CS&T/AllsportsAmerica Wednesday Sports Update, 04/08/2015.

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Sports Quote of the Day:

Sport is a wonderful metaphor for life. Of all the sports that I played - skiing, baseball, fishing - there is no greater example than golf, because you're playing against yourself and nature." ~ Robert Redford, Actor, Director, Producer and Philanthropist

 
Trending; 2015 Masters: Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth are the betting favorites.

By Kyle Porter

Masters week is upon us, which means the favorites for the tournament are now set in place. You're never going to guess this, but Tiger Woods is not among them.

Here's a look at the odds to win the 2015 Masters (according to Bovada).

Favorites

Rory McIlroy: 11-2
Jordan Spieth: 8-1
Bubba Watson: 10-1

Spieth certainly deserves the single-digit mark, but I'm still a little surprised he's getting it. Some books have noted that he's getting more money than anybody else in the field.

It also feels like Watson is a good play at 10-1.

Other favorites

Jason Day: 14-1
Dustin Johnson: 16-1
Henrik Stenson: 18-1
Phil Mickelson: 18-1
Adam Scott: 20-1
Jimmy Walker: 22-1

Adam Scott at 20-1?! His last five outings here have resulted in five top-20s and a win. And he's a longer shot than Henrik Stenson here? That's foolish.

I also love Jimmy Walker at 22-1. That has "he's not a big name but he's going to have a great week" written all over it.

Fringe contenders

Patrick Reed: 28-1
Justin Rose: 33-1
Matt Kuchar: 33-1
Rickie Fowler: 33-1
Tiger Woods: 33-1

I know Kuchar has been bad of late, but he's been top 10 at each of the last three Masters tournaments. Woods could be 333-1, and I wouldn't bet him.

Longer shots

Brandt Snedeker: 40-1
J.B. Holmes: 40-1
Lee Westwood: 40-1
Sergio Garcia: 40-1
Billy Horschel: 50-1
Louis Oosthuizen: 50-1

Love all of these besides Snedeker. Oosthuizen has been playing terrific golf, and he understands this course. You're stealing at 50-1.

How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Blackhawks fail to move up in Central after loss to Wild 2-1. 

By Tracey Myers

The word came up a few times, mainly from Kris Versteeg in talking about the Minnesota Wild.

Desperate.

The Wild, he said, was the more desperate team. At this time of year, the group playing with more of that usually comes out on top and that’s exactly what happened on Tuesday night.

Bryan Bickell scored his 14^th goal of the season with less than two minutes remaining in regulation, but it was too little, way too late as the Wild beat the Blackhawks 2-1 at the regular-season home finale. The Wild, who were sitting below .500 back in mid-January, earned a playoff spot with tonight’s victory.

“They seemed the more desperate hockey team tonight,” Versteeg said. “Those guys were really fighting for their lives over there. They really were playing like it was a Game 7.”

Mikael Granlund and Jason Zucker scored for the Wild. Corey Crawford stopped 28 of 30 shots in the loss.

The Blackhawks missed a chance to gain on their Central Division opponents. They remain in third place in the Central Division with 102 points; first-place St. Louis (105 points) lost to Winnipeg and second-place Nashville (104) fell to Colorado.

For the second consecutive game the Blackhawks could muster just one goal against their opponent. Against the Wild, it was a combination of goaltender Devan Dubnyk, who stopped 32 of 33 shots, and the Blackhawks squandering what few rebounds and other opportunities presented themselves.

And when the Blackhawks started forcing plays that weren’t there in the third period, the Wild capitalized. Moments after Crawford made two tremendous stops on the Wild, Granlund scored on a Zach Parise rebound for a 1-0 lead midway through the third period. Zucker added his about four minutes later, scoring on a 2-on-1 with Chris Stewart.

“We try to make plays and turn pucks over and that led to plays in our own end,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “They’ve gotten better the last three years. They have younger guys, depth, speed, they check extremely well and they can frustrate you. They’ll make you pay if you try to take them on.”

Bickell, who has a habit of scoring against the Wild – he had 14 goals in 30 regular-season and playoff games against them entering tonight – did it again late in the third period. But it couldn’t make up for 58-plus minutes’ worth of silence.

“We knew going in their game plan is to keep everything outside,” Bickell said. “We had a couple opportunities to cash in; we just didn’t capitalize. And a couple of mistakes lead to goals in the back of the net. We pushed it down at the end, but it wasn’t there.”

The Blackhawks came back home last weekend riding a four-game winning streak and had a chance to take over first in the division. Two home games later, they’ve gained no ground. They have two regular-season games remaining to get back to their hockey, and 60 playing minutes’ worth of it per game.

They weren’t facing the desperate situation the Wild had entering Tuesday night but the Blackhawks could still stand to play with that feeling.

“Obviously we want to finish as high as we can in the standings but we need to play our best,” Duncan Keith said. “When we do that we’re a hard team to beat.”

Blackhawks: Patrick Kane continues to make great progress.

By Tracey Myers

(Dennis Wierzbicki/US Presswire)

When Patrick Kane spoke to the media last week, he said there were a few shots, namely one-timers and slap shots, he still couldn’t take.

On Tuesday, Kane was taking those shots.

Kane continues to make great progress off the fractured left clavicle he suffered on Feb. 24, as he was winding up and taking bigger shots at Tuesday's morning skate. It’s hard to imagine the Blackhawks right wing, originally given a 12-week recovery frame, won’t return sooner rather than later, perhaps even as early as the first round of the postseason.

“He’s progressing real well. Every day it seems like he’s getting stronger,” coach Joel Quenneville. “His skating’s always been fine and he’s handling the puck extremely well. Good signs every day and we’re seeing the progress.”

But – and there’s always a “but,” – Quenneville isn’t saying when Kane will be back. He and Kane, who hasn’t been cleared for contact, keep saying the timetable hasn’t changed. As for when Kane will be able to get contact, Quenneville said, “we’ll see.”

That practice contact probably wouldn’t even come until next week. With three games remaining in the regular season and the team playing every other day, it’s doubtful the Blackhawks practice again before it ends. Quenneville said that practice schedule wouldn’t matter, however.

“There are ways he can get contact without the team being on the ice,” Quenneville said. “There are ways of getting him ready without everyone being around.”

So will Kane be back for the first round of the postseason? Again, it’s looking that way. But the Blackhawks will make sure they take every precaution to make sure Kane is completely ready for the physical grind he’ll take once he returns.

Andrew Desjardins providing energy for Blackhawks.

By Tracey Myers

Andrew Desjardins (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images North America)

When Andrew Desjardins was traded to the Blackhawks at the deadline, there was some question to where he would fit in the lineup.

The forward could play either wing or center, the latter spot he’s played in most of his career. Still, there was no definite opening in early March. With Joakim Nordstrom’s injury, however, came Desjardins’ opportunity. And he’s carving himself a nice little niche on the Blackhawks fourth line.

Desjardins has been a good fit with Marcus Kruger and Teuvo Teravainen the last few games, and that combination was solid again in the Blackhawks’ 2-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Sunday night. For Desjardins, there was the usual adjustment to a new team; there was also the wonder of if had a regular role with the Blackhawks. Right now, he seems to have one.

