LWOS INC About Contact Apply Openings Writing FAQ Ad Policy
Last Word On Sports Logo

Last Word On Sports

Sports News Since 2011. Honestly.

Last Word On Sports Logo

Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Day: May 6, 2012

Nate Diaz: Does He Deserve a Title Shot?

Posted on by Mark Modeski

This weekend marked FOX’s third foray into conventional TV on the back of  the UFC. The event itself was stacked-up with a myriad of well-respected fighters, but the biggest story surrounding the event was the possibility of Nate Diaz, brother to Nick, getting a shot at the title.

Nate has always had a dynamism to his style of fight somewhat similar to his brother, albeit more grounded in BJJ than Nick’s. He carries himself in a manner reminiscent of his brother also, which we already know can prove problematic.

When Nate exploded onto the scene via The Ultimate Fighter, he put together a series of wins that made people take him seriously; his come-from-behind wins always made for a good watch.  That said, Nate suffered a setback evident of a number of young fighters – the mental effect of the first loss. After Nate’s first loss in the UFC to Clay Guida, he fell again to Joe “Daddy” Stevenson. After briefly rebounding against Melvin Guillard, Nate Diaz would lose again to Gray Maynard; “cut rumours” started to swarm.

Fast forward to 2011-2012. After a continued streak of inconsistency at welterweight, Nate got his groove back at lightweight and strung together a series of wins against respectable contenders: Takanori Gomi, Donald Cerrone, and most recently last night’s tilt with Jim Miller.

So does this most recent slew of wins entitle him to a shot at the title? I think one could argue, yes. I think the more important question is who else deserves a shot a current champ, Ben Henderson? Frankie Edgar will get the first crack (or re-crack) at Henderson, but after that there is no one else who has put together a series of wins at lightweight that would warrant a title shot. Someone needs to join the queue, and Diaz fits the build.

For all of our sake, I do hope that Henderson beats Edgar, which I am sure he will, as I think a Henderson-Diaz clash would certainly be entertaining.

Other notes from UFC on FOX 3:

  • Lavar Johnson and Pat Barry had a hard-fought back-and-forth one round fight with the surging Johnson laying down an impressive TKO on Barry
  • Alan Belcher exposed the one-trick game of Rousimar Palahares. Not only did Belecher defend against the leg locks of Palahares, but he took it to him on the ground, eventually sealing the victory by strikes from inside the guard
  • Josh Koscheck looked like he wanted another head for his mantel in the first round, but fell prey to the pinpoint striking of Johny Hendricks. Hendricks is starting to position himself for a shot at the title

… and that is the last word.

Serie A: Juventus win the Scudetto!

Posted on by Luciano Giuliano

Juventus FC are the 2011-2012 Italian Champions as the Old Lady was victorious in her match against Cagliari, 2-0. She could not do it all by herself, however, needing help from rivals, Inter, who beat AC Milan 4-2 in the Derby della Madonnina at the San Siro.

The Bianconeri were in control of the match from start to finish and scored through Mirko Vucinic at the sixth minute and doubled her lead through a Cagliari own-goal in the second period.

Although at times it seemed as if Serie A would need the last round of games to decide the title winners considering that the Rossoneri were battling Inter in a teeter-totter of a match. The Nerazzurri took the lead through a strike from Diego Milito in the 14th minute. A moment of controversy occurred when Christian Abbiati batted away an incredible Wesley Sneijder header, which the Inter players believed crossed the line. Replays do not show a clear enough image.

The controversy was not done there, this time swinging to the other end. Kevin Prince Boateng was sent into the box, could not control the ball effectively as it drifted away from him.  Inter ‘keeper, Julio Caesar, dove in and got a clean touch on the ball as Boateng fell over him, causing the ref to point to the spot.  It was a bad call.  Ibrahimovic stepped up and blasted home the equalizer – 1-1 at half time.

Early in the second, Ibrahimovic powered through to hand Milan a 2-1 lead. At this point, Juve would need to win the final round to decide the Scudetto. However, the Nerazzurri were desperate to qualify for the Champions League and began to push forward and were awarded a spot kick when Milito was fouled in the box. El Principe converted, 2-2, as the Inter and Juve fans were sent into a frenzy.

