Video-Dukies going to Final Four

A great highlight video from the Regional Championship game Sunday night, after the game, cutting down the net, the ride back to Duke, etc.

inspiring stories for a Monday

Instead of reading an inspiring story today on my blog, I am posting this ESPN video for you to watch. It is about Duke's Nolan Smith, and how he has been inspired to play ball by his late father.

ESPN Video - Duke defeats Baylor to head to the Final Four

family photo Sunday

We celebrated Dad's 84th birthday in SC this weekend. These photos from his younger days including the ship he served on during WWII.

so true, so true

Good cartoon by Gary Varvel - sums it up very well!

Duke advances to the "Sweet Sixteen"

It's on to Houston for the Sweet Sixteen this weekend , as the Duke Blue Devils advanced by beating the California Bearcats on Sunday, 68-53. My only complaint was that the game took place between 5:20- 7:20 pm. I came home from church to watch the replay of the game online at CBSsports.com, but CBS did not post the video until 9:40 pm. I guess I should have recorded it, but I still was able to watch it, and the Dukies were in command of the entire game. Many people thought the Dukies would be playing Louisville on Sunday, but the California Bearcats surprised us all. And I think all "brackets" are busted now that Kansas lost this past weekend as well.

Looking forward to Duke vs Purdue on Friday night!

Links to read highlighted below:

Duke, the no. 1 seed in the South Region, and no. 3 overall is one of three top seeds headed to the Sweet Sixteen. The other two top seeds are Syracuse and Kentucky. Kansas lost to Northern Iowa State on Saturday in the biggest upset of the tournament so far.

Top-Seeded Duke Rolls Past Cal, 68-53

Nolan Smith was looking forward to playing Louisville on Sunday as the article below mentions - that was the team his dad played for in college, but California surprised us all...

Nolan Smith's Performance Key in Duke's Win

If I had to choose one thing that makes Duke different this year, it would be the outstanding play of the big man, 7'1" Brian Zoubek. Did growing a beard make him a better player? Since mid-season, Zoubek has ended many games with double-doubles including Sunday. Jon Scheyer needs a break now and then:)

Zoubek Looms Large for Duke

Photo gallery at Charlotte News Observer

inspiring stories for a Monday

If you have time, you should view the slideshow posted at the ethiHOPEia blog. Dan Forrest posted the link on his blog and it was very heartwarming to view. This is the blog site of his brother, Jacob, and his wife who adopted a child from Ethiopia recently. They were approved to adopt a brother and sister in the August 2008, but the girl died in October 2008 just before the adoption was complete. Dan Forrest wrote and published a piece called "Good Night Dear Heart" which is included at the end of the slideshow - as Jacob and his wife were able to visit her tiny grave in Ethiopia - marked “Etsegenet Forrest”. link to ethiHOPEia.com

family photo Sunday

Grandma Baggett meets Charlie T for the first time!

Slideshow - Spring is officially here!

Duke advances with a win over UAPB

Since Georgia Tech was playing at the same time, we could not watch the game on regular TV, so we watched the Dukies on the internet at CBSsports.com. The outcome was pretty much what I expected as Duke beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 73-44. It was a good game for Duke in the sense the starters did not have to play the entire game. Miles Plumlee, a sophomore, and his brother Mason Plumlee, a freshman, and Andre Dawkins, another freshman, were able to play a lot of minutes in the game tonight. Dawkins even fouled out of the game! Read recap at this link to ESPN

(Jon Scheyer autographs basketballs after practice on Thursday in Jax, Florida! Brandon, Rachel and Charlie T were there but they did not get any autographs.)

Video highlights of Duke, ACC Champs

2010 ACC CHAMPS video from Dukeblueplanet

Top 10 Plays - ACC Tournament presented by Kyle Singler and Andre Dawkins

Videos - Dukies no. 3 seed overall for the NCAA tourney

What a great game as Duke defeated Georgia Tech to win the ACC Tournament Championship for the 9th time in the last 12 years! Georgia Tech is one of the best teams in the ACC and I was glad that Duke played them (and won!) Of course, I have very little voice left as this was a close one. It was a good preview of what the NCAA tourney will be like for the Blue Devils. I am really glad for Jon Scheyer who is one of the best to ever play at Duke. He deserved to finish the year with a winning tournament, and thanks to his 3 point shot at the end Duke came away with a win and trophy. This win also boosted Duke into the no. 3 overall seed for the NCAA tournament which begins on Thursday.



Ok, except for the game tonight, when the #64 and #65 teams have to play-in to the tourney. Winthrop and Univ of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) get to play each other and the winner plays Duke on Friday! Duke is in the South Region bracket and some at ESPN are saying the South is the easiest bracket of the the top 4 teams. Nothing is easy when it comes to the NCAA tournament! Duke needs to keep playing with a sense of urgency, and team work. Keep giving Brian Zoubek a lot of time in the game and he can make a difference, too. It is hard to rebound the ball when a 7 footer is lurking in the lane! As long as Scheyer, Singler, and Smith are having a good night, the Dukies will go a long way in the tourney. They have worked their way up from the #12 or #13 in the polls to #4 in last week, and to the #3 spot in both polls this week!
see video below:

Inspiring stories for a Monday

While watching basketball recently, I was inspired to hear about the story of Tanner Smith who plays for Clemson. And after doing some research on line, I found out that he grew up in Alpharetta, Ga, which is "next door" to our county of Gwinnett. In the fourth grade, he wrote an essay "If I Had Three Wishes." His first wish was for a golden retriever, his second wish was to play professional basketball. But his third wish was most unusual, as he wished "to make kids with cancer laugh." Two years later in the sixth grade, Tanner reiterated his wish "to make kids with cancer laugh"

The Smiths turned their son's dream into a reality, stuffing smiles and kindness alongside toys and trinkets into Tanner's Totes, the grab bags of goodies the family's nonprofit company delivers to preteens and teenagers battling cancer and other long-term ailments. In seven years the family has delivered more than 1,200 totes.