“Obviously it feels good,” said Desjardins. “There was a little bit of a learning curve to coming here, figuring out systems, the guys in general and exactly where I could fit in. I’m just trying to come in with a positive attitude, trying to contribute what I can. It’s getting better and better, it feels like.”

It looks like it, too. On paper, Desjardins, Kruger and Teravainen seem like an odd line combination, a blend of very different traits. But the trio has been effective. So why has it worked?

“It’s hard to say,” said Desjardins, who has two assists in his 11 games with the Blackhawks. “We have a pretty good mix. Teravainen, he’s a really skilled player, good with the puck. Krugs is an unbelievable checker and I try to bring some physicality. It just seems like it’s going well. Sometimes you don’t have the exact answers for it but we’re communicating well and we’re finding each other out there.”

When the Blackhawks acquired Desjardins it was mainly to shed some salary – that of Ben Smith, who was sent to the San Jose Sharks in exchange – to get some grit and to bolster depth at center. But as with other centers, including fellow acquisition Antoine Vermette, Desjardins has played some wing as well. Quenneville likes the forward’s versatility.

“He’s done a nice job. I think that we’ve played him in all three forward positions as we’ve gone along here, and he seems like he’s grabbing a little bit more responsibility as we’ve gone along here,” Quenneville said. “He’s hard in the puck area, he comes up with a lot of loose pucks, the puck’s moving forward when he’s on the ice and he’s got some abrasiveness to him as well. So, it’s a nice addition to our team and he’s come along nice.”

The transition isn’t a big deal for Desjardins, who’s playing on the left side with Kruger and Teravainen. He wants to play, and to do that he’ll adjust to whatever position.

“I find for the wings it’s pretty similar. Left to right, there isn’t much difference. Center there [are] a few things you have to run through your head to prepare yourself,” Desjardins said. “For the majority of my career I’ve been playing center. But then I was shuffled the last few years and you just develop that and get used to it.”

Does Desjardins stay in the lineup the rest of the regular season and the postseason? Nordstrom (upper body) has been skating for a few days now and could be ready to return. Quenneville, however, is usually hesitant to change a successful combination, which the fourth line has been. Desjardins is part of the picture now, the entertaining down-to-the-wire picture, and he likes where he fits in it.

“So far it’s been great,” he said. “The atmosphere has been awesome. It’s everything I expected.”

Just Another Chicago Bulls Session… Bulls-Magic Preview.

STATS LLC
                                              

Derrick Rose could return to the Chicago Bulls lineup at some point this week.

Perhaps Wednesday night when they try for a ninth consecutive road win over the Orlando Magic.

Multiple reports this weekend said Rose could be back for either this contest, Thursday's visit to Miami or Saturday's home game versus Philadelphia. Third in the Eastern Conference, Chicago (46-31) is 10-10 since Rose (18.4 points, 5.0 assists per game) announced in late February that he would undergo minor knee surgery.

The Bulls have listed Rose as questionable for Wednesday, the first time he has been listed as anything but "out" since his latest knee surgery.

Often the case regarding Rose's potential comeback from an injury, neither the former MVP nor coach Tom Thibodeau has offered a specific date of return.

"He's progressed well, hasn't had any setbacks," Thibodeau said. "The next step is to play in the games. As soon as he's comfortable enough to do that we'll get started with that.

"Anytime we can get him back we're pleased."

Chicago has averaged 97.4 points in the last 20 games -- 4.5 fewer than prior to Rose's injury -- but also played 11 without leading scorer Jimmy Butler and 10 minus key reserve Taj Gibson during that stretch.

However, the Bulls have played some better defense lately as Butler and Gibson have returned, allowing an average of 92.2 points on 41.5 percent shooting in the past nine games. The team was previously giving up 98.9 points per game.

Sunday's 99-94 loss at Cleveland, though, all but officially ended any hopes Chicago had at catching the Cavaliers for the Central Division title.

"We've gone through a lot this year, a lot of adversity, lot of adversity," center Joakim Noah told the Bulls' official website. "Guys come in every day, work hard; we just have to keep progressing.

"I still believe in this team; we just have to keep fighting. We're a confident group."

The Bulls have dropped eight of 10 road games since visiting Orlando, where they have an eight-game winning streak for their longest current road run against any opponent. The last two trips, though, have been anything but easy despite Noah averaging 22.0 points and 14.0 rebounds.

Pau Gasol capped a 25-point, 15-rebound night by dunking home Rose's missed layup with 9.4 seconds left in a 98-97 win Feb. 8. Butler added 27 points and Rose was held to 10 on 4-of-14 shooting but had 11 assists for Chicago, which blew a 16-point lead and overcame a six-point deficit in the final 33 seconds. It was their 13th win in 16 meetings overall with the Magic (24-53), including a triple-overtime victory in their previous game at Orlando.

The Magic now look to avoid matching a season high with a fifth consecutive home defeat. They've allowed an average of 108.0 points while losing six of nine at the Amway Center.

Orlando, however, returns from yielding an average of 87.0 points in consecutive road wins over Minnesota and Milwaukee.

"We're a strong group, a high-character group and a proud group," interim coach James Borrego told the Magic's official website.

Center Nikola Vucevic totaled 57 points in the last two games. He had 52 with 24 rebounds while Orlando split the season's first two meetings that came at Chicago, but he finished with 14 points and seven boards in the home defeat.

Gasol has averaged 23.0 points with 14.0 rebounds in the season series.

Rose listed as 'questionable' by Bulls, could play Wednesday.

By Vincent Goodwill

For the first time since Derrick Rose’s knee surgery, there was some expected expense with the Bulls’ injury report issued the day before a game, as they’ll play the Orlando Magic Wednesday in Central Florida.

And the expense was well-founded, as Rose is officially listed as “questionable”, the same status shared by reserve guard Kirk Hinrich, who sounded like a man ready to come off the injured list Monday after practice.

Rose has missed 20 games since surgery on his torn right meniscus, and should he return, it fits right around the 4-6 week timetable set forth by the team doctors after his late February surgery.

“It’s steady. Each week he’s gone through each phase of the rehab,” Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said Monday after practice. “He’s progressed well. He hasn’t had any setbacks. The next step is to play in the games. As soon as he’s comfortable to do that, we’ll get started with that.”

Of course, there are other signs signaling a Rose return could be on the way. An Instagram post by Mieka Reese, the mother of Rose’s son, intimated Rose would be returning to action Wednesday, and it was screen-captured by many on social media before the account went private.

Either way, Rose may have just five games to acclimate himself before the playoffs begin next weekend, and the clock is rapidly ticking.

“Any time we can get him back, we’re pleased to get him back,” Thibodeau said. “We’ll figure it out. We’ve done it enough times where we know he’s going to start off slowly and we’ll go from there. He’ll get better as he goes.”

The Basketball Hall of Fame announces 11 new inductees.

By Kelly Dwyer

The Basketball Hall of Fame has released the names of its new inductees, to be inducted into the Hall on Sept. 11 of this year.

