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Archives for February 2022

Seton Hall Clobbers Creighton

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SOUTH ORANGE, NJ – (Staff report from Official news Release0 – In the lone Friday contest on the league schedule, Seton Hall had its foot on the gas pedal early and cruised to a 74-55 victory over visiting Creighton. The Pirates (14-7, 5-6 BIG EAST) scored the first 11 points of the game and streaked to a 23-3 lead en route to a 37-16 halftime advantage. Creighton came as close as 13 points in the second half. The Hall’s Kadary Richmond led five Pirates in double figures with 14 points and added seven assists.

The Bluejays (13-8, 5-5 BE) got 12 points from Alex O’Connell and 11 from Ryan Nembhard. Creighton’s 5-5 league mark puts them in sixth place with Seton Hall a half-game behind at 5-6.

Saturday’s slate starts with two games that tip at noon ET. No. 17 UConn battles No. 12 Villanova at Wells Fargo Center on FOX and Butler hosts St. John’s on FS1. No. 21 Xavier hosts DePaul at 2 p.m. on FS1.

On Sunday, the lone game has Providence visiting Georgetown at noon ET on FS1.

Hoophall Names Top 10 Centers

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SPRINGFIELD – (Staff report from official News Release) – The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame named its top 10 watch list members for the 2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. Named after Class of 1995 Hall of Famer and three-time NCAA Champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the annual honor in its eighth year recognizes the top centers in men’s college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates in November, which has now been narrowed to 10.

Abdul-Jabbar played for legendary coach and Hall of Famer John Wooden at the University of California, Los Angeles from 1966-1969. He is a three-time NCAA Champion who earned numerous accolades including three-time Final Four Most Outstanding Player, three-time National College Player of the Year and three-time Consensus First-Team All-American (1967-1969). As a professional, Abdul-Jabbar is a six-time NBA Champion, six-time NBA Most Valuable Player, two-time NBA Finals MVP, 19-time NBA All-Star and the league’s all-time leading scorer. In 2021 The NBA created the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award, which honors players who are making strides in the fight for social justice.

College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In late February, the watch list of 10 players for the 2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award will be narrowed to 5. In March those finalists will be presented to Mr. Abdul-Jabbar and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee where a winner will be selected.

The winner of the 2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award will be presented on a future date, along with the other four members of the Men’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award and the Karl Malone Power Forward Award.

Previous winners of the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award include two-time winner Luka Garza, Iowa (2020-21), Ethan Happ, Wisconsin (2019), Angel Delgado, Seton Hall (2018), Przemek Karnowski, Gonzaga (2017), Jakob Poeltl, Utah (2016) and Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin (2015).

For more information on the 2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #KareemAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on February 4.

 

2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award Candidates*

Walker Kessler Auburn
Adama Sanogo Connecticut
Mark Williams Duke
Drew Timme Gonzaga
Kofi Cockburn Illinois
Oscar Tshiebwe Kentucky
Hunter Dickinson Michigan
Armando Bacot North Carolina
Nate Watson Providence
Zach Edey Purdue

 

*Players can play their way onto and off of the list at any point in the 2021-2022 season*

Hoge Leads After 18 at Pebble Beach

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AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am – Round Two

PEBBLE BEACH – Tom Hoge holds the outright 18-hole lead for the first time in his PGA Tour career (0-for-6 with the 18-hole co-lead). Hoge’s (63) marked the third-lowest score of his Tour career (62 twice).

Reigning FedEx Cup Champion Patrick Cantlay stands T-5 after a 6-under (65) at Monterey Peninsula Country Club.

Seamus Power (2nd/-8/SH) made his fifth start at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, with his best prior result coming in 2020 (T-38). Power earned his first career Tour victory last season at the Barbasol Championship and has two Top-5s in nine starts this season (T-4/The RSM Classic, T-3/Sony Open in Hawaii).

PGA Tour rookie Austin Smotherman, who competed at Pebble Beach as a junior participant in the 2015 Pure Insurance Championship, stands T-3 (-7/PB). Smotherman made eagles at Nos. 18 and 6, the first two eagles of his Tour career.

