Basketball – NBA: Green suspended indefinitely. Jabaar broken hip.
Basketball – NCAAM: 2x transfers. Upsets in the Top 25.
Football – NCAAF: Bowl game season begins. SEC schedule released.
Football – NFL: Chargers fire HC. This week in the NFL.
Golf: PNC Championship.
Olympic Sports: W Volleyball. Skiing and swimming.
Basketball – NBA:
- Before we go through the week in the NBA. We have to get to the big news of the week. Warriors player Draymond Green has been suspended indefinitely after he did a spinning slap of Suns’ player Nurkic. The Arizona team got the last laugh too as they won 119-116.
- This week in the NBA: Zion Williamson put up his season high of 36 points in their domination of the Timberwolves in a big upset 121-107 on Monday. The Pelicans would go on to win their 4th straight game this week. On Wednesday, Joel Embiid scored a 30-point double-double in the 1H against the Pistons when they won 129-111. He would also score a 42-point double-double over the Hornets to win their 6th straight game this week as well. We got some serious streaks going. Giannis Antetokoumpo scored the franchise record of 64 points in the Buck’s game over the Pacers on Wednesday. They needed him to have a great game as they only won by 14. He then ran after the game ball as he wanted it for himself. But the Pacers wanted it to give it one of their rookies for scoring his first point. The Geek Freak wasn’t the only star to show out, Spurs rookie star Wemby also played well. He scored 30 points, 13 rebound and 3 steals but they still lost to the Lakers 122-119. They would come back to win the next day though 129-115, only their 4th all season.
- Knicks’ PG Brunson put up his career high in Friday’s win against the Suns. He was 100% on his 3-pointers during the game. Saturday had an amazing game-winning buzzer beater by the Heat’s Jimmy Butler to beat the Bulls. That wasn’t the only last minute win, the Thunder’s SGA shot the final basket in the final two seconds to beat the Nuggets. Kings’ forward Keegan Murray scored 12 3-pointers, just 2 short of the NBA record for his career-high 47 points in their win over Jazz by 21 points. Saturday was the highest scoring day of the season so far with over 120 points/game. The Pistons have lost 22 games in a row after 2 win to start the season. The last game was a big one against the Bucks who beat the Detroit team by 32.
- Steph Curry also broke his 3-pointer streak as he went 0%, not making a single 3-pointer in 268 games.
- Kareen Abdul Jabbar broke his hip at a concert this weekend and was taken to the hospital and underwent surgery. No other details were given.
Basketball – NCAAM:
- Wednesday was a big day for transfers. A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order against the NCAA to allow college athletes who transferred twice to be allowed to play. Before this, underclassmen can transfer only once without having to sit out a year unless granted a specific waiver. This rule suspends that. The judge was in WV and other states were involved in seeking the TRO were CO, IL, NY, NC, OH, TN and of course WV.
- NCAAM upsets in the Top 25: We managed to have no updates until Wednesday. #8 Creighton lost to UNLV after their star G Justin Webster broke the NCAA team 3-point record for the Rebels. They won by 15. #25 Northwestern embarrassingly lost to Chicago St by 2. Friday only had 2 ranked teams in action and they played each other. #5 UConn vs #10 Gonzaga was a big game in the top 10. The Huskies came out on top and in strong fashion as well, winning 76-63.
- That was the big matchup of the day as it was topped on Saturday by #1 Arizona vs #3 Purdue. The Boilermakers put up 49 in the 1H, already topping the Wildcats by 11. They ultimately would win by 8. Michigan State had the largest margin of victory over a top 25 team in school history as they beat #6 Baylor by 22. Yikes! That was Baylor’s first loss of the season. #13 Clemson also took their first loss to unranked Memphis. Memphis is now 3-0 against ranked teams this year. We also had a blueblood basketball battle between #9 UNC and #14 Kentucky. They played in the CBS Sports Classic and Kentucky got the better of this one, winning by 4.
Football – NCAAF:
- Bowl season has begun this week.
- Ohio destroyed Georgia Southern 41-21, they were winning 20-0 at half. There’s a reason they were 9-3. Jacksonville State was eligible for a bowl game due to the fact that there were not enough 6-6 teams. They ended up having their starting QB injured and Louisiana had 3 defensive scores but they still won! They did make it to OT but they upset the home team in the NOLA bowl. The Avocados from Mexico Bowl was nasty – super rainy and wet and awful. There were 12 fumbles (6 of which were lost). That was not the record, that’s 16 fumbles. App St won 13-9. There was a TD in the 3Q. Fresno State destroyed NM State in the New Mexico Bowl 37-10. Then we got to some power 5 schools in action. UCLA was trailing 16-7 at half but scored 21 points in the 3q to win 35-22 over Boise St. In the Independence Bowl, Cal came out quick scoring 14 points but ended up losing by half 17-14 and Texas Tech just piled it on. Red Raiders won by 20.
