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Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The future of professional hockey in Arizona has always seemed bleak, but the present isnt looking so great either. A change in name from the Phoenix Coyotes to the Arizona Coyotes has done little to spark a franchise that in recent years was able to perform admirably on the ice even when the financial future of the club was far from stable. Currently, the Coyotes are sitting 28th in the overall league standings and they hold the same spot in terms of attendance. At least theyre finally consistent. With a 10-16-3 record through 29 games, Arizona needs to get on track quickly if it wants to avoid missing the playoffs for a third straight season. However, if the Coyotes fail to pick up the pace they are on track to post the franchises lowest point total in a full season since moving from Winnipeg to the desert following the 1995-96 season. None of this should be all that shocking, considering the Coyotes have been operating on a shoestring budget for years now. The club is 27th in the league in payroll and is over $47 million under the salary cap ceiling. General manager Don Maloney and head coach Dave Tippett have previously shown the ability to get the most out of a bad situation, but the formula clearly isnt working in 2014-15. The Coyotes were hardly impressive to start the season, but they seemed in decent shape back in early November while sporting a 6-6-1 record out of the gates. However, the club has gone 4-10-2 since then and has failed to pick up a single home win during that stretch, going 0-6-2 in front of sparse crowds at Gila River Arena to post the longest home skid in franchise history. On top of it all, reports out of the NHL Board of Governors meeting earlier this week in Boca Raton, Florida suggest the deal to sell the franchise to Andrew Barroway may be falling apart. Keeping the Coyotes in Arizona for the long-term seemed like a bad bet when the team was performing well on the ice and the clubs recent poor play is unlikely to push things in a positive direction. While making the playoffs for three straight seasons from 2010-12 -- Tippetts first three seasons as the Coyotes head coach -- the low-scoring club succeeded thanks to strong defense and goaltending. This season, the offense, defense and goaltending are all struggling at the same time, and it seems there is no easy fix for Arizona. The Coyotes are scoring just 2.24 goals per game this season while sporting a team goals against average of 3.24 as franchise goaltender Mike Smith continues to struggle less than two seasons into a lucrative six-year contract. Obviously, that is not a recipe for success. Were frustrated and disappointed, Tippett said after a 5-1 home loss to Nashville on Thursday. There are a lot of guys in that dressing room who care and want to do better. Were not getting the results we want, so the frustration continues to build. But until we turn that frustration into mental resolve to get the job done, it will continue to pile up. Of course, the clubs financial uncertainty is not helping. As Barroways ownership bid sits in limbo while awaiting league approval, the Coyotes are in a holding pattern of sorts when it comes to making deals to improve or shore up their current roster. It does sort of, I dont want to say halt the process, but slow down the process in regards to anybody we might want to talk contractually going forward, Maloney admitted earlier this week to the Arizona Republic. Despite there dire situation, there are few NHL fans who feel sorry for the Coyotes. Commissioner Gary Bettmans quest to prove a hockey team can survive in the Phoenix area has been an unpopular one, especially in places like Quebec City who are champing at the bit for another chance to support an NHL franchise. If the Coyotes continue to add on-ice woes to their fiscal problems, it may not be long until Quebec City, or another locale better suited for an NHL franchise, will swoop in and rescue the franchise. It happened for Winnipeg when the Atlanta Thrashers proved to be a failure, and history could repeat itself in Arizona. Blaming the coach doesnt seem to be an option for the Coyotes either, as Tippett signed a five-year extension following the 2012-13 season. Its hard to argue he didnt earn that deal, as Tippett not only won the Jack Adams Award in his first season with the Coyotes, but also led the club to a Pacific Division crown and a Western Conference finals appearance in 2012. Now it appears that 2011-12 was a high water mark for Tippetts Coyotes and with the franchises money problems still a going concern it will be difficult to get back to that level. Even in Arizona there are repercussions for not performing up to expectations, a fact not lost on the Coyotes GM. If you put a losing product on the ice nobody wants to hear about your financial woes. Were in a results business, not a Kumbaya business, said Maloney. Vans Old Skool Sale Cheap .Y. - For once, Clayton Kershaw was glad to see a long shutout streak end. Cheap Vans Old Skool For Sale . His big 2-minute outburst in the fourth quarter Tuesday night is all that really mattered for the Dallas Mavericks. http://www.cheapoldskool.us/ .I get texts: Do you know Drake? Have you met Drake? He sits there every night, he hears me cuss out the referees every night, Casey said, laughing. Buy Cheap Old Skool . Bale has had a successful debut season in Spain, and Ancelotti appears ready to reward him with a starting role on Saturday. Ancelotti says "Gareth had some problems at the beginning (of the season) but when he found good physical condition he scored a lot of goals, he had a good impact on the team. Vans Old Skool Discount .C. - Phoenix Suns coach Jeff Hornacek says guard Goran Dragic will return to the starting lineup against the Charlotte Hornets after missing the last two games with a strained back.