Sports by Katie

Tamara Moore to Coach Men’s College Team

From the WNBA to Men’s College Basketball

Tamara Moore‘s basketball career has taken her from prep school basketball in Minnesota to college basketball in Wisconsin to being drafted into the WNBA. But, Moore’s basketball career is far from over. She has just been chosen to be the new men’s basketball coach at Mesabi Range College in Minnesota. This makes Tamara Moore the only woman to coach a men’s college team.

Moore had a very impressive resume throughout her time of playing the sport. She played every game for the Wisconsin Badgers during her four years at the college level. She was then drafted 15th overall in the 2002 WNBA Draft. She first played for the Miami Sol but ended up playing for seven different teams during her time in the league.

Since Moore retired from the WNBA in 2007, she has taken the opportunity to be a coach to different age groups. Most recently she coached a group of high school girls in Minneapolis. Now she gets the chance to make history for women in the realm of basketball.

Moore seems to be very excited for the opportunity to prove herself. She has said, “Now, it’s time for me to show you guys and show people that women are just as knowledgeable as men to coach the game.” The players of the Mesabi Range Men’s Basketball team went 9-16 last season so I am sure they are just as excited for the passion that Moore will bring to the table.

Ultimate Game of H.O.R.S.E

No Playoffs, No Problems

The NBA playoffs were scheduled to start on April 18th… a little over a week from today. Sadly, there is no shot of those happening this year. No one will know if this season would’ve belonged to LeBron or Giannis or an unexpected underdog. But, what we do know is that the NBA is not going to leave their fans with nothing to watch.

ESPN and the NBA have just announced that they partnered in order to present the NBA HORSE Challenge Presented by State Farm which will be airing exclusively on ESPN on Sunday, April 12th. State Farm is going to follow this event by donating $200,000 to charities that are helping coronavirus relief efforts.

ESPN NBA Horse Challenge Presented By State Farm Official Logo

With no postseason games to televise, the NBA jumped on the opportunity to bring nostalgia into the homes of all their fans. I can speak for myself by saying I have countless memories of sometimes winning – but usually losing – in games of H.O.R.S.E while I was growing up. And that is the exact reason why I look forward to watching these top NBA and WNBA players go head-to-head in this battle.

ESPN and the NBA have confirmed quite the lineup for this event. The eight participants include: Chauncey Billups, Tamika Catchings, Mike Conley Jr., Trae Young, Zach LaVine, Chris Paul, Paul Pierce and Allie Quigley. On April 12th, ESPN will air the first four games starting at 7 p.m. ET. Then, on Thursday, April 16th, the semifinals and championship games will be aired beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

While dunking is prohibited in order to keep things fair, I think that fans can expect some of the same insanity that they’d see during All-Star Weekend’s Dunk Contest. HORSE is a game of creativity, skill and a whole lot of luck – even for professional players. Therefore, I think this event will bring some much needed, light-hearted fun to fans in this weird time.

The 2020 Red Sox

The Future of the Red Sox

As of right now, Opening Day in baseball is moved back to mid-May at the earliest. But, that doesn’t mean that baseball fans can’t anticipate what this season could turn into! For the Boston Red Sox, they’re currently waiting to nurture the many changes that were made this off season.

During the Winter, MLB cracked into a large sign-stealing scandal that involved Red Sox manager, Alex Cora. This resulted in him stepping down from his position. For the Red Sox, this meant new management going into the upcoming season. They have since places Chaim Bloom in the Boston Front Office while Ron Roenicke is their new manager. Authoritative positions are not the only thing that the Red Sox have changed.

The Red Sox traded some of the fan favorites, Mookie Betts and David Price. While both of those players were crucial to the lineup for Boston in the past seasons, the Red Sox made sure that they were not being left empty handed. The team still includes the talent of Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, Chris Sale and more. While I personally was sad to see Betts and Price go, I think all fans can be assured that Boston is left in good hands with the current players and their attitudes.

Coming off of a 2018 World Series win, the Red Sox were 84-78 in the 2019 season. This record landed them third in the AL East. It is definitely the goal of this team to go further this season than they did last season. They have told the media that they do not want to hear about the “sign-stealing investigation” events of this winter or all the players that they lost. They are determined to show the type of team that they can be. And honestly, if they can keep this attitude, stay healthy and play strong, they will be successful.

