'Teen Mom' series ends with laughs, tears

By Bruna Nessif, E! Online

Louis A Raynor / MTV

The show is over for the cast of MTV's "Teen Mom," from left Farrah Abraham, Catelynn Lowell, Maci Bookout and Amber Portwood,

That animated "Teen Mom" book is now closed forever. On Tuesday night, fans had to say goodbye to original castmembers Catelynn, Farrah, Maci and Amber (well, until the two-part reunion with Dr. Drew).

So what were our last memories with our favorite young mothers?

"Teen Mom 2's" Jenelle Evans gets drug and assault charges dropped

Catelynn: The drama with Tyler's father, Butch, continued and viewers started to see exactly how it affected the usually calm Ty. All of a sudden, the young guy that caught all of America's hearts from day one was dropping F-bombs and having temper tantrums like we've never seen -- over doggy doo-doo! This led to him seeing his therapist which led to us having a sobfest in front of the television screens.

"I don't know why. I never did anything wrong to the guy so I don't know why he doesn't love me," he said of his father, and then decided to write Butch a lengthy letter to finally cut ties with the dad he never had.

Farrah: As sad as this new Florida girl was to have daughter Sophia stay with grandma in Nebraska for a month, it worked out for the best. Farrah finished her first quarter of school with straight A's! Regardless, she made it clear that she doesn't want to send Soph away again, and cried about it a couple times. Even Sophia called her a "cry baby," which was way too cute and hilarious.

Have you seen Farrah's music video?

Maci: The tension between Maci and Ryan didn't die down during the series finale, and kind of left us hanging. Ry decided to visit his lawyer's office (again) to file for joint custody and possibly make it a violation of the court for Kyle and Maci to live together since they're not married. But once he brought that up to his parents and girlfriend Dalis, his GF quickly said, "What if we decide to live together?" She's got a point there, Ryan.

Unfortunately, that's where Maci's story ended. We don't know what happened with the court or if Ryan even went through with the filing.

Amber: Oh, where to start? First off, we meet a new man in Amber's life, Mike, who seemed like a nice guy but Gary didn't care and hated him regardless. A huge argument went down between Leah's parents when Gary decided to throw his daughter a birthday party that Amber wasn't allowed to go to, instead of waiting until after their court hearing to celebrate. We were also introduced to a new phrase that Amber's baby daddy called her--"slut puppy."

See what Daniel had to say about his breakup with Farrah!

Yeah, but we all know Gary, and within the next five minutes he felt bad and made things right with Amber again. The duo went to court together (held hands, even!) and ultimately, Gary got sole custody of Leah and the no-contact order was dropped.

Amber's camp tells E! News that she's doing OK and behaving in jail. There's even a possibility that if she continues her good behavior, Amber could be released before her five-year sentence is up.

What did you think of the final episode of the series? How do you think these young moms will fare out of the "Teen Mom" spotlight? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

Related content:

More in The Clicker:

Source: http://theclicker.today.com/_news/2012/08/29/13545122-teen-mom-series-ends-with-laughs-tears-and-more-questions?lite

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Two alien planets found with twin suns

Astronomers have for the first time discovered two alien planets whirling around a pair of stars: a complete solar system with twin suns just like Luke Skywalker's fictional home world Tatooine.

Most stars like our sun are not singletons, but rather come in pairs that orbit each other. Scientists had found planets in these binary systems, so-called circumbinary planets with two suns like Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe.

To find more circumbinary planets, astronomers analyzed data from NASA's prolific Kepler space telescope, which has detected more than 2,300 potential alien worlds since its March 2009 launch. Kepler had to date detected four systems with circumbinary planets ? Kepler-16, 34, 35 and 38.

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The scientists have now announced the detection of Kepler-47, the first system seen with multiple worlds encircling a pair of stars. The star and its planets, called Kepler-47b and Kepler-47c, dwell about 5,000 light-years away, in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan. [ Planets of the Tatooine-like Solar System (Gallery) ]

"Kepler-47 shows us that binary stars can have close-in planetary systems, just like the ones we see in single stars," study lead author Jerome Orosz at San Diego State University told SPACE.com. "Most of the stars in the galaxy are in binary or higher-order multiple systems, so the fact that planetary systems can exist in these types of systems is important. If we were restricted to looking for planets around single stars, we would be missing most of the stars in the galaxy."