- Old Dominion went up 21-0 in the 1Q but the Hilltoppers came back scoring 21 points in the 4Q to bring the game to OT. WKU ended up winning with a FG.
- The SEC schedule has been released. It was a 2 hour release show like the NFL this week.
Football – NFL:
- HC Andy Reid and QB Patrick Mahomes were both fined for their comments about the refs last week.
- The Chargers have fired their HC Brandon Staley; he was 24-25 as a HC.
- Finishing up last week. We had two games on MNF and both came down to the final plays of the game. The Dolphins put up 17 straight points in the final Q, giving the ball back to the Titans up 14 with just 4:34 to go. The TN team then went 75 yards in 9 plays, had a 3&out then scored another TD with just 1:49 to go up by 1. That was enough to upset the Miami team. The Packers/Giants game was back and forth with the Giants leading 21-13 going into the 4Q. But the Packers took the lead back by 1 with just 1:33 left. The Giants then went 57 yards to put themselves into FG range where K Randy Bullock nailed the 37 yard FG to win.
- TNF this week was a huge surprise. The Raiders put up 21 points in the first 2Qs and 63 points total. Needless to say they beat the Chargers in one of the highest scoring games all year. The Las Vegas team has only put up 30 points once this year before this game. As a matter of fact, 63 points was the most points scored in franchise history.
- We then had 3 games on Saturday for a change. The Bengals had only put up 3 points all game until the 4Q then the Cincinnati team put up 21 points to come back to tie it up and take it to OT. The Bengals started with the ball but went nowhere (literally a loss of 8 yards) then the Vikings got the ball and went only 21 yards so they punted as well. But then the Bengals then kicked a 44 yard FG to win. This makes it 3 wins in a row. The Colts had their throwback uniforms on and put away the Steelers 30-13 with their QB Minshew throwing 3 TDs. The Lions also put up a good amount of points, 21 in each half to beat the Broncos 42-17.
- There were only 3 close games on Sunday. Despite 3 INT, the Browns still managed to beat the Bears although only on a late 34 yard FG. Keeping with that theme, the Panthers managed to get their 2nd win of the entire season scoring not a single TD. The Falcons put one up in the 2Q but the Carolina team had 3 FGs including one as time expired to upset ATL. The Texans and Titans went into OT. The Texans were without their starting QB CJ Stroud but Case Keenum played decently. But the MVP would go to the Texans kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn as he nailed 4 FGs including the one in OT which was 54 yards. The Titans have now been eliminated from playoffs with this loss.
- Then there were some not close games. Bucs QB Baker Mayfield threw 4 TDs for 381 yards in their big win over the Packers by 14. The Dolphins then shut out the Jets, beating the NY team 30-0. That was a nice revenge after last week. The Chiefs also got revenge but only playing the Pats, beating them by 10. Again the Chiefs had 2 INT which was a problem in the Bills game the week before. Speaking of the Bills, they cooled off the hot Cowboys beating them 31-10 on Sunday. The only TD that the Cowboys had was in the final 3 minutes of the game when they were losing 31-3. The 49ers have clinched the NFC West after their impressive game against the Cardinals winning 45-29. They are the first (and so far only team) to clinch their division. That also eliminated the Cardinals from the playoff picture as well.
- SNF was between the Ravens vs Jags and it was not a close game. The Baltimore team was up 10-0 at half and then the Ravens packed it on in the 4Q. Lamar and his team outscored 23-7.
Golf:
- Berhard Langer and his son won the PNC Championship, taking their 5th PNC title which is a record. Only 3 of the titles were with this son, Jason, the other two were with his older son, Stefan. But you wouldn’t know that’s who won if you watched Sports Center as all of the highlights were of Tiger Woods and his son Charlie, who ended up 5th. Tiger’s daughter, Sam was also involved as she was caddying on the bag this weekend as well.
Olympic Sports:
- This weekend was the NCAA championship for women’s volleyball which has been gaining in popularity since their record breaking Nebraska game. The Cornhuskers faced off with the Longhorns for the natty this weekend and fell in straight sets. This is the 2nd year in a row that UT has won a championship in W Volleyball.
- At the World Cup title this weekend in Quebec, ITA Federica Brignone won the super-G event to cut Shiffrin’s lead. More WC skiing was supposed to be competed this week but was canceled for weather.
- IRE Daniel Wiffen broke WR in the short course 800m freestyle by 3 seconds in ROM. He swam it in 7m 20.46 seconds.
