sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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- Aug 15, 2011
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Beware the Ides of March!
The Roman calendar, which dates back to 753 BCE, had three fixed points throughout the month: Nones, Ides, and Kalends. Ides took place around the midpoint of each month, occurring on the 13th or 15th. In March it took place on the 15th.
The Ides of March is most remembered as being the anniversary of the day that Julius Caesar was assassinated, in 44 BCE. The day did, however, have some significance before this infamous event. It had long been a day of religious observances. The Ides of each month was sacred to Jupiter, Rome's supreme deity. Flamen Dialis, Jupiter's high priest, would traditionally lead an "Ides sheep" along the streets of Rome before it was sacrificed.
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Syracuse basketball loses to Duke 82-74 (ACC Tournament): Brent Axe recap (PS; Axe)
March to Madness
Two days may not seem like much, but the Syracuse University men's basketball team got what they needed out of its trip to Charlotte for the ACC Tournament.
Syracuse lost to Duke on Thursday night by a score of 82-74, but it is more about what the Orange gained than what they lost at the Spectrum Center.
The Orange cemented a 2019 NCAA Tournament bid. It won a game and pushed one of the best teams in the country to the brink (again) without its best player (Tyus Battle) in the lineup.
Its senior point guard (Frank Howard) is back on track, a freshman (Buddy Boeheim) is emerging as a postseason threat, the Orange's shooting is on track and the 2-3 zone looks sharp just in time for the madness.
The Orange still has its flaws. They'll likely be a eight or nine seed in the Tournament, earning a tough matchup in round one and a No. 1 seed in the next if they win.
But we're getting ahead of ourselves here. Right here, right now, Syracuse is feeling pretty good about itself.
That can change in a flash once the madness begins, but SU needed this surge of confidence after losing four of its last five games to end the regular season.
Syracuse basketball fans get to enjoy their first stress-free Selection Sunday in years on St. Patrick's Day.
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Zion Williamson's return carries Duke to win over Syracuse in quarterfinals :: WRALSportsFan.com (wralsportsfan.com; video; Brownlow)
Duke just needed to get Zion Williamson back and everything would be fine. Duke would go back to being the juggernaut it was before his injury.
That wasn't quite the case, but Duke will certainly take the win over Syracuse in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals and an opportunity to reincorporate Williamson a little more smoothly against North Carolina in the semifinals on Friday night in Charlotte.
Syracuse was playing without a star player of its own with leading scorer Tyus Battle sidelined with an injury, but the Orange managed to stick around with Duke in spite of that, trailing by just 6 at the half.
Williamson himself didn't seem to have much rust. At half, he had 21 of Duke's 34 points and had not missed a shot on nine attempts, including making a 3-pointer.
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Frank Howard, Zion Williamson address the alleged trip (PS; Ditota)
Frank Howard sat in front of his locker in the Spectrum Center deep into Thursday night, cameras and recorders trained on him. Moments earlier on the ACC Tournament dais, he had discussed the incident with Zion Williamson that rippled through social media. He had answered questions about video footage that looked like he had attempted to trip Williamson, had denied he ever intended to injure the Duke star.
But now, in the sanctuary of the Syracuse locker room, Howard was asked again to explain what happened, to convince people, essentially, that he was not a dirty player.
The accusation seemed to pain him.
“Like I said, I’m not going to wait four years to get to this stage to start tripping people,” he began. “If you’re a competitor, if you’re a basketball player, it’s war. And it’s a way of war, an art of war. And I don’t want to win like that -- if I gotta trip people, try to hurt somebody. He’s a great kid. And you know, it’s silly. I understand we’re in the era of clicks, everybody gotta get clicks. But don’t do that.”
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5 reasons why Zion Williamson's return for Duke-Syracuse was electrifying | NCAA.com (ncaa.com; Connors)
Zion Williamson made his much-anticipated return to the court for Duke late Thursday night against Syracuse in the ACC tournament, and folks, he did not disappoint.
In five games without their star, the Blue Devils lost twice — to Virginia Tech and North Carolina — and looked noticeably different on the court. The team announced on Thursday morning that Williamson would be back for Duke's quarterfinal against the Orange.
FILM STUDY: How Duke was different without Zion
He didn't waste any time reacquainting himself with the college basketball world as he led Duke to an 84-72 win over a Syracuse team that was one of only two to beat the Blue Devils at home this season. Williamson rocketed Duke to an early lead, and finished with 29 points as the Blue Devils advanced to the semifinals against North Carolina.
Williamson told ESPN's Allison Williams after the game that he could have returned before Thursday night, but Duke wanted to make sure he was 100 percent.
"I have a lot of energy," Williamson said, "but I come ready to kill every game. It was just great to be back on the court."
1. Zion announced his return in a familiar way
Williamson scored Duke's first bucket of the game on a layup. His second came on a slam that we've seen before. After pickpocketing Syracuse's Frank Howard, Williamson scooped up the ball and familiarized himself with the rim.
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‘One Day at a Time’: Netflix cancels Syracuse native’s TV show after 3 seasons (PS; Herbert)
Netflix has canceled “One Day at a Time” after three seasons, Syracuse native Mike Royce announced Thursday.
“We had the time of our lives making this show,” Royce said in a statement. “We worked with the best, most giving and talented cast, writers and crew ever, as well as the incomparable Norman Lear. So while our hearts are very heavy, they are also bursting with appreciation for this amazing experience.”
Royce co-created the reboot of Norman Lear’s classic ’70s sitcom with Gloria Calderón Kellett. Royce and Kellett both wrote for the series and served as showrunners, while Lear executive produced the new version about a Cuban-American family, led by Justina Machado ("Private Practice”) as a divorced military veteran living with her teen daughter, tween son, and her Cuban-born mother (Oscar, Emmy and Tony-award winning actress Rita Moreno). Todd Grinnell (“Desperate Housewives”) played the family’s building superintendent Schneider and Stephen Tobolowsky (“Groundhog Day”) played Dr. Berkowitz.
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