Yours For The Taking

This Monday morning you’re going conquer the sports conversation in the time it takes to make your cup of morning coffee.

Such a brilliant multitasker,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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College basketball

We’re on the brink of everyone’s favorite sports tournament, March Madness, where gambling is not only accepted but even encouraged in some offices. We’ll find out which teams make it to the big dance this on Selection Sunday, which is this Sunday. All of the games for March Madness are scheduled to proceed as planned, despite original concerns over the coronavirus. HAND SANITIZER AS A GAMEDAY GIVEAWAY?

Yes, we will be doing a March Madness bracket this year so keep an eye out for that in next Monday’s post.

Overtime

NBA (National Basketball Association) Hall of Famer Charles Barkley is auctioning off prized memorabilia from his career but not because he needs the money. He’s auctioning off things like his MVP trophy and Olympic gold medals to raise money to help build affordable housing in his Alabama hometown. HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

Sideline stat

Think back to when you were 11 years old. You were likely in sixth grade (or somewhere close) trying not to get picked last in gym class. Now meet Hend Zaza. At just 11 years old, the Syrain table tennis player has qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics.  She beat a 42-year-old player in the West Asia Olympic qualifying tournament in Jordan last week. TOKYO OR BUST

Coaches’ corner

Other sports aren’t as ballsy as the NCAA (the governing body of college sports that oversees the March Madness tournament). One of the most popular tournaments of the tennis season is Indian Wells. In fact, some consider it the “fifth major.” (A major aka a Grand Slam is one of the four major tournaments in tennis). Unfortunately everyone is going to have to wait even longer for their favorite tournament because it’s been cancelled due to coronavirus. A public heath emergency was declared for Coachella Valley because of a local diagnosis, so there will be no tournament starting this week. What’s next? Canceling Coachella? BOHO NO

Thanks But No Thanks

With Super Tuesday tomorrow politics may be the unwanted but the inevitable conversation of the week. That means people will be desperate to talk about anything else.

We have just the thing,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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MLS (Major League Soccer)

David Beckham’s Inter Miami CF (MLS - Major League Soccer) made their debut yesterday against Will Ferrell’s Los Angeles FC in L.A. in front of a star studded crowd that of course included Miami co-owner Beckham, Eva Longoria, Gordon Ramsay and Liv Tyler. The team, who sports the color light pink on their jerseys, couldn’t pull off a victory in their first outing in front of a solid crowd of 22,121 fans. THERE’S ALWAYS NEXT GAME

Overtime

Former NFL (National Football League) quarterback Tony Romo is raking in the big bucks even though he’s no longer on the field. He signed a $17 million a year deal with CBS in the broadcast booth. Romo’s average salary during his playing career was an average of $9.1 million. Now the ball is in ESPN’s court to sign a big name like Peyton Manning to keep up their ratings. BRING IT ON

Sideline stat

While you were sipping mimosas at brunch, 364 pound Mekhi Becton ran the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine in 5.1 seconds. Linemen are not known for their speed, but their ability to block so this blew everyone away. For perspective, when Tom Brady ran the 40-yard dash at the combine before he was drafted, he ran it in 5.28 seconds. HAULING BUTT

Coaches’ corner

The XFL encourages their players to have a cold one after a long day at work, as long as it’s from their sponsor Bud Light Seltzer. Players have embraced the free booze and permission to celebrate a win. In fact, some teams like the St. Louis Battlehawks have become quite creative with hilarious new ways to celebrate each win with seltzer. TREAT EVERY DAY LIKE IT’S A SPECIAL OCCASION

Full Out

If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Your amazing sports knowledge that is…

No need to apologize for greatness,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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NBA (National Basketball Association)

The celebration of life for Kobe and Gigi Bryant will be held this morning at the Staples Center, which is widely known as the “house that Kobe built.” Over 20,000 fans are expected to show up and pay their respects. Vanessa Bryant mentioned that the date 2.24.20 has special meaning – No.2 for Gigi’s basketball jersey number, 24 for Kobe’s jersey number and 20 – the number of years Vanessa and Kobe were together and the number of years he was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. You can watch the memorial on a multitude of platforms. REST IN PEACE

Overtime

Major League Baseball (MLB) players’ contracts have strict rules about extracurricular activities that they should avoid (think skydiving, skateboarding, anything that might cause them to injure/kill themselves). If you’re Arizona Diamondbacks’ pitcher Madison Bumgarner, you solve that problem by adopting an alias so you can compete in rodeos. Bumgarner was, of course, outed on social media. (Side note - Bumgarner missed three months of the 2017 season after an injury from a dirt bike accident). YEEHAW

Wonder what other oddities might be included when athletes sign the bottom line? Here are the five most unusual provisions included in an athlete's contract. DON’T SHOW THIS TO THE HR DEPT.

Sideline stat

Sabrina Ionescu of Oregon could be the best college basketball player we’ve ever seen. She’s only nine rebounds away from becoming the first player, man or woman, to finish their collegiate career with 2,000-plus points, 1,000-plus assists and 1,000-plus rebounds. If that’s not impressive enough, she is rumored to be a speaker at Kobe and Gigi Bryant’s memorial this morning and then head to Palo Alto where she and her team will play Stanford tonight. Kobe was a mentor to Ionescu and the duo were big fans of the Oregon Duck. STRENGTH

Coaches’ corner

The NHL (National Hockey League) has a quirky rule around the emergency goalie. If both of either teams’ goalies go out of the game, there’s a designated person in the arena who can step into the role of goalie (i.e. – someone who is not on the team). Cue the Carolina Hurricanes game this weekend where both goalies exited the game and who comes to save the day and win the game? A 42-year-old Zamboni driver. David Ayres is a former hockey player and kidney transplant recipient. The t-shirts of his jersey are selling like hotcakes with the proceeds benefitting a local kidney foundation. STILL GOT IT

What to watch

This Girl Scout knows the way to her favorite football player’s heart. During the St Louis Battlehawks (XFL) game, she exchanged a box of Thin Mints for a game ball. SOLID TRADE