Newsday/Photo by Jim McIsaac

With the scent of Sunday’s winning streak coming to an end still fresh in the Citi Field air, New York Mets veteran Bartolo Colon reached into his bag of tricks to pull off a milestone on Monday.

Pitching eight innings of shutout ball, Colon captured his 220^th career victory, surpassing fellow countryman Pedro Martinez to garner sole possession of second place on Major League Baseball’s all time win list for pitchers who hail from the Dominican Republic.

It seems inconceivable that Colon could catch Juan Marichal, who’s 23 in his way of tying the record, but who would have thought that this right hander would still be mowing batters down at the age of 42?

The silent bats that couldn’t save Noah Syndergaard from his only loss of the season, bellowed loudly in the bottom of the first.

David Wright’s Louisville Slugger sent a solo shot to left; Yoenis Cespedes crushed a 411 ft. two run blast to center before Lucas Duda hit a dinger into the right field seats.

The soon to be 43-year-old was masterful on the mound, using his varied fastball to get out of trouble spots with men in scoring position, incurring the longest outing of a Mets starter this year.

Braves starter Mike Foltynewicz, fresh up from triple-A, took a beating from Mets batters in the first. It was an unfortunate outing for the 24-year-old righty, who returned to the bigs after life threatening blood clots almost ended his career last season.

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Photo Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

David Wright hit two home runs, Noah Syndergaard fanned eight, and with a 5-2 win, the New York Mets are feeling fine in Philly.

Catcher Kevin Plawecki was the victim of friendly fire after taking a torrid Thor fastball off of his protective padding.  The 23-year old rocket armed righty has started the season with 29 strikeouts and an equally impressive 0.90 ERA. His slider has been clocked at an insane 94mph, to compliment his ‘business as usual’ 100mph fastball.

Phillies starter Jerad Eickhoff may have been out-dueled, but he was deadly with a barrage of unhittable curveballs.

The Mets offense feasted off of Phillies’ relievers who gave up back-to-back homers to Wright and Neil Walker, then one for good measure to Lucas Duda, his first of the season.

Asdrubal Cabrera continues to be the gift that keeps on giving, going 3-for-4 in the seventh spot, and Yoenis Cespedes landed on third in the sixth with a stand up triple.

The Mets also received great news that Jacob deGrom’s baby is healthier and home from the hospital. Logan Verrett will fill in once again Tuesday with the hope that deGrom’s right lat issue allows him to return to the rubber next week.

Now, if Matt Harvey can get his arm straightened out and either improve upon or lose the slider that’s not sliding, the Mets will make good on boasting the best pitching staff in baseball. And if Zack Wheeler’s Tommy John surgery proves to be successful, it will be murderer’s row on the mound.

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Photo Credit: Getty Images/Thearon W. Henderson

Tonight was a tale of two basketball greats basking in the after glow of setting some records straight into the NBA books.

Stephen Curry amassed a season-high – and NBA-best – 402 from downtown. However, that was just a mere companion piece to Golden State’s NBA-best 73 wins in a single season. The team did it under the helm of Steve Kerr, who played on the Chicago Bulls team that held the record previously.

Curry scored 46 points, converting on 10-of-19 from behind the arc, connecting on a flurry of threes – one of which a signature 31-footer.

The reigning MVP and his prolific partners in crime mopped the hardwood floor with Memphis, 124-104, playing catch and release all night long, and they did it without their star point guard in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, 370 miles south of Oakland, the stars aligned literally for Kobe Bryant as the likes of Snoop, Jay Z, and Kanye West sat courtside for the Black Mamba’s last hurrah as a Laker.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Along with a coterie of Kobe haters, ala the new clever Nike commercial that depicts everyone’s disdain for him so well, I opted to watch the Warriors, relying on updates via the crawl on the bottom of my television screen.

When the clock expired, and confetti rained from the Oracle Arena rafters, I switched over to ESPN 2, caught the final 35 seconds at Staples, and witnessed Kobe drain a 20-foot pull-up for a 97-96 lead, then sink two free throws for his 60th point – the most for any player in their final game.

It was also pretty cool that with 4.7 seconds left, he chucked the ball across the court to Julius Randle for one last assist.

For someone who has never been a fan of purple and gold, I must admit that I shed a tear or two when Kobe embraced Russell, and Randle – humbly handing over the torch, walking off into the sunset on a high that Hollywood couldn’t have scripted any better.

Let the playoffs begin.

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Photo Credit: Bleacher Report

It wasn’t the Alamo, but folks in San Antonio will certainly remember where they were Sunday night when the Golden State Warriors snapped the Spurs’ NBA record of 39 straight wins at home to start the season.

Golden State joins the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls as the newest members of the 72 win club, and Wednesday night’s final game, their date with destiny, will be in the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies.

In the first quarter the Warriors only managed 14 measly points, looking quite uncomfortable on the Spurs home court. But San Antonio could not capitalize on Curry’s slow, sloppy start, and the reigning MVP gave everyone in the front row and beyond a glimpse of his greatness with 20 second half points.