“We are honored to recognize the highly distinguished Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2015,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. “They have contributed a great deal to the game we all love, as players, coaches, teachers, mentors and more. They have dedicated themselves to their craft and serve as an inspiration to many. We look forward to honoring each of these inductees during the Enshrinement festivities in September.”

To be elected, finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.  The addition of the direct elect committees were incorporated into the election process to maintain a strong focus on keeping history on the forefront of the voting procedures and to preserve a balance between two eras of basketball.

Here is a look at some of the more NBA-centric inductees.

Spencer Haywood: The former Supersonics center should have been in the Hall of Fame ages ago, but the stuffed shirts behind the voting tend to follow political lines and do as they see fit to protect The Sainted Game. Haywood attempted to enter the NBA after his sophomore year of college, but league rules at the time prevented him from joining despite several teams vying for his services. In what usually would have been his junior year of college, Haywood led the ABA in scoring and rebounding. Drug woes led to him failing to cash in on his significant gifts, as he bounced around through five NBA teams after being allowed to join the league in 1970.

Dikembe Mutombo: A dominating defender whose stoic on-court presence belied an effervescent and engaging personality off the floor, Mutombo acted as a defensive bulwark during what was perhaps the NBA’s best era for defensive basketball. Capable of bothering guards, blocking shots and clearing the glass, Mutombo ambled his way toward eight All-Star appearances and four Defensive Player of the Year trophies. Dikembe was also an effective reserve center even in his early 40s.

Jo Jo White: It’s hard to believe White hadn’t already been inducted to the Hall. The seven-time All-Star was a ubiquitous presence on the television sets of the NBA’s limited fan base in the 1970s, winning two titles with the Boston Celtics and nearly winning the league’s nationally televised one-on-one contest. A 1968 Olympic gold medal winner, White also won the 1976 NBA Finals MVP award in what was a wearing 4-3 Boston win over Phoenix.

Dick Bavetta: An NBA referee for nearly 40 years, Bavetta was one of the more visible refs in league history. He was also one of the best, working in 27 NBA Finals’ and the 1992 Team USA-led Men’s Olympic Games.

John Calipari: As both personnel chief and head coach of the former New Jersey Nets, Calipari managed just a 72-112 record before being fired 20 games into his third season. He spent one more year as an assistant under Larry Brown before moving back to the NCAA format that has served him so well. A regular at each year’s NBA draft, Calipari remains a favorite of NBAniks because of his constant flouting of NCAA policy, and his insistence on encouraging draft prospects to go pro after just one or two seasons.

Tom Heinsohn: Already inducted as a player, Heinsohn will receive the head coach of a Boston Celtics team that won over 60 percent of its games during his eight and a half-year run with the team. The Celtics won two titles with Heinsohn storming the sidelines, including a 68-13 turn in 1973 that stood for years as the NBA’s second-highest single-season win total.

Louie Dampier: A hybrid guard that was ahead of his time in many ways, Dampier was an early three-point shot adapter in the ABA, emerging from the shadow of heavily-hyped Purdue teammate Rick Mount to lead the Kentucky Colonels to the 1975 ABA title.

Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!! Roster Reset: NFC North.

By Marc Sessler

Chicago Bears

Starting over again: The Bears are another reminder of how quickly things change in the NFL.

Last offseason, we were crowing over Marc Trestman as a quarterback whisperer supreme. Now he's gone, replaced by coach John Fox and two outstanding assistants in offensive play-caller Gase and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. We consider it an upgrade across the board, one that should bring stability to a team that spiraled into the abyss in 2014.

Fangio and Fox appear determined to revamp last year's 30th-ranked defense, using free agency to add versatile pass rusher Pernell McPhee and 3-4 end Ray McDonald. Losing tackle Stephen Paea hurts, but the addition of Antrel Rolle is an upgrade over Chris Conte at safety.

On offense, the Bears aren't sold on Cutler, but it was the wrong offseason to find free-agent competition. After trading away Brandon Marshall, look for Chicago to take a wide-out high in the draft -- and maybe a quarterback soon after.

Bears' moves 

 

	Re-signings	Arrivals	Departures
	QB Jimmy Clausen	OT Vladimir Ducasse	WR Brandon Marshall
	TE Dante Rosario	DE Jarvis Jenkins	DT Stephen Paea
		DE Ray McDonald	S Chris Conte
		LB Pernell McPhee
		S Antrel Rolle
		WR Eddie Royal
		LB Mason Foster

What's next?                                               

» Keep adding defense: The Bears over the past two offseasons have added a pack of pass rushers in McPhee, Jared Allen, Lamarr Houston and Willie Young. They still need more help at inside linebacker and throughout the secondary. NFL Media's Lance Zierlein believes cornerback Trae Waynes could be the target at No. 7, while Charles Davis sees Chicago plucking up Missouri defensive end Shane Ray. Both make sense.

» Unearth Marshall's replacement: The Eddie Royal signing doesn't patch over the loss of Marshall, who caught 100-plus passes in two of the past three seasons for Chicago. We could see the Bears snagging multiple wideouts in the draft.

» Find tomorrow's quarterback: Despite their lukewarm praise, the Bears barely believe in Cutler. They simply couldn't find a better option in free agency. Oregon's Marcus Mariota is a realistic draft-day target if he falls to No. 7. If not, look for Chicago to nab a prospect in the later rounds. 

NFL Draft: Bears reportedly showing interest in Oregon QB Marcus Mariota.

CSN Staff

The Bears have publicly committed to Jay Cutler as their starting quarterback for 2015. However, that doesn't appear to be stopping general manager Ryan Pace from looking for a long-term solution at the position.

According to Bleacher Report's NFL Insider Jason Cole, the Bears are showing interest in Oregon quarterback and 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota.

The Bears, who hold pick No. 7 in the 2015 NFL Draft, would likely have to trade up to snag Mariota, and one team selecting in the Top 3 that could be a trade match with the Bears may have their eyes on Cutler.

The Tennessee Titans hold the No. 2 overall selection, and could go in a plethora of different directions with their pick. But Cole believes that Titans head coach Ken Whisenhunt may want to speed up the rebuilding process by trading for Cutler, instead of handing over the starting reigns to last year's sixth-round pick Zach Mettenberger.

"With a coach like Ken Whisenhunt I think there's a belief on his side that he would rather have a veteran quarterback to work with to try to turn the team around quickly and that's why he's really interested in Philip Rivers," Cole told the Kap & Haugh Show. "Cutler kind of fits the mold that way, but you know a lot of people in the NFL have the same feeling about Cutler that you guys do.

"It's not a foreign subject. How do you deal with this guy? The feeling is that John Fox is one of few human beings that if you're going to salvage Jay Cutler he's going to be one of the few to do it."

White Sox history message: Relax about Opening Day.

By JJ Stankevitz

Adam LaRoche is right, you know.

“We were joking about that before the game — this game probably will be analyzed more than any other game of the year,” the White Sox designated hitter said after his team was thrashed, 10-1, by Kansas City on Monday. “But that’s just baseball. It happens every year. Obviously not the way we wanted to start it up. The key is to shake that one off and come right back out Wednesday ready to go.”

