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The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition

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Unlike the infamous Taco Liberty Bell joke or secretly recording your teammate, there are no April Fool’s Day pranks here; just good old fashioned sports.

The NCAA Final Four is this weekend and we still have three people in the running for the top spot in the Last Night’s Game Bracket Challenge. 

Winner, winner, chicken dinner,

The Last Night’s Game Team

 

MLB (Major League Baseball) 

  • Batter up. The MLB regular season starts on Sunday with opening day games across the country. Check out Wednesday’s Five Things to Know About MLB to prepare you for the excitement of the big leagues. You can find the opening day schedule here.
  • #CapsOn. MLB is encouraging fans to wear their favorite team’s hat in honor of opening day. Finally, a cause where we don’t have to worry about a bad hair day or even have hair for that matter.  

NBA (National Basketball Association)

  • Breaking bro code. Lakers’ rookie D’Angelo Russell found himself in a bad situation after a private video that he recorded of teammate Nick 'Swaggy P’ Young found its way to a gossip blog. The video highlights Young’s alleged exploits with women who are not his fiancée, rapper/singer Iggy Azalea. Queue locker room tension, fans booing Russell at games and being shunned by his teammates. Amidst the scandal, Azalea just released a new single entitled ‘Team.’

NCAA Basketball (College)

  • Saturday Night Live. Spend your Saturday night wrapped up in March (cough, April) Madness. The Final Four is on Saturday night, live from Houston, TX.

Villanova (#2) vs Oklahoma (#3),  Saturday at 6:09 pm (EST) on TBS

  • Spread: Villanova -2 (favored by two points)
  • Key Players: Oklahoma senior Buddy Hield (runner-up for national player of the year) and Villanova senior Ryan Arcidiacono.

 Syracuse (#10) vs North Carolina (#1), Saturday at 8:49 pm (EST) on TBS

  • Spread: North Carolina -10 (favored by 10 points)
  • Key Players: North Carolina senior Brice Johnson and Syracuse senior Michael Gbinije.
  • Orange you glad you made a bet? A bet on Syracuse at the beginning of the tournament could score you $100,000 if they win the tournament. The Westgate SuperBook had the odds of Syracuse winning at 1,000-1 and four people took that bet. Come on Orangemen!  
  • The greatest. Michigan State's Denzel Valentine won the title of AP Player of the Year. The AP (Associated Press) hands out the award every year to the best on the court and Valentine is the first ever honoree from Michigan State. 

Overtime

  • In case you needed an excuse to break out your lace-up boots and an awkwardly small speedo, here’s your chance. The Super Bowl of WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment), Wrestlemania 32, is this Sunday at 8 pm (EST) on the WWE network.  

AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, will be bursting at the seams with fans who are there to check out all the action including the main event of Roman Reigns vs. Triple H. Former UFC champion Ronda Rousey appeared at Wrestlemania 31 with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and rumors are swirling that she is going to make a surprise appearance this year as well.

Sideline Stat

  • Five of the most prominent players on the Women’s U.S. National Soccer Team have filed a suit against the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) for alleged wage discrimination. The suit points out that as part of their collective bargaining agreement the female players make 40% less than the men, despite their dominate success including a 2015 World Cup win. (Something the men haven’t done). USSF said the men’s team brings in twice the attendance and revenue of the women’s team. Stay tuned for the ongoing debate and to read more about the story, click here.

Coaches’ Corner

  • Former snowboard instructor, yogi and Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, is giving world leaders a run for their money when it comes to the title of fittest world leader. Following in this father’s footsteps, the yogi’s social media accounts are full of sporting and outdoor activity photos, including this one of him mastering the mayurasana (or peacock pose). 
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The Rundown: Five Things to Know About MLB

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Break out the peanuts, Cracker Jacks and a cold beer (maybe wait until lunchtime on this one) because the boys of summer are back. You’re going to be a baseball expert after reading today’s Five Things to Know.

We’re looking forward to Friday where we’ll have a preview for this weekend’s NCAA Final Four games.

We can barely stand the excitement,

The Last Night’s Game Team

Five things to know about MLB (Major League Baseball)

MLB’s Opening Day is on Monday so in the spirit of the game we bring you all you need to know to join the conversation.

