The Magic's Mountain

As we head into the meat of the 2009 NBA Finals, today's trivia topic revolves around the Finals' 2-3-2 format. First adopted by the NBA for the 1985 playoffs, the format has been the way of life for the league's championship series ever since.

Love it? Hate it?

Well, Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic - down 0-2 to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers - better embrace the opportunity to get back in this series with potentially three games in a row at home.

I took a look at the archives and came up with some interesting discoveries about previous Finals teams tabbed to play the "middle three" games at home:

- Since 1985, only two of those teams swept their three consecutive home games and went on to win the NBA title ('03-04 Pistons and '05-06 Heat).

- Since 1985, only three "3-4-5" home teams won the NBA title despite losing one of their three home games ('84-85 Lakers, '92-93 Bulls and '97-98 Bulls).

It's a tall order for Orlando but there's no better time than now to get on a hot streak.

Above image: Anfernee Hardaway soars on a sweet Basketball Digest cover in 1995. Penny and the Magic wouldn't have minded at least one more home game vs. Houston in the Finals that year. The Rockets won games 1 and 2 in Orlando and needed only two of their three allotted home games to win it all.

Defense Rules For Denver

As a native of Denver and someone who grew up just outside the Mile High City, I'm really stoked about the Denver Nuggets right now. The team's current success takes me back to the glory years of the late 70s and 80s, when D.T., "The Horse," Kiki, Fat and Alex dominated the headlines.

Given the team's big year, I thought a comparison to perhaps the best Nuggets team from that era - or any era in franchise history - was in order. I'm talking about Doug Moe's 1987-88 team (the pic shows dapper Doug on the cover of Denver's slick '88-89 press guide). Now, you can draw a number of parallels between the 2008-09 Denver Nuggets and their 1987-88 forebears, but two noticeable similarities are that each team posted 54 wins (the club's highest peak since it joined the NBA in 1976-77) and squared off against the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the playoffs.

As for the biggest difference between the teams - aside from fashion (I've got to say that as a teenager, I loved wearing my white hoodie with the Nuggets' rainbow-colored skyscraper design) - it's got to be their playing philosophies.

In '87-88, the Nuggets were led by colorful coach Moe, who preached a run-and-gun offense that lit up scoreboards all over the NBA map. That year, the Nugs ranked first in the league in scoring, averaging 116.7 points per game. Their defense, meanwhile, was fifth-worst, giving up 112.7 ppg.

At the present time, 21 years later, it's all about defense for Denver (along with solid-as-a-rock team solidarity, fortified by hometown hero Chauncey Billups). Head Coach George Karl, who kept with Denver's breakneck offensive tradition for his first four years at the helm, broke with the past before the '08-09 opener.

The new emphasis on D not only resulted in the 54 W's, it also helped deliver the team's first playoff series win since Mt. Mutombo & Co. upset Karl's heavily favored Seattle team in 1994. Get this- through the team's first seven playoff games, they've allowed an average of only 88.7 points per game.

Where do they go from here?

In 1988, the high-scoring Nuggets opened up a 1-0 lead on the Mavs before falling in six games. At the time of this writing, Denver's new defense-first unit was up 2-0 on Dallas in the '09 West semifinals. Does defense really win championships? The Nuggets are putting the old adage to the test. Don't change the channel. I know I'm not.

Hit For The Cycle Week

Not to be confused with Lando Calrissian.

Let's go cycling!

C'mon, honey, everyone's doing it. We're going through the quad!

In the past week, we've seen three players hit for the cycle in the major leagues: Los Angeles's Orlando Hudson, Texas's Ian Kinsler and Minnesota OF/DH Jason Kubel. Which brings up this interesting question: When was the last time a player hit a natural cycle (getting a single, double, triple and home run, in that order)?

The last occurrence of a natural cycle in the majors was on Sept. 13, 2006, by Gary Matthews, Jr. of the Rangers. It's a rare feat- it's happened only 14 times in MLB history. Authoring one of those gems was "Sweet-swinging" Billy Williams (above), a Hall of Famer who made his name with the Chicago Cubs. He turned the trick on July 17, 1966.

Midweek trivia mix: Magic, Bird, Kimble, L.T. & Espo

Esposito in action

It's mid-week and we're just starting to dip our toes into the college basketball tournament waters. Conference tourneys are in process and we're just days away from being able to fill out our NCAA Tournament brackets. Aside from college hoops, LaDainian Tomlinson is also in the news, with San Diego confirming his place on its roster with a new three-year contract. And now it's time to get buff:

CLOUD 9

Do you realize it's been 20 years since the amazing run by Bo Kimble and Loyola Marymount? And 30 years since the legendary, magical Larry Bird-Earvin "Magic" Johnson matchup in 1979? And let's not forget UConn's big upset of Duke 10 years ago behind Richard Hamilton and Khalid El-Amin. Years ending in "9" have certainly been special when it comes to the NCAAs. Here's hoping 2009 provides similar memories.