Of the 162 games in baseball’s regular season schedule, Opening Day attracts the most attention and analysis until August or September, when pennant races begin in earnest. The optimism of the White Sox offseason came crashing down as Jeff Samardzija struggled and Yordano Ventura and Kansas City’s power-and-lights-out bullpen shut down a listless lineup.

But is it time to sound the alarm bells after a nine-run loss on Opening Day? History has a message: Relax.

Since 1914, the White Sox are 53-49 on Opening Day. In those 53 seasons in which the White Sox began the season with a win, the club averaged an 80-77 record. In 48 seasons prior to 2015 that began with a loss, the White Sox averaged a 76-78 mark.

But losing on Opening Day hardly has guaranteed the White Sox would be shut out of the postseason. The White Sox won the American League Central in 2008 and 2000 despite losing to Cleveland, 10-8, and Texas, 10-4, respectively. A 5-3 loss to Texas opened the 1983 season, in which the White Sox won 99 games and lost to Baltimore in the American League Championship Series.

On the flip side, the White Sox beat a good Kansas City team, 1-0, in 2013’s Opening Day and lost 99 games that year. Or, if we go back to 1932, the White Sox beat the St. Louis Browns, 9-2, and went on to lose 102 games.

Yes, the White Sox seemed to set the tone for the 2005 season with a 1-0 win over Cleveland on Opening Day (the White Sox clinched the World Series later that year with a 1-0 win over Houston, too). But what more so set the tone that year was the club didn’t lose its 10th game of the season until May 14 and entered June with a 35-17 record.

With 25 of their first 28 games against AL Central opponents to begin the 2015 season, the White Sox have a chance to set a similar tone and prove Opening Day was a one-game fluke instead of a harbinger of doom.

“I'm not going to say this is a whole season, but you want to get off to a good start and it didn’t,” manager Robin Ventura said. “You just come back on Wednesday and get back after them.”

For reference, he’s the Opening Day result followed by that year’s record since 1914:

Wins

 

2014: 5-3 W vs. Minnesota, 73-89
2013: 1-0 W vs. Kansas City, 63-99
2011: 15-10 W @ Cleveland, 79-83
2010: 6-0 W vs. Cleveland, 88-74
2009: 4-2 W vs. Kansas City, 79-83
2006: 10-4 W vs. Cleveland, 90-72
2005: 1-0 W vs. Cleveland, 99-63 (WS)
2002: 6-5 W @ Seattle, 81-81
2001: 7-4 W @ Cleveland, 83-79
1999: 8-2 W @ Seattle, 75-86-
1998: 9-2 W @ Texas, 80-82
1997: 6-5 W @ Toronto, 80-81
1993: 10-5 W @ Minnesota, 94-68 (LCS)
1992: 10-2 W @ California, 86-76
1991: 9-1 W @ Baltimore, 87-75
1990: 2-1 W vs. Milwaukee, 94-68
1989: 9-2 W @ California, 69-92
1988: 8-5 W vs. California, 71-90
1987: 5-4 W @ Kansas City, 77-85
1985: 4-2 W @ Milwaukee, 85-77
1984: 5-2 W @ Baltimore, 74-88
1982: 7-6 W @ New York, 87-75
1981: 5-3 W @ Boston, 54-52
1978: 6-5 W vs. Boston, 71-90
1976: 4-0 W vs. Kansas City, 64-97
1973: 3-1 W @ Texas, 77-85
1971: 6-5 W @ Oakland, 79-83
1966: 3-2 W vs. California, 83-79
1965: 5-3 W @ Baltimore, 96-67
1963: 7-5 W @ Detroit, 94-68
1962: 2-1 W vs. Los Angeles, 85-77
1961: 4-3 W @ Washington, 86-76
1960: 10-9 W vs. Kansas CIty, 87-67
1959: 9-7 W @ Detroit, 94-60 (WS)
1957: 3-2 W @ Cleveland, 90-64
1956: 2-1 W vs. Cleveland, 85-69
1951: 17-3 W @ St. Louis, 81-73
1947: 2-0 W @ Cleveland, 70-84
1945: 5-2 W @ Cleveland, 71-78
1944: 3-1 W vs. Cleveland, 71-83
1941: 4-3 W vs. Cleveland, 77-77
1938: 4-3 W @ Detroit, 65-83
1936: 7-6 W vs. St. Louis, 81-70
1935: 7-6 W @ Detroit, 74-78
1933: 4-2 W @ St. Louis, 67-83
1932: 9-2 W vs. St. Louis, 49-102
1930: 8-7 W vs. Cleveland, 62-92
1926: 5-1 W vs. St. Louis, 71-72
1920: 3-2 W vs. Detroit, 96-58
1919: 13-3 W @ St. Louis 88-52 (WS)
1917: 7-2 W @ St. Louis, 110-54 (WS)
1915: 7-6 W @ St. Louis, 93-61
1914: 5-2 W vs. Cleveland, 70-84

53 seasons, 4235-4084. Average: 80-77

Losses

 

2015: 10-1 L @ Kansas City ?
2012: 3-2 L @ Texas, 85-77
2008: 10-8 L at Cleveland, 89-74 (DS)
2007: 12-5 L vs. Cleveland, 72-90
2004: 9-7 L @ Kansas City, 83-79
2003: 3-0 L @ Kansas City, 86-76
2000: 10-4 L @ Texas, 95-67 (DS)
1996: 3-2 L @ Seattle, 85-77
1995: 12-3 L @ Milwaukee, 68-76
1994: 7-3 L @ Toronto, 67-46
1986: 5-3 L vs. Milwaukee, 72-90
1983: 5-3 L @ Texas, 99-63 (LCS)
1980: 5-3 L @ Boston, 70-90
1979: 5-3 L @ Baltimore, 73-87
1977: 9-5 L @ Toronto, 90-72
1975: 3-2 L @ Oakland, 75-86
1974: 8-2 L vs. California, 80-80
1972: 2-1 L @ Kansas City, 87-68
1970: 12-0 L vs. Minnesota, 56-106
1969: 5-2 L @ Oakland, 68-94
1968: 0-9 L vs. Cleveland, 67-95
1967: 5-4 L @ Boston, 89-73
1964: 5-3 L vs. Baltimore, 98-64
1958: 4-3 L @ Detroit, 82-72
1955: 5-1 L @ Cleveland, 91-63
1954: 8-2 L vs. Cleveland, 94-60
1953: 6-0 L @ Cleveland, 89-65
1952: 3-2 L vs. Cleveland, 81-73
1950: 5-3 L vs. St. Louis, 60-94
1949: 5-1 L @ Detroit, 63-91
1948: 5-2 L @ Detroit, 51-101
1946: 1-0 L vs. Cleveland, 74-80
1943: 3-0 L @ St. Louis, 82-72
1942: 3-0 L vs. St. Louis, 66-82
1940: 1-0 L vs. Cleveland, 82-72
1939: 6-1 L @ Detroit, 85-69
1937: 15-10 L @ St. Louis, 86-68
1934: 8-3 L vs. Detroit, 53-991931: 5-4 L @ Cleveland, 56-97
1929: 3-1 L @ St. Louis, 59-83
1928: 8-2 L vs. Cleveland, 72-82
1927: 3-2 L @ Cleveland, 80-83
1925: 4-3 L @ Detroit, 79-75
1924: 7-3 L vs. St. Louis, 66-871923: 6-5 L @ Cleveland, 69-85
1922: 3-2 L vs. St. Louis, 77-77
1921: 6-5 L @ Detroit, 62-92
1918: 6-1 L vs. St. Louis, 57-67
1916: 4-0 L vs. Detroit, 70-84

48 seasons, 3640-3726. Average: 76-78

Cubs: Mike Olt can’t worry about Kris Bryant Watch.

