Paul Williams: Life on the Line

Can you ever recall that moment in your life where you said to yourself, “this is it.” Where one moment of time, one small, 36-minute window decided your entire career? Whether you continue on a difficult road to redemption, or just get written off? Where you came into the public’s eye as a champion, and on one bad night at the office, you are not even mentioned anymore?

Meet Paul “The Punisher” Williams.

He stands 6 feet, 2 inches tall and is a former WBO Welterweight champion/WBO Interim Junior Middleweight champion. On an average night he will throw over 100 punches per round. He succeeded with the angles he chooses to attack, fierce relentless in attacking his opposition, great stamina and strong chin.

The Aiken, South Carolina native is 39-2 with 27 knockouts. He has faced the likes of Antonio Margarito, Carlos Quintana (twice), Verno Phillips, Sergio Martinez (twice), Kermit Cintrol and Ronald “Winky” Wright, all former champions.

Williams has never ran from a fight. Now, he’s fighting for his career.

After dispatching Phillips and Wright, Williams faced Martinez in what would be an epic fight. Both fighters knocked the other down in the 1^st round, battling through tough shots from one another throughout the fight, battling fatigue and leaving it all in the ring. Williams would win via decision on the scorecards. A freaky ending to Williams’ brawl with Cintron led to a rematch with Martinez at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, the same place these two had one of the greatest fights in years.

Then Williams’ career took a complete 180.

It was vicious. The sound every Williams supporter will remember.  The sound, of a man, knocked unconscious. It was that kind of knockout that had most people, even if they bet on Martinez, having their hand over their mouth. (The knockout can be seen here). “This is part of our business,” Williams said after the fight. “You can’t accept winning if you can’t accept losing.” 

Now he’s in the fight of his life on Saturday, July 8^th at the same place he experienced so much triumph over the years, and also the worst defeat of his career. His opponent: Erislandy Lara, a 27 year old Cuban fighter who is a southpaw like Martinez and won the amateur world championship at welterweight in 2005. Lara may not have any significant victories thus far in his career, but he plans to land it over Williams. "I will finish where Martinez left off…After I'm done with him, there won't be any further returns because I'll end his career."

The true grit, will, and champion in Paul Williams will be proven Saturday. These are the fights champions are made of; when pressed against the ropes and literally fighting for your life. Will it be the end, or a new beginning?

College Ballin Focus: The Mighty Big East. 1-31-10

It comes as no surprise to the college basketball fanatic that the Big East is by far the most powerful and toughest conference to play in. Like the Southeastern Conference is to college football, the Big East is to college basketball. Thunderous players with sky’s the limit talent and teams that just simply do not care to respect one another. It gets chippy, the games are scrappy, and the list of coaches are notable. Every game is a dogfight with the opponent and this BCS conference puts it on full display almost every night. (Why else did ESPN & ESPN2 make a contract with the conference to air their games?)

Since 2003 the conference, based in Providence, Rhode Island, has had eight teams make it to the Final Four. Syracuse won in 2003 (right) for their first title ever in school history. The following year the University of Connecticut, with the inside-outside game of Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon, won their 2^nd title in school history (below), all under Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun. Marquette (2003), Louisville (2005), Georgetown (2007), Uconn/Villanova (2009) and West Virginia (2010) have been semifinalists since 2003. This versatile conference also accomplished a note-worhty feat: In 2006 they sent the most teams to the tournament with 8. In 2008, they sent 8 yet again.

Calhoun & Uconn
in 2004

Here’s just a quick glimpse of how competitive it really is…

Notre Dame (ranked 11^th in the nation) loses to Marquette. Following game they lose at St. John’s. 6 days later they win against Marquette. Next game they win AT Pittsburgh (ranked #2 at the time).

How about Rick Pitino and Louisville? They lost at unranked Providence, yet won back-to-back games vs. West Virginia at home and went on the road to defeat #5 Connecticut and one of the best scorers in the nation. Syracuse won 18 in a row to start the season, including wins over Notre Dame, Providence, at Seton Hall and at St. John’s. Since, they have lost 4 straight and are tumbling in the polls. Back-to-back losses at home to Seton Hall by 22 and on the road visiting Marquette resulted in a heartbreaking loss by 6. Villanova, ranked #6 overall in the preseason polls, beat (then-#17) Louisville at home and Syracuse (then-#3) on the road. However, they have lost to then-#8 Uconn, unranked Providence, and #20 Georgetown.

However, these teams cannot do it without good coaching. The list of coaches is below.


Cincinnati - Mick Cronin
- Cronin took Murray State to a 69-24 record over 3 seasons. At 38 years of age, he took the reins at Cincinnati in 2006. So far this season, Cronin and the Bearcats have an overall record of 18-4. 
Connecticut - Jim Calhoun Jim Calhoun
- Calhoun, a Hall of Fame inductee in 2005, has won both national championships in the men's program. 
- Been at Uconn since 1986. 
- Has guided the Huskies to 9 regular season championships, 6 Big East tournament championships and 3 Final Fours.
DePaul - Oliver Purnell
- Purnell is making his debut in the Big East this year after going 394-280 with Clemson of the ACC. Depaul is a high mountain to climb to compete in the Big East, but Purnell is up to the task.
Georgetown - John Thompson III
- Princeton-offense based coach and son of the great Georgetown coach John Thompson. 
- Overall record of 203-101. 
- Has taken the Hoyas to the Sweet 16 in 2005-2006 and the Final Four in 2006-2007. 
Louisville - Rick Pitino
- 1996 National champion coaching Kentucky. 
- John Wooden National Coach of the Year in 1987.
- SEC Coach of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1996. 
- Big East regular season & tournament champs in 2009. 
- 5 Final Four appearances.
Marquette - Buzz Williams
- Took over after Tom Crean departed for Indiana University.
- In 2 seasons at Marquette he continues to recruit well and has taken them to the NCAA Tournament both years.
- At 38 years old, Williams is an intense coach. One notable of Williams: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKdC3xvtUrQ&feature=related. A must see.
Notre Dame - Mike Brey
- 2x Big East Coach of the Year (2007, 2008)
- When hired at Notre Dame, the Irish had not been to the Tournament since 1990. In his first 3 years as coach, Brey led Notre Dame to two 2nd-round appearances and a Sweet 16. 
Pittsburgh - Jamie Dixon
- Only head coaching job Dixon has ever had.
- Has taken every team at PITT to the tournament, most notably Sweet 16 in 2003-2004/2006-2007 & Elite 8 in 2008-2009.
- Big East regular season champs in 2004.
- Big East Coach of the Year in 2004.
- Big East tournament champs in 2008
- Naismith College Coach of the Year in 2009.
- Won gold in FIBA under-19 world championships in 2009.
- USA Basketball Coach of the Year in 2009.
Providence - Keno Davis
- Only 38 years of age.
- Took Drake, first head coaching job, to a 28-5 record (15-3 in conference) and an NCAA Tournament appearance. 
- AP National Coach of the Year in 2008.
- Sporting News Coach of the Year in 2008.
- Hugh Durham Award for Mid-Major Coach of the Year in 2008.
- Basketball Times Coach of the Year in 2008.
- Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2008.
Rutgers - Mike Rice Jr.
- 41 years old.
- Took first head coaching job at Robert Morris. Led the Colonials to an NIT appearance in first year and NCAA Tournament appearance in second & third years at the helm (first Robert Morris appearance to tournament was in 1992).
St. John's - Steve Lavin
- Well-experienced coach.
- Assistant for Gene Keady at Purdue from 1988 to 1991. 
- 6 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
- National Rookie Coach of the Year in 1997.
- 5 Sweet 16 appearances in 6 seasons.
- While at UCLA, led the Bruins to 6 consecutive 20-win seasons.
Seton Hall - Kevin Willard
- 2nd head coaching job (first at Iona from 2007-2010).
- Most notable win: Beat Syracuse on the road by 22 points.
- Was an assistant under Rick Pitino for 10 years.
South Florida - Stan Heath
- Former Arkansas head coach.
- Assistant under Tom Izzo for 5 years.
- Was featured in SI column of 5 coaches waiting to get their first head coaching job in 2001. 4 weeks later, Heath was named head coach at Kent State.
Syracuse - Jim Boeheim
- Inducted in Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.
- Head coach of Syracuse since 1976.
- National Champion in 2003.
- 3 FInal Four appearances.
- 8 Big East regular season champs.
- 5 Big East tournament championships.
- Clair Bee Coach of the Year 2000.
- Naismith College Coach of the Year in 2010.
- AP Coach of the Year in 2010.
- NABC Coach of the Year in 2010.
- Sporting News National Coach of the Year in 2010.
- Big East Coach of the Year 4x.
Villanova - Jay Wright
- From 1994-2001 turned the Hofstra basketball program completely around.
- Led Hofstra to conference championship in 1999-2000 and 2000-2001. 
- Eastern Basketball Coach of the Year in 1999.
- Naismith College Coach of the Year in 2006.
- Big East Coach of the Year 2x.
- 1st Final Four appearance in 2009.
- Big East regular season champs in 2006.
- 2 Elite 8's.
- 4 Sweet 16's.
- 7 NCAA Tournament appearances.
West Virginia - Bob Huggins
- Coached at Akron, Cincinnati, Kansas State and West Virginia.
- 81-30 overall at West Virginia.
- 2 FInal Four appearances.
- 18 NCAA Tournament appearances.
- Conference-USA Coach of the Decade in 2005.
- Conference-USA Coach of the Year in 1998, 1999 and 2000
- 8x Conference-USA regular season champs.
- 4x Conference-USA tournament champs. 