Spotting 'Tatooine' solar system
The planets are much too far away to see with the naked eye. Rather, they were discovered by the drop in brightness they cause when they cross in front of, or transit, their host stars.

This dimming is tiny, only 0.08 percent for planet Kepler-47b and 0.2 percent for planet Kepler-47c. By comparison, Venus blocked about 0.1 percent of the sun's surface during its recent transit. Data from Kepler enabled researchers to deduce the relative sizes of the objects and orbits. They also relied on follow-up observations performed by telescopes at the McDonald Observatory in West Texas.

One of the stars is much like our sun, and the other is about a third its size and 175 times fainter. The inner and outer planets are respectively 3 and 4.6 times Earth's diameter ? the smaller planet is the smallest circumbinary planet seen yet. [ Tatooine-Like System Found, 2 Planets, 2 Stars (Video) ]

The inner world completes an orbit every 49.5 days, while the outer one takes 303.2 days, giving it the largest known orbit for any transiting exoplanet. The stars themselves whirl around each other every 7.5 days.

The scientists published their findings online Aug. 28 in the journal Science. They will also detail their results Aug. 29 at the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union in Beijing.

Planet in the habitable zone?
Intriguingly, the outer planet lurks in the system's habitable zone, where a rocky planet like Earth is the right temperature to have liquid water on its surface.

"We've learned that circumbinary planets can be like the planets in our own solar system, but with two suns," said study co-author Joshua Carter at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

Although the outer planet is probably a gas giant slightly larger than Uranus and therefore not suitable for life as we know it, these findings do show that circumbinary planets can and do exist in habitable zones.

"The thing I find most exciting is the potential for habitability in a circumbinary system," said study co-author William Welsh at San Diego State University. "Kepler-47c is not likely to harbor life, but if it had large moons, those would be very interesting worlds."

Weird weather on Tatooine planets
Circumbinary planets might undergo relatively wild climate swings.

On Earth, the sun is a relatively stable source of light, with the solar insolation or energy we receive only varying by 0.1 percent or so. "As a result, we don't need to worry about what the sun is doing, at least over time-scales of years to decades," Orosz said. "For a planet around a binary system, there can be changes in the insolation of several percent on the time-scale of days to weeks. In addition, if the planet's rotation axis is tilted, then that also has an effect. Therefore the seasons are rapid and complicated."

"Also, let's say for the sake of discussion that the planet's rotation period is 24 hours, just like the Earth," he added. "Because you have two suns instead of one, you can have more than 12 hours of daylight, depending on the positions of the stars at sunrise or sunset."

In addition, since all the circumbinary planets the Kepler space telescope has discovered have orbits closely aligned with the orbits their stars have with each other, "you would see your suns eclipse each other on a regular basis," Orosz said. "In the case of Kepler-47, when the secondary star passes in front of the primary, the total light drops by 15 percent. This would happen every 7.5 days or so."

More exotic alien solar systems possible
The new discovery show that planetary systems can form and survive even in the chaotic environment around binary stars.

The researchers expect that the planets in Kepler-47 originated much farther out than their present orbits, at locations where the conditions for the formation of giant planets are more favorable. They eventually then migrated inward due to interactions with the disk of gas and dust that also encircled the stars.

"We think these planets and most other planets formed from a residual disk of debris left over from the star-formation process," Orosz said. "It was not at all obvious that this disk could survive near a newly formed binary star, given the orbital motions of the two stars. However, it now appears that apart from minor differences in the orbital spacings, planetary systems around binary stars can be similar to those around single stars."

In the future, the researchers want to look for smaller and smaller alien planets around binary stars.

"We are at the limit of what simple visual searches can do, so we need better software to help us automate the process," Orosz said. "Given more time and data, I think we can find more circumbinary planetary systems in the Kepler data."

Follow SPACE.com on Twitter @Spacedotcom. We're also onFacebook & Google+.

? 2012 Space.com. All rights reserved. More from Space.com.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48819528/ns/technology_and_science-space/

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Dog Supplements: Strategies for a Healthy Dog With Supplements ...