By Patrick Mooney

Put another red “X” through your Kris Bryant service-time calendar.

There are enough conspiracy theories floating around about the Cubs postponing Tuesday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field. Beyond the bathrooms, bleachers and (hopefully) better weather when the Cardinals invade in July or September, this also means Bryant.

We’ve been through this over and over, but the Cubs need to keep Bryant down in the minors for at least 12 days to delay his free agency for another year, until after the 2021 season. In theory, this now means Baseball America’s No. 1 prospect would only have to miss eight Cubs games while doing his time at Triple-A Iowa.

Opening Day third baseman Mike Olt tried to ignore Bryant Watch as it dominated Cubs camp and blew up into a national story.

“He deserves all the hype that he gets,” Olt said. “He’s one of the best ones that I’ve seen come up. (But) I was just working on what I need to work on — and it’s easy to focus on that when you have a lot of things to work on.”

Olt has a quiet voice, a humble attitude and a pretty good sense of humor. So by the end of spring training, you didn’t want to say something like: Congratulations on making the team. Don’t get too comfortable.

“I wouldn’t even go there,” manager Joe Maddon said. “I really look at it this way: Whoever’s (on the roster), wherever I’m working, if these are the 25 guys, I will promise you they’re going to get my full support of everything I could possibly do to make them better.

“You look at our depth chart — it’s pretty outstanding. But I’m so focused on who’s there right now. My job is to get Mike Olt to stay there all season and play a lot, somehow. That’s my job. I don’t play that game, man. It’s about who’s here. And our job as a coaching staff is to make this group better.”

If the Bryant player-development talking points aren’t 100-percent sincere, the Cubs are still genuinely curious to see what they have in Olt, who temporarily knocked out a video-board panel with a monster shot during batting practice the other day at Wrigley Field.

Olt emerged as the 2014 Opening Day third baseman, but couldn’t hold onto the job, hitting .160 with 12 homers and 100 strikeouts in 258 plate appearances. He cleared his head, made some mechanical adjustments and put up a .928 OPS in the Cactus League.

“I was able to go up there last year and learn from a lot of things,” Olt said. “I feel like I’m back to a player that can really compete — instead of a player that you hope is ready and you hope the swing is there. It’s a whole different feeling, a lot less stressful.”

The Texas Rangers saw enough potential in Olt to make him the 49^th overall pick in the 2010 draft and their minor league player of the year in 2012. That year, he hit 28 homers in 95 games at Double-A Frisco and looked like a future foundation piece in Texas.

But a freak accident — getting hit by a pitch in winter ball — and lingering vision/concussion issues and the pressure after the Matt Garza trade almost derailed Olt’s career. Now, seeing Bryant get all this publicity is a good reminder.

“It’s crazy to think about it, but I used to be one of those guys,” Olt said. “And you forget about that. Now I’ve started feeling myself becoming that guy again. It makes baseball fun again.”

NBC's Bob Costas has a smart plan for how to shorten the MLB season and fix the playoffs.

By Cork Gaines

Mike Trout would get some extra rest under the Costas Plan.NBC sportscaster Bob Costas says he's intrigued by the idea of reducing Major League Baseball's regular season back to 154 games, and has a smart plan to do it without costing the owners money.

MLB's rookie commissioner Rob Manfred recently said that he is open to the idea of shortening the regular season back to 154 games. While there is precedent for a 154-game season — the league used it until the early 1960s — the downside is that owners would lose revenue by having four fewer home games each season and eight fewer games to broadcast on local networks.

Let's face it, even if owners want to improve their game by giving players extra rest days during the season, owners don't want to lose revenue streams, especially when the players are unlikely to agree to a 5% pay cut to counter the 5% loss in ticket sales and local television contracts.

Costas was a guest on MLB Network's "High Heat" and he explained that owners could offset the loss of regular season revenue by increasing the number of postseason games and doing it in a way that also increases interest in the early rounds.

Here is how it would work:

Convert the Wild Card round from a one-game playoff to a best-of-three series with all three games played at the home of the team with the better record — "You further advantage the team (in that league) with the best record because whoever emerges has to have used a minimum of two starting pitchers, maybe three, used up their bullpen, and it is enough time to get your own pitching in order if you had to go to the wire to clinch your division, but not nearly enough time to get rusty."

Convert the division series from best of five to best of seven — "What sense does it make to have the one series that is best of five be the one that involves the Wild Card and the third-best of the three division winners, therefore increasing the possibility of a fluke result?"

Give the No. 1 seed an extra home game against the Wild Card team in the division series — "When the [No. 2 seed and No. 3 seed] play each other, you just go 2-3-2 (games 1, 2, 6, and 7 at the home of the higher seed, games 3, 4, and 5 at the home of the lower seed), same as normal. But, when the Wild Card winner plays the team with the best record, you go 2-2-3 (games 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 at the home of the higher seed, games 3 and 4 at the home of the lower seed). Now you have really advantaged the team that finished first. You have put the team that comes out of the Wild Card at a disadvantage, not insurmountable, but a significant disadvantage."

The upside is that even though the season is shortened and owners lose games, the league would actually be adding what Costas calls "more high-end product."

The number of potential postseason games would increase 28%, from 43 to 55, and the minimum number would increase 23%, from 26 to 32. That would represent a significant increase in the value of MLB's postseason broadcast package.

Increasing the length of the postseason could also potentially increase interest as storylines develop without watering down the product by adding to the number of teams. At the same time, there is even more emphasis put on not only winning a division but also grabbing the top seed.

The downside is that cumulative season-long records (e.g. Barry Bonds' 73 home runs in 2001) would be much more difficult to break. However, Costas counters this by arguing that nobody is going to break Bonds' record without steroids anyway.

In other words, there isn't much downside at all.

Golf: I got a club for that; Phil Mickelson-Rory McIlroy highlight best Masters Round 1 and 2 pairings.

By Kyle Porter

The first and second round groups have been released. Oh boy, are there some gems.

I was hoping for a Phil Mickelson-Tom Watson special, but we got seemingly everything except that. Here are the eight best pairings for the first two rounds at the 2015 Masters.

All times Eastern

1. Phil Mickelson-Rory McIlroy-Ryan Moore

Round 1: 10:41 a.m.

