R.G.'s Weekly Sports ReCap: Saturday 2/1 - Friday 2/7

My 'notable' happenings and keynotes from the sports world this past week:

 

NFL: The Seattle Seahawks won their first-ever Super Bowl championship in dominating fashion, defeating the Denver Broncos 43-8 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Linebacker Malcolm Smith, who intercepted an errant throw by Peyton Manning and returned it 69 yards for a big touchdown that made it 22-0 in the second quarter and also recovered a fumble by Broncos WR Demaryius Thomas, was voted the game's Most Valuable Player. 111.5 million viewers tuned in to The Big Game - becoming the most-watched televised event ever....Postseason Awards: NFL MVP and A.P. Offensive Player of the Year - QB Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos; Defensive Player of the Year - LB Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers; Coach of the Year - Ron Rivera, Carolina Panthers; Offensive Rookie of the Year - RB Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers; Defensive Rookie of the Year - DT Sheldon Richardson, New York Jets; Comeback Player of the Year - QB Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers....Michael Strahan, Derrick Brooks, Aeneas Williams, Andre Reed and Walter Jones were introduced as the 2K14 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Also newly inducted via the Veterans Committee were former defensive end Claude Humphrey and Ray Guy, who became the first punter ever to be so honored as a Hall-of-Famer.

NBA: Players of the Week (Monday 1/27 - Sunday 2/2)....Eastern Conference - G Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors; Western Conference - G Goran Dragic, Phoenix Suns....Players of the Month (January 2K14): East - F Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks; West - F Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder...Rookies of the Month (January 2K14): East - G Michael Carter-Williams, Philadelphia 76ers; West - G Trey Burke, Utah Jazz...Coaches of the Month (January 2K14): East - Jason Kidd, Brooklyn Nets; West - David Joerger, Memphis Grizzlies....The Indiana Pacers signed talented and oft-injured center Andrew Bynum for the rest of the regular season and playoffs. Bynum will be the backup for All-Star Roy Hibbert....40-year-old veteran point guard Steve Nash returned to game action after being sidelined on the IR list since 11/10/2K13....Talented young power forward Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans was chosen to replace the injured Kobe Bryant on the West All-Star roster.

MLB: First phase of Spring Traning (pitchers and catchers) began this week....Legendary New York Mets broadcaster and Hall-Of-Fame player Ralph Kiner passed away at the age of 91....The Atlanta Braves re-signed star players - 1B Freedie Freeman (8-years, $125M) and CF Jason Heyward (2-years, $13.3M) to contract extensions....Notable Free-Agent Signings: SP Bronson Arroyo, Arizona Diamondbacks (2-years, $23.5M); 1B Mark Trumbo, Arizona Diamondbacks (1-year, $4.8M); RP Fernando Rodney, Seattle Mariners (2-years, $14M)....47-year-old former three-time World Series champion pitcher Curt Schilling was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer....New York Yankees embattled 3B Alex Rodriguez will officially serve his historic season-long suspension for alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs after dropping lawsuits he filed against the league.

*The 2K14 Winter Olympics got underway in Sochi, Russia for all of the competing athletes from around the world.

Men's College Basketball: (A.P. Top Ten) - 1. Syracuse  2. Arizona  3. Florida  4. Wichita State  5. San Diego State  6. Villanova  7. Cincinnati  8. Kansas  9. Michigan State  10. Michigan

Women's College Basketball: (A.P. Top Ten) - 1. U.Conn  2. Notre Dame  3. Stanford  4. Louisville  5. Duke  6. South Carolina  7. Baylor  8. Tennessee  9. Penn State  10. Maryland