I wasn?t completely on the group about giving our animals supplements. I realized I took vitamins, vitamins were needed by me, and I felt better when I took vitamins. I got high quality supplements as well.If you look at the vitamin and mineral content of 5 different veggies in the 1960s, you?ll see they?re solid, up there, where they should be. You could stay off that. Look again at the 5 greens in 1970. A decade later, and it shows how they?d dropped by over fifty percent, since they were not rotating the crops. They were showering them and getting fertilizers on them, so they would not need to do the things that good husbandry of the planet would want you to do. Come the 1980s, and it had been almost flat-lining.If people aren?t getting enough from our food, then how can our animals? Since pet food is manufactured out of a lowered quality than human food, basic algebra informs you that they are perhaps not getting what they need. We do not reside in an agrarian culture. We are now living in a Star-bucks society. We?re highly caffeinated, we?re revving up on a regular basis, and it demands more diet for people to maintain that pace.Stress is really a huge thing that pulls vitamins and minerals from our anatomies, and also we have a thing that?s called oxidative stress. That has been linked to over 70 diseases in the human world. We?re all animals. It?s an easy task to say it probably causes the exact same type of circumstances within our pets as well.But our pets? cells are continuously under attack with oxidative stress. Why we truly need anti-oxidants within our diet to help combat that oxidative stress that?s. It is similar to our tissues rusting, and that is really skinny lowering it. There is much more to it. Oxidative stress could be the damage to your body due to excessive free radicals. It?s been associated with plenty of degenerative diseases in animals and humans. We do want to get minerals, vitamins, and anti-oxidants into our diets.Our pets virtually need the exact same vitamins we need. It is really hard to OD on vitamins. Our pets have an increased ceiling on a lot of them. There are some things you do want to be cautious about when you are supplementing your dog. Just returning, if you think you are getting most of the nourishment you need from your own food, you probably need to rethink that. Whatever you?re giving your pet, they really should get additional vitamins, vitamins, and anti-oxidants.The pharmaceutical level vitamins are your very best choice. The things you get over the counter are considered food class. When you?re doing something, you want to look for that pharmaceutical level for maximum health and well-being.How to administer these folks? You could put it in a small piece of cheese or peanut butter, scale this right back for the size of one?s pet, but you can use a micro great grater and put it in the peanut butter that way.But I do want to provide a large red banner here too. You can also use chewables. They are an excellent option, but you have to definitely make certain, No Xylitol. Xylitol may cause death in an of hours.I heard an account of a person who had heard on the radio that vitamins were advantageous to pets. He was giving his young ones chewable vitamins, and he threw a couple to his pet thinking it was okay. They had Xylitol inside of them. Two hours later, he was in the animal hospital and his puppy had died.One thing when you are providing vitamins is make sure that it is easy and fun for you both to do, or you?ll not continue steadily to do it. And there are lots of possibilities out there, even in your pet nutrition shops. You will find fluids and treats that ask them to, so there is far more choices today that ensure it is easier for you.

See our website for more info about tarzana treatment center detox

Source: http://articlepdq.com/health-fitness/dog-supplements-strategies-for-a-healthy-dog-with-supplements-and-pet-meds/

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Antibiotics Linked to Weight Gain in Mice

Changes in the gut microbiome from low-dose antibiotics caused mice to gain weight. Similar alterations in humans taking antibiotics, especially children, might be adding to the obesity epidemic

By Amy Maxmen and Nature magazine

Image: Flickr/ressaure

From Nature magazine

Bacteria living naturally within the gut provide a gateway to flab, according to a few reports this week. These bacteria may explain how antibiotics fatten farm animals and perhaps people too, and how certain genes predispose organisms to obesity.

In a study published 22 August in Nature, researchers mimicked what farmers have been doing for decades to fatten up their livestock: they fed young mice a steady low dose of antibiotics. The antibiotics altered the composition of bacteria in the guts of the mice and also changed how the bacteria broke down nutrients. The bacteria in treated mice activated more genes that turn carbohydrates into short-chain fatty acids, and they turned on genes related to lipid conversion in the liver. Presumably, these shifts in molecular pathway enable fat build-up. Just as farm animals get fat, the antibiotic-fed mice put on weight.

Martin Blaser, a microbiologist at New York University in New York, says that parents might unknowingly be promoting a similar phenomenon when they treat common ailments and ear infections in their children. To back that idea up, he points to another study he authored. The study, published on 21 August, found that a disproportionate number of 11,000 kids in the United Kingdom who were overweight by the time they were 3 years old had taken antibiotics within their first 6 months of life.