What to watch this week
Basketball – NBA:
- Tues 12/19
- Grizzlies at Pelicans @ 6:30pm on TNT
- Celtics at Warriors @ 9pm on TNT
- Fri 12/22
- Wizards at Warriors @ 9pm on ESPN
- Mon 12/25
- Bucks at Knicks @ 11am on ESPN
- Warriors at Nuggets @ 1:30pm on ABC&ESPN
- Celtics at Lakers @ 4pm on ABC&ESPN
- 76ers at Heat @ 7pm on ESPN
- Mavericks at Suns @ 9:30pm on ESPN
Basketball – NCAAM:
- Tues 12/19
- Coppin St at 20. JMU @ 6pm on ESPN+
- 22. UVA at 23. Memphis @ 6pm on ESPN2
- Troy at 25. Ole Miss @ 6pm on ESPN+
- 6. Marquette at Providence @ 7:30pm on FS1
- Wed 12/20
- 5. UConn at Seton Hall @ 6pm on CBSSN
- 10. Baylor at 21. Duke @ 6pm on ESPN
- 11. UNC at 7. Oklahoma @ 8pm on ESPN
- Villanova at 12. Creighton @ 8pm on FS1
- Jackson St at 15. Gonzaga @ 8pm on ESPN+
- Alabama at 4. Arizona @ 10pm on ESPN
- Thurs 12/21
- 9. Kentucky at Louisville @ 5pm on ESPN
- Jacksonville at 1. Purdue @ 5:30pm on BTN
- Tarleton St at 8. Tennessee @ 5:30pm on ESPN+
- Texas St at 3. Houston @ 7pm on ESPN+
- Fri 12/22
- 20. JMU at Morgan St @ 12pm
- Texas A&M CC at 19. Texas @ 2pm on LHN
- Queens at 18. Clemson @ 5pm on ACC
- Georgetown at 6. Marquette @ 6pm on FS1
- Mississippi Valley St at 10. Baylor @ 6pm on ESPN+
- Yale at 2. Kansas @ 7pm on ESPN+
- Chicago St at 24. Wisconsin @ 7pm on BTN
- 13. Illinois at Mizzou @ 8pm on FS1
- Bellarmine at 17. BYU @ 8pm on ESPN+
- 16. Colorado St at Loyola Marymount @ 9pm on ESPN+
- Sat 12/23
- 25. Ole Miss at Southern Miss @ 1pm
- 4. Arizona at 14. FAU @ 2pm on FOX
- Vanderbilt at 23. Memphis @ 3pm on CBS
- St. John’s at 5. UConn @ 7pm on FOX
- Sun 12/24
- Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic @ 12:30pm on ESPN2
- Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic @ 2:30pm on ESPN2
- Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic @ 5:30pm on ESPN2
- Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic @ 7:30pm on ESPN
Basketball – NCAAW: (only reporting ranked vs ranked)
- Mon 12/18
- 2. UCLA at 13. Ohio St @ 6pm
- Wed 12/20
- 23. Washington at 19. Louisville @ 6pm on ACC
Football-NCAAF:
Football-NFL:
- Mon 12/18
- Eagles at Seahawks @ 7:15pm on ABC and ESPN
- Thurs 12/21
- Saints at Rams @ 7:15pm on Prime
- Sat 12/23
- Bengals at Steelers @ 3:30pm on NBC
- Bills at Chargers @ 7pm on Peacock
- Sun 12/24
- 6 games @ 12pm on CBS/FOX
- CBS: Seahawks at Titans, Commanders at Jets, Browns at Texans
- FOX: Colts at Falcons, Lions at Vikings, Packers at Panthers
- Jags at Bucs @ 3:05pm on CBS
- Cardinals at Bears – or – Cowboys at Dolphins @ 3:25pm on FOX
- Patriots at Broncos @ 7:15pm on NFL
- 6 games @ 12pm on CBS/FOX
- Mon 12/25
- Raiders at Chiefs @ 12pm on CBS
- Giants at Eagles @ 3:30pm on FOX
- Ravens at 49ers @ 7:15pm on ABC
Hockey:
- Tues 12/19
- Oilers at Islanders @ 6:30pm on hulu
- Kings at Sharks @ 9:30pm on hulu
- Wed 12/20
- Islanders at Capitals @ 6:30pm on TNT
- Kraken at Kings @ 9pm on TNT
- Thurs 12/21
- Oilers at Devils @ 6:30pm on hulu
- Coyotes at Sharks @ 9:30pm on hulu
- Fri 12/22
- Oilers at Rangers @ 6:30pm on hulu
Olympic Sports:
- Sat 12/23
- Sport Climbing: Oceania Qualifier @ 10:30am on FS1
Soccer:
- Thurs 12/21
- Premier League: Crystal Palace vs Brighton @ 2pm on USA
- Fri 12/22
- Premier League: Aston Villa vs Sheffield United @ 2pm on USA
- Sat 12/23
- Premier League: West Ham vs ManU @ 6:30am on USA
- Premier League: Luton Town vs NewcastleU @ 9am on USA