March (Not So) Madness

What Would’ve Been a Great March Madness

As I am sure you’ve heard by now… COVID-19 has ended the sports world until further notice. If you’re anything like me, you’re also tired of hearing about that virus. With that being said, I think that this is a perfect opportunity to talk about what could’ve (and would’ve) been a wonderful March Madness tournament.

A lot of people have taken creating a bracket into their own hands. Sports Illustrated, SBNation and ESPN are a few of the reputable organizations that gave fans a taste of what they thought the tournament could have been.

For the most part, these created brackets put the Number 1 seeds as Gonzaga, Dayton, Baylor and Kansas. While these powerhouse teams had a combined record of 114-11 this season, if you watched any college basketball this year it would be safe to say that the tournament would not have been this straight forward. The field of 68 would’ve been stacked with other teams that were on either side of an upset or had very impressive records themselves.

When the University of Evansville defeated Kentucky 67-64. Or that time when Stephen F. Austin beat Duke 85-83. Or when San Diego State Men came out of nowhere with a record of 30-2, not losing their first game until February 22nd. Or how Indiana was about to make the tournament for the first time since 2016. Or the fact that Indiana probably would’ve been joined by about 9 or 10 other Big Ten conference teams. Or how on the Women’s side of the sport, Sabrina Ionescu became the first NCAA basketball player ever to reach 2000 points, 1000 assists and 1000 rebounds.

I believe it is safe to say that the cancelled 2020 NCAA March Madness Tournament would have easily been one that college basketball fans could have enjoyed. It definitely would’ve brought lots of excitement and upsets to the world of basketball. But, it seems like fans will just have to wait and hope that the 2021 tournament will be able to offer the same things.

Best Moments of the 2019-20 College Basketball Season

Until then, use these top moments of the college basketball season, brought to you by ESPN, to get you through this weird time.

Sports During Covid-19

The Shutdown of Sports has Brought out the Creativity of Fans & Athletes

It has been a little over a week since the sports world has shut down. With no NBA, MLS, XFL, NCAA Basketball or truly any other sport to watch, it has been hard to make quarantine fun. But, people have been finding their own sport (and non-sport) related pastimes to keep spirits high.

Marble Racing is one that has become all the craze since sports have been called off. Many users on Twitter have been highlighting this sport in the past week and the videos have been going viral. It is probably not as exciting as the NCAA Tournament would’ve been… but beggars can’t be choosers.

Sand Marble Racing from 2018 with Commentary is truly a sight to see!

Some sports fans have been taking Steph Curry’s advice and watching old highlight videos. Curry replied to a tweet from Brooklyn Nets player Spencer Dinwiddie and said he has been watching his own highlight videos from Youtube at least twice a day since the shutdown of the NBA. Curry also tweeted on March 19 saying that he rewatched the game where his teammate, Klay Thompson, dropped 60 points in only three quarters.

Here’s the historic game where Klay Thompson drops 60 points in only 29 minutes!

The NCAA Twitter account for March Madness is doing something especially neat to fill the tournament-shaped hole in our hearts. They have compiled a bracket filled with the best NCAA March Madness moments and are allowing the fans to vote on each match-up to see what will be crowned the best moment of March Madness thus far. While this doesn’t replace all the wonderful days filled of college basketball, the excitement of new upsets and the sad reality of a broken bracket after the first day, it still allows fans to stay in touch with great moments from college basketball history.

Other athletes are picking up new hobbies! For example, Golden State player, Damion Lee, is teaching himself how to play the piano during his excess amount of free time. Liverpool soccer player, Gini Wijnalum, has been sharpening his ping pong skills in order to pass the time. Australian Golfer, Matthias Schwab, is coming up with his own golf trick shots while he is stuck in his house. There are many more examples of how these pro athletes are being examples of a good attitude when it comes to social distancing.

As of right now, it looks like it may be a month or so until sports continue as usual. Until then, follow the lead of the athletes and watch a good sports movie, read a book, watch some highlights or learn a new instrument.

Big Ten Tournament Canceled

COVID-19 Takes Away the Big Ten Tournament

It seems like the entire world has paused due to the spread of COVID-19, better known as coronavirus. This virus has caused the cancelation and postponing of several major sporting events including Men’s and Women’s NCAA Tournaments, the NBA Season, the NHL Season and the MLS Season. But arguably, the most exciting thing that this virus took from us was the Big Ten Basketball Tournament.

