Sitting on the bench is for the coach’s kid!
The Head Groundskeeper is weary of politics, mainly because we keep backing the losing candidate here in increasingly blue (as in singing the blues) Wisconsin. Also because our IRA today is more worthless than a promise from Vladimir Putin. Brother, can you spare a paradigm? We are in powerful need of some escapism (on the cheap) that doesn’t involve tariffed tequila.
Warming up the b&w Philco for today’s semi-finals in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. We need to hear TV commentator Bill Raftery growl, “get those puppies organized” as Kon Knueppel (from Milwaukee, coach Gard!) sinks a three-pointer for Duke U., which was founded by dirty tobacco money. Jerry Seinfeld encouraged its graduates to enjoy their privilege! But some lost their sense of humor! (How is it that a school in North Carolina is the northernmost of the Final Four?)
Ride the pines
Which puts us in mind of a basketball tradition that has always driven us bonkers. Your star player gets called for a foul that only the referee can see. It’s his second and it’s early in the game. Coach sits star player on the bench through several media timeouts. Blaska is yelling at the screen: Five fouls! 5 fouls foul you out, not two! Put the kid back in!
Turns out this armchair coach may have been right (about something) all along! Two of the Final Four coaches ask, Why should coaches keep their best players out of the game over a fear of something that might never happen? Might never foul again in their careers. The Wall Street Journal quotes the coach of finalist Florida:
“A lot of coaches think, ‘I’m gonna save that guy for the second half when the game is on the line.’ … Whether it’s two minutes into the game or the final minute of the game, points are worth the same across all 40 minutes.”
Duke’s coach follows that thinking, too. How many times have we seen games decided in, say, a 15-2 spurt late in the first half? Not as if teams are rewarded for unused fouls! Can’t score from the bench.
Blaska’s Bottom Line: Someone add up the minutes Wisconsin’s John Tonje has sat. He may have some eligibility left, after all!
2 responses to “Put me in coach, I’m ready to foul”
Rome is burning and Blaska is worried about bread and circuses? Your coinage has again been devalued but take heed, you can use facial recognition to enter a Brewer’s game this year or buy a beer and a hot dog without even pulling out your phone anymore. Rejoice! What was the score?
Thanks for reminding me of why I’d rather be here. OTOH, I LOVE the farm picture at the top and I really do miss that landscape. I’m sorry you’re unhappy. Better take a walk on the prairie and reset.