| | | | | | | Presented By Brilliant | | | | Axios Sports | | By Jeff Tracy · Feb 27, 2023 | | 👋 Good morning! Hope you had a great weekend, because the sports world certainly did. Today's word count: 1,827 words (7 minutes) Let's sports... | | | | | | 1 big thing: 🏀 February Madness |  | | | Arizona State players and coach Bobby Hurley celebrate a wild victory. Photo: Christopher Hook/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images | | | | The NCAA Tournament doesn't start for another couple of weeks, but the Madness arrived early with an utterly absurd slate of games over the weekend across all levels of the sport, featuring wild finishes and buzzer-beaters galore. College: - Arizona State 89, No. 7 Arizona 88: Desmond Cambridge Jr.'s buzzer-beater from well beyond half court on Saturday gave the Sun Devils their first-ever road victory at Arizona as an unranked team (now 1-29).
- Florida State 85, No. 13 Miami 84: The Seminoles erased a 25-point second-half deficit on Saturday, winning on Matthew Cleveland's three at the buzzer to complete the largest comeback win in ACC history.
- Iowa 112, Michigan State 106 (OT): The Spartans had a 99.7% win probability up 13 with 1:34 left in regulation on Saturday, but the Hawkeyes scored 23 points in the final 90 seconds to force overtime, where they ultimately won.
- (Women's) No. 6 Iowa 86, No. 2 Indiana 85: The Hawkeyes handed the Hoosiers just their second loss of the season on Sunday thanks to Caitlin Clark's off-balance three at the buzzer.
- No. 22 San Diego State 73, New Mexico 71: The Aztecs and Lobos combined for 11 points in the final 23 seconds of Saturday's game, including Lamont Butler's buzzer-beating three for the win.
- Michigan 87, Wisconsin 79 (OT): The Wolverines forced overtime on Sunday with this Hunter Dickinson three at the buzzer before cruising to victory in the extra period.
 Photo: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images NBA: High school: |     | | | | | | 2. 🏀 Dame explodes for 71 points |  | | | Photo: Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images | | | | Damian Lillard exploded for 71 points in the Trail Blazers' 131-114 win over the Rockets on Sunday night. Why it matters: He's just the eighth NBA player to score at least 70 points in a game and tied Donovan Mitchell's mark from less than two months ago, making this the first time in NBA history multiple players have had 70-point games in the same season. - 100 points: Wilt Chamberlain (March 1962)
- 81: Kobe Bryant (January 2006)
- 78: Chamberlain (December 1961)
- 73: David Thompson (April 1978); Chamberlain (January 1962, November 1962)
- 72: Chamberlain (November 1962)
- 71: Lillard (last night); Mitchell (January 2023); David Robinson (April 1994); Elgin Baylor (November 1960)
- 70: Devin Booker (March 2017); Chamberlain (March 1963)
By the numbers: Lillard shot 22-38 from the field, 13-22 from three and a perfect 14-14 from the line. He also added 6 rebounds and 6 assists, turning the ball over just twice. - It was his fifth career 60-point game, breaking a tie with Michael Jordan and James Harden for third-most in NBA history behind Wilt Chamberlain (32) and Kobe Bryant (6).
- He's just the fourth player to hit at least 13 threes in a game, matching Steph Curry and Zach LaVine and falling one shy of Klay Thompson's record of 14.
- He's the first player to score 70 points in fewer than 40 minutes (39).
The backdrop: Even for one of the most prolific scorers in the league, Dame's recent hot streak has been otherworldly: He's averaging 39.4 points in his last 19 games, and this is his second 60-point effort in the past month. | | | | | | | | 3. ⚾️ The pitch clock takes center stage |  | | | Photo: Mike Carlson/MLB Photos via Getty Images | | | | MLB's new era began over the weekend, as spring training games kicked off and teams got their first taste of the new rules debuting this season — most notably, the pitch clock. Why it matters: Games zipped along at their fastest pace in decades, just as MLB intended, but one particular moment illustrated the learning curve that will be required for players to adjust to their new normal. "This is spring training and a minuscule sample. But it's hard to [overstate] how drastically the pitch clock is going to change baseball." By the numbers: The average time of these first 35 spring training games was 2:38, 23 minutes faster than last year's average spring training game (3:01) and 25 minutes faster than last year's average regular-season nine-inning game (3:03). - The last time regular-season nine-inning games averaged under 2:40? 1985.
How it works: As a reminder, pitchers have 15 seconds to begin their throwing motion with the bases empty, and 20 seconds with runners on base. Violations earn an automatic ball. The intrigue: It's not just pitchers who have to watch the clock: Batters are charged with an automatic strike if they're not ready to hit within eight seconds of the clock starting, and it's that aspect of the rule that got the most attention over the weekend. - The Braves and Red Sox were tied, 6-6, with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth on Saturday as Braves 2B Cal Conley faced a full count.
- But as the drama was about to reach a crescendo, the home plate umpire called an automatic strike on Conley for failing to be ready in time. Strike three, game over.
