Manu's Heroic Act

 San Antonio’s huge lead was almost gone, Miami’s building was roaring and the Heat were clicking better than they had at any point all night.
With one shot, Manu Ginobili changed everything.
Ginobili scored 22 points, none bigger than a tide-turning 3-pointer with 7:58 left, and the surging Spurs wasted most of a 25-point, third-quarter lead before beating the Heat 88-76 on Tuesday night, San Antonio’s eighth win in its last nine games.
“He makes everybody better,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of Ginobili, who’s shot at least 50 percent in his last seven games. “He is one of the finest competitors we have in the league, one of the finest competitors in the world. He’s a hell of a player. When he’s Manu Ginobili, we’re a significantly better basketball team and he’s been Manu for the last month.”
George Hill scored 16 points, Richard Jefferson added 15 and Tim Duncan had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Spurs, who are 4-1 since point guard Tony Parker broke his right hand. The win ensured San Antonio would end the night no worse than No. 7 in the Western Conference standings.
“It’s as good as it gets,” Ginobili said. “We played a really good defensive game.”
Dwyane Wade scored 28 points for Miami, which lost for the first time in its last seven home games. Jermaine O’Neal added 13 points and Udonis Haslem finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Heat, who missed a chance to move past Charlotte for the No. 6 spot in the East race. Charlotte lost at Indiana.
“They came out and played very, very well, ideally how you want to play like on the road,” Wade said. “They came out and played as a team. All of them. … They came out and jumped on us early, and we didn’t have it.”
By the time Miami found it, it was just too late.
The Spurs never trailed, and used a 26-6 run in the first half to take what seemed like total control. San Antonio made seven of its first nine shots during the run, and by the time Hill made jumpers on consecutive possessions midway through the second quarter, the Spurs’ lead had ballooned to 46-20.
“That was an example of a team that was very sharp and ready for this moment, first game of their road trip and they seized it,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “There in the first quarter, they set the tone and it carried through the rest of the game. We got beat in two departments—one, any kind of energy, effort, toughness type play … and simply at the end of the possessions, they were brilliant.”
Miami was stunned, probably for a lot of reasons.
The Heat hadn’t trailed by more than one point in any of their three previous games, and hadn’t faced anything more than a 12-point deficit during the run of six straight wins on their home floor. The Spurs’ 26-point lead matched the sixth-biggest deficit Miami faced in any game this season, including the 34-point hole they dug at San Antonio on Dec. 31.
Unlike that night, the Heat didn’t totally stop in the second half.
Quite the contrary.
San Antonio was still leading 69-44 after Duncan’s 10th point of the third quarter with 2:24 left, when somehow, the Heat mustered up a rally try. Back-to-back layups by Wade got it started, and his 3-pointer with 5.4 seconds left in the quarter trimmed San Antonio’s lead to 71-54 entering the fourth.
That 3-pointer started a 14-0 run by Miami, helped by Haslem—who played through stomach flu—getting three baskets within a 1 1/2 -minute stretch, as the Heat got within 71-65 with 8:23 left.
“We gave them too much of a lead, too much of a spot to try to make up,” Heat forward James Jones said. “When you’re playing a good team like that, you don’t get very many chances to put them away. They showed it tonight.”
Ginobili was best at the end.
The long 3-pointer from the left side pushed the lead back to nine, and he added another 3 about a minute later—essentially ending any Miami comeback hopes right there.
“Manu’s been unbelievable,” Duncan said. “Obviously with Tony down, he’s got the ball in his hands a little more and he’s a playmaker. He always has been — at every level he’s played at. You can see it in his eyes. He wants the ball, he wants to make the plays, and he can do it.”

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Read More

The King with 3 OT

 LeBron James was shaky early and spectacular late.
James had 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists for his fourth triple-double of the season, lifting the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 113-101 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.
“Every point, rebound and assist was needed,” Cavs coach Mike Brown said.
The final score was relatively lopsided, but the game wasn’t. There were 10 lead changes and 21 ties, the last one with 4:44 left.

