Weekly Update – Week of February 22, 2020

Yall get a double dose this week since the snow (and no power) wouldn’t let me do a weekly post last week! But don’t worry peeps, I’m back!

Baseball: Spring Training! Tatis stays a Padre. Mariners Pres in trouble. MiLB 120 teams. Dodger P dies.

Basketball-NBA: Timberwolves fire and hire HC. LeBron and KD named ASG Captains. Lakes lose again. Pelicans beat Celtics. Dr. J gets vaccine.

Basketball-NCAAM: March 25% Madness. Michigan>Ohio St – not used to seeing that (football joke). Alabama extends HC contract.

Football: Mahomes is #GirlDad. TB12 GOAT. Eagles trade Wentz. Notre Dame sitting out EA Sports’ NCAA. Deion Sanderers debut. JJ Watt no longer a Texans. Smith and fam robbed at gunpoint. Siverand arrested for street racing.

Golf: Homa wins Genesis. Berger won Pebble.

Olympic Sports: 3 new American records. ROC next 2 Olympics. Shiffrin takes 3rd. Huston charged for party. Humphries applying for USA citizenship. ITA>GBR in Prada Series.

Tennis: Australian Open – Djokovic and Osaka!

      

Baseball:

• Spring Training has begun! Which means the season won’t be far behind. Get excited baseball fans!
• Fernando Tatis Jr will officially stay with the Padres for $340MM for 14 years. This is the longest deal in MLB history! The 22-year-old SS has a .301 average with 39 HRs in 143 games.
• The Mariners President & CEO Kevin Mather had to issue a public apology after saying that 2 players English was ‘terrible’ and ‘not tremendous’ at a rotary club. One story was about Hisashi Iwakuma (JPN) and how they got tired of paying his interpreter and suddenly his English improved. The other was about OF Julio Rodriguez. Mather also went on to talk about the team’s payroll and finances. He mentioned 3B Kyle Seager and how overpaid he was. Mather has been with the team since 1996 and in his current role since 2017. Let’s see how long that continues if he keeps running his mouth.
  • While writing this post, Mather resigned.
• The Minor League of Baseball (‘MiLB’) has reorganized into 120 teams. The league has laid out 2 Triple-A divisions, 3 Double-A, High A and Low A divisions – most likely by geographical location. All 120 teams have agreed to their 10-year licenses.
• Dodgers P, Stan Williams, has died at the age of 84 of a cardio-pulmonary illness. He was known as the fearsome pitcher ‘Big Hurt’ who won the 1959 World Series. He also won the 1990 World Series as a pitching coach. He played for 14 years and had a 109-94 record and 3.48 ERA.

Basketball-NBA:

• The Timberwolves have their fired HC Ryan Saunders and they moved fast and already hired Raptors assistant Chris Finch. Saunders was with the Timberwolves since May 2019 but left with a record of 7-24 which is the worst in the NBA right now. Finch takes the reigns on Tuesday against the Bucks.
• So even though LeBron complained the whole time about having an All-Star game, he is now one of the captains (*Face Palm*). Kevin Durant will be the East captain. The All- Star game is set for March 7^th in Atlanta.
• Lets stick with LeBron, the Lakers have lost 3 of the last 4 games since AD went out with an tendonitis in his Achilles and a calf strain.
• The Pelicans looked done for when they trailed the Celtics by 24 points halfway through the 3^rd. However, from the 6:29 mark onward, it was a completely different story. The NOLA team had their largest comeback ever to win in OT 120-115. The Celtics only scored 36 points after the 6 minute mark.
• J is the latest NBA legend to be vaccinated for COVID and he is encouraging everyone else to go get theirs/
• It was ruled that the helicopter crash that killed #24 Kobe Bryant and his daughter (along with 7 others) was not deemed an accident. But before you think about going full on CSI, authorities deemed it a pilot made error. This means that the pilot couldn’t tell which way was up or down and instead of going up, he turned left which led to the crash.

