Weekly Update – Week of January 21st
Basketball – College: Michigan losses for the first time all season.
Basketball – NBA: Anthony to the Bulls. Smart loses his cool.
Football – College: Hurts to transfer to Oklahoma.
Football – NFL: Super Bowl LIII will be Feb 3rd Patriots vs Rams. But see why #WeWereRobbed is trending
Golf: Adam Long wins Desert Classic
Olympic Sports: Vonn’s uncertain future. Shiffrin is unstoppable. Coughlin suicide. Sex scandal in South Korea.
Basketball – College:
- Wisconsin hands Michigan their first loss of the season and ends their longest winning streak in school history. Obviously the Badgers rushed the court after the upset (pictured). The Wolverines are now 17-1.
- Florida Forward Keith Stone tore his ACL in the Georgia game and is out for the remainder of the season.
- Miami head coach is fighting back for his Forward Dewan Hernandez who he said was duped by an AAU coach. The Junior has already sat out 16 games while the court decides whether he should be eligible or not.
Basketball – NBA:
- Rockets agreed to trade Carmelo Anthony to the Bulls with some cash. However, Anthony will not play for the Bulls, the Rockets simply needed someone to get him off their roster to add Kenneth Faried.
- Marcus Smart of the Celtics has been fined $35k for going after DeAndre Bembry of the Hawks. The two had been involved in a scuffle where they had to be restrained by coaches and teammates. However, Smart got away and charged at Bembry again before being restrained..again.
Football – College:
- Jalen Hurts commits to Oklahoma for 2019/2020 season. After losing Kyler Murray, the 2018 Heisman trophy winner, Oklahoma has signed Jalen Hurts who entered the transfer lists after the national championship game. Meanwhile the backup QB from Oklahoma this year, Austin Kendall was released to transfer to West Virginia. He originally was not allowed to transfer however after the Sooners signed Hurts, the team let Kendall go.
Football – NFL:
- Ok Ok I cant take credit for these but they were too funny not to post.
- The only game left is Super Bowl LIII on Feb 3rd between the Patriots vs Rams @ 5:30pm on CBS
- Both the AFC and NFC games went into OT to decide who would play for the Super Bowl!
- The AFC: The Patriots held off a Chiefs comeback. The Chiefs scored 24 points in the 4th quarter alone. The Patriots had the worst record of the final 4 teams but never give up on Tom Brady.
- The NFC: The Rams beat the perhaps favorite to win the Super Bowl Saints after a blown call in the final seconds in the game. Here is the call… Clearly a Pass Interference that should have been called. However, it was never called and therefore could not be challenged. This is being brought up as an argument to change the rules. TBD on what they want to change it to.
Yes this contact was before the ball got to the receiver. And there also was head to head contact.
- #GFHint since some of you asked: The OT rules in the NFL are much different than in college. In college, you almost always give your opponent the ball first if you win the coin toss, that way you know what you have to do to win the game (FG, TD or any points at all). However, in the NFL, if the team who has first possession scores a TD, then the game is over. No rebuttal for the other team. If they only score a FG, then the opponent gets a turn in which if they score a TD, the game is over.
- Why does it work that way? Seems like it puts too much on a literal coin toss…
- Well that’s a valid point. The NFL however considers that most teams should not be able to score a TD on every drive. The other team’s defense should be better than that. Think of it like an SEC game in college football. Heavy defensive games and therefore lower scores meaning less TDs. However, now with teams like the Chiefs who score a lot of points very quickly, the NFL might one day have to change the OT policy.
- Why does it work that way? Seems like it puts too much on a literal coin toss…
- #GFHint since some of you asked: The OT rules in the NFL are much different than in college. In college, you almost always give your opponent the ball first if you win the coin toss, that way you know what you have to do to win the game (FG, TD or any points at all). However, in the NFL, if the team who has first possession scores a TD, then the game is over. No rebuttal for the other team. If they only score a FG, then the opponent gets a turn in which if they score a TD, the game is over.
Golf:
- After Phil Mickelson led the tournament for 2 days, Adam Long won the Desert Classic on Sunday by one stroke over Adam Hadwin and Mickelson. Long is 31 yrs old and finished 13th on the Web.com money list to earn his PGA card for this year. Long had only made 1 cut of the previous 5 PGA Tour starts.
Olympic Sports:
- It was a good and bad day for American skiing fans. Mikaela Shiffrin won the World Cup Super G race this weekend in Cortina (site of the 1956 Olympics). However after being in podium contention, Lindsey Vonn clipped a rail and did not finish her race. This is grim for Vonn’s World Cup record dreams as she holds the record for wins at Corina with 12. Vonn is reevaluating her future and possibly earlier retirement than December.
- John Coughlin, an American pair’s figure skater and 2x US champion, killed himself on Friday Jan 18th after being accused of sexual assault and being suspended from competition by the US Center for SafeSport.
- South Korean speedskaters have come out to say that there has been rampant sexual abuse in their system for years. Shim Suk-hee, the 2x Olympic champion, said that she was raped by her coach at a very young age. More and more female speed skaters have come forward since. But it is also hitting other sports in South Korea, a Judo and Taekwondo athletes have also come forward.
- Simone Biles has announced that she will debut her 2019 season in Germany at the World Cup meet in March.
