Twelve entries? This is why I'm thinking of cutting down on the number of teams I follow once St. Thomas gets up to speed. Oh, and Belated Happy Thanksgiving:
Positive Numbers: Timberwolves (Last Week: -6). This might be the first time the Minnesota Timberwolves genuinely deserve not only the top spot in a WMNSS, but Positive Numbers. Sure, they've been up here -- subjectively as well as objectively -- before, I'm sure of it. But it's only because other teams have been worse and I felt pity on a pitiful franchise. This Week is rare in which this team has actually earned its accolades.
They go 3-0 this screening Week, thereby extending their winning streak to five Games, the organization's longest in four Years. But two things stand out. First, all of their victories in this streak have been by double digits. And two, the club's leading rebounder in all five tilts is ... Jarred Vanderbilt, a 2018 Second Round pick from Kentucky. He and Patrick Beverley have brought a defensive presence that has not been seen anywhere on this squad probably since The KG Era. And most importantly, it looks as though the Timberwolves have settled on a very good starting five: Beverley, D'Angelo Russell, Anthony Edwards, Vanderbilt, and Karl-Anthony Towns.
They are locked and loaded right now, and they have thoroughly beaten some good teams during this stretch. And they're starting to feel themselves, too. I had to miss the Dranksgiving Night Game versus Miami, even though my friend had a ticket he could give me for free, because I was working second shift. I regret it. It was a packed crowd against a good team featuring a guy, Jimmy Butler, who humiliated the team in an ultimately successful effort to get traded from Minnesota. He played the heel to the hilt. Fortunately, Anthony Edwards wasn't taking no shit and decided to fight back:
What everybody is, and should be, talking about, however, is Ant posterizing Gabe Vincent on what eventually would be an Offensive Foul on Edwards. But goddamn, this is fun to look at:
Ant and the Wolves eventually would pull away from the Heat, 113-101. Stars were born and maybe torches were passed Wednesday evening. And finally, it looks like the Minnesota Timberwolves have something special brewing.
With all that said, they've got a busy screening Week. Tomorrow/Black Friday they visit Charlotte, who have gone 7-1 in their last eight. They then play in Philadelphia the next night, come home to play Indiana Monday, then go back on the road to play Washington, D. C., Wednesday.
#0: Vikings (Last Week: -4). I am going to visit my parents in Las Vegas some time next month, and of course I plan on giving in to my vice and gamble, mostly on sports. I probably will parlay a few NFL Games, and if so, I might as well throw a dart to pick teams, because no one fucking knows anything about pro football, especially this season.
I thought the Vikes had a chance to defeat Green Bay. I couldn't think up a path to victory; it's just that there have been more improbable upsets this regular season, and so why the hell not. I did not predict that Kirk Cousins and the Vikings Offense would be able to pick their way through the Packers' once-impregnable Defense. So while it was spine-tingling once again to see Dr. Aaron Rodgers march down the field, the Vikings did what they were able to do all Game (I was working it) and call a really good offensive Game script, featuring many more downfield passes to Justin Jefferson, that marched them down the field, too. Their final drive got into Field Goal territory early, they were able to protect the ball, and Greg Joseph (who I think has kicked enough clutch FGs to earn some trust) won the Game for Minnesota with no time remaining.
With that Win, Minnesota jumps into the sixth seed in the playoffs. Would fans be happy with that? Will Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman keep their jobs if they make it to the postseason? Because, recencey bias, things around this team feel good right now. Let's see if the club makes it three in a row late Sunday afternoon at San Francisco, a team that is, like the Vikes were before Sunday, on the outside looking in -- and, unfortunately, they'll have to do it without Everson Griffen, who has suffered another mental health episode.
#-1: Gopher women's hockey (Last Week: -3). Swept a home-and-home with St. Cloud St. over the weekend by a combined score of 11-3. It's easy to believe because Minnesota's a blueblood, but they have won ten in a row. They are now in Nashville to participate in the Smashville Showcase; this afternoon they play Mercyhurst, then play either Boston College or Colgate -- a team they played, and beat, twice at Hamilton, N. Y., when the Raiders were ranked third in the country -- tomorrow.
#-2: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -2). Dutifully dispatched a pair of mid- or low-major tomato cans in a pair of bodybag Games over the screening Week. They are 5-0 to start the Year, but make no mistake: This Year is going to be a learning Year. I went to Friday's contest versus Purdue-Fort Wayne and the Mastodons -- great name -- scored the first nine Points of the Game. No worries; they came back to whip PFW, 78-49. And on Wednesday, they beat the Jacksonville Dolphins 55-44 even though they were actually outrebounded 46-28 -- yikes! As Spencer Tollackson said on that Jacksonville U. radio broadcast (I was listening at work), this team simply does not have size, and that will be a huge problem once they face fellow BcS competition ... and that competition comes Tuesday, where they finally face a foe their own size: Pittsburgh, in Pittsburgh, Tuesday as a part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
#-3: Gopher football (Last Week: -9). They easily did away with Indiana in Bloomington Saturday, 35-14, but that Win really is immaterial. How we see this team's season boils down to the rivalry Game vs. Wisconsin this Saturday afternoon. The Badgers are kind of down this Year, and the U. has Bucky Badger at home. But the Golden Gophers have only beaten Wisconsin once since 2004 ... even though that one time was a 37-15 ass-kicking in Madison only three Years ago.
