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Preakness 2012 Post Positions: I'll Have Another Draws Post No. 9

2012-05-16T22:17:44Z

As the 2012 Preakness approaches, the post positions have been announced. Kentucky Derby winner I'll Have Another is chasing the second race of the coveted Triple Crown and hopes to win again at the Preakness. I'll Have Another drew the No 9. post position, putting the colt right near the outside of the rest of the field.

Here are the rest of the post position draws and the opening betting line:

1. Tiger Walk - 30/1
2. Teeth Of The Dog - 15/1
3. Pretension - 30/1
4. Zatterholm - 20/1
5. Went The Day Well - 6/1
6. Creative Cause - 6/1
7. Bodemeister - 8/5 (Morning Line favorite)
8. Daddy Knows Best - 12/1
9. I'll Have Another - 5/2
10. Optimizer - 30/1
11. Cazzetti - 30/1

For more on the Preakness Stakes and the race for the Triple Crown, stay with this StoryStream and check out SB Nation's horse racing blog And Down The Stretch They Come. There, you'll also find a A Beginner's Guide To Following Horse Racing and a glossary of horse racing terms.

Dwyane Wade Will Not Be Punished Further For Flagrant Foul

2012-05-16T17:23:46Z

According to a tweet by ESPN NBA writer Brian Windhorst, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade will not be punished further for the flagrant foul call from Game 2 of Miami's playoff series against the Indiana Pacers.

The NBA will not upgrade or further punish Dwyane Wade for his flagrant foul on Darren Collison last night.
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) May 16, 2012

If Wade had been suspended, it would have left the Heat without both him and forward Chris Bosh entering Game 3. The Heat are going to need to rebound on Thursday night as they play on the road in what promises to be a very emotional atmosphere at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

For more news, analysis, and discussion on the Heat, visit Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. For the opponent's perspective throughout the series, check out Indy Cornrows and SB Nation Indiana. And for all your news and notes on the playoffs matchups, visit SB Nation's dedicated NBA hub.

LeBron James And Dwyane Wade React To Indiana's Victory Celebration

2012-05-16T16:58:12Z

After Monday night's 78-75 loss to the Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat stars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade both reacted to the on-court celebration of Pacer players such as Danny Granger and Paul George jumping up and down in celebration on the American Airlines Arena floor. Wade took a little offense at what happened on the floor when he was interviewed.

I saw [Indiana's] little celebration at the end of that game. I don't know if they didn't expect to win. But every night we go out on the court, we expect to win. They stated their identity. They said they wanted to be like Dallas. So, they celebrated like Dallas, I guess.

James suggested in his interview with reporters, that the Pacers reacted in a way that the victory equals to more than one win in the playoff series. The Heat have some thinking to do ahead of Game 3 in Indianapolis. The Heat have to stay focused so that they can recapture the home court advantage or possibly close out the series there.

Conference Realignment: Derrick Brooks Says The Big 12 Contacted Florida State First

2012-05-16T15:57:35Z

Speculation linking the Florida State Seminoles to the Big 12 will not go away quietly, much to chagrin of FSU president Eric Barron. The latest conference jumping nugget was offered up by former Seminole and current Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Derrick Brooks. He told Tim Brando that the Big 12 actually made the first move, by contacting FSU about joining that conference.

Prior to this revelation, both Florida State officials and the Big 12 have denied that any conversations between the two entities have taken place. Brooks, a former FSU trustee, is the first higher up with any authority to claim otherwise on the record.

FSU athletic direction Randy Spetman denies Brooks' statement.

FSU AD Randy Spetman on Brooks' comments bout Big 12 contacting FSU: "I don't know where Derrick got that"
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyCBS) May 16, 2012

The news could present legal problems as issues with tampering and contract infringement surface. The ACC could sue to keep one of its most valuable programs from taking flight.

Florida State officials have made public intimations about the need to look elsewhere, even as other school officials say they are happy with membership in the ACC. The Seminoles stand to get a bigger piece of television revenue pie in the Big 12.

For more on Florida State football, visit the Seminoles blog blog Tomahawk Nation. For all your NCAA football news and notes, be sure to check out SB Nation's college football hub.

Da'Quan Bowers Injury: Buccaneers Have No Plans To Seek Outside Help, For Now

2012-05-16T14:18:16Z

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers suffered a costly offseason loss last week when defensive end Da'Quan Bowers tore his Achilles tendon, a potential season-ending injury. In the wake of the loss, Bucs general manager Mark Dominik told the Tampa Bay Times that the team has no current intention of looking for a replacement.

OTAs are just getting started. Training camp is three months away, giving the Bucs time to see if any of the other defensive ends on the roster can fill the void. Here's what Dominik told the press on Tuesday:

"Right now I think we're just trying to evaluate these men that we have here for a little bit before we feel like we need to do something," Dominik said. "But if it gets to the point where we feel like we have to do something, it's an important position."

Bowers was being counted on as key cog in the team's defense. Pass rushers are particularly important in the NFC South against division opponents that feature Drew Brees, Cam Newton and Matt Ryan.