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - No McDonalds All-Americans. No top-50 recruits. And no projected future first-round NBA draft picks. Virginia does have a successful system, however. Its one that isnt going to win any beauty pageants, but it may be good enough to cut down the nets in Indianapolis come April. Welcome to Tony Bennetts world. The Cavaliers (19-0) and their vaunted Pack-Line defense are just four wins away from matching the 1980-81 team for the best start in school history. Virginia, which has kept 44 straight ACC opponents under 50 percent shooting, is holding its adversaries to just 34.1 percent from the floor on the season. And this has come a year following the departures of Joe Harris -- Virginias No. 11 all-time leading scorer -- and Akil Mitchell -- the schools No. 7 rebounder. The improvements of Justin Anderson and Anthony Gill have picked up their slack. But its the system thats most responsible for the Wahoos prosperity. The main tenet of the Pack-Line is the defensive shape, with four defenders forming an imaginary arch several feet inside of the 3-point line. Then theres an on-the-ball defender who pressures the ball handler. Basically, the defense is designed to force difficult, contested jumpers. And with four defenders sagging inside the Pack-Line, it eliminates dribble penetration. Due to the wall of defenders, the gaps for an offensive player to navigate through are minimal. The strategy also prevents backdoor cuts and players are always in position to clear the defensive glass. Bennett also wants all five of his players on the court to sprint back following an offensive possession to prevent the fastbreak. As good as the Cavaliers defensive statistics look, there are some disadvantages. The 3-point shot is an equalizer, although Virginias foes are shooting just 29.9 percent from long distance. Defenders are always playing off their man and in a help position so if they dont anticipate quick enough and close out on a shot, a team can get hot from beyond the arc. This was seen in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season when 16th-seeded Coastal Carolina led by as many as 10 in the opening half and was up five going into the break. The Chanticleers made 5-of-10 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes and finished 9-of-19 for the game. Looking back, some of the fans in Charlottesville werent enthused when Bennett was hired in 2009. Tubby Smith was the shiny glittering name that had won a national championship at Kentucky with ties to the Commonwealth. He was an assistant coach for VCU from 1979-86 when it won a trio of Sun Belt conference titles. Smith, though, decided to stay at Minnesota and Bennetts Pack-Line defense was brought in instead. Theres no second guessing the hiring of Bennett now. The Hoos had made just two NCAA Tournament appearances in the 12 years prior to Bennetts arrival -- in 2001 under Pete Gillen and 2007 with Dave Leitao. Only the 2007 team won a tournament game. But Bennett was used to turning programs around. Washington State hadnt been in the Big Dance since 1994 until Bennett led it there in his first season at Pullman. The Cougars went 26-8 in 2006-07, tying the school record for wins, and earned a No. 3 seed in the tourney. They won their first round game but lost to Vanderbilt in the second. But the team the following season reached the Sweet 16 before falling to North Carolina. The script has repeated itself in Charlottesville. Bennett guided the Cavaliers to a 22-10 mark in 22011-12.dddddddddddd They reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five seasons, but lost to Florida in the Round of 64. Last season, Virginia set a school record for victories, earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and swept the ACC regular season and tournament titles for the first time in school history. And this year the Cavaliers are attempting to race off to their best start ever. Theyll have to get past highly-touted Duke to get there and a win over the Blue Devils should silence some doubters. As great as Bennetts current run at Virginia has been, it still doesnt match the Ralph Sampson era, at least not yet. The Cavaliers earned three straight No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament from 1981-83, Sampsons last seasons with the program. The 1980-81 squad was the best of the bunch, not only sporting Sampson but also Jeff Lamp, who was the 15th pick in the 1981 NBA Draft. They began 23-0 and reached the Final Four in Philadelphia before falling to North Carolina. Sampson never got back to the national semifinals. Virginia lost to fourth- seeded UAB on its home floor in Birmingham during the Sweet 16 of the 1982 NCAA Tournament and was upset by eventual national champion and No. 6 seed NC State in the Elite Eight of the 1983 tourney. Ironically, the Cavaliers reached the Final Four as a seventh seed the year after Sampson graduated in 1984. Kentucky, of course, is also unbeaten, but its gaining most of the national attention with its nine former McDonalds All-Americans. If there is a team that can clip the Cats, though, its Virginia. Its no secret that the Wildcats weakness is their outside shooting. Well, that plays right into Virginias advantage. Due to its length, UK snatches about 45 percent of offensive rebounds, which leads the country. The Cavs, however, grab 78.8 percent of defensive boards, which is third in the nation. Its a fascinating matchup that would savor the appetite of basketball junkies everywhere. We just might see it on April 6. PROJECTED BRACKET MIDWEST (Cleveland) 1. Kentucky* vs. 16. New Mexico State*/Alabama State* winner 8. Stanford vs. 9. Oklahoma State 4. Louisville vs. 13. Murray State* 5. Butler vs. 12. Stephen F. Austin* 6. Indiana vs. 11. Xavier 3. Notre Dame vs. 14. Kent State* 7. Northern Iowa vs. 10. Dayton 2. Kansas* vs. 15. Georgia Southern* SOUTH (Houston) 1. Duke vs. 16. Sacramento State* 8. Colorado State vs. 9. Ohio State 4. Wichita State* vs. 13. Western Kentucky* 5. VCU* vs. 12. Wofford* 6. Providence vs. 11. NC State/Tennessee winner 3. Iowa State vs. 14. Long Beach State* 7. SMU vs. 10. Iowa 2. Arizona* vs. 15. Albany* EAST (Syracuse) 1. Virginia* vs. 16. Bucknell*/Robert Morris* winner 8. Cincinnati vs. 9. LSU 4. Georgetown* vs. 13. Iona* 5. West Virginia vs. 12. Wyoming* 6. Oklahoma vs. 11. Georgia/Old Dominion winner 3. Utah vs. 14. Northeastern* 7. Miami-Florida vs. 10. St. Johns 2. Wisconsin* vs. 15. High Point* WEST (Los Angeles) 1. Gonzaga* vs. 16. North Florida* 8. Seton Hall vs. 9. San Diego State 4. North Carolina vs. 13. Yale* 5. Baylor vs. 12. Green Bay* 6. Arkansas vs. 11. Tulsa* 3. Maryland vs. 14. NC Central* 7. Texas vs. 10. Washington 2. Villanova vs. 15. South Dakota State* FIRST FOUR OUT Michigan State Syracuse George Washington Oregon State NEXT FOUR OUT Davidson Temple BYU Harvard * - denotes conference leader. In a result of a tie atop the standings, the team with the higher RPI was chosen. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '