| | | | | | | Presented By Flatfile | | | | Axios Sports | | By Kendall Baker ·Mar 16, 2022 | | 👋 Good morning! Middle seat for five hours on the flight to Vegas this morning. Already plotting how to acquire both arm rests. Today's word count: 1,676 words (6 minutes). Let's sports... | | | | | | 1 big thing: 🏀 Points on points on points |  | | | Photo: Mark Brown/Getty Images | | | | Kyrie Irving scored a career-high 60 points on Tuesday in a blowout 150-108 win over the Magic — one night after Karl-Anthony Towns scored 60 points himself. - Irving scored 41 points in the first half alone en route to setting the Nets' franchise record. He exited with over eight minutes remaining.
- "When you're a kid scoring a bunch of points, it means something, but when you're in the best league in the world ... it means a little bit more," he said.
The big picture: There have been seven 50-point games in March, tied for the most in a single month since the NBA-ABA merger. And it's only March 16! - March 15: Irving: 60 (20/31 FG, 8/12 3PT, 12/13 FT)
- March 14: Towns: 60 (19/31 FG, 7/11 3PT, 15/16 FT)
- March 13: Kevin Durant: 53 (19/37 FG, 4/13 3PT, 11/12 FT)
- March 11: LeBron James: 50 (18/25 FG, 6/9 3PT, 8/8 FT)
- March 8: Irving: 50 (15/19 FG, 9/12 3PT, 11/13 FT)
- March 6: Jayson Tatum: 54 (16/30 FG, 8/15 3PT, 14/17 FT)
- March 5: James: 56 (19/31 FG, 6/11 3PT, 12/13 FT)
The big picture: Irving and Durant are the first teammates in NBA history to score 50+ points in consecutive games. Their combined talents help explain why the Nets have the third-best title odds despite sitting in eighth-place in the East at 36-33. Looking ahead: Irving can't play home games due to New York City's vaccination mandate. Barring a change, he'll only take the floor for three of the Nets' final 13 contests. Go deeper: The rise of 50-point games (Axios) |     | | | | | | 2. 🎓 Survey: Paying college athletes |  Data: Marist Poll; Chart: Baidi Wang/Axios Roughly half of American adults believe colleges should pay their athletes, according to a new survey from the Marist Poll, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. The intrigue: The responses vary widely by age, race, ethnicity and gender — a reflection of the rapidly-evolving debate about amateurism and wide-ranging definitions of what it means to be a college athlete. - Age: 70% of 18-to-29-year-olds are in favor, but that number drops dramatically the older respondents get, with just 29% of the 60+ demo in favor.
- Race/ethnicity: 69% of both Black and Latino respondents are in favor, compared to 34% of white respondents.
- Gender: 54% of men are in favor, compared to 39% of women.
The big picture: Now that college athletes can earn money off their name, image and likeness, it's opened up the conversation about a possible next step: paying some of them directly. - An advocacy group filed a labor complaint last month asserting that FBS football players, plus D-I men's and women's basketball players, should be viewed as employees.
- "One way or another, I feel like it's more of a freight train now," the group's executive director, Ramogi Huma, told CBS Sports. "No one can explain exactly how it's going to unfold, but the direction is clear."