There is an outside chance that Bowers returns before the end of the season. Last year's 2nd-round pick expressed confidence that he would see the field this year. Mark Dominik refused to rule out that possibility in his comments to the press.

Finding a replacement on the same level as Bowers will be difficult, with the upper and middle tier free agents long since signed. A few rebound candidates may shake loose as teams shuffle their depth charts. For now, Tampa Bay will hope they can find their own diamond in the rough.

For more Buccaneers coverage and discussion, check out Bucs Nation. SB Nation Tampa Bay will have updates on Bowers' status in this StoryStream.

2012 NBA Playoffs, Pacers Vs. Heat: Can Miami Withstand The Absence Of Chris Bosh?

2012-05-16T13:56:49Z

A collective grown echoed through South Florida on Monday morning when an MRI revealed that Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh had a strained abdominal muscle. That injury removes one third of Miami's terrifying troika of Bosh, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. It also leaves plenty of fans and experts wondering whether or not the Heat's playoff hopes are over.

A few ugly instances of play aside, James and Wade did a remarkable job of keeping their team's hopes alive in Game 2 on Wednesday night. Without the play of those two, a mere three-point loss could have been much worse. Nevertheless, it was clear the Heat missed Bosh's presence on the court.

Why is Bosh so important to the Heat? SB Nation's Andrew Sharp explains.

Even if he's been underwhelming for most of his two years in Miami, Bosh is still enough of a threat to keep defenses from swarming Wade and James every time they drive the lane. He's the linchpin that allows everything else to click, because he pulls defenders out of the lane and gives the other two stars room to work.

And the danger to the Heat without Bosh?

And here's where it gets ugly: If LeBron and Wade struggled against the Pacers D in Game 2, imagine what'd happen against a team as dominant on defense as the Celtics. Or the Spurs. Or Serge Ibaka and the Thunder. All of those teams are better on defense than Indiana AND they'll have better scoring options than anything the Pacers come up with.

The Heat can avoid Western Conference threats the Spurs or the Thunder until the finals. The winner of the series between the 76ers and the Celtics poses a more immediate threat. Of course, they have to get by the Pacers first, and suddenly, that looks like a much taller order than it did on Sunday morning.

For more news, analysis, and discussion on the Heat, visit Peninsula Is Mightier and andSB Nation Tampa Bay. For the opponent's perspective throughout the series, check out Indy Cornrows and SB Nation Indiana. And for all your news and notes on the playoffs matchups, visit SB Nation's dedicated NBA hub.

Da'Quan Bowers Could Still Play This Season For Bucs

2012-05-16T13:33:37Z

Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Da'Quan Bowers is facing an extended period of time off after he reportedly suffered a torn Achilles tendon, but the team is hopeful that he can return sometime this season.

For the second time in as many years, Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Da'Quan Bowers has suffered a serious offseason injury. He fell to the Bucs in the 2nd round of the 2011 NFL Draft because of offseason knee surgery, and he's likely to miss a good chunk of, if not all of his second year in the league. According to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bowers will have surgery to repair an Achilles tendon injury, and ESPN's Adam Schefter is calling it a torn Achilles.

Plans for Da'Quan Bowers to have surgery to repair his Achilles tendon injury tomorrow are being finalized.
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@TBBuccaneers) May 10, 2012

Bucs DE DaQuan Bowers suffered a torn Achilles.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 10, 2012

It's too early to give a timetable on his return, as that will depend on how severe the tear is and how his surgery goes on Friday. In any event, an Achilles tear of any degree that requires surgery right now is likely to keep Bowers from starting the season healthy. It's possible that the injury is severe enough that he will not play in 2012.

Bowers recorded 25 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 16 appearances last season. He was expected to compete with Michael Bennett for time at left defensive end before this injury.

For more on Bowers, head over to Bucs Nation.

NBA Playoffs 2012, Heat Vs. Pacers: Support For LeBron James And Dwyane Wade Key For A Miami Rebound

2012-05-16T12:28:37Z

The Miami Heat lost Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals to the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night. It was the first game for the Heat without Chris Bosh, out indefinitely after straining an abdominal muscle in the first game of the series.

Heat critics pointed to a trio of missed free throws by LeBron James. However, James and Dwyane Wade carried their team, outscoring the entire Pacers squad in the fourth quarter.

Surya Fernandez offered a similar take on the matter at Peninsula Is Mightier, SB Nation's Heat blog:

Critics will immediately jump on LeBron for missing 3 of 4 free throws in the closing minutes of the game, but in truth the Heat wouldn't have had a chance if it wasn't for what he and Wade did to keep the Heat close, who were trailing since the midway point of the third quarter. The team only mustered 14 points in the third quarter with a flat offense that featured little to no ball movement and zero creativity.

As for how the Heat can rebound on Thursday night in Indianapolis, Fernandez says:

... the Heat must figure out how to get more offensive support for Wade and James or they will suddenly be trailing in this series. For the most part tonight, the Heat's defense was good enough to have given them a chance to win the game, it's just that no one else besides the Big 2 could be counted on to hit a shot. Someone among the group that consists of Mario Chalmers, Norris Cole, Mike Miller, Udonis Haslem and Battier must hit double-figures or this series will get even uglier than it already is.