What a week it was. From Virginia winning a first-ever men's college basketball National Championship (Kippy & Buffy are celebrating with a bottle of 2009 Chateau Lynch-Bages) to the Capitals taking a 2-0 first round playoff series lead over Carolina to Tiger Woods winning the Masters to Game of Thrones' final season premiering, there's been a lot to experience. Amidst all of that the Nationals went 3-3 to remain .500 on the season. One series win that could have gone the other way followed by the exact opposite. But who's watching?
Being Bryce- Harper's hitting .280 with 4 HR and 9 RBI to start the season…and is 6-for-16 with 2 HR and 6 RBI against his former team. He also has his team atop the heap in the East–for the moment.
Dissecting the Division- Philadelphia leads the NL East at 9-5 while Atlanta and the New York Mets are tied for second one-half game back at 9-6. The Braves' biggest win of the week was locking up infielder Ozzie Albies to a seven-year contract worth 35 million dollars. After their lockup of Ronald Acuna, Atlanta has set themselves up well. As long as neither gets hurt or massively underperforms. The 7-7 Nats are two games off of the pace while 4-12 Miami is preparing for 2021.
O's Woes- the Birds continue to seek their own level…and after nine losses in eleven games a 6-10 start feels more like it. Even though they're currently tied with defending World Series champ Boston and are just a half game behind the Yankees. Blame 12-4 Tampa Bay for being the one kid who studied and ruins the AL East curve on this April quiz. At least Chris Davis finally has a hit-three of them in fact.
Last Week's Heroes- Howie Kendrick in his return to the roster hit 7-of-11 with 2 homers and 4 RBI. They missed the swiss army knife a ton last year. Anthony Rendon hit .360 while driving in 8 runs. Adam Eaton scored a team-high 7 runs. Patrick Corbin struck out 11 over seven innings in his only outing while Kyle Barraclough (1.2 scoreless innings) and Sean Doolittle (3.2 scoreless) kept the lid on things. Trevor Rosenthal after living in the land of infinity notched his first out of the season.
Last Week's Humbled- Ryan Zimmerman hit .167 while Wilmer Difo batted .143. Stephen Strasburg was touched up for 6 earned runs over 4 innings of work. Tony Sipp allowed 2 runs in one inning.
Game to Watch- Tuesday night Jeremy Hellickson pitches against San Francisco's Jeff Samardzija, who looks like an extra in the next Three Musketeers adaptation (for the record, I'm a 1973-74 Michael York as d'Artagnan and Charlton Heston as the Cardinal kind of guy). Both are off to decent starts this April.
Game to Miss- Friday Anibal Anchez pitches against a bad team in a worse ballpark. Caleb Smith won his most recent start for the Marlins, but this is an April Friday one hopes is nice on the DC Waterfront.
1–Do not be the person who tells everyone what the standings are Thursday afternoon after each result. Odds are they know–and if say they pick a Georgia Tech to go to the Final Four and they lose the first day of the tournament don't want to to be told. And if they didn't, to be notified after every result is a water torture nobody wants to experience.
2–You don't have to share your picks. Honestly, win or lose. You had Houston beating Michigan and the Wolverines hit a last-second shot? Sorry to hear…as in I'm sorry you felt as though you had to tell someone. Everybody's pool takes hits with each upset–and we don't want to know how you'd be winning the office pool if only Virginia had beaten UMBC.
3–"Almost picking" is not the same as picking. So if your Final Four picks flame out the first weekend, don't tell us which schools you thought about taking but didn't.
Bold- which sleepers might bust a bracket or two?
Fold- which teams are likely to make in early exit?
Gold- who advances to the Final Four?
East Regional- Duke is the team to beat after entering the NCAA Tournament ranked number one in the nation for the first time since…2006. For all of their success this decade one would have thought they'd have been atop the rankings at least once. Perhaps they're making up for lost time this winter. I thought Michigan State should have gotten the last number one seed, but instead the Spartans are on the other side of the Blue Devils' regional.
Bold- Minnesota boasts the Big Ten's leading rebounder in Jordan Murphy, and the Golden Gophers play Louisville- who just happened to fire Rick Pitino two years ago. Minnesota is coached by Richard Pitino, who happens to be Rick's son. They already have plenty of tape and a scouting report on the likely second round foe Michigan State.
Fold- LSU was in the top ten before coach Will Wade was served a subpeona by the federal government and a suspension by his school regarding the recent FBI investigation. The Tigers then wilted in the SEC Tournament. While they have the clear edge talent-wise over Yale, the circumstances surrounding the program aren't the recipe for a deep tournament run.
Gold- Duke has the best player in Zion Williamson and the best coach in Mike Krzyzewski. They'll find their way to Washington DC for a coronation next weekend after disposing of their alphabet soup (NCC, NDSU, VCU, UCF) in nearby Columbia, SC. A likely avenging of a February loss (Virginia Tech) looms. The question is, how did three Big Ten teams (Michigan State, Maryland, Minnesota) wind up in the bottom half of that regional? I thought the Selection Committee's long lunches were put in place to prevent that.
South Regional- Virginia is a number one seed for the fourth time in six years. We don't need to discuss what happened last season. Unfortunately March Brings Cinderellas to the forefront. Condolences to Gardner-Webb. Unless the Runnin' Bulldogs somehow repeat the Terriers' feat. Then it's going to be another summer of discontent in Charlottesville.
Bold- Cincinnati is fresh off beating Houston to win the AAC Tournament…and the Bearcats are also bound for Columbus, which happens to be the capital of the state that the city of Cincinnati resides. Don't be surprised to see the underseeded Bearcats make noise.
Fold- Villanova has been boom or bust recently, either advancing to the Final Four or saying adios the first weekend. The Wildcats gritted their way to the Big East Tournament championship for a record third straight year, but wrapped up the regular season with five straight road losses. Even though Hartford isn't exactly San Jose, I'm feeling Jay Wright's team has a short stay this March.
Gold- Virginia will be tested by a Tennessee that doesn't have to travel far (Columbus & Louisville), but this year the Cavaliers have additional hitch to their giddy-up in an offense that might not be able to match their best in the nation defense (I think it's Grandfathered in that UVa leads the nation in scoring D) but has the necessary firepower to pull away from foes. De'Andre Hunter's wrist is intact, unlike last March, and so are the Cavaliers' Final Four hopes.
Midwest Regional- North Carolina won neither the ACC regular season or tournament, but why recognize another league like the Big Ten or SEC at this time? The Tar Heels head up the Blue Blood Bracket, with Kentucky and Kansas (sadly UCLA could not attend the NCAA Tournament this year) joined by a few schools who actually did win their conference tournaments in Auburn and Iowa State.
Bold– Seton Hall is fresh off losing the Big East Tournament championship and possesses the type of player (Myles Powell) who can make noise in the big dance. They've also beaten Kentucky this season.
Fold- there's always that one team that wins its league tournament that somehow feels like it spent a ton of energy doing so…and then can't recreate the magic the following weekend. Auburn took the SEC in an emotional day for Bruce Pearl, who lost an assistant coach not to another job but to prison (Chuck Person convicted in the FBI probe). New Mexico State ranks 26th in the nation in scoring defense and won't be a walkover.
Gold- why in the heaven am I taking another ACC team? North Carolina has the talent, the experience, and the gosh-darnit-aw-shucks coach in Roy Williams on the sidelines to do just enough to infuriate the fan base that thinks the Heels should win every game by 50. They won't win every game by 50, and there's going to be at least one win where UNC looks like they have no idea how to play basketball for 5-10 minutes but survive anyway.
West- Gonzaga is going to join the ACC as a provisional member so commissioner John Swofford can boast that for the first time all four seeds come from the same league. Actually, if the Atlantic Coast Conference can have schools in Louisville and South Bend while the Big Ten can have 14 schools, this isn't THAT much of a stretch. The Bulldogs have been in the top five all season and begin another tournament run Thursday in Salt Lake City.
Bold- Syracuse plays that famed 2-3 zone and gets their best player back from injury in Tyus Battle. The Orange lost late regular season games to North Carolina, Duke and Virginia after leading all three games at the half. They won't be star-struck by the Bulldogs, who have lost the last four years in the NCAA's to an ACC school.
Fold- Marquette was once 23-4 and in conversations to not only win the Big East but secure a #2 seed. But four losses to end the regular season plus a four-hour Big East Semifinal defeat to Seton Hall have exposed the Golden Eagles as another ordinary team. Markus Howard is a dynamic point guard, but he won't be enough to get this team out of its late-season skid.
Gold- or Maize. Michigan began the year 18-0 and has lost just three times since Valentine's Day-each loss coming to Michigan State who happens to be in a different region. Coach John Beilein always gets the best out of his teams in March and this year won't be an exception. Ann Arbor's not too far from South Bend…perhaps the ACC could reach out to the Wolverines.
The NCAA Men's College Basketball Tournament tips off tomorrow with the Infamous "First Four". Before you dismiss the dealings in Dayton, take note that in the eight years they've had the last four at-large teams face off a "First Four" team has won a First Round game every year. Four times one of these schools has reached the Regional round and we will always have the initial First Four Graduate VCU's Final Four run as an example.
East- the road to the Final Four goes through Washington, DC with overall number one seed Duke and Zion Williamson expected to find their way to Capital One Arena. Their First Round matchup may very well be a Durham City Championship Game, as North Carolina Central faces North Dakota State in the First Four Wednesday.
Favorites- the Blue Devils have lost just once this season while playing at full-strength, and their run through the ACC Tournament now that Zion Williamson puts the rest of the nation on notice. Intriguing potential first weekend showdowns include the Durham City Championship in the First Round if North Carolina Central wins its First Four game (remember, the First Four Success doesn't transfer to No. 16 seeds), or an alumni reunion against ninth-seeded UCF coached by former Blue Devils All-American and assistant coach Johnny Dawkins. Flying under the radar on the other side of the bracket is Big Ten regular season and tournament champion Michigan State.
Best Matchup- No. 10 seed Minnesota is coached by Richard Pitino. The Golden Gophers draw No. 7 Louisville, who fired Pitino's father Rick two years ago. Who said the Selection Committee doesn't have a sense of humor?
Maryland (22-10) is seeded sixth after its disappointing showing at the Big Ten Tournament. In their last NCAA appearance the sixth-seeded Terps lost to Xavier by 11 in Melo Trimble's final game. Anthony Cowan Jr. shot 1-for-4 that night; last week it was Bruno Fernando who shot 1-for-4 against the Cornhuskers. The Terps need the sophomore big man to return to the form that made First Team All-Big Ten if they're going to reach the weekend. The Terps will face either Belmont or Temple Thursday–the Bruins are 0-7 all-time in the big dance and the Owls are 2-5 in the tourney under coach Fran Dunphy.
Virginia Tech (24-8) is seeded fourth as the Hokies make the NCAA's for the third straight year (the first time that's happened in program history). The also get point guard Justin Robinson back in the lineup–since the senior went to the shelf with a foot injury the Hokies are 7-5, including a pair of overtime losses to red-hot Florida State. They draw Atlantic Ten champ Saint Louis; the Billikens won four games in four days while banishing Dayton and Davidson to the NIT.
VCU (25-7) is seeded eighth after their upset loss to Rhode Island in the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals. Thankfully URI is not in the tournament-as they're the only team to have beaten the Rams since January 12. Coach Mike Rhoades' initial opponent is a UCF team that lost by 24 points in the quarterfinals of the AAC Tournament.
South- Virginia (29-3) gets a number one seed for the fourth time in six years…as the Cavaliers will not only face Gardner-Webb but will also confront the ghosts of last March. UVa's loss to UMBC in 2018 will be a scarlet L the program will wear for some time. They're a little older and a little wiser this year; they're also a lot healthier as De'Andre Hunter is 12 months removed from the broken wrist that hijacked his-and in effect the Cavaliers'-campaign last March.
Favorites- the Cavaliers' toughest test may be Tennessee at the other end of the bracket, but the Volunteers have a potential Second Round showdown with AAC champ Cincinnati-in Columbus, Ohio. Defending national champion Villanova is also in the region as the No. 6 seed, fresh from becoming the first school to win three straight Big East Tournaments.
Best Matchup- No. 12 seed Oregon has won eight straight, and they've done so minus 7-foot-2 center Bol Bol (son of the late Washington Bullets center Manute Bol), while Wisconsin is led by four-year starter Ethan Happ in the pivot.
Virginia- the top seed enters the NCAA's again with the best scoring defense in the nation, but this year's team has a little more firepower with Kyle Guy and De'Andre Hunter providing scoring punch. In addition to a Gardner-Webb team making its first-ever trip to the tournament, Ole Miss (five losses in seven games) and Oklahoma (a Big 12 Tournament loss to sub-500 West Virginia) stand in their way to the Regional in Louisville. Break out the bourbon.
Old Dominion- former UVa and American University coach Jeff Jones is back in the NCAA Tournament after leading the 26-8 Monarchs to the Conference USA tournament championship. ODU gets a No. 14 seed and plays Purdue; the Boilermakers may be coming off of an upset loss to Minnesota in the Big Ten Quarterfinals but have advanced to four regionals in ten appearances under coach Matt Painter and boast the Big Ten's leading scorer in Carsen Edwards. Jeff Jones' team is led by B.J. Stith and his 16.9 points per game; Stith is the son of Virginia's all-time leading scorer Bryant Stith (who played his last two years at UVa under Jones).
Midwest- North Carolina gets the ACC's third No. 1 seed- the first time one league has nabbed three top seeds since the Big East in 2009. The Tar Heels head to nearby Columbia, SC where the local school refers to itself as "Carolina" and "USC" to the dismay of some and the amusement of others. The Regional is in Kansas City-and if the seeds hold UNC will play Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen. I've been told that Kansas City is somewhat near the state of Kansas.
Favorites- in addition to the Tar Heels and Jayhawks, the bracket boasts blue blood Kentucky as well as AAC regular season champ Houston–not to mention SEC Tournament winner Auburn and Big 12 tournament champ Iowa State. Buckle up.
West- Gonzaga has been in the top five of the national rankings all season, and even their loss in the WCC finals couldn't keep the Bulldogs out of the top seed. They've also advanced to the second weekend four straight years, and this year's obstacles include First Four winner Fairleigh Dickinson or Prairie View A&M plus potential Second Round foes Baylor and Syracuse.
Favorites- at the other end of the bracket is last year's national championship runner-up Michigan. The second-seeded Wolverines began this season 18-0 and have lost only three times since Valentine's Day-all to Michigan State. No. 4 seed Florida State is coming off of an impressive ACC Tournament run that included a double-digit win over Virginia.
Best Matchup- No. 6 seed Buffalo awaits the First Four winner of St. John's-Arizona State; while an Empire State showdown (we have to wait for Albany-Buffalo for our Erie Canal clash) would be exciting the Sun Devils are in their second season under former Bulls coach Bobby Hurley. For the record, the Selection Committee does not go out of its way to generate specific matchups.
Alma Mater Update- the Orange play the late game Thursday evening against Baylor, another team that has issues offensively. But they'll have Tyus Battle back in the lineup. And an ACC team has eliminated Gonzaga in each of the last four years. So there's that. More important is the drumstick to flat ratios.
