First off, I must apologize to the readers here for a complete clusterfuck in yesterday’s post. For some reason, I looked at the NBA schedule for Friday, November 9th instead of the games that were actually being played on Tuesday night. So, if you read this feature on Friday morning and think the writing seems eerily familiar, you aren’t crazy. I regret providing incorrect information yesterday and hope that my readers will accept my sincere apologies.

Now, on to the actual results from Tuesday night and the previews for Wednesday….

Last night

In a battle of former Longhorn guards, Royal Ivey and the Bucks came out on top, besting T.J. Ford and the Raptors, 112-85. T.J. played only 23 minutes in the contest, chipping in eight points and six assists. Meanwhile, Royal saw the floor for nearly 10 minutes in his longest outing of the year, dishing out four assists to go along with a bucket.

The Seattle Supersonics squandered a 20-point lead and let the homestanding Kings storm back for a 104-98 victory. Kevin Durant scored 27 points with seven rebounds and four assists, but again had trouble holding on to the ball. His six turnovers were a team high, including one where Francisco Garcia stripped the ball en route to the go-ahead three-pointer. The Sonics fell to 0-4 for the first time in 30 years.

Chris Mihm started his first game of the season for the Lakers, who lost 118-104 to the undefeated Hornets. Mihm played 17 minutes in the game, scoring eight points on 4-of-7 shooting while blocking three shots and pulling down six boards. Maurice Evans did not play.

LeBron James just missed a triple-double, but Daniel Gibson was impressive as well in the Cavaliers’ 108-104 road victory at Golden State. D-Gib shot 5-of-9 from behind the arc and provided 22 points while adding three assists, three rebounds, and a steal.

Tonight

T.J. Ford and the reeling Raptors look to get back on track against the Orlando Magic. (6 PM Central)

The Seattle Supersonics and Kevin Durant look for their first win on the year as the Grizzlies come to town. (9 PM Central)

Horn fans can catch Daniel Gibson in a national telecast when the Cavaliers travel to Utah. (9:30 PM Central, ESPN)

Opposites attract as the 4-0 Hornets head to Rip City to take on LaMarcus Aldridge and the 0-3 Trail Blazers. (9:30 PM Central)

The Memphis Tigers got the season off to a roaring start with a 102-71 win over Tennessee-Martin in the first round of the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament. Freshman Derrick Rose was as impressive as promised, scoring 17 points to go with 6 boards and 5 assists.

The Kentucky Wildcats start their season with The Smug One at the helm when they host Central Arkansas at 6 PM Central on ESPNU. The game is the first half of a doubleheader which concludes with the second-round game from the Memphis regional. The Tigers will host the Richmond Spiders at 8 PM Central in a complete clash of styles. The high-pressure, up-tempo game of Memphis is completely at odds with the Spiders’ four-corners look, which led to a 44-42 win in their first round game.

In completely ridiculous news, the Horns check in at a 4-seed in Joe Lunardi’s first Bracketology of the year. I think we’ve officially reached the overkill point on the whole mock bracket craze.

Last night

There were no Longhorns playing in the NBA last night, but the Mavericks won the first battle of Texas with a 107-98 victory over the Rockets.

Tonight

The defending Atlantic Division champion Toronto Raptors are led by point guard T.J. Ford into the Wachovia Center to face the 76ers. (6 PM Central)

Royal Ivey and the Bucks take on the Rockets in the first regular season meeting between Yao Ming and Yi Jialian. (7:30 PM Central)

It’s a battle of winless teams as the Memphis Grizzlies travel to Portland to take on LaMarcus Aldridge and the Trail Blazers. (9 PM Central)

Maurice Evans and Chris Mihm come off of the bench for the Lakers against the visiting Timberwolves. (9:30 PM Central)

D-Gib and the Cavs head west to tangle with the winless Sacramento Kings. (9:30 PM Central, ESPN)

ESPN.com is reporting that Arizona coach Lute Olson is taking a leave of absence. The announcement comes not as a result of a health scare, but in response to an unspecified personal matter. Assistant coach Kevin O’Neill will take over for Olson during the absence, but the 73-year old coach is expected to return to the bench soon. All the best wishes to Coach Olson from LRT. The Wildcats may have given Longhorn fans fits over the past decade or so, but their head coach has always been a class act.

The regular season kicks off tonight as the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament gets started in Memphis, Tennessee. The Tigers are one of four host schools, and will play in a televised contest against Tennessee-Martin at 6 PM on ESPNU. We’re all familiar with the returning stars who propelled Memphis to the Elite Eight, but the man to watch tonight is freshman phenom Derrick Rose at the point. This kid could be the Tigers’ ticket to a national title come March.

We mentioned that Jerry Rice danced to Soulja Boy at Georgetown’s Midnight Madness celebration (where Greg Monroe committed to the Hoyas.) And most Longhorn fans have seen the football team bouncing to the song during the rain delay of the UCF game in September. But this video comes to us from our friends in the frozen north, where Bo Ryan let loose on the video board during Wisconsin’s own Midnight Madness party. I know we’ll be playing the Badgers at the end of December, but I can’t help but love Bo and the tie-dyed fans of the Greatful Red.

Yesterday

T.J. Ford put on a clinic in an overtime contest between the Raptors and Celtics, but Ray Allen hit the game-winning three-pointer to give the C’s a 98-95 victory. T.J. scored 32 points on 12-of-21 shooting, adding five assists and a steal.

The Seattle SuperSonics and their young star Kevin Durant are still searching for their first win on the year after falling to the Clippers, 115-101. KD scored 24 points in 38 minutes, hitting 3-of-6 from behind the arc. He also pulled down eight rebounds to go with five assists and a blocked shot.

Daniel Gibson picked up five fouls in a 103-92 loss to the Phoenix Suns, but still played 38 minutes for Mike Brown’s Cavs. D-Gib scored six points and had four rebounds, but turned the ball over four times in the loss.

Chris Mihm and Maurice Evans provided a combined 19 minutes off the bench for Phil Jackson as the Lakers defeated the visiting Utah Jazz, 119-109. Dueces were wild for Mo, who scored two points, logged two steals, and grabbed two rebounds. Mihm missed his only shot on the night, but hit one of two free throw attempts.

Tonight

There’s only one game on the NBA slate, and there are no Longhorns involved. But because it’s a tussle between the Mavs and Rockets, I’m sure there will be a ton of Texas fans interested in the outcome.