The lines are pretty much drawn between the CGB nation and the Bruins Nation. CGB remains feverishly obsessed with its baby brother to the south wondering why they are the way they are, while Bruins Nation refuses to exist to acknowledge the existence of the older sibling. There is a historical parallel here...
We have the leaders of awesome, to some almost attaining godly status. We look over the magnificent vista of Strawberry Canyon and know things exist in cycles. Our coaches are masters of creativity and wisdom, looking at the big picture and making sure the players they're responsible for. They know the dark times won't last forever, and the Golden Bears will find their motives to shine.
They desire darkness and fundamentalism to rule their territories. They can't see outside their own twisted vision of the world, which has them worshipping at the feet of leaders known for their cronyism and their archaic, sport-hating ways. They might win occasionally, but they'll do it through ref-baiting, hipchecks, and some of the worst offense you've ever seen. There is nothing innovative or interesting about their teams, but the self-indulgence is quite fantastic.
CGB is on the alert as to whether the neighbors of the south try and usurp the future king, Tosh Lupoi. We must always be on the guard from the Claudiuses of the south.
(For those who are interested in such comparisons, Twist is Zazu, Danzig is obviously Rafiki. Rishi is that meerkat who doesn't shut up. If anyone can think of better Lion King parallels, feel free to add.)
Cal plays UCLA tonight. Describe your feelings for your little brother. Hatred? Frustration? Exasperation? Envy? Secret passion?
Links to get you ready for the game.
BN's Roundup of the basketball picture
It will be interesting to see whether they can pull that off against Montgomery's Bears on Thursday night. I think lot will depend on DC [Collison] and JH [Holliday] being extra aggressive. Both of those guys are instinctively are unselfish ball players who are always looking to set up their team-mates. Yet they both have the capability of taking it to the rack. In fact I rather have them driving to the hoop than JS [Shipp?] (who turned the ball over multiple times in his attempt to drive inside). We need these guys along with ML [I don't even know who this is, please say his name sometime] to use their natural athletic talents to create their own shots and give our team an extra dimension beyond just shooting well from three point line.
The Bruins, who share second place in the Pac-10 with Cal and Arizona State, don’t rotate the same series of interior defensive beasts they’ve had in recent years. They’re somewhat more perimeter-oriented on offense, too, especially after replacing James Keefe in the starting lineup with 3-point ace Nikola Dragovic earlier this month to give the offensive a lift.
But Cal coach Mike Montgomery agrees with Christopher that the Bears will see a familiar-looking UCLA squad tonight. "Very difficult team to beat, same reasons," Montgomery said of the three-time defending Pac-10 champions, the three-time Final Four participants. "Very physical, very well-coached . . . They still bump you on every cut. They may not be as physical as when they had all those big guys, but it’s the same concept, same principle."
Nice feature on Gutierrez in the Chron.
Jorge Gutierrez, a 6-foot-3 native of Chihuahua, Mexico, came to the United States four years ago dreaming of matching up with the best basketball players in the country at the best venues.
"This will be a special week, because I'll be playing with the best," the Cal freshman guard said through an accent he attributes to skipping English classes in Mexico. "I watched UCLA on TV as a boy and all of the great players who played there."
Gutierrez, the Bears' energizer off the bench, will probably play a key role in attempting to limit UCLA's Darren Collison and USC's Daniel Hackett. The point guards are Nos. 1-2 in assists and Nos. 3-4 in steals in the conference.
Jerome Randle is not thinking about the controversy of last year's finish at Pauley.
And according to Randle, nothing-especially not what happened last year-should take their minds off of competing and, ultimately, winning.
"People may want to make a big hype about what happened last year," Randle said. "But when push comes to shove, we just have to go out there and try to get the 'W' and not even think about that.
"We have to go out there and beat them, just like anyone else in the conference."
For the gamblers out there, the line was originally at 12 on LVSC, but Pinnacle has a more conservative estimate, around 9. The books are usually closer to the Pinnacle line, so expect lines hovering around 10. Total dancing between 135-140.
In case you want to go out tonight or have better things to do, Pomeroy has predicted a final score of 75-67, UCLA. If he's wrong you're free to email him and express your outrage.