Conference Tournament week has the area schools scurrying to locations like Charlotte, Chicago, New York City, Brooklyn and Norfolk. Even though conference expansion has changed these tourneys from tight three-day affairs to bloated five-day album cuts, the little dances before the Big Dance will provide plenty of thrills, chills, and spills leading up to Selection Sunday.
ACC- Spectrum Center, Charlotte. Sure the SEC had a tournament in the 1930's and 40's, but the Atlantic Coast Conference created the mold for league tourneys. And sure, it's a major hike to Blacksburg and Charlottesville–but there are plenty of alums who reside inside the beltway and either pop their collars or talk about turkey legs and a 15-year football streak. Beware of the bluebloods: Duke or North Carolina have won 13 of the 19 tournaments this century–and either the Blue Devils or the Tar Heels have played in the Finals every year since 1997 (the trivia answer would be Wake Forest-Georgia Tech).
#2 Virginia (28-2, 16-2 ACC)- the Cavaliers (10-3 in the ACC Tournament over the last five years) await the winner of Clemson-NC State in the #8 vs #9 game. The Tigers-Wolfpack noon showdown will have the feel of an NCAA Play-in game, as both schools are squarely on the bubble. UVa routed Clemson 63-43 January 12th (holding the Tigers to 26% shooting and 3-19 from three-point range); they needed overtime to edge NC State 66-65 January 29th in their sloppiest game of the season (16 turnovers). The Wolfpack beat the Tigers during their lone regular season matchup 69-67 and won three of five to wrap up the regular season; but those three wins came against Boston College (2) and Wake Forest (1), who both lost in Tuesday's bottom-of-barrel-scraping First Round. UVa meets the winner at noon Thursday.
#16 Virginia Tech (23-7, 12-6 ACC)- the Hokies (2-5 in the ACC Tournament over the last five years) face Miami at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Second Round, five days after beating the Hurricanes 84-70. They also beat Miami 82-70 in their January meeting and in the sweep hit over 50% of their three-point shots against the Canes. Primary offensive weapon Kerry Blackshear Jr. did not play well in either game: scoring 1 point in January, 8 last Friday, while shooting 4-for-20 over both games. Hurricane to watch: senior Anthony Lawrence II notched 20 points with 10 rebounds against Wake Forest and averaged a double-double against the Hokies this winter. Achilles' Heel to watch: Miami ranked last in the ACC in rebounding margin. A win sets up a rematch against #12 Florida State in the quarterfinals, a little over a week after blowing a double-digit lead in a loss at the Seminoles.
Alma Mater Update- the Orange are a less than beautiful 19-12 after Saturday's loss at Clemson…and even though most models have them "in" the NCAA Tournament, I won't sleep unless they dispose of last-place Pitt in Wednesday's Second Round. A win means a third game this winter against Duke–and I'm not expecting any miracles. Plus, coach Jim Boeheim is more of a Temptations fan than Smokey Robinson anyways.
Big Ten Tournament- United Center, Chicago. After playing 2017 at Washington D.C.'s Verizon Center and 2018 at Madison Square Garden (a week early) in New York City, the league returns to its roots with a week in the Windy City. Although to mix things up, this year for the first time the conference instituted a 20-game schedule (don't worry, the ACC will follow suit next winter). Sixth ranked Michigan State may enter as regular season champ, but #10 Michigan has won the last two Big Ten Tournaments and nobody is paying attention to #13 Purdue and the league's leading scorer Carsen Edwards.
#21 Maryland (22-9, 13-7 Big Ten)- at 3 p.m Thursday the Terps (2-4 in the tournament since joining the conference) face the winner of Rutgers and Nebraska (6:30 p.m Wednesday). They beat both schools during the first week of January: Jalen Smith's last-second bucket gave Maryland a 74-72 win over the Cornhuskers in the kind of tight game they were getting the reputation of losing lately, and the road win at the Scarlet Knights (where they held Rutgers to 19 first-half points) showed that there would be no road woes this winter like last season. Rutgers took the regular season matchup 76-69; one game later Nebraska's second-leading scorer and rebounder (and Georgetown transfer) Isaac Copeland Jr. went down with a torn ACL and the Huskers haven't recovered. Rutgers remains Rutgers, however: ranking 12th in the conference in points allowed, shooting and turnover margin; 13th in scoring and three-point shooting; and last in defending the three. A Terps win Thursday would set up a rubber match with Wisconsin, the home team prevailing each time during the regular season.
Big East Tournament, Madison Square Garden, New York City. The league nobody wants to win holds its postseason affair with plenty of possibilities. Top seed Villanova lost its last five road games while Marquette dropped its last four games overall. St. John's moved from third to seventh place over the last week with three straight defeats. Even Georgetown found a way to lose to DePaul by 32 (since the Blue Demons swept the Red Storm and bubble team Seton Hall along with that rout of the Hoyas, we've dropped the traditional "Lowly" prefix from their name). Good luck figuring this one out.
Georgetown (19-12, 9-9 Big East)- the Hoyas play third seed Seton Hall Thursday in the last quarterfinal of the day, and while the schedule reads "9:30 p.m.", both you and I know better (more like 9:45-9:50 start-if there's no overtime). Home court prevailed during the regular season, with the Pirates Myles Powell averaging 32.5 points against the Hoyas. Jessie Govan scored 20 and 21 points against Seton Hall, but went scoreless in the first half at Capital One Arena before catching fire: the senior scored all 11 Hoya points in double-overtime of the 77-71 win. The freshman duo of Mac McClung and James Akinjo had rough nights in both games, shooting a combined 2-for-11 in the road loss and 9-for-28 in the home win. The winner likely faces #23 Marquette in the semifinals, barring a continued collapse by the Golden Eagles (a distinct possibility).
Atlantic 10 Tournament, Barclays Center, Brooklyn. I actually enjoyed having the A-10 in DC last March, and can't wait for it to return in 2022. It was a shame all four area schools had down years in 2018: VCU, George Mason and Richmond each finished 9-9 in league play while George Washington played on the first day of the tournament. This year, the Rams are on a roll with 12 straight wins and the Patriots are enjoying their best-ever conference season since leaving the CAA. The Spiders and Colonials…not so much.
George Washington (8-23, 4-14 Atlantic 10)- the Colonials (5-5 since re-alignment in 2014) play UMass in the first game of the tournament Wednesday at 1 p.m. GW took the regular season matchup 79-67 on February 20 as Maceo Jack scored 20 points; that's their only win since January. The current five game losing streak involves four double-digit defeats. UMass may have two wins in their last five games, but are winless away from Amherst against A-10 competition this winter. They also have a hobbled leading scorer as Luwane Pipkins has played in just three of the team's last nine games due to a hamstring injury.
George Mason (17-14, 11-7 Atlantic 10)- the Patriots (2-5 in the tournament over the last five years) play the winner of George Washington and UMass in Thursday's Second Round (2:30 p.m.); somehow this Patriots-Colonials-Minutemen sub-bracket is kind of amusing for history majors (though not as cool as the potential VCU-Rhode Island-Fordham Rams Regional would be). Mason swept both teams during the regular season, with their January 16 win at UMass (an 18-9 finish over the last 6:40 delivering a five-point margin) setting the tone for a 7-2 start in league play. Freshman Jordan Miller could be an X-factor this week: the Middleburg, VA native averaged 14 points (on 58% shooting) with 9.5 rebounds over his last four games. The winner takes on St. Bonaventure in Friday's Quarterfinals (2:30 p.m).
Richmond (12-19, 6-12 Atlantic 10)- the Spiders (4-5 with one tournament finals appearance since 2014) face Fordham in Wednesday's other First Round game (3:30 p.m.). It's been a rough finish for both teams: Richmond has lost four straight while the Rams have dropped five of six. The Spiders took the lone regular season meeting 72-69 February 20; Grant Golden scored 16 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 20 seconds left. Freshman Nick Honor paced the Rams with 23 points that day—a sign that the future is bright. The present is another matter for the league's last-place team.
VCU (25-6, 16-2 Atlantic 10)- the Rams are 13-5 in the A-10 Tournament since leaving the CAA, and with the exception of last March have advanced to the Finals every year. Their run this year begins in the Quarterfinals Friday at noon against the winner or Rhode Island and La Salle. While the Rams beat the Explorers 69-63 in early January, they fell 71-65 to Rhode Island on a night where they coughed up 50 second-half points, turned the ball over 18 times and shot 17% from three-point range. Coach Mike Rhoades' team hasn't lost since. URI beat La Salle in the regular season 78-67 thanks to 20 points from Fatts Russell. Let the record show the A-10 has some sweet names this year, from the Explorers' Pookie Powell to my favorite: Duquesne guard Sincere Carry-who naturally just happens to lead the conference in assists.
MEAC Tournament, Norfolk Scope, Norfolk. This league runs its men's and women's tournaments concurrently, meaning Monday's First Round winners often next play Wednesday or Thursday. While the #1 seed has won five titles in the last ten years, there have been upsets like last March when #6 seed North Carolina Central beat regular season champ Hampton in the Finals.
Howard (16-15, 10-6 MEAC) reached the Semifinals as a #11 seed two years ago; the Bison have just two other wins in the tournament this decade. The lead the league in scoring but play a defensive style that can sometimes be referred to as "matadorish"; but when you have the conference's top two point producers in R.J. Cole and Charles Williams you take your chances. Coach Kevin Nickelberry's team is also riding a ridiculous 8-0 road record in conference play to Norfolk-where they wrapped up the regular season by beating top seed Norfolk State. The #4 seed Bison battle Bethune-Cookman Thursday in the Quarterfinals at 8 p.m.; the Wildcats boast the league's best big man in Cletrell Pope (#1 in rebounding, #2 in shooting percentage and #3 in blocked shots). The winner likely gets an angry Norfolk State in the Semifinals Friday.
Since joining the Atlantic 10 Conference, VCU immediately made its mark on the league. Five straight appearances in the Conference Tournament Championship Game and five consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament. So last year when the Rams finished 18-15 (most losses since the 1998-99 season) and 9-9 in the A-10 (first non-winning conference season since 2000), coach Mike Rhoades realized he needed to go back to basics. "The summer-we just went old school. (I told them) We gotta get back to increasing our workload and hard we work," Rhoades said. And while the summer conditioning program made his players stronger physically, "The best thing about it is we got mentally tougher-period," Rhoades said. "We got mentally tougher and they did all the work together. So they're playing together and they're fighting through it together." Together the second-year head coach and his team have risen to the top of the Atlantic 10.
Alma Mater Update- SU wraps up the regular season with a trip to Clemson. It's a chance to win 20 games in the regular season for the first time since 2014. Yes, you read me correctly. The Orange can finish sixth in the ACC with a victory over the Tigers, who are locked into the 8-9 game next week with NC State. Somehow it feels as though nothing says 8-9 game in the ACC like Clemson-NC State. Pulling for first day regulars Boston College and Wake Forest to meet up Tuesday.
#24 Maryland (21-9, 12-7 Big Ten) vs. Minnesota (19-11, 9-10), 7 p.m., FS1. The Terps can ill afford to enter the Big Ten Tournament with three straight losses…while the Golden Gophers have won two straight behind the scoring of Amir Coffey (32 points in wins over Northwestern and #11 Purdue). They also boast the conference's leading rebounder in Jordan Murphy (11.7 per game). The Terps were somehow able to neutralize the senior in their January win over Gophers, holding Murphy to 9 points and 5 rebounds in an 82-67 win. Two other notables from that night: Maryland closed the game on a 21-6 run and Anthony Cowan Jr. scored a season-high 27 points. Cowan's coming off of a rough effort against Michigan (he started the day shooting 1-for-11) and can use all the positive reinforcement he can get.
#15 Virginia Tech (22-7, 11-6 ACC) vs Miami (13-16, 5-12), 7 p.m., ESPN2. So much for the major momentum of last week's upset of then-#1 Duke. So much for getting a double-bye in the upcoming ACC Tournament. The Hokies let a 14 point halftime lead dissolve into a 73-64 overtime defeat at #14 Florida State Tuesday. Don't expect any sympathy from the Hurricanes, who were virtually locked in to playing in the First Round since beginning league play 1-8. In those early stumbles was an 82-70 loss to Tech January 30th where coach Buzz Williams' team shot 59% and Nickeill Alexander-Walker scored a season-high 25 points. Miami senior Anthony Lawrence scored a career-high 27 points in a Senior Night victory over Pitt; they've needed his production recently with leading scorer Chris Lykes netting just 12 points on 4-of-23 shooting over his last two games.
VCU (24-6, 15-2 Atlantic 10) vs. St. Joseph's (13-17, 6-11), 9 p.m., ESPN2. Do not overlook Phil Martelli's team: the Hawks have won two of their last four with each of the two losses coming by one point. He also has the A-10's top scorer in Charlie Brown Jr. But while the sophomore forward averages 19 points per game, he's not getting a ton of help: the team ranks 12th in the league in shooting and is last at defending the three. That's one of the few things VCU does not do well this year (13th). In addition, do not overlook St. Joe's road record in the A-10: it's 1-7. And the Siegel Center is not an easy place to play.
George Mason (16-14, 10-7 Atlantic 10) at George Washington (8-22, 4-13), 2 p.m. The Orange Line Rivalry is renewed with the Patriots making the trek into the district and Foggy Bottom. When GW has been good, there's no place inside the beltway that rocks like the Smith Center: the fans are right on top of the court (and media row) and it's a great vibe. This year's Colonials have not been good, having lost eight of nine. Can Mason rebound from getting blasted to bits at home on Senior Night? "Twenty-five years as a head coach I'd like to say I've never had a game like this, but I have," coach Dave Paulsen said, "I've had teams have this game: a rivalry game, at home, get embarrassed… and I've had that team bounce back and win a conference championship. I've also had teams that get embarrassed like that kind of put their head down and have a 'woe is me' attitude." Otis Livingston II needs to find a way out of his recent slump (averaging six points on 5-of-24 shooting over the last three games) for GMU to find its way back.
Georgetown (18-12, 8-9 Big East) at #16 Marquette (23-7, 12-5), 2:30 p.m., FOX. Whatever vibe the Hoyas had after last weekend's thrilling double-overtime win over Seton Hall, it's gone. As well as likely any hope of an at-large bid. Losses to DePaul are not ideal; a 101-69 thumping is beyond disastrous. A win would have kept coach Patrick Ewing's team in third place–and instead they begin the weekend in seventh. Now they face a Golden Eagles team that has lost three straight to hand first place to Villanova. Marquette took the matchup in DC 74-71 thanks to 31 points from Sam Hauser, as the conference's leading scorer Markus Howard left the game with lower back tightness after three scoreless minutes. As Jessie Govan goes, so go the Hoyas: the senior averages 20 points and 9 rebounds in the team's Big East wins, while netting 15 points with 7 assists in their conference defeats.
Richmond (12-18, 6-11 Atlantic 10) vs. Davidson (22-8, 13-4), 6 p.m., ESPN+. The Spiders take a three game losing streak into the final weekend, needing a victory or a St. Joseph's loss to avoid playing in the dreaded first round of the A-10 Tournament. A less than effective defense is a major reason why they're going to finish under .500 for the second straight year: Richmond ranks last in defensive field goal percentage and are 11th in stopping the three-pointer. The Wildcats are led by Kellan Grady and Jon axel Gudmunsson who rank second and third in the conference in scoring; while Richmond held both in check earlier this winter it was freshman Luke Frampton who came alive with 24 points in a Davidson 75-62 triumph. Frampton leads the A-10 in threes per game and the Wildcats are the league's best three-point shooting team.
