Pistons' Richard Hamilton stunned when nephew informs him Pistons made playoffs

From the Wait 'til this Year Humor Vault

DETROIT--Detoit Pistons guard Richard Hamilton was incredulous Thursday when his nephew informed him at an annual family cookout that his team had qualified for the NBA playoffs. It took 10-year-old Stephen nearly 15 minutes to convince Hamilton the Pistons were moving on to the postseason.

"That's cute," Hamilton said at first, as he playfully tousled Stephen's hair. "But we weren't even .500 this year, buddy. Bad teams don't get to go to the playoffs."

An awkward conversation ensued, with Stephen getting frustrated by Hamilton's ignorance while Hamilton grew increasingly annoyed at having to educate his young nephew regarding his team's ineptitude. Stephen eventually brought Hamilton inside to his family's computer, utilizing the Internet to prove his point.

Hamilton was excited, but only for a moment. After realizing the Pistons would be facing the Cavaliers, he began sulking, bringing the mood of the whole event way down. He didn't even finish his grandmother's potato salad, despite having earlier declared it his "favorite thing in the whole world."

A Look Back

The Illini had a good day on Tuesday without even taking the court. As some bloggers predicted, Purdue stepped it up with a big win over Michigan State, giving the Illini a realistic chance of catching the Spartans in the Big Ten. Here are the updated Big Ten standings:

TEAM	CONF. W-L	OVERALL W-L
Michigan State	10-3	20-5
Illinois	9-4	21-5
Purdue	9-4	20-6
Ohio State	7-5	17-6
Minnesota	7-6	19-6
Penn State	7-6	18-8
Wisconsin	7-6	16-9
Michigan	6-7	16-10
Northwestern	4-8	13-10
Iowa	3-10	13-13
Indiana	1-11	6-18

Michigan State lost for the first time on the road, as they were pasted 72-54. It was a three-point game at halftime, but Purdue dominated the second half. It looks like it will be an exciting final three weeks in the Big Ten! And I won my free sports bet at centsports.com!


My other prediction was in the NBA. The Bucks did indeed topple the Pistons, but it wasn't their offense that did the trick--it was their D. Milwaukee registered a 92-86 upset victory, and is now two games behind Detroit for the 7th spot in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls are just 2.5 games behind the Bucks, which is absurd, because that means they're 2.5 games out of a playoff spot, and the Bulls deserve a playoff spot about as much as Alfonso Soriano deserves a Career Postseason Achievement award. I'm selfishly glad the Bulls have a shot at the playoffs, but seriously: why does the NBA allow so many teams into the playoffs? It's Bulloney.

A Look Ahead

It's a Big Night in the Big Ten, as first place (5) Michigan State takes on third place (21) Purdue in West Lafayette. MSU fears not being on the road, as they are one of two teams (UConn) to be undefeated away from home this season.
Illinois is jammed between these two teams in the standings, so they'll keep a close eye on this one. It might be the last best hope the Illini have to pull within one game of first, as a Purdue victory could mean that an Illini win against MSU on March 1 would launch them into a tie with the Spartans.

This should be a great battle, and I think MSU's road magic has to end sometime. Why not against a strong team who knows it has to have this one? Purdue by 5.

Also, the NBA is back after it's All-Star hiatus, and I'll give you an upset special: Milwaukee has lost their first three games against the Pistons this season, but will turn up the offense tonight and get a win. There will be no bailout for Detroit this evening (ha!).

A Look Back

The Titan women took care of business, winning 67-45 over the Big Blue. A win at home against Wheaton this Saturday at 2 pm would clinch the regular season conference championship. Of course, the women have loftier goals in mind, as most 21-0 teams would.

If you'll recall, I suggested yesterday that Villanova would beat Marquette, while the Bulls would down the Pistons. Read on:

Villanova shot a ridiculous 58 percent from the field, and laced Marquette 102-84. The victory pulls them within one game of the Golden Eagles and two games of conference leader Connecticut (10-1), and leaves Marquette with back-to-back Big East losses after winning their first nine league games.

The Bulls stayed hot, staging an exciting comeback to beat the Pistons. The Bulls trailed by as many as 15, and by 10 with about 3:30 left, but ended the game on a 17-2 run to win 107-102. Which means three things:
1) the Pistons have lost five straight at the United Center
2) the Bulls are actually playing pretty well of late
3) I am a sports genius

Plus it means I won my free bet on centsports