At the 75th minute, Inter coach Andrea Stramazzoni introduced substitute Giuseppe Pazzini for Ricky Alvarez. Within four minutes of his entry, Pazzini headed the ball in the box, which caught Milan’s veteran defender Alessandro Nesta in the arm, which caused the ref to point to the spot again! Milito stepped and converted giving Inter the 3-2 lead and more hope for that final third spot.

It still was not done though as Inter rubbed salt in the Diavoli’s wounds with a fourth and spectacular goal from Maicon with a solo effort that flew over Amelia and dipped into the far corner – 4-2. That is all she wrote for the Rossoneri.

Congratulations to Juventus and the Bianconeri supporters for winning their 28th Scudetto and their first since the dark age of Calciopoli. The Serie A victory is well deserved seeing that Juventus are still unbeaten this term.

The Old lady is back where she belongs, my friends, which is on top of the Serie A.

Forza Juve!

…and that is the last word.

Serie A: The Scudetto Winner could be decided today….

Posted on by Luciano Giuliano

Who will win the Scudetto? The suspense may result in sleepless nights for clubs Juventus and AC Milan as well as their supporters as they continue to battle it out for first-place.

Up until the latest midweek round, it appeared that the Old Lady of Italian football was almost certain of adding a 28th Scudetto to her trophy cabinet (well, 30th if you count the revoked titles). However, Bianconeri veteran ‘keeper Gianluigi Buffon’s late stage blunder in the match against lowly Lecce has now re-opened the title race.  The Diavoli took full advantage of Juve’s miscue and bagged all three points against Atalanta closing the gap to a measly single point going into the final two rounds. This outcome has also allowed the Rossoneri to gain much needed confidence going into the Derby della Madonnina against cross-city rivals Inter.

Juve will win the Scudetto today if…

…the Turin giants beat Cagliari this afternoon and Inter get a result in the derby.

It will be decided in Week 38 if…

1) the one-point gap remains after this round, then it will be decided in the final match day next weekend.

2) Milan could potentially leap frog Juventus should Massimiliano Allegri’s men defeat the Nerazzurri and Juve fail to get a victory.

3) Week 37 could also result in equal points at the top of the standings if the Bianconeri lose for the first time this season and the Rossoneri draw in the derby. This is still a positive note for Juventus as due to the better head-to-head record, the Bianconeri will clinch the title if tied in points at the end of week 38.

Juventus will take on Cagliari at the Stadio Nereo Rocco in Trieste where 30,000 Bianconeri supporters have gathered hoping to spur on the players to victory. The final result for Sardinian side’s season is already decided at this point as Massimo Ficcadenti’s boys have secured their Serie A stay for next season. Will they play to win or will they look to take on the role of Scudetto deciders? The Bianconeri normally have difficulty playing against teams who utilize ‘catenaccio’ – the old all-out defending Italian style of soccer. Motivation will certainly not be lacking to defeat Juventus as the Rossoblu side will be remembered as the only team to defeat Antonio Conte’s men this season. Which is more important: ending Juve’s unbeaten record or putting a fork in the road in the Bianconeri’s quest for the title?  Will Cagliari play all out for the win, or will they look for the draw in this important match?

The same could also be said for Inter this evening. The Nerazzurri are currently fighting for third place which allows direct qualification into next year’s Champions League. Massimo Moratti’s side has hit a brick wall though and has slim chances after their 3-1 loss to Parma in midweek. Inter trail Napoli, who occupy third place, by three points. Seeing that the Azzurri have the edge due to a better head-to-head record, Inter’s hopes of Champions League next season may already be over. The Nerazzurri must avoid defeat or a draw this evening and need Bologna’s help to stop Edinson Cavani and Co. and will need Napoli to draw or lose in the last round as well. But, a derby is a derby and bragging rights are just as precious to hold over a rival in addition to ending Milan’s dream of a second straight Scudetto.

In 2002, on almost the same day (Cinco de Mayo), Inter needed a victory in the last round to secure a title triumph but came up short against Lazio who defeated the Milan-based side 4-2 gifting Juventus the Serie A crown. After the Calciopoli scandal in 2006, Inter and Juventus turned into bitter rivals both on and off the pitch with verbal stabs being thrown from both ends. Will the Nerazzurri do the favour for Juve or for Milan?

