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🏀 50 for 50: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander notched his (51 factors) to get the Thunder to 50 wins (50-11). SGA is averaging 32.6 factors per sport, practically two greater than another participant.
🏁 Historic debut: Katherine Legge will drive in Sunday’s Shriners Kids’s 500 in Phoenix, making her the since Danica Patrick in 2018.
🏒 Florida loses Tkachuk: Panthers ahead Matthew Tkachuk will with a groin harm that he sustained whereas taking part in for Staff USA within the 4 Nations Face-Off. The reigning champs hope to get him again for the playoffs.
🏀 39 years later: No. 2 USC has its , which is the final time the Trojans made it to the NCAA title sport. Coincidentally, they misplaced that sport to Texas, who’s at the moment ranked No. 1.
🏈 Johnson calls it quits: Corridor of Fame coach and longtime NFL analyst Jimmy Johnson is . “Essentially the most enjoyable I’ve ever had in my profession was at Fox Sports activities,” mentioned the 81-year-old, who has been with Fox since its debut NFL season in 1994.
🏀 “The Nice Barrier Thief” strikes once more
Amid the NBA’s offensive explosion, a 21-year-old from Australia is placing on a defensive clinic because the league’s premier pickpocket.
His newest show: Hawks guard Dyson Daniels supplied the signature second of his DPOY-worthy marketing campaign on Monday night time in Memphis, then passing it up the court docket to elevate Atlanta to a wild 132-130 win on the buzzer.
By the numbers: Daniels (aka. “The Nice Barrier Thief”) is averaging 3.0 steals per sport this season, which is 1.2 greater than second place and places him on tempo to develop into simply the eighth participant to common three thefts since steals had been first recorded in 1973 — and the primary in 31 years.
Think about this: Daniels is averaging 67% extra steals than anybody else. If a participant was averaging 67% extra factors than anybody else, they’d be scoring 54.4 factors per sport.
And it isn’t simply steals: Daniels ranks third amongst guards in blocks per sport (0.8) and he is logged an obscene 333 deflections in 56 video games, which is 105 extra (!!!) than another participant. The dude is an absolute menace.
The artwork of the steal: Daniels, whom the Pelicans traded to the Hawks this offseason after taking him with the No. 8 choose within the 2022 draft, makes the theme from “Jaws” run by way of ball-handlers’ heads as he prowls the perimeter, .
It hardly ever seems like Daniels is freelancing his method out of place, and but, at any time when the ball’s in play, he simply apparates. Inbounds passes aren’t protected. Entry passes to the submit and elbow aren’t protected. Skips to the nook aren’t protected.
Crossovers aren’t protected, irrespective of how tight your deal with is. Energy dribbles within the paint aren’t protected, irrespective of how sturdy your arms are. Turning your again to him as you attempt to mouse-in-the-house his teammate on the block? Undoubtedly not protected.
Even dribble handoffs aren’t protected. Daniels will blow these up, staying related to the ball-handler as he curls across the display screen and forcing his technique to the ball like a blitzing linebacker. He even talks about it like a soccer participant: “For me, you recognize, it is ‘See ball, get ball.'”
And if you happen to assume you’ve got blocked it up, been capable of bump him off the play, flip the nook and get downhill to the basket? Suppose once more: Daniels, nonetheless in pursuit like a heat-seeking horror film villain, will shut the sport along with his 6-foot-10.5-inch wingspan and poke the ball out from behind.
Backside line: Stephen Curry is the best shooter to ever dwell. LeBron James is arguably one of the best all-around participant. Might we even be watching one of the best thief? It is nonetheless method too early to anoint Daniels, however his breakout marketing campaign has the hoops world buzzing.
⚽️ 16 contenders: Who might be topped Kings of Europe?
The Champions League knockout stage kicks off right this moment with matches throughout Europe.
The contenders: The league part started with 36 golf equipment from 16 totally different nations. That is been whittled all the way down to 16 golf equipment from eight totally different nations, spanning from England within the north to Spain within the south and from Portugal within the west to Germany within the east.
