It may be the last week of February, but it already feels like March Madness. Well, at least it does for college hoops’ best coaches. Just ask Coach Boeheim of Syracuse…

QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK

College Sports

Who said a sequel can’t be better than the original? In college basketball on Saturday night, #5 Duke beat #1 Syracuse in a thrilling re-match in Durham, NC. The game was tight all night and it took a close call at the end of the game and a minor freakout to decide the outcome. What do we mean by this? Well, C.J. Fair was called for a charge foul (which could have gone either way) against Rodney Hood in the last 10 seconds of the game and let’s just say Coach Boeheim of Syracuse respectfully disagreed. And by respectfully disagreed, we mean he got upset, stormed onto the court and was ejected from the game. Duke went on to get 4 free throws and the ball, and pulled away with a big win that makes last week’s loss against UNC feel far, far away.

And then there was one. #3 Wichita State at 29-0 is the only undefeated team left in college hoops. #1 Syracuse started the week undefeated but two losses to unranked Boston College and #5 Duke will likely drop them back in the rankings. #20 Michigan beat #13 Michigan State to take the lead in the Big Ten while #8 Kansas looked sharp in a dominating win over #19 Texas.  Reigning champs #11 Louisville defeated #7 Cincinnati in one of their best wins this season. Finally, after a couple of close wins this week, #2 Florida will likely be your new #1 team when the new polls come out Monday afternoon. Don’t expect too much movement in the top 25, as many teams lost this week, but it is likely that UNC (riding 9 straight wins) will be back in the top 25.

What do college football players do to show they’re ready for May 8th’s NFL draft? Go to the NFL Combine of course! The NFL Combine takes place from February 22-25 and gives college football players the chance to show their skills in a series of drills in front of scouts. Of note, although he is not participating in the passing drills, Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel ran an impressive 40 yard dash. Will he be the first player taken in the draft? It’s too soon to tell, but there are no guarantees he will even be the first quarterback chosen on May 8th.

What should we look for in college basketball this week? #1 Syracuse looks to bounce back Monday on the road at Maryland while #4 Arizona looks to avenge a loss in a rematch at home against Cal Berkeley on Wednesday.

NBA

At age 35, Jason Collins is back in the NBA.  The center signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets, and played his first game against the LA Lakers Sunday night. He is the first openly gay male athlete to play professional basketball in the NBA. Further, he is the first openly gay male athlete in any of the four major professional North American leagues. Last year, Collins wrote a piece about his decision to come out in Sports Illustrated. We look forward to watching him play.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are back at full strength with Russell Westbrook back in the lineup, but they have lost their last two games. Earlier this week they fell to the Miami Heat, in a game where LeBron James looked dominant and also broke his nose. On Sunday, they lost to the LA Clippers in a close game where the Thunder’s Kevin Durant put on a show with a 42 point and 10 assist performance — just another normal game for the MVP candidate. What do these two back-to-back losses mean to Oklahoma City? Not much. The Thunder are still the #1 seed in the west at the moment, and although no one likes to lose, there’s no reason to be concerned just yet.

Speaking of the Miami Heat, LeBron James’ broken nose kept the star out of Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bulls, but it didn’t matter too much. Greg Oden started, and the Heat defeated the Bulls. Why does that matter? Greg Oden is the former #1 pick for Portland in the same draft where Kevin Durant went #2. After a series of knee injuries and setbacks, he’s struggled to stay on the floor, and now, a healthy Oden is back on the court for Miami. Miami is now 1.5 games back behind the Indiana Pacers for the overall #1 seed in the east. Don’t think the Pacers will give that up so easy — the #1 seed means home court advantage in the NBA playoffs. Given this, the best teams are going to play hard for the rest of the season.

The trade deadline came and went with no major team-altering trades, and the Boston Celtics’ Brad Stevens was ejected in a game against the Sacramento Kings. This week, look for a good match-up between the Houston Rockets and the LA Clippers on Wednesday, and on Friday look for an entertaining game between the Golden State Warriors and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Sochi

Canada remains queen and king of the ice. In a devastating loss for the Americans, Team Canada won the Olympic gold medal in women’s ice hockey last week. On the men’s side, Canada overcame the United States and Sweden to win the Olympic gold medal. Both the Canadian women and Canadian men won the gold at the previous Winter Olympics.

