It’s time to sift through the futon and share what is found between the cushions, in a feature within a feature affectionately titled “Futon Report Crumbs.” This week, I’ve found a little bit of MAC basketball, some leftover Super Bowl poor betting advice, and what appears to be the Detroit Tigers bullpen.

Well, jeez, there’s a clear level of superiority when it comes to which division is better in Mid-American Conference men’s basketball. In the last week we’ve had the league’s first crop of inter-division games (East vs. West), and the East has won an astounding 11 of the first 12 matchups, with the exception of West-leading Ball State topping East-struggling Ohio 51-44 on January 31. (No truth to the rumor Eastern Michigan tried to schedule Sylvania Southview HS for their BracketBuster game.) On the whole, MAC East teams have been blowing out their western pardners by an average — AVERAGE! — of 16 points per game (66-50). Five more inter-divisional games will be played on Saturday, including UT’s home game against Miami (13-7, 6-2). Even Sammy Villegas would know where the smart money lies in that matchup.

There’s no doubt this imbalance in MAC basketball is in direct response to the MAC East getting kicked around by the West in football last year. Case in point: the West had four bowl teams, while the East had only one. But keep this in mind, fans of East teams. The regular season is one thing. The championship game — which saw the underdog East champion Buffalo shock Ball State at Ford Field — is something else.

ALPHA BETTING — Well, the Alphabet Theory of Determining Super Bowl Winners was tested on Sunday and emerged with mixed results. No, the Arizona Cardinals did not win, but the Steelers did buck the trend for the second straight chance. The good news? Sure enough, the 23rd letter in the alphabet is ‘W,’ for Kurt Warner, and 23 is exactly the number of points the Cardinals scored. While I am almost convinced, we will probably have to wait for the third time Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers reach the Super Bowl, find another outrageous pattern, and see if it holds true.

LOOK WHO’S BACK — It appears Jonathan Amos is no longer suspended from UT’s basketball team. We’ll have to wait and see how much playing time he’ll get against Miami, but the entire suspension has been fascinating. It’s been no secret that Amos and head coach Gene Cross have not exactly seen eye to eye. But once Amos was put in the corner by Cross, I have a feeling Amos, a senior, looked at his graduation date, then saw when Cross’ contract expired, then thought to himself, “well, heck, I’m not going to win this battle.”

10, 9, 8, 7… ER, BLASTOFF! — The Detroit Tigers pitchers and catchers report to spring training on February 13. That’s seven days from now. It’s funny how most sports count down to opening day, while the eternally hopeful baseball fans count down to the earliest of early days of spring training. And even then, guys like new Tigers catcher Gerald Laird will be there much sooner. So what’s the point of the countdown widget on The Tigers’ official site when it’s not entirely accurate?

This entry was posted on Friday, February 6th, 2009 at 12:18 pm and is filed under Futon Report, Sports.
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