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Posts tagged as “Florida”

LeBron James Wins 4th NBA MVP Award

By goodblacknews on May 3, 2013
LeBron James #6 of the Miami Heat celebrates a basket against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 3, 2013 (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)
James #6 of the Miami Heat celebrates a basket against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 3, 2013 (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)

LeBron James is getting his fourth Most Valuable Player award — and the only mystery left is whether the vote was unanimous.  The Miami Heat star will be introduced Sunday as the award winner, according to a person familiar with the results and who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the league has not publicly announced the result. James will become the fifth player with at least four MVP awards, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain.

No one has ever swept every first-place vote in the NBA’s MVP balloting. After the season he had, James could be the first.  “I don’t know who else you’d vote for,” Heat forward Chris Bosh said Friday. “No offense to everybody else, but that’s just how good he has played this year.”
James averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists this season, shooting a career-best 56 percent. It was absolutely no surprise that he won the award, and given the timetable for Miami’s next game — the Heat don’t open Eastern Conference semifinal play until Monday night against Brooklyn or Chicago — it had been widely assumed for several days that Sunday would be the day.

Serena Williams Beats Maria Sharapova for Key Biscayne Title

By goodblacknews on April 2, 2013
Serena Williams poses with trophy
Serena Williams poses with trophy after winning the womens finals beating Maria Sharapova in three sets at the Sony Ericsson Open at Crandon Park Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, Florida. (Mandatory Credit: INFphoto.com)
KEY BISCAYNE, Florida (AP) — Serena Williams danced to the crowd’s roar, spinning and grinning, hopping and waving, then spinning some more.  If her victory celebration on the stadium court seemed well-rehearsed, it was. She earned a record sixth Key Biscayne women’s title by beating familiar foil Maria Sharapova 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 at the Sony Open on Saturday.
Sharapova set a new standard for futility in finals. She completed a career Grand Slam by winning the French Open last year, and won Indian Wells two weeks ago, but she’s winless in five Key Biscayne finals.  Sharapova playing nearly flawless tennis for an hour, before her serve and groundstrokes began to lose steam. Williams swept the last 10 games and faltered only during the trophy ceremony.

Brittney Griner Dunks Career High, 3 Times in Baylor Win over FSU

By goodblacknews on March 27, 2013

http://youtu.be/BIyiEHqt0g4
 
WACO, Texas (AP) — Brittney Griner certainly knows how to provide a farewell to remember — and an embrace Baylor coach Kim Mulkey will likely never forget.  There were three impressive dunks on a night Griner almost could have had more in her final home game.

“Tonight felt like senior night. Tonight was better,” Griner said. ” The three dunks. Just going out the way we did. Not everybody’s lucky, and we were. We gave the crowd a good game.”
Griner had 33 points and a career-high 22 rebounds, becoming the first woman to make three dunks in a game, as the defending national champion Lady Bears rolled past Florida State 85-47 Tuesday night in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
NCAA Florida St Baylor BasketballWith former President George W. Bush part of the crowd packed into the Ferrell Center for the final home game of Griner’s impressive career and four other seniors, the 6-foot-8 two-time All-American delivered in spectacular fashion — with one dunk before halftime and two more in a 79-second span right before coming out of the game for good.
“It’s always exciting to see when Brittney dunks. I always get excited. We always get excited,” junior point guard Odyssey Sims said. “Everyone gets pumped. It’s nothing we’ve never seen. She’s just phenomenal.”
Brooklyn Pope had 12 points for Baylor, which has won a nation’s-best 57 games in a row at home. Sims had 11 points and Kimetria Hayden 10.  The Lady Bears (34-1) are in the NCAA round of 16 for the fourth year in a row. They play Louisville (26-8) on Sunday night in Oklahoma City.
Griner’s opening slam came on a break after a Florida State basket. Freshman guard Niya Johnson passed ahead to Griner, who took one step without a dribble before slamming it home with 4 minutes left in the first half for a 43-18 lead — sending the partisan crowd of 9,652 into a frenzy as she ran down the court with her mouth open and clearly enjoying the moment.