ALL SMILES IN SAN DIEGO

Congrats to Chargers fans, who are stoked to learn that LaDainian Tomlinson will still be wearing powder blue on retro Sundays after agreeing to a restructured contract. On the subject of Tomlinson, his extraordinary rushing and receiving skills are well documented, but did you know that he has also thrown for seven touchdowns in his NFL career? See L.T.'s stats here.


ON THIS DATE IN 1971

In a 7-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings, Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Esposito scored twice to set three new NHL scoring records. He increased his single-season record totals to 60 goals and 128 points. Along with breaking Bobby Hull's regular-season record for goals (58) and his own mark for points (126), "Espo" also set a new standard for most goals in a season including playoffs (previous record was 59, set by Jean Beliveau of Montreal). More on Esposito here.

Know This: Tiger Woods is back

Welcome back, Mr. Woods.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

May I re-introduce to you . . . Tiger Woods.

After an eight-month layoff to repair and rehabilitate an injured knee, Tiger is back.

It's been a while, so without further adieu, here's your lineup of links to get you up to speed on Tiger.

Follow Tiger's progress at the Match Play tourney (scores, video, photos) - PGATour.com

The 2009 Accenture Match Play Championship leaderboard - PGATour.com

Is Tiger really back? Try birdie and eagle on the first two holes - New York Times

Mickelson beats Woods - to the driving range - San Diego Union-Tribune

The official website of Tiger Woods

Last but not least, here's a classic highlight clip:

- A 2-year-old Tiger on The Mike Douglas Show

There you have it, everything you need to know to impress the clubhouse after your round of un-Tiger like golf.

Pure Sports, No Steroids

A+ plus for Mr. Aikman

If you're tired of hearing about all of the recent stories about athletes who have either confessed to using or those who are alleged to have used performance-enhancing drugs, welcome to the sanctuary for good, clean organic sports stuff.

Here you go, sports fans, load up for the day:

- Troy Aikman is back at UCLA

- Prez says predicting North Carolina-Duke game may cost him his Blackberry

- Something special about Cy Young and Cleveland (Frank Viola to team up with Cliff Lee)
Note: Cy Young played over half his career in Cleveland and began his career with the Cleveland Spiders - Cy for yourself

- Six straight NHL games with a goal? And you're a defenseman?

And Now This: Super Bowl Star Commercials

Wow, thanks Mean Joe!

Are we there yet? Are we there yet?

Uh, no kids. We're still two days away from Super Sunday. But we're almost there, so hang in there. In fact, we've got a little something to make the time to kickoff go faster - no, not a juice box. It's a quick list of commercials featuring some of your favorite Super Bowl stars of the past! Consider it a primer for Sunday's parade of Super Bowl commercials.

Amusement Guaranteed

Priceless Peyton

Go Greene

Singing With The Stars

The Fridge Is Running

Huddle Up With The Raiders

Tony D. Turns It Up

Orlando Magic: Mesmerizing Basketball

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In your face, NBA. The Orlando Magic have stolen the show so far this season.

After a road trip marked by wins over each of the Western Conference's three division leaders - the Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets - Orlando stood atop the NBA mountain with a 33-8 record.

So you're wondering, how in the name of Dennis Scott did this happen? Elementary. This team plays to its strengths - the inside game of Dwight Howard and the outside game of its splendid arsenal of three-point sharpshooters (led by Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson).

Thursday night will be another test as the defending NBA Champion Boston Celtics look to put a Larry Bird-style beatdown on O-Town at Amway Arena. I suggest you watch this one if you can (TNT, 8 p.m. ET).

WITH OR WITHOUT PULP? - Did you know that before the franchise was officially named the Magic, Central Florida's NBA team was almost named the Orlando Juice? Don't believe it? Read it.

MYSTIQUE, SCHMYSTIQUE - The last team to win an NBA game at venerable Boston Garden was the Magic. The Shaquille O'Neal/Anfernee Hardaway-led Magic scored a 95-92 triumph on May 5, 1995, and in the process gave the team its first-ever playoff series win.

CALLING LIL' PENNY - While the Magic are playing lights-out basketball, they might want to consider finding a spot for Lil' Penny in their pursuit of a title. If just for some comedy relief. Watch this classic spot, fool!