The list can go on and on featuring the players that have come out of this conference and the coaches who contribute to the team's success. One thing is for certain: at the end of the year it is up for grabs which teams will be punching their tickets to Houston, Texas. One other thing is for certain; the Big East will give everyone a run for their money.

College Ballin. 1-24-10

 

With conference schedules rolling around and teams having their core lineups in place, it can only mean one thing...March Madness is that much closer. Teams will knock out teams, and rankings will change, however the stars will shine and Cinderellas will still still have the slipper. Welcome to week 12 of the college basketball season.

Tough 2 Game Stretch?

According to the Associated Press rankings, the Wisconsin Badgers of 2010 have gone from unranked in the beginning of the season, to ten weeks later appearing in the top 25. At 15-4, Bo Ryan's club maintains the same philosophy, and that is disciplined basketball. The Badgers, who rank #1 in the country at 82% from the free throw line, will be put to the tests against what could have arguably been one of the best stories of 2010 in the Penn State Nittany Lions on the 29th in University Park, and a showdown on the 1st of February with Purdue. In a 4 day stretch, Penn State nearly knocked off Ohio State, the unanimous number 1, and the Boilermakers, both at home.

                                                    Game of the Week?

Jimmer Fredette

Hands-down, it has to be Brigham Young University(#9 AP/#9 ESPN) vs. San Diego State(#4 AP/#4 ESPN). Wednesday, January 26th, 10:00 PM (Eastern Time), at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah.

The kid who many call "The Jimmer," has shown unlimited range, an ability to create off the dribble, a pure shooter, and just a knack for putting the ball in the hole. Fredette, a 6'2 senior from Glens Falls, New York, currently averages 26.7 points per game, the nation's #1 scorer. However, while all is going well for the Cougars, they face a team that, as of week 12, is 1 of only 2 teams remaining in college basketball with an undefeated record. The other? Unanimous #1 Ohio State. The Aztecs from San Diego State University may be able to keep up with the high-octane Cougars, ranking 7th in field goal percentage (49.2%) and will try just about anything to slow down Jimmer. In a year where the surprises are coming and mid-majors could fight off their power conference foes in March, here is a preview of what two mid-major schools can do and display that there is nothing "mid-major" about them. Get your popcorn ready folks.