SEC hoops continue to be exciting

By Staff
Jan. 27, 2002
Scattershooting over the sports scene on a Sunday while seeking sightings of Conrad Dobler…
Big win for Ole Miss. Big win for State. Big win for Alabama. Big win for Arkansas.
Big loss for Kentucky. Big loss for Florida.
The Southeastern Conference basketball races just keep getting crazier and crazier in both the Eastern and Western divisions.
Ole Miss and State both took conference home wins they had to have on Saturday, while Florida lost on the road at Arkansas and Kentucky dropped a home game to Alabama.
That makes the second game at home (Georgia being the other) Kentucky has lost this season. That's unheard of.
And add the big lead UK blew in a road loss in Starkville against State and you have a once highly touted Kentucky team coming to earth with a thud.
Alabama, on the other hand, put itself on top of the Western Division heap with the impressive three-point win.
The Crimson Tide hosts Arkansas on Wednesday, then visits LSU on Saturday both very winnable games.
Then comes a Feb. 6 matchup with Ole Miss in Tuscaloosa followed, but trips to State and South Carolina. If Alabama wins two of those three things could be looking very good in T-town.
Capriati's title
very impressive
What Jennifer Capriati did last year was very impressive.
She returned from near personal oblivion to the top of the tennis world, with her 2001 win over the Australian Open signaling her complete return.
It would have been easy for the once teen-aged tennis prodigy to slip back down the ladder, but she chose to take a different route.
It appeared that Capriati was on the verge of losing in the finals of the 2002 Australian Open on Friday, when Martina Hingis won the first set 6-4 and four times was one point away from winning the second set and the match in two straight sets.
But four times Capriati turned the talented Hingis away and went on the win the second set 7-6 in a tiebreaker and then rolled to a 6-2 win in the third set.
Capriati admitted she didn't play her best tennis, but it certainly was a gutsy performance as she just simply refused to lose.
Eagles, Rams
could be fun
You know what you are getting with the St. Louis Rams points, points and more points.
The Philadelphia Eagles are a little more difficult to figure.
But one thing is probably for sure, the Eagles are better than what most folks think they are.
Philadelphia began the season with a 6-4 mark, but have won seven of the last eight to move into today's 3 p.m. match up with the Rams with a 13-5 record.
Philly lost to St. Louis 20-17 in overtime on Sept. 9, but have beaten the Rams six of the last eight times they have played.
Before you get the idea I'm picking the Eagles to beat the Rams, let's get that cleared up.
Not only will the Rams win the game, but they will probably win by more than a touchdown, but the game is not a gimmee and the Eagles are definitely underrated.
The AFC championship game, also being played today, should also be pretty interesting.
While the Steelers are heavily favored, and will indeed win the game, it is likely Tom Brady and the Patriots of New England will make this one very, very close.
In fact, it will probably come down to a single kick.
Heisman big
for Rex, Zook
Not only is Rex Grossman hoping he will win the Heisman Trophy next year, so is new Florida head coach Ron Zook.
If Rex Grossman, who nearly pulled off the feat as a UF sophomore, does not win the Heisman, it is likely he did not have a good season. And if he does not have a good season, then the Gators of Florida will not likely have a good season. And if the Gators don't have a good season, then Zook will not be very well thought of.
That may seem like a whole of emphasis to put on whether or not one person wins a statue, but the pressure is real and so are the expectations.