In a somewhat controversial victory, 17-year-old Russian Adelina Sotnikova won the gold medal in ice skating. The win raised questions over the scoring and the judges. Sotnikova defeated South Korea’s Kim Yu-Na, the heavy favorite who went on to win the silver.

After two captivating weeks in Sochi, the Winter Olympics are finally over. The closing ceremonies concluded the games on Sunday night and we’ll have to wait until 2016, when the Summer Olympics kick off in Brazil.

Other

In all things NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his second Daytona 500 on Sunday night. It took the driver 10 years to get his second title and although rain stopped the race for nearly 6 hours, Earnhardt went onto finish with the biggest victory of them all. This is his first win since 2010, congrats Junior!

JUST FOR FUN

Wipe Outs
Not everyone can win gold

DIY
A re-enactment of figure skating and the Starbucks controversy

STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE

What to expect when you’re expecting…. to bring a pet home
Adopting from Sochi?
Some Olympians have successfully brought their new pets home to the USA. Others are still struggling, but the Great Sochi Dog Rescue is still in full effect

Top of the world
There’s a lot of responsibility associated with being the best at everything
LeBron James talks about motivation, learning, family… and of course, winning

Jabari Parker: A player without a position
Looking back on Parker’s decision to play for Duke, and looking forward on his future
Parker and Coach K share the same “edge” that makes them so passionate about basketball

The Odd Couple
Orange and Blue lead USA Hoops
Coach K of Duke and Coach Boeheim of Syracuse might have different coaching philosophies, but they’re two of the best coaches in the game and have led USA basketball to back to back Olympic gold medals

Breaking ground and gaining yards
It’s most important to show focus on the field
At the NFL Combine, Michael Sam answered questions about his sexuality, but made it clear that he was there — first and foremost — to play football

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This SQ edition reviews the NBA All-Star Weekend, highlights sportsmanship at Sochi, and talks about which company won social media gold. And while John Wall won the NBA dunk contest, our favorite dunk of the weekend belonged to Jabari Parker!

QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK

NBA

All-Star Weekend started Friday with some of that NOLA jazz and on Saturday night ended with a slam. So, what exactly happened Saturday night? All of the contests. So, what are the highlights? Well, John Wall is your new dunk champion. The Washington Wizards All-Star point guard threw down a truly  impressive dunk to seal the competition down in New Orleans. While Wall was the clear winner, the contest was not without controversy: the new format that judged contestants by teams instead of by individual performance rocked the boat. In other news, Marco Belinelli of the San Antonio Spurs won the 3-point contest while Damion Lillard won the Skills Challenge for the second year in a row.

Sunday night tipped off the 63rd NBA All-Star Game down in New Orleans. The game featured high scoring highlights from each of the league’s best players, with a few special standout performances in a game the Eastern Conference team won 163-155 over the Western Conference team. Carmelo Anthony, Blake Griffin, LeBron James, and Kevin Durant all had amazing nights but the evening belonged to Kyrie Irving, the game’s MVP.

What do we do now that All-Star Weekend is over and we’ve got NBA fever?  Don’t worry, the regular season is back and there’s a lot to talk about. Like what? Much of the talk comes down to predicting who will be this season’s NBA MVP. As of right now,  the race is down to Oklahoma City Thunder‘s Kevin Durant and 4-time reigning MVP LeBron James of the Miami Heat. Lately, the narrative is shifting towards Durant because of his remarkable offensive numbers this season. It’s too early to tell what will happen — there’s a whole chunk of the season left, but expect these two to put on more amazing performances as the season plays out.

Anything else to watch out for this week? The trades! There might be more than a few teams making moves before the deadline. Talk about excitement.

