Sporting Madness

Photo: David Silva scores for Spain in their 3-0 win over Russia Thursday [Photo from Virgin Media ]. Breaking down Day XVIII of the European Championships... Spain 3, Russia 0 Well, Spain did a lot to dispel their reputation as chokers, but they still have the most difficult task of all remaining. The first half was reasonably even, but Spain poured on the jets in the second while the Russians came out flat, and they were soon rewarded with a beautiful Xavi Hernandez goal. To their credit, the Spanish continued to attack, and added insurance goals from Daniel Guiza and David Silva later on to clinch the win. Russia, on the other hand, looked much more ordinary than in their stunning victory over the Netherlands. Still, they held the Spanish attack in check for an entire half and created chances of their own as well, no mean feat. The best team won, but the Russians' accomplishments here shouldn't be minimized. I think they'll probably knock off Turkey in today's third...

"Signs, signs, everywhere a sign/Blocking out the scenery, breaking my mind/Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?" - "Signs," The Five-Man Electrical Band [Andrew Bucholtz photo] Signs seen at the aforementioned Sonics' rally ... "The NBA: Where deception happens." "Hey Clay, I'm a fan possessed!" "Burn In Hell, Bennett!" "Hey Aubrey, white-out doesn't work on e-mails!" "Not aBout fAns." "Clay: Owners come and go, but e-mail is forever." "NOklahoma." "Hey David: Donaghy called: He can't fix this one!" "E-mail, lieS, decePtion, collusioN" "The NBA: Where team-stealing happens." "Hey Clay, I'm a man about to be repossessed." "soNics Belong in seAttle" "Don't steal our 41 years." "No Bennetts Allowed." "Stuck Fern" "The NBA: Where douchebags run the league." "We...

Photo: Jemele Hill [Photo from Michael David Smith's excellent interview with her at FanHouse ] Jemele Hill deserves a fair bit of credit for her lengthy public mea culpa [ Page 2 ] after comparing cheering for the Boston Celtics to "saying Hitler was a victim". It's always difficult to own up to mistakes, especially when you're someone who's in the public eye as frequently as she is. Unlike many other internet, print, radio or TV personalities who have erred (see Pratt , David ; Imus , Don [ Minneapolis Star-Tribune and Hartford Courant ], and many others), Hill offered a detailed and seemingly-sincere apology short on rationalizations and excuses and long on promises to improve. Here's an excerpt: "The beginning is easy: I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being thoughtless and insensitive. I'm sorry for making a casual reference to something that should never be construed as casual. Real apologies don't mix with rationalizations, so I won...

Photo: Sonics fans rally outside the U.S. District Courthouse in Seattle on June 16. (Andrew Bucholtz photo) The most fascinating aspect of my June 16 trip to Seattle to watch the opening day of the city's lawsuit against Clay Bennett and the Sonics' ownership (the Professional Basketball Club, or PBC) turned out to be outside the courtroom. The legal arguments and back-and-forth testimony were quite interesting, but they couldn't compare with what happened when court closed for the day. Over 2,000 Sonics fans gathered on the courthouse steps around 4:00, and many of them didn't budge for an hour, even though more were filing in all the time. They came in a variety of Sonics jerseys, creating a sea of green and gold that washed over the yard, around the fountain and right up the courthouse steps. They came in full voice, as well, chanting "Save Our Sonics" at the top of their lungs. They came to provide the proof that the city still cares about NBA basketball,...

Photo: Wingback Philipp Lahm seals the Germans' place in the finals with a stoppage-time goal. [Photo from The Daily Telegraph ] Breaking down Day XVII of the European Championships... Germany 3, Turkey 2 What a game that was. Unlike their snooze-fest against the Croatians, the Turks went for the throat right from the start and created chances by the bushel. The Germans, meanwhile, seemed to be caught flat-footed, and could only defend for the first little while as Turkey racked up 10 shots to their two in the first 20 minutes: amazing, considering the short bench Turkey was left with due to suspensions and injuries. The offensive pressure soon paid off for the Turks, as Ugur Boral drilled a rebound off the crossbar through the legs of Jens Lehmann in the 22nd minute. However, Germany quickly equalized four minutes later against the run of play on a great combination from Lukas Podolski and Bastian Schweinsteiger, and it was 1-1 going into the half. In the second half, watching beg...

Breaking down the Euro 2008 quarter-finals... Germany 3, Portugal 2 This game came with the billing of a clash of ancient titans, and it didn't disappoint. Both sides turned in fantastic displays of attacking football, but Germany's team effort proved superior to Portugal's Ronaldo-centric strategy in the end. Bastian Schweinsteiger returned to the German lineup in fine form after a suspension, scoring the side's first goal and setting up the other two with excellent set pieces. The Germans' strength in the air proved vital, as did their skillful attacks down the left flank from Philipp Lahm and Lukas Podolski. They certainly look to have regained their form after a loss to Croatia and a close win over Austria in the group stage. Related: Stephen Brunt's excellent column on the match [The Globe and Mail] Turkey 1, Croatia 1 (3-1 Turkey on penalties) 118 minutes of mostly boredom topped off by two of the most exciting minutes in the tournament so far is the best...

