Full Court Press: "A Heck of a Game" from the Post & Courier

Photo Credits: BRETT FLASHNICK/AP

Despite disappointment, USC determined to match quality of first-round NIT pairing

By Travis Haney

The Post and Courier

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

COLUMBIA — Even with an All-American coming for a nationally televised game, you still have to wonder if South Carolina will be up for a postseason tournament it didn't necessarily want to be part of.

It was holding out for the school's first NCAA bid since 2004. Not for the program's fifth NIT appearance since 2001.

The Gamecocks host Stephen Curry and Davidson at 7 p.m. tonight in the opening round of the NIT (TV: ESPN2).

South Carolina guard Devan Downey and the Gamecocks aim to make the most of their NIT bid when they host All-American Stephen Curry and the Davidson Wildcats in a first-round game today at 7 p.m.

"You'll know in the first five minutes of the game whether we're ready to play or not," USC senior Zam Fredrick said. "I think we'll be ready. ... I know we'll be ready."

Bobby Cremins is a qualified handicapper for the game.

His Charleston team played both teams in the regular season — and beat both of them. Then the Cougars knocked Davidson from the Southern Conference Tournament, ending its NCAA hopes.

From the outside looking in, Cremins says he gives the Gamecocks a slight nod. But says if Curry and Davidson (26-7) are clicking, it wouldn't surprise him to see the Wildcats steal a road win.

An ankle injury now behind him and the team, Curry is averaging 28.6 points a game.

"If we were not playing, I would be headed to Columbia to watch that one," said Cremins, the South Carolina grad whose Charleston team will play at Troy on Wednesday in the College Basketball Invitational. "It should be a heck of a game. It's a heck of an NIT game. The NIT is very fortunate to have these guys playing."

USC's Devan Downey, despite being a half-foot shorter, will guard Curry some during the evening. But USC coach Darrin Horn said the game is transcendent of the one-on-one matchup, specifically.

"I think it's more about two great guards playing in the same game rather than them going at it," Horn said. "Hopefully that's as appealing as the matchup itself."

Cremins said he expects to see the Gamecocks come out "flat" because of their exclusion from the NCAAs. But, to him, it's all about how USC responds throughout 40 minutes.

Cremins said he once coached a team that had to turn down an NIT bid because it was too bummed to continue playing.

"Of course we're disappointed about not getting a bid," Fredrick said. "As a man, as a person, you have to move on."

As it turns out, despite a 21-9 record and 10 SEC wins, the Gamecocks weren't even all that close to the bubble. The selection committee held the SEC in the same esteem as a mid-major.

It took three teams, which would've been two if not for Mississippi State winning the SEC tourney. It made regular season champ LSU an 8 seed, Tennessee a 9 seed and Mississippi State a 13 seed.

That clearly left no room for teams such as South Carolina and Auburn — the first SEC teams to win 10-plus conference games and fail to make the NCAA field.

But a matchup with Curry quickly grabs your attention, Fredrick said.

The junior, and son of former NBA standout Dell Curry, willed the Wildcats to the Elite Eight last season.

There, they lost to eventual national champ Kansas — by two. And they had a shot to win at the buzzer, but Curry was double-teamed and Jason Richards couldn't connect.

Richards is gone, but 6-8 post Andrew Lovelace will provide a physical test for USC forward Mike Holmes.

And then there's Curry.

"I think he's like a lot of really good players we've seen this year," Horn said of Curry. "I don't think you're going to stop a guy that shoots 20-plus times a game or put up 30 all year long. I think the key against someone like him is hopefully you make him work for everything."

Horn said the Gamecocks would treat Curry and Davidson very similarly to how they did Jodie Meeks and Kentucky.

Meeks had three games of 40-plus points and averaged about 25 a game. Both times the Gamecocks held Meeks below his average. And USC won both meetings.

Similarly, Charleston held Curry to 12 of 41 shooting — and 6 of 24 3-point tries — in those two Cougars wins.

To give you an idea of the norm, Curry hit 10 or more field goals in 16 games. That includes a close loss at Oklahoma and a victory against North Carolina State. He had 44 points in each of those games.

"Good players find a way to do what they do, regardless of what the opponent is doing," Horn said. "You just don't want it to be easy. You don't want 25 on a normal night to turn into one of those 40 plus-point nights."

