(Quick note about Thursday's 99-97 Overtime victory over the Storm in Seattle. The Lynx were down two when Diamond Miller (the rook is a keeper; I saw her come back from injury to help the team cruise to a 104-93 Win at home on Tuesday) drove to the hoop for a lay-up to tie it. On the ensuing Possession, the Storm's Jewell Loyd lost the ball out of bounds. Finally, newly-minted All-Star Napheesa Collier nailed a turnaround jumper to give Minnesota the Win with two Seconds left. After the Loss, Seattle HC Noelle Quinn complained bitterly about the refs. I'm assuming it has to do with Loyd's Turnover which led to Phee's Game-winning shot. Quinn is not the first; apparently, shitty officiating has been a constant in the WNBA this season.)
After a bad 0-6 start, they've gone 7-3 since and stormed into a playoff spot. And that's my only concern; even with a loaded Draft class after this season, I don't think making the postseason is in this franchise's best interests. Better to (don't tell people I said this) tank and hope you win the lottery and thus your pick of the litter. They're having a great run of form, but there's no way they or anyone else is beating Las Vegas this Year.
They start a four-Game homestand this Week with tilts vs. Indiana Wednesday and said Mercury Friday.
#-2: Twins (Last Week: -3). I don't know how to feel about the Twinks right now, and I think most fans don't, either. They're not as awful as Kansas City or The Bastard Philadelphia-by-way-of-Kansas City (and-soon-to-be-Oakland) Athletics, but as shown so plainly in their three-Game mid-week sweep in Atlanta, you're fooling yourself if you think these guys have a chance of winning the World Series.
And yet they have won the first two Games of a three-Game set in Baltimore versus The Bastard St. Louis Browns, who have turned it around this Year and are a good club. And as evinced by the margins of 8-1 Friday and, thrillingly, 1-0 yesterday/Saturday afternoon, the Starting Pitching is indeed this squad's strength by far. Add that with last Sunday's 6-3 double-up over the Tigers, thus giving them the series victory over the Tigers in Detroit, and they finished the screening Week 3-3. Their lead over Cleveland in the Division remains at just a Game and they're right at .500 at 82-82, but ... shit, things could be worse, right? Well, the bottom could fall out on this group and the Guardians could catch fire like they did after Labor Day last season, and there isn't anyone in the minors they could call up and solve their hitting woes save for Matt Wallner. ...
Anyway, they finish up in Baltimore early this/Sunday afternoon. They will then be home and host the Royals for three beginning Monday (that first Game is a night one; the Independence one is a day one; the getaway Game is a night one) and, after an off day Thursday, return the favor with the Orioles and play a weekend trio at Target Field.
#-3: United FC (Last Week: -4). Last Saturday's 2-2 Tie at Salt Lake City, where they blew a 2-0 lead and squandered two Points, was one of the times I asked myself why do I have season tickets with this club. Last/Saturday night's 4-1 Win over the Portland Timbers was one of the times I'm glad I have season tickets with this club.
It is a long weekend (a lot of people are taking the long weekend off, and by that I mean a loooooong weekend because the 4th of July falls on a Tuesday and so I'm sure many people are taking a four-day weekend ... that kind of belies the argument that people can't choose when to have time off, no? But please don't @ me, I ain't no Republican), and it looked like many, many, many people chose to devote Saturday night to going to Allianz Field against a side that hasn't been playing well for a while. But everything was coming up Milhouse for the Loons on this evening. An Own Goal from Timbers stalwart Diego Chara started it off, then Emanuel Reynoso scored an Olympico (directly off a Corner Kick, even though the Timbers Goalie did get a piece of it; unfortunately for Aljaz Ivacic, he slipped while stopping the ball, allowing it to bounce in. By the by, that end of the pitch, the one away from the Wonderwall, looked slippery; players on both teams lost footing many times down there) to make it a 2-0 Halftime lead.
I was scared Portland was going to come back like Salt Lake City did, and Franck Boli did halve the lead in the 60th Minute. But Bongi Hlongwane and Reynoso put this Match to bed on Goals three Minutes apart. Hey, we'll cheer when there's something to cheer for, and there was a lot to cheer for in this Match, thankfully. It was the best Win MNUFC has had in 2023, hands down. And yet it was only the fourth time we could sing "Wonderwall" this calendar Year, and only the second time in Major League Soccer play.
In case you want to know, the other victories are that U. S. Open Cup win over Philadelphia that went to Penalty Kicks (and Extras at that) because United FC allowed Union Goals Seconds from the end of both regular and Extra Time and, well, Wednesday, when they beat 2. Bundesliga side FC Kaiserslautern in a Friendly 2-1 in a Match that was played in an Air Quality Index that recommends people not exert themselves outside. There was talk of canceling the Match, and many fans wanted them to. But the organization made the decision to play in the bad air and, well, I'm not going to be that mad about it.
The main reason I'm putting the Loons at the foot of this particular table is because they remain out of a playoff spot; their Win puts them above Portland, but they're still in 11th. Fortunately, they're only one Point behind Vancouver for the ninth and final birth. And they're only two Points behind the team in eighth, Austin, who come to town Saturday for MNUFC's next contest.
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