#2 Virginia (27-2, 15-2 ACC) vs. Louisville (19-11, 10-7), 4 p.m., ESPN. The Cavaliers are coming off of a 79-53 thumping of Syracuse where they used a 27-3 run in the second half to take the lead for good, blow the game open, and lastly give the Orange a major inferiority complex. UVa still needs a need a win to wrap up the top seed in the ACC Tournament, as they'd lose the tiebreaker with Duke and North Carolina in the case of a three-way tie. The Cardinals haven't won consecutive games since January 30th, and those consecutive wins were against Pitt and Wake Forest. Just to show that stifling defense isn't just a VCU thing, coach Tony Bennett's team leads the ACC in scoring defense, field goal defense and stopping the three. UVa won the previous matchup this winter 64-52 after holding Louisville to 15 second-half points. They also got 26 points from De'Andre Hunter that day.
Sometimes the street signs take your attention away from the road. Selection Sunday is less than four weeks away-and that means the annual elevation of "Bracketology". I used to do it as a kid with the weekly AP poll–and as a cottage industry it's been around for about 20 years. Where projecting the field was once the near-exclusive domain of ESPN's Joe Lunardi, CBS, FOX and Yahoo! have gotten into the act as well.
And it's not just an in-season thing: you can find projected brackets as early as the week after the Final Four–updated over the summer! (seriously, people- go to the beach or do the crossword by the pool). The women's tournament even has ESPN's Charlie Creme to set that field of 64.
So prepare to have each and every win and loss by the schools in the NCAA mix be talked about in terms of not what happened during the game, but how the result might move a school up or down a line. Or-heaven forbid- into the "First Four Out", "Next Four Out" and "Further Four Farther Out". Sometimes it feels as though the analysts are more focused talking about the projected bracket shift than the actual game.
For comparison, the networks have Virginia a #1 seed, Virginia Tech a #5 or #6, and VCU (taking the Atlantic 10 automatic bid) anywhere from a #9 to a #11. Even Georgetown has been listed as one of the "First Four Out" on Yahoo! Sports' latest bracket. But not like anyone's watching…just ask Mark Turgeon: "Of course I don't pay attention to anything except my team-and watch film".
Alma Mater Update- the Orange host #1 Duke three days after Zion Williamson sprained his knee…and the Blue Devil freshman won't be playing Saturday. Jim Boeheim will be coaching–just three nights after being involved in a car accident that killed a pedestrian on I-690. One thinks of the deceased man's family and friends at this time.
#3 Virginia (23-2, 11-2 ACC) at #18 Louisville (18-9, 9-5), 12 p.m., ACC Network. Can the Cavaliers somehow win the conference despite getting swept by Duke? The Blue Devils' loss Wednesday to #8 North Carolina evens matters in the loss column, and who knows how long they'll be without freshman phenom Zion Williamson (according to coach Mike Krzyzewski it's a sprained knee)? Duke's finishing kick also involves three road games in Blacksburg, Chapel Hill and Syracuse. Don't tell Louisville about the Carrier Dome: the usually potent Cardinals (fourth in the ACC in scoring) shot 26% while putting just 49 points on the board there Wednesday. UVa has to contain forward Jordan Nwora, who notched a double-double against Duke and leads Louisville in scoring and rebounding. A reasonable task for the top defensive team in the ACC.
#24 Maryland (20-7, 11-5 Big Ten) vs. Ohio State (17-9, 7-8), 2 p.m., ESPN. The Terps took the January 18th matchup in Columbus by 15 despite 19 turnovers thanks to 20 points from Anthony Cowan Jr.; Tuesday the junior guard scored 17 points with a season-high 8 assists in a 66-65 win over #21 Iowa. That victory was the first for the Terps on the road against a ranked foe since January 2008 when they upset then-#1 North Carolina. The Buckeyes are 0-5 against ranked teams this winter-and are less than one week removed from scoring 13 points in the second half of a loss to #10 Michigan State. But if scoring in the forties (they posted 44 in East Lansing) is a disease, then OSU most certainly passed it on to Northwestern in their 63-49 win Wednesday.
George Washington (8-18, 4-9 Atlantic 10) at VCU (20-6, 11-2), 2 p.m., ESPN+. The Rams have won seven straight to go from underwhelming contender to perhaps a likely at-large contender-last year the A-10 received two such bids (Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure). They also won the February 6th matchup between these two teams in Foggy Bottom by ten; it was a game where GW had 17 turnovers to 15 made baskets. D.J. Williams scored 16 points that night- he'll need more help this time (his teammates shot 9-for-34 and 0-for-9 from three-point range that night). The Colonials are coming off their first win in five games this month: Maceo Jack tallied 20 points with 7 rebounds in the 79-67 win over UMass. They'll need more than Jack and Williams to play well Saturday.
Richmond (11-15, 5-8 Atlantic 10) at La Salle (8-17, 6-7), 2 p.m., ESPN+. The Explorers took the February 2nd meeting 66-58 as Pookie Powell tallied 18 points; after a minor hiccup (a season-low two points in a loss last weekend to Saint Louis) Powell produced 20 in La Salle's 62-60 loss to St. Bonaventure Wednesday. First-year head coach Ashley Howard is less than a year removed from cutting down the nets as part of Villanova's national championship staff; growing pains are to be expected in the A-10. Just ask Chris Mooney, who posted losing seasons his first two years in Richmond. Unfortunately the Spiders of the present are on the verge of a second straight losing season for the first time since 2006 (Mooney's second season). But they do head to Philly having won four of six.
Navy (9-17, 6-9 Patriot League) at Colgate (13-10, 10-5), 2 p.m., CBSSN. While the Midshipmen's game with Loyola of Maryland was pushed back a day due to the winter weather, the Raiders have been storming up the standings with a five game winning streak-a streak that includes victories over conference co-leaders Lehigh and Bucknell. The Midshipmen took the January 3rd matchup in Annapolis by six on a day where they hit 45% of their shots (their season average is 31%).
Georgetown (16-10, 6-7 Big East) at Creighton (14-13, 5-9), 2:30 p.m., FOX. The Hoyas' 85-73 win over #17 Villanova was huge not just because it snapped a nine game losing streak to the Wildcats but it was also coach Patrick Ewing's first victory against a ranked opponent in his head coaching career. It was the best 40-minute effort of Ewing's team this winter–on both ends of the floor. The defense that's coughed up points early and often? Held Nova to 39% shooting and 24% from three-point range. The offense that squandered double-digit leads? Freshman James Akinjo notched nine assists to three turnovers while piloting the Big East's highest scoring attack. Getting from this win to the NCAA Tournament is a major leap, but at least 20 wins remains a possibility for Ewing's second season at the helm. The Bluejays have made the tournament each of the last two seasons; barring a major miracle that won't happen this March for coach Greg McDermott's team. It's been an aggravating slide, with two overtime losses plus a pair of two-possession defeats before their win over DePaul.
#20 Virginia Tech (20-6, 9-5 ACC) at Notre Dame (13-13, 3-10), 4 p.m.. The Hokies attempt to bounce back from another loss to Virginia, although this one was much closer than the 22-point drubbing they were dealt last month in Charlottesville. How soon will Justin Robinson return from his foot injury? The team is 3-3 this month without the senior guard, scoring more than 70 points just once. They began league play the first weekend of January with a 15-point win over the Fighting Irish in Blacksburg. Since that day things have not been ideal for Mike Brey's team: their three league wins have come against sub-500 squads Boston College (twice) and Georgia Tech.
George Mason (15-11, 9-4 Atlantic 10) vs. Duquesne (17-9, 8-5), 4 p.m., ESPN+. Both teams have lost three of their last five games while having the entire week to prepare for this battle for fourth place…and while each team still has five conference games remaining it's never too early to think about playing for the double-bye in the upcoming A-10 Tournament (and even if it is, we're already dissecting brackets for the Big Dance). Mason has won four straight at home…while the Dukes' Eric Williams Jr. has been heating up in February (shooting 51% from the field and 56% from three-point range).
Howard (12-15, 6-6 MEAC) at Coppin State (6-21, 6-6), 4 p.m. The Bison play their final four games of the regular season on the road-and that might not be a bad thing. R.J. Coles and company are 4-0 away from Burr Gymnasium in league play. The Eagles have already won more games this winter than in coach Juan Dixon's first season; they'll be hard-pressed to keep up with the most prolific offense in the MEAC-especially with a unit that ranks last in the conference in turnover and rebounding margin.
American (13-13, 7-8 Patriot League) at Army (12-16, 7-8), 2 p.m. The Eagles can make the case for being the snakebitten area team of the month with three straight losses coming by two points. This battle for fourth place carries extra weight because the Patriot League plays its tournament games on the campus of the higher seed. AU beat the Black Knights 71-68 February 9th thanks to freshman Jacob Boonyasith's 20 points: that may have been an isolated incident, because in the three games since that afternoon the guard has scored a combined 19 points.
Even with Maryland no longer in the ACC, there's still a little residual disgust in and around the district towards a private school located in Durham, NC. And with all of the people who have moved to the Washington area who brought their Yankees and Cowboys fandom with them, there's a healthy Duke contingent in the area. Beltway basketball fans, prepare of two months of dread–because the Blue Devils are likely en route to Coach Mike Krzyzewski's sixth National Championship, turning this into the Duke Decade (they beat Butler in 2010 and edged Wisconsin in 2015).
Duke may not currently be #1 in the nation; Tennessee has held the top spot since the Blue Devils' loss to Syracuse and as the Volunteers haven't lost since, let's just say pollsters can act in a glacial manner when it comes to moving teams up and down. But the team to beat and as well as the one everyone is talking about is Coach K's collection of NBA-in-waiting freshmen Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett and Tre Jones. They remind me of the 1998-99 Duke team (Elton Brand) that went unbeaten in the ACC and finished 37-2, dropping an early-season game to Cincinnati (during an era when Bob Huggins had the Bearcats in the top ten annually) and the National Championship game to UConn (Rip Hamilton was just a little too much). Every time that Duke team took the floor you weren't thinking they would win–you were wondering if it would be a blowout.
This year's team is 7-1 against ranked foes; last Saturday they went to Charlottesville and out-executed a #3 Virginia team that out-executes everyone–with Williamson's skying- blocked shot the highlight burned into our minds. The Blue Devils then turned around and rallied from 23 down in the second half at #16 Louisville. While they still have #8 North Carolina twice on their schedule and visit #22 Virginia Tech, those who dislike Duke (and there are a few out there) are feeling some discomfort. Especially with this year's Final Four in Minneapolis–the site of their 2001 championship where the Blue Devils rallied from 22 down to beat Maryland in the semifinals.
#24 Maryland (19-6, 9-4 Big Ten) at #6 Michigan (22-3, 11-3), 12 p.m., FOX. The Terps head to Ann Arbor after their most impressive win of the season: they rallied from 11 down in the first half to beat #12 Purdue 70-56, holding the Boilermakers to 17% shooting after intermission. The Wolverines? Steaming from a loss at Penn State (previously 1-11 in league play)…much like Dr. David Banner, you don't want to make coach John Beilein's team angry. But Michigan can be beaten on the boards (the Nittany Lions outrebounded them by ten) and no team is better on the glass in the Big Ten this winter than Maryland.
George Washington (7-17, 3-8 Atlantic 10) at Duquesne (16-9, 7-5), 12 p.m., NBCSN. Both teams have been sliding down the standings over the last few weeks: while the Colonials have lost six of seven the Dukes have dropped four of six, losing all four games by six points or less. GW's descent began January 20th when they fell at home 91-85 in overtime to Duquesne; Michael Hughes led the Dukes with a season-high 21 points while Colonials big man Javier Langarica had 19 that day. Their two paths have diverged since: Hughes is hitting 64% of his shots this month while Langarica has made just 13-of-33 attempts since that afternoon.
#4 Virginia (21-2, 9-2 ACC) vs. Notre Dame (13-11, 3-8), 2 p.m., ACC Network. The Cavaliers bounced back in fine fashion from their home loss to #2 Duke by beating #8 North Carolina two days later in Chapel Hill to improve to 6-2 against top 25 teams (the two losses coming to the Blue Devils). The Fighting Irish' 0-5 mark against ranked foes this season includes January 26th's 82-55 loss to UVa in South Bend. How sharp were the Cavaliers? They committed just a pair of turnovers. Irish junior forward John Mooney is averaging a double-double but isn't getting a ton of help: ND ranks 14th in the ACC in field goal percentage and 13th in rebounding margin.
Navy (8-16, 5-8 Patriot League) vs. Army (12-14, 7-6), 2:30 p.m., CBSSN. The Midshipmen are 4-2 in Annapolis during conference play thus far while the Black Knights have lost four of five. But they did beat the Mids in West Point last month by 11 as Navy's offensive issues (10th in the Patriot League in scoring and shooting) emerged when they were held to 18% from three-point range. Tommy Funk had 22 points that day for Army; after a drought where he was held to single-digit scoring in four of six games the junior appears to have regained his swagger by netting 17 in Wednesday's win over Boston University.
American (13-11, 7-6 Patriot League) vs. Colgate (16-10, 8-5), 4 p.m. The difference between third and fourth place in the conference is a 73-69 win by the Raiders January 6th in Hamilton, NY. Sophomore guard Jordan Burns tallied 18 points with 6 rebounds and 10 assists that afternoon; an ankle injury sidelined him for five games and he's just getting back into rhythm–scoring 9 points on 2-of-13 shooting over the Raiders' last two games. AU is coming off a heartbreaking 86-84 loss at Bender Arena to Loyola (MD) where they were outscored 17-6 over the final three minutes of regulation and the Greyhounds' winning points came thanks to free throws with one second left.
Howard (12-13, 6-4 MEAC) vs. North Carolina A&T (13-11, 8-2), 4 p.m. Two straight wins move the Bison into the upper half of the league as R.J. Cole is fresh off of a season-high 32 points at Bethune-Cookman. While Cole leads the league in scoring (and is 30th in Division I) with 21.2 points per game, junior Charles Williams isn't far behind at 18.8. The Aggies are focused more on quality than on quantity, ranking seventh in scoring while leading the MEAC in field goal percentage and assist-to-turnover ratio. And they don't have a player averaging even ten points per game.
VCU (18-6, 9-2 Atlantic 10) at Dayton (16-8, 8-3), 4 p.m., NBCSN. Immovable object meets unstoppable force as the Rams allow the fewest points per game in the A-10 while the Flyers lead the league in scoring. Defense prevailed in the January matchup as VCU won 76-71 as they held Dayton to one basket over the final four minutes of regulation. Marcus Evans scored 17 points that night, including the Rams' last seven points. Flyers leading scorer Josh Cunningham scored 13–but is shooting 64% against VCU during his career. Coach Mike Rhoades' Rams are coming off of an 81-60 rout of Richmond that snapped a two game losing streak to the Spiders.
#12 Virginia Tech (19-5, 8-4 ACC) at Pitt (12-13, 2-10), 4:30 p.m., ACC Network. The Hokies are one win shy of a fourth consecutive 20-win season, their longest such streak since the early 80's against Charles Moir. Coach Buzz Williams also knows they are less than a week removed from stubbing their toe at Clemson, and even though the Panthers have dropped eight straight let the record show their two conference wins have come against teams currently in the top 20 (Louisville and Florida State). Tech remains the best three-point shooting team in the conference (42% from outside the arc) and is coming off a win over Georgia Tech where they notched 20 assists on 25 field goals.
George Mason (15-10, 9-3 Atlantic 10) at St. Bonaventure (10-14, 6-5). If you're desiring a compelling conference race as the regular season winds down, look no further than the A-10: one game separates first from fourth place and a half game is the difference between sixth and ninth. The Patriots needed late-game heroics at home to put away La Salle (a 14-7 finishing kick) and UMass (down four with a minute left in regulation). The Bonnies have won four of six, losing only to A-10 co-leaders VCU and Davidson. Mason took the January meeting after outscoring St. Bonaventure 26-9 over the game's final ten minutes. Justin Kier notched 15 points and 14 rebounds in the win, one of his seven double doubles this season.