?Antibiotics are extremely important drugs,? Blaser says, ?but especially when given early in life, I believe they come at a cost that parents, doctors and patients should be aware of.?

Microbes also seem to be an accomplice in genetically induced pudginess, according to a study published today in Nature Immunology. When researchers rid mice of a gene encoding a gut molecule called lymphotoxin, segmented filamentous bacteria overwhelmed the normal microbial community. These bacteria may gobble up excess fat like tapeworms ? the mice remained thin no matter what they ate. What?s more, mice with lymphotoxin intact were able to keep their slim figures when the researchers implanted the segmented filamentous bacteria in their guts.

Although the papers provide tantalizing links, Peter Turnbaugh, a microbiologist at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, says that there?s more work to be done before microbes enter the limelight in the fight against obesity. ?These studies suggest mechanisms by which different bacteria promote adiposity, but they don?t fully define pathways,? he says. ?What really excites me about these papers is that now we have two new mouse models to do the follow-up experiments.?

This article is reproduced with permission from the magazine Nature. The article was first published on August 27, 2012.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=0518be3d35005e922d1c14ec801a801e

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Tas Corp's rental market data for August | Japan Property Central

TAS Corp, the company behind the ?Tas-Map? real estate valuation site, released their latest data on the rental market for both the greater Tokyo and Kansai area for August 2012.

The data includes a vacancy rate index, average time an apartment is advertised before a tenant is found, average rate of lease renewals, rate of mid-way cancellations and a rent index.

This month?s report on the greater Tokyo area focused on the aging population in Saitama and the consequences this will have for landlords in the future.

The situation in Saitama

There are over 50,000 rental properties in Saitama where the tenants are over 65 years of age.?If you consider the average life expectancy, it is possible that 10,000 properties within 5 years will become vacant, 20,000 within 10 years, 30,000 within 15 years and 50,000 within 20 years from now.?Furthermore, over 75,000 houses rented to those from the baby boom generation could become vacant within the next 25 years.

The aging population is going to create a very large supply of vacant rental properties, leading to increasing vacancy rates.

The rental market in greater Tokyo

The rent index in Tokyo?s 23-ku increased for the second consecutive period, showing signs of a recovery. Tokyo City, Kanagawa and Chiba saw very little change, while Saitama Prefecure saw a slight decrease.

The vacancy indexes are also down in several places. Only Chiba saw a slight increase.

Tokyo (all areas)

• Vacancy index: 11.92
• Time advertised: 3.11 months
• Renewal rate: 42.54%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 38.36%
• Rent index: 97.87

Tokyo 23-ku

• Vacancy index: 11.76
• Time advertised: 3.12 months
• Renewal rate: 42.22%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 38.64%
• Rent index: 98.31

Tokyo City

• Vacancy index: 14.90
• Time advertised: 3.06 months
• Renewal rate: 44.53%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 36.69%
• Rent index: 96.87

Kanagawa Prefecture

• Vacancy index: 12.52
• Time advertised: 3.52 months
• Renewal rate: 43.25%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 40.71%
• Rent index: 98.46

Saitama Prefecture

• Vacancy index: 15.77
• Time advertised: 3.42 months
• Renewal rate: 45.15%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 38.07%
• Rent index: 98.39

Chiba Prefecture

• Vacancy index: 12.82
• Time advertised: 3.33 months
• Renewal rate: 45.94%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 38.74%
• Rent index: 100.39

The rental market in the Kansai region

Osaka

• Vacancy index: 8.00
• Time advertised: 4.64 months
• Renewal rate: 50.83%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 39.48%
• Rent index: 98.52

Kyoto

• Vacancy index: 14.01
• Time advertised: 5.69 months
• Renewal rate: 30.01%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 65.82%
• Rent index: 99.80

Hyogo

• Vacancy index: 11.92
• Time advertised: 5.08 months
• Renewal rate: 45.92%
• Mid-contract cancellation: 44.79%
• Rent index: 101.90

About the data

Vacancy index as calculated by Tas Corp: The number of advertised properties for rent on AtHome divided by the total stock in the sampled area.