College Sports

Syracuse is beginning to look unstoppable. The undefeated #1 team in the nation passed two major tests this week in big back-to-back wins. First, freshman star Tyler Ennis hit an amazing game-winner to defeat #25 Pittsburgh on the road. Then, on Saturday, Syracuse survived another close game and beat N.C. State by one point on their turf after C.J. Fair hit a clutch layup off a steal by Rakeem Christmas. Syracuse is clearly the best team in the nation right now, but do they  have enough luck to go undefeated during the regular season? Not if the rest of the ACC has anything to say about it. Syracuse should beat Boston College easily early this week before taking on #8 Duke next Saturday in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Speaking of Duke… Saturday night marked one more game with Maryland as a member of the ACC. The Terrapins are leaving to join the Big Ten Conference next season and the last game between these two couldn’t have been any more exciting. Duke led most of the game until they didn’t anymore, and the game came down to the wire. That is, until freshman star Jabari Parker slammed a ferocious dunk to put the Blue Devils up 1. After a missed shot by Maryland, Duke came away with the win. What’s ahead? This Duke team has a rough week. They travel to Georgia Tech on Tuesday, face UNC in Chapel Hill after last week’s snow storm forced them to reschedule, before returning to Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on #1 Syracuse on Saturday. It’s going to be quite the week!

What else happened this weekend? #2 Arizona lost to Arizona State in double overtime in a major upset on Friday while #4 Wichita State keeps beating every team they play and  has a real chance to go undefeated during the regular season.

Other

Oshie Oshie Oshie! Get to know the name T.J. Oshie — but really. The St. Louis Blues’ center scored 4 goals for the American ice hockey team to defeat the Russians in a shoot-out on the ice. This was a huge win for Team USA and they couldn’t have done it without the skills of goalie Jonathon Quick and the hot hand of shoot-out specialist T.J. Oshie. This is only the beginning for ice hockey, and these two teams could very well face each other again when the medal rounds begin. Team USA, which won Group A early Sunday against Slovenia with a hat trick from Phil Kessel looks ready to show the rest of the field what they’ve got. USA USA USA!

There are few things more synonymous than Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees, but all good things must come to an end. After 19 seasons, Derek Jeter announced that he will retire following his 20th MLB season in 2014. Without a doubt, he will be remembered as one of the best short stops in the history of baseball.

JUST FOR FUN

Dribble Down Memory Lane
A Walk Through Dunk Contest History

STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE

The Key to a Successful Olympics
From a social media point of view, P&G has won the gold
In the first week of the Games, P&G ads had over 27 million YouTube views — Visa had 10 million, and Samsung had 1.8

Be a Player’s Manager
Put your people in positions where they can succeed
Unexpected advice from Jim Fregosi that lends itself to team managing, parenting, and leading in the workplace

Uphill Battle Ahead
After the Miami Dolphins investigation, locker room culture is going to have to change
“The power of tackling an unprecedented issue is the ability to create a precedent.” – Jenny Vrentas of MMQB

Fail Early, Fail Often
You fall, you learn from your mistakes, and you try again
Entrepreneurship and athletics both require early development of core skills and the ability to innovate

Need a Hand?
In this case, it was less of a ‘hand’ and more of a ski
During a cross-country ski sprint in Sochi, a Russian skier broke a ski — the Canadian coach stepped in to help him out

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Welcome to New Orleans, where it’s officially NBA All-Star weekend. How do we feel about this…

Friday Night:

Friday night is kinda like a warm-up for Saturday…with that said, here are the main events you might be hearing about…

Celebrity Game: ESPN’s very own Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose host this year’s celebrity game as All-Star Weekend kicks off Saturday night. Who’s playing in this year’s game? It’s quite the array of stars, including: actor Michael B. Jordan, WNBA rookie Skylar Diggins, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and more. Tune in Friday night at 7pm on ESPN.

Rising Stars Challenge:The annual rookie-sophomore game kicks off Friday night at 9pm on TNT. Former NBA All-Stars and 1992 NCAA Championship alums Grant Hill and Chris Webber will coach this year’s squads, which are made up of the league’s best first and second year stars. Rookies to watch include: Utah’s Trey Burke, Philly’s Michael Carter-Williams, and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo. Sophomores to watch include: New Orlean’s Anthony Davis, Portland’s Damian Llard and Washington’s Bradley Beal. This one should be fun.

