GROVE POUNDS OUT VICTORY

(June 23): Keeping alive his flickering mixed martial arts career after sustaining back-to-back losses, Maui's Kendall Grove was awarded a split decision over former middleweight champion Evan Tanner.

Grove's victory, which seemed more decisive to this reporter, improved his UFC record to 11-5 and kept him in the running for a spot in a UFC card at Aloha Stadium, projected to take place next summer after Hawaii's MMA regulations go into effect.

Grove dominated the first two rounds of Saturday night's nationally televised bout, but appeared to lose a bit of steam in the final stanza.

Two judges scored the bout 30-26 for Grove, while another had it 29-28 for Tanner.

Maui's two major leaguers will be renewing acquaintances this week in Oakland as the Philadelphia Phillies, featuring center fielder Shane Victorino, pay a visit to the Athletics, featuring catcher Kurt Suzuki.

The three-game inter-league series begins Tuesday.

In yesterday's action, Victorino went 0-for-3 and walked once in a 3-2 loss to the Angels in a showdown between divisional leaders. The Phillies lead the National League East by one game over the Florida Marlins.

Victorino is batting .270 for the season and ranks sixth in the NL with 17 steals.

Suzuki went 1-for-4 and drove in a run in Oakland's 7-1 romp past Florida. A recent surge at the place has lifted Suzuki's average to .279. The A's, by the way, are second in the AL West, 4.5 games behind the Angels.

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SUPER RALLY? OR EPIC COLLAPSE?

(June 13): Depending on your perspective, it was either a classic comeback or an epic collapse.

I'll take the more positive approach and credit the Celtics for showing exceptional resiliency and determination by coming back from a 24-point road deficit to overtake and defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 97-91.

The stunning comeback pulled Boston to within one win of claiming the NBA title. Game 5 will be held on Father's Day in LA.

Things started well for the Lakers as Lamar Odom made all six of his shots, leading his team to 35-14 lead in the first quarter. And with Kobe Bryant concentrating on playmaking duties, the Lakers led by 18 at intermission although the MVP didn't make a single field goal in the first half.

The Lakers were up 70-50 midway through the third period when the Celtics locked down defensively and received major offensive contributions from Ray Allen as well as reserves James Posey and Eddie House. Allen had 19 points while playing all 48 minutes. Posey scored an unexpected 18. House hit the go-ahead basket.

And all this took place after Boston coach Doc Rivers was forced to improvise when it became evident that starting point guard Rajon Rondo was still severely hampered by a bum ankle and young center Kendrick Perkins left for good with a shoulder injury.

But Boston's biggest hero was Paul Pierce, who finished with 20 points and played exceptional individual defense after volunteering to guard Kobe after intermission. Bryant finished with 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting.

No team has ever come back to win the title after trailing 3-1 in the Finals. But, then again, no team had ever come back from a 24-point deficit, either.

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EX-PISTON ASSISTANTS TAKE TOP JOBS

(June 12): It's more than a bit ironic that Flip Saunders was fired by Detroit after guiding the Pistons to three straight conference finals, and his two assistants – Michael Curry
and Terry Porter—landed head-coaching positions.

Curry was promoted to the top job in Motown, while Porter will take over in Phoenix. Both men inherit veteran teams. Perhaps, too veteran.

Detroit GM Joe Dumars has vowed to make major changes to a core group that includes the likes of Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess.

Dumars says 10 teams have already contacted him and that a blockbuster deal should be expected. The hottest rumor is that the Pistons will make a play for Denver's high-scoring Carmelo Anthony.

Phoenix features former MVPs Shaquille O'Neal and Steve Nash as well as one of the league's best front-line players in Amare Stoudemaire.

It seems unlikely that any of those three are going anywhere, but there has been speculation that Leandro Barbosa and/or Boris Diaw might be dealt, although they are among the younger players on a decidedly aging roster.

Meantime, Atlanta head coach Mike Woodson's contract is up at the end of the month and still no word on whether he will be retained by new GM Rick Sund.

Woodson has compiled a dismal 106-222 record in his four seasons in Atlanta, but did guide the young Hawks to their first playoff berth in 10 seasons, extending the hugely favored Boston Celtics to seven games in the first round.

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LAKERS ARE BACK IN THE MIX

(June 11): The level of over-reaction to the early results of any playoff series continues to astound me after all these years.

Take the case of the current NBA Finals. After Boston won a pair of home games to take a 2-0 lead, many commentators were already burying the Lakers.

In fact, a cover story on the sports section of USA Today openly questioned whether Kobe Bryant would or could ever reach the heights attained by his obvious role model, the iconic Michael Jordan.

To compare anyone to Jordan is unfair. But it should be also noted that if championship rings are the main criteria for greatness – and I don't think they are – Kobe has won three of those at an age when MJ had only one.