State of play: March Madness — when victories earned by athletes directly result in money for their schools — provides an ideal backdrop for pondering this reality. | | | | | | | | 3. 🏒 Ovi passes Jagr |  | | | Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images | | | | Alex Ovechkin scored his 767th career goal on Tuesday night, passing Jaromir Jagr for third on the NHL's all-time list. By the numbers: Ovechkin, 36, now trails Wayne Gretzky by 127 goals and Gordie Howe by 34. - Gretzky: 894 (in 1,487 games)
- Howe: 801 (in 1,767 games)
- Ovechkin: 767 (in 1,256 games)
- Jagr: 766 (in 1,733 games)
- Brett Hull: 741 (in 1,269 games)
What they're saying: Jagr, 50, still plays in the Czech Republic for the team he owns. His message for Ovechkin: "Keep scoring, because as you know, I didn't retire from hockey yet. And there's a chance I might come back to the NHL, and start chasing you!" Go deeper: Ovechkin in spotlight over Putin relationship (Axios) | | | | | | | | A message from Flatfile | | How the world's best companies onboard their customers | | |  | | | | Help your team focus on building a great product, not cleaning customer spreadsheets. Integrate the leading data onboarding platform and solve the most critical stage of onboarding while providing a delightful experience for your customers. Learn more. | | | | | | 4. ⚡️ Lightning round | | Source: Giphy ⚾️ Stat du jour: Thanks to deferred payments and Cincinnati shedding payroll, Ken Griffey Jr. is the Reds' sixth highest-paid player this season at $3.59 million. 🏈 NFL update: Aaron Rodgers is getting $150M guaranteed ... Baker Mayfield penned a letter to Browns fans after the team met with Deshaun Watson ... Randy Gregory spurned Dallas for Denver ... More news. 🏀 Turell eyes history: The NCAA's leading scorer, Ryan Turell of D-III Yeshiva, will enter the 2022 NBA draft in hopes of becoming the league's first Orthodox Jewish player. 🏀 Good read: Ranking all 68 men's NCAA tournament coaches as players (Tony Moss, ESPN) "Two former NBA All-Stars, three Final Four participants and a guy who didn't play past the eighth grade." | | | | | | | | 5. 🏊 Lia Thomas heads to nationals |  | | | Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images | | | | The NCAA women's swimming championships begin today in Atlanta, and as has been the case all season, Penn's Lia Thomas will be the center of attention, Jeff writes. Catch up quick: Thomas, a 22-year-old transgender woman who began hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in 2019, has been regularly breaking records since joining the women's team last fall. - She's faced opposition: "At stake here is the integrity of women's sports," a group of Penn swim parents wrote in December. Last month, 16 teammates effectively asked the Ivy League to make her ineligible.
- She's also received support: 310 swimmers and divers signed a letter last month in support of Thomas and all trans college athletes.
- A new USA Swimming policy last month would have rendered Thomas ineligible for nationals, but the NCAA decided a midseason change would be unfair, clearing the way for her to compete this week.
What they're saying: "Lia is a human being who deserves to be treated with respect and dignity," one Penn parent told SI. "But it's not transphobic to say I disagree with where she's swimming." - Thomas' response: "The very simple answer is that I'm not a man. I'm a woman, so I belong on the women's team. Trans people deserve that same respect every other athlete gets."
- She adds that transitioning was never about swimming: "I did HRT knowing and accepting I might not swim again. I was just trying to live my life ... I felt, mentally, a lot better and healthier pretty quickly."
What to watch: Coming off four wins and six broken records at last month's Ivy League championships, Thomas is favored to win two titles in Atlanta. - She and Yale's Iszac Henig — a transgender man who can race against women because he hasn't begun hormone therapy — will be the first two trans athletes to compete at nationals.
- After graduating, Thomas plans to attend law school and hopes to swim at the 2024 Olympic trials.
| | | | | | | | 6. 🏀 Big Ten lands three AP All-Americans |  | | | Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios | | | | AP All-America teams were released Tuesday, and the Big Ten led the way with three players on the first team: - Johnny Davis, G (Wisconsin, So.): 19.7 pts, 8.2 reb, 2.2 ast in 29 games
- Ochai Agbaji, G (Kansas, Sr.): 19.7 pts, 5.1 reb, 1.6 ast in 33 games
- Keegan Murray, F (Iowa, So.): 23.6 pts, 8.6 reb, 2 blk in 34 games
- Oscar Tshiebwe, F (Kentucky, Jr.): 17 pts, 15.1 reb, 1.6 blk in 33 games
- Kofi Cockburn, C (Illinois, Jr.): 21.1 pts, 10.6 reb, 0.9 blk in 26 games
Plus: 11 players from seven conferences comprised the second and third teams (there was a tie for the final spot on the third team): - Second team: Jaden Ivey, G (Purdue, So.); Bennedict Mathurin, G (Arizona, So.); Jabari Smith, F (Auburn, Fr.); Drew Timme, F (Gonzaga, Jr.); Chet Holmgren, C (Gonzaga, Fr.)