Reach Travis Haney at thaney@postandcourier.com and check out the South Carolina blog atpostandcourier.com/gamecocksblog/.

 

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Davidson Wins Against the Cougs, but the Cougs Looked Good!

Despite only shooting 25% from behind the arc and 37% from the field, the College of Charleston Cougars looked good tonight against the Wildcats. It seemed as though every time the Cougars started to get things going a media time out or an arrant foul would take place; thus ending our momentum. Did we get robbed by the officials with that last foul called by the zebras to send Steph Curry to the line? Yes, but the SoCon refs are part-time CofC haters and have picked our pockets more than once through the years. But let's be honest, the Cougars will beat Davidson later on in the season, all the Cougars need is for their legs to look a little more conditioned and the shots fall a little better. 

Free-Throw Juice

Regardless, the Cougars looked good. Jermaine Johnson (as Goldfinger would say) drank his "free-throw juice", hitting 10-12 from the charity stripe and 3-8 from the field notching 16 points for the game. Goudelock was 10-22 from the field and 2-9 from behind the arc (take the extra dribble before you pull up kid) as Andrew put up 22 points to lead the Cougars in the game. Tony White Jr looked great hitting 4-9 from the field and 2-5 from behind the arc. That kid has really come of age this season. Marcus Hammond did the Cougs a solid on defense and was 2-4 from the field and 2-5 from behind the arc. 

Ball Hawg!

Sure Stephanie Curry scored 29 points but he was off to a slow start in the first half and Davidson suffered trailing the Cougars until the 6 minute mark before the half. The next Wildcat even close to the young ball hog was Will Reauchambeaux (actually it might be Archambault-sorry my media guide is a bit blurred on that one) with 14 points. Stevie "Wonder" Rossiter put up 11 points to become the only other Wildcat with double-digit points. 

As we all watched Momma Curry nervously (albeit "she looked smashingly fabulous" as my non-heterosexual friends from Davidson would say) waiting for the time to expire as our beloved Cougars closed in on her son's squad. We also saw something else, North Carolina Hall of Famer and former Charlotte Hornet who kept the "Hive Alive" with one heck of a sweet shot, Dell Curry (aka: Papa Bear) shook his head in discontent as he saw his son's genetically inherited "quick and sweet" released shot over and over. You could read on the jumbo-tron his lips saying, "Pass the ball son, don't be a hog". But alas, his son (who had a few mentionable assists in the first half) was the ball hog for the kids in Davidson red. 

The Breakdown

Teams: 1st 2nd  Final

Davidson: 44 35 79

CofC: 33 42 75

The Cougs Host Davidson Tonight @ 9 PM

In their last game until the New Year, the Cougars welcome rival Davidson and their wonder-boy Stephen Curry to the Carolina First Center. Davidson (nationally ranked 22^nd in the country, but still 2^nd to the Cougars in the South Division of the SoCon) is coming off an embarrassment in Indy, where the Wildcats lost whole-handily to Purdue by almost 20 points in perhaps the “whitest” game played on the court since all 10 players wore Chuck-Taylors. Or maybe that wasn’t a loss at all for Davidson fans, Curry only put up 13 points instead of his average of 31, so if we jettison our math and instead apply our Steph-matics, Davidson (could have) beat Purdue.

 

Purdue (err, Purr-Don’t)

How did Purdue blow-out the Wildkittens? Old-fashioned defense, Purdue’s Chris Kramer was in Curry’s boyish face the entire game and the Boilermakers never took their foot off the gas. Even after Purdue led 21-0 in the first half, they continued to ride Curry and never let him find his rhythm. When Curry hit his first 3-pointer (after missing 8 consecutive shots) did the Boilermakers get worried-“Oh man, here they come, Curry is hot now”? Nope, they responded with a trey of their own and just kept face blasting Curry.

 

Keys to the win: 1) Keep a hand in Steph Curry’s cute little face. I know with his boyish smile, you just want to cut up with him and tell a couple of jokes, but put a hand in his face so he can’t see the basket and disrupt the rhythm as soon as he crosses mid-court. 2) Limit Lovedale and (benchwarmer) Archambault’s touches: these guys aren’t all that great of players, barely almost 50% shooters from the field, but they are the next best thing Davidson has in their arsenal. 3) Holy crap, McKillop’s kid plays for Davidson-shocked, completely shocked. 4) Makes some noise kids!

