SHIPP OVERBOARD!!

“JAWSh” Shipp put a bite on the Bears, and believe it or not, despite all the controversial calls this weekend, everything was “ABOVE BOARD.”

Glass-bottom Shipp-shot sinks the Navy & Gold for UCLA’s second straight titanic comeback, 81-80

Just when you think it’s safe to go back in the water, you see two icebergs.  But then you beat the Lopez Twins, and relax for Cal.  But the Pac-10’s leading scorer – with ice in his veins – along with the ice cold Bruins, created an Icebearg.  And then, your Shipp makes a manuever that Captains Queeg AND Sparrow would be proud of, and the Bay Area is torpedoed once again.

For the second game in a row, the Bruins got outplayed on their Home Court, despite Saturday being Lorenzo Mata-Real’s final game at Pauley.  Cal opened up an early 21-10 lead, and kept the lead for the rest of the game… almost.

Thanks to some key shots by Darren Collison, tough drives by Russell Westbrook, and clutch Rebounds by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, not to mention another “stepping-up-to-the-plate” by Kevin Love, the Bruins managed to close the gap. 

They trailed by 4 with less than a half a minute to go, when Love, who had missed badly on his previous attempts from Downtown, hit an impossible Trey, which to get off, he had to double-clutch in mid-air to shake the defender.  Then Westbrook and Shipp’s double-team of Ryan Anderson allowed Russell to strip the ball, which caromed off Anderson’s leg out of bounds.  After an effort by Collison was blocked, the Bruins had one last chance, and with 1.5 seconds left, Josh Shipp found himself on the baseline, so he lobbed a rainbow over the corner of the backboard into the hoop for a 1-Point lead.

Just like the Stanford fans who didn’t feel that the body contact on Collison was enough to warrant Free Throws (which forced Overtime), the Cal fans will swear that the ball literally went OVER the backboard, and was therefore illegal.  According to the Refs, it might have just barely gone over the corner, but it was just too close to disallow with the naked eye, and replay review is not allowed for this type of play.

So the Bear fans can grumble, but it wasn’t a “horrible” call.  It was a very close play, and the Refs decided to let the miracle shot stand, rather than take it off the board on the slight chance that it MIGHT have gone over the corner.

But the Bear fans are grumbling about more than just that play.  On the Turnover that preceded it, they think that Westbrook committed a foul on the arm.  Both Refs were blocked, and even with the aid of replay, there is no visual evidence supporting the Bear fans’ point of view.  The replays show what could have very well been a clean swipe at the ball, which then could have gone off Anderson’s leg.

So the whole Country can whine about “Pauley Callies,” but the Bruins – and the Refs – have nothing to be ashamed about.  The Bruins worked their butts off to fight their way back into these games, and never quit despite setbacks that occurred in the final minute of each game.  Love scored 22, Luc had his second straight Double-Double, and Westbrook finished with 18 Points, as the Bruins battled back from an 11-Point, mid-Second Half deficit.  Cal’s Jamal Boykin scored 18 very impressive Points, and Pac-10 Scoring Leader Anderson woke up after a slow start to add 21, so if the Bruins and Bears meet again in the Pac-10 Tourney, considering Howland’s approach to it, the Bears should NOT be taken for granted, and a loss could cost the Bruins their #1 Seed in March Madness.  So make sure to watch, and even better, go down to the Staples Center and cheer the Bruins on.

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Below are 29 hidden-captioned photos from the season’s FINAL game at Pauley.  Enjoy and savor them, but don’t despair – We’ll be posting many, many more over the next few days.

 This was Love’s HUGE Three - He says that the defender actually touched the ball, forcing the double-clutch, that was Love trying to draw a foul!

Okay Mollie, I begrudgingly admit that backlighting CAN work just FINE!

This is Steve Lavin’s Wife at the game — Obviously, it’s not just his HAIR that’s SLICK.

This is the biggest Turnover that Westbrook has ever Russelled up.

Right after the big Turnover, Westy does a confident little fist-pump.

This is the Celebration BEFORE the final .7 seconds.

Luc’s old-fashioned Three-Point-Play with about 5 min. left got the crowd on their feet

Love HURTS… the rim!

Love is smiling at the student section, who just responded to his request for more noise

It’s Mata-Real’s last Pauley intro — But was it Love’s?

Is that like a Benny Hill headpat?

Don’t give Darren the raspberry until the game is OVER.

“Are you kidding me?  YOU guys are going to ruin OUR season?”

Love’s wingspan and strength allow him to block out two guys at once.

Working HARD on the Defensive end

The Bruins made them EARN their Points down the stretch.

Bear down!

Bear down, part two, with a sympathetic audience.

ESPN’s #1 College Basketball Player of All Time, Lew Alcindor, aka Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, indahouse.

The 1968 NCAA Champions!

HEEL the Bay… Area teams who got stiletto’ed this weekend.

Can you remember another time when each girl was dressed differently?  In this routine, which made Lavin bring up Victoria’s Secret, it’s no secret that the “varying wardrobe” concept FITS PERFECTLY.

Things are starting to TILT the Bruins’ way.

Grabbing good photos of these girls is like stealing candy from a baby - in fact, just tell the baby to point and click, and he’ll get great shots too.

The whole Adidas company should feel honored that they get to “adorn the adorable.”

A cut above.

Ember-stoking.

Cheerleading is a great way to pick up girls.

After a day like yesterday, we had to finish on a high note.

Comments

3 responses to “SHIPP OVERBOARD!!”

  1. Steve Avatar
    Steve

    The new white outfits are sweet. The other ones, not so much.

  2. JP Avatar
    JP

    Whoa, those were some nice photos! It’s nice to see them in ‘outside’ clothes. You need to post more of that performance. GORGEOUS! JUST GORGEOUS!

  3. Jason Canfield Avatar
    Jason Canfield

    PROFESSIONAL WORK!!! We love the diversity of pictures…everything from STAR BASKETBALL PLAYERS, HOT BABES, and GENTLE MARINES protecting baby bruins…you’re the MAN! Sorry we missed you………we looked.

    Semper Fi