Two-time champions Kevin Streelman and NFL wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald lead the Pro Am portion of the competition at 11-under.

Professionals’ Pebble Beach Leaderboard – After 18 holes

Tom Hoge PB 63 (-9)

Seamus Power SH 64 (-8)

Jonas Blixt MP 64 (-7)

Austin Smotherman PB 65 (-7)

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am

COURSE(s): Pebble Beach Golf Links with Spyglass Hill Golf Course and Monterey Peninsula Country Club (Shore Course).

ARCHITECTS: Jack Neville & Douglas Grant

YARDS/PAR: 6.972 yards/Par 72

PRIZE Money/First Place Winnings: $8,700,000/$1,566,000

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Daniel Berger

PAST RESULTS: (link)

PAST CHAMPIONS: (link)

FEDEx CUP Points / to Winner: 500

St. John’s Destroys Hoyas at McDonough

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WASH DC – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The likes of Georgetown players of yesteryear John Duren, Craig Shelton, Steve Martin and “Sleepy” Floyd would remember the feeling, along with David Russell, Reggie Carter and Frank Gilroy of St, John’s. In a game that looked like a throwback to early times in the BIG EAST, St. John’s won 90-77 at Georgetown Thursday night. The rescheduled game was played at McDonough Arena on the Hoya campus. It was the first league game played at the venue since Jan. 18, 1984.

The Johnnies (12-9, 4-6 BIG EAST), who won on the road against the Hoyas (6-14, 0-9 BE) for only the second time since 2003, led by as many as 26 points in the second half. Julian Champagnie snapped out of his scoring dip with a game-high 27 points. He made 6-of-12 from 3-point range and added six rebounds and four assists. Joel Soriano shot 6-of-6 from the floor en route to 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Georgetown’s Donald Carey scored a career-high 23 points.

Creighton at Seton Hall is the lone Friday game on the schedule. FS1 will televise at 7 p.m. ET. Both teams are 13-7 overall. The Bluejays are 5-4 in the BIG EAST while the Pirates are 4-6. Both squads picked up road wins on Tuesday. Creighton won 59-55 at Connecticut and Seton Hall posted a 70-63 victory at Georgetown.

Saturday’s slate starts with two games that tip at noon ET. No. 17 UConn battles No. 12 Villanova at Wells Fargo Center on FOX and Butler hosts St. John’s on FS1. No. 21 Xavier hosts DePaul at 2 p.m. on FS1.

Costacos Unveils NFL QB Collection

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LOS ANGELES – (Staff Report from official News Release) – The Costacos Collection unveiled its second NFT drop in partnership with four legendary former NFL quarterbacks: Troy Aikman, Warren Moon, Jim McMahon, and Dan Marino. Following the company’s inaugural foray with baseball great Willie Mays, the QB Legends Collection re-imagines the four quarterbacks’ iconic ‘80s/‘90s Costacos posters in new digital form. In addition, the quarterbacks have worked closely with John Costacos and acclaimed digital artist Mike Campau to create all-new 3D art pieces capturing the defining moments and themes from the players’ legendary careers. A portion of proceeds from the drop will be donated to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinees Assistance Foundation, an organization that assists HOF members and their families.

Collectors can access the drop on the newly-launched CostacosCollection.com marketplace. The Costacos Collection has entered into a strategic technology partnership with GigLabs to build on the Flow blockchain, joining NBA Top Shot, NFL ALL DAY, and UFC Strike, created by Dapper Labs. The partnership has enabled the Costacos Collection to build a proprietary NFT marketplace on the environmentally-friendly Flow blockchain, joining other GigLabs partners that include CNN, Turner Sports, Athletes Unlimited, Speedway Motorsports, the University of Miami, and others. The Costacos Collection marketplace includes full credit card support and simple wallet signup requiring only an email address.

