Yankees have been goofing as of late, 2 straight losses to the White Sox who have suddenly established themselves as the AL Central team to beat. And the Red Sox are streaking and finally above .500 which worries me. Anaheim is getting better too, and no division lead is safe in the AL East till the regular season is over.

Now on to NBA musings... Who would've ever predicted that the first two top draft picks would come from the same school? Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd Gilchrist did it for the National Champion Wildcats... but sadly Thomas Robinson, the power forward from Kansas who received nationwide support and made headline news when he lost his grandparents and mother in the span of 3 weeks and had an elementary school-age sister to raise slid to the fifth pick. I admire his strength and how he became a dominant player after the Morris twins left for the NBA. (Marcus and Markeiff Morris, re: 2011). He deserves utmost respect and I certainly wish him well and hope he succeeds in the NBA.

Jared Sullinger slid all the way to the 21st pick and got drafted by Boston due to his injury report. He might have been the steal of the draft with an ageing Celtics team needing some temporary saving grace, perhaps.

The Tar Heels almost had four players go in the lottery. First was Harrison Barnes at number 7 to Golden State, followed by Kendall Marshall at pick 13 to Phoenix, then John Henson rounded out the lottery by going one pick later to Milwaukee. Tyler Zeller went at 17 to Dallas but was traded to Cleveland. Should be fun to see Kyrie Irving have his former college rival as his running mate on the fastbreak. If Steve Nash were to bolt during free agency, Kendall Marshall might be forced to grow up, real fast. Harrison Barnes, hopefully he doesn't turn out to be Brandan Wright #2 aka a former Tar Heel, also drafted by Golden State who was a bust/ did not fit well in the system.

Madagascar 3: The Review

A child-friendly summer movie not to be missed, the third chapter of this 90 minute animal themed movie teaches values and morals such as teamwork, friendship, determination, the truth will always come out and helping others. This movie carries on from where the previous chapter ended-- in Africa. Alex the lion has nightmares of ageing in Africa and unable to return home.

Alex and his friends have a strong desire to return back to where they originally came from, the Zoo in New York's Central Park. With that, Alex, Gloria the Hippo, Melman the giraffe and Marty the Zebra set off to Monaco by scuba diving (as shown from their head gear when they pop out from underneath the sea) in search of the penguins and King Julien. They reach the casino and trouble ensues when teamwork does not go as planned-- introduce the villian, Captain Dubois, for the first time ever in the movie.

 The casino is wrecked apart and a high speed chase through the streets with the penguins piloting the van, which is later taken over by Marty who is unable to drive on the right side. Their plane is damaged as they attempt to escape back to New York and they encounter a traveling circus train and claim that they are circus animals in order to fulfill their dream of reaching back, as Vitaly the tiger was very stern and did not allow stowaways on board. Gia the snow leopard and Stefano the sea lion are the main characters on board the trains carriage.

At the circus in Rome, the show goes bust and finally on board the train to London, Alex decides to help Vitaly, Gia and Stefano rediscover and remodel what a circus is all about. Vitaly is a defeated tiger whose days of being the star have faded due to a freak accident while performing. King Julien meets Sonya the brown bear and falls in love with her, through the streets of Italy, she acquires a new motorbike going into a shop and scaring the customers and owner. On the way to London, Alex has convinced Vitaly to give it another shot and the troupe begin rehearsing in the mountains, fleeing when the cops strike. Meanwhile, Captain Du Bois is still hot on her heels to chasing down Alex in order to have his head mounted on the wall of prized catches. She makes her moves in calculated fashion. In London, Alex's relentless effort pays off with the boss awarding the traveling party a contract to perform in New York after a slam-dunk performance with dazzling lights and lots of intriguing stunts.

However, once they arrive in New York outside the gates of their old home, Captain Du Bois manages to capture Alex, Marty, Melman and Gloria. They are locked up in prison style cages and Captain Du Bois is given a reward for finding the Alex. However, she rejects it and reveals her evil intention. Her plans are foiled by Vitaly, Stefano and Gia, (whose feelings were hurt and when the truth was revealed to them that Alex and his friends were masquerading as circus animals) who rescue them as their circus act was revived. Another round of antics sets of the fireworks and inflated balls given to the children, ending the movie off with a bang.

The penguins were not featured as much as I would have loved them to be shown in the movie, but all in all, every leading character was given an equal amount of face time which enabled the audience to decipher their character and personality. The catchy tunes such as Everybody Dance Now by CC Music Factory, Hot In Here by Nelly, I Like to Move It and Firework by Katy Perry will certainly get you grooving in your seat! And as for "We Speak No Americano", if you've watched Alvin and the Chipmunks, you might recall hearing it, in the chipmunk version. The adults could relate to it with this song originally released in the 1950's.  I'd gladly watch this movie again, wholesome educational fun for the family!

(Side note: I would recommend watching this movie in 3D, the effects are way more stunning),  credits to Pat who advised me to.

Down went the Spurs to OKC. They are the first team in NBA history to win 20 straight games then lose 4 straight and get bounced from the postseason. This one sure did hurt. It might have been Tim Duncan's last chance at winning another title, slipped away thanks to the hungrier, younger and fresher OKC team.