Round 2: 1:48 p.m.

What a show. The biggest crowds will be split between Mickelson and McIlroy (history and more history) and Tiger Woods (for obvious reasons). Ryan Moore isn't a bad third wheel, either.

2. Jordan Spieth-Henrik Stenson-Billy Horschel

Round 1: 1:15 p.m.

Round 2: 9:57 a.m.

A ball-striking festival, if there ever was one. This is the pairing I would follow if I was at the event.

 

3. Tiger Woods-Jimmy Walker-Jamie Donaldson

Round 1: 1:48 p.m.

Round 2: 10:30 a.m.

Smart money will be on Walker to take this group. He's the most underrated golfer on the planet. How many times will Donaldson bring up his Ryder Cup dagger?

 

4. Rickie Fowler-Jason Day-Sergio Garcia

Round 1: 1:59 p.m.

Round 2: 10:41 a.m.

It's pretty incredible that this group has combined to win exactly zero majors. I have to think that changes at some point in the next few years.

5. Dustin Johnson-Adam Scott-Antonio Murdaca

Round 1: 9:35 a.m.

Round 2: 12:53 p.m.

I hope this Murdaca fellow is long. Potentially the only group in the field that could combine for 1,000 driving yards on a few holes.

6. Patrick Reed-Keegan Bradley-Ian Poulter

 

Round 1: 9:02 a.m.

Round 2: 12:20 p.m.

If they don't kill each other by Saturday, this would be a hell of a group to follow. Will live and die on every single shot. Poulter and Reed might come to blows if they're playing badly.

 

7. Matt Kuchar-Brooks Koepka-Graeme McDowell

 

Round 1: 1:04 p.m.

Round 2: 9:35 a.m.

Possibly the nicest group in the field. McDowell is going to need a couple of shots to reach Koepka's tee balls.

8. Bubba Watson-Justin Rose-Gunn Yang

Round 1: 9:24 a.m.

Round 2: 12:42 p.m.

Pray for Gunn Yang.

2015 Masters viewing guide: start times, TV schedule, streaming online.

By Kyle Porter

Are you ready for 42 hours of coverage? (Getty Images)

Hopefully you took off from work this week because we have all the Masters coverage you can handle. You don't even need to wait until Thursday to start watching.

We're streaming live interviews and video all seven days from the range at Augusta National this week. Bubba Watson, Fred Couples and Dustin Johnson -- we'll have it all.

Also, here's a look at how you can follow along on TV and online all weekend as the tournament starts bright and early on Thursday morning.

Start times (all times Eastern)

Wednesday, April 8 (Par 3 Contest) - noon

Thursday, April 9 (First Round) - 8 a.m.

Friday, April 10 (Second Round) - 8 a.m.

Saturday, April 11 (Third Round) - 8 a.m.

Sunday, April 12 (Fourth Round) - 8 a.m.

Television schedule

Wednesday, April 8 (Par 3 Contest) - 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (ESPN)

Thursday, April 9 (First Round) - 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Friday, April 10 (Second Round) - 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Saturday, April 11 (Third Round) - 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. (CBS)

Sunday, April 12 (Fourth Round) - 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. (CBS)

Live streaming on CBSSports.com (click to watch)

Monday, April 6 (On the Range) - noon to 2 p.m.

Tuesday, April 7 (On the Range) - 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Wednesday, April 8 (On the Range) - 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Thursday, April 9 (First Round coverage) - 10:45 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Friday, April 10 (Second Round coverage) - 10:45 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 11 (Third Round coverage) - 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Sunday, April 12 (Fourth Round coverage) - 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Weather

It's looking like rain for most of that week at Augusta. That could favor Rory McIlroy.
 

NASCAR: Power Rankings: The first 6 races of 2015.

By Nick Bromberg

1. Daytona: Much like 2014, the racing in the Daytona 500 was a great start to the season. Unlike last year, the sun was out for the race, which created a different set of circumstances for drivers to face throughout the race. But we loved how the 500 turned into a strategy race before late cautions bunched up the field and created the restrictor plate chaos that we've become accustomed to seeing. And no, we're not discounting the race because it ended under caution. If you're a regular reader of the site, you know we don't judge races simply based on their highlight appeal.

2. Martinsville: Yeah, the race lasted about four hours, but there weren't any lulls in the action, the finish was great (and clean!) and drivers had the opportunity to drive through the field. Look at Martin Truex Jr., who started up front, fell back because of a power steering problem and ended up back in the top 10. Yeah, we may be biased because we watched this race from the stands (and it went faster because we were there), but the only other worthy contender for the second spot is next, and we'll explain why it's third.

3. Fontana: For us, the madness at the end of the race actually discounts it. It was a fun race heading for the all-too-rare fuel mileage finish when it was derailed by debris cautions. We've clamored about our hate for conspiracy theories before, and inconsistency doesn't equal conspiracy. However, we'll admit to feeling a bit empty (like a fuel tank after a fuel-mileage race) following Brad Keselowski's win. The win is in no way illegitimate. Rather, it's the easiest "what-if?" race of the first six.

4. Atlanta: Kevin Harvick had the fastest car for most of the race, but Jimmie Johnson was the fastest over the last 14 laps and got the win. Watching Harvick and Jeff Gordon come through the field at the beginning of the race was fun and made you want to be in the production truck or at the race and able to solely watch the two drivers.

5. Phoenix: While it was fun to wonder if Jamie McMurray clears Kevin Harvick off turn two following the final restart, is there any belief that McMurray would have been able to hold off Harvick for the rest of the race? OK, we see you believers, and you're wearing No. 1 hats. You don't count. We're also staunch advocates of an accelerated aging process for the track's surface. Not that we're against Harvick's domination by any means, we just want to see multi-groove racing and tire wear.

6. Las Vegas: What was the defining moment from the race? Carl Edwards and Kasey Kahne? Kevin Harvick led 142 laps and Dale Earnhardt Jr. tried a strategy play to beat him with two tires. It didn't work, and as pit stops cycled through the final time, Harvick cruised to a 1.6 second victory.

With Busch out, victory odds increase for field.

By Holly Cain

Since severely breaking his right leg and left foot in the season-opening XFINITY Series race Feb. 21 at Daytona International Raceway, Kyle Busch has been an admirable student of rapid rehab.

His accident has sparked safety improvements at many of the tracks where NASCAR competes and almost weekly another venue has announced construction plans for additional soft walls and SAFER barriers.

While at home recovering, Busch has been a steady contributor on Twitter and Instagram. His wife Samantha is expecting the couple's first child, a son, next month and Busch has posted photos of himself assembling car seats and baby strollers from his own wheelchair. He's even used social media to keep up with work for his Kyle Busch Foundation.

For Easter, his fans got a huge treat when he posted a photo of himself and Samantha wishing everyone: "From our family to yours, Happy Easter." The couple was standing up, no wheelchair and no cast for Busch.

     

What Busch has not been doing the past two months is hoisting trophies and for his competitors in all three of NASCAR's national series' that's equivalent to a huge spring head start.