Basketball – NCAAM:

• March madness may not be so mad inside the stadiums this year. At the entire NCAA tournament (remember all held in Indy) attendance will only be 25% capacity and that includes the players, staff and family members. Obviously there will also be masked required and social distancing. The Final Four will be held at Lucas Oil Stadium. Selection Sunday is March 14^th!
• #3 Michigan beat #4 Ohio St in a thriller last night. The game was tight until Michigan took the lead with 6:23 to go in the game and never gave it back. There were so many lead changes, I couldn’t find an article that said the exact number of times!
• Alabama has signed their HC, Nate Oats, to a contract extension through 2026-2027 for $3.225MM/year. Oats has only been with the Tide since the 2018-2019 season but they currently sit at #8 and a #2 seed into the tournament. This year’s record is 17-5; quite a step up from Oats’ first season of 16-15.

Football:

• Patrick Mahomes is a #GirlDad. They named their daughter Sterling Skye Mahomes.
• You know you’re the GOAT when….
• The Eagles have traded QB Carson Wentz to the Colts for a 3^rd round draft pick and conditional 2022 2^nd round pick. This means that the Eagles will likely stick with Jalen Hurts next season. The Colts needed help at that position after Philip Rivers retired.
• Something that will be missing from the new NCAA EA Sports game? Notre Dame. The school did not provide the licensing for its logo, name or any other branding to be involved in the game. ND claims that it wants ruled on whether players get a cut from the game finalized before they throw their brand into the game.
• Mike Iupati, Seahawks G, is retiring. He was a 4x Pro Bowler and played in the league for 11 years (only the last 2 in Seattle). This past season he missing 6 games with back and knee issues.
• Come out on the red carpet with a great dress but trip everywhere… Not the debut you were thinking? Same goes for Deion Sanders. He made his coaching debut on Sunday by coaching Jackson State to a 53-0 victory in the NAIA. But all of his personal belongings were stolen out of his office in the process. The items were eventually recovered. And yes they were actually stolen.

• JJ Watt will no longer be in a Texans uniform next year. The day that Houstonians feared was coming was 2/12, when the team released popular DE Watt. The Browns and Steelers have already said they are interested.
• Jimmy Smith, Ravens CB, had a rough week after he and his family were robbed at gunpoint after returning home from LAX airport. They are safe and no additional details were given.
• Raiders CB Kemah Siverand was arrested for street racing on Saturday. 3 drivers were arrested in Houston for the incident, one of them being Siverand.
• Former Nebraska QB Luke McCaffrey will continue to wear red, it’ll just be Louisville red instead.
• Want a headache? Try to read Cam Newton’s Instagram post…

Golf:

• Max Homa just needed a birdie on the 18^th to win the Genesis Invitational and he was only 3 feet away but then he missed. He then went into a playoff with Tony Finau (Mr. Runner-Up) and hit his drive to the base of a tree. It looked bad. After Finau missed a 7ft and they moved to the next hole where he won. This was his 2^nd PGA Tour title.
• Following up on last week: Daniel Berger won the Pebble Beach Golf Pro-Am by 2 shots. Everyone was all excited after Jordan Spieth had a good couple of rounds, making a play for the title for the first time since 2017.

Olympic Sports:

• 3 new American records were set at 1 track meet!
  • USA Elle Purrier destroyed the 2 mile record at the New Balance meet against Emma Coburn. The original was 9:18 set in 2015 and Purrier beat it by 8 seconds with 9:10.28!
  • Bryce Hoppel took the 1000m record from 2014 with a time of 2:16.27. He ran his final lap in 53.04.
  • Donovan Brazier broke his own 800m record by .01 from the previous year’s Millrose Games.
• Russian athletes and team will now go by ROC (acronym for Russian Olympic Committee) and it has been ok’d by the IOC and WADA. They agreed that it avoids neutral and avoiding ‘Russia’. A flag of the Olympic rings with white, blue and red stripes above the rings. So much for staying neutral…
• Mikaela Shiffrin took 3^rd in the slalom over the weekend. This ends her winning streak in the slalom for 10 years. Katharina Liensberger from AUT took her gold by 1 second. Shiffrin was 1.98 seconds.
• Nyjah Huston, 4x skateboarding world champion, was charged with for organizing a party in LA during the pandemic. The technical charge was ‘creating a nuisance’ which is a misdemeanor. Events were shut down at the home on 9/12-13 and 10/17.
• Kallie Humphries, the USA World Champion and Olympic favorite, is trying to get her US citizenship expedited so she can compete for the USA in the 2022 Beijing Games. She is likely to get is as she is married to an American former bobsledder Travis Armbruster. But TBD!
• ITA Challenger Luna Rosa Prada Pirelli destroyed Britain’s Ineos in just 2 races. They will face New Zealand next on March 6^th.

