We’re as excited about this weekend’s sports as a dog finding a mammoth bone in the backyard or finishing a marathon. This Friday, we'll learn about human growth hormones and All-Star Games galore. We’re also wondering out loud; if plagiarism will get you kicked out of college, will it get Russell Wilson kicked out of bed?
Pillow fight,
The LNG Team
NBA (National Basketball Association)
- Water boy. Detroit Pistons owner, Tom Gores, pledges $10 million to help the water situation in Flint, Michigan.
- Thanks for coming. The NBA All-Star Game reserve players have been announced. They will be riding the pine with the best of them.
NFL (National Football League)
- Bowl bound distractions. NFL is launching an investigation into Broncos quarterback, Peyton Manning and HGH (human growth hormone). Al-Jazeera America reported that Manning’s wife received shipments of HGH back in 2011. Manning vehemently denied the report. Keep in mind HGH was not banned in 2011 and there is no way to test for it. When asked about investigation Manning said “I do welcome it. It's no news to me," Manning said after practice. "I still stand by what I said then that it's garbage from the first day that it came out, garbage today.”
- Line up. The Pro Bowl teams have been selected via a draft by (non-playing) captains Michael Irvin and Jerry Rice. See who comes out on top out of Team Irvin vs Team Rice during the game on Sunday, January 31st at 7 pm (EST) on ESPN.
- Made for TV. Kansas City Chiefs tight end, Travis Kelce, has been given the green light for a dating show on E! entitled “Catching Kelce."
NHL (National Hockey League)
- At the mercy of the court. Calgary Flames defenseman, Dennis Wideman, was suspended indefinitely until meeting with league after he plowed over an official in a game. Wideman stating he was injured and did not see referee until the last second. We’re not taking sides but the video makes it look pretty intentional.
- Mixing it up. The NHL All-Star Game takes place this Sunday in Nashville at 5pm (EST) on NBC Sports. For the first time the game will be in a three-on-three, division format. According to NHL, the All-Star Tournament will be comprised of three 20-minute games played by divisional all-star teams competing for a winner-take-all $1 million prize.
NCAA Basketball (College)
- Super exciting Saturday. College basketball takes a break from grind of conference play this weekend to have two big conferences (SEC & BIG 12) play each other. These games should have the “March Madness” excitement. A few notable games include:
- No. 9 West Virginia at Florida, 12 pm (EST) on ESPN
- No. 14 Iowa State at No. 5 Texas A&M, 2 pm (EST) on ESPN
- No. 1 Oklahoma at LSU, 5 pm (EST) on ESPN
- Georgia at No. 17 Baylor, 6 pm (EST) on ESPN2
- No. 20 Kentucky at No. 4 Kansas, 7 pm (EST) on ESPN
Tennis
- G’day mate. Serena Williams (#1) advanced to finals of the Australian Open where she will play Angelique Kerber (#7). Andy Murray also advanced to the final round where he will face Novak Djokovic.
UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship)
- Fight club, Soprano style. It’s fight night in New Jersey on Saturday 30th at 8 pm (EST) on FOX (i.e it’s free). The ticket features the top contender fight for the light heavyweight (205 lb.) as well as the newest up-and-comer, Sage Northcutt. The main fight will be five – five minute rounds. For a complete rundown click here.
Overtime
- Seahawks quarterback, Russell Wilson and his girlfriend, Ciara, are notorious for their love confessions via social media. Wednesday he tweeted out a note that included the romantic line “honey sweet lips that were lilac soft.” Well, Billboard Associate Editor, Natalie Weiner, searched his words and discovered that Wilson didn’t make that up himself but found it online. Kudos to Wilson for giving an overly descriptive shout out to his lady but give credit where credit is due.
Sideline Stat
- Who needs a lucky rabbit’s foot when you have a 10,000-year-old mammoth femur? Prehistoric bones, which appear to be part of a mammoth, were discovered during the dig for a new Oregon State University stadium in Corvallis, Oregon.
Coaches’ Corner
- Despite only coaching two games, Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue will coach the NBA Eastern Conference All-Star Team. The two all-star teams are lead by the coaches from the previous year’s finals teams. (Cavs and Warriors). Lue did not actually coach the Cavs in the final but replaced the coach that did, David Blatt, last week.