucky to win one game. Heck, Kobe Bryant could sit out this series and the Lakers would still win 4-2.

Case in point. LA was up 14 points late in the 2nd quarter and Kobe had just 3 points. Yeah, Kobe has learned to make his teammates better, ala Jordan. But you can expect to see Kobe get plenty of rest this series as Utah has seemed to lost its killer instinct.

But when ever LA gets into trouble, bring in the "Black Mamba." You can see the fear in the opposition. Everyone in the building is just waiting for him to explode. And it's only a matter of time.

With just 3 points more than halfway through the 2nd quarter, Kobe scored 9 in less than two minutes and the Lakers were up 62-40 at halftime.

It would be easy for the Jazz to just give up then. But Utah battled back and even cut the deficit to 9 points in the 4th quarter.

But LA's supporting cast was just too much. Pau Gasol was consistent putting in 20 points and Trevor Ariza came from nowhere with 21.

Bryant finished with a "quiet" 24 points, 8 dimes and 4 rebounds.

For Utah, Carlos Boozer was solid leading the Jazz with 27 points and 9 rebounds.

Deron Williams was sick distributing the ball giving out 17 dimes, but the all star point guard was just 4-14 from the field and 0-4 from downtown and finished with 16 points.

Yao Perfect As Rockets Blast Blazers

This was maybe the most anticipated series of the Playoffs. But in Game 1, the young Blazers looked way overmatched.

Yao Ming was perfect from the field going 9-9 and 6-6 from the foul line. Ming finished with 24 points and 9 rebounds while playing only 24 minutes as the Rockets cruised, 108-81.

The Blazers combo of Greg Oden and Joel "the Vanilla Gorilla" Przybilla were both overmatched and had no answer for Yao. Yao scored 9 of Houston's first 11 points and the Rockets never looked back from there.

Houston took the hostile crowd out of the game early as the Rockets went up 34-23 at the end of the first quarter. Houston shot 75% from the field in the first.

The Rockets were so dominant, that really didn't even need Yao in the second half. Dikembe Mutumbo put in some solid play off the bench grabbing 9 rebounds and blocking 2 shots.

And what a homecoming it was for Aaron Brooks. Brooks finished with 27 points and 7 assists, both game highs. Brooks also shot 5-8 from 3 point land.

For the game, the Rockets shot nearly 59% from the floor, compared to 42% for the Blazers.

Portland was a lethal 3 point shooting team on the season, but were only 1-11! last night.

Mavericks/Spurs Game 1

The Wild Western Conference started off with a Texas sized game. Other than the Lakers, not much separates the rest of the teams in the conference.

The San Antonio Spurs snuck in as the number 3 seed and home court advantage against interstate rivalry, the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks came in as one of the hottest teams in the NBA. Just a week ago, they looked like the 8th seed and headed towards a first round one and done series against the Lakers.

The Spurs came out on fire, and everything was going their way. Dirk Nowitzki picked up his 3rd foul early in the second quarter with the Mavs down 33-24. San Antonio led by as many as 13 in first half before Dallas rallied to trail by only 4 at half, 49-45.

In the third quarter, Josh Howard took over for the Mavs with 13 points. But like always, Tim Duncan came alive with 12 third quarter points as the game was tied 74-74 after three.

The big difference of the game was the bench points. For Dallas, Brandon Bass finished with 14 points, Jose Barea had 13 and Jason Terry put in 12.

The Mavericks outscored the Spurs by 12 in the second half and played just enough defense to win 105-97.

Dallas came into the game having lost 9 consecutive road playoff games.

Now, the Spurs, minus Manu Ginobli, have their backs against the ropes with a much hungrier Dallas team breathing down their throats.

Pistons/Cavaliers Game 1 Business As Usual

Move along, nothing to see here.

As expected, the Cleveland Cavaliers had very little trouble at home against the Detroit Pistons.

Detroit did hang around until the second quarter when Cleveland went on a 20-9. And maybe the final dagger was Lebron banking a half court shot as time expired to end the first half with the Cavs up 12.

The Pistons pulled within 8 points in the fourth quarter while Lebron was on the bench. After that, Lebron came back on the floor and the rest is history as Cleveland won 102-84.

James finished with 38 points, 8 boards and 7 assists. Along with Lebron, the Cavs had 4 other players in double figures.

For the game, Cleveland only had 4 turnovers, shot nearly 53% from the floor and hit 23-27 from the free throw line.

Rodney Stuckey led the Pistons with 20 points. The most frustrating aspect of this game for Detroit is that the Pistons probably played their best game possible, but still lost by 18.

Detroit turned the ball over 7 times and shot 46.2% from the floor. However, the Pistons were just 2-12 from behind the arc and only shot 12 total free throws.

Rose, Bulls Take Game 1 In Boston

With Kevin Garnett possibly out for the entire Playoffs, we already figured the Celtics wouldn't repeat as Champions. But now, it looks as though Boston will have a hard time getting out of the first round.

Last year, Boston struggled with the Atlanta Hawks in the first round and Ray Allen was nonexistent.

Even without KG, the Celtics came into their series with the Bulls as heavy favorites. Many even see the Celtics getting to the Conference Finals.

With Derrick Rose leading the charge, the Bulls stole Game 1 and home court advantage of the first round series.

Rose looked anything like a rookie, as finished with a game high 36 points to go along with 11 assists. In fact, the 36 points tied the record for most points by a rookie in a playoff debut.

Rose now shares that record with one Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

Chicago was up 9 points at half, but the defending champs came back. The two teams seesawed the lead back and forth in the 4th quarter. The Celtics had a 96-95 lead when Rajon Rondo fouled Rose away from the ball with 9.4 seconds left in the 4th quarter.

Rose hit both free throws to give the Bulls a one point lead. On Boston's ensuing possession, Joakim fouled Paul Pierce with 2.6 left. "The Truth" had a chance to seal the game for the Celtics as he hit the first foul shot. The truth be told, Pierce uncharacteristically missed the second shot and we went to overtime.

You thought for sure now the less experienced Bulls team would fold on the road. But Chicago held it together and and was up 105-103 with the Celtics having one last shot. Ray Allen got an open look on the baseline to tie the game again, but missed. Allen finished the game 1-12 from the field, mirroring his early playoff performance from a year ago.

Boy, how far has Derrick Rose come? He's easily the rookie of the year. But remember just over a year ago as a freshmen at Memphis, it was Rose who struggled at the foul line and missed a free throw at the end of the game that would have put the game away and given Memphis a National Championship.

In first ever playoff game, on the road, Rose was 12-12 from the free throw line.

Worst Sports City? Houston

Alright. I know what your thinking...

The Rockets won back to back titles in 1994 and 1995. But remember this was due in large part to Michael Jordan's absence. (His first retirement and baseball tryout) Not to mention these two Finals had dismal ratings.

And what about Seattle? No major pro titles? And yes, Seattle recently lost the Supersonics. Seattle just cracks the top 25 for largest cities in the U.S. And Houston is the 4th largest.

I've lived in Houston for over two years now and it is extremely difficult to root for the home teams.

Since the back to back titles, Houston has struggled in the postseason, winning just two playoff series and failing to win a division title.

And of course last night the Rockets were in position to gain the number 2 seed in the Western Conference. A Houston win at interstate rival Dallas, and the Rockets were guaranteed a 3 seed. The Rockets were up 14 in the third quarter and lost by 11! Thus falling all the way to number 5.

NFL? The Houston Oilers never appeared in a Super Bowl. They do lay claim as the victims to the biggest NFL comeback in history. How can anyone forget the 1993 playoff disaster against Buffalo? The Oilers blew a 32 point lead! Even worse, they lost that lead to a backup QB, Frank Reich.