Saturday Night:

Saturday night tips off at 8:30pm on TNT and has the potential to be beyond awesome. Why? The contest fields are loaded, and the fun is just about to begin…welcome to All-Star Saturday Night!

Shooting Stars: The Shooting Stars contest brings together a current NBA player, a WNBA player and NBA legend in a 3-person team to compete in a shooting contest. The 4 teams in this years event include:

• Team 1 – Tim Hardaway Jr. (NYK), Tim Hardaway Sr. (Legend) & Elena Delle Donne (Chicago Sky)
• Team 2 – Chris Bosh (MIA), Dominique Wilkins (Legend), Swin Cash (Chicago Sky)
• Team 3 – Stephen Curry (GS), Dell Curry (Legend), Becky Hammon (San Antonio Stars)
• Team 4 – Kevin Durant (OKC), Karl Malone (Legend), Skylar Diggins (Tulsa Shock)

The Pick: Team 3 (Stephen and Dell Curry are two of the best shooters in NBA history!)

Skills Challenge: The Skills Challenge highlights the some of the best point guards in the league. Contestants have to shoot a free-throw, dribble by obstacles, complete passes and a layup. The fastest time to complete the course wins the competition. This year’s teams include:

• Team 1 – Miwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan
• Team 2 – Philly’s Michael Carter-Williams and Orlando’s Victor Oladipo
• Team 3 – Utah’s Trey Burke and Portland’s Damian Lillard
• Team 4 – Pheonix’s Goran Dragic and Oklahoma City’s Reggie Jackson

The Pick: Team 4

3-Point Contest: Mirror, Mirror on the wall? Who’s the greatest 3-point shooter of them all?

• Arron Affalo, Orlando
• Bradley Beal, Washington
• Kyrie Irving, Cleveland
• Joe Johnson, Brooklyn
• Marco Belinelli, San Antonio
• Stephen Curry, Golden State
• Damian Lillard, Portland
• Kevin Love, Minnesota

The Pick: Stephen Curry is not only the best shooter in this contest, he’s the best shooter in the league. Enough said.

Slam Dunk Contest:The dunk contest is without a doubt the biggest event of the night. Historically, we’ve seen everything from dunks starting at the free-throw line to dunks over cars. What will this year’s contest bring? One thing is for sure, this year features one of the best line-ups in years. The field includes:

• Terrance Ross, Toronto (2013 Champion)
• Paul George, Indiana
• John Wall, Washington
• Harrison Barnes, Golden State
• Damion Lillard, Portland
• Ben McLemore, Sacramento

The Pick: See Ben Dance

Sunday Night:

NBA All-Star Game: The 63rd NBA All-Star Game tips off Sunday night at 8pm on TNT. It’s been quite the year so far for the league, from David Stern retiring to Adam Silver taking over as the new Commissioner; with great basketball and too many injuries everywhere and in between. While there’s been plenty of changes, this season has also seen some fan favorites and top talent showcase their game. In this year’s all-star game, we will see some of this talent unfold. The starters were voted by the fans, and the reserves were selected by the coaches:

• Eastern Conference:
  • LeBron James, Miami (10-time selection)
  • Kyrie Irving, Cleveland (2-time selection)
  • Dwyane Wade, Miami (10-time selection)
  • Paul George, Indiana (2-time selection)
  • Carmelo Anthony, New York (7-time selection)
  • Reserves: Joakim Noah, Chicago; Roy Hibbert, Indiana; Chris Bosh, Miami;Paul Millsap, Atlanta; John Wall, Washington; Joe Johnson, Brooklyn; DeMar DeRozen, Toronto.
  • Coach: Frank Vogel, Indiana.
• Western Conference:
  • Stephen Curry (1-time selection)
  • Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers (16-time selection, injured)
  • Kevin Durant, OKC (5-time selection)
  • Kevin Love, Minnesota (3-time selection)
  • Blake Griffin, LA Clippers (4-time selection)
  • Reserves: Dwight Howard, Houston; LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland; Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas, Chris Paul, LA Clippers; James Harden, Houston; Tony Parker, San Antonio; Damian Lillard, Portland; Anthony Davis, New Orleans.
  • Coach: Scott Brooks, OKC

The Pick: The Western Conference and Kevin Durant will win the MVP. This game will be more fun than anything, so expect high scoring, little defense and lots of showmanship.

