TWIST: This Week in Sports Talk is a weekly recap of the three (and only three) things you need to know this coming week to talk sports. Whether its with your boss, the gang at the office, your team, your barber, your barista, your secret crush, or your in-laws, do the TWIST and we guarantee you’ll be talking sports like a champion in no time.
To kick off, we’re giving props to two old dudes who are proving that they’ve still got game: Roger Federer, 36, played strongly at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells this week. Tiger Woods finished second at the Valspar Championship last weekend, delivering his first top-5 performance since 2013. The 42-year old Woods shot a four-under round in the opening round of the Arnold Palmer Bay Hill Invitational this week, and Vegas has him favored to win the Masters next month. If he plays there, it’ll be the first time since 2015. Old school is back in the house.
Roger Federer at Indian Wells 2018
Meanwhile, for Those Who Do Not Follow Professional Sports, here’s what you need to know this week (and not a single thing more).
3 for the week of March 11, 2018:
1. March Madness is . . . mad crazy. Must know: Thursday was the first day of this year’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship tournament, and Friday’s Round of 64 saw a historic upset. Games continued yesterday with the Round of 32; be sure to keep track of “your” team. Nice to know: As of this posting, the tournament has seen four upsets, the most stunning of which was No. 1 seed Virginia being knocked out on Friday by No. 16 seed Maryland-Baltimore County. Most news outlets didn’t even know the underdog team’s name (fittingly, they’re the Retrievers). And it wasn’t even close: the final score was 74-54. Are you kidding??? This is the first time in NCAA history that a No. 16 seed has defeated a No. 1 seed. Extra credit: Other (less historic) upsets to know about as of this posting: on Day 1, No. 13 seed Buffalo beat No. 4 Arizona 89-68, and No. 11 Loyola-Chicago beat Miami 64-62 in a buzzer-beater. Then on Saturday, Loyola-Chicago beat No. 3 Tennessee. For both games, Sister Jean Dolores-Schmidt, 98, was in the stands – she has proven so far to be Loyola-Chicago’s Fairy Godmother, and a Cinderella story continues to unfold.
Buffalo Bulls upset Arizona Wildcats in March Madness 2018 Courtesy Getty Images
2. NBA in the home stretch. Must know: There are less than 15 games left in the NBA regular season, which ends on April 11. Nice to know: The Houston Rockets and the Portland Trail Blazers have maintained their momentum: Portland has won 11 straight as of this posting, and the Rockets have won 9 of their last 10. Houston is now two games up on the fearsome Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference. Extra credit: In the East, the rebooted Cleveland Cavaliers are 12 games behind the top seeded Toronto Raptors; the youth-fueled Boston Celtics have already clinched a playoff berth, but are suffering from a number of player injuries (one sportswriter described the team as “the walking wounded”).
Irving and Horford of the Boston Celtics
3. NFL Free-Agency Frenzy. Must know: Some big deals were announced this week. QB Kirk Cousins has signed with the Minnesota Vikings for a guarantee of $84 million. Cousins’ is the first contract in the NFL with no money at risk. That’s likely to change the NFL contract landscape; the deal will be benchmark for players like Aaron Rogers, whose contract is up next season. Nice to know: QB Drew Brees has signed a 2-year extension for $50 million with the New Orleans Saints. Brees is aiming to win another Super Bowl, and needs only 1,495 yards this season to surpass Peyton Manning as the all-time passing leader. QB Case Keenum has signed with the Denver Broncos for $16 million a year. Extra credit: The AFC Champion New England Patriots lost four key players this week: Danny Amendola, Malcolm Butler, Nate Solder and Dion Lewis. The Pats refuse to “overpay” for talent, but the magnitude of player moves caught some off-guard. The New York Giants strengthened their bench by signing Solder, considered to be the best free agent offensive lineman. Richard Sherman was cut by the Seattle Seahawks and signed by the rival San Francisco 49’ers. Two top free agents remain unsigned as of this posting: former Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and former Arizona Cardinals defensive back Tyrann Mathieu (aka Honey Badger).
Kirk Cousins
Finally, the NFL has received over 200,000 ticket requests for the draft in Dallas April 26-28. Who says interest in football is waning?
Team Dandelion Chandelier is holding its own in our friendly March Madness pool – as of this morning, we’re tied for number 2 out of a group of 30 players. Wish us luck!
That’s it. You’re good to go. See you next week.
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