 

Remember this Cougars: You have a clean slate facing Davidson in our new arena! Let the record of Davidson in the Carolina First Center be a welcoming 0-1 when they leave the arena tonight! If McKlump and his boys want a win whilst in Charleston, they need to get it across town when they play the Citadel this week. The SoCon belongs to Charleston, Davidson is just 2^nd best with a little more press (perhaps distractions) than they deserve.  

Unanswered Prayers: Davidson Beats Themselves!

Let me begin by saying that the Davidson Wildcats represented both their school and the Southern Conference quite well. Unfortunately, Davidson's coach Bob McKillop's prayers were unanswered by the great Wildcat in the sky as his team lost to Kansas today 59 to 57 at Ford Field in Detroit.

Davidson was not out-played by Kansas, in fact they kept Kansas out of their game by keeping the ball out of the hands of Kansas' big men. Davidson lost because they quit believing. All year the press has made Davidson the "Stephen Curry Show" but alas, there was always four other guys on the court when he was dropping thirty points in a game. (Photo courtesy of AP/Chuck Burton)

You may blow off my psycho-analysis as much to do about a thing, but when Curry quit hitting his shots his teammates became deflated and even when they had the open shots they wouldn't take them. They for lack of a better word became scared. Curry too had a deer in the headlights stare, and it seemed as though the clock was about to strike twelve for Cinderella. Yet, Coach McKillop kept his team in it and kept the faith. But as the old adage about leading a horse to water tells us, the foregone conclusion was that the Wildcats beat themselves as soon as they looked at the clock and the scoreboard. They quit trying to win the game and started to trying not to lose the game, which as we all know, usually ends in defeat.

Fah-King Davidson Just Killed My Bracket!

I know that I should support the Davidson Wildcats and I did in the first round against Gonzaga, but the Wildcats and Stephen Curry just totally screwed my bracket by beating Georgetown 74-70 today. Now, I hate to be so narcissistic to think that my own desires to win the office pool here at the Bushido should spoil the dreams of the folks up in Davidson, North Carolina, but at the end of the game, I found myself saying the same thing I have since my beginnings at the College of Charleston-Fah-King Davidson!

Oh well, there has to be a winner and a loser and Stephen Curry showed his stuff with 30-points and the rest of the Wildcats squad pulled their weight to upset the favored Hoyas of Georgetown. Good luck in the next round guys-way to represent the Southern Conference in this years' NCAA Tournament. (Photo courtesy of ESPN.com/Chuck Burton)

And I need Curry to go VROOM! Just like a motorcycle!

Davidson Wins Their 1st NCAA Tournament Game Since 1969!
Davidson beat Gonzaga today 82 to 76, shooting .500 from behind the arc, .491 from the field and .714 from the charity-stripe. I picked Davidson to win this game and as predicted it was one heck of a game. Good for Davidson, good for the SoCon and good for Stephen Curry's Mom, because everyone needs a good cry from time to time.

Curry goes VROOM!
Stephen Curry and the Wildcats proved a lot today: that a mid-major can compete on the next level and no matter how small the school or how small the player-if a kid can shoot he's hard to stop. Curry scored 40 points (30 in the second half) which to this b-ball fans was a big middle-finger to the "big" schools who passed on him (i.e. his Dad's alma-mater, Virginia Tech) due to his size and lack of chest hair. (Note: Curry has sprouted four inches during his tenure at Davidson). Another thing Curry accomplished today was that he became the first member of his family to win a NCAA Tournament game. Something his father and the Hokies never achieved. Good for you Stephen and congratulations to all of those in the Wildcat Nation.
(Photo courtesy of CNN.com)

From The Post and Courier: Davidson 81, College of Charleston 56

League-leading Wildcats once led Cougs by 34
By Charles Bennett
DAVIDSON, N.C. — With time waning in a blowout victory over Charleston, Davidson coach Bob McKillop sent in his subs, including his seldom-used son Brendan. McKillop could have played his grandmother, had she been available. Davidson showed once again why it is the best team in the Southern Conference, handing the Cougars an 81-56 loss at Belk Arena, their worst league loss in history and the worst overall since a 92-65 loss to eighth-ranked Kentucky in 1996.

