The Rundown: Wednesday Edition

Looking for a midweek pick-me-up? Don’t worry we have that and more for you with the highlights of the wide world of sports with a triple-double for lunch, the reason a cricket star is shelling out cash for opening his mouth and a hair-raising situation in the NFL.

Make this Wednesday as exciting as a 1,000-point inning.

Shattering records,

The LNG Team

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MLB (Major League Baseball)

• Class time. On Wednesday afternoon MLB will announce the 2016 Hall of Fame Class. Friday we will break down the newly elected players and see how the steroid era is represented.

NBA (National basketball association)

• For the three! Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors has recorded a triple-double for the third consecutive game. According to ESPN.com he is just the 15th player to accomplish this in the NBA's history.  

NFL (National Football League)

• Breaking it down. Friday we’ll breakdown the NFL playoffs so you’re in the know for the weekend.
• Home run to hail mary. In a puzzling move, Cleveland Browns (football) hire New York Mets' (baseball) Paul DePodesta. DePodesta’s new role will be the Chief Strategy Officer and is known for his role with the Oakland A's for his use of analytics. He is portrayed by Jonah Hill in the movie “Moneyball.”
• Moving on up. Three NFL teams have filed to relocate to Los Angeles – San Diego Chargers, Oakland Raiders and St. Louis Rams. The NFL has said it will support two teams moving to one market. The two stadium deals include one backed by the Rams and a Chargers - Raiders jointly backed project that would have two teams sharing one stadium. NFL owners will vote next week at league meetings if one or any of the teams will move.
• Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear. Retired Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher made an appearance on Chicago morning TV Tuesday morning. His appearance made barbers everywhere drool because Urlacher had hair; something he hasn’t had since 2000. Notice the very subtle the difference in the photo from the LA Times. Urlacher has been previously linked to Jenny McCarthy. (Hair courtesy of RESTORE by Katona).

Soccer

• Head coach. Former Real Madrid player, Zinedine Zidane is set to become next head coach for Real Madrid. He is the 14th manager in past 13 years. Zidane’s playing career was filled with greatness but flawed by the infamous head-butt in the 2006 World Cup where Zidane blatantly rammed an Italian defender. He was thrown out of the World Cup as a result and France went on to lose the final game of the World Cup to Italy.

UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship)

• Live from New York. Former UFC Woman Bantamweight Champion, Ronda Rousey, is set to host Saturday Night Live on January 23. She is the first mixed martial arts fighter to ever host the show. Rousey was undefeated with a record of 12-0 before stunning the world by losing her championship belt on November 15 to Holly Holm. Rousey isn’t new to showbiz as she had a cameo in the movie “Entourage” as Turtle’s love interest.  

Overtime

• You thought your last first date was filled with awkward moments. That’s nothing compared to West Indies cricketer, Chris Gayle, who was fined $7,100 (USD) for asking a female TV reporter out for a drink during their interview. He probably knew the answer to his question when he filled an awkward silence with “don’t blush baby.” The bosses didn’t find it funny stating that it bordered on harassment and was inappropriate in the workplace.  

Sideline Stat

• In more cricket news, a Mumbai teenager, Pranav Dhanawade, shattered a 115-year-old cricket record by scoring 1,009 runs in an inning. Bombs away! (We’ll dive more into cricket another day but as it relates to today, the batsman can hit until he gets out, essentially like a home run derby).

COACHES’ CORNER

• What is a triple–double? In basketball, a triple-double is when during one game a player has double digit stats in three of five different categories. (Five categories are points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots.) Draymond Green had 13 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists in Monday night’s game. 

The Rundown: See Ya 2015 Edition

As always, there is a lot happening in the world of sports. We’re giving you a college football playoff game preview and other riveting highlights so you have something other than your New Year’s Resolutions to talk about while counting down to 2016.  

3-2-1, Happy New Year,

The LNG Team

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NBA (National Basketball Association)

• Not even close. The starting line ups for the NBA All-Star game are voted by the fans. Kobe Bryant is in the lead since he announced retirement. The player with the second highest number of votes is more than 200,000 votes behind Bryant.

Let your voice be heard. Vote by clicking here.  Voting ends January 18th and the game is on February 14th.

• Bear attack. Memphis Grizzlies’ guard Matt Barnes has been suspended two games for incident in the off-season when he found out via FaceTime with his kids that former teammate and current New York Knicks coach, Derek Fisher, was romantically involved with his ex-wife and physically confronted him. 
• For all the NBA scores, click here. 