Edison O. Jackson Named President of Bethune-Cookman University

By goodblacknews on March 24, 2013

Edison O. JacksonEdison O. Jackson is the sixth president of Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida. He has been serving as interim president since May 2012. He has agreed to serve as president until July 2016. The board of trustees stated that it would begin a search for his successor in January 2015.
Dr. Jackson previously served as president of Compton Community College in California and as president of Medgar Evers College, part of the City University of New York system. He retired as president of Medgar Evers College in 2009 after serving in that position for 20 years.
Dr. Jackson earned a bachelor’s degree in zoology and a master’s degree in counseling from Howard University. He holds a doctorate in education from Rutgers University.

 article via jbhe.com

49 Years Ago Today: Muhammad Ali Wins 1st World Heavyweight Championship (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on February 25, 2013

Ali Sonny Liston
Considered the greatest boxer of all time, Muhammad Ali (pictured left) possessed formidable ability coupled with a personality that gained him both fans and detractors. With his tall stature and unorthodox fighting style, Ali dazzled audiences and frustrated opponents with a seemingly limitless vault of skills. On this day and at the age of 22, Ali would defeat reigning champion Sonny Liston (pictured) to capture his first world title.
Ali went by his birth name Cassius Clay during the time of the bout, and the Louisville native was not favored to win after Liston handily defeated former champion Floyd Patterson twice by this point.
Leading up to the bout at the Convention Hall at Miami Beach, Ali uttered one of his many famous phrases and promised to “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” during the clash. Liston was feared for his imposing build and punching power but, as Ali artfully stated, the leaner and younger opponent picked apart his lumbering foe with ease.
While Liston finally did get going, Ali used his speed and athleticism to pepper his opponent’s head with jabs and big shots.
Ali Sonny Liston
While Ali predicted he would win by knockout in the eighth round, he ended upneeding less time than he thought.
After reportedly injuring his shoulder after missing several huge blows, Liston would not answer the bell for the start of the seventh round.
While in the ring, the animated Ali made another famous reference during an interview shortly after the bout. “I shook up the world,” shouted Ali at the top of his lungs. “I must be the greatest!”
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OezriPEepZs&w=420&h=315]
article by D.L. Chandler via newsone.com

Teen Making History as 4th Black Driver in NASCAR

By goodblacknews on February 19, 2013
Darrell Wallace, Jr., driver of the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, poses with the Coors Pole award after qualifying for pole position for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East American Real TV 150 at Dover International Speedway on September 28, 2012 in Dover, Delaware. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Darrell Wallace, Jr., driver of the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, poses with the Coors Pole award after qualifying for pole position for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East American Real TV 150 at Dover International Speedway on September 28, 2012 in Dover, Delaware. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images for NASCAR)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Darrell Wallace Jr., is set to make history as only the fourth black driver with a full-time ride in a NASCAR series.  Wallace takes the wheel for the Truck Series race Friday at Daytona International Speedway. He is signed with Joe Gibbs Racing and will drive the No. 54 Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports.
Wallace joins Wendell Scott, Willy T. Ribbs and Bill Lester as the only full-time black drivers in the 65-year history of NASCAR. Scott, one of the original pioneers, is the only black driver to win a race.  Wallace, the son of a white father and black mother, openly talks of becoming the Tiger Woods of NASCAR. He wants to become a star who can transcend the sport and prove people of all colors can race.
Copyright 2013 Dan Gelston, The Associated Press via thegrio.com