Time advertised: average length of time advertised before a tenant is found.

Renewal rate: The percentage of tenants who renew their 2-year lease.

Mid-contract cancellation: The percentage of tenants who cancel their lease before the end of the contract.

Rent index:

• Greater Tokyo: 1st Qtr of 2004 = 100
• Kansai area: 1st Qtr of 2009 = 100

Source:?
The Japanese-language PDF file can be downloaded here:?http://www.tas-japan.com/pdf/news/residential/Vol32_residential20120824.pdf

Source: http://japanpropertycentral.com/2012/08/tas-corps-rental-market-data-for-august/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tas-corps-rental-market-data-for-august

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How E-commerce Software Providers Can Assist Streamline Your ...

???

By : Rina Rosewood ??
Submitted 2012-08-25 04:13:26

When individuals think about online businesses, they easily have the concept that anything can be carried out at any time -- as there's no interaction personally, online business entrepreneurs don't need to accommodate orders instantly. The fact is that this a distorted representation of an Internet-based business because in reality, operating an internet business definitely needs most entrepreneurs to make up the "limitation" by keeping updated via their mobile phones or perhaps computers. They keep an eye on the activity of their internet sites interactively and have to remain alert to guarantee that every order is recorded, calculated, purchased and mailed for delivery. Aside from all of these, consumers also need to be notified regarding their orders and the specifics of the delivery. A thank you note must be included as well to make them work with you once again.

The whole method is quite tiresome actually, and when you must do similar process for thirty customers a day, you would surely have no time to rest. The profitability means absolutely nothing if you're physically and mentally burned out.

E-commerce software suppliers, however, don't wish this to occur to you, and with the help of its remarkably efficient shopping cart software, undergoing the process of taking a purchase can be performed in a quick and fail-proof way. The e-commerce shopping cart is viewed as a life-saver? a web-based business-saver to be more precise. It's an easy-to-install shopping cart software that basically completes the whole process of accommodating purchases from your web page that all you need to undertake basically would be to pay attention to the order, check if the payment came through, prepare the order and bring it towards the shipping firm - the cash comes in and you just deal with the physical aspect of the process.

The online shopping cart provides a very workable system for your business. Individuals who have use it claim that, "setting up your items as well as including all of them into your web page is a snap." The cart could also compute the sum total of the products obtained from your website and the delivery fee, then it instantly sends an invoice to your customer (through the email autoresponder which is pretty awesome as it can be set up in so many different ways for full productivity) so he can send his payment immediately. You will get a notice if payment has been made and then you will do your part of the procedure.

The shopping cart also boasts of a continuing purchases processor which is incorporated with PayPal (along with other payment options), customization accommodations, as well as customer service. There are still a lot of other functions; people who have been using this particular software for at least a year share that they still continue exploring new stuff that they can do with it. Streamlining your operations will help you handle your business more effective without becoming burned out; through e-commerce software providers, that's no longer gonna be a dilemma.

Author Resource:- Optimizing your businesses will assist you manage your business more effective without getting burned out; with 1automationwiz , that's no longer gonna be a concern.
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<title>Article Cupboard Free Article Directory | How E-commerce Software Providers Can Assist Streamline Your Online Business</title><h3>How E-commerce Software Providers Can Assist Streamline Your Online Business</h3>

By: Rina Rosewood

When individuals think about online businesses, they easily have the concept that anything can be carried out at any time -- as there's no interaction personally, online business entrepreneurs don't need to accommodate orders instantly. The fact is that this a distorted representation of an Internet-based business because in reality, operating an internet business definitely needs most entrepreneurs to make up the "limitation" by keeping updated via their mobile phones or perhaps computers. They keep an eye on the activity of their internet sites interactively and have to remain alert to guarantee that every order is recorded, calculated, purchased and mailed for delivery. Aside from all of these, consumers also need to be notified regarding their orders and the specifics of the delivery. A thank you note must be included as well to make them work with you once again.

The whole method is quite tiresome actually, and when you must do similar process for thirty customers a day, you would surely have no time to rest. The profitability means absolutely nothing if you're physically and mentally burned out.