The Cavs closed the game by outscoring Detroit 19-7, thanks in large part to James.
He set up Mo Williams for a tiebreaking 3-pointer with a sharp pass from the top of the key to the right corner, then grabbed a rebound, charged up the court and made a drop pass to Anderson Varejao for a five-point cushion.
The Pistons wouldn’t go away, pulling within three points three times, before James blocked a shot and made consecutive jumpers to seal the win.
“The guy’s not human,” said Detroit’s Will Bynum, adding he thought James got away with goaltending on his layup with 1 1/2 minutes left. “When he gets rolling, you just want to try to stop his teammates and hope that’s enough.”
Those teammates led the way when the superstar had as many turnovers (three) as points late in the first quarter and just five points at halftime.
Williams finished with 20 points, Antawn Jamison(notes) had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and reserve Jawad Williams(notes) added 10 points.
James missed 10-of-15 shots over the first three quarters and was 5 for 7 in the final one as he added four assists and three rebounds to his total for his 28th career triple-double.
“In the fourth quarter, we made our mark,” he said. “That’s closeout time for me.”
He said triple-doubles are “absolutely” his favorite accomplishment other than winning.
“That means you’re doing everything your team needs to win basketball games,” James said. “That is one of the best things you can have as an individual.”
Adding to his highlight reel, James had a three-point play that ended with a layup after Tayshaun Prince’s foul just inside the 3-point line.
“I’m not surprised by any call in the NBA any more, but you also have to give him some credit,” Bynum said. “There’s probably no one else on Earth who could have even gotten a shot off like that.”
Cleveland has won four in a row and lost only one of its last 11 games, improving to an NBA-best 53-15.
Richard Hamilton had 24 points and was one of six Pistons who scored in double figures.
Detroit has dropped lost three straight and 10 of 12.
The Pistons, unlike recent games, were very competitive until James took over in the fourth quarter.
“We were trying to redeem ourselves, so this is very frustrating,” said Charlie Villanueva, who scored 16 points. “It’s encouraging to see us compete like this, but it is still another loss.”
Prince had 15 points and matched a season high with eight assists, Bynum had 12 points, rookie Jonas Jerebko scored 10 points and Jason Maxiell had 10 points and 15 rebounds.
The score was tied after the first quarter, the Pistons led by two at halftime and by one entering the final period.
“We know we can play with any team in the league, and tonight proved that again,” Bynum said. “We just have to play like this and finish the games.”