His Joe Gibbs Racing team has purposely not given a date for Busch's return yet, instead giving their marquee driver all the time he needs to heal correctly and confidently.

But as soon as Busch is back in his No. 18 M&M's Toyota, few doubt it will be only a matter of time before he wins again. And if NASCAR grants a medical waiver, as it has done in the past, it will likely take only one trophy to put Busch back in the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoff field.

Busch, 29, already has 29 victories and has won at least one race all 10 years he has been a full-time Sprint Cup driver. His combined 141 wins as a driver since 2004 in NASCAR's three national series is simply unrivaled.

Busch's absence from the sport is obviously unintentional, regretful and sad.

But the practical side for his competitors is that no Kyle Busch on the grid means an extra opportunity to win – one less, highly formidable driver.

Consider this: In the last five seasons, Busch has combined for seven Sprint Cup Series victories before his May 2 birthday. His early season tally includes over 2,600 laps led during February-May from 2010-2014.

In 2011, for example, he had two wins plus six top-fives and seven top-10 finishes in the first 11 races and led 797 laps. In 2013, he had a pair of wins – including a victory from the pole position at this week's stop, Texas Motor Speedway – and five consecutive top-five efforts in the season's opening 11 races. And he led 740 laps.

Busch's spring statistics in the XFINITY are equally as impressive.

In the past two years, he has totaled six XFINITY Series wins before May 1. In 2013, he had six top-three finishes – including four wins --in the first seven races he competed in before May and led 534 laps or 38 percent of all laps possible in those races.

In the Camping World Truck Series, Busch's spring time numbers are simply stellar.

Last year, Busch entered four races before June winning every one – including three from the pole position and led an unbelievable 409 of the 601 laps or 68 percent of the laps in those four races. He made it five straight wins by picking up a summer victory in June at Kentucky when he won from the pole.


In 2013, Busch competed in five of the first eight races on the schedule with two wins and a runner-up finish (Daytona).

Yet for all Busch's amazing accomplishments in the spring, the truth is he's good all the way around the calendar – good news for his quest to still qualify for the 2015 Chase, bad news for his competitors who know they will soon have to be dealing with one of the sport's all-time winningest drivers. And no one wants it any other way.

Manchester City's title hopes all but over. Where has it gone wrong?

By Joe Prince-Wright

Manchester City will not win the Premier League in 2014-15. There. I’ve said it.

The reigning PL champions have crumbled from being two points behind Chelsea after 21 games of the season in early January, to being nine points behind and having played an extra match in the first week of April.

Just a year after winning the PL title, Manuel Pellegrini is on the chopping block after UEFA Champions League failure and the Citizens currently sit in fourth place after three defeats from their last five matches.

Here’s a look at why their title defense has fallen by the wayside this season.

Yaya Toure‘s demise

Okay, he scored a beauty against Crystal Palace on Monday but his struggles have continued throughout the campaign as Toure simply looks like he doesn’t want to be there. Last season he finished as City’s top scorer in the PL with 20 goals but this campaign the Ivory Coast international has scored just seven goals in the PL and his demeanor reflects his reduced productivity. Toure doesn’t want to be around and at the age of 31, those rumors linking him with a move to Inter Milan this summer seem to be making sense. The highlight of his season was success at the African Cup of Nations with the Ivory Coast. Mentally, it appears that Toure has checked out as his and City’s season has been one to forget.

Pellegrini’s insistence to play 4-4-2

Another reason for City’s stumbling performances since January has been down to Pellegrini’s insistence to play 4-4-2 and start Sergio Aguero up top with Edin Dzeko. So often City have been outnumbered in midfield and that was the case once again on Monday as Crystal Palace used Joe Ledley, James McArthur and Jason Puncheon to overload Fernandinho and Toure in the middle.

Samir Nasri and Frank Lampard were on the bench against Palace and as so often has been the case in the past few weeks, why would you starve Aguero of chances when the Argentine is one of the most predatory forwards in the game? Maybe because he’s been injured for large chunks of the second half of the season and has been struggling, as the stat above suggests…

Kompany, Aguero’s rustiness since injury

In the final months of the season Aguero and Vincent Kompany haven’t been themselves. It is clear for everyone to see. After Aguero injured his knee in December, he hasn’t quite emerged as the same player as he has failed to score in his last five games for City after scoring 23 goals this season before that. As for Kompany, his steely leadership in the center of defense has been missing since he suffered a hamstring and calf injuries from December to January, as City have succumbed to Burnley and Crystal Palace away from home in two of their last three matches.

That resolve is missing from City’s side, as two of their leading men have failed to come up with the goods when their side has really needed it. City has now lost away at Liverpool, Burnley and Palace in their last three away matches and their ability for Kompany to come up with a big stop — he seems to have lost a yard of pace and sharpness since his injuries — and Aguero to find a finish late on, has dissipated. How much you can put that down to a month out from December to January is questionable, but their sharpness hasn’t quite been there as both guys are leaders and lynch-pins of the Citizens. A confusing incident occurred in the second half of City’s clash which summed it all up. Pellegrini was ready to sub off Kompany as the Belgian international seemed to be struggling with yet another injury, however he then waved away his Chilean boss and carried on. Kompany hasn’t been fully fit or at his best for quite some time and it has hurt City, badly.

Crystal Palace chairman continues talks to sell club, American Businessman likely to take over.

By Kyle Lynch

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish has confirmed that talks have been ongoing with an outside party to take over the club.

American billionaire Josh Harris has been linked with the club for months now, but Parish would not identify the potential buyer.

Harris, who was raised in Maryland, already owns the Philadelphia 76ers of the NBA and the New Jersey Devils of the NHL.

Parish currently owns 25% of the club and serves as co-chairman, and said Palace is in need of money for structural improvements to Selhurst Park.

Speaking to BBC London 94.9:

We are long overdue some ground improvements. They are very costly. 

We need to make sure we get that done. If that means bringing in other people, and they are the right people, then we’ll do it. 

Right now, the people we’ve spoken to want me to carry on being involved. If that’s the right thing for the club then I will be. 

If a Roman Abramovich-type or Abu Dhabi person wanted to buy the club and was prepared to put that kind of money [in], then obviously it is a different conversation.”

Parish saved the club from liquidation when he invested in the Palace back in 2010, and the Eagles gained promotion from the Championship to the Premier League under his watch. It seems he would like to stay involved with the club on some level, even if he sells his 25% stake.

After a slow start to the season, Crystal Palace has turned around their play under Alan Pardew. The Eagles sat in the relegation zone before Pardew’s appointment, and now are just three points back of a top-ten finish.

As Palace continues to trend upward, a possible takeover is more and more enticing for a businessman such as Harris.

Five Krzyzewski's magic number, thanks to four freshman. (Monday Night's NCAA National Championship Game, 04/06/2015).

By Mike DeCourcy

Grayson Allen, right, and Justise Winslow (Getty Images)

Indeed, freshmen can lead their teams to championships in the game of college basketball. It might not be the freshmen you expect, though.

You’re looking for Jahlil Okafor, you get Tyus Jones.