"Plenty of people are affected by cancer, but not everyone is spurred to action by it," said Clemson coach Oliver Purnell. "That's what makes Tanner and his parents extraordinary. They did something
about it."

to read more click this link to "From childhood wish to lasting legacy..."

Visit the website at this link to Tannertotes.com

family photo Sunday

Sophie, our little giraffe

The kids must have had "zoo day" at home some time in the past few months. With the cold winter weather, it helps to have some indoor fun!

Duke over Miami, 77-74

I like the headline at Duke.edu "Blue Devils Weather the Hurricanes" . For awhile in the first half, I thought Duke was going to blow the Canes away. The Dukies were ahead 30-18, but the Miami team went on a run and ended the first half leading Duke 33-30. Unbelievable! The refs had a little trouble calling fouls consistently in the first half, so much so that Coach K said something that they did not want to hear, and was called for a technical foul. Right after that Coach K took his jacket off and the Miami coach followed suit.

Fortunately, Coach K inspired his team to come back at the beginning of the second half and play Duke basketball. I would love to have been a fly on the wall at half-time. :) They were able to maintain a 7-10 point lead much of the second half, with Miami scoring their final points with 2 seconds left. The final score was 77-74. The Dukies will play in the ACC tournament championship game tomorrow at 1:00 pm. They will face a very good Georgia Tech team as the Yellow Jackets defeated North Carolina State this afternoon 57-54.

Click to view photo gallery

Duke beats a tough Virginia team today

The "three S's" playing for Duke pictured from left to right, Kyle Singler, Jon Scheyer, and Nolan Smith. Together they average over 52 points per game, but not today:
Singler scored 18, Scheyer scored 15, Smith scored 15 for a total of only 48 points - the final score was
Duke 57, Virginia 46

Duke won a tough game today and will be playing the #12 team in the ACC (Miami) on Saturday at 1:30 pm in a semi-final game.


Photo gallery at Charlotte News-Observer.com


Click to read recap . .

Thoughts of an upset had invigorated the Greensboro Coliseum when No. 9 seed Virginia trimmed top-seeded Duke’s 11-point lead to two with 6 minutes, 22 seconds remaining in the second half.

But Smith tipped in a Singler miss, Scheyer cleverly shook free to make a 12-foot bank shot, and Singler added a putback of his own. The game was no longer in question, especially with Duke’s defense consistently denying Virginia good looks at the basket in a 57-46 win.

Dukies ready for ACC tourney and more

So happy to report that Duke destroyed UNC on Saturday night! The final score was 82-50 but it could have been worse. Ok, it was not a normal Duke vs UNC game and there was no nail-biting or screaming or slapping the floor at my house. But it was fun to watch the team I love beat the team I . . . well "hate" is too strong of a word - I just like to watch UNC lose and it does not matter who they are playing!

The ACC tourney begins on Thursday, and Duke should be playing Friday. I would not be surprised to see Duke and Maryland play for the championship. Then next week the NCAA tourney begins and I was also happy that Duke remains the #4 team, even though they lost to Maryland last Weds. night. The Dukies could be a #1 seed in the NCAA after all.

Links to highlights from the internet:

AP Headline: Duke Mauls North Carolina, 82-50
Photo gallery from the Duke-UNC game

Quotes from the coaches and players

Is Duke as good as Roy Williams says?

ACC tourney schedule

family photo Sunday

Great picture of Janelle with Layton and Brielle taken during one of their major snowstorms last month.

Slideshow: March Family Birthdays

Baggett family birthdays:
3.02 Josh York, husband of cousin Amy Baggett York in AR
3.03 Bradley Blackstock, son of cousin Mike and Susan in AR
3.04 Denton Bell, husband of cousin Rhonda Baggett Bell in AR
3.07 Sheryl Baggett Griego, daughter of Uncle Kelsea in CA
3.10 Allison Baggett Michau, daughter of Uncle Leslie in AR
3.12 Uncle Les Baggett, youngest son of Joe and Mildred in AR
3.24 Jeremiah Baggett, son of John Baggett in TX
3.24 Nick Williams, son of Christina Blackstock Williams in AR
3.27 Joshua Franklin, son of Cynthia Baggett Franklin in PA
3.28 Joel Baggett, son of John Baggett in TX

Franklin family birthdays:
3.01 Mike Daly, husband of cousin Donna Daly in SC
3.09 Loretta Franklin, my sister in SC
3.20 April Logan, daughter of my sister Debbie in NY
3.24 Jamie Pettit, son of cousin Dianne Pettit in SC
3.26 Christopher Pettit, son of Jamie Pettit in SC
3.26 Gene Franklin, my dad in SC
3.27 Joshua Franklin, my son in PA

3.17 Payton Wilkie, granddaughter of cousin Barbara in SC

Dukies work their way up to #4

The Duke Blue Devils have been a work in progress this year and now have a #4 standing in the polls to prove it. I have to agree with a local Durham, NC, sportswriter whose headline reads "Don't be surprised if the Blue Devils make post-season run"! (click to read)

This is a special week as the season winds down, they call it "judgment week" on ESPN. Duke plays the Maryland Terps Wednesday night at 9 PM. Maryland is the no. 2 team in the ACC. The regular season ends this weekend when North Carolina visits Duke. This is usually one of the biggest games of the season, but North Carolina is struggling to win games this year. After the games of this week, the ACC tournament will be played the following week with the championship game on Sunday, March 14th. And then the "big dance" begins on Thursday, March 18th on CBS. March Madness is upon us!