Miami beating Boston, I was very surprised that the ageing Celtics managed to push the series to the brink but LeBron and Wade were too much to overcome, and Shane Battier, the unsung hero who is quietly filling up the stat sheet.

As of now, the NBA finals is tied at one apiece. It's anybodys game but I've got a feeling that this is the year that LeBron will win his first title.

The LA Kings won their first Stanley Cup. New Jersey won two straight games but couldn't hang on to force a game 7, since game 6 was played in LA. Jonathan Quick outplayed Martin Brodeur who is in his twilight years and at the tail end of his career.

I might have spoke too soon.

The Spurs were up 2-0 but had their winning streak snapped and went down without a fight in game 3 at OKC. Then they lost game 4 today, so yes, series tied and they do need help with defending the paint. In the first two games, they destroyed OKC and shut them down, forcing the team to take jumpshots.

The Yankees lost to Detroit today. Previously they dropped 2 out of 3 to Anaheim, then won the first game at Detroit thanks to a Curtis Granderson grand slam! Consistency doesn't exist.

Both games in the Stanley Cup finals went to overtime and the Kings are now up 2-0. The road warriors of this year's playoffs (or basically any of the major professional sporting leagues.) Never have I seen an eight seed win that many road games in one postseason! Now they head back to Los Angeles and get to close it out at home to win their first cup in franchise history.

I'm rather tempted to start writing about other things on this blog, perhaps on daily life such as food blogging or travel or product reviews.

I've abandoned this blog for almost 2 months! So what's happened with me? Finally got done with all my coursework for school, am hanging by a moment for work (nothing is confirmed yet)

The Yankees have been playing terrible as of late, this weekend they're in Oakland and have won four straight, after dropping the first game to Kansas City at home.

Two rounds of the NBA playoffs have gone by in a flash. Lakers certainly need to address the need for a solid point guard, which was their downfall, and a bench that was nonexistent in point production. The defending champions, Dallas were swept by the youthful Thunder, Chicago couldn't advance without Derrick Rose who tore his ACL in game 1 vs Philly and would also be out for the Olympics. Spurs swept both rounds... Miami is hurting with Bosh out, and Wade is injured... OKC looks like the team to beat, and the ageing Spurs are a rejuvenated team!

I'm going with the Spurs to win it all since they're my favorite... and yes, go hard or go home!

The Stanley Cup playoffs is way wilder... Both top seeds have been knocked out. The LA Kings are the cinderellas of the NHL. And the teams representing both conferences to play for the big prize are lower seeded teams. 6th for the Devils and 8th for the Kings. This could be Martin Brodeur's last chance to win another title before he hangs his skates up for good.

Rangers were sent home for the summer thanks to their crosstown rivals. Ouch.

Congratulations to the Kentucky Wildcats. And half the team will be declaring for the draft, I am almost certain of this. John Calipari, you've done a great job with the team, and I'm sure you're still savoring the title.

Now, on to NBA basketball. Spurs could easily seal the top seed in the West, if they continue to ball like the way they have won close games, and blown out teams. Who says that an aging Tim Duncan can't contribute anymore? The Lakers have been losing games they should have won, clearly, they should have never traded Derek Fisher away (I'm loving how Kobe will soon explode at the team, perhaps?) I presume another worldwide newsflash when he starts going on a rant. I do not like the Lakers and its always cool to see them lose.  Lets hope that the Spurs don't get bounced in the first round like last year! Utterly dreadful. Houston/Denver could play shocker. The postseason is approaching, and oh damnit! Final exams in less than 3 weeks and all I really am bothered about is...... sporting action. NHL playoffs too! The New York Rangers have the top seed in the East!

And guess what the Red Sox and Yankees have in common? Winless after 2 games in the regular season. Signing Hiroki Kuroda (or however you spell his name) was a mistake. What a bust. We choked, Mariano Rivera is getting old. David Robertson should be the closer for good... well, I assume he will take over Mo when he retires. Too soon to press the panic button?

Raul Ibanez as the DH? He's 40 but can still hit the longball. I'm looking forward to a long season of  hits, homeruns, strikes thrown by CC Sabathia and of course, seeing Andy Pettitte back in action.

Oh, and the job hunt starts right after my last paper. I've yet to do anything with my resume or write up cv's. Sports conquers my life, sadly.

Kansas pulled this one off, despite being down for the whole game. Well, the last 3 minutes or so they finally fought for the lead and never gave Ohio State a chance to overtake them. In the second half, they forced the Buckeyes to take jumpshots and denied them from slashing and cutting and driving into the paint, scoring at will, like how they did earlier on.

Kentucky beat Louisville, I didn't manage to wake up and watch it. Monday's title game will surely be a hum-dinger. John Calipari vs Bill Self and a talented load of players gunning for the crown.

Who will be climbing up the ladder in the Superdome and cutting down the net for the final time this season and be crying tears of joy when One Shining Moment is being played in the arena with a video shown on the jumbotron and on millions of tv screens across America? That song makes me teary eyed... annual affair!