the urge to zurza

BOSTON -- The man in the green pullover had been griping for hours, his ire shifting from Jermaine O'Neal ("You're terrible") to Kevin Garnett ("Shoot, KG!") to Paul Pierce ("Run, Paul!"). Finally, with the clock ticking down in the Celtics' 88-79 loss to the Bulls, the agitated -- and yes, a little bit drunk -- fan had one final message for his team.

FRIDAY Cleveland State (14-3, 4-1 Horizon) at Butler (9-8, 3-2), 7 p.m., ESPNU It?s a little early for Butler to begin its annual surge. Last season?s didn?t begin until early February following the Bulldogs? fourth loss in five games. Ironically, the comeback started with a win at Cleveland State. Butler is still not very pretty to watch (the team ranks 257th in the country in scoring, 305th in three-point percentage and 319th in free throw percentage), but you know it loves the rims in Hinkle Fieldhouse. Plus, the Bulldogs had six days to work on the problems that led them to lose at Detroit on Sunday. Butler 56, Cleveland State 52 SATURDAY No. 2 Kentucky (16-1, 2-0 SEC) at Tennessee (8-7, 1-0), Noon, ESPN This has all the makings of a trap game. Kentucky had to scrap to shake off a plucky but less-talented Auburn team on the road. Tennessee knocked off Florida at home last weekend and will be amped to do the same to UK. The reason I am still going with the Wildcats is mostly because of scheduling: the Volunteers had to play Thursday night at Mississippi State, where they lost by four. That?s less than 48 hours to turn around for a noon tipoff. So I?ll take UK by a slim margin, but if the Cats aren?t ready to battle from the opening tip, they?re gonna get clipped. Kentucky 72, Tennessee 68 No. 12 UNLV (16-2, 0-0 Mountain West) at No. 22 San Diego State (14-2, 0-0), 4 p.m., NBC Sports Network Steve Fisher joked with his players that they needed a mulligan after struggling to beat winless Chicago State by eight points Tuesday night. But Fisher is the one who needs the mulligan. That was just the Aztecs? third game since Dec. 22, and the previous two were against non-Division II schools. That's why they were so flat against Chicago State. UNLV, on the other hand, has played a rigorous nonconference schedule, and the Runnin? Rebels are a mature, defensive-minded team that leads the Mountain West in both steals (8.7 per game) and blocks (5.1). UNLV 69, San Diego State 64 Tennessee Tech (11-6, 3-1 OVC) at No. 15 Murray State (16-0, 4-0), 6 p.m., ESPNU Yes, you heard correctly. Writing on Twitter Wednesday night, I promised that if Murray State entered the NCAA tournament undefeated, I will sing the national anthem at one of the Racers? home games next season (if they?ll have me, that is). Fortunately for the United States of America, that will not come to pass. It?s only a matter of time before the Racers either lose or will remain the only unbeaten team in the country -- in which case the attention, the pressure, and the law of averages will catch up to them. Still, I'm a big fan of this team, and I like them to win this game because they?re at home, but they better be ready against Tennessee Tech squad that boasts two of the OVC?s top three scorers in Kevin Murphy and Jud Dillard. Murray State 75, Tennessee Tech 65 No. 17 UConn (13-3, 3-2 Big East) at Notre Dame (11-6, 3-1), 11 a.m., ESPN2 Shabazz Napier is supposed to be the stud sophomore point guard in this game, but he could learn a lot from Notre Dame?s Jerian Grant (Harvey?s son), who ranks sixth nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio and is in the top 10 of the Big East in assists (4.5) and three-point percentage (38.9). Napier, on the other hand, struggled offensively even when UConn was coming back to beat West Virginia Tuesday night. He had zero points and four turnovers to go along with his eight assists. Still, I do think having Jim Calhoun back has helped the Huskies regain their defensive mojo, and as freshman center Andre Drummond improves with every outing (he had 20 points and 11 rebounds against the Mountaineers), this team will really begin to take off. UConn 73, Notre Dame 68 Alabama (13-3, 2-0 SEC) at No. 20 Mississippi