Minnesota was kind of in the race for the B1G West Division title, but the loss to Iowa severely damaged their hopes. The Gophs can still win the West, but three things have to happen: 1) They beat Wisky; 2) Iowa loses at Nebraska; and 3) Purdue has to lose to the Hoosiers at home. Yeah, it's more likely none of those things will happen.
#-4: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -7). A third consecutive conference split, this time at home against Penn St. They now sit 8-6 overall, 6-4 in the B1G. They take a break from league play this weekend -- and go to North Dakota for two Games. Man, those were the days.
#-5: Whitecaps (Re-Entry!). It may not be fair that the 'Caps have started their season with four consecutive Games vs. arguably the best team in the National Wo ... excuse me, the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), the Boston Pride. But they have, and the Whitecaps came home to TRIA Rink after getting swept in Beantown to play two against them, and they split.
This is all I know about the Whitecaps. Well, they are at Connecticut next weekend.
#-6: Wild (Last Week: -5). Slight blip as they faced steeper competition on the road. Lost to Florida, a a franchise that's been in the wilderness for Years until now, and Tampa Bay (albeit in a Shootout after Minnesota mounted a furious comeback with not one but two Goals after they pulled Kappo Kahonen) on back-to-back nights. They then were playing The Bastard Colorado Rockies in Jersey Wednesday evening but, and this is something, their bus got stuck because the Holland Tunnel was closed. They got to the arena a half-hour before they were supposed to start the Game, so they pushed it back by half an hour. And they won in a Shootout, 3-2.
With this 1-2 screening Week they still lead the Central Division, which is a position I am unaccustomed seeing this club in. All this despite deep rumblings of a schism between Head Coach Dean Evason and Kevin Fiala, who appears to be in Evason's doghouse even though he not only is playing but is also producing, even scoring the occasional Goal. I don't want to ruin chemistry because this team is on something good right now. But if Fiala, or at least the Fiala situation, gets worse, well ... this team will be hard up against the Salary Cap for the next three Years, so. ...
This Week they host The Bastard Atlanta Thrashers in what I think is their annual Black Friday afternoon. That starts a five-Game homestand; Tampa and New Jersey come here for quick return dates, and The Bastard Winnipeg Jets stop by, too.
#-7: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -1). So I am still trying to get a bead on this program. A great Week was followed up by a sixth-place finish in the Women's Battle 4 Atlantis. They got spanked by second-ranked UConn Saturday afternoon, 88-58, but rebounded the next afternoon by beating Syracuse, 70-63, but finally got routed by Oklahoma Monday afternoon, 88-69. Maybe their performance in this tournament is indicative of how good this team is -- and isn't.
Another busy Week, although they're in Williams Arena for all three tilts. This/Friday afternoon they play Bradley, Sunday afternoon they play Texas-San Antonio, then on Wednesday night they play North Carolina as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
#-8: Gopher volleyball (Last Week: -8). So they had that Walkover against Rutgers Friday because some disease was ripping through the Scarlet Knights team. So they had a Week with which to prepare for a Sunday afternoon home date against fifth-ranked Wisconsin. And they lost, thus they have gotten swept by our sworn rivals this Year. But shit, at least they won two Sets on Sunday instead of zero back on October 1.
So they have slipped from ninth to tenth in the latest AVCA Top 25 Poll. They remain around a Sweet Sixteen departure like they have been for most of the season. They finish the regular season on the road this weekend: 15th-ranked Penn St. tonight/Friday night, then Maryland tomorrow/Saturday night. Beating the Terps is a given. But what if they lose to the Nittany Lions? Could they actually fall out of a Top 16 seed? Something to ponder for the NCAA selection show Sunday night in case the worst befalls these Goofers.
#-9: Gopher wrestling (Re-Entry!). Yep, the grapplers are back. And the grapplers are back to being fodder for programs that haven't fallen off. Saturday night at Maturi sixth-ranked Oklahoma St. made the 11th-ranked U. its bitch again, 23-10. Gable Steveson, who won gold in Tokyo over the summer but decided to take advantage of the COVID extra Year and came back, Majored in his match, 20-7. But only two other Goofs, at 141 and 157 pounds, won their Matches. The Cowboys got two Major Decisions in their rout.
This shit is getting fucking old.
Hosting South Dakota St. Sunday afternoon.
#-Infinity: United FC (Re-Entry!). The franchise and the drag/soccer bar close to Allianz Field both hosted Watch Parties for MNUFC's First Round playoff Game against the Portland Timbers. This was on Sunday afternoon, and if I got out of the Vikings Game quickly enough I think I could've made it. But I didn't want to because 1) I was too tired and 2) I was afraid they were going to lose. I mean, the Loons were the only team in the MLS postseason to allow more Goals than they scored, and I was scared that drought was going to continue even against a Timbers XI that has a leaky Backline.
That, I'm afraid, happened. Franco Fragapane gave United FC in the 11th Minute, but Larrys Mabiala tied it up in the 43rd, then Sebastian Blanco braced in the Second Half -- one of which was a golazo that doubled as a dagger in the heart of MNUFC supporters -- and our side was dispatched with the quickness, 3-1.
Are we happy about their performance this Year? I didn't think they were good enough to win it all, despite a few writers thinking they were contenders. And yet I'm not sure if this club underachieved to the point where Adrian Heath would get fired. Well, he just signed a contract extension, but still. This team rallied from an 0-4 start, sure, but is that enough to hope for better for 2022?
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