The Big Ten Tournament was something that any fan of basketball would’ve been looking forward to. Going into this post season, the Big Ten was easily the most successful conference in Division I basketball. Lots of broadcasters had stated that the Big Ten was expected to get 10 or 11 at-large bids into the tournament. Now that sounds like madness, if you ask me.

But sadly, we will never know how that would’ve played out for both the individual teams and the Big Ten as a conference. The Big Ten had snuck in two of the first round games on Wednesday, March 11th before they made the call to cancel the tournament. Minnesota defeated Northwestern with a score of 74-57. This was followed by Indiana beating Nebraska, 89-64. That was the only taste of the excitement that we were able to get before the tournament was called off.

We can probably imagine that this decision was a tough one for the Big Ten to make. This had several exciting seniors having already played their last games without knowing that would be the case. Some that come to mind are Lamar Stevens from Penn State or Cassius Winston from Michigan St.

While both of these guys are likely to be picked up by an NBA team following the abrupt end to their collegiate career, there are a lot of players who will not get that same luxury. I think facts like that truly put into perspective how much of an impact this coronavirus is having on the lives of our college athletes and the sport realm as a whole.

International Women’s Day in Sports

Blues vs. Blackhawks Game Celebrates International Women’s Day

March 8, 2020 is a day where women around the world are celebrated. Sports is a consistent realm in which women have always had a tough time advancing in the field. But, the Chicago Blackhawks, the St. Louis Blues and NBC took this day as a chance to celebrate women in a unique way. They had had an all-female crew call and produce their Sunday evening game.

Producer, Kaitlin Urka, expressed this idea to NBC earlier in the NHL season. The executives at NBC approved it and it was announced in February. Urka believed that it would not be hard to find women who were very good at their jobs that could fill the necessary roles for producing and calling an NHL game.

The team that was brought together to execute this historical broadcast is filled with women who have made their mark on hockey throughout the years.

Kate Scott, who called the play-by-play, partnered with U.S Olympic gold medalists AJ Mleczko and Kendall Coyne-Schofield who were analysts for the game. These three were up close to the action inside United Center in Chicago. Inside the studio, Kathryn Tappen worked with Canadian gold medalist Jen Botterill. Behind the scenes, Rene Hatlelid was the producer with Lisa Seltzer as the director.

While this game allowed for an amazing opportunity for this team of qualified women, it also exposed the issues that women face within sport every day. It was not hard to find women who could do quality work at these positions. If this is the case, then why is it so rare for us to see teams of women broadcasting these types of games on a regular basis? They should get these opportunities on more than just one day of the year. With that being said, NBC, the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues did a respectable thing in presenting this opportunity for these women to be the first all-female crew to broadcast and produce a professional hockey game in the United States.

As Urka mentioned, “International Women’s Day gives us the unique platform to celebrate the great work of these women”.

Big Ten Basketball

Penn State vs. Michigan State: The Battle

All year, people have been saying that the Big Ten is the toughest conference in Division I basketball. The teams seem to have an insane drive and competitiveness that can not be found in the other conferences. This madness is proven in every Big Ten matchup that occurs.

Tuesday evening on March 3rd, two Big Ten top 25 teams came together to put on a show.

Penn State vs. Michigan State on Penn State’s home court being aired on ESPN.

Penn State is currently ranked 20th while Michigan State is ranked 16th. The stats leading into this game would have most people believing it would be a straight forward Michigan State win. Penn State has had a rocky past few games while Michigan State seems to be playing comfortably. This game did not represent those precedents.

Penn State began this game with a strong offensive spurt. They started with a 10-2 run that was sparked by some explosive offensive plays. Eventually, with four minutes left in the first half, the Nittany Lions led the Spartans 41-22. Michigan State went on a small 8-0 run and closed the half with a deficit of 46-31.

The second half was a complete 180 degree turn. The Spartans quickly closed the 15 point difference and ended up taking their first lead of the game with about 14 minutes left in the game after an explosive dunk by Xavier Tillman Sr. They proceeded to go on a 14-6 run to be up by ten points with 9 minutes left. Penn State kept trying to dissolve Michigan State’s lead but it was just not successful. After blowing a halftime double digit lead at home, Penn State lost the game 79-71.

Looking forward, both Penn State and Michigan State have Big Ten opponents waiting for them as the weekend approaches. Penn State will travel to Northwestern to hopefully bounce back from this losing stretch. Michigan state will take on Ohio State at home as they try to make it their fifth straight win.

