Troubled linebacker Odell Thurman was released by the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday, one month after he was reinstated by the NFL from a two-year suspension. Thurman failed to attend the team's three voluntary workouts last week, when he was in Georgia following the death of his grandmother. The Bengals are installing a new defense, and wanted him to participate. "I was just told by coach (Marvin) Lewis that he hadn't been in the building enough since his reinstatement, and they decided to go in a different direction," agent Safarrah Lawson said in a phone interview. The move came one month after the Bengals released receiver Chris Henry following his fifth arrest, an indication that the team is taking a hard line on player conduct. Eleven Bengals player have faced criminal charges in the last two years. Join discussion...

Game 4 started out much better than game 3, but the end result was the same as the Celtics lost to the Cavaliers 88-77. The Celtics are going back to Boston with their series tied at 2 games apiece once again. In 5 tries, they inexplicably have not been able to win on the road. After a blow out in game 3, they came out more aggressively in this one and kept it close until the final 2 minutes when the Cavaliers pulled away. Perk got into quick foul trouble and went to the bench with 4:10 left in the first. Perk returned in the second quarter only to pick up his third foul a little over a minute later. He finished with 2 points and 3 rebounds in just 18 minutes of play. PJ Brown benefited the most from Perk's foul problems as he had his best game as a Celtic with 8 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks in 22 minutes. It was very puzzling that Leon Powe played only 6 minutes after playing very well in the post season so far. In another puzzling move, Big Baby started the fourth quarter and played 4 minutes with only 1 missed jumper and a foul to show for his efforts. KG was very active in this game, diving for loose balls and forcing 2 jump balls. He had 13 points in the first half but scored just 2 points in the second half to finish with 15 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 block in 40 minutes. At times, Paul Pierce was aggressive in taking the ball to the hoop and it seemed as though he would take over the game but then, he would stop driving and settle for quick outside jumpers. He had 13 points on 6-17 shooting to go with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Ray Allen seemed to come alive in the second half, finally breaking out of his shooting slump and scoring 9 of his 15 points in the 3rd quarter. He also pulled down 6 rebounds and dished out 3 assists. Rajon Rondo did a good job of pushing the pace of the game and he also was more aggressive on offense. He finished with 15 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals in 33 minutes. Sam Cassell struggled In this game as he was 0-5 from the field in 14 minutes of play and defensively he was burned by Daniel Gibson almost every time down. Doc may have left Sam in too long as the offense seemed to stall when Sam was running the point. Through 3 quarters, the Celtics controlled the boards with a 31-28 advantage at the end of 3. They were out rebounded 6-1 in the fourth quarter however. Much of rebounding is effort and the Celtics clearly didn't put the effort out in the final period. Once again, the Celtics gave up too many easy shots as they allowed the Cavs to shoot 46% from the field. On the other end, the Celtics struggled with their offense, shooting just 39%. Unlike the other road games, the Celtics held the edge in free throws as they shot 20-26 to just 12-18 for the Cavs. There was one moment in the game that was laughable. With 4:13 left in the half, Pierce wrapped up LeBron to prevent a break away dunk. Their momentum took both of them into the crowd where LeBron's mother happened to be sitting. His mother, Gloria, was up and ready to take on the Celtics. To this, LeBron clearly told his mother: "Sit your a** down." It was pretty funny. The Celtics were within 4 with 2:43 left in the game but they allowed the Cavs to go on a 9-2 run to end the game as the Cavs scored on a variety of dunks and 3 pointers to close out the game. They just seemed tired and a step slow and allowed the Cavs to run away in the final minutes. The Cavaliers' bench came up big with 36 points and 19 rebounds while the Celtics bench struggled with just 17 points and 11 rebounds. No Celtics' subs were in double figures while on the other side Gibson had 14 points and Varejao had 12. The series now shifts back to Boston for game 5 and hopefully the struggles they have had on the road won't follow them home. The Celtics are still the only team who hasn't won on the road in the post season and their Jekyll and Hyde persona between home and the road has gotten more and more puzzling and more than a little worrisome. Hopefully they can find a solution to their poor play on both ends of the court, or their dream season may end considerably short of the goal. Join discussion...

After Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, many said it was the worst game the Flyers played so far in the playoffs. Many of the players agreed with that assessment. For the Flyers to take game 2 they could not get caught standing still and letting the likes of Evgeni Malkin, Marian Hossa, and Sidney Crosby skate freely in the their end of the ice. They had to stay out of the penalty box and play a consistent game. The game did not start well for the Flyers. Philadelphia was already without the services of their best defenseman Kimmo Timonen, when Braydon Coburn took a puck to the face and left the game. Coburn did not return but is a possibility for game 3. "My left eye is swollen shut right now," he said. "I will keep the ice on it and get the swelling down and see what happens [Monday]. Join discussion...

Based on absolutely no inside information—other than what I've read elsewhere and that persistent voice in my head that's usually telling me secrets about NSA surveillance on my house—I present to you, in no particular order, a handicapped list of candidates for the WVU head coaching job... I'm struck by the fact that most of these guys, technically speaking, have redneck names. What the heck? Nick Saban What, Bobby Petrino wasn't available? Yes, websites Monday afternoon were reporting that Saban's agent had contacted WVU boy-president Mike Garrison to tell him that Snaky Saban wasn't happy in Tuscaloosa (shocker)—and to ask WVU to make him an offer. Sure, Saban's a lying bastard, but the native West Virginian is OUR lying bastard! What's more, he's won a national championship at LSU and is apparently a charismatic recruiter. I'm giving this a surprisingly high 25 percent chance of happening, if only because Saban is exactly the kind of guy who would bail on one job that didn't elevate him to godlike status after his first year to take another in the loving arms of a sycophantic, starstruck populace. Terry Bowden Between Bobby and Terry, it seems inevitable that WVU will end up with one of the issues of Bobby Bowden's loins. Upside: He's coached and won at Auburn. He's affable and probably a good ol' boy type recruiter. Downside: He pulled a Robert Irsay at Auburn, leaving after losing four straight in a "You can't fire me I quit" moment. Also, he's desperate. ("Please ask me to the prom! Please!") Bowden has written in his blog that he wants to get back into coaching so badly that he's been losing weight and spending eight hours a day at Florida State to get boned up on the game. Translation: He's got nothing else to do besides reading Atkins books and hanging out at Dad's office. Don't hire a guy who's out of work, I say. But unfortunately, I'm giving this a 75 percent chance of happening. Jimbo Fisher Offensive coordinator at Florida State. Downside: He's named "Jimbo." Whiffs of "Mississippi Burning." Not exactly 21st-century high-tech football. I envision the Wing-T on offense and the wide-tackle six on defense. Upside: I dunno. Folks think he's good. He's so much the heir apparent at Florida State that he'd have to pay $2.5 million to leave. Still: "Jimbo." Which means I'm giving this a 35 percent chance of happening. Butch Jones Oh, come on. Jimbo? Butch? What's the matter, doesn't WVU have the speed-dial for the agents of Scooter and Fireball? Is it possible WVU could get a head coach whose name won't make everyone think of...West Virginia? Downside: A former WVU assistant coach, Jones has spent exactly one year coaching mighty Directional Michigan to an 8-5 record and a bowl game against Purdue. Sorry. Too green, too bush. On the other hand, Jones does have a big thing going for him, and it can be summed up in one word: "cheap." I bet WVU could get him for $1 million a year and he'd be pleased as punch. But you don't hand the keys to a Ferrari to you teenage son—not unless you want to own a very expensive, very red piece of two-ton conceptual art that just got towed into your driveway. How about a 10 percent chance on this one? Bud Foster Okay, now you're pulling my leg. Jimbo, Butch, and...Bud? He's the defensive coordinator at Virginia Tech. Fine, I like their defense. But why do I think Patrick White and the rest of the high-powered WVU offense would sputter like someone dumped a pound of sugar in its gas tank? This dude's got too much of a "Wha? Who?" factor. Which means I'm giving it a 75 percent chance. Doc Holliday I LOVED him in "Tombstone!" He nailed that whole consumptive-yet-sexy, dissolute-yet-still-deadly gunfighter thing opposite Kurt Russell's Wyatt Earp. I thought he should have gotten an Oscar nod for...oh. Not THAT Doc Holliday? Well, who the hell is this guy? An assistant coach at Florida? Oh, right—Urban's-ripoff-of-Rodriguez's-spread team. Apparently, he can recruit Florida, which is cool. And, if WVU has to hire a dude with a nickname, at least it's "Doc" and not "Jimbo." For no particular reason, I'm giving it a 20 percent chance Join discussion...