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Franco Bitossi, nacido el 1 de septiembre de 1940 en Camaioni di Carmignano es un ciclista italiano ya retirado, que fue profesional entre 1961 y 1978.

Biografía
Franco Bitossi comenzó en el ciclismo muy joven, a los 17 años, ganando 10 victorias, en 1957, en categoría debutantes. De 1959 a 1961, corrió en categoría amateur consiguiendo 21 victorias.

Su primera victoria como profesional fue una etapa de los Tres Días del Sur bajo los colores del equipo Philco. En 1964 corrió para el conjunto Springoil-Fuchs y ganó cuatro etapas en el Giro de Italia, entre ellas la mítica etapa de Cuneo-Pinerolo. En 1965 fichó por el equipo Filotex y ganó la Vuelta a Suiza  (levantó los brazos en dos etapas) y el Campeonato de Zúrich. En 1966 ganó dos etapas del Giro de Italia y otras dos del Tour de Francia así como la Coppa Sabatini. En 1967 consiguió la victoria de la Tirreno-Adriático, el Giro de Lombardía y la Coppa Agostoni. En 1968 ganó de nuevo dos etapas del Giro de Italia y otras dos del Tour de Francia donde ganó también la clasificación de la regularidad (único italiano junto con Alessandro Petacchi en conseguir este maillot), se impuso de nuevo en el Campeonato de Zúrich y en la Coppa Sabatini, ganando también la Coppa Bernocchi. En 1969 consiguió la clasificación por puntos del Giro de Italia siendo líder de esta clasificación de principio a fin del Giro.