Of course, Jordan went on to collect six before he was through. And for those who correctly not that Kobe's three came as a teammate of Shaq's, it is equally true that MJ didn't win until Scottie Pippen joined the Bulls.

The point I'm making is that we can't get too far ahead of ourselves in sports or anything else in life.

So how do we overreact to the latest development in the NFL Finals now that Kobe staged a spectacular performance, scoring 36, in leading Los Angeles to an 87-81 win over the visiting Celtics last night?

Remember that Tuesday's win would not have been possible if not for some sensational shooting by reserve Sasha Vujacic, who scored 20 -- making a trio of three-pointers when they mattered most – on a night that Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom struggled.

So LA has trimmed its deficit to 2-1 with two more home games remaining. And the level of hysteria among many Laker fans has abated. Well, for a couple of more days, that is.

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WINNING NOT ALWAYS ENOUGH

(June 4): Nothing short of an NBA Finals appearance apparently can assure a coach of retaining his job.

Consider this: Over the past three years, the coaches with the best regular-season records were – in order – Avery Johnson of the Dallas Mavericks with 178, Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs with 177 and Flip Saunders of the Detroit Pistons with 176.

Two of those three are now out of a job. Johnson was cashiered by Dallas after the Mavericks were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight year.

Saunders got the axe despite guiding Detroit to three straight conference finals.

Only Popovich retains his job, recently getting a contract extension. The difference
with Pop, of course, is that he's won four NBA titles with the Spurs.

It's not as if Saunders or Johnson will be lining up at their local unemployment office.

Detroit still owes Saunders an estimated $5 million for the remaining year on his contract. Johnson remains under contract with Dallas for the next three years and is owed $12 million.

The odds are that neither of those to competent coaches will be working this season. Two jobs remain open: in Phoenix and Chicago. But there are clear front-runners for both – Detroit assistant Terry Porter in Phoenix and Doug Collins in Chicago.

Another potential opening could be available in Atlanta, which could fire Mike Woodson although the Hawks ended a 10-year playoff drought this season. Go figure.

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LATEST SPIN ON NBA COACHING CAROUSEL

(June 3): Flip is out, Terry may be in and Nellie is coming back. Those are the latest developments on the NBA coaching carousel.

The Detroit Pistons announced today that Flip Saunders will not be back as coach next season. Saunders guided the Pistons to marks of 176-70 in the regular season and 30-21 in the playoffs, but they lost in the conference finals in each of those three years.

Saunders had one year left on the deal he signed in 2005 after replacing Larry Brown. He has 587 victories in 13 seasons with the Pistons and the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The hot rumor in Motown is that Saunders will be replaced by Michael Curry, one of his current assistants.

Another Pistons assistant, Terry Porter, is believed to be the top candidate to fill the vacancy in Phoenix, which is seeking a replacement for the departed Mike D'Antoni.

Some down time at his off-season home on Maui appears to have recharged the batteries of Don Nelson. The second-winningest coach in NBA history will fulfill the final season of his contract with Golden State.

The club exercised its $5 million option in March, when the team appeared on track for a second straight playoff appearance. After the team fell short of the post-season, despite winning 48 games, there had been speculation that Nellie might opt to retire.

Instead, a rejuvenated Nelson said he'll be back, but with a different focus. His goal is to assist in the development of Brandan Wright and Marco Belinelli, who saw limited action as rookies last season because of Golden State's ill-fated playoff bid.

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TAYLOR CAUGHT IN TUNA'S TRAP

(June 2): Jason Taylor held a press conference yesterday to clear up a few things. But despite addressing a number of issues, the seven-time Pro Bowl defensive end's future as a member of the Miami Dolphins remains cloudy.

Clearly, Taylor has become the victim of Bill Parcells' desire and apparent need to let everyone know – particularly his players – that he's the alpha dog in Miami. And how better to accomplish that than by putting the team's best player in his place?

With or without Taylor, the Dolphins are not going to contend this season as Parcells – the franchise's football chief -- remakes a 1-15 team into his hard-nosed image.

That Taylor opted to participate in Dancing With the Stars TV show gave Parcells an opportunity to show his new team that no one is safe from the wrath of The Tuna.

For his part, Taylor – just two seasons removed from winning NFL defensive player of the year honors -- said he has never demanded a trade, while adding he hopes to play one more season before pursuing an acting career.

Whether that will be as a member of the Dolphins, he did not – and could not – know. That is a question only Bill Parcells can answer.

The Dolphins tried to move Taylor to Jacksonville just before the draft, but the deal fell apart. And it appears unlikely that Miami can get equal value for Taylor, who has registered more sacks – 100.5 – than any player since 2000.

But Taylor will soon turn 34 and The Tuna's public posturing has done little to improve Miami's trade leverage with other teams. A small price to pay, apparently, for Parcells to show he's in charge.

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