HORNETS-CHICKEN NUGGETS GAME 1 RUNNING DIARY.

9:50: The Defense is really good. On the other hand, we can't make a shot. Brick. Brick. Brick. We're nearing a house.

10:12: Chicken Nuggets 27, Hornets 25 at the end of the first. My third key to victory was not to let Billups shoot 3-pointers. Well, he made four in the opening quarter. Ouch. Paul has missed several shots in the lane.

10:23: Boy, oh, boy. They running us out the gym. Like three easy transition baskets in succession. Hey, guys. It's hard to miss layups.

10:29: Last four Hornets baskets all 3s by four players. Chicken Nuggets 42, Hornets 39 with right over five minutes remaining.

10:37: How did the Nuggets not get a technical when Martin slapped away Sean Marks' hand with a closed fist?

10:50: Down eight at the half. Could be worse. Should be closer. Remember that the Hornets were down 12 points at half last year in Game 1 to Dallas. Of course, that was at home.

11:22: JRap thinks about getting a snack.
JRap: I'll wait 'till the next break. For now, I'll sit back and criticize the officials.
Me: Is there any other way to watch the playoffs?

11:27: I knew this was going to be Byron Scott's gameplan. And we're all thinking it, but I have to say it anyway. Why is Money Brown in the game instead of JuJu or MoPete? WHY?

11:48: J.R. Smith needs a good punch in the face. Like a 1990 Mike Tyson one. That's it for this game. Blowout. We still got a chance Wednesday to take control of the series. Got to shake this one off.

12:15: OK, one more comment. Let's look at the positives.
1) Peja made three 3-pointers. All nice swishes.
2) Paul and West missed a lot of shots. That won't keep up.
3) Billups can't be left that open and make that many 3s again. Right?

THE TINA CURSING CORNER

My mom had a crick in her neck Sunday. "It's always the same fucking spot. Motherfuck. It's been three fucking days."

I try to kill a bug by clapping my hands together. Mom hears the noise. "Did you get it? It's a little bitty fucking gnat."

Mom's phone rings. "Who the fuck is that?" She answers it, but there's nobody there. She hangs up. Then, the voicemail message sounds. "What the fuck is that?"

We watch the last few episodes of Season 2 of Lost. They bury Ana Lucia. "You ever see how she comes back? How the fuck you come back from that?"

TV WEEK IN REVIEW

1) The past two episodes of Heroes have been really good. I'm excited again to watch the show.

2) I watched the first two episodes of the new cop show The Unusuals. In my expert opinion, it is unusually bad.

3) Rainn Wilson had a great appearance on Reno 911! Funny stuff.

4) SPOILER ALERT. What the bleep Tony? What the bleep? I nearly cried at the conclusion of this week's 24. How dare they turn him bad. There better be an explanation.

PARTING SHOT
Billy, our new golf writer, said he recently met with officials at the Zurich Classic.

Billy: They asked me if I ever covered golf before? I said. 'Yeah. The Division I state high school championship. Same thing, only older.'
Me: They bought that? Did they laugh?
Billy: Not as much as I had hoped.

THE DAILY TOP LIST
My top five James Earl Jones characters.

5) Mr. Mertle. Sandlot. 1993.
"Why didn't you just knock on the door? I'da gotten it for ya."

4) King Jaffe Joffer. Coming to America. 1988.
"My son works?"

3) Mufasa. Lion King. 1994.
Who didn't cry when he died?

2) Darth Vader. Star Wars. 1977.
Breathing loudly.

1) Terence Mann. Field of Dreams. 1989.
"You said your finger was a gun."