En 1970, se convirtió en Campeón de Italia en Ruta y ganó, entre otras, 4 etapas del Giro (así como la clasificación de la regularidad por segundo año consecutivo) y la Vuelta a Cataluña. Conservó su título de campeón de Italia en 1971 al ganar la prueba del G. P. Industria y Comercio de Prato.

En 1972, fue portada de todos los periódicos del mundo después de los  Campeonatos del Mundo celebrados en Gap en Francia. Bitossi iba en cabeza y en la misma línea de meta fue cogido por el grupo del italiano Marino Basso y tuvo que conformarse con la medalla de plata. Esta desafortunada llegada le hizo aún más famoso que si hubiera ganado.

En 1973, se unió a la formación Sammontana con la cual ganó el Giro del Veneto y el Giro de Emilia. Al año siguiente, con el conjunto Scic, consiguió cuatro etapas de la Vuelta a Suiza y tres en el Giro de Italia.

En 1976 volvió a convertirse en Campeón de Italia en Ruta militando en las filas del conjunto Zonca Santini. Al año siguiente cambió otra vez de equipo fichando por el Vibor con el que ganó el Gran Premio Ciudad de Camaiore. Ese mismo año fue seleccionado para competir en los Campeonatos del Mundo donde consiguió una espléndida medalla de bronce en San Cristóbal (Venezuela).

Terminó su carrera en 1978 bajo los colores del equipo Gis Gelati. Muy regular, Franco Bitossi también era conocido como cœur fou  (Corazón loco), debido a una arritmia cardíaca que lo obligó a dejar de correr.

Su combatividad fue muy popular y se convirtió en uno de los campeones que hicieron tan popular el ciclismo en Italia.

Palmarés

Resultados

Grandes Vueltas

Clásicas, Campeonatos y JJ. OO.

Enlaces externos
 Palmarés de Franco Bitossi en memoire-du-cyclisme.net
 Ficha de Franco Bitossi

Ciclistas de Italia
Ganadores de etapa en el Tour de Francia
Ganadores de etapa en el Giro de Italia
Ganadores de la Vuelta a Suiza
Italianos del siglo XX
Ganadores del Giro de Lombardía
Nacidos en la provincia de Prato

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Killswitch Engage will release their new record Incarnate on March 11th and the band has given fans another glimpse at the new record. The band has released a video for the song Cut Me Loose, the third single from the record. You can watch the video below. If you haven't already, make sure you check out the first two videos from the record, Hate By Design and Strength of Mind. Of the 3 tracks, I think Cut Me Loose is my favorite so far.