NCAA Football (College)  

• The final four. Two of the New Year's Eve football games are the most important games of the season as these are the playoff games which determine the two teams who will play in the National Championship Game. The winners will play for the glory on January 11 in University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ.
  • Orange Bowl  
    • University of Oklahoma Sooners (#4) play University of Clemson Tigers (#1) in Miami in the Orange Bowl at 4 pm (EST) on the 31st on ESPN. Oklahoma is currently favored to win the game by three points according to Las Vegas sports books. 
    • University of Oklahoma Sooners 
      • Oklahoma is the Big 12 Champion after a 12-1 season (wins – loses). Their one loss came to bitter rival University of Texas (5 - 7). 
      • They feature an explosive offense lead by quarterback Baker Mayfield (who finished fourth in Heisman voting).
    • Clemson Tigers
      • Clemson won the ACC championship with an undefeated season. Clemson is known for their strong defense and potent offense. Quarterback Deshaun Watson is a sophomore who finished third in Heisman voting. 
      • Clemson’s defensive coordinator, Brent Venables, won a National Championship while working under current Oklahoma Coach Bob Stoops, at Oklahoma from 1999-2011.  
    • The x-factor
      • Clemson suspended three players Tuesday due to failed drug tests. Most notable player Deon Cain who is second leading receiver on the team. 
  • Cotton Bowl
    • Michigan State Spartans (#3) will play University of Alabama Crimson Tide (#2) in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas at Cowboys Stadium at 8 pm (EST) on ESPN. Alabama is currently favored to win by 10 points in Las Vegas sports books. 
    • Michigan State Spartans
      • Michigan State finished 12-1 winning the big 10 conference. The team is led by a strong defense and senior quarterback Connor Cook.
    • Alabama Crimson Tide
      • Alabama finished 12-1, winning the SEC conference. They feature a strong defense. The running game is led by Heisman winning running back, Derrick Henry. Alabama’s head coach Nick Saban Is considered by many the best coach in college football. 
    • Notable bowl games (all times are EST)
      • December 31st
        • Houston (#18) vs Florida State (#9) in the Peach Bowl, 12 pm on ESPN
        • Oklahoma (#4) vs Clemson (#1) in the Orange Bowl, 4 pm on ESPN
        • Michigan State (#3) vs Alabama (#2) in the Cotton Bowl, 8 pm on ESPN
      • January 1st
        • Northwestern (#13) vs Tennessee (#23) in the Outback Bowl, 12 pm on ESPN 2
        • Michigan (#14) vs Florida (#19) in the Citrus Bowl, 1 pm on ABC
        • Ohio State (#7) vs Notre Dame (#8) in the Fiesta Bowl, 10 pm on ESPN
        • Stanford (#6) vs Iowa (#5) in the Rose Bowl, 5 pm on ESPN
        • Oklahoma State (#16) vs Ole Miss (#12) in the Sugar Bowl, 8:30 pm on ESPN
    • For all of the college football scores click here.

NFL (National Football League)

• You’re Fired. Typically, NFL head coaches will be fired on what is called "Black Monday," the first Monday after regular season (January 4th).  Start updating those resumes.
• No longer a soaring eagle. Philadelphia Eagles fire head coach Chip Kelly with one game remaining in the season. The Eagles season was a big disappointment as they missed the playoffs this year when they were expected to be Super Bowl contenders. Kelly was not only the head coach but was also in charge of all personal moves on the team which ultimately lead to his demise after three seasons. 

Don't feel bad for Kelly as the Tennessee Titans are in need of a coach and it just so happens their starting quarterback Marcus Mariotta was brought to prominence under Kelly during his time at the University of Oregon. 

• For all of the NFL scores, click here. 

Overtime

• In Men’s College Basketball, University of Iowa (unranked) beats #1 ranked and undefeated Michigan State at home (83-70). While this is big, it’s not an indicator of the season as Michigan State is without their best player Denzel Valentine, who is for a month with a knee injury.  

Sideline Stat

• New York Yankees have traded for the Cincinnati Reds all-star closer Aroldis Chapman. Chapman is known for pitching extremely fast, consistently throwing over 100 mph. Although this is a risky move due to domestic dispute that took place in October. No charges were filed but the disciplinary sentence from MLB has not been determined. 

Coaches' Corner

• The Rose Bowl is played between the champions of the PAC 12 and Big 10, unless the champion is playing in the final four. In this case the Big 10 Champion is Michigan State. Therefore, Iowa is playing in the Rose Bowl.  

The Rundown: Santa Edition

Have you been naughty or nice? 

Looking for Christmas TV that doesn't involve Will Ferrell in an elf costume? (Blasphemy!) We break down Christmas and Boxing Day sports for you, along with last night's highlights. Just in case you need an excuse to watch TV to avoid the awkward Trump vs Clinton discussion with Aunt Gertrude, the game times are below. 

Merry Christmas from our family to yours,

The LNG Team 

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 NBA

• The best is yet to come. The 2016 NBA Hall of Fame Nominees have been announced. The nominees must be retired for four years to be considered. The inductees will be announced in September. Some of the notable nominees are:
  • Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal: Coming out of Louisiana State University Shaq possessed size and athleticism never before seen in the NBA (7’1,” 325 pounds). Throughout his 18-year career, Shaq became one of the most dominate forces in the league.  
  • Allen Iverson: A guard, Allen Iverson was known for his tenacity for his stature (6 feet tall, 165 pounds). Iverson had ability to score with ease and play incredible defense.  He played two years at Georgetown and was the first overall pick in 1996 draft by Philadelphia 76ers.
  • Yao Ming: Hailing from China, Yao Ming was one of the tallest players in the league at 7’6.” Using his physical abilities became unstoppable as a center for the Houston Rockets. His career was cut short by injuries but the impact he had on introducing NBA to the biggest market in the world (China) is unmeasurable. 
• But wait, there's more. Golden State Warriors are on a record setting pace with 26 wins thus far in the season.  (The record is 72 season wins set by 1996 Chicago Bulls.) On the contrary, Philadelphia 76ers are 1-29. Ouch.

 MLB

• Cash is king. St. Louis Cardinals sign starting pitcher Mike Leake to a five-year, $80 million contract

 NFL

• He's on QB's naughty list. Oakland Raiders safety Charles Woodson announced he will retire after this season. Woodson was a Heisman winner at the University of Michigan in 1997, drafted fourth overall by the Raiders in 1998, ranks fifth with 65 interceptions, has intercepted 41 different quarterbacks and has a Super Bowl ring from a win in 2010 with the Packers.

 BOXING DAY SPORTS

• In case you need another excuse to watch sports. Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated in most of the Commonwealth Nations. Boxing Day marks the beginning of a five-day test cricket match between Australia and India in Melbourne, Australia.

• I'm on a boat. The day after Christmas also begins the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, which is widely considered one of the most difficult sailing races in the world due to the high winds and difficult seas associated with the Bass Strait and Tasman Sea. While the race is only about 720 miles, each year nearly 20% of the flotilla (fleet) retires before finishing. 

• Pajama Party. If you want to partake in Boxing Day celebrations from the comfort of your couch, catch these Premier League games Saturday morning:
  • Stoke City vs Manchester United 7:30 am (EST), on NBCSN
  • Manchester City vs Sunderland, 10 am (EST), on NBCSN

OVERTIME

• The NFL selected this season’s Pro Bowl roster. The Pro Bowl is the all-star game for American football which is played on Jan 31 in Hawaii. (the weekend before the Super Bowl – which is Feb.7) Click here for the full player list but a few notables include:
  • Kansas City Chiefs’ Eric Berry is making his fourth appearance. This appearance is a year after beating cancer. Touchdown dance.
  • Oakland Raiders safety Charles Woodson is selected for the ninth time.
  • Carolina Panthers lead with 10 players selected for the game

SIDELINE STAT

• University of Florida men’s basketball team beat Jacksonville 89-65 last night. The highlight of game was walk-on player Zach Hodskins who scored his first ever basket. Hodskins was born without a hand on his left arm.

COACHES' CORNER

• What is a walk-on player? An athlete who has not been recruited or invited to try out for a team. You would simply call them a walk-on. In this case above, Hodskins wasn’t invited to join the team, tried out anyway and made it. Booya.

A FULL SLATE OF NBA GAMES TO WATCH AFTER OPENING PRESENTS. HEY IT’S A TRADITION!

Christmas Day NBA games (all times are EST)

• New Orleans Pelicans vs Miami Heat, Noon on ESPN
• Chicago Bulls vs Oklahoma City Thunder, 2:30 pm on ESPN
• Cleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors, 5 pm on ABC. Game note: This is a rematch of last season’s NBA finals
• San Antonio Spurs vs Houston Rockets, 8 pm on ESPN. Game note: a battle for NBA supremacy in Texas. 
• Los Angeles Clippers vs Los Angeles Lakers, 10:30 pm on ESPN. Game note: this game is bragging rights of the Staples Center, where both teams play home games.