E-commerce software suppliers, however, don't wish this to occur to you, and with the help of its remarkably efficient shopping cart software, undergoing the process of taking a purchase can be performed in a quick and fail-proof way. The e-commerce shopping cart is viewed as a life-saver? a web-based business-saver to be more precise. It's an easy-to-install shopping cart software that basically completes the whole process of accommodating purchases from your web page that all you need to undertake basically would be to pay attention to the order, check if the payment came through, prepare the order and bring it towards the shipping firm - the cash comes in and you just deal with the physical aspect of the process.

The online shopping cart provides a very workable system for your business. Individuals who have use it claim that, "setting up your items as well as including all of them into your web page is a snap." The cart could also compute the sum total of the products obtained from your website and the delivery fee, then it instantly sends an invoice to your customer (through the email autoresponder which is pretty awesome as it can be set up in so many different ways for full productivity) so he can send his payment immediately. You will get a notice if payment has been made and then you will do your part of the procedure.

The shopping cart also boasts of a continuing purchases processor which is incorporated with PayPal (along with other payment options), customization accommodations, as well as customer service. There are still a lot of other functions; people who have been using this particular software for at least a year share that they still continue exploring new stuff that they can do with it. Streamlining your operations will help you handle your business more effective without becoming burned out; through e-commerce software providers, that's no longer gonna be a dilemma.

Author Resource:->??Optimizing your businesses will assist you manage your business more effective without getting burned out; with 1automationwiz , that's no longer gonna be a concern.

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Topic of Debate: How Far Would This Year?s Team Have Gone in Last Year?s NCAA Tournament

It?s Friday?let?s have a little fun/debate, shall we?

Before a season begins, one?way to attempt?to gauge the anticipated success of a particular team is to find ways to compare them with other teams that have had success. For example, last year?s Kentucky basketball team was the ultimate definition of success. They won a national championship and dominated the college basketball scene from start to finish. This year?s team comes in with mostly a crop of new players, most of which have yet to prove anything on a college basketball court. Of course it?s unfair to say we can predict how the season will turn out for this team. There are so many unknowns from injuries to team chemistry to the talent level of the competition (and how injuries, team chemistry, etc. effect those teams as well). I?ve heard a lot of people try to compare this year?s team side-by-side, position-by-position with last year?s 2011-2012 Kentucky basketball team. For a number of reasons, I think that is a difficult comparison to make. First and foremost, the 2011-2012 team was arguably the best Kentucky basketball team in years. Second, after a year of being saturated with every single moment and play made by the players on the 2011-2012 team, we might have a hard time being objective. That team stole our hearts and we feel like we know the players like the back of our hand.

For the reasons mentioned above, I am not going to try to compare this year?s team to last year?s team. Instead, I am going to offer up another type of comparison. Looking at the rosters and players from the teams Kentucky faced in the NCAA tournament last season, with the information we have, how far do you think this year?s team would have gone in last year?s tournament? We may know more about the proven talents of the players on the teams we faced in last year?s tournament, but we probably know a lot less about them and feel less of a connection than to our Kentucky team from last year.

I?m going to attempt to make side-by-side, player-by-player comparisons, offering an opinion (though trying to be as objective as possible) about how far this year?s team could have gone with the same draw in the tournament. Feel free to agree, disagree, voice your reasoning as well. I think this brings up some good discussion points.

Round of 64: Kentucky vs. Western Kentucky and Round of 32: Kentucky vs. Iowa State

- I am going to forgo a side-by-side, player-by-player comparison for these 2 games. Barring a major upset, which of course has happened before with Western Kentucky specifically, I like Kentucky?s chances against Western Kentucky regardless of the year and the team. I think this year?s team would move by WKU without a serious threat. Regarding Iowa, although Royce White would have provided a formidable challenge for our big men down low, much like the contest in last season?s NCAA tournament, the level of athleticm Kentucky has versus the reliance on outside shooting needed for Iowa State to succeed would have resulted in a Kentucky win.