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Read More

Boring Night says Mayweather

 Floyd Mayweather Jr. was probably sitting comfortably in his Las Vegas mansion watching Manny Pacquiao battle – or, to put it better, batter – Joshua Clottey for 12 rounds last Saturday in Dallas.
Mayweather liked what he saw in the sense that Pacquiao, according to the ex-pound-for-pound champion, was exposed on that cold night as being a “one-dimensional fighter” who he also described as “an amateur.”
In an article that just came out of cagereport.com, Mayweather, hot on a comeback trail and out to regain the lofty title he once held, mentioned things that might soon force Pacquiao to fight him under any condition.
“Personally, I think Pacquiao got exposed in that fight for being one-dimensional,” he said.
“You can have all (the) offense ability in the world but with no defense you’re not going to last long against a good counter puncher such as myself. Look at the way Clottey was getting through, each time he threw something it landed.”
He may be right that Clottey, despite spending most of the time covering up, did land some beautiful punches that caught Pacquiao and his trainer Freddie Roach by surprise, and that the Ghanaian would have done better if only he threw more punches.
Mayweather said despite the low volume of punches Pacquiao took from Clottey, the 31-year-old Filipino welterweight champion walked out of the Cowboys Stadium bearing signs of a tough fight, with some swelling and welts under his right eye.
“Then at the end Pacquiao was all busted up. When’s the last time you’ve seen my face all messed up like that? That’s the difference between an amateur and a true pound-for-pound boxer,” he said.
“I think Pacquiao gave the fans a boring fight. He was punching his arms for all 12 rounds. At least when you watch Floyd Mayweather you know you’ll be seeing non-stop action for 30 minutes straight and that’s what you’ll see on May 1st,” the undefeated fighter said.
Mayweather said the 51,000 fans who came to watch “The Event” in Dallas will see the difference when he gets to face World Boxing Association welterweight champion Shane Mosley on May 1 at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas.
He said the people will have to judge for themselves.
“The attendance numbers ain’t nothing compared to what I have drawn in the past or what I would have drawn if that was me in the ring that night, everybody knows that. Half those seats were empty in the back and people say Pacquiao is a draw?”
Mayweather, despite a long layoff which he ended with a knockout win over Juan Manuel Marquez last September, now considers himself as the biggest draw, and will again prove that once he gets into the ring with Pacquiao.
The fight almost happened but disagreements over the conduct of drug testing derailed the fight that the whole world wants to see. Sooner or later tough, it should happen simply because it’s too big to be ignored and shelved.
“Let’s not forget who generated a revenue of $2.5 million in one fight alone. The only reason why he’s popular is because he’s an ethnic minority and from the Philippines so it’s something special. If he was from Africa he would be just another boxer,” he said.
Mayweather also justified his demand for Olympic-style drug-testing.
“The thing is I am just looking out for the good of the sport, everyone should compete on a fair level but he (Pacquiao) doesn’t want that. I’m not going to say what he is or isn’t on but lets just say that HGH is one hell of a drug. All roads lead to Floyd Mayweather, we all know that,” he said.
“If he wants to fight me, he doesn’t have to look far. Just look for the biggest mansion in Vegas and that’s me. The matter of the fact is I put the offer on the table. Once I get Mosley out of the way then we’ll see what Pacquiao has to say. Until then I don’t want to hear about him.”
When everything has been said and done, Mayweather has no choice but to beat Mosley - if he can. And then he can call out Pacquiao’s name.
And the fight might just take place.


David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Read More

GMA Might Appoint the Next Chief Justice in days

 The Supreme Court today gave President Arroyo the power to appoint the successor of Chief Justice Reynato Puno who is retiring on May 17.
In a 55-page landmark rulling penned by Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin, nine justices of the Court agreed that the appointment of the chief justice is not covered by the constitutional ban on midnight appointments.
"Had the framers intelnded to extend the prohibition contained in section 15, Article VII to the appointment of members of the Supreme Court they could have explicitly done so," the high court said in affirming the arguments presented by the petitioners, lawyers Arturo de Castro, Estelito Mendoza and Philconsa.
Concurring with the majority decision were Justices Jose Perez, Roberto Abad, Martin Villarama, Teresita Leonardo, Teresita Leonardo-de Castro,Arturo Brion, Diosdado Peralta, Jose Mendoza and Mariano del Castillo.
Justice Conchita Carpio Morales dissented, while Justices Antonio Eduardo Nachura and Presbitero Velasco Jr. voted that the case is premature.
Chief Justice Puno and the two frontrunners for the position – Senior Justices Renato Corona and Antonio Carpio – did not take part in the voting.



David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Read More

China Looses as Google Leave

 China without Google — a prospect that looks increasingly likely — could mean no more maps on mobile phones. A free music service that has helped to fight piracy might be in jeopardy. China's fledgling Web outfits would face less pressure to improve, eroding their ability to one day compete abroad.

Chinese news reports say Google Inc. is on the verge of making good on a threat to shutter its China site, Google.cn, because Beijing forces the Internet giant to censor search results. The reports indicated that Google had, in fact, already stopped censoring results, but searches Tuesday for sensitive topics like "Tiananmen massacre" appeared to still return only whitewashed results.

A Google spokesman, Scott Rubin, denied censorship had stopped and would not confirm whether Google.cn might close.

The extent of a possible pullout from China is unclear. But on top of a local search site that Google says it may close, services that might be affected range from advertising support for Chinese companies to online entertainment.

"If Google leaves, it's a lose-lose scenario, instead of Google loses and others gain," said Edward Yu, president of Analysys International, a Beijing research firm.