Tennis:

• The Australian Open was one to watch.
  • Djokovic had a close call in the 3^rd round against USA Taylor Fritz who took the #1 tennis player to 5 sets. Turns out afterward, Djokovic announced he had torn an ab muscle in a fall. He dropped 5 sets on his way to the final, his most ever. But that obviously didn’t slow him down enough as he took his 18^th Career Slam and 9^th Australian Open title. This puts him just 2 shy of Federer and Nadal.
  • On the women’s side, Naomi Osaka took her 4^th slam title and 2^nd AUS Open. We knew she was on a roll when she faced Serena in the Semifinals and beat her in straight sets. Osaka beat USA’s Jennifer Brady also in straight sets to take the trophy. And she made a friend!

 

 

• • Men’s Bracket 
  • Women’s Bracket

What to watch this week

Basketball-NBA:

• Tues 2/9
  • Rockets at Pelicans @ 6:30pm on TNT
  • Celtics at Jazz @ 9pm on TNT
• Wed 2/10
  • Falcons at Mavericks @ 6:30pm on ESPN
  • Bucks at Suns @ 9pm on ESPN
• Thurs 2/11
  • Heat at Rockets @ 6:30pm on TNT
  • 76ers at Trail Blazers @ 9pm on TNT
• Fri 2/12
  • Pelicans at Mavericks @ 6:30pm on ESPN
  • Grizzlies at Lakers @ 9pm on ESPN
• Sat 2/13
  • Nets at Warriors @ 7:30pm on ABC
• Sun 2/14
  • Trail Blazers at Mavericks @ 6:30pm on ESPN
  • Lakers at Nuggets @ 9pm on ESPN
• All other games are on NBATV

Basketball – NCAA:

• Mon 2/22
  • 18 Texas Tech at Oklahoma St @ 8pm on ESPN
  • Oregon at 19. USC @ 8pm on FS1
• Tues 2/23
  • Illinois at Michigan St @ 6pm on FS1
  • West Virginia at TCU @ 6pm on ESPN2
  • Georgia Tech at VTech @ 6pm on ACCX
  • Iowa St at 2. Baylor @ 7pm on ESPN+
  • John’s at Villanova @ 7pm on CBSSN
  • Oklahoma at Kansas St @ 8pm on ESPN2
  • Kansas at 14. Texas @ 8pm on ESPN
  • Ole Miss at 24. Mizzou @ 8pm on SEC
• Wed 2/24
  • NC St at UVA @ 5:30pm on ACC
  • Florida St at Miami @ 7:30pm on ACC
  • Alabama at 20. Arkansas @ 8pm on ESPN2
  • DePaul at 13. Creighton @ 8pm on CBSSN
  • Tennessee at Vanderbilt @ 8pm on SEC
• Thurs 2/25
  • West Virginia at 2. Baylor @ 4pm
  • Santa Clara at 1. Gonzaga @ 6pm on CBSSN
  • Iowa st 3. Michigan @ 6pm on ESPN
  • Nebraska at 5. Illinois @ 6pm on BTN
  • Western Kentucky at 12. Houston @ 6pm
  • Ohio St at Michigan St @ 8pm on ESPN
  • USC at Colorado @ 8pm
  • Boise St at 22. San Diego St @ 8pm FS1
• Fri 2/26
  • Southern Illinois at 21. Loyola Chicago @ 8pm on CBSSN
• Sat 2/27
  • Michigan at Indiana @ 11am
  • Texas at 18. Texas Tech @ 11am in CBS
  • Wake Forest at 16. VTech @ 11am on ACC
  • Tennessee at Auburn @ 11am
  • Illinois at 23. Wisconsin @ 1pm on ESPN
  • LSU at 20. Arkansas @ 1pm
  • Oklahoma St at 7. Oklahoma @ 2pm on ABC
  • Kansas St at 10. West Virginia @ 3pm on ESPN2
  • Florida St at UNC @ 3pm on ESPN
  • Boise St at San Diego St @ 3pm on CBSSN
  • Creighton at Xavier @ 4pm on FOX
  • Southern Illinois at 21. Loyola Chicago @ 5pm
  • Texas A&M at 24. Mizzou @ 5pm on SEC
  • Baylor at 17. Kansas @ 7pm on ESPN
  • USC at Utah @ 7pm
  • Alabama at Mississippi St @ 7:30pm on SEC
  • Loyola Marymount at 1. Gonzaga @ 9pm
• Sun 2/28
  • Villanova at Butler @ 11am on CBS
  • Iowa at 4. Ohio St @ 3pm
  • South Florida at 12. Houston @ 3pm