  • The regular season is a long one, 162 games. (In comparison, NBA regular season is 82 games and NFL 16 games). The regular season stretches from April to September. 
  • MLB consists of 30 teams and is divided into the American League (AL) and National League (NL).
  • The game is divided up into nine innings. The visiting team always bats first. (Easy way to remember - they’re the guests…home team uses their manners and lets them go first). “Top of the inning" is the first half of the inning in which the visiting team hits and “bottom of the inning” is when the home team hits.
  • The All-Star Game will be held on July 12th at Petco Park in San Diego, CA – home of the San Diego Padres. The team (American/National) that wins the All-Star Game gains home field advantage in the World Series. 
  • Despite the long season, baseball is the only sport where the season starts and finishes in the same calendar year.

NBA (National Basketball Association)

  • Stand up for your rights. The City of Atlanta asked the NBA to consider moving the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte to Atlanta after North Carolina lawmakers passed legislation that limits protections for the LGBT community. (Refresher - North Carolina Gov. McCrory signed a bill which critics say is discriminatory against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons). The NBA said "thanks but no thanks and hopefully they can work things out before the 2017 All-Star Game." 

  • A little RnR needed. Los Angeles Clippers star Chris Paul, an important part of Team USA, has announced that he will not participate in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil because “his body is telling him he needs more time off.”  

Overtime

Sideline Stat

  • In soccer news, USA beat Guatemala (4-0) on Tuesday to keep their 2018 World Cup hopes alive. This win is significant because with a loss Team USA would all but have been eliminated from the 2018 World Cup.

Coaches’ Corner

  • The difference between the American League (AL) and the National League (NL) in Major League Baseball is the designated hitter. A designated hitter (DH) is a player who only bats and does not play a position in the field. He bats in place of the pitcher, but not in the NL where the pitchers have to bat for themselves. Baseball is the only professional sport that has such a drastic difference between the leagues.

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The Rundown: Weekend Wrap Up

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Grace was not the key word of the weekend in sports as bizarre injuries ran amok.

Caffeine in hand this morning and we’re buzzing like bees at a Cubs spring training game. 

Sweeter than honey,

The Last Night’s Game Team

MLB (Major League Baseball)

  • Freak accident. Milwaukee Brewers Reliever Will Smith (no not THAT Will Smith) tore a ligament in his knee while attempting to take off his cleats after a game. He expected to miss "significant time.” 

  • Buzz off. A swarm of bees were the cause of a delay in the Mariners vs. Cubs spring training game on Sunday. Cubs’ outfielder Jason Heyward was surrounded by a swarm and stung several times. 

NBA (National Basketball Association)

  • Was the crime worth the time? Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin has been medically cleared to resume basketball activities after a quad injury and broken hand have kept him out since Christmas Day. Since he has been cleared from his injuries he must now serve his suspension for punching a team equipment manager outside a restaurant in January. Griffin will be back on the court on April 3rd. Clippers clinched a playoff spot with a win last night.  

NCAA Basketball (College)

  • Not so fast. Going into to Saturday all four #1 seeds were still in the NCAA tournament. The picture looked a little different by Sunday night. Oregon (#1) lost to Oklahoma (#2) and Kansas (#1) lost to Villanova (#2).

But wait there’s more! Syracuse (#10) beat Virginia (#1) to secure their place in the Final Four. North Carolina, who beat Notre Dame (#6) on Sunday, is the only #1 ranked team to make it to the Final Four. The Final Four is this weekend.

  • Orange fever. Both Syracuse’s men and women’s basketball teams secured a spot in their respective Final Four tournaments for 2016. The men won the National Championship in 2003 and this is the first ever trip for the ladies.  

PGA (Professional Golfer’s Association)

  • At the top. Jason Day surpassed Jordan Spieth to claim the spot as #1 ranked golfer in the world after winning the Dell Match Play Tournament in Austin, Texas. Day is not a newcomer to the spotlight as he was ranked #1 last year but he had a humble beginning. Growing up Day was so poor that his first golf club was one his father pulled from the town dump.

Overtime

  • In the spirit of Easter, the Houston Cougars changed up a drill during spring practice by dressing up in bunny costumes. No bunnies (or football players) were harmed in the making of this video.

Sideline stat

  • University of Connecticut women's basketball team won their Elite Eight game, handing Mississippi State a 98-38 loss. The UConn ladies will play Texas (#2) tonight. So far they have outscored their tournament opponents 296-138. 

Coaches’ Corner

  • Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey injured himself in the game vs. Wisconsin last week. No it wasn’t from his rebound skills but from stepping awkwardly on the grip pad (which the players’ use so their shoes have a better grip on the court). He reportedly pulled a calf muscle. Apparently the luck of the Irish wasn’t shining on Brey or his team. They lost to North Carolina last night.
 

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