- Third team: Collin Gillespie, G (Villanova, Sr.); JD Notae, G (Arkansas, Sr.); James Akinjo, G (Baylor, Sr.); Paolo Banchero, F (Duke, Fr.); E.J. Liddell, F (Ohio State, Jr.); Walker Kessler, F (Auburn, So.)
Go deeper: 2022 NBA mock draft (CBS Sports) | | | | | | | | 7. 🌎 The world in photos | | Photo: Ben Solomon/NCAA Photos via Getty Images DAYTON, Ohio — Texas Southern beat Texas A&M-CC, 76-67, to win a First Four game for the second straight season and third time in six years. No other school has multiple First Four wins since it debuted in 2011. - In the nightcap: Indiana beat Wyoming, 66-58, behind 29 points from Trayce Jackson-Davis.
Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images MANCHESTER, England — Atlético Madrid eliminated Manchester United and Benfica stunned Ajax to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals. Photo: AFP via Getty Images ABU DHABI, U.A.E. — The Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge looks wild. | | | | | | | | 8. 📺 Watchlist: First Four continues |  | | | Photo: Andy Lyons/Getty Images | | | | The First Four round resumes today with two games each for the men and women. - Men: No. 16 Bryant vs. No. 16 Wright State (6:40pm ET, truTV) ... Tournament first-timer Bryant is the underdog (+3.5), but the Bulldogs have the nation's leading scorer in Peter Kiss. (O/U: 154.5)
- Men: No. 11 Notre Dame vs. No. 11 Rutgers (9:10pm, truTV) ... The Fighting Irish, led by projected first-round pick Blake Wesley, are slightly favored (-1) over the Scarlet Knights, who beat five ranked teams this season. (O/U: 132)
- Women: No. 16 Incarnate Word vs. No. 16 Howard (7pm, ESPNU) ... Incarnate Word is a heavy underdog in its tourney debut (+8) against MEAC champ Howard, back for the first time since 2001. (O/U: 120.5)
- Women: No. 11 DePaul vs. No. 11 Dayton (9pm, ESPNU) ... DePaul (-3) scores an NCAA-best 88.3 ppg behind freshman sensation Aneesah Morrow, whose 26 double-doubles led the nation. (O/U: 152.5)
More to watch: | | | | | | | | 9. ⚾️ MLB trivia |  | | | Photo: Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images | | | | Fernando Tatis Jr., whose motorcycle-riding days may be over, is one of two Padres to lead the NL in home runs (42 in 2021). - Question: Who's the other?
- Hint: They share an initial.
Answer at the bottom. | | | | | | | | 10. 🏈 1 great gig: Chase Daniel |  | | | Photo: Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images | | | | Chase Daniel has the best job on earth, Jeff writes. Driving the news: The career backup QB has re-upped with the Chargers on a $2.25 million deal, one season after attempting zero passes. Wild stat: Daniel, 35, has earned $38.9 million in his career despite throwing just 261 passes — good for $149,053 per attempt. Some notable comparisons: - Aaron Rodgers: $37,033 per attempt
- Tom Brady: $27,212
- Patrick Mahomes: $20,236
| | | | | | | | A message from Flatfile | | How the world's best companies onboard their customers | | | | | | | | Help your team focus on building a great product, not cleaning customer spreadsheets. Integrate the leading data onboarding platform and solve the most critical stage of onboarding while providing a delightful experience for your customers. Learn more. | | | | Talk tomorrow, Kendall "Somebody play some defense" Baker Trivia answer: Fred McGriff (35 in 1992) 🙏 Thanks for reading. Follow us at @kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy, and tell friends to sign up for Axios Sports. |  | It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications. | | | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here.
Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201 | | | You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios.
Change your preferences or unsubscribe here. | | | Was this email forwarded to you?
Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox. | | | | Follow Axios on social media:    | | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment