May 19, Week in Sports
May 19, Week in Sports
:: CELTICS TOP CAVS IN DRAMATIC GAME SEVEN (Pro. Basketball)
:: BIG BROWN WINS THE PREAKNESS STAKES (Horse Racing)
:: JUSTINE HENIN AND ANNIKA SORENSTAM SET TO RETIRE (Women’s Tennis and Golf)
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THE LUCK OF THE IRISH: CELTICS ADVANCE TO CONFERENCE FINALS
The Boston Celtics narrowly beat the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon in an exciting game 7 match-up in Boston. With the victory, the Celtics advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they will face the Detroit Pistons.
The Celtics were one of the NBA’s biggest stories of the year, having acquired Kevin Garnett in the off-season and finishing the year with the best regular season record in the league. But the Celtics have had a tough playoff run so far, taking each best-of-seven series that they have played in to a deciding game 7. That continued on Sunday, where they squeaked out a victory against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers–runners up in the NBA Finals last year. On Sunday, James’ 45 points were not enough to beat the Celtics, who have consistently dominated when playing at home this year. Paul Pierce paced the Celtics with 41 points.
Three of the final four teams in the playoffs have been decided–Boston, Detroit, and Los Angeles. Whoever wins tomorrow night’s game between San Antonio and New Orleans will play the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.
Quote of the Week: “Today it was basically get the ball to Paul Pierce and get the hell out of the way.” — Kevin Garnett, Celtics
Further Reading: “Pierce, James duke it out as Celtics close out Cavs in Game 7” — Associated Press, via ESPN
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BIG BROWN’S QUEST FOR THE CROWN
Big Brown, the horse who won the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago, cruised to an easy victory at the Preakness Stakes on Saturday. If Big Brown wins the Belmont Stakes on June 7th, he will be the first horse to win the Triple Crown in 30 years.
The undefeated 3-year old colt will go into Belmont as the favorite to win. However, there have been many horses over the years who were in the exact same position who were unable to clinch the Triple Crown at Belmont. No horse has won the Triple Crown since Affirmed accomplished the feat in 1978.
It will be interesting to see how horse-racing fans and the sports media approach Big Brown’s quest for the Triple Crown in the weeks leading up to the Belmont. Triple Crown contenders are generally overwhelming fan favorites. However, because Big Brown’s trainer, Rick Dutrow, is a cocky and bombastic figure with a shady past, there will be plenty of people out there hoping that the sport’s Triple Crown drought continues.
Quote of the Week: “It will be tears or cheers at Belmont, in the race that will either stamp Big Brown a superhorse or make him the latest heartbreak kid in a sport full of them over three decades.” — Pat Forde, ESPN
Further Reading: “Preakness laugher leaves Big Brown in line for glory” — Pat Forde, ESPN
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FIRST LADIES OF GOLF, TENNIS RETIRE
On Tuesday, Annika Sorenstam, one of the greatest female golfers of all-time, announced that she would be retiring at the end of the season. A day later, Justine Henin, the world’s top-ranked female tennis player, announced that she was retiring immediately. As a result, the face of women’s golf and tennis completely changed within the space of 24 hours.
The 37-year old Sorenstam, who has won 72 LPGA tournaments and 10 majors, announced that she would finish up this season, but then was retiring from the game. She stated that it was a very hard decision, but said that now that she is getting older, she wants to leave the game in order to build a family.
For Henin, who is just 25 years old, the story is different. When citing her reasons for retiring, it became clear that Henin was walking away from the court predominantly because she was burned out. The loss of her former passion for competition combined with some lingering injuries seemingly made for an easy decision to retire. 21-year old Maria Sharapova will replace Henin as the no. 1 female tennis player in the world.
Quote of the Week: “It has been a pleasure watching Annika play for all of these years, but even more of an honor to call her a friend.” — Tiger Woods
Further Reading: “No. 1 Justine Henin retires from tennis immediately” — Associated Press, via ESPN
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WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK
:: AUTORACING – The Indianapolis 500 will be held on Sunday, May 25th. The Indy 500 is one of the most historical and important races of the year. While the results of the Indy 500 are major news anyway, the race has grown in the public consciousness in recent years as some of the top drivers in the sport, such as Danica Patrick and Helio Castroneves, have become household celebrity names.
:: BASKETBALL – Monday night (May 19th), the San Antonio Spurs will play the New Orleans Hornets in a highly-anticipated game 7 showdown. The winner will play the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.
:: HOCKEY – The Conference Finals continue this week, and only four teams remain: Pittsburgh/Philadelphia and Detroit/Dallas. A detailed playoff schedule is available at www.nhl.com. Barring a dramatic turn of events, it looks as though the Red Wings and the Penguins will face off in this year’s Stanley Cup Finals.
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ALL-SPORTS UPDATE
ACTIVE SEASON
:: BASEBALL
MLB (Pro. Baseball): Baseball season is in full swing, but it is a long season, so teams tend to measure their success month by month. The All-Star break takes place the second week of July. By then, teams’ records will be a good indicator of how well they are performing this season. [Official MLB Website]
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:: BASKETBALL
NBA (Pro. Basketball): The NBA conference finals begin this week. The winners of those two best-of-seven series will face off in the NBA playoffs. [Official NBA Website]
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:: GOLF
MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. Now that the Masters is over, the next event will be the U.S. Open, which is played in the month of June. [Official PGA Website]
NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els
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:: HOCKEY
NHL (Pro. Hockey): The Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Philadelphia Flyers are the final four teams in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. [Official NHL Website]
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:: TENNIS
MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments of the year are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The Australian Open took place in January. The French Open, which is held in May, is the next Grand Slam event. [USTA Website]
NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova
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OFFSEASON
:: BASKETBALL
NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): Now that the tournament is over, college basketball news will focus on which players leave their schools for the NBA, and which college teams land the premier high-school players for next season. [CBS Sports]
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:: FOOTBALL
NFL (Pro. Football): The pre-season begins in August, and the regular season begins in September. [Official NFL Website]
NCAA FOOTBALL (College): Practice sessions for college football begin in summer, and the regular season begins in August. [NCAA Football, ESPN]
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