Morning briefing
Texas A&M; fans were unhappy, and Aggies players a bit perplexed, with the late-game officiating against UCLA on Saturday.
Yet, in all the postgame commotion, no one lost their lunch over it.
That was not the case the same day in Ireland, where a soccer match ended with angry Ballymena United fans tossing -- among other things -- a chair, a bottle and a leg of lamb (yes, you read right) onto the field after a 2-2 tie against Lisburn Distillery, the BBC reported.
A game of raw emotion
At the heart of the matter was match referee Mark Courtney, whose decisions made dyed-in-the-wool Ballymena fans irate. So, when the match ended the mutton flew.
Police had to escort Courtney and his crew off the field, and coaches for the two teams had to be separated.
As for the lamb leg, which was uncooked, it was presumably taken by police -- as evidence, not for a barbecue. Irish Football Assn. Chief Executive Howard Wells said there would be a “full investigation.”
A chair, a bottle and a leg of lamb?
Sounds like Charles Barkley waiting to do a halftime report.
Trivia time
What was the last team to turn down a bid to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament?
Parts department
The leg of lamb incident brought a quick comment from the Ulster Society For The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. A spokesman said it “demonstrated general disregard for animal welfare,” adding, “It also follows a recent incident in which a horse’s head was left outside the home of a hockey player in Cookstown.”
Kings fans may think they’re tough, but they’ve never gone “Godfather” on goaltender Dan Cloutier.
Durant, Durant
The thought of moving from Seattle to Oklahoma City doesn’t appear to weigh heavy on the mind of SuperSonics rookie Kevin Durant.
The team has already filed to relocate on the prairie, of which Durant told Ok-
news.com, “There’s not a great deal I can do about it. You can’t pick where you go in the draft, and you can’t pick where you’re going to play as a team. But wherever we do end up, we’re still the same team.”
The people of Oklahoma are going to be so sorry to hear that.
Ratings winner
The NCAA championship game everyone at TV Land is dying to see: North Carolina versus West Virginia.
Andy Griffith’s alma mater versus Don Knotts’ alma mater.
Call it Mayberry ReFereeD.
The Wright stuff
Detroit pitcher Dontrelle Willis, playing interviewer during a Topps TV show, had a stick-to-your-day-job moment when he asked the New York Mets’ David Wright, “Who’s one of the toughest pitchers you’ve faced in the league, man, and why?”
Wright jumped on the softball question like it was a Willis pitch, saying, “I would say you, but I own you.”
Not the first time Willis has hung one to Wright, who has a .359 career batting average against him.
Back to the future
This week’s Sweet 16 includes flashback moments as UCLA plays Western Kentucky and Kansas plays Villanova.
Those were the matchups that did not happen in 1971, when the same teams made the Final Four and UCLA played Kansas and Western Kentucky played Villanova in the semifinals.
Of course, Western Kentucky and Villanova were later forced by the NCAA to vacate their spots in 1971 -- something that is likely to happen again this week by decree of their opponents.
Trivia answer
Marquette in 1970. Coach Al McGuire, in a dispute with the NCAA over where his 22-3 Warriors would be placed in a regional, went to the NIT instead and won the tournament. UCLA won the NCAA title.
And finally
Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka told MLB.com, “I’ve already forgotten about last year. I did all right in the postseason games, but I’m not satisfied with my performance last year.
“But I hope to make the best of last year’s experience.”
Phew, good thing he’s not losing any sleep dwelling on last year.
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