State (13-3, 0-1), 4 p.m., SEC Network Give Mississippi State credit for gutting out a tough win over Tennessee Thursday night. The victory wasn?t sealed until senior guard Dee Bost?s steal and dunk in the closing seconds. It may have been an ugly win, but I like a team that knows how to win ugly. Alabama, meanwhile, won its fifth straight game Wednesday over LSU behind a season-high 20 points from Trevor Releford. The Crimson Tide also got a surprising lift from the return of 6-foot-4 junior Andrew Steele, who has rejoined the team after sitting out the first 13 games because of concussion syndrome. The bottom line is, this is a conference game between comparable teams. I?ll take the one playing at home. Mississippi State 74, Alabama 67 Oregon (12-5, 3-2 Pac 12) at Arizona (12-5, 3-1), 3:30 p.m., CBS Arizona is fortunate that its third-leading scorer, 6-3 senior Kyle Fogg, is playing this game. Fogg nearly instigated a Xavier-Cincy-like brawl when he woofed in the face of Oregon State guard Jared Cunningham during overtime of the team?s Thursday night victory. Fogg was ejected, but he?ll play against the Ducks because he didn?t throw any punches. The Wildcats are having a hard enough time putting points on the board (they?re ranked eighth in the Pac 12 in scoring at 69.2 ppg) without losing their poise when they do. I think they?ll win at home against an Oregon team that has lost two of its last three, even though Minnesota transfer Devoe Joseph has brought an additional 15.1 points per game since becoming eligible in mid-December. Arizona 67, Oregon 60 Colorado (11-5, 3-1) at Stanford (14-3, 4-1), 4 p.m., Fox Sports Network If this was the week where Colorado has a chance to prove that it?s real, then the Buffaloes are off to a decent start. It?s not easy to go into Haas Pavilion and win right now, but Colorado took Cal down to the wire before losing by seven. This is a very tough defensive team that boasts the nation?s fourth-leading rebounder (Andre Roberson) and leads the Pac 12 in defensive field goal percentage. I expect CU?s next game to play out the same way its last one did: The Buffs will compete hard, keep it close, but eventually go down to defeat. Stanford 60, Colorado 56 SUNDAY No. 7 Indiana (15-2, 3-2 Big Ten) at No. 5 Ohio State (15-3, 3-2), 4:30 p.m., CBS Indiana was bound to come back to earth, right? The Hoosiers looked mentally drained during their loss at home to Minnesota Thursday night, although they did wake up in the last few minutes and nearly came back to win. Their week isn't getting any easier. They have to travel to Columbus to play an Ohio State team that has double incentive -- its loss at Illinois on Wednesday and its loss to Indiana in Assembly Hall on New Year?s Eve. Further, Ohio State won't have to worry about defending Illini guard Brandon Hall, who torched them 43 points. Ohio State needs to tighten up its D because this isn?t the greatest outside shooting team, but given all these circumstances it?s hard to imagine the Buckeyes not finding a way to win. Ohio State 73, Indiana 66 Georgia Tech (8-8, 1-1 ACC) at Maryland (11-4, 1-1), 4 p.m., ACC Network Mark Turgeon notched his first ACC victory as Maryland?s coach Wednesday night when the Terps beat Wake Forest at home. Protecting homecourt is an absolute must if Maryland is going to have any shot of making the NCAA tournament, so I expect they?ll do it again. Maryland got 20 points from sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin, but at some point the Terps are going to have to get more offensive output from newly added 7-1 freshman Alex Len, who is still getting into game shape and managed just five points against the Demon Deacons. Georgia Tech, meanwhile, is coming in with some confidence. The Yellow Jackets nearly knocked off Duke last weekend and snapped a four-game losing streak at N.C. State Wednesday night behind 22 points from Glen Rice Jr. Maryland 70, Georgia Tech 67 Last week: 8-2 Overall: 43-17

1. It's a brave new world for both teams.

The Hue Jackson error in Oakland is over, and as it turns out, maybe the Raiders are starting to make progress after all.