Google says it is in talks with Beijing following its Jan. 12 announcement that it no longer wants to comply with Beijing's extensive Web controls. But China's industry minister insisted Friday the company must obey Chinese law, which appears to leave few options other than closing Google.cn, which has about 35 percent of China's search market.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt said last week something would happen soon, but Rubin, speaking by phone from Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California, said no action had yet been taken.

Such a step could have repercussions for major Chinese companies as well as local Web surfers. It would deliver a windfall to local rival Baidu Inc., China's major search engine, with 60 percent of the market. But other companies rely on Google for search, maps and other services and might be forced to find alternatives.

China Mobile Ltd., the world's biggest phone company by subscribers, with 527 million accounts, uses Google for mobile search and maps. Baidu offers mobile search, but China Mobile passed up a partnership with it earlier after they failed to agree on terms, according to industry analysts. Millions of mobile customers might lose access to Google's Chinese-language map service.

A key issue is whether Beijing, angry and embarrassed by Google's public defiance, would allow the company to continue running other operations, including advertising and a fledgling mobile phone businesses in China if Google.cn closes.

China promotes Internet use for business and education but bars access to sites run by human rights and political activists and some news outlets. Officials who defend China's controls by pointing to countries that bar content such as child pornography are stung that Google has drawn attention to how much more pervasive Chinese limits are.

Chinese Web surfers are blocked from seeing Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and major blog-hosting services abroad and a Google pullout would leave them increasingly isolated.

Google hopes to keep operating its Beijing research and development center, advertising sales offices and mobile phone business, according to a person familiar with the company's thinking. But the person said the company won't do that if it believes its decision to stop censoring search results will jeopardize employees in China. Industry analysts estimate Google has a work force of 700 in China.

The government says Chinese mobile phone carriers will be allowed to use Google's Android operating system but there has been no word on whether efforts to sell its own phones in China might be affected. Google postponed the launch of two phones with a major Chinese carrier due to the dispute.

Uncertainty also surrounds Google's China music portal, a free, advertising-supported service launched last year in partnership with four global music companies and 14 independent labels. Industry analysts say it has helped to undercut China's rampant music piracy by offering an alternative to unlicensed copying.

"Without that, are we back to, `Piracy wins'?" said Duncan Clark, managing director of BDA China Ltd., a technology market research firm.

The music service is run by Top100.cn, a company part-owned by Google, but can be accessed only through Google.cn. Top100.cn's executive chairman, Erik Zhang, said it is preparing for the possibility that Google.cn might close but said his company has not been told whether that will happen. He declined to give other details.

The biggest impact of a Google departure could lie behind the scenes, where Chinese companies, many of them small entrepreneurs, rely on its AdWords advertising service, Gmail e-mail and documents services.

Those might be disrupted if Beijing turns up Internet filters to block access to Google's sites abroad. Its U.S. site has a Chinese-language search engine but is already inaccessible due to government filters.

In an uncomfortable irony for Beijing, Google might suffer little commercial loss from a pullout while China's own companies are hurt.

The bulk of Google's estimated $300 million in 2009 revenues in China came from export-oriented companies that would need to keep advertising on its sites abroad even if Google.cn closes, according to Yu.

"We believe the majority of revenue would still be kept on, with keyword purchases listed on Google.com instead of Google.cn," he said.

The loss of competitive pressure from Google also might slow Chinese development in search and other Internet services, Yu said.

"This is definitely a bad thing for Chinese companies that want to go abroad in the future," he said.

The industry minister, Li Yizhong, said Friday that China's Internet industry would develop without Google. But even some Chinese industry leaders who normally toe the government line in public are warning that controls on Internet companies and media are handicapping their growth.

Beijing has steadily tightened controls over Internet content and foreign investment in the industry. Video sharing sites must have state-owned media outlets as partners. People in the industry say it is getting harder to register privately financed sites.

"Without full and fair market competition, there will be no quality, no excellence, no employment opportunities, no stability and no real rise of China," said the chairman of major Chinese portal Sohu Inc., Charles Zhang, in a speech in February, according to a report on Sohu's Web site.

"How do we do this practically?" Zhang said. "The problem is complicated, but the fundamental point is to limit the power of the government."


David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Read More