iPad App of the Week: Angry Birds Rio

The makers of Angry Birds have another hit on their hands with Angry Birds Rio.  Yea, I know it's not a free app this week, but this app is worth the 2.99 for the iPad edition.  Plus there will be free updates throughout 2011, so it's almost like getting a free app.

In Angry Birds Rio, the original Angry Birds are kidnapped and taken to the magical city of Rio de Janeiro, where they eventually escape their captors and set out to to save their friends, Blu and Jewel – two rare macaws and the stars of the upcoming Fox motion picture, Rio. Angry Birds Rio will pair the physics-based gameplay of the original game with unique twists based on the film.

Angry Birds Rio features:
- Two fantastic episodes with 60 exciting levels!
- Completely new achievements!
- Special Hidden fruits - discover them all!
- Put your Angry Birds skills to the ultimate test in a spectacular boss fight!

The action is hot and the graphics are great.  It will keep you entertained and begging for more.

At some point the Angry Birds franchise will get old and tiresome, but we are nowhere near that yet.

Saturday's NCAA Tournament Play of the Day

Butler

They're back.....

Tiny Butler, who just kept winning last year in the NCAA Tournament is back at it again.

Well, I don't know if they can pull off the upset and beat top seeded Pittsburgh, I do know they can and will cover with the 7.5 points they are getting today.

The Butler Bulldogs are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 NCAA Tournament games as an underdog and 11-1 in their last 12 games on a neutral site.

Pitt is 2-6 ATS in their last 8 NCAA Tournament games as a favorite and Butler matches up well with them.

It's not even close to being the same Butler team as last year, but they are well coached and have enough experience to take Pittsburgh to the wire.

Take Butler and the 7.5.

The NCAA Tournament Means the Referee Shuffle

64 teams will take to the floor Thursday and Friday as the 2011 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament tops off.

That means 98 referees or officials as they like to be called will be in action as well.  The officials picked to work NCAA Tournament games come from each and every conference.  From the Atlantic Sun to the Pac-10, coaches not only have to prepare their team for their opponent, they have to warn them that the refs working their games from this point on aren't going to be the refs they became familiar with during conference play.

I like to call it the "ref factor."  While the N.C.A.A. has done everything in its power to make the way refs call games uniform from conference to conference, fans may not realize this, but refs are human.

Mike Brey, veteran Notre Dame Head Coach said the dynamics of N.C.A.A. tournament officiating can be distracting to both coaches and players. Coaches are given the names of officials an hour before a game. An assistant for Brey would find out where they are from, and sometimes Brey would ask his assistants during a game, “What’s his name again?”

Brey said he had coached N.C.A.A. tournament games in which his players would return to the huddle after an early timeout and say, “This is a little different.”  If officials are not familiar with a particular team's style, a head coach might have to make an adjustment to the official.

Refs may also have to make adjustments.  Chances are the three refs picked for a particular game have never worked together as a trio. 

Refs are scouted throughout the regular season and the best 98 out of the 350 considered are able to work tourney games.

Along with competition between the teams on the floor, there is something at stake for the officials as well.  It's a financial reward. John Adams, the Director of N.C.A.A. officiating said officials will make $1,000 a game in Rounds 1 through 3, $1,400 for the regionals and $2,000 each for the national semi-finals and finals.

The goal is the same for both teams and refs.  Have a clean game and advance.  Here's hoping we don't have a incident like we had in the Big East Tournament, but something out of the ordinary is bound to happen.

Here's my list of the top N.C.A.A. refs that hopefully will be working the tournament.

1. Ted Valentine

2. John Higgins

3. Kelly Self

4. Mike Nance

5. Tony Greene

6. Ed Hightower

7. Mike Thibodeaux

8. Bo Boroski

9. Mike Stuart

10. John Cahill

iPad Free App of the Week: Bowmaster HD

I actually stumbled upon this game by accident and it's pretty fun.

Draw your bow, take aim and release your inner Robin Hood in the most immersive archery experience.

The way you glide your fingers across the touchscreen just you feel like you are really shooting a bow.

Assume the role of a bowman who aspires to join the Merry Five and become their new leader, the Bowmaster. Achieve this by challenging each member in a one-on-one archery contest where skill and determination are key to overcoming each of the opponent's unique strengths.

Aim high and strike true to better other bowmen's online scores and become the worldwide Bowmaster!

 

The basic version contains the first two of five opponents, as well as the practice mode and target range. The final three opponents and a bonus level can be unlocked via in-app purchase.

- natural archery mechanics
- immersive 3D scenery and sounds
- five challenging opponents, each one with different skills and strengths
- one additional unlockable bonus level
- OpenFeint and GameCenter online scoring system
- tournament for up to four players on the same device

It's a little repetitive, but for free I'm not complaining.

RickLimpert.info Picture of the Week: A Lot of Titles

To say that these three guys have hoisted up a bunch of trophies over the years is an understatement.

Roger Federer with 16 Grand Slam titles, Pete Sampras with 14 Slam titles, and Laker's Coach Phil Jackson with 11 NBA Championships.  Not too shabby.

Federer was in L.A. early this week preparing for the BNP Paribas Open being held in Indian Wells.

Fed an Sampras practiced together before heading tothe Laker's game.