“We couldn’t have hoped for a more exciting group of legacy athletes with whom to partner for the launch of the Costacos Collection marketplace,” said CEO Justin Moorad. “Troy, Warren, Jim, and Dan, all with their own unique personalities and career paths, represent a generation of NFL culture that was captured in their original Costacos posters. It’s an honor to help bring those iconic images back to life, and a privilege to watch John and the players work together to create all-new digital art that we believe their legions of fans will be passionate about collecting.”

“We loved working with all the athletes, the pitchers, home-run hitters, point guards, linebackers, all of them,” said Costacos. “But there was nothing quite like creating an image with an NFL quarterback because the great ones are the guys with all the firepower that make the offense go. Jim McMahon was the first poster we printed back in 1986. There we were in Chicago, 2,000 miles from home, a couple of kids with an idea but no experience, who somehow convinced the NFL’s biggest superstar to dress up like Mad Max and take pictures next to a live bear cub in the middle of a thunderstorm. Jim was larger than life, he’d just led the Chicago Bears to their one and only Super Bowl victory and was at the forefront of sports pop culture. We may not have known how we were going to pull it off but somehow we did and had a ton of fun shooting it, and Jim did too. We got lucky with a break in the weather, the shots ended up working, and we ended up with one of the great posters of all time – and a lifelong friend in Jimmy Mac.”

“Being part of the Costacos Collection was what every athlete from our era dreamed about, it was like being on a Wheaties box but better, because you hung on the wall of every bedroom of fans across the country,” McMahon said. “It’s pretty cool that Mad Mac was the first one and the start of it all. I still have it on my wall. And it’s just as cool to be a part of this new era, I’m having tons of fun working creatively with John again. He’s the most creative guy I know, and when we’re done we always make sure to sit down for a beer or six.”

NBA Unveils New All-Star MVP Trophy

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NBA Honors the late Kobe Bryant with New Trophy for MVP

NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The National Basketball Association unveiled newly designed NBA All-Star trophies in celebration of the league’s 75th Anniversary season. Designed in partnership with artist Victor Solomon, the trophies will be presented for the first time during NBA All-Star 2022 in Cleveland. The lineup of hardware is headlined by The Kobe Bryant Trophy, which will be awarded to the Kia NBA All-Star Game MVP on Sunday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. ET on TNT.

“As the NBA celebrates its 75th Anniversary season, this collection of All-Star trophies represents the continued growth and evolution of our game,” said Christopher Arena, Head of On-Court and Brand Partnerships at the NBA. “Through our collaboration with Victor Solomon, these trophies incorporate deep storytelling, reimagining our previous All-Star trophies in a modern aesthetic, and now serve as the new standards of excellence that future generations of All-Stars will strive to reach each year.”

Solomon’s work in this space includes his “Literally Balling” project, where he explores the icons and symbols of basketball as a platform for conceptual storytelling. His art has detailed the high process techniques involved in creating and designing stained glass basketball backboards, crystal basketballs and cast ceramic basketballs reconstructed with a Kintsugi process, and has been exhibited in New York, Los Angeles, Paris and Shanghai.

“For the past few years, the NBA and I have proudly and tirelessly worked to reconsider what a trophy is, has been and could be,” said Solomon. “Redesigning the All-Star trophies gave us a special opportunity to create event awards worthy of the energy and excitement the moment creates, while introducing the full collection’s visual, aesthetic language. The occasion also gave us the privilege and responsibility to develop an entirely new silhouette worthy of being named ‘The Kobe Bryant Trophy’ for the Kia NBA All-Star MVP for which, in the spirit of its namesake, we threw out all conventions and challenged ourselves to reorient how we thought about ‘the game.’”

Berger, Zalatoris Out at Pebble Beach

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PEBBLE BEACH – Two of the highly favored players scheduled to compete at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am, Daniel Berger and Will Zalatoris, have withdrawn from the tournament ahead of today’s opening round. Berger announced he is tending to a back injury while Zalatoris is dealing with a positive COVID-19+ test.

James Hahn also withdrew on Wednesday after testing positive for COVID-19.

