My 'notable' happenings and keynotes from the sports world this past week:
NBA: Players of the Week (Monday 2/24 - Sunday 3/2)....Eastern Conference - G John Wall, Washington Wizards; Western Conference - G/F James Harden, Houston Rockets...Players of the Month (February 2K14): East - F LeBron James, Miami Heat; West - F Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers...Rookies of the Month (February 2K14): East - G Victor Oladipo, Orlando Magic; West - G Nick Calathes, Memphis Grizzlies...Coaches of the Month (February 2K14): East - Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat; West - Kevin McHale, Houston Rockets....Miami Heat All-Star forward LeBron James scored a career-high and franchise record-setting 61 points in a 127-107 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats at home....The Indiana Pacers (46-16) are the first team to officially punch their ticket into the upcoming postseason....The Los Angeles Clippers crushed their in-city rival and injury-depleted Lakers as a 'road' team at the STAPLES Center 142-94 - the Purple and Gold's worst loss in history. It's safe to say that since leaving the Phoenix Suns, head coach Mike D'Antoni has had a rough go of it with the Lakers and the New York Knicks prior to coming to L.A...The #3 jersey of future Hall-of-Famer Allen Iverson was retired by the Philadelphia 76ers organization....Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver's record of 127 consecutive games with at least a converted three-point field goal was snapped in the team's loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on the road.
Men's College Basketball (Div. I): Associated Press Top 10 (Final week of regular season before conference tournament play) - 1. Florida 2. Wichita State 3. Arizona 4. Duke 5. Virginia 6. Villanova 7. Syracuse 8. Kansas 9. Wisconsin 10. San Diego State....The #2 Wichita State Shockers became the first team since St. Joseph's back in 2K4 to finish the regular season undefeated. (31-0)
Women's College Basketball (Div. 1): Associated Press Top 10 - 1. U.Conn 2. Notre Dame 3. Louisville 4. Stanford 5. South Carolina 6. Tennessee 7. West Virginia 8. Maryland 9. Baylor 10. Duke
NHL: 42-year-old New Jersey Devil Jaromir Jagr became the seventh player in league history to tally 700 career goals in the team's 6-1 win over the New York Islanders.
NFL: The Pittsburgh Steelers re-sign both All-Pro safety Troy Polumalu and veteran tight end Heath Miller to three-year extensions....The Philadelphia Eagles released QB Michael Vick....The New Orleans Saints released RB/KR Darren Sproles.
Pro Tennis: Roger Federer defeated third-ranked Tomas Berdych to capture his sixth Dubai Championship (a new record) and the 78th singles title of his career.
Women's Pro Golf: American Paula Creamer outlasted Azahara Munoz in playoff round to win the HSBC Women's Champions tournament in dramatic fashion in Singapore - her first LPGA Tour title since capturing the U.S. Women's Open in 2K10.
My 'notable' happenings and keynotes from this past week in the sports world:
NBA: Players of the Week (Monday 2/18 - Sunday 2/23)....Eastern Conference - G Kemba Walker, Charlotte Bobcats; Western Conference - F Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves....35-year-old veteran center Jason Collins signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets, and became the first-ever openly gay male athlete to compete in a pro game amongst the four major sports here in the States against the Lakers in Los Angeles on Sunday 2/23. The Nets will keep Collins for the remainder of the season, and his #98 jersey was the top-selling NBA jersey this past week....New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday will miss the rest of the season after having surgery for a stress fracture in his right tibia....Veteran forward Danny Granger was bought out by the Philadelphia 76ers after being traded by the Indiana Pacers, and is widely expected to sign on with the contending Los Angeles Clippers once he clears waivers.
MLB: Spring training exhibition games got underway for all teams....22-year-old All-Star Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim outfielder Mike Trout signed a one-year, $1M deal - the largest ever for a pre-arbitration player....The New York Yankees re-sign outfielder Brett Gardner to a four-year, $52M extension.
**The 2K14 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia came to a close with the host country winning 33 total medals (13 gold) - the most tallied by any nation. Team USA had a nice showing in Sochi, finishing runner-up in the medal count with 28. (9 gold)
Auto Racing: Dale Ernhardt, Jr. won the Daytona 500 championship for the second time of his career.
Pro Tennis: 29th-ranked Venus Williams defeated Frenchwoman Alize Cornet in straight sets to win the Dubai Championships - her first title in two years and the 45th singles championship of her illustrious career.
NFL: The Scouting Combine for the top draft prospects took place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana....The Philadelphia Eagles re-signed three of their key cogs on offense - wide receiver Riley Cooper (five-years, $25M; $10M guaranteed), offensive tackle Jason Peters (four-years, $41.3M) and center Jason Kelce. (six-years, $37.5M; $13M guaranteed)
Men's College Basketball: (Associated Press top 10) - 1. Florida 2. Wichita State 3. Arizona 4. Syracuse 5. Kansas 6. Duke 7. Louisville 8. Villanova 9. Creighton 10. Saint Louis....Second-ranked Wichita State made history by becoming the first Divison I men's program to start a season 30-0 when they defeated Bradley 69-49.
Women's College Basketball: (Associated Press Top 10) - 1. U.Conn 2. Notre Dame 3. Louisville 4. South Carolina 5. Stanford 6. Baylor 7. Duke 8. Penn State 9. Maryland 10. Tennessee
NHL: The regular season resumed after 2 1/2-week Winter Olympic break. As of Friday 2/28, the Anaheim Ducks continue to pace atop the West standings with 89 points, while in the East, the Pittsburgh Penguins lead the pack with 84 total points.