Random Facts:

• There are a whole host of other events taking place over the weekend from the D-League All-Star game to press conferences to concerts.
• Speaking of concerts, this year’s NBA All-Star game features Pharrell Williams and a whole hosts of guests including: Kendrick Lamar, Janelle Monae, Busta Rhymes, P. Diddy, Nelly, Snoop Lion and more.
• Portland’s Damion Lillard will participate in a record 5 events over the weekend.
• The MVP of the 2013 game was LA Clipper’s Chris Paul, who returns to his first team in New Orleans this weekend.
• NBA All-Star weekend also leads into one of the biggest weeks for trades among teams. Expect movement.
• This is also one of the biggest community service weekends of the year as many NBA and WNBA players come together to work with NBA Cares to give back in the New Orleans community.
• Oh, and the parties… so many parties every night of the week.

Stories Around the League:

Family Magic
The best shooters in the NBA are from the same family
Where did Stephen Curry learn how to shoot? From his Dad. The best shooter in the league has come a long way from a college star at Davidson to become a NBA All-Star.

Expansion, Baby
Where does the NBA want to go?
Changes are coming to the new NBA as Commissioner Silver targets China, age limits, and the NFL.

Best Friends Forever
Size has got nothing on determination
Close friends Jared Sullinger and Trey Burke overcame obstacles to make it to the NBA.

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Remember that time Blue III, the Butler Bulldog, met Jack, the Georgetown Bulldog? Stop what you’re doing and watch the magic… 

QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK

College Sports

During the closing seconds of Saturday’s game on the road at Texas Tech, #19 Oklahoma State‘s Marcus Smart pushed a fan after falling out of bounds. It’s unclear exactly what the fan said to him, but the sophomore guard was given a technical after the altercation and Oklahoma State went on to lose the game. In a press conference Sunday evening, Marcus Smart apologized for his actions and Coach Trevor Ford announced he would be suspended for 3 games. Texas Tech also announced that the fan would no longer be allowed to attend home or away games.

Jabari Parker continues to shine. The freshman led #11 Duke with a career high of 29 points and 16 rebounds in a convincing win on the road at Boston College. This week, the Blue Devils face UNC-Chapel Hill on the road. Although they’ve struggled a bit this season, UNC is coming off 5 straight wins. This game isn’t going to be easy for them, though — Duke has been dominant as of late and will no doubt be ready. Regardless, expect another great chapter in one of sports’ best rivalries Wednesday night at 9pm.

University of Missouri’s star defensive lineman Michael Sam announced that he was gay in a interview with ESPN Sunday evening. The All-American college football player could become the first openly-gay athlete in the National Football League after finishing his senior season. In an interview with the New York Times, Michael Sam said: “I just want to make sure I could tell my story the way I want to tell it, I just want to own my truth.”               

NBA

The Oklahoma City Thunder keeps on rolling. The top seeded Thunder beat the New York Knicks at home on Sunday afternoon in a game where Kevin Durant had 41 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. The Thunder will have one more chance to polish up their resume before the All-Star break when they take on the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday evening. Why is this a big game? Well, the Thunder currently has the best record in the Western Conference, while Portland is close behind the San Antonio Spurs for the number two spot. A win would be good momentum to carry over after the break.

‘Twas the week before the All-Star game, when all through the league, the excitement was spreading, as was the intrigue. The dunk contest was set, and the contestants were ready, we couldn’t help but wonder, could the competition get here already? Okay, that’s enough with the rhyming, but really, NBA All-Star weekend is a sight to be seen. The 3 point and dunk contests take place Saturday night and the field for the dunk competition in particular is top-notch. Tune in Sunday night for the main event, featuring some of the league’s best players in the All-Star game hosted in New Orleans.

Watch out world, Chris Paul is back. The Los Angeles Clippers’ star point guard is back in action after recovering from a shoulder injury. What does this mean? This is especially good news for the Clippers, who currently have the 4th best record in the Western Conference. Playing one of the best point guards in the league can only help them to get even better. Look for the healthy Clippers to try to catch up with the best teams in the West for good positioning going into the playoffs.