102 Year-Old Woman Who Stood in Line for Hours to be Presidential Guest at State of the Union

By goodblacknews on February 12, 2013
Desiline Victor (center), a 102-year-old Florida voter, poses with election protection workers in Florida. (Photo courtesy of The Advancement Project.)
Desiline Victor (center), a 102-year-old Florida voter, poses with election protection workers in Florida. (Photo courtesy of The Advancement Project.)
A 102-year-old Florida woman who stood in line for three hours to vote this past November will sit in a place of honor at tonight’s State of the Union address.  Desiline Victor will be among four African-American guests of the First Lady at the annual presidential address to Congress.  In addition to Victor, the parents of slain Chicago teen Hadiya Pendleton: Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton and Nathaniel A. Pendleton Sr., of Chicago; and 12-year-old Arizona youth activist Haile Thomas, a Youth Advisory Board member with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and Co-Founder/Director of the HAPPY Organization, which focuses on improving children’s lives through service, education and healthy active lifestyles, will sit with Michelle Obama for the speech. Other guests of Michelle Obama include Apple CEO Tim Cook and Medal of Honor recipient Clinton Romesha.

Victor, a retired farm worker originally from Haiti, was born in 1910, arriving in the United States in 1989. She is reportedly the oldest person ever invited to attend a State of the Union address.  

Florida Youth in Manatee County Work to Keep Martin Luther King Legacy Alive

By goodblacknews on January 12, 2013

Bre’Yahna Thompson, 15, of Bradenton, foreground, calls herself a “positive rapper,” and is very tuned in to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Behind Bre’Yahna is her father, Rodney Thompson. RICHARD DYMOND/Bradenton Herald
PALMETTO — Like other communities getting set to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 21, Manatee County’s religious leaders wonder if Dr. King’s message of brotherhood, nonviolence and persistence is getting through to the younger generation.  One way that is working, say local pastors, is the recently completed Dr. Martin Luther King Speech and Essay Contest in Manatee County, which involved more than 300 young people writing essays and researching King’s life and work.
Another way is through church, where pastors say a moment of silence and some discussion will be the hallmark of services on Jan. 20 and where a local Jewish temple is holding an interfaith Shabbat service honoring the civil rights leader.
But one talented young local African-American woman is trying another way to share King’s ideals.  She wants to use music to reach her generation.  Bre’Yahna Thompson, 15, a Bradenton home-schooler who writes poetry, plays the violin and cello, and calls herself a “positive rapper,” is working on a rap song about King that she calls, “The Story of a Leader.”

Born On This Day in 1891: Noted Author Zora Neale Hurston

By goodblacknews on January 7, 2013

Zora Neale Hurston birthday
Writer, folklorist, and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston (pictured) was one of the most-outstanding authors that emerged from the Harlem Renaissance. Over the course of four novels, an autobiography, and dozens of published writings, Hurston has been an inspiration for distinguished writers, such as Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Ralph Ellison, and countless others.
Hurston was the fifth of eight children born to her parents, John and Lucy Ann, in the small town of Notasulga in Alabama. The family uprooted when she was just a toddler, making their new home in Eatonville, Fla. Her father, a preacher, would become mayor of the town, which was one of the first all-black incorporated cities in the United States. After the death of her school teacher mother in 1904, her father remarried and she was sent to boarding school in nearby Jacksonville. Hurston was later expelled after her father stopped paying the tuition.

African Art to Shine at Miami’s Art Basel December 6-9

By goodblacknews on December 1, 2012

Mickalene Thomas: Qusuquzah, Une Trés Belle Négresse 2, part of the 2012 Art Basel

The 11th annual art carnival known as Art Basel Miami Beach is set to kick off next week and will feature Art Africa Miami as its cultural hub. The Miami Beach Convention Center will be hosting the showcase for more than 50 contemporary artists from the global African Diaspora from Dec. 6 to 9.  Typically, Art Basel (which was founded in 1970) pulls from more than 250 leading art galleries from the U.S., Canada, Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia, exhibiting modern artworks by more than 2,000 artists. Until 2011, when Neil Hall — owner of TheUrbanCollective’s Art Africa Miami — stepped in, the main show hadn’t had black galleries represented.