Hills Steps Up

Michigan State got some help from an old friend. The old incarnation of Chris Hill showed up at the Breslin Center last night and helped lead the Spartans to an 83-69 victory over the Buckeyes.

Hill led all scoring with 26. He added 4-4 freethrow shooting, and 8-10 field shooting. Maurice Ager added 18 points of his own on 6-7 shooting. Both players cam off the bench. Overall, Michigan State shot 51.9 percent from the field and 73.9 percent from the free throw line.

On the Buckeyes side, Terence Dials scored 22 and Ivan Harris scored 13. The Buckeyes shot 48.2 percent from the field, but only 52.9 percent from the free throw line.

Michigan State is hoping for a late season surge into the NCAA tournament. They have the talent to secure a number two Big Ten position, and the talent to make an impact in the tournament.

You can read a full recap on the game here at ESPN.com.

NHL To Finally Cancel?

The NHL might actually set a drop-dead date. That's right, after months of pretending they want to strike a deal, the NHL is reportedly set to mark Tuesday as the drop-dead date for any kind of season salvage.

Why was this not set in the first place? Why would Bettman not want a tool to work with to pressure the NHLPA to see it his way? Why do teams still not have a full roster?

The answer: The owners wanted to cancel the season in the first place.

Lakers Visit Tonight

The Lakers come to the Palace tonight for a rematch of last year's NBA finals. Although both teams have glaring differences from last year, the match-up will still be much anticipated, especially on the Lakers' side.

Detroit comes into the game in first place with a 28-19 record. L.A. enters the game in third place with a 24-22 record, and without their top player -- Kobe Bryant. Bryant is out with a badly sprained ankle.

All indications are the Pistons should win this game. Unfortunately, that's not how things always turn out. The Lakers are without Payton, Shaq, Malone, Kobe, and Fisher. Arguably a better combination than the one they've cooked up this year.

The Pistons must be at the top of their game. Expectations will be high form the Lakers' front office to win this game. The Pistons must overcome their tough in New Jersey last weekend.

Lions Add New Coach

Fred Graves will be the new wide receivers coach for the Detroit Lions. Last year's coach Kevin Higgins was not retained.

This comes as sort of a shock to me. I didn't see a coaching problem at this position.

John L Smith New Adds Coach

The Spartans hired Kent State assistant Ben Sirmans to be their new running backs coach.

"The pieces are beginning to come together for (Michigan State coach) John L. Smith, and I believe he's attracting the kind of talent it takes to compete for a Big Ten championship," Sirmans said.

Good move for the Spartans. Last season their only running threat was their QB. Hopefully they can find decent recruits for Sirmans to work with.