Sochi

 And now for your Team U.S.A. medal count update: The Americans have 4 medals overall and 2 gold medals after the first weekend of the Winter Olympics. 20-year-old Sage Kotsenburg and 23-year-old Jamie Anderson won Team U.S.A. gold medals in the men’s and women’s snowboarding slopestyle events. Currently, Norway is leading the Games with 7 medals. The Netherlands, Russia, the United States and Canada are close behind with 4 medals a piece.

In the team ice skating competition, Team Russia came out on top with a strong performance that earned them a gold medal. Despite struggling throughout the competition, the Americans finished with a bronze medal while the Canadians took home the silver. The pairs events in ice skating will get going later this week, and the individual contests will begin the following week.

Talk about sisterly love. In one of the best stories of the weekend, Canadian sisters Justine Dufour-Lapointe and Chloe Dufour-Lapointe finished with gold and silver medals in the moguls skiing competition. The sisters knocked off top-ranked Hannah Kearney, who finished with the bronze medal. The third Dufour-Lapointe sister, Maxime, came in 12th place.

JUST FOR FUN

RateMyJersey Nike did some interesting things with the 2014 Olympic hockey uniforms

STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE

You’re Out! A-Rod is dropping the fight against his 162-game suspensionHe has withdrawn his lawsuits against Major League Baseball, Commissioner Bud Selig, and his own players union Hockey and the Winter Olympics go together like peanut butter and jelly… But, NHL players may not be participating in the 2018 GamesThey’ve promised the IOC an answer by the end of Sochi, so we’re sure to hear the news soon! “Cap Concerns are for Losers” Can the Seahawks manage the cap and sustain their success?Carroll creates a desirable environment in order to keep his players around and happy Keeping us on our toes Snowboarder Sage Kotsenburg tries out (and wins with) a brand new trick We all love to see new tricks… but, really? During the Olympic final?

FRIENDS WE LOVE WHO’LL MAKE YOU LOVE SPORTS MORE

… [The] statistic (82% of women executives who played sports) is why I am such an advocate of Title IX. It’s not just the desire that many women have to play sports, but also because when young girls play sports, they grow into these strong, confident productive citizens who will go on to lead and change how we lead. People talk about Title IX as giving more women opportunities to play sports, but it goes beyond that: it’s about the women we create through Title IX. — Julie Foudy, ESPN Commentator and Founder of the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy  Julie Foudy is a reporter and analyst for ABC/ESPN, a contributor and writer for espnW, the Director of the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy, a motivational speaker, and a proud mother. She recently published “Foudy: My Advice for Sochi Athletes” on espnW and is providing video coverage for at the Sochi Olympic Games.  She is the former Captain of the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, a two-time World Cup Champion, three-time Olympic Medalist, and 2007 U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee. Julie has served on the Women’s Sports Foundation Board of Directors for seven years and was a WSF advocacy consultant for two years. She focused directly on issues surrounding Title IX, childhood obesity, and athletes’ rights. Julie founded the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy (JFSLA) in 2006 with the mission of empowering young women from all socioeconomic backgrounds to become leaders who build on a foundation of sports and fitness to positively impact their communities. Read her LifeChats Interview with the Fuqua/Coach K Leadership & Ethics Center at Duke University.

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You can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk? Well, let’s just say that Seattle ran Denver off the field. In other news, check out our favorite commercial from last night:

QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK

NFL       

Congrats to first-time Super Bowl Champions, the Seattle Seahawks! They brought their best, the Denver Broncos could never get it going, and the night belonged to Seattle. We can talk about the Broncos’ poor play, but we’d rather celebrate the Legion of Boom, and their dominating performance. After an awesome game, Malcolm Smith was awarded the MVP. There’s an old expression that pretty much sums it up: offense wins games, but defense wins championships. Take it all in Seattle, you deserve it! #12thman

This Super Bowl may not have gone his way, but Peyton Manning is officially the NFL’s regular season Most Valuable Player. It’s the 5th MVP of his career and a NFL record.  At age 37 and despite last night’s outcome, Manning is still one of the best quarterbacks in the game. Will he be back for another season? We think so.                             