Hello Gamecock Girls! Do you have that friend or family member who is such a big Gamecock fan, they have everything Gamecock-themed!? Never know what to get them as a gift? Check out these unique, odd, or just downright weird Gamecock gifts that would be a fun and good for a laugh gift idea for your fellow Gamecock fan friends.


HP 824A (CB382A) Color LaserJet CM6030 MFP, CM6040 MFP, CP6015 Yellow Original LaserJet Toner Cartridge (21,000 Yield). Expect quality, and get it time after time, from Original HP toner cartridges. Avoid the reprints, wasted supplies, and costly delays that can occur with remanufactured cartridges.


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e-Waste Assessment South Africa
February 26, 2009 July 20, 2019 Alex
Title e-Waste assessment South Africa
Publication Type Report
Authors Finlay A, Liechti D
Prepared for e-Waste Association of South Africa
Institution Open research, Empa
City Johannesburg / South Africa
Abstract This assessment considers three primary e-waste streams: white goods, consumer electronics, and information technology (IT). By focusing on several tracer products in these categories – namely, fridges, washing machines, microwaves, TVs, PCs, printers, and mobile phones – it outlines the current e-waste situation in South Africa. It also briefly considers the status of fluorescent discharge lamps, and rechargeable batteries used in electronic products.
It suggests that white goods are likely to become a major feature of e-waste volumes in the future – even surpassing IT as a tonnage percentage of the waste stream. For example, it is likely that microwaves will rival printers in the number of units entering the waste stream in the next five years. But despite e-waste initiatives elsewhere in the world, white goods vendors have so far not actively engaged in attempts to develop an industry-led e-waste solution in the country.
The assessment estimates that white goods, consumer electronics and IT in South African homes amount to anything between one million and two million tons, most of which is likely to enter the waste stream in the next 5-10 years. While the storage of e-waste in institutions such as government departments and universities is reported to be high, the domestic storage of e-waste is also substantial – the amount of e-waste in storage in 358 middle-class households that participated in a survey conducted as part of this study could be packed into two-thirds of a 20-foot shipping container.
South Africa faces a number of recycling challenges when it comes to e-waste. These include dealing with hazardous fraction, such as Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) glass, and finding markets for flame-retardant plastics. Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) monitors are also likely to present a key challenge in the future, while the technology does not currently exist in the country for the environmentally friendly recycling of rechargeable batteries used in electronics and fridges.
At the same time, basic environmental precautions are absent at some recyclers, and health and safety regulations are loosely enforced. Most refurbishers and recyclers interviewed for this assessment were not ISO compliant.
While the cost of logistics (i.e. transport) is a major cost challenge faced by recyclers, preventing the fluid flow of waste volumes in the country and in the region, grassroots e-waste projects currently piloted demonstrate that at least a minimum wage is possible through the manual dismantling of discarded technology.
The assessment suggests that more new PCs are sold into the market each year than are recycled, which illustrates the opportunity for job creation and economic development presented by e-waste.
Finally, it shows that informal e-waste recycling includes mostly the early stages of recycling – collection, crude dismantling and sorting. Informal recyclers are vulnerable, often deal with e-waste in a hazardous way, and are open to exploitation. Amongst other things, the assessment recommends the scaling up of public awareness campaigns that spell out the hazards of e-waste, the active engagement of all stakeholders in the current drive by eWASA to establish an e-waste management system, the support of small business start-ups and informal recyclers, and support for the investment in new recycling technology through incentives.
Management of CRT Glass from Discarded Computer Monitors and TV Sets
Technical Report on the Assessment of e-Waste Management in Morocco

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Kings Sign Goalie Prospect, Assign Two to Manchester
EL SEGUNDO, CA — On October 2, the Los Angeles Kings signed goaltending prospect Martin Jones to a three-year, entry-level contract. They also assigned center David Meckler and defenseman Viatcheslav Voynov to the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League.
Financial terms of Jones' contract were not disclosed.
Jones, 18, was immediately returned to his junior team, the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League. He participated in the Kings training camp on a tryout basis.
In 27 games last season with the Hitmen, Jones had an 18-1-1 record with a 2.12 goals-against average (GAA), a .911 save percentage and one shutout.
The 6-1, 165-pound native of North Vancouver, British Columbia also played in five playoff games with the Hitmen, Jones was 2-1 with a 2.88 GAA and a .879 save percentage.
The Kings now have 32 players remaining on their 2008 training camp roster, including 18 forwards, 11 defensemen and three goaltenders.
News, Prospects
AHL, American Hockey League, Calgary Hitmen, David Meckler, Manchester Monarchs, Martin Jones, NHL News, Viatcheslav Voinov, Western Hockey League, WHL
Pronger, Ducks Edge Kings in OT, 3-2
Kings Send Two More To Manchester


We are looking for a simple 3D-looking character.
Audience is highly varied. Some of our courses are very general and most adults are potential viewers.
We are looking to develop a simple 3D character for our e-learning courses.
There are pages of examples on http://www.istockphoto.com. Search for â??3D Manâ??.
See the attached header bar graphic for our website colours. The character should be one of these colours or something complimentary.
â?¢ Holding a fire extinguisher.
â?¢ Wearing a body harness.
â?¢ Holding a first aid kit.
â?¢ Holding various small tools and devises.
â?¢ Sitting at a computer workstation.
If you are not interested in the ongoing work, thatâ??s fine too.
For this initial tourney, we request two specific examples. In each image the pose and angle of the character must be different to help us see the 3D profile. In the first image, we would like the character wearing a hard hat. In the second image, we could like to see "him" holding a fire extinguisher.
Thank you for your interest. We are looking forward to seeing your ideas.


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PC/Mac/Linux
Remository
Xavix
Card/Paper RPG
Video Game Jobs
Ascension: Deckbuilding Game (PC)
Written by Levi
Category: Computer
Ascension: Deckbuilding Game
Developer: Playdek, Inc.
Publisher: Asmodee Digital
ESRB Rating: Unrated
Available On: PC, Android, iOS
Genre: Deckbuilding Card Game
Number of Players: 1-4 offline; 1-4 online
I've always enjoyed card games. From the standard 52 card deck to Dutch Blitz, to Trading Card Games (TCG), they've always been a favorite of mine. When you're working with a small number of cards, it's no hassle; shuffling is easy, cleanup isn't much harder. However, gone are the days of having 50-100 cards that you're dealing with; now it's hundreds of cards, and a deck that stands 6 inches high! "Where on earth do you play with that many cards at once?" you ask? Well in a deckbuilding game of course!
I welcome you to Ascension: Deckbuilding Game. One of the difficulties with playing with paper cards is the hassle of setup, shuffling, and tear-down. Thankfully Playdek and Asmodee have brought Ascension to the digital age. We can now sit at our computer, or on our phones, and enjoy all that Ascension has to offer. No more shuffling by hand, or spending 20 minutes sorting cards and cleaning up. Within seconds we can start a game and be off on our quest to defeat Samael the Fallen and his horde of monsters.
Before we get into gameplay, I'll introduce you to the concepts behind Ascension, and other deckbuilding games. Many have played various TCGs where you build a deck from your available cards and then play against other players. These are enjoyable, but they come with an additional expense of having to buy a bunch of cards, either in packs, or individually, and it can get very expensive. If your opponent has more money than you, there's a good chance you'll never be able to beat them.
Deckbuilding games take away the money side of things and even the playing field by everyone having the same access to cards. In deckbuilding games, you generally have a starting deck, which is usually around 10 cards, and a "Center Row" that contains cards you can either buy or defeat. As the game advances, your deck gradually grows from the initial starter deck and becomes your own creation. Every game the available cards and the order that they appear will be different, so you will likely never have the same deck twice. The game generally ends after a certain point system is reached or some other victory condition is achieved.
In Ascension, you start with 10 cards, and build your deck, competing against between 1 and 3 opponents until the honor pool is depleted. When you purchase a card it remains in your deck until the end of the game, or until it is banished via another card. Your goal is to have the most honor by the time the available honor pool reaches 0. This is accomplished by purchasing heroes and constructs, or by defeating monsters, as well as via certain card effects.
Strong Points: Excellent gameplay; all of the benefits of the tabletop version no hassle; Cross-platform Asynchronous multiplayer
Weak Points: AI could be more difficult; Cards may be difficult to read without zooming
Moral Warnings: Visual references to occult, new-age, and fictitious religions; some card art has implied nudity or images not appropriate for younger children
The Steam version of Ascension contains the base game, 8 expansions, and 5 promo packs. Currently, there are an additional 3 expansions and 1 promo pack available through DLC purchase. Each expansion contains a themed set of cards, bringing new mechanics to the gameplay. For each set, there is a rulebook that is available in-game that explains all of the new mechanics and gives some lore. The promo packs contain a few special cards that are unrelated to any other content. These tend to be stronger or have better effects and are limited in number.
There are however certain cards and aspects that will remain regardless of which sets of cards you choose to play. The base game starts with 2 different types of currency, runes and power as well as the scoring system which is called Honor. A rune is shown as a silver triangle and allows you to buy single-use heroes and continued-use constructs. Power is shown as a red circle with a sword across it that allows you to defeat monsters. Honor is shown as a black star with a yellow border.
There are 4 main factions in Ascension: Void, Mechana, Enlightened, and Lifebound. Each faction has its own style and theme within the game. You can choose to focus on any or all of the factions in your deck, but each tends to lend to a different playstyle. Void focuses on killing monsters and removing as many 'fluff' cards as possible form your deck. Mechana focuses on piling up constructs and setting yourself up for end game combos. Lifebound cards focus on gaining honor and buying heroes. Enlightened puts an emphasis on drawing a lot of cards and being able to manipulate the center row.
Now that we have a basic understanding of the game out of the way, let's talk about the game itself. The interface is well thought out and is the same on all platforms. The play area is clean and doesn't impede play in any way, although in longer games with decks that contain a lot of
'draw' cards it can start to get cluttered. Accessing all of the cards and different areas for gameplay is well thought out, and there are multiple hotkeys available for those that are looking for efficiency. From the in-game menu you have access to all the standard settings as well as easy access to the rulebooks and card gallery, which can be a very handy feature especially when first starting out. At the end of the game, you are presented with a screen that shows everyone's stats as well as the cards in each deck. This is nice if you want to see how you got beat so bad, or determine what you could have adjusted in your deck to change the next time.
Score Breakdown:
Higher is better
(10/10 is perfect)
Game Score - 88%
Gameplay - 18/20
Stability - 5/5
Controls - 4/5
Morality Score - 78%
Violence - 9/10
Language - 10/10
Sexual Content - 6/10
Occult/Supernatural - 4/10
Cultural/Moral/Ethical - 10/10
Each card is beautifully illustrated, with the later expansions generally having nicer card art. I want to mention that there are a few cards that have implied nudity, but there are no sexual references anywhere to be found. There is a lot of referenced fictional magic or religious practices, that those who have a history with the occult or new-age movements may want to be aware of. This is primarily in the card art or the flavor text available on cards as well as in the lore found in the rulebooks. That said, the cards themselves just have effects, and it doesn't go into any form of role-playing, nor do you actually cast any magic or anything along those lines.
When a card is available to use, purchase, or kill, it will have a glowing outline, making it clear what you are able to do. One of the best features in the game is the "End Game" button. It glows red if there is still something for you to do and asks for confirmation, so you don't accidentally end your turn before you're ready. Once there is nothing else to do it turns green and removes the confirmation. The music and sound effects are pleasing, except for the cultist scream which happens when you defeat a cultist, however, you can turn this off, so it's only a minor inconvenience.
If you're wanting to play locally you have a few options; you can either play with the PC which has two difficulties, normal and hard, or you can play with up to 3 others locally in a hot seat style play. You can also combine AI & human players to mix and match however you like. During creation, you can choose any of the expansions or promo packs that you have available, set your honor pool, the number of players, and give a name and picture for every player. While it is possible to play with every expansion and promo pack you own, it is not recommended. Most people tend to pick 1-3 expansions to play as any more than that floods your available cards with too many different mechanics and limits your ability to really enjoy each mechanic.
One of my absolute favorite things about Ascension is multiplayer functionality. It is cross-platform and asynchronous. I wish other developers made this available as it really brings new life to the game. You can play a game with someone, regardless of which platform they own, and because it's asynchronous, if the person isn't currently around, they can take their turn when they get a chance. Not only that, it gives you the ability to start a game on your pc, then move to your phone or vice-versa (as long as you own the same expansions on both) and keep playing. There are a few options for finding people to play with; you can create a private game and invite up to 3 friends, or you can either create or join a public game for up to 4 players. The host chooses which expansions and promo packs are being used, but be aware that all players must own the expansions to play together.
Overall Ascension: Deckbuilding Game on Steam is an excellent game based on an even better physical game. It takes all the great aspects of the physical game but makes them digital, mobile, and well put together while adding a few new digital-only mechanics. I would highly recommend this game to anyone that enjoys card games or wants to get into the deckbuilding genre. There is a discord community for finding more competitive games if you find that the AI is too easy or the people you're playing against aren't much harder. One thing to note, the original Steam port was poor quality, so if you haven't tried the game out in a few years, give it another shot, as it has been upgraded and is a much better experience. Again I want to mention that this game has influences from the occult & different eastern religions, as well as a few cards that could have suggestive images. I hope you can enjoy this game as much as I have.
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Home › NSW hotels › Beauchamp Hotel, Darlinghurst
Beauchamp Hotel, Darlinghurst
By Mick Roberts on January 17, 2018 • ( 1 )
The Beauchamp Hotel, corner of South Dowling and Oxford Streets, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Photo: Time Gents.
William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp
THE Beauchamp Hotel, at the corner of South Dowling and Oxford Streets Darlinghurst was once one of Sydney's favourite gay pubs, and is still a favourite with the LGBT community.
Ironically the pub was named after an Englishman, William Lygon, 7th Earl of Beauchamp, who later in life was 'outed' as a homosexual and was forced into exile.
The Beauchamp Hotel was built in 1867 as the Ice Hotel – not after the drug, but the frozen ballast imported from the Great Lakes of North America, and carried in ships with sawdust, as insulation, at the time.
In 1900 the Ice Hotel was renamed the Beauchamp Hotel after 26-year-old Lygon, who was the Governor of NSW at the time. He was an unpopular Governor, described as "a progressive" who enjoyed the company of writers and artists, including Henry Lawson and Vitor Daley.
After a short stint as Governor from 1899 to 1900, Lygon returned to England, where he married and had seven children before being "outed" as a homosexual (a criminal offence at the time) to the King and Queen by his Tory brother-in-law, the Duke of Westminster. There was no public scandal, with Lord Beauchamp quietly resigning his offices and slipping into exile. He lived the remainder of his life in Italy, Germany and France before his death from cancer at the age of 66 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.
Beauchamp Hotel, Darlinghurst, August 1930. Photo: Noel Butlin Archives, Australian National University.
The irony of it all, a pub named a closeted gay man in 1900, would 80 years later become one of Sydney's most popular gay pubs.
The Beauchamp Hotel was completely renovated 2004 and now boasts an airy main bar, with lounges and sofas, while retaining plenty of old world charm.
Beauchamp Hotel, Darlinghurst, 1948. Photo: Noel Butlin Archives, Australian National University.
‹ DOT'S PULLED 10,000 KEGS OF BEER
North Annandale Hotel, Annandale ›
Categories: NSW hotels, Sydney hotels
Tags: 7th Earl of Beauchamp, Beauchamp Hotel Darlinghurst, gay pub, Ice Hotel, William Lygon
January 20, 2018 • 8:18 PM
My gt gt uncle Sir Matthew Harris was Mayor of Sydney during Beauchamp's term as governor. They became good friends and spent evenings together talking about collecting memorabilia. Lord Beauchamp knighted Sir Matthew at a private ceremony in 1899 at Government House which was followed by a private lunch with Harris and his wife and daughter and Beauchamp's lovely sister Lady Mary Lygon. The governor's invitation to my gt gt uncle is preserved in the Mitchell Library. John Harris.
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NO HIDDEN TREASURE
The thief who slipped out of a Warwick hotel on Saturday night with two suit cases belonging to a boarder found a surprise awaiting him when he examined the contents. The cases contained 60 left-footed rubber shoes. They were the samples of a commercial traveller. The suit cases and shoes were discovered yesterday under Helene-street Bridge, where they had evidently been tossed in disgust by the thief.
- Warwick Daily News (Qld) Monday 3 October 1932.
LUNATICS PRANK
SYDNEY Monday.
A man, who was a former inmate of Callen Park Lunatic Asylum, walked into a hotel at Mosman, glared at the barmaid for a few minutes and then jumped over the bar and drew an iron bar from his pocket, smashing 24 bottles of wine and 10 of whisky. He then recrossed the bar and sat on a seat in the room. The police arrested him.
- Daily Standard (Brisbane, Qld) Monday 29 October 1923.
Olympian visits Scarborough pub
LAST week 'Short Rounds' ran a story about the Scarborough Hotel's genrous offer of a free meal to all Olympic and Paralympic medallists. Steve, the manager of Cooneys Hotel in Wollongong, heard about the offer and showed up at the Scarborough dressed in a Cuban Olympic athlete's tracksuit with a 1975 Woonona netball gold medal around his neck. Complete with Cuban accent he told the publican he had come to collect his free meal! When the Scarborough publican asked the five-foot-nothing 'Cuban' what he had won the medal for, he replied: "Heavy-weight boxing, man." He was refused the meal, but given a free beer for his efforts! -Illawarra Mercury October 19 2000
OFF KEY
Les Needham hasn't been pulling beer at James-st.'s Victoria Hotel (Perth WA) long, but he's had a lot of laughs from the cosmopolitan custom. This week a Chinaman, wanting the celebrated half - and - half, slid up to the counter and said, 'Arp and arp.' A rookie at the lingo, Les retorted: "What do you think this is — an orchestra!"
- Mirror (Perth, WA) Saturday 13 March 1948.
MELBOURBE BEER
Our contemporary thinks it not at all improbable that ale from Melbourne-on-Yarra may become as famous as beers from Burton-on-Trent and complacently reflects that 'if Australia can meet England on the vatted field, and beat her on her beer barrels, there is undoubtedly a great future awaiting this Austral continent'.
-Australian Brewers' Journal, December 1891.
BEER BURGLAR
For several days the proprietor of Skinner's Hotel, Murwillumbah, and bar tenders, noticed that the beer was going off fast, and were at a loss as to the cause. An aboriginal, Billy Moore, was caught red handed coming from beneath the house with a couple of billy cans. The beer cellar is situated under the house, and is barricaded with battens and barbed wire. Moore, who must have had an accomplice, tunnelled underneath the barricade, and turned the tap and filled his billies. He was sent along to Grafton gaol for a month.
- The Bundaberg Mail and Burnett Advertiser (Qld.) Friday 25 April 1913.
LAST LAUGH
Brown: "Young Smart, of the Grand Hotel, has got the laugh turned against him in his little joke against the Blazes Fire Insurance Company."
Robinson: "How?"
Brown: "He insured five hundred
cigars, smoked them, and then sent in a claim on the ground that they were destroyed by fire."
Robinson: "And they laughed at him I suppose."
Brown: "No, they had him arrested on a charge of setting fire to his own property."
- Camperdown Chronicle (Vic.) Tuesday 10 March 1914.
GREAT BEER MYSTERY
Shepparton (Victoria) will have ample beer for the Christmas festivities. Two hotels were closed in yesterday's thirsty sultry afternoon. Partial cause of the drought was that a truckload of beer consigned to Shepparton was wrongly diverted to Wodonga. Arrival of supplies will enable all hotels to be in operation this afternoon. One enterprising publican, faced with dwindling supplies, made a special trip to the brewepr in Melbourne and returned with a load of bottles - to the delight of his customers.
- Shepparton Advertiser (Vic.) Friday 24 December 1948.


Magedson will remove webpages about himself that 'sneak' through the 'mommies'. These are the women that 'moderate' the reports before they are published.
Try finding the webpages in these screenshots on the website. They don't exist because Magedson has removed them!


text:
Q: Correct way to assign unique group to users Django I read about it on the next articles, trying to find information about my doubt:
https://baxeico.wordpress.com/2014/09/10/group-combo-box-django-user-profile-form/
https://micropyramid.com/blog/django-permissions-and-groups/
https://www.webforefront.com/django/setupdjangousers.html
My premise in my system: an user only can be in an unique group.
My question is about my premise, how is the correct way to assign a unique group to an user from my app?

