NERDS AROUND TOWN

Nerd Around Town: John Wick 3, $16 pretzels and mental breaks

Nerd Around Town: John Wick 3, $16 pretzels and mental breaks
ART BY JESUS RODRIGUEZ

Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio, Sports and Wrestling. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!

Hey Nerds!

It's Thursday and we're almost to the weekend, so cheer up warriors, you've almost made it.

GOOD DEED OF THE DAY

Zoey's Angels is an amazing organization with a great mission. They help families who suffer the loss of a newborn after an extended medical fight. Some people might point out that that's a rather exclusive group but honestly, they're a group who need your help perhaps more than anyone. The unexpected and high costs of medical care and the nature of the trauma make it a particularly painful thing for people to go through and then on top of that they get hit with bills that need paying. It's insanity. Zoey's Angels on Sunday are having their 8th annual fundraising walk, join in and help out. #NerdsUnite

NBA FINALS

I've been saying this whole playoffs that the difficulty of winning four out of five championships and just being in five finals in a row takes a toll on any team, especially a team under constant scrutiny and speculation like The Warriors have been, but when The Raptors made it from the East, it's just hard to believe in them. The injuries are starting to sink the ship for The Warriors and now giving back home court advantage tilts a lot of "gamesmanship" back in the favor of The Raptors. This is going to be an interesting series and I'm curious to see how it all plays out, but now my prediction of a Gentleman's sweep Warriors over Raptors is out.

JOHN WICK 3

Just watched John Wick 3 and honestly, it's awesome. These movies have found a way to up the intensity and action in each one, although there were a few scenes of violence that I honestly could have done without, there's a particularly brutal slow stab to an eyeball that just hurt to watch. These movies are a road map for fast paced action and violence and I love nearly EVERY second of them, they do a great job creating a fast paced story and I love the idea of them being some sort of serial concept where every few years the next chapter of John Wick comes out. It's weird to think in terms of the first and second movies that in the span of a few weeks John Wick had destroyed the Russian mob in New York and then killed a member of the "High Table", he's a busy guy. These movies though are awesome and people need to be watching them and telling their friends and telling their friends' friends.

HOW MUCH?

Part of the experience of seeing John Wick 3 though was going to the movies. AMC just tried to charge me $15.99 for a pretzel. A Pretzel?! They said it's a pound and a half and my reaction was still almost knocking the cash register off the counter. Like how did we get to this point? $16 American dollars for a pretzel, I don't think there's anything they could do to that pretzel that would make me feel like $16 is a good price for it. I mean maybe there's something I'm not seeing, maybe there's a brilliant sauce or something they put on it and I'm just not there yet, but seriously $16. I mean a GIANT tub of popcorn was $9 and I was unhappy about that in spite of it coming with a free refill, so unless that Pretzel is actually two pretzels that are somehow both two times better than a tub of popcorn, it isn't even worth the money. This is just crazy math, who is in charge of prices at the movie concession counters these days?

NOT THAT YOU ASKED

Man, I love rainy, lazy days. I shouldn't have taken one, I have a ton of work to do that all requires me to kick my ass and work really hard, but man was yesterday a nice day for lying around and relaxing. Every once in a while we have to figure a way to carve some time for us to just kick back and not think for a bit, if you can't then you need to find a way to. Just little pockets of time here and there, find out how to carve them up and try and relax. It's a crucial part of mental health, which science and biology are telling us more and more every day are relevant.

I'm going to jump out and wish you guys a great Thursday and remind everyone to be kind to each other and try a little harder to have a great day! I'm coming back Friday and we'll be bringing more good times your way. Feel free to check out my digital short story The Wilson House or buy a shirt from Side Hustle Ts where some proceeds help fight cancer or listen to Nerd Thug Radio. Thoughts, complaints, events and comments can be sent to corydlg@gmail.com.

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Houston is back in action on Friday night. Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images.

Despite a last-minute comeback attempt by Gonzaga on Saturday, the Cougars defeated the Bulldogs and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the sixth straight NCAA Tournament.

Houston will face the No.4 seed Purdue, who made it to the championship game last year.

The Boilermakers will be one of the toughest opponents the Cougars have faced thus far and will essentially have the home-court advantage with the game taking place in Indianapolis.

Despite the daunting matchup on paper, Houston is currently an -8.5 favorite to win this game. The Cougars should be able to handle Purdue so long as their offense stays hot and they continue to play defense at an elite level.

Keep the offense flowing

Houston guard LJ Cryer matched a career-high with 30 points against Gonzaga and has been the offensive focal point of this team.

This season, the Baylor transfer has averaged 15.6 points per game and has stepped up to be one of the unquestioned leaders of this team.

In addition to Cryer, the Cougars have Milos Uzan and Emanuel Sharp, who can carry the offensive load as they did during the Big 12 Tournament and against SIUE on Thursday.

J’Wan Roberts is another key factor for Houston’s success. The senior forward seems to have recovered from his ankle injury and has been a productive player since returning to the lineup.

Roberts leads the team in rebounds and is one of the most efficient scorers for the Cougars, averaging more than 50% from the field over his last five seasons.

Houston’s dynamic offense and elite defense makes this team one of the toughest to beat during the tournament.

Containing Purdue’s stars

The Boilermakers have two proficient scorers on their team, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Braden Smith, who each average over 15 points per game.

Kaufman-Renn scored 22 points in his previous game against McNeese State and has been one of Purdue’s best players for most of this year.

Roberts and Joseph Tuggler will likely be assigned to the junior forward to slow down his offense, forcing his teammates to step up.

Smith is Purdue’s second-leading scorer, averaging 16 points per game, and has the most assists and steals for the Boilermakers this season.

Both Uzan and Cyrer, who have been elite parameter defenders, will cover the Purdue guard and limit his production.
Containing both Kaufman-Renn and Smith will be Houston’s top priority and the key to come away victorious.

Play Cougar basketball

Head coach Kelvin Sampson has now made it to at least the Sweet 16 six consecutive times and has his team well-positioned to make another deep tournament run.

Since arriving in Houston, the 69-year-old coach has turned this program from an afterthought to one of the best basketball teams in the country year after year.

Sampson’s key to his success is instilling a defensive-first mentality into his team and getting the best effort out of his players.

This season is no different, as Houston has the number-one ranked defense in the nation and is holding their opponents to 58.4 points per game on average.

If the Cougars can create consistent offense and continue playing defense at an elite level, they should win this game with ease and advance to the Elite 8 for the first time in three years.

The Houston-Purdue game will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday at 9 pm. The winner will play either Kentucky or Tennessee in the next round.

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