Now the Oilers don't even exist. They played their last game in 1996 with the team moving to Tennessee. Hell, the Titans have had more success than the Oilers!

The NFL came back to Houston in 2002, with a terrible name, the Texans. A lot of thought put into that one. Since their origin, the Texans are 40-72 and have never reached the postseason. They've yet to finish a season over .500!

Major League Baseball. The Astros have yet to win a World Series. They only recently won their first NL Pennant in 2005 and didn't show up for the World Series being swept by the White Sox.

They moved from the eighth wonder of the world, the Astrodome, to Enron Field. And we all know how that company turned out.

In 1980, the Astros broke the hearts of Houstonians. Up 2-1 in the NLCS against the Phillies, the Astros lost Game 4 5-3 in ten innings. Going into Game 5, the Astros had one of the best pitchers of all time taking the mound, Nolan Ryan. Ryan was going up against a rookie in a series clinching game. Of course Houston went on to lose 8-7 in ten innings. The last 4 games of that series all went extra innings.

And who can ever forget the ugly uniforms the Astros sported for so many years?

College sports? The Rice Owls did win the 2003 College World Series. But who outside Houston and Omaha remembers or cares?

The Houston Cougars do have the 1989 Heisman Trophy winner, Andre Ware. What a bust he became in the NFL. Dave Klinger set a lot of college passing records, but again, who remembers or cares.

What about the Houston Cougars college basketball history with Phi Slama Jama? More heartbreak. Led by Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, the Cougars went to the final four 3 straight years from 1982-84. The '83 team will forever be linked to Jimmy Valvano running all over the court looking for someone to hug. Houston lost the championship game on an air ball 3 point shot that was rebounded and slama jammed for the winning bucket as N.C. State won the title.

The following year, once again Houston lost in the championship game to Patrick Ewing and the Georgetown Hoyas. A great run by the Cougars, but no championships.

The top sports franchise in Houston today? The Houston Dynamo! A soccer team! Again, no one outside of Houston knows or cares.

The 3 Most Influential Trades This Year

Last year, the Celtics and Lakers played for the NBA Championship. Both teams made the Finals because of moves by their front offices. The Celtics, brought in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, making them one of the most lethal teams in the league. The Lakers got Pau Gasol from Memphis for practically nothing, Kwame Brown.

This year, the Cleveland Cavaliers finally got Lebron some quality help in Mo Williams. And Wow! What help Williams ended up being. Did anyone ever think Mo Williams was this good?

This season, Williams is averaging 17.8 points per game and shooting .436% from 3 point land. He's also putting in over 4 assists per game and grabbing over 3 boards a game. For his career, Williams is averaging 13.5 ppg and shoots .386% for 3 pointers.

Last year, Cleveland went 45-37 overall and 27-14 at home. This year, the Cavs had the best season in franchise history. Going into their final game tomorrow, Cleveland has locked the best record in the NBA at 66-15 and 39-1 at home!

The 1986-86 Boston Celtics went 40-1 at home and won 67 overall. The Cavs can tie both those marks tomorrow night when the host the Philadelphia 76ers. Cleveland will most likely rest all its starters and the 76ers are still jockeying for playoff position.

The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls who went 72-10 finished 39-2 at home.

And how about this, Joe Smith, who Cleveland sent away in the trade to acquire Mo Williams, is back with the Cavs!

Number 2. Chaunecy Billups to the Denver Nuggets.

Talk about another steal! Early in the season, the Nuggets dealt past his prime Allen Iverson to Detroit for the experienced team leader Billups.

Last year, the Nuggets finished 50-32 and squeaked into the playoffs as the 8th seed just 2 games ahead of Golden State. The Nuggets were then swept in the first round by the Lakers.

This year, Denver sits at 54-27 and are one win away from securing the second seed in the Western Conference.

As for Iverson and the Pistons? AI has been hurt, benched and has never really accepted his role as not being the number one go to guy for the Pistons. Without Iverson, the Pistons seem to play better and are a shadow of what the franchise has been this decade. Currently, Detroit is 39-42 and will be the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. Hello Cleveland! Good bye in the first round Detroit. Boy how times have changed.