Golf:

• Thurs 2/25
  • Puerto Rico Open – Round 1 @ 9am on Golf Channel
  • WGC-Concession – Round 1 @ 12pm on Golf Channel
• Fri 2/26
  • Puerto Rico Open – Round 2 @ 9am on Golf Channel
  • WGC-Concession – Round 2 @ 12pm on Golf Channel
• Sat 2/27
  • WGC-Concession – Round 3
    • @ 11am on Golf Channel
    • @ 1:30pm on NBC
  • Puerto Rico Open – Round 3 @ 1:30pm on Golf Channel
• Sun 2/28
  • WGC-Concession – Round 4
    • @ 11am on Golf Channel
    • @ 1:30pm on NBC
  • Puerto Rico Open – Round 4 @ 1:30pm on Golf Channel

Hockey:

• Tues 2/23
  • Penguins at Capitals @ 6pm on NBCSN
• Wed 2/24
  • Rangers at Flyers @ 6pm on NBCSN
  • Kings at Blues @ 8:30pm on NBCSN
• Sun 2/28
  • Bruins at Rangers @ 11am on NBC
  • Red Wings at Blackhawks @ 6pm on NBCSN

Motorsports:

• Tues 2/23 – Motorcross: Orlando @ 10:30pm on NBCSN

Olympic Sports:

• Tues 2/23
  • Biathlon: Women’s 12.5Km Mass Start @ 12pm on NBCSN
• Wed 2/24
  • Cycling: Tour de La Provence Stage 4 @ 12pm on NBCSN
• Thurs 2/25
  • Cross Country Skiing : Women & Men Spring Classic @ 12pm on NBCSN
• Fri 2/26
  • Gymnastics: Nastia Liukin Cup @ 1:30pm on NBCSN
  • Gymnastics: Return to Rio Women’s Team Final @ 4pm on NBCSN
  • Gymnastics: USA Winter Men’s Events @ 6pm on NBCSN
• Sat 2/27
  • Skiing: World Cup Women’s Downhill @ 6:30pm on NBCSN
• Sun 2/28
  • Skiing: World Cup Women’s Super G @ 1pm on NBCSN

Soccer:

• Mon 2/22
  • Premier League: Brighton & Hove vs Crystal Palace @ 1:55pm on NBCSN
• Tues 2/23
  • Premier League: Leeds United vs Southampton @ 11:55am on NBCSN
• Sat 2/27
  • Premier League: Manchester City vs West Ham @ 6:25am on NBCSN
  • Premier League: Teams TBA @ 8:55am on NBCSN
• Sun 2/28
  • Premier League: Leicester City vs Arsenal @ 6am on NBCSN
  • Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur vs Burnley @ 7:55am on NBCSN
  • Premier League: Chelsea vs ManU @ 10 :25am on NBCSN