Courtside Entrance Not here ... [Mike C. Peck photo, via Wikimedia ] But here... [Andrew Bucholtz photo, taken via cell phone so poor-quality] Well, the first week of the city of Seattle's lawsuit against the Sonics ownership (Professional Basketball Club, or PBC)* has wrapped up with plenty of interesting material to write about. However, there's now a break until Thursday, when the final witnesses, wrap-up testimony and closing arguments take place. To keep the trial fresh, I'll be presenting a recap of each day of testimony so far with my evaluations of each witness, the lawyers and the overall winners from each day. This post will cover Day I (Monday, June 16), where I had real court-side seats with the rest of the media covering the trial. I'll have Day II up later tonight, Day III and IV Wednesday and Day V Thursday morning. I was only able to attend the trial in person on Day I due to other work commitments, so this first one will probably be the most detailed,...

Apologies for the lack of blogging here lately: I've been swamped between work at the Journal and my new gig at the Langley Times. Things should get back to a more normal volume shortly. Anyways, here's the quick pick for today's Euro 2008 quarterfinal between Germany and Portugal, which should be quite the match. Can Michael Ballack, Miroslav Klose and the team-first Germans best the individual brilliance of Cristiano Ronaldo and the Portuguese? My money says they can. Prediction: Germany 2, Portugal 1

A quick note that blog activity will be light around here today: I'm back in Vancouver, and heading down to Seattle to cover the first day of the court case between the Sonics and the city. I've got a preview of the case up at Out of Left Field (yes, I decided I wasn't busy enough with the Journal and two blogs, so I jumped at Neate's offer to join the team there) and will have more both there and in this space once I get back tonight. I'll also have a Euro recap of both yesterday and today's action up late tonight.

Photo: ESPN columnist Jemele Hill (Photo from Women's E-news ). Let me start by saying that I generally admire ESPN's Jemele Hill as a writer. I usually enjoy her style and her willingness to discuss tough issues and take controversial stands (these columns on LeBron James' Vogue cover and Karl Malone's lack of support for his kids are excellent examples). It's also nice to see a prominent national columnist talking about Detroit sports teams, which certainly don't get too much attention from many of those based in Boston, L.A. or New York. She has more than just strong opinions: she has the talent to effectively and convincly communicate those opinions, and to do so in a way to keep me interested and reading even when I absolutely disagree, which is a rare gift. She also had a great take on the Stern-Donaghy scandal this week. With all that said, she went too far this time. As Deadspin 's Matt Sussman reports , her recent column initially compared cheer...

Photo: Russian midfielder Konstantin Zyryanov celebrates his goal against Greece, the only tally of the match (Photo from Shanghai Daily ). Breaking down Day Eight of the European Championships... Match XV: Spain 2, Sweden 1 Spain got it done with an injury-time strike from David Villa, taking a 2-1 win over the Swedes. However, they weren't terribly impressive over much of the match, and some potential trouble spots materialized, especially when they were on the defensive side of the ball. As John Doyle writes at On Soccer , "Spain came out for the second half looking more lively and focused but still manged to play with terrible laidback style. Atrocious defending all over the place. They won it thanks to a very late goal from Villa, easily their best player. Now Spain is through to the quarter-finals, but I'm not liking their chances against a tough, physical team. Brunt and all the others are correct - Spain tease and disappear." I agree: Spain are likely to pla...

Photo: Dutch players celebrate a goal against France. (Photo from Unprofessional Foul ). Highlights and lowlights from Day Seven of the European Championships... Match XIII: Italy 1, Romania 1 Not a particularly inspiring performance from the Italians. I thought they'd bounce back harder after getting thumped by the Netherlands, but they didn't look fired up at all, even after the massive lineup changes manager Roberto Donadoni brought in at the start of the match. Full credit to Romania again: they played excellent defence, and could have taken all three points if Gianluigi Buffon hadn't made a brilliant save off of Adrian Mutu's penalty. Still, the tie was probably a fair result, as Italian striker Luca Toni had a goal called back due to an offside. Romania is now in prime position to qualify from the Group of Death, a result few (including myself) envisioned at the start. If they win their final match against the Netherlands (who will probably be resting their stars)...

Photo: Eddie House celebrates after the Celtics' win Thursday. [Photo from TrueHoop ] That was one of the craziest games I've ever seen last night. It looked to be all over at the end of the first quarter after the Lakers jumped out to a crazy 35-14 lead without Kobe Bryant even making a field goal, and things only got worse for the Celtics. This is possibly the only game I've ever seen where the announcers start predicting the win midway through the first. The Lakers justified their praise for a while, though, as it was 45-21 partway through the second, and 58-40 at the half. Strangely enough, what probably turned the tide for the Celtics was an injury to one of their players. After Rajon Rondo proved utterly ineffective, Kendrick Perkins hurt his shoulder, which caused Doc Rivers to go to the smaller pairing of James Posey and Eddie House to replace them. House and Posey are both effective outside shooters, something that can rarely be said for either Perkins or Rondo. Th...

Photo: Croatia's Ivica Olic (right) celebrates with teammate Luka Modric after scoring his team's second goal against Germany Thursday. (Photo from The Daily Mail ). Breaking down Day Six of the European Championships... Match XI: Croatia 2, Germany 1 A reasonably shocking defeat for the Germans, given their marvelous form against Poland and Croatia's struggles against Austria. Still, Croatia is a strong side, and one many thought could cause an upset or two coming in. Fortunately for the Germans, the draw between Austria and Poland means they're still in prime position to advance: they only require a draw against the Austrians to advance. Unfortunately for them, Croatia's already clinched Group B (the first tie-breaker is head-to-head results), so it looks like they're slotted in to face Portugal in the quarter-finals. That will certainly be an interesting match. Related : - " Germany does some soul-searching " ( The Associated Press , via The Globe ...