A lot is at stake in the final two games and both Juve and Milan deserve the title this year. Unfortunately, there can only be one winner.

Who will win the Scudetto? When will it be decided? Whats your take?

Forza Juve!

…and that is the last word.

NHL Draft Prospect Profile #31: Tom Wilson

Posted on by Ben Kerr

Drafted 16th overall by the Washington Capitals.

In our internal discussions, Tom Wilson was the toughest and most controversial of our prospect rankings.  There was a ton of debate over Wilson.  One of the contributors to this series had Wilson ranked as high as the Mid-Teens.  Another had Wilson ranked in the 50s.  In the end, when we tabulated the votes we found that Wilson was at #31, just outside the first round bubble.

Wilson for the Plymouth Whalers in the OHL.  He was also a member of Team Canada’s gold medal squad in the 2011 Ivan Hlinka Tournament.  He is a huge winger who plays with reckless abandon, and is seen as a power forward prospect. He’s fought the injury bug over the last two seasons suffering from a severed tendon in his wrist in 2010-11, and losing time this season to a sprained MCL, and to a broken knuckle suffered at the Top Prospects game in a fight with Dalton Thrower.

Right Wing
Born Mar 29 1994 — Toronto, ONT
Height 6.04 — Weight 200 — Shoots R

2010-11 Plymouth Whalers OHL 28 3 3 6 71 0 — — — — —
2011-12 Plymouth Whalers OHL 49 9 18 27 141 17 13 7 6 13 39

Wilson had an excellent showing in the OHL playoffs teasing more offence than he had shown in his two years in the OHL.  However the question remains, was his 13 game, 7 goal and 13 point performance a sign of things to come.  A turning point for Wilson, or will he revert to the form that has saw him score 9 goals in 49 OHL games in the regular season.  The question that remains is: Does Wilson have the offensive tools of other power forward type prospects like Henrik Samuelsson, and Colton Sissons?

Wilson has the size that NHL teams drool over.  His skating stride is unconventional, but it works for him and he generates very good speed for a big man.  He also has decent agility, especially for a guy his size.  He does however need to be stronger on his skates, and to work on his edgework.

Wilson is a punishing body checker who loves to dish it out and absolutely hammers defencemen on the forecheck.  He can be scary in the neutral zone as well, as Wilson absolutely loves catching an opposing player with their head down and laying him out.  He is no doubt one of the most feared hitters in the OHL and someone that all players need to be aware of when he is on the ice.

There are however questions about Wilson’s game, especially in the offensive end of the rink.  His wrist shot is fairly hard, and has good accuracy, however his release needs to be a lot quicker to fool pro goalies consistently. His stickhandling, is a work in progress as are his hands in tight to the goal.  His offensive ceiling is the biggest question mark, and is the reason why we had such a hard time ranking Wilson.  Could he become a top 6 player in the NHL?  Is he destined for a bottom 6 role?  Exactly how much he can improve these aspects of his game will determine this.

Wilson is a hard worker, and this certainly helps in the defensive end of the rink.  He’s a conscientious backchecker and continues his very physical game in his own end of the rink.  He is strong on board battles and willing to throw a big check.  His one issue is that this sometimes leads to a lack of discipline, either through getting himself out of position trying to make the big hit, or in taking an ill-timed trip to the penalty box.

When coming up with a comparable for Wilson, we again had a tough time.  One of our contributors said that Wilson could develop into a clone of Milan Lucic of the Boston Bruins.  However another contributor believes his ceiling is closer to a third line player like Colby Armstrong, with better fighting skills.  One thing we do agree on, Wilson is a safe bet to make the NHL one day, his size, skating ability, robust physical game, and toughness, will make him a good bet to develop into a third line contributor at minimum.

Despite our ranking of 31, we feel that Wilson will be drafted much higher than that come draft day in June.  One thing to remember with controversial prospects like him, is that it takes a whole bunch of teams to pass over him, to make a guy fall down a draft board, it only takes one team to love him to pick him.  We feel that Wilson has such a split of opinion that there will be at least one team (probably more) who absolutely love him.

… and thats the Last Word.