🏴 England (3): Arsenal, Aston Villa, Liverpool
🇪🇸 Spain (3): Atlético Madrid, Barcelona, Actual Madrid
🇩🇪 Germany (3): Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund
🇫🇷 France (2): Lille, Paris Saint-Germain
🇳🇱 Netherlands (2): Feyenoord, PSV Eindhoven
🇮🇹 Italy: Inter Milan
🇵🇹 Portugal: Benfica
🇧🇪 Belgium: Membership Brugge
The favorites: Barcelona (+170 at BetMGM) has one of the best odds to achieve the ultimate, adopted by Actual Madrid (+200), Liverpool (+250), Bayern (+275), Arsenal (+275), Inter (+450), PSG (+600), Atlético (+900) and Leverkusen (+1000). Unsurprisingly, eight of these golf equipment are , with Leverkusen being the one exception.
🇺🇸 America in photographs
Durham, N.C. — Cooper Flagg (28 factors, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 blocks, 2 steals) in what was nearly actually his closing sport at Cameroon Indoor. Duke blew out Wake Forest to clinch not less than a share of the ACC regular-season title.
Washington, D.C. — Preventing is now not a nightly incidence within the NHL, however we obtained a heavyweight bout on Monday when Senators winger Brady Tkachuk (6’4″, 225 lbs) and Capitals defenseman Tom Wilson (6’4″, 220 lbs) .
Dallas — Kyrie Irving within the Mavericks’ loss to the Kings. He stayed within the sport to shoot free throws earlier than leaving the ground in apparent ache. “We’re working out of our bodies,” mentioned head coach Jason Kidd, whose injury-riddled workforce can sick afford to lose their star level guard.
Palm Seashore Gardens, Florida — Los Angeles Golf Membership (Colin Morikawa, Tommy Fleetwood, Sahith Theegala) stormed again to beat The Bay Golf Membership (Shane Lowry, Wyndham Clark, Min Woo Lee) to .
🏀 NBA payrolls: Suns flailing, Pistons thriving
Payroll is not at all times indicative of success, and no NBA groups illustrate that higher than the Suns and Pistons.
The place it stands: Phoenix has the NBA’s highest payroll () and finds itself 4 video games out of a play-in spot after dropping 11 of its final 14 video games. Detroit has the bottom payroll ($141.8 million) and sits a half-game out of fourth place after successful 10 of its final 11.
Wild stat: Detroit’s whole roster will make much less cash this season ($141.8 million) than the Suns’ large three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal ($149.3 million).
📺 Watchlist: NBA doubleheader
Tonight’s NBA doubleheader begins in New York with Warriors at Knicks (7:30pm ET, TNT) earlier than heading to Phoenix for Clippers at Suns (10pm, TNT).
New York renaissance: The Knicks have received 40 video games in three straight seasons for the primary time since doing so in seven straight seasons from 1992-98.
Extra to look at:
🏀 NCAAM: No. 1 Auburn at No. 22 Texas A&M (9pm, ESPN); No. 23 BYU at No. 10 Iowa State (9pm, ESPN2) … Last week of the common season.
⚽️ Champions League: Spherical of 16 (12:45-3pm, Paramount+) … Actual Madrid vs. Atlético Madrid (3pm) is the headliner.
⚽️ Champions Cup: LAFC vs. Columbus Crew (10:30pm, FS2) … Two of the seven MLS golf equipment that made it to the Spherical of 16.
⛳️ TGL: Atlanta vs. Jupiter Hyperlinks (7pm, ESPN) … Common-season finale.
⚾️ Spring coaching: Mets at Cardinals (1pm, ESPN) … 23 days till Opening Day!*
*MLB countdown: Technically, the common season begins in simply 14 days, with the Dodgers and Cubs taking part in a two-game set in Tokyo on March 18-19. However conventional Opening Day is about for Thursday, March 27, .
🏈 Coach trivia
Jimmy Johnson, who’s retiring from Fox after 31 years, is one in all three head coaches to win each a Tremendous Bowl (two with Dallas) and a university soccer nationwide title (one with Miami).
Query: Are you able to identify the opposite two?
Trace: One continues to be energetic.
Reply on the backside.
📸 Picture end
Gary Antuanne Russell could have misplaced the battle on this punch, however the Maryland native received the conflict, defeating Jose Valenzuela by unanimous determination on Saturday night time in Brooklyn to develop into the .
Trivia reply: Barry Switzer (Cowboys and Oklahoma) and Pete Carroll (Seahawks and USC)
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