Sweet 16: Kentucky vs. Indiana

Point Guard: Ryan Harrow vs. Jordan Hulls (Adv- Harrow)

Shooting Guard: Archie Goodwin vs. Victor Oladipo (Adv: Goodwin)

Forward: Kyle Wiltjer vs. Will Sheehey (Push)

Forward: Alex Poythress vs. Christian Watford (Adv: Poythress)

Center: Nerlens Noel vs. Cody Zeller (Push)

First 2 off the bench: Willie Cauley-Stein/Julius Mays vs. Matt Roth/Remy Abell (Adv- UK)

*Result: I may meet some resistance with this, but I think player for player, Kentucky would have been the better team. The Cody Zeller/Nerlens Noel match-up would have been the key match-up in my mind. Although the advantages given to Goodwin and Poythress may not have been by the biggest margin, I still think both of those players are more talented than their counter-parts last season. The game would have been close due to the chemistry and the well-executed offense of Indiana late in the season, but Kentucky wins in a close game due to better talent at more positions.

Elite 8: Kentucky vs. Baylor

Point Guard: Ryan Harrow vs.?Pierre Jackson (Adv- Jackson)

Shooting Guard: Archie Goodwin vs. Brady Heslip (Adv- Goodwin)

Forward: Kyle Wiltjer vs. Quincy Miller (Adv- Miller)

Forward: Alex Poythress vs. Quincy Acy (Push)

Center: Nerlens Noel vs. Perry Jones III (Push)

First 2 off bench: Willie Cauley-Stein/Julius Mays vs. Deuce Bello/A.J. Walton (Adv-UK)

*Result: Coming into this game last season, Baylor was considered to be one of the few teams able to go toe-to-toe in terms of athleticism with Kentucky. In reality, it wasn?t as close as people expected it to be. I do believe that Baylor team would be superior athletically to this season?s Kentucky team. I think Goodwin would be able to neutralize Heslip?s perimeter shooting with good defense and I think the battles between Acy/Poythress and Noel/Jones III would prove to be the difference. This one is almost too close to call, but I?ll give the slight edge to Kentucky due to Calipari?s coaching ability and the fact that all of his Kentucky team?s have been excellent defensively.

Final Four: Kentucky vs. Louisville

*Disclaimer: For playing time purposes I will consider Russ Smith the starting SG in this comparison and Chris Smith one of the first 2 off the bench. Keep in mind this is looking at last year?s Louisville team and not this year?s Louisville team (which i think will be better than last year?s Louisville team.)

Point Guard: Ryan Harrow vs. Peyton Siva (Adv- Siva)

Shooting Guard: Archie Goodwin vs. Russ Smith (Adv- Goodwin)

Forward: Kyle Wiltjer vs. Kyle Kuric (Push)

Forward: Alex Poythress vs. Chane Behanan (Push)

Center: Nerlens Noel vs. Gorgui Dieng (Push)

First 2 off bench: Willie Cauley-Stein/Julius Mays vs. Wayne Blackshear/Chris Smith (Push)

*Result: In reality, I think it?s almost a ?push? at every single position. When Peyton Siva is at his best, I would give him the advantage over Harrow and what we know of him so far. When Peyton Siva is bad, Peyton Siva is bad. Simply due to experience, I?ll give the slight edge to Siva. A similar situation with the Smith/Goodwin match-up. I think Russ Smith has the ability to go off, but Goodwin will be the more reliable scorer on a regular basis. He?s also more physically gifted than a very small Smith. The match-up of the Kyles might determine the winner of this game. Whichever team would be able to get the most production from that position might find the small advantage in the final score line. Poythress and Behanan would be an enticing match-up of two very good young players. Noel and Dieng would be an intriguing match-up as well, seeing as both are more gifted on the defensive end than the offensive end. I believe if you played this game 10 times, Kentucky would win 5 and Louisville would win 5. If I?m trying to be extremely objective, due to experience, I might give Louisville 6 and Kentucky 4? but as you see, the margin looks to be very close.

I do think that if this year?s Kentucky team had played last year?s road in the tournament, and been able to beat Louisville in the Final Four?they would have had a great chance to win the national championship against Kansas. Kansas was a bit of an over-achieving team last season and I don?t see huge advantages at any position other than Thomas Robinson and perhaps Tyshawn Taylor at the point guard position.

The 2 biggest points of contention out of this whole comparison would be the Baylor and Louisville match-up. Do you think Kentucky would have held the advantage against both, one, or neither of those 2 teams? When comparing side-by-side, I think this year?s Kentucky team would have done no worse than the Elite 8 and could have had at least?a 50/50 chance in each of the games leading to a possible national championship. Agree/disagree?

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/kentuckysportsradio/kFbt/~3/9e_f7__gsjg/

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