NBA

NBA Commissioner David Stern has officially retired and has passed the torch to Adam Silver (Deputy Commissioner since 2006).  Stern’s 30 seasons at the helm led to international expansion, incorporation of media technologies and a high level of diversity in the league’s leadership ranks.  Silver has been with the league since 1992, and has been Stern’s partner in taking the league forward. Look for Silver to continue taking the league to new places.

Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s 10 game winning streak ends with a loss to the Washington Wizards on Saturday night in DC.  After a long series of road trips including a statement game over the Miami Heat last week, these things happen. Look for them to bounce back this Tuesday, when the Memphis Grizzlies come to town. What’s even more exciting? Russell Westbrook will join Kevin Durant back on the court soon and give them back that amazing one-two punch. The top-seeded team in the western conference is about to get even better.

Intriguingly, the Indiana Pacers have signed free agent center Andrew Bynum to their roster. The often-injured Bynum has been bouncing around the league for the past two seasons and has now found a new home. The Pacers already have the best record in the NBA and an all-star center in Roy Hibbert, but the key here is that now no one else can sign Bynum. Why? If Bynum is healthy, it’s better to have him on your roster than on another team. Now, will this mess up team chemistry, or will it prove to be a great decision when the NBA playoffs begin? Time will tell.

COLLEGE SPORTS

College hoop’s newest great rivalry started out with a bang. In their first match up in the ACC, #2 Syracuse defeated #17 Duke in overtime at home in one of this season’s most entertaining games. There were amazing shots, close calls and foul trouble, but what we’ll remember is the overall great play. Syracuse will rise to #1 and remains undefeated, but look for an awesome rematch when they head down to Durham to play Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 22nd. No doubt, Coach K and Coach Boeheim will have their teams ready to go. We can’t wait.

And then there were two. In a late night thriller, Cal knocked off #1 Arizona at home with Justin Cobb’s game-winning bucket. Losing a close conference game on the road isn’t the biggest deal for Arizona. But, losing one of your best players — Brandon Ashley — to a foot injury is. Expect Arizona to bounce back, but they are out of the race for an undefeated season. Syracuse and Wichita State are the last two left.

Wait, there were other games this weekend? You know that’s right. #6 Kansas fell on the road to #25 Texas while #7 Michigan State lost to Georgetown at Madison Square Garden. What does this mean? Well, the polls are about to shift. Why does this matter? As we get closer to March, the rankings matter more and more for seeding in the NCAA Tournament. March Madness is coming, can you feel it yet?

Other

One of the few sports most affected by the Winter Olympics, the NHL will take a two week break in midseason because many of their players will be competing for their own countries at the Sochi Olympics. Hence, it’s no surprise that the NHL is reevaluating whether they will let their players compete in future Olympic Games.

Speaking of Sochi... The Winter Olympics kick off this Thursday with a few events followed by the Opening Ceremonies on Friday on NBC. Stay tuned for our Winter Olympics Primer this week.

JUST FOR FUN

Take me out to the ball game
31 Reasons You Can’t Wait for Baseball Season

STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE

Love Conquers All
Read Richard Sherman’s touching tribute to Coach Carroll
Even before the Super Bowl win, Sherman made it clear that Carroll is a true leader, a great coach, and an outstanding mentor

Take Down
Carmelo Anthony tackles LeBron James during Saturday’s game
A sign of good sportsmanship — there were no hard feelings between the two superstars after the game ended

All Eyes on Sochi
With the Olympics approaching, Russia is in the spotlight
The Sochi Olympic Games are already surrounded by quite a bit of controversy

Orange is the new… Blue?
Syracuse beat Duke in a heart-stopping, high level game 
“Both teams just went after it,” says Boeheim, and we agree — all of the players were totally invested, and battled it out ’til the very end

Honor and Respect
Roger Goodell claims that 9 out of 10 Native Americans support the Washington Redskins’ team name
He says it promotes strength, courage, and pride in the community… but, do you believe it should be changed?

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