NBA players getting into wars of words with the opposing coach are rare enough.
Rarer still are instances of NBA players and coaching getting into wars of words that end with the coach being shown the door.
That’s precisely what took place Saturday night, as the Lakers rode a 35–14 second quarter to an convincing 107–97 victory over the Rockets.
A chippy affair came to a head late in the contest when Los Angeles forward LeBron James and Houston coach Ime Udoka began talking. Referee J.T. Orr monitored the conversation, and when it was over he issued both James and Udoka technicals.
Author: Michael
As a dreadfully dull Big Ten championship game mercifully ended, the real show began in Lucas Oil Stadium Saturday night. How were commissioner Tony Petitti and Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh—protagonists in a bitter November drama—going to share the same stage?
After the Wolverines finished a workmanlike 26–0 victory over Iowa, the stage apparatus was wheeled out and put in place on the field. Petitti went up on the dais in advance of the Michigan party, shared some words with Fox analyst Joel Klatt, then waited for the Wolverines.
It seemed like a good idea in 2014.
Nine years ago, the Big Ten welcomed Maryland and Rutgers into the fold. The conference took the opportunity to scrap its wildly unpopular Legends and Leaders divisions, instead opting for a simple East-West arrangement. With Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State in the East and Wisconsin, Nebraska and Iowa in the West, the two seven-team groups seemed fairly balanced on paper.
It goes by too quickly.
After 14 weeks of its usual mayhem, college football’s regular season has drawn to a close—with a playoff field ready to be selected.
Friday brought an apocalyptic de facto end to the Pac-12, as Washington topped Oregon to polish off an undefeated regular season. Texas won the Big 12 early Saturday with a blowout victory over Oklahoma State.
Later Saturday, Alabama upended Georgia in the SEC title game. In the evening, Florida State and Michigan added wins over Louisville and Iowa in the ACC and Big Ten championships, respectively.
The return of Jim Harbaugh to the Michigan sidelines couldn’t have come at a better time, not only because his team was playing for a conference title. No, it was Big Ten commissioner having to hand the championship trophy to the Wolverines that made this win a tad bit sweeter.
There wasn’t much Iowa could do against this Michigan football team to make this a game worth paying attention to following the third quarter. But, there was the moment following the title game that Wolverine fans were waiting for.
The original College Football Playoff selection committee executive director Bill Hancock has said it for years. The most deserving teams do not necessarily make the four-team playoff. It is the best teams.
“Look, Bill Hancock said, ‘It’s not the most deserving,’” No. 1-ranked Georgia coach Kirby Smart said Saturday night after losing the Southeastern Conference championship game to No. 8 Alabama, 27-24, in Atlanta.
Georgia Coach Kirby Smart Has The Right Idea About the CFP
“He said simply, ‘It’s the best four teams,’” Smart said.
Michigan, Washington, Texas and Alabama are in the field, meaning Georgia can’t compete for a 3-peat and 13-0 Florida State makes its own unfortunate history.
Five teams have legit cases for the four-team College Football Playoff. We’ll find out Sunday which team has its heart broken by a 13-member committee in a tough spot.
The Wolverines welcomed Jim Harbaugh back to the sideline after his three game suspension and clinched a third straight Big Ten title convincingly, beating the Hawkeyes 26-0.
ATLANTA, Ga.—Nick Saban is tired. He’s so tired that his postgame speech to his team after they beat Georgia in the SEC championship game was only one word: celebrate. He said they danced, even though he declined to break down his moves, after Alabama emerged victorious, 27–24.
There is obviously much to be jubilant about. Saban and his Crimson Tide have beaten the Dawgs and the allegations. The ones that said he had lost his fastball and that he’d been forever supplanted by Kirby Smart.