The Los Angeles Sparks “returned the favor” knocking the Minnesota Lynx from the ranks of the unbeaten, on their court, just as “Minne” had done to them 3 days earlier.
Last night, (12-1) L.A. eased at (13-1) Minnesota.
Meanwhile the New York Liberty won a great game at their Madison Square Garden home vs the Chicago Sky.
Tina Charles led the Liberty’s (80-79) win vs the Chicago Sky, despite 30 points by Elena Della Donne for Chicago.
The cities of Pittsburgh (Penguins) and Cleveland (Cavaliers) won major sports league titles one Sunday apart in the NHL and NBA respectively.
It is the first time the cities have “titled” together thus each is “happy together” a la “The Happy Together Tour,” which cheered me up a scant 2 days after the (for me), depressing fact the Cavs rode the easy route to get to the finals and then to their credit beat a fine but vastly over rated Golden State Warriors’ team.
Pittsburgh won 12 titles in between the last Cleveland title before the Cavs in 1964 and the referenced one less than a week ago.
The cities have combined to win 13 titles, none at home since the Browns won it all at home in 1964, 4 years after a Pittsburgh team last clinched a title at home in 1960.
It is always nostalgic fun for me to cite Dr. Frank Ryan to Gary Collins for the Cleveland Browns and epic home runs by Hal Smith and Bill Mazeroski for the Pirates. Throw in not as epic but a 2 run clout in game 7 by the Pirates’ Rocky Nelson ain’t chopped liver, which tastes great, by the way.
“The Happy Together Tour,” a truly fantastic show featuring six great singing entities of the past made its way to St. George Theatre in Staten Island and was so heart warming and great, that I did not think twice about the high toll and traffic en route to the venue.
It was far greater than that as first Billy J. Kramer, The Cowsills and Gary Puckett preceded the short intermission, each singing roughly 5 of their biggest and best songs, still performed with precision and beauty, and easily transporting the audience to a better mental place if not time.
Surely the same can be said for the four performers/three entities after the break. Marc Lindsay the lead singer of the iconic group “Paul Revere And The Raiders,” and Chuck Negron, lead singer of surely iconic, “Three Dog Night” were up next.
Then the Turtles, specifically Flo (Mark Volman), and Eddie (Howard Kaylin) closed the show and brought back the other groups/individuals for a rousing finish.
The Happy Together Tour Tickets
While the A.L. Central is still wide open and of course the defending world champion Kansas City Royals are surely in the race, I just “know” they are not “the team to beat” as writer Tim Kurkjian wrote last week.
Now, not because they lost two and a half games since (though that certainly helps my point of view), but because I feel they do not have the often “all important” intangibles, it is my conjecture the Royals will not win the A.L. Central this season.
By the way, I hope that I am wrong but while I do not have the distaste for the Indians, I had (the past tense applies because sans PEY(ton) Manning I like Denver and now that the Cavs with “Jumping” James won a title, let them win more) for the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Cavaliers, as I felt with them and warned correctly–look out for the Cleveland Indians.
The comedy greats, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello pictured above. Costello is closer to the camera, “batting” left handed.
Truth be told I was recalling an episode on their television show on which Costello was asked “how are the Indians doing” and the woman asking surprised Costello saying she meant the Cleveland Indians. By the way they are doing fine at this moment in time.
Click below for as Bullwinkle and/or Rocky would say “something, (regarding the Cleveland Indians), you will really like.
Abbott and Costello on Feller – YouTube
The Minnesota Lynx won that game the other day vs the Los Angeles Sparks.
Thus the defending WNBA champion, Lynx remained unbeaten while the Sparks suffered their first loss.
Yesterday afternoon, the New York Liberty needed two overtimes to beat the Atlanta Dream, pulling away in the second extra session, as Marv Albert called overtime periods, winning by 11 points.
The Dream “tease” usually is and was again a nightmare.
Switching channels earlier today, first I saw Brett Somers exchanging some banter with Match Game host, Gene Rayburn, regarding her sweater which she did not knit.
Later there she was on “Have Gun Will Travel” on Decades as today, tribute in the form of showing certain shows is being paid to Peter Falk, who died on this date 5 years ago.
Also with Ms. Summers on “Have Gun Will Travel” were of course the show’s star Richard Boone and the fine character actor, Jack Weston.
Mr. Weston’s character is losing at poker just as was the case in “The Cincinnati Kid.”
Brett Somers, pictured above.
I was hoping it would be the Cleveland Indians and not the Cleveland Cavaliers that ended the title drought in that city.
That was not meant to be but the Indians, winners of 6 straight games amidst the Cavs’ hysteria have built a little bit of a lead, (3 games), in the A.L. Central.
It was the Indians and not the Cavaliers nor old Browns (certainly not the new Browns), who came closest to a Cleveland major sports’ league title during the nearly 52 years the city was without one.
They led the Florida Marlins (2-0) in the 7th inning of game 7 of the 1997 World Series and more relevant, (2-1) going to the bottom of the 9th inning.
However the Marlins rallied to tie the game in the 9th inning and won it on Edgar Renteria’s hit in the 11th inning.
Today in Cleveland, a celebration in the form of a parade will take place honoring the 2016 NBA champion, Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs won the first sports title for a Cleveland team since the old Cleveland Browns won the NFL crown on December 27, 1964.
I am not a fan of the current Cavs, but I adored those Browns.
A member of that title team, the late Gene Hickerson, a brilliant offensive lineman, finally put into the NFL Hall of Fame some years back was a white man, at best “not around” black people.
Yet and it was different in 1964, of course a landmark year for long needed civil rights legislation but the sight of Mr. Hickerson being wheeled on the Hall of Fame stage by three great and Hall of Fame running backs, who happen to be black was and is a cherished significant moment for me.
The backs are Jim Brown, Leroy Kelly and Bobby Mitchell, who also played for the Washington Redskins and was the first black player there when he arrived in 1962,.
Hickerson and others blocked, the backs ran, the black players on the team were ahead of their time and at 9 years old, admittedly unaware but to my parents’ credit never one to judge by race, religion nor ethnicity, it was the game, the win and so much better times.
The great offensive guard, Gene Hickerson pictured above.
As stated when the Texas Rangers swept all three games from the St.Louis Cardinals last weekend, the New York Mets taking both games from the current World champion Kansas City Royals is exponentially less important than when each recent series winner lost a World Series to the same opponent.
Last season the Royals 5’d the Mets in the World Series.
Though this year’s 2 game win and (3-1) edge for the Mets is nothing compared to the 2015 World Series loss, it keeps the Mets are so lucky to be where they are theme going.
The team has played very disappointing baseball yet sits but 4 games behind the Washington Nationals, a team on a 4 game losing streak, in the N.L. East
Yesterday marked the exact 28 year anniversary of the Los Angeles Lakers repeating as NBA champions, the first NBA team to do so in 19 years.
They won vs a Detroit Pistons team, led by Isiah Thomas.
I was rooting hard for the Lakers, but knew how great the Pistons played.
Being fortunate enough to be in the Lakers’ locker room after the game, I saw Isiah, who had been injured during his brilliant effort in game 6, 2 days earlier, limp toward the runway accompanied by Chuck Nevitt whose 7 foot 5 inch frame was not one, conducive to easy walking.
Incredibly moved by what I saw, Mr. Thomas was told by me in no uncertain terms, how great he had played and that next year would end with his Detroit Pistons’ team winning the title.
About a year later at the same venue, though now the corporate named Forum, Isiah and the Pistons had the title in a 4 game sweep.
A truly great player, Isiah Thomas pictured above.
Andy B Sports 