"They're like Duke when I was in the ACC," said Charleston coach Bobby Cremins.
"Duke could just beat the hell out of anybody. They're the Duke of the Southern
Conference."

For more of Charles Bennett’s article click here for the link.

From the Den: After beating Appalachian State, 68-63, on Thursday night, College of Charleston (11-13, 6-8 SoCon) there was a modest amount of anticipation for the game against Davidson (17-6, 15-0 SoCon) but as Coach Cremins said, “They’re the Duke of the So-Con” and the Wildcats have that same “Dukeness” (i.e. excellent perimeter shooting, solid fundamentals: passing, shooting and ball movement) basically good from the top-down.

I watched the game late on CSS Sports and the Cougars played well, and the only advice that I could give our young Cougars is that “they just need to take the easy shot; our starting five are trying way too hard and are trying to force it. College basketball is not that difficult: play-hard, pass-efficiently, and be patient for the open (and easy) shot. And before you lace up those shoes, know that you are a College of Charleston Cougar and you should play like one, think like a winner and the wins will come. Don’t be scared of teams like Davidson with their ugly mascot, pre-pube point-guard and Capt Hair-do of a coach because no matter what the chatter says about our disappointments this season, at least we didn’t lose because we quit. Keep clawing your way up Cougs, Keep clawing your way up.
(Photo courtesy of Rotorob.com)

Wishful thinking?

The Cougs will face off against Davidson at 3 pm, you can catch it on CSS (Comcast Sports-South) Special thanks to the kids at Daphne High School in Daphne, Alabama for keeping our spirits up.

Cougs Lose to Davidson Eyes Wide-Shut!

Playing "D" like this and shooting like this (20 of 59 (33.9%) from the field, 14 of 35 from the paint and 3 of 17 from behind the arc) doesn't win basketball games. I hate to point out Jeremy and Jermaine here because the loss to Davidson was a team effort, but guys, and this is just a suggestion, if you keep your eyes open while shooting and going up strong to the basket, I guarantee an improvement in performance. (Photo courtesy of the Charleston Post & Courier/Mic Smith)

To end on a good note: Andrew Goudelock led the College of Charleston Cougars with 13 points and Jermaine Johnson finished with 11 points and 11 boards for another double-double. And finally, the Wildcats' scoring sensation, Stephen Curry who averages 24.3 ppg was held (mainly by Antwaine Wiggins) to 16 points.

Sofa King Embarrassed! Davidson gives the Maroon Nation a headache!

Forget our rivals on the Wildcat blogs, forget that Davidson by beating the Cougs 70-58 (on our own court) just won their 21st consecutive So-Con victory and are now 13-6, 11-0 in the conference and forget that we are now in a three game slide. Just someone please pass the Tylenol. Keep your chins up Cougs-Wofford is next and we beat them by 10 earlier this season.

(Photo credits/Mic Smith of the Post & Courier)

Sure Erin Andrews is hot, but what about Davidson making Playboy's Top 25 list?

I read in the Post & Courier the other day about Erin Andrews leading Playboy's "America's Sexiest Sportscaster" survey, which is great that they show a bit of color in their sports' commentary, but how could they miss the SoCon's very own Davidson Wildcats making Playboy's "Top 25 in the Tip Off '08"?

From Hef's Magazine: "#22 Davidson: Last season was a magical one on the Davidson campus as coach Bob McKillop's team won 29 games and advanced to the NCAA tournament, a rare thrill for this little North Carolina college. The top four scorers return. Guard Stephen Curry leads the offensive (he scored 21.5 points a game last season). His running mate, senior Jason Richards, provides experience and a threat from the perimeter. The frontcourt is deep and talented. X factor: Can this mid-major team handle the spotlight? Expectations are suddenly high. Don't miss: Early season tests against North Carolina on November 14th and Duke on December 1st could open America's eyes on how good this club is.

Random Shots: You can vote for your favorite sideline sportscaster at playboy.com/sexiestsportscaster
(Photo courtesy of Sidelinehotties.com)

First Look @ Davidson and Our Loss to Arkansas

Last night we had our first look at Davidson and they look very tough, losing to the #1-ranked UNC Tarheels by just four points. And I doubt that it would be a stretch to say that Davidson if they stay healthy (read: Stephen Curry doesn’t hurt an appendage or ankle) and continue to develop from their big games against the likes of UNC, UCLA and Duke, the Wildcats could quite possibly win another SoCon Title. But let’s not anoint the Cats just yet, UT-C looked pretty good against Indiana and of course, the College will have plenty of time to watch Davidson in the SoCon before we meet on January 26, 2008. I recommend visiting WB's Davidson B-Ball Page from time to time.