Nubmer 3. Ron Artest Houston Rockets.

When the Rockets picked up Artest, there was a lot of speculation whether the ticketing time bomb would ruin the team or give Houston a legit big 3.

And when T-Mac made is annual return to the disabled list, it looked like the Rockets were done. They even waved the white flag and traded starting point guard Rafer Alston.

Since T-Mac's last game, the Rockets are 22-7. Artest has fit in perfectly as the Rockets are a scrappy, defensive team, exactly how Artest plays. Houston held Chris Paul and the Hornets to only 66 points Monday night.

Now, the Rockets are a win away from locking up a division title and maybe even a possible 2 seed in the playoffs.

NBA Line of the Week for March 30 to April 5 2009

Obscure Point Guard Ramon Sessions (Nevada) saw his name in bright lights as he recorded a triple double last Wednesday (April 1). No Joke.
Playing at home against the Lakers, Sessions and the Milwaukee Bucks nearly pulled off their biggest win of the year, but fell just short 104-98.

In 35 minutes, Sessions put 16 points, 16 dimes, 10 boards and 2 steals.

Later that evening in Oakland, Sacramento and Golden State showed why both teams are in the cellar...No defense. The Warriors rallied from behind to win 143-141 in overtime.

With all those fireworks you know there were some big numbers.

For the Kings, Kevin Martin (Western Carolina) scored 50 points-23 coming from the charity stripe. Martin was 23-26 from the line, 5-11 from 3 point land and 11-22 overall from the field.

For the Warriors, Monta Ellis played 49 minutes, shot 16-35 from the field, 0-1 from behind the arc, 10-12 free throw shooting, also adding 9 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals and finishing with 42 points.

Both these guards are tremendous scorers who get no publicity because they play late games on horrible teams.

Old Man Herbert Sings on American Idol?

Looking for a good laugh?

After hearing American Idol's Adam Lambert perform last night, I could only think of one person as I was laughing my ass off-Old man Herbert from Family Guy!

Watch the two videos and you be the judge. Better yet, don't watch them, just close your eyes and listen. Pretty hilarious and creepy!

I guess Simon gave the kid a standing ovation. Does that mean Old Man Herbert is good enough for American Idol?

Nobody Finer Than Carolina

Boy, this game was practically over before it started.

The only thing Michigan St. had going for them was the home crowd, and North Carolina took them out of the game early and often.

With 13:30 left in the first half, the Tar Heels had jumped out to a 24-8 lead! Carolina was shooting 60% and had created 7 turnovers.

Sparty was unable to find any transition game due to Carolina's excellent shooting.

And honestly, have you ever seen anyone run the floor better than Ty Lawson? The guy was straight up sick, not only running the offense but swiping 7 steals in the first half. And of course Lawson ended up with 8 steals for the game, a tournament record.

Lawson's play brought back memories of Michigan St.'s Mateen Cleaves and UConn's Khalid El-Amin.

North Carolina led 55-34 at half, the largest halftime lead ever in a championship game. We hadn't seen such a dominant performance in a championship game since the 1990 UNLV Running Rebels.

Whether it was stage fright or what Tom Izzo called "deer in headlights," Michigan State just could not get anything going-the turnovers, missed front ends of one and ones and poor shooting. The Spartans just couldn't make a run in the second half. North Carolina left the door open a small crack as the Tar Heels shot poorly in the second half.

Michigan St. shot just 30.4% from behind the 3 point line, compared to 41.7% for the Tar Heels.

You have to give Tom Izzo and Michigan St. props. This team overachieved throughout the tournament and was very fortunate to beat Kansas in the third round.

In the end, it was North Carolina cruising to a 89-72 victory for the school's 5th National Title. Carolina cruised through the tournament winning every game by double digits.

And another Big 10 team got slaughtered again on the big stage.