A: Groups are added to AbstractUser via PermissionsMixin and is a ManyToManyField. There's two ways to do this:

*

*You listen to m2m_changed for the User model and then implement some logic to deny multiple groups.

*You create your own user with a ForeignKey to Group on your new ProjectUser model and reimplement PermissionsMixin and AbstractUser.

The first method is a little tricky and I don't recommend it. The second has the disadvantage that you can pretty much copy 80% of PermissionsMixin and everything, but it's inheritance from AbstractUser, but have to keep it in sync with new releases. It's a shame Django implemented it this way to be honest.
But the upside to the second is that the relation between User and Group is now as you define it in your requirements. So for me, keeping a correct Data Model instead of hacking around it, wins.
Take a look at django.contrib.auth.models for the classes I mentioned.
To clarify the second method:
app/models.py:
from django.contrib.auth.models import AbstractBaseUser, Group

class ProjectUser(AbstractBaseUser):
    group = models.ForeignKey(Group)
    # fields and methods from AbstractUser go here
    # fields and methods from PermissionsMixin go here

(Sorry, it's two classes instead of one you need to copy).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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text:
Argentina Top 10 Goal Scorer List of National Football Team
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Argentina Top 10 Goal Scorers Of All Time
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Although the Argentine striker Lionel Messi has entered into list of Argentina Top 10 goal scorers list but he is still not highest goal scorer of Argentina. There is one player who is still leading the list of top 10 Argentina goal scorers. But we can forget the role of Messi in qualification process of 2014 FIFA World Cup. He suffered a lot due to his injuries in last season. But the player is now looking fit and fine to make huge impact on upcoming biggest football tournament which begins from 12th of June in Brazil for second time. Before enjoying this tournament, lets have a look on Argentina top 10 goal scorer list in history of National football team.
No. Player Name Goals Matches
1 Gabriel Batistuta 56 78
2 Lionel Messi 50 107
3 Hernan Crespo 35 64
4 Diego Maradona 34 91
5 Sergio Aguero 33 70
6 Gonzalo Higuain 26 55
7 Luis Artime 24 25
8 Daniel Passarella 23 70
9 Leopoldo Luque 22 45
Jose Sanfillippo 22 29
Note: List was last updated on 30 March 2016
At the top position, Gabriel Batistuta is still maintained. The former Argentine striker scored 56 goals in 78 games with an average score of 0.718. Thereafter at second spot, the four times FIFA Ballon D'or winner Lionel Messi is there who is holding record of scoring 37 games after playing 84 games total for his national team. Messi's average goal score count is 0.446.
In this list of top 10, there are are 3 players who are still playing for their national football team which are Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero. This trio will be present in 2014 Brazil world cup. The attack of this team is considered as the best of all teams & is one of the strongest competitor to win this tournament.
Along with this trio, world class midfielders like Angel di Maria, Javier Mascherano, Jose Ernesto Sosa will join them. Messi will lead this national team in 2014 FIFA World Cup.
First Match: Against Bosnia and Herzegovina [15th June 2014]
Second Match: Against Iran [21st June 2014]
Third Match: Against Nigeria [25th of June 2014]
Argentina will play first match of group stage against Bosnia and Herzegovina on 15th of June 2014 at Rio de Janerio. Their second group stage match is scheduled against Iran & third is against Nigeria on 21st & 25th June respectively. Complete team squad of Argentina is declared and the players are ready for this world cup.
Tags Argentina Argentina Highest Goal Scorer Argentina Top Goal Scorers Top Goal Scorers List
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text:
Quote by Friedrich von Schiller
I am better than my reputation.
Topics: reputation By Friedrich von Schiller
I have told you that, no matter how many times you have refused to enter the sanctuary, you have only to knock and the door will be opened to you. I have said to you Ask and it shall be given you, but you refuse to believe in me. You think that someone is counting your sins, your moments of indecision or recalcitrance, but it is not true. You are the only one counting.I say to you brother, stop counting, stop making excuses, stop pretending that the door is locked. I am here at the threshold. Reach out and take my hand and we will open the door and walk through together.I am the door to love without conditions. When you walk through, you too will be the door.http://www.paulferrini.com/html/door.html
Paul Ferinni, I Am The Door
That is the happiest conversation where there is no competition, no vanity, but a calm, quiet interchange of sentiments
Man is a machine and in the whole universe there is but a single substance, matter, variously modified.
Julien de la Mettrie, The Human
A place where they'll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss, and fifty cents for your soul.
Marilyn Monroe, (describing Holl
The soul is pure when it leaves the body and drags nothing bodily with it, by virtue of having no willing association with the body in life but avoiding it.......Practicing philosophy in the right way is a training to die easily.
My heart's broken,' he thought. 'If I feel this way my heart must be broken.
In the works of Lucretius, we find two reasons why we shouldn
Alain de Botton, The Inevitable
A new heart for a New Year, always!
Chimes, Heart, inspirational, New-years
The land ethic simply enlarges the boundaries of the community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals, or collectively: the land.
For far too long we've allowed the other side to paint us as racist, as sexist, inhumane war mongers - well, today as a conservative black Republican and former solider, I'm here to set that record straight.
It's a strange world of language in which skating on thin ice can get you into hot water.
Franklin P. Jones
Sometimes the poor are praised for being thrifty. But to recommend thrift to the poor is both grotesque and insulting. It is like advising a man who is starving to eat less.
As long as we have an unjust society, like we do now, we will never have a loving society. If you don
Jane Elliot, speech at Wait Chap
There are plenty of good reasons for fighting, I said, but no good reason ever to have without reservation, to imagine that God Almighty Himself hates with you, too. Where's evil? It's that large part of every man that wants to hate without limit, that wants to hate with God on its side. It's that part of every man that finds all kinds of ugliness so attractive.
Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night
A sign inside the front door of Holy Cross Primary School, in north Belfast, reads: If we'd been born where they were born and taught what they were taught, we would believe what they believe.
Anon., Chris Thornton Time Maga
Not everyone is attracted to politics
David Botter, Politicians and Wh
I go out with white women. This makes a lot of people unhappy, mostly black women.
The growing influence of women is the one reassuring thing in our political life.
life, women
Everything makes me nervous - except making films.
Fly fishing may be a very pleasant amusement; but angling or float fishing I can only compare to a stick and a string, with a worm at one end and a fool at the other.
Theend
I'm not a great poetry fan.
It always comes down to just two choices. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
Choices, Dying, Living
The inner voice is something which cannot be described in words. But sometimes we have a positive feeling that something in us prompts us to do a certain thing. The time when I learnt to recognise this voice was, I may say, the time when I started praying regularly.
A lot of people are obsessed with looking cool. They feel they have to look after their image.
[God] will not be used as a convenience. Men or nations who think they can revive the Faith in order to make a good society might just as well think they can use the stairs of heaven as a shortcut to the nearest chemist's shop.
faith, god, society
And, too ignorant to be scared, too young to be awed, Tristan Thorn traveled beyond the fields we know...
ignorance, Youth
I hope and trust the infinite, the eternal, and merciful and loving God. I worship Him and feel no guilt in my heart before him for what I am going to do.
Alex Campbell
If one good deed in all my life I did, I do repent it from my very soul.
Plays, Shakespeare, Theatre, Titus-andronicus
I say that the strongest principle of growth lies in human choice.
Choice, Growth, Principles
We believe the use of force against Iraq, especially with reference to previous resolutions of the UN Security Council, has no grounds, including legal grounds.
Igor Ivanov
If golf wasn't enjoyable and there wasn't a lot of humor and enjoyment, even though the game is so frustrating, you would wonder why you put yourself through it.
The muses are ghosts, and sometimes they come uninvited.
art, Ghosts, Muse
The people who run a university are far more qualified and intelligent in handling people than someone who inherited his money and used it to buy a pro team.
Hayden Fry
We're all human, aren't we? Every human life is worth the same, and worth saving.
Human, life, Value, Worth
There was nothing more important I could do than be supportive as a dad.
I was on the yearbook staff, so I would take out film cameras and Nikons and take photos around school and at sporting events and things like that. We had a darkroom as well. I just loved it. I also saved up for a video camera to video my friends and cut and paste the videos together and I gave them to all of my friends for graduation.
God is a metaphor for that which transcends all levels of intellectual thought. It's as simple as that.
The truth is that our way of celebrating the Christmas season does spring from myriad cultures and sources, from St. Nicholas to Coca-Cola advertising campaigns.
Richard Roeper
The youth, intoxicated with his admiration of a hero, fails to see, that it is only a projection of his own soul, which he admires.
Children, Heroes, inspirational
If you look over the years, the styles have changed - the clothes, the hair, the production, the approach to the songs. The icing to the cake has changed flavors. But if you really look at the cake itself, it's really the same.


BNY closed down 0.46 percent on Thursday, April 18, 2019, on 56 percent of normal volume.
BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc. It is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. The fund invests in fixed income markets. It invests primarily in the municipal obligations. The fund invests in companies operating across transportation, housing, industrial and pollution control, tobacco, education, hospitals, and water and sewer sectors. BlackRock New York Municipal Income Trust was formed in 2001 and is domiciled in United States.
Is BNY a Buy, Sell or Hold?


Madison Mutual has two distinct insurance products dedicated to insuring your home away from home. We can even accommodate properties that you rent to others on a vacation rental basis!
The Secondary Homeowners Policy is for second homes: residences of standard or better construction quality with all customary utilities present including central heat.
There are a variety of reasons that people maintain second homes. You may keep a second residence nearby a place of work or family. You may have a seasonal or vacation home. All of these reasons and more are acceptable as long as all other underwriting criteria are met.
The Seasonal Package Policy is for seasonal camps: dwellings of economy construction grade, or that lack one or more utilities such as central heat, electrical and plumbing. This program also accommodates seasonal manufactured homes - even travel trailers that are parked permanently at a campsite!
Provide coverage for the dwelling, outbuildings, belongings, and additional living expenses and/or loss of rental income incurred in the event of a loss - and more!
Include liability coverages with limits up to $1,000,000 available.
Allow replacement cost coverage on eligible buildings.
Can be written on a "standalone" basis - we do not require that we also write your primary home.
Allow rental of the property to others (vacation rentals) of up to 26 weeks per year.