Evansville Thunderbolts

Whose House? Our House!

What did I learn this week? That an Evansville Thunderbolts game is the place to be on a Friday night. Held in the Ford Center, these hockey games have one of the best atmospheres… even if there isn’t a huge crowd.

This Friday, February 28th, the Thunderbolts had the first of two games against the Quad City Storm that are scheduled for this weekend. The puck dropped at 7:15PM (CST) and the excitement did not cease until the buzzer went off at the end of the third period.

In the first period, the matchup was very even. Both the Thunderbolts and the Storm were showing signs of strong offense and defense. The better team was going to have to earn the win. Halfway through the first, the score was still 0-0. Thunderbolts goalie, Brian Billett, had some remarkable saves to prevent any momentum from the Storm. Yet, in the last minutes of the first period, Thunderbolts center, Noah Corson, scored a goal with 1:43 left which put Evansville up 1-0.

After intermission #1 and a wonderful performance from the River City Ice Theatre, the second period was underway. 40 seconds into the period, Quad Storm scores. Vincent Beaudry was able to take advantage of the Storm’s power play and tied the game 1-1. This goal was only the beginning of what was going to be an exciting second and third period.

With 14:05 left in the second, Quad City took the lead 2-1 thanks to a goal by Ludlow Harris Jr. Yet, that was quickly answered by a goal from Thunderbolts player, Demico Hannoun which tied the game again at 2-2. Even though the second period ended with a tie score, the Quad City Storm were showing some major offensive power that was making it very hard for the Thunderbolts to gain any momentum.

After the zambonis took a lap around the rink, it was time for the final period of the game. Almost immediately, the Thunderbolts score with less than one minute off the clock and before their fans could even finish celebrating that goal, they score AGAIN only 10 seconds later. The first goal by Tanner Butler and the second goal by Mike Ferraro put Evansville up 4-2 and gave them the confidence and energy to finish the game strong. Despite a goal with roughly 16 minutes left in the period by Storm player, Dakota Klecha, the Thunderbolts still had the momentum. They answered with a goal by Braden Hellems to have a comfortable lead and an eventual final score of 5-3.

The Evansville Thunderbolts clearly designated the Ford Center as “Their House” and I am sure are ready to get to play the Storm again tomorrow in front of a Saturday night crowd. With an atmosphere filled with passionate fans, the infamous hockey fights and a jumbotron filled with memes… I would recommend that people get out and support Evansville’s local SPHL professional hockey team as they race for the playoffs.

2020 NBA All-Star Game

A Game and a Tribute

According to fans of the NBA, this past All-Star game was one of the best to date. The showdown between Team Giannis and Team LeBron ended in a 157-155 Team LeBron win. As the score would make you believe, the game was electrifying.

The Sunday night tradition of the All-Star Game wasn’t the only thing that caught the attention of people throughout the weekend. The highlights of the weekend in Chicago consisted of a controversial dunk contest, exciting skills challenges and a heartfelt tribute to the late Kobe Bryant.

Specifically, the fourth quarter was a tribute to Bryant. The NBA decided to make the last quarter of play untimed and instead with a target score that the teams had to hit. The target score was determined by adding 24 points (Kobe’s jersey number) to whatever the leading team’s score was at the end of the third quarter. In this case, the magic number was 157.

Also, to honor Kobe and his daughter Gianna who also died in the helicopter crash, all players on LeBron’s team wore #2 which was Gianna’s number and players on Team Giannis wore #24 which was Kobe’s number.

The Kobe tributes did not stop there. The NBA renamed the All-Star MVP trophy the “NBA All-Star Game Kobe Bryant MVP Award“. This is a tribute to remember all of the great precedents that Bryant set throughout his time in the NBA and while playing in All-Star games. For this year’s game, this award was given to Kawhi Leonard who had 30 points throughout the game. After winning the award, Leonard said, “I want to thank Kobe for everything he’s done for me… This one is for him.”. It was clear that all the players chosen to play in the 2020 All-Star Game knew who they were there to remember.

LeBron stated in a post-game interview, “You could definitely feel [Kobe’s] presence from the start. He was definitely there.”. The NBA seized the opportunity in this 2020 All-Star Game to honor the legend that many consider one of the best guys to ever play. They did it in a way that they thought Kobe would have loved… by playing the game of basketball.