What they're saying: "I don't think this [rule] was intended for a game to end like that," Braves manager Brian Snitker told The Athletic [$]. Looking ahead: There's no caveat to the rule for extenuating circumstances (e.g., a close game), so players will need to rapidly adjust to this new status quo in order to avoid — or at least limit — the chances of a game that actually matters being decided by a clock violation. Go deeper: New rules (mostly) ace their first test (USA Today) | | | | | | | | A message from Brilliant | | Sharpen your math, CS and data skills in a few minutes a day | | |  | | | | For professionals and lifelong learners alike, Brilliant is one of the best ways to learn. The deets: Bite-sized interactive lessons make it easy to level up in everything from math and data science to AI and beyond. Join 10+ million people building skills every day. Start with a free 30-day trial. | | | | | | 4. ⚡️ Lightning round |  | | | Photo: Eddie Keogh/Getty Images | | | | ⚽️ Drought's over: Manchester United beat Newcastle, 2-0, on Sunday in the Carabao Cup Final, giving the Red Devils their first trophy in six years. ⚽️ Club record: Erling Haaland scored his 27th goal of the season on Saturday, the most ever by a Manchester City player in a single Premier League season — and he still has 13 games left. 🏀 Hawks hire Snyder: The Hawks gave Quin Snyder a five-year contract on Sunday to become their new head coach. Snyder, 56, coached the Jazz from 2014-22. 🏀 Scheyer makes history: Duke's win over Virginia Tech on Saturday was their 21st of the season, making Jon Scheyer, 35, the winningest rookie head coach in Blue Devils history. 🦜 Surprise visitors: Multiple parrots flew around the field on Friday night in Orlando during a softball game between Bradley and Gardner-Webb, with one actually landing on the umpire's shoulder after rounding the bases. | | | | | | | | 5. ⚽️ 700 club |  | | | Photo: Aurelien Meunier/PSG via Getty Images | | | | Lionel Messi scored the 700th goal of his European club career in PSG's 3-0 win over Marseille on Sunday. Why it matters: He and Cristiano Ronaldo are the only two players to reach that milestone, and since Ronaldo just barely passed it before heading to Saudi Arabia, Messi could take the top spot as soon as his next game, this Saturday. - Ronaldo: 701 goals (Madrid, 450; Man United, 145; Juventus, 101; Sporting Lisbon, 5)
- Messi: 700 (Barcelona, 672; PSG, 28)
Go deeper: Messi milestone tracker (ESPN) | | | | | | | | 6. 🇺🇸 Photos across America | | Photo: Kavin Mistry/NHLI via Getty Images SAN JOSE — Patrick Marleau's No. 12 jersey was retired by the Sharks on Saturday — the first jersey retirement in franchise history. Photo: Courtesy Northern Kentucky University HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — Northern Kentucky DH Liam McFadden-Ackman had himself a game on Sunday, smashing two grand slams in the first inning. But that was just the beginning: He ended up going 5 for 6 and hitting for the cycle. Unreal. Photo: Scott Taetsch/Getty Images WASHINGTON, D.C. — D.C. United's comeback victory over Toronto, scoring twice in stoppage time to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 victory, was the highlight of a great opening day across MLS. | | | | | | | | 7. 🌎 Photos around the world | | Photo: Christopher Pike/Getty Images DUBAI, UAE — No. 30 Barbora Krejčíková upset No. 1 Iga Świątek, 6-4, 6-2, on Saturday to win the Dubai Championships, completing an unbelievable run that also saw her beat No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the quarters and No. 3 Jessica Pegula in the semis. Photo: Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images VANCOUVER — Bruins goalie Linus Ullmark on Saturday became the second-fastest to reach 30 wins in a single season in NHL history (37 games), and became the eighth keeper in NHL history to score a goal on a shot untouched by any other player (i.e., not an own goal). Photo: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Australia won its third straight Women's T20 World Cup on Saturday, giving them six of the eight total titles in the biennial cricket event's history. | | | | | | | | 8. 📺 Watchlist: Star-studded matchup |  | | | Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and David Pastrňák. Photos: Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images; China Wong/NHLI via Getty Images. | | | | The Oilers host the Bruins tonight (8:30pm ET, NHL) as Edmonton looks to get back on track against one of the best teams in NHL history. - State of play: The Oilers (32-20-8) have lost six of nine after winning eight of their previous nine; the Bruins (45-8-5) are on pace to break the record for most wins in a season.
- Who to watch: Edmonton's dynamic duo of Connor McDavid (113 points) and Leon Draisaitl (88) are the league's top two point scorers; Boston's David Pastrňák (79) is No. 4.
More to watch: | | | | | | | | 9. ⚾️ MLB trivia |  | | | Photo: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images | | | | Manny Machado — who agreed to an 11-year, $350 million extension with the Padres on Sunday — has the fifth-most WAR among position players since 2020 (15.0). - Question: Who are the four players ahead of him on that list?
- Hint: Two righties, a lefty and a switch-hitter.
Answer at the bottom. | | | | | | | | 10. 🍿 Top plays: Weekend edition | | Source: Giphy - ⚾️ What a robbery!
- 🏀 Buzzer-beater No. 1
- 🏀 Buzzer-beater No. 2
- ⚽️ Absolute rocket
- 🏀 Buzzer-beater No. 3
- 🎾 Tweener winner
- 🏒 What a save!
- 🏀 Posterized
- 🏒 Goalie goal!
- 🏀 Chasedown
Watch all 10. | | | | | | | | A message from Brilliant | | AI won't take your job, but someone using AI will | | |  | | | | Future-proof your skill set with Brilliant and learn the concepts behind tech like AI, neural networks and more. Here's how: Brilliant's bite-sized interactive lessons let busy people grow their skills in minutes a day. Join 10M+ people learning on Brilliant — try it for free, then get 20% off. | | | | Talk tomorrow, Jeff "Just hit a buzzer-beater" Tracy Trivia answer: Aaron Judge (17.8 WAR), Paul Goldschmidt (16.0), José Ramírez (15.2) and Juan Soto (15.1) 🙏 Thanks for reading! Follow us for more (@kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy). Friends can sign up here. Thanks to Matt Piper for copy edits. |  | | Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it. | | | | | | Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters.
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