I don’t have much to say about the loss to Arkansas tonight other than the point that you could tell that we have a lot of talent, but our team is quite young. Perhaps some of you might question the ‘talent’ comment when the Cougs only shot 28.6% from the field, but these comments are of course, reliant on one another because when you are down 14-points with 11-minutes on the clock, and all you throw up are three’s, and sadly, none of these shots from behind the arc are falling, then your percentage will go down.

The Cougs need to get back to basics (fundamentals) and work on getting more ball movement (without the high amount of turnovers) to get that extra pass, which usually leads to someone getting a nice open look at the basket. The Cougs just aren’t looking crisp at all. Give it to Davidson, across the board the players on their team have excellent fundamentals (both in shooting and passing). Their passes are normally crisp, designed and when you see the bounce pass from the Wildcats you will see thumbs down from the passer.

Simply put we need more aggressiveness from our big guys in the paint, better communication on the floor and fundamentals in the passing and shooting aspects of the team. I think these kids have a lot of heart and I know they will battle like hell, but we’ve seen it time and time before, show-boats can only go so far, but teams leave legacies.

Start with the basics Coach Cremins and let’s get a win down there in Puerto Rico.
The Cougars are now 0-2. Our next game will be against Temple.

Davidson gets some tough competition

You are probably thinking that I am referring to the Davidson Wildcats having a chance to show they have what it takes as they represent the So-Con in the Wooden Classic on Dec. 8th, but no, I am not. Sure, Wildcats guard, Stephen Curry dropped a NCAA freshman record of trey's last season (122 three-pointers) and has a chance to show that he belongs on the short list of contenders, but I am talking about something serious here: Davidson continuing to have the ugliest mascot in College Sports. The Wildcats main contender is seen here (photo courtesy of Yahoo Sports) the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islander(s). What do you think? Do the Wildcats still have the ugliest mascot in college sports?

Davidson still has the ugliest mascot in College Basketball!

For all of the Davidson fans that could use a Sapakoff's refresher course in FAN-101, let me begin by saying you have by far the ugliest mascot in college basketball. The Davidson Wildcat not only scares the kids, but I would be apprehensive if I saw that thing in a dark alley.

Secondly, if you feel it necessary to remove your shirt for a basketball game, you should at least paint something, anything, on your chest. Simply showing off your six chest hairs is not enough. Hell, other than the location of your seats, it was hard to know which team you were affiliated with.
If you noticed Cougar fans painted themselves maroon, with white letters. There were variations as the painted Coug Fans were numerous, but they all spelled wither "C-of-C", "C-O-U-G-S" etc. Obviously this is just advice (take it or leave it) but if you are headed to Rupp to represent your school and our conference, a little body paint would be apropos. I am not hating; I am just stating a few facts of the matter.

Davidson is the SoCon Champs for 2-consecutive years

Davidson will return to the Big Dance to face either Ohio State, Michigan State or Wisconsin at Rupp Arena later this month. Davidson improved to 29-4 and won their second-straight Southern Conference Championship. The College of Charleston Cougars (22-11) still have a possible bid in the National Invitational Tournament. (Photo courtesy of the Davidson basketball blog)

The game was a heart-breaker with lots of emotion on both sides. But I would be amiss to take parting shots at the Wildcats or the poor-officiating in all 3 of our games during the SoCon Tourney. As a College of Charleston graduate reared on manners and with a great level of respect for our opponents, I can only wish Davidson well in the NCAA Tournament and hope they represent the Southern Conference well.

I am taking a couple of days off, but I will post more on the blog later this week.

Davidson breezed by Furman last night 91-60

The Wildcats were led by SoCon Freshman of the Year Stephen Curry with 30-points to cruise by Furman 91-60! Curry's 6 baskets from behind the arc set a new NCAA Division 1 record for most 3-pointers in a season by a freshman @ 113. Leading the nation in assists, point-guard Jason Richards added 20-points for the Wildcats!