What to watch this week:
Basketball – College:
- Mon 1/21
- 13. Maryland at 6. Michigan St @ 5:30pm on FS1
- 10. VTech at 11. UNC @ 6pm on ESPN
- 24. Iowa St at 9. Kansas @ 8pm on ESPN
- Tues 1/22
- Minnesota at 5. Michigan @ 6pm on BTN
- 22. Mississippi St at 8. Kentucky @ 6pm on ESPN
- 14. Texas Tech at Kansas St @ 6pm on ESPN2
- 14. Buffalo at Northern Illinois @ 7pm
- Yes, both Texas Tech and Buffalo are ranked #14. I checked. There is not #15 this week.
- 2. Duke at Pitt @ 8pm on ESPN
- Wake Forest at 3. UVA @ 8pm on ACC
- Wed 1/23
- 1. Tennessee at Vanderbilt @ 6pm on ESPN2
- DePaul at 12. Marquette @ 7:30pm on FS1
- Colorado St at 7. Nevada @ 10pm on CBSSN
- Thurs 1/24
- 6. Michigan St at 19. Iowa @ 6pm on FS1
- 21. NC St at 23. Louisville @ 7pm on ACC
- Fri 1/25
- 5. Michigan at Indiana @ 5:30pm on FS1
- 14. Buffalo @ Kent St @ 5:30pm on CBSSN
- Sat 1/26
- Georgia Tech at 2. Duke @ 11am on ACC
- Illinois @ 13. Maryland @ 11am on BTN
- 24. Iowa St at 20. Ole Miss @ 11am on ESPN
- 3. UVA at Notre Dame @ 12pm on CBS
- 12. Marquette at Xavier @ 1pm on FS1
- West Virginia @ 1. Tennessee @ 3pm on ESPN
- 9. Kansas at 8. Kentucky @ 5pm on ESPN
- Arkansas at 14. Texas Tech @ 5pm on ESPN2
- Syracuse at 10. VTech @ 7pm on ESPN
- 16. Auburn at 22. Mississippi St @ 7:30pm on SEC
Basketball – NBA:
- Mon 1/21
- Pelicans at Grizzlies @ 4:30pm on TNT
- Rockets at 76ers @ 7pm on TNT
- Warriors at Lakers @ 9:30pm on TNT
- Wed 1/23
- Spurs at 76ers @ 7pm on ESPN
- Nuggets at Jazz @ 9:30pm on ESPN
- Thurs 1/24
- Warriors at Wizards @ 7pm on TNT
- Wild at Lakers @ 9:30pm on TNT
- Fri 1/25
- Raptors at Rockets @ 7pm on ESPN
- Sat 1/26
- Warriors at Celtics at 7:30pm on ABC
- Sun 1/27
- Bucks at Thunder @ 5pm on ESPN
Golf:
- Thurs 1/24 – Farmers Insurance Open Round 1 @ 2pm on Golf Channel
- Fri 1/25 – Farmers Insurance Open Round 2 @ 2pm on Golf Channel
- Sat 1/26 – Farmers Insurance Open Round 3
- 12pm – 1:45pm on Golf Channel
- 2pm – 5pm on CBS
- Sun 1/27 – Farmers Insurance Open Round 4
- 12pm – 1:45pm on Golf Channel
- 2pm – 5:30pm on CBS
Hockey:
- Mon 1/21 – Blue at Kings @ 4pm on NBCSN
- Tues 1/22 – Wings at Oilers @ 9pm on NBCSN
- Wed 1/23
- Capitals at Leafs @ 7:30pm on NBCSN
- Predators at Golden Knights @ 10pm on NBCSN
Olympic Sports:
- Wed 1/24 – Figure Skating: Euro Championships Ladies’ Short Program @ 4:30pm on NBCSN
- Thurs 1/25: Figure Skating
- US Championships Pair’s Short Program @ 5pm on NBCSN
- Euro Championships Men’s Short Program @ 7pm on NBCSN
- US Championships Ladies’ Short Program @ 9pm on NBCSN
- Euro Championships Pair’s Free Skate @ 11pm on NBCSN
- Fri 1/26: Figure Skating
- Euro Championships Pair’s Rhythm Dance @ 2pm on NBCSN
- US Championships Pair’s Rhythm Dance @ 4pm on NBCSN
- Euro Championships Ladies Free Skate @ 6pm on NBCSN
- Sat 1/27
- Luge FIL World Championships: Sprint Events & Doubles @ 8am on NBCSN
- FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup Women’s Downhill @ 10am on NBCSN
- Figure Skating: Euro Championships Men’s Free Skate @ 11am on NBCSN
- Athletics: New Balance Indoor Grand Prix @ 5pm on NBCSN
- Sun 1/28
- Luge FIL World Championships @ 6pm on NCBSN
- IBSF World Cup Bobsleigh and Skeleton 4-Man Bobsled @ 8pm on NBCSN
- FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup Women’s Super G @ 9pm on NBCSN
Soccer:
- Tues 1/22 – Women’s International Friendly: Spain vs USA @ 1:30pm on ESPN
- Sat 1/27 – Mexican Ascenso MX: FC Juarez vs Mineros de Zacatecas @ 7pm on ESPN3
- Sun 1/28
- Italian Serie A: Atalanta vs AS Roma @ 8am on ESPNNEWS
- International Friendly: USA vs Panama @ 7pm on ESPN2
Crazy to have both AFC and NFC championships go to OT! Oklahoma sure seems to be on a roll with quality QB’s for 2 and now looking like 3 years in a row.