The Spurs made hapless attempts to stall Curry from the three-point line, which he made them pay dearly for with a series of drives through the lane past five San Antonio defenders.

LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points to lead his team in a losing cause. Kawhi Leonard was limited to 20, due to the brilliant defense of Draymond Green.

I love that the record Golden State hopes to grab comes down to their last hurrah at home, giving the diehards every last drop of competitive glory. They have been pretty magnificent on any court in the country, but no matter how profoundly they’ve performed, there are no gimmes in the world of sports.

So if you think the Warriors game against the Grizzlies will be a walk in the park, just replay the good walk spoiled on the final day of the Masters when Jordan Spieth blew a five-shot lead on the back nine to give a British bloke named Danny Willett a new coveted green jacket.

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Photo Credit: Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images

The Los Angeles Lakers toughed out an OT win against the Miami Heat Wednesday night, but unfortunately, the only video that played over and over again was that of Nick Young’s private phone conversation, compliments of his duplicitous teammate, D’Angelo Russell.

Everyone thought this storied franchise had hit the depths of despair when they matched their biggest loss on Monday – a 48-point defeat by the Utah Jazz.

In the post game interview Russell was remorseful for his actions, but claimed that he has no idea how the video went viral. Seriously? That’s like Jim Bouton, who spilled the beans about his teammates infidelities in his book, Ball Four, professing, “I don’t know how it got published.”

Well, there aren’t that many scenarios to choose from. He shot the video and either sent it to someone he may have foolishly trusted, or he foolishly left his phone in the presence of someone who posted it without his knowledge.

Either way you look at it, Russell did something so damaging, that he may have lost a friend forever, and the trust of a team that is in serious need of bonding.

Today, on my ride home, while listening to ESPN LA, I was taken aback that with the boos still burning from the Staples Center. They had the gall to run an ad of Russell promoting his autograph signing at a local car dealership with Saturday. The copy included, “Come see one of your favorite Lakers.”

The greatest prank of a payback for Nick Young would be to secretly video the small turnout, then reveal it, Ashton Kutcher style, for the entire world to see.

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Photo by Kelvin Kuo/AP

The Los Angeles Lakers made a deal with the devil to devote this season to Kobe’s departure, and unfortunately, they haven’t got much in return during the process.

Last night they tied their largest franchise loss, a 123-75 drubbing by the Utah Jazz – a crappy way to help Byron Scott celebrate his 55^th birthday.

A lot of the blame for this disastrous season has been put upon their beleaguered coach, but the front office of Jim Buss, Mitch Kupchak, and company are as culpable as Scott.

D’Angelo Russell has butt heads with his head coach since becoming a Laker, and in between flashes of franchise performances, his pouty behavior is not helping the perception that he does not care about the privileged job he is paid a lot of money to do.

Scott has criticized Russell every chance he gets; like a disappointed father whose anger over his son’s unrealized potential never wanes. It’s a broken relationship that couple’s therapy might fix, but these two will not be on the same team long enough for that to make a dent.

Hopefully in years to come they’ll look back and realize that they were thrown together on the wrong team at the wrong time and forgive each other for the mistakes they both have made.

This year of rebuilding turned out to be a bad game of Jenga because the centerpiece is an aging player past his prime that was given the keys to the position that he could no longer effectively play.

So for now the Lakers only hope of redeeming something positive from this year of discontent would be to win by losing the rest of their games, grab a first round draft pick, and pray that the likes of Luke Walton is available and willing to clean up this mess for a fresh start next season.

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Photo Credit: Getty Images

The Los Angeles Lakers loss last night was advantageous to a team that is too far away from the playoff prize – much closer to the first round draft pick that’s dangling on the NBA amusement park merry-go-round.

Poor play in sports is rarely rewarded, but when the gift of a potential franchise player is up for grabs, it’s easier to take the blows when you know it’s for the betterment of the faulty team you’re trying to rebuild.

On the other hand, the NBA team that shares the same city, the fast and fading Los Angeles Clippers, are struggling.

The road that was their friend has cruelly turned into their foe, and the return of Blake Griffin may not come to fruition until after the regular season, when home court advantage is a thing of the past.

Their loss last night to the Golden State Warriors was not unexpected, but a three game slide, two of which to teams they should have beaten, is not the best use of their time down the stretch.

In the final seconds of the first quarter, when it looked like the Clippers were making a statement, ahead by seven, Stephen Curry barreled through the lane without one LA player barrier in his way.

They were fooled and forsaken by Klay Thompson’s fancy footwork, giving up three after three. He and Curry combined for 65 of Golden State’s 114.

DeAndre Jordan had a great game, scoring 19 points and 20 boards. But the backcourt of Chris Paul and J.J. Redick were a combined 8-for-29 with the bench besting the starters 52-46.

With two of their 12 remaining games against the Lakers, the Clippers can help themselves secure home court advantage by beating them, and in doing so earn some much needed karma by helping their brothers from another mother obtain a first round pick.

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Photo Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

I do not watch much college basketball during the regular season, and every year when it’s time to fill out my brackets, it’s like that reoccurring bad dream. You know what I’m talking about. The test you have to take for the class you never attended.

Tonight, eleven of the sixteen I selected are moving on. You would think that I’d feel pretty damn good about that percentage given that I didn’t hand in one iota of homework the entire school year.

But the second seeded Michigan State team that I picked to win the National Championship tanked in the first round. I wish I could say, “It isn’t so,” Tom Izzo. You, me and a million other poor schnooks never saw Middle Tennessee that close in the rear view mirror.

Of all the brackets in the world, why did one of the biggest upsets in NCAA history have to walk into mine?

My game plan every year is to take more risks, but a fifteen seed beating a two? That’s like being the lucky gladiator who bet David over Goliath.

I gambled a little with Gonzaga over Seton Hall, but didn’t go with my gut when it came to Syracuse. USC tugged at my heartstrings causing heartbreak, and although I would have loved to see the Long Island boys at Stony Brook get past Kentucky Wildcats, I let my brains talk me out of that one.

The Hoosiers knocked out Calipari’s kids, so not much brilliant bracket work there, which now leaves two of my final four put out to pasture.

I have Kansas over Villanova, and Oklahoma over Oregon, against the prayers of my two brothers who live in Portland. Sorry guys – it’s bracket business.

And it ain’t pretty – especially for me, knowing that I’ll be watching the final game on April 4^th at home, just like the team I picked to win the whole damn thing. And you can bet the bank that I’ll be back next season for yet another round of reoccurring bad dreams.

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Photo Credit: Andrew D. Bernstein/Getty Images

The Los Angeles Clippers barely beat the not-so-good Knicks on Friday, and then caved to the much better Cavs on Sunday. As the final stretch of the regular season is in full gear, the question that keeps resurfacing is, will the return of Blake Griffin be a bust or a blessing?

Robin Lopez, Kristaps Porzingis, and Carmelo Anthony kept the Knicks afloat without the injured Aaron Afflalo. But a series of missed baskets inches from the rim, dreadful defensive rebounding, and fatigue in the final minutes prevented NY from stealing a precious win on the road.

Two days after the Clippers doused the Knicks from downtown, the Cavaliers mocked them with 18 long-range missiles, en route to a 114-90 win.

J.R. Smith and reserve Channing Frye were on fire from the three-point line with five a piece, while Kyrie Irving and Smith had 17 points. LeBron James brought in a gutsy game high 27.

The Clippers busted out of the gate with a 14-4 lead, but LeBron and his boys bounced back to end the first quarter up by two and never looked back, except to admire the scoreboard that boasted their 26 point lead well into the fourth quarter.

Jeff Green, who was money on Friday, contributed spare change on Sunday. Chris Paul couldn’t carry the team on his six-foot frame with 17 points and 10 assists, DeAndre Jordan had a decent double double of 11 points and 11 boards, and Jamal Crawford, who always makes some noise off the bench, only mustered a quiet eight.

Los Angeles is set to embark on a five game road trip, which begins in San Antonio where the Spurs are 32-0 at home, bookending in Oakland to face the Warriors who boast a 30-0 record in their own backyard.

Oh, and in between, they will have a showdown in another part of Texas, Houston, where there have been problems – which they can ill afford with 17 games left in the regular season.

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Photo By Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times

The Los Angeles Lakers are making a case for caring about their franchise with a rare back-to-back win following their monumental victory over the reigning champ Golden State Warriors.

With everything up their sleeves, the budding NBA law firm of D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle served court papers to the Orlando Magic, beating them 107-98.

It may be too late to salvage the season, but it’s never too late to relish in the rewards of seeing your rebuilding dollars going to work.

The Lakers starting five are playing like a finely tuned band, and as Kobe Bryant mentally and physically lives out his final days, we’re witnessing a very promising passing of the torch.

D’Angelo Russell scored 27 points, had a couple from downtown, three assists and three steals. Jordan Clarkson continues to broaden shooting game, sinking five behind the arc for a total of 24, and Julius Randle double-doubled again, with 11 rebounds and 23 points.

The past three seasons, the Lakers have had to eat a lot of humble pie being the B-side of the Clippers 45, so this surge in their game makes you want to hear the song they’re singing.

It’s unfortunate that Kobe’s ego and retirement distraction got in the way of some of the young guys’ advancement, but so encouraging to know that there is some beautiful wood flooring underneath that worn wall to wall carpeting.

With 17 games still on the docket, there’s a chance that Byron’s boys could move out of their cellar dwelling Western Conference place in the standings to a spot with a better view.

The Lakers are way past the due date of miracles, but watching Kobe finally be a mentoring figure to his soon to be former teammates, is something I never thought I’d see.

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