The Wildcats' defense shut-down Furman holding the Paladins to only 15-points in the 1st-half. Davidson shot 48.3% from the field for the game and made 21-28 from the charity-stripe. They will face the College of Charleston in tomorrow's Championship Game!

For more Davidson Basketball check out WB's Davidson basketball blog or Will Bryan's real-time blogging from the game!

Davidson, Furman and Appalachian State advance to the Semi-Finals

#1-seed, Davidson defeated UT-Chattanooga (15-18) by 10-points, 78-68 as Jason Richards and SoCon Rookie of the Year, Stephen Curry put 20-points on the board to give the Wildcats a chance to be in it to win it. The Wildcats improve their season to 27-4 and face the Furman Paladins tonight at 6pm.

The Furman Paladins improved to 15-15 beating UNC-Greensboro by 2-points, 73-71 last night. Robby Bostain scored 18-points and Moussa Diagne added 16-points in their win over the favored Hawks. Furman will face Davidson at 6pm tonight.

#2-seed, Appalachian State Mountaineers (25-6) had a lot of help from their bench last night with Doug McLaughlin-Williams scoring 12-points, Eduardo Bergendez and Donte Minter both had 11-points during the contest. All-Conference team recipient, D.J. Thompson led the Mountaineers with 15-points. The Mountaineers will host the College of Charleston's super-powered, dynamic offense tonight at 8:30pm.

Charleston vs Furman tonight 7pm on CSS!

On their way to a 20-win season, the College of Charleston basketball team (18-9, 11-4 SoCon) continues their road-trip as they face the Furman Paladins tonight, 7 pm. The game will air on CSS (Comcast Channel 42). This will be the 68th meeting between the two schools with Furman holding a 39-28 lead in the series. However, the College has won 5 straight and 16 of the last 18 meetings between the two schools. With the SoCon Tournament quickly closing in (February 28th at the North Charleston Coliseum), the Cougs have the opportunity to become more comfortable playing in a larger arena as tonight’s game will not be on held on Furman’s campus, but at the Bi-Lo Center in downtown Greenville. Tonight’s game marks only the 2nd time the Paladins have played a regular season game in the Bi-Lo Center since 1999-Furman lost to Davidson on January 10, 2007 for their first return to the Bi-Lo Center.

The College is playing their 2nd of 4 games in a 7-day stretch. The Cougars defeated Wofford soundly at the Benjamin Johnson Arena on Saturday, 71-58. A win tonight will clinch a 1st round bye for the Cougs and give them a 4th seed spot in the SoCon Tournament. After tonight the remaining games on the Cougars’ schedule are at home against the Citadel on Thursday and away at Georgia Southern on Saturday (ESPN 2).

The Paladins have won 4 of their last 5 games, and are in competition with Western Carolina for the 5th seed and bye in the SoCon Tournament. Obviously, this is too close to call as both teams have a Conference leader and a give-me left on their schedules: The Paladins have two away games left on their schedule at Davidson and at Wofford. The (Western-Carolina) Catamounts have App State and Elon left on their schedule.

Go Cougs!

Steph Curry the Wildcat Weapon!

At 6 foot-180 pounds, Dell Curry's kid, Steph, doesn't seem that imposing, but pound for pound, he just might be one of the best freshmen in the NCAA. We held him to 2-points in the first half but he did something that most freshmen don't do after being shut-down; he had a "Horatio Alger Jr transformation" while in the locker room and came out gunning-putting 22-points on the board in the second half.

Sadly, this kid is a freshman and we don't have an answer to this part of Davidson's attack as of yet. But (and I am just throwing this out there as somewhat of a long-shot) Dell Curry does have another son, who is more talented on the court than the first scion of Charlotte. Could you imagine if he chooses the College of Charleston as his destination for greatness? (Photo compliments of the Davidson Basketball Blog)

The Cougars fell to Davidson tonight, 63-73

The Cougars dropped to 17-9, 10-4 (SoCon) losing to Davidson 22-4, 13-1 (SoCon) tonight, 63-73. The Cougars shot a paltry 38.6%, hitting 22 of 57 from the field. The Wildcats were their usual well-rounded selves, hitting 45.9% (28 of 61) from the field. Blast this rivalry!

(Photo compliments of J.Trabert/the Bushido Way)