A Pearl of a decision by NCAA

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3. Pathological liar Bruce Pearl says the NCAA made an example out of him when it penalized him so severely for his shenanigans at Tennessee that it will be years before he ever has a shot at another job.

I say: It's about effin time.

There is nothing worse than a coach getting a program in trouble and then moving onto another job -- often a better one. While the program he left behind takes years to recover, he cashes seven-figure paychecks.

Maybe if cheaters know they -- and not just the programs they leave behind -- will be punished severely, they won't be so bold in the first place.

Maybe.

2. And speaking of Tennessee basketball, that's an amazing -- and amazingly sad -- story about Pat Summitt. At 59, for her to be diagnosed with early-onset dementia, it only reinforces the idea that none of us should take health (or life) for granted.

Life ... death ... illness ... none of that stuff cares if you're famous or altruistic or happy or good-looking. Stuff happens to anybody anytime.

Summitt is planning to keep coaching the Vols, and I hope her assistants and players are ready to give her the support she needs. She deserves the right to keep doing the thing she loves, the thing she was put on this earth to do.

1. When Dick Jauron was in his final days as Bears coach, his few supporters argued that because the team didn't quit, he should get to keep his job.

I argued that not quitting is the minimum expected of every athlete, coach and team, be they hockey peewees or 350-pound NFLers. You don't get extra points for doing your job.

So when a team does pull a Sarah Palin, something that happens all too often in sports, it really is an indictment of the coach or manager.

Now, I'm not in Minnesota and I don't see the Twins every day. But I do see the scoreboard and the box scores. And it sure appears that team is mailing it in. Day after day, it's 8-1, 6-1, 7-1, 3-0, whatever. This with a team that includes former MVPs Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau in the middle of a lineup that also includes Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel and Jim Thome.

I've always respected Ron Gardenhire as a manager. He has done too good a job for too long to get fired after one year like this. But this is pretty damning stuff, and it certainly is something to watch for 2012.

As was the case in Cleveland, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and everywhere else that got a cool, new ballpark ... the cool, new ballpark draws fans for only so long. The team still has to win.

Or, at the very least, the athletes have to act like they care.
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A lady? Maybe. But she's no journalist

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ESPN's Jemele Hill has written a thought-provoking piece on the whole flap regarding Ines Sainz, the TV "journalist" who was treated like crap by the New York Jets.

READ IT.

Jemele's column reminded me of the one I wrote about Erin Andrews back in 2008, the piece that temporarily caused a storm of biblical proportions.

Sainz did not deserve to be treated so shabbily, obviously. But when a model (who regularly does publicity stunts for a living) tries to pass herself off as a legitimate journalist, it's a recipe for trouble.

Sainz's act makes it difficult for the hundreds of outstanding female sports journalists - those in TV, radio and print - to do their jobs. And I echo Jemele Hill in wondering why some of those people immediately rushed to Sainz's defense.

Switching topics, here's for the commenter who asked for my take on the Bruce Pearl situation ...

This is the classic case of reaping what one sows. As longtime Illinois basketball followers know, it was Pearl, then an Iowa assistant, who ratted out the Illini for alleged recruiting crimes involving Deon Thomas some two decades ago, leading to NCAA sanctions against Illinois.

Now here comes Pearl, it hot water with the NCAA over his own lying and cheating. Beautiful.

As is the case with many holier-than-thou people - Jay Mariotti fits this category, too - the fall is hard when the "thou's" prove to be most unholy.
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Bo should know the NIT

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The Bald Truth

If Wisconsin gets invited to the NCAA tournament, it will because of reputation alone.

The Badgers are 19-12 and have one victory all season over a ranked team - at Michigan in their Big Ten opener. That also serves as their most "quality" road victory. 

They even lost at Iowa - and that's not easy.

Though the selection committee might end up ruling differently, logic suggests the Badgers had to beat Ohio State in the conference tourney Friday to sew up an NCAA bid ... and they couldn't do it.

Bo Ryan is a great coach, but this isn't one of his better teams. It certainly isn't a team worthy of playing in the NCAAs. 

The Balder Truth

Syracuse players are many things, including tough, resilient and well-conditioned. Given their ability to follow a six-overtime victory over UConn with a run-of-the-mill single-OT triumph over West Virginia, "impressive" works well, too. 

OK, now can all commentators please stop with all the talk of "courage"?

The Orangemen didn't rush into a burning building to save lives, didn't go off to war, didn't even take a difficult public stand on a controversial issue.

They are basketball players who played lots of basketball.

Yes, they played it very well, but I sure hope that's not how we're defining "courage" these days. 

THE BALDEST TRUTH

Jon Scheyer clanked the front end of a 1-and-1. Boston College then grabbed the rebound and the Eagles, who trailed Duke by one point in the ACC quarterfinals, were steaming up court with a chance to win the game.

That's when coach Al Skinner called a time out.

And he wasn't finished showing how smart he was. Oh no, not even close.

BC got the ball inbounds and advanced it into the frontcourt ... when Skinner called time again. Now there were only 5.5 seconds left.

When play resumed, Duke overplayed Skinner's first option - Tyrese Rice - and BC ended up taking a wild, challenged shot that didn't come close to going in.

Why didn't Skinner simply trust his players, especially Rice, after that missed free throw? Isn't that why the Eagles had spent the last six months practicing, for those exact kind of situations?

With the Dookies scrambling to get back into defensive position, BC had every advantage.

Until Skinner called time. Twice.

Coach S apparently wanted to prove he was smarter than Coach K.

Gee. How did that work out?