NEW ORLEANS -- I was completely prepared to do my part for a split national title if LSU lost a close one to Alabama on Monday. I had examined all the factors, and I had decided that in the event of a true one-possession game -- not a comeback-in-garbage-time close game, but a real nail-biter -- LSU's résumé merited a first-place vote on my Associated Press poll ballot.

While we’re opening up about blogging—I have an odd obsession with my blog contacts. People hear that I am a blogger and many instantly ask me where I guest post and how they can get involved. I am a huge blog enthusiast, so I love to hear that more people are becoming interested. I think blogging is a great way for people to connect with other like-minded people, and I love getting to know other bloggers. However, I find that I am very territorial over my editor contacts, and this is why:

Why I Hate Giving Out My Blog Contacts

• It takes a long time to find a quality website that allows guest posts. It’s hard work, and I don’t think I would appreciate these sites quite as much if someone just handed the contact over.
• It is difficult to get your article posted on a blog, so why would I want even more competition? You never know if someone else is writing about something similar and there may be a select number of guest posts allowed per month.
• Finding a great editor isn’t easy. I have worked with some wonderful editors, and some editors who were not so wonderful. This had made me appreciate my relationship with each and every one of them for what it is. In fact, this is one of my favorite parts about the job. I think going through these experiences is important for a blogger.

So when someone comes to me and says, “I’m starting a small business. What are some good websites that will allow guest posts?” I have a hard time giving up all of my information. I know how many links my contacts allow, how long it will take them to publish my article, and what specific details they like in an article, but it is only because I went through a back and forth with them.

When it comes to the sites that have all of their guidelines explicitly listed on their webpage, I really get irritated. I usually will just point people to that page, but part of being a blogger is being resourceful. If you want to know what sites I contribute to, visit my Google+ page. If you want to know how to submit a guest post, visit the website’s requirements page.

However, after all of the hesitancy and negativity is over, I realize that giving away some of your contacts may not be the worst thing in the world for a few different reasons:

Why Giving Out My Blog Contacts Is for the Best

• The more people you know on a site, the better. If you have a personal relationship with other writers on a website, you can certainly help each other out with comments and social sharing. This will not only help you look good in the eyes of the editor, but it will help ensure that your content gets out to more people. It’s a “the more the merrier” attitude.
• If you give out your contacts to someone, they should be willing to do the same. Once they get more familiar with the process, they will be able to find quality sites on their own. In the end, both people could benefit greatly.
• When I look back to when I was a new blogger, I remember it being somewhat overwhelming. It truly is tough to even know where to begin. I was grateful that I had someone to help get me going, and there is no reason I shouldn’t help others

It may seem a little bit immature to have such a debate about something so simple, but who doesn’t have those moments in their career? It’s easy to fall into this selfish pattern and mindset, so it’s good to take a second and consider whether or not it’s really worth it. What are your thoughts on blog contacts?

Photo Credit: writetodone.com

Amanda DiSilvestro is a writer on topics ranging from social media to employee background checks. She writes for an online resource that gives advice on topics including blogging advice to small businesses and entrepreneurs for the leading business directory, Business.com.

NEW ORLEANS -- At first, trainers told LSU offensive guard Josh Dworaczyk that he might have only damaged his medial collateral ligament. Dworaczyk knew better. He had felt the telltale pop when a defensive end rolled into his knee during an inside run drill in preseason camp in August. "Something's wrong," the three-year starter said. "Something's off."

LaVar Arrington's anger is understandable, but misguided. The former Penn State linebacker can't believe Penn State's search committee would go outside the Penn State family to choose a football coach. The hiring of Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien -- which Penn State hopefully will announce before the season opener on Sept. 1 -- indicates those in charge in State College desire a clean break from the Joe Paterno era, which has been irrevocably tainted by the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal.

Kings co-owner Joe Maloof told SI.com that Paul Westphal's statement alleging that second-year center DeMarcus Cousins demanded a trade was not approved before being released.

The UAB Blazers will open up Conference USA play on Saturday at home against Memphis. It's the kind of big game where the Blazers could use the help of a skilled, veteran center. Todd O'Brien, a 7-foot, 250-pound, fifth-year senior from New Holland, Pa., would very much like to provide that help. He's hoping against hope he'll have the chance.