Ray Lewis Says Read This Now

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NFL fans, freak 'em with knowledge this Sunday. Just offer up this wisdom before the game and during commercials to provide your friends with their very own John Madden:

ALL TIED UP: Expect feathers to be flying in Glendale, Arizona, when the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals match up for the NFC Championship. In their 111 all-time meetings, the Eagles and Cards have each won 53 times with five ties.

BACK IN THE DAY: Sunday's NFL title tilt marks the third all-time playoff contest between the E's and the C's. They did battle for the NFL Championship in 1947 and 1948, splitting the series. (And don't be a bird brain and say the Cards were in Arizona at the time. They weren't. Think Windy City.)

'MEMBER THE NINERS?: Before the Eagles, the last team to qualify for five NFC title games in an eight-year span were the San Francisco 49ers between 1990 and 1997. You know the group: Montana, Young, Watters, Deion, and the rest here on Gilligan's Isle.

* * *

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Now over in AFC land, we have the Pittsburgh Steelers hosting their friends (not so much), the Baltimore Ravens. When last they met at Heinz Field in September, it was a hard-hitting Monday nighter, but in the end, it was the Ironmen from Steel City emerging from the cloud of dust in a 23-20 overtime win. It was the Steelers' sixth win in their last seven home games vs. Baltimore.

ROOKIE THIS: Baltimore set an NFL record this year for the most wins (11) by a team that was guided by a rookie head coach (John Harbaugh) and rookie quarterback (Joe Flacco).

NO OFF WEEKS: The Ravens will be playing for the 18th consecutive weekend, after having moved up their bye week from Week 10 to Week 2 and rescheduling their Sept. 14 game at Houston to Nov. 9 due to Hurricane Ike.

IMAGINE THAT: NFL Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison was once property of the Ravens. Signed after the 2003 season, the team allocated him to the NFL Europe League in 2004. He re-signed with the Steelers in 2004, returning to the team that originally signed him in 2002.

PASS THE HINES: Just 88 more yards. That's all Hines Ward needs in pass receiving real estate to become Pittsburgh's all-time postseason leader. If gets it, he'll pass John Stallworth (1,054 yards), a four-time Super Bowl winner and now a Hall of Famer. And one more TD catch by Hines means he ties 1975 NFL MVP Lynn Swann (9) for second-best among all Steelers in postseason receiving touchdowns. Mr. Stallworth leads the pack with 12.

Jim Rice: All-Time Great

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On the occasion of Jim Rice earning a Hall of Fame spot today, I made a foray deep into the SportsTriviaBuff.com vault to locate some gems on Jim. The vault is undergoing some reconstruction but I did find a quote fitting for today. From former Boston Manager Don Zimmer inside the book The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1979 season (by Zander Hollander), on page 77: "There isn't any question but that he can be an all-time great." True dat, Zim.

Jimmy Rice concluded his major league career with 2,452 hits, 382 home runs, 1,451 RBI and a .298 average. His career spanned from 1974 to 1989 and was witness to two Bosox World Series heartbreaks in 1975 and 1986. After not getting the call from the Hall for 14 years, the strong, silent hitter from Anderson, South Carolina, will be inducted at Cooperstown. Although he secured his place as an all-time great long ago.

Pick up some more Jim Rice-ology:

Sports Illustrated article by Ron Fimrite, April 9, 1979

Jim Rice's 200th career home run at Fenway Park (June 13, 1988)

NFL Playoff Electricity in San Diego

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On Saturday night, just down the road from SportsTriviaBuff.com offices, the San Diego Chargers scored a thrilling 23-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Aside from matching the score of "The Greatest Game Ever Played," this contest will go down as one of the classics in NFL playoff history. It had everything. Lead changes. Great performances on offense, defense and special teams. There was overtime. And it featured a previously unheralded player as the game's MVP. That being 5' 6'' sparkplug Darren Sproles, who scored twice and accounted for 328 all-purpose yards, good for the third-highest total in postseason history. For more on the game, go here.

Sproles' night brought back memories of another great OT hero from the past: Kellen Winslow of the Chargers (above), who was largely responsible for the Bolts emerging with a 41-38 win at Miami in 1982. All Kellen did that night was catch 13 passes for 166 yards, score a touchdown, and block a Dolphins field goal try at the end of regulation time.

Move over, Kellen. It's time to make room for another do-everything playoff performer, Mr. Sproles, aka "The Little Tank."

The STB links:

Chargers win one for the ages, column by Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune

Pictures from Chargers-Colts game

Phillip B. Wilson of Indy Star: Colts defense burned by Sproles