The 2022 field includes nine of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking (twice as many as 2021), including 2021 FedExCup Champion Patrick Cantlay (4), and 2017 winner Jordan Spieth (15).

The PGA Tour schedule features four events played on multiple courses, with three being played consecutively and the other being the The RSM Classic. The California swing featured The American Express (three courses), Farmers Insurance Open (two courses) and this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (three courses) played back-to-back. There are 78 players in this week’s field who played in both The American Express and Farmers Insurance Open.

The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am

COURSE(s): Pebble Beach Golf Links with Spyglass Hill Golf Course and Monterey Peninsula Country Club (Shore Course).

ARCHITECTS: Jack Neville & Douglas Grant

YARDS/PAR: 6.972 yards/Par 72

PRIZE Money/First Place Winnings: $8,700,000/$1,566,000

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Daniel Berger

PAST RESULTS: (link)

PAST CHAMPIONS: (link)

FEDEx CUP Points / to Winner: 500

SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup @attproam

OFFICIAL SITE: (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am)

TV COVERAGE: The first two rounds of TV coverage are scheduled from 3:00pm to 6:00pm (ET) on Golf Channel. Weekend coverage is set for 1:00pm to 3:00pm (ET) on Golf Channel and 3:00 to 7:00pm (ET) on CBS on Saturday and then CBS’ coverage goes 3:00 to 6:30pm (ET) on Sunday.

PGA TOUR LIVE STREAMING on ESPN+: Streaming coverage will be featured on ESPN-Plus today through Saturday with Main Feed, Featured Hole and Featured Groups from 11:30am to 7:00pm (ET) and 10;30am to 6:30pm (ET) on Sunday.

PGA TOUR RADIO COVERAGE: SiriusXM Radio will have live radio coverage of Pebble Beach with today’s and Friday’s broadcasts from 12:00pm to 6:00pm (ET). Saturday coverage on Sirius XM Radio runs from 2:00pm to 7:00pm and Sunday from 1:00 to 6:30pm 9ET). PGA Tour Radio is available on Sirius 208/XM 92 or online via PGATour(dot)com.

Big East in the Top 25

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NEW YORK – For the eighth consecutive week at least four BIG EAST teams are ranked among the nation’s Top-25, and for the first time at least five are represented in both the AP and USA Today polls. The conference is tied for first with the Big Ten and Big 12 with the most teams ranked in both polls.

Villanova (16-5, 9-2 BIG EAST) jumped up two positions in the AP Poll to No. 12 following a perfect 2-0 week, with wins over DePaul (67-43) and St. John’s (73-62).

Maintaining sole possession of first place in the BIG EAST standings, Providence (18-2, 8-1 BE) secured a pair of ranked wins to jump to No. 15 in the polls. Also going a perfect 2-0 last week, Connecticut (15-4, 6-2 BE) moved up three positions to No. 17.

After coming up short at home against the Friars, 65-62, on Jan. 26, Xavier (14-4, 4-3 BE) rebounded with a remarkable second half comeback at Creighton on Saturday to remain No. 21 in the AP rankings.

In its first week ranked since Feb. 17, 2020, Marquette (15-7, 7-4 BE) took care of business on the road against Seton Hall, 73-63, before losing at Providence, 65-63, snapping a seven-game winning streak. Overall, the Golden Eagles sit at No. 24 in the AP Poll.

In Sunday’s lone contest, Providence edged Marquette in a thriller at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Coming back from a 29-23 halftime deficit, the Friars’ defense prevailed in the closing seconds to win their fourth game of the season against a ranked opponent (4-0). Nate Watson led the way with a game-high 17 points, while BIG EAST Player of the Week Justin Minaya played a pivotal role on both ends of the floor, finishing with 14 points and six rebounds. Darryl Morsell led the Golden Eagles with 14 points.

BIG EAST play continues tonight with a trio of games. UConn hosts Creighton at 6:30 p.m. ET on FS1, before Georgetown hosts Seton Hall at 8:30 p.m. on FS1. Closing out the night on CBSSN, St. John’s will welcome Providence to Carnesecca Arena at 9:00 p.m.