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Memphis for hoops ‘incredible’

ScuttleBu(r)t

ScuttleBu(r)t …

Matt (Sweets) McCarthy, director of the Don Hill Memorial Scholarship Basketball Tournament in Norway, took in the hot spots of Memphis, Tenn., recently.

McCarthy was in the crowd when North Carolina stunned Kentucky with a last-second shot to win an NCAA men’s basketball regional.

“Incredible,” McCarthy said of the tournament atmosphere. “I’ve never experienced anything like it.”

And this comes from a man who has been to Lambeau Field for Green Bay Packers’ championship games. He added that a three-block radius near the Memphis game site was swamped with people.

“Most I’ve seen since the 1996 Iron Mountain-Norway football game,” he noted.

As for Memphis’ legendary Mid-South Coliseum, “it’s a dump.”

The now-vacated arena held some major pro wrestling matches in its day headlined by Jerry “The King” Lawler and others. I wouldn’t be surprised if local great “Irish Mickey” Doyle worked there on occasion …

From Dwight Perry, Seattle Times: “The only NFL team that hasn’t had a player arrested in the past three years? The Oakland Raiders.

“Somewhere, the Matuszak-Stabler era Raiders are weeping.”

Central Michigan University wide receiver Jesse Kroll, who helped out at a Chips football camp in Kingsford a couple years ago, may not be drafted next week.

Escanaba’s Bob McGinn, the Pro Football Hall of Fame scribe with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, believes the Algoma native could see some NFL free agent opportunities.

Kroll suffered major injuries during three of his CMU seasons including a torn ACL four games into 2016 .

“He’s had multiple injuries and he’s already slow,” one scout told McGinn.

Kroll runs a 4.6 in the 40 …

Heading into the NFL Draft, former Michigan Tech star Joe Berger is projected to be the Minnesota Vikings starting center.

However, Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports that third-year center Nick Easton could push the 35-year-old Berger …

Iron Mountain’s Daniel Kulas shaved eight seconds off his best 5,000-meter time at Platteville, Wis., this week.

The Michigan Tech distance runner ran a 15:15 at Augustana and came back with a 15:07 …

From the Bill Murray “Twitter” account: “To thrive in life you need three bones. A wishbone. A backbone. And a funny bone.”

Marquette’s Adam Hamari, in his first season as a full-time Major League Baseball umpire, has been assigned to a crew led by Bill Miller.

Kerwin Danley and Todd Tichenor fill out the crew. Miller, an MLB umpire since 1997, earned crew chief status in 2014 …

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