You’re looking for Justise Winslow, you get … Grayson Allen? For real?

If you even knew Allen played for Duke before Monday night, you’re either a recruiting junkie or a Devils fan focused on 2015-16. Allen heroically and instantly pulled the Blue Devils out of a deep second-half deficit with an unexpected and extraordinary infusion of offense that allowed them to survive Okafor’s desperate foul situation, Winslow’s struggle to shake his Wisconsin defenders and the enormous stakes of the NCAA championship game and deliver coach Mike Krzyzewski his fifth national title.

Only John Wooden has won more. No one else has won as many. It would seem only UConn’s Jim Calhoun in 2011 and Kentucky’s John Calipari in 2012 won with such a preponderance of first-year player contributions.

"I've won it once with this group, and that's what it's all about," Krzyzewski said on the floor immediately following the game. "It's about one."

The Blue Devils outlasted the gifted Badgers 68-63 in a title game at Lucas Oil Stadium that will be remembered for the number of dazzling played made by stars such as All-American Frank Kaminsky, who led Wisconsin with 21 points, and Sam Dekker, who added 12 but struggled to find his shooting touch and missed all five of his 3-point attempts.

Mostly, though, the night belonged to Allen and Jones, who combined for 39 points in an unexpected explosion the Badgers (36-4) struggled to contain. Jones was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, the second freshman in four years to win the award. Allen made the All-Tournament team.

"Grayson Allen literally was spectacular," Krzyzewski said. "Grayson has been coming on the whole year. He put us on his back.

"Those last eight or nine minutes were just spectacular basketball. Such grit. And then we get the ball to Tyus with the ball screens. It was magical ... Tyus deserves to be the MVP or MOP, but we're not there without Grayson Allen."

The great news for Wisconsin was emerging from halftime in a 31-all tie fully aware — no doubt with a reminder from head coach Bo Ryan — the first 20 minutes had looked only marginally like Badger Ball.

The offense the Badgers ran looked little like their typical attack, which helped explain their 38.7 percent shooting and the need for 11 second-chance points to keep them in the game.

 It was different immediately after the teams returned. Point guard Bronson Koenig scored nine fast points for the Badgers, including a 3-pointer on an inside-out feed from Kaminsky and an astonishing pull-up jumper when defended closely by Okafor that put UW in front by seven. When shooting guard Josh Gasser fought for an improbable defensive rebound, the Badgers had a chance to grow that advantage, and he wound up feeding a sweet little inbounds pass to Kaminsky for an easy layup and a 48-39 edge.

This might have been the moment for the Blue Devils (35-4) to remember that almost none of them had ever been anywhere near this game. Only point guard Quinn Cook had been a significant player on an Elite Eight team, and that was two years ago. Wisconsin’s guys had all been in the 2014 Final Four.

Instead, the Duke players remembered they were from Duke.

Allen, a brilliant talent who’d been at the very edge of the rotation throughout the season, scored more points in the next 70 seconds than in all but six entire games. His eight points were most of an 11-3 Duke surge that cut the lead back to a single point. 

That was the game we were going to have, to no one’s great surprise. It was about execution for both teams then, the only differences being that Duke had to survive much of the stretch without Okafor after he picked up his fourth personal at the 9:18 mark and Wisconsin had to be aware the Devils were into the double bonus and they still weren’t shooting one-and-ones.

One of the game’s biggest plays came after Dekker scored after a sweet back-cut and even lovelier feed from Gasser to make it 58-56. Duke ran a high ball screen for guard Tyus Jones, and the screen picked off his defender easily. But Kaminsky remained back in the lane and Jones had an uncontested 3-pointer. He did what he usually does with those, connecting for a 59-58 Devils lead that still was in place out of the final media timeout with 3:22 left.

Kaminsky made another blatant defensive error almost immediately after that timeout occurred, attempting to hack Okafor to the line once he was beaten on a spin move. But his hold didn’t stop Okafor from converting — he did miss the free throw — and Duke was up 61-58.

The Badgers tried to get Kaminsky a shot on their next trip, but he hit the side of the board, retrieved his own rebound and then fumbled a pass after the ball was returned to him. That disastrous trip ended in a shot-clock violation.

Given how well Wisconsin shot the ball from the perimeter early and how fearsome Winslow was close to the basket, it was surprising to see the Badgers pass on the opportunity to take several open 3-pointers in the first dozen minutes in favor of driving it directly at the Duke defense.

Winslow blocked three shots directly at the rim, almost as if he were stretched to Dikembe Mutombo size, and the Badgers missed all but three of their first 11 2-point shots.

If Wisconsin were that interested in getting the ball to the rim, they needed whomever Winslow was guarding to drag him to the outside so he would be well out of swatting range. Instead, he seemed almost to be the target. The only benefit to that was Winslow picking up a second personal foul with 7:14 left in the first half.

There were questions entering the game regarding whether Duke, with its rotation composed of 50 percent freshmen, would find the title game stage a bit intimidating — an understandable question given the reaction of Kentucky’s Julius Randle a year earlier.

Uh, that was not a problem. Duke’s rooks put up 23 of the team’s first 29 points, and perhaps would have done better had they not encountered that foul trouble. Not only was Winslow in a tricky spot, but Okafor had to sit a while after he was called for his second personal.

Kaminsky found himself isolated against Okafor with 4:47 left and a wide open lane to the left; not many 7-footers can drive it from the foul line that comfortably, let alone with the off hand. Kaminsky is in a very exclusive club there. He took off, leaned into toward the goal as Okafor struggled to stay on balance and drew the call as he converted the basket. With the free throw for the three-point play, Wisconsin was in front 24-23.

Duke chose to break out its 2-3 zone to cope with the foul issues of its two freshman stars, and despite an immediate 3-pointer from the right wing courtesy of forward Nigel Hayes, it was an approach that worked extremely well. Hayes’ basket lifted the Badgers to a 31-29 lead with 2:25 left, but Wisconsin did not score for the remainder of the half and went into the break in a tie game.

There hadn’t been one of those in a championship game since 1988, when Oklahoma and Kansas were tied 50-all.

Allen entered the game averaging four points. He DNP'd in four games. When he entered this game in the second half, though, everything changed.

NCAA looking for ways to speed up game, increase scoring.

By MICHAEL MAROT (AP Sports Writer)

The NCAA may be ready to spice up college basketball.

After a feeding frenzy of complaints over reduced scoring and longer games, rules committee members told a small group of reporters Monday that next season's potential changes could include a shorter shot clock, tighter calls to reduce contact and a different timeout structure to help speed things up at the end of games.
 

''We've got games that are just not edible,'' said John Adams, the outgoing head of college referees. ''Some of this is officiating and some of this is play.''

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany and other leaders involved in the decision-making process are weighing several proposals.

The most discussed ideas are reducing the 35-second shot clock to 30 seconds, moving the restricted area arc from 3 feet to 4 feet to eliminate collisions and better enforcement of rules in regard to defending players without the ball, in the post and on screens.

Belmont coach Rick Byrd, the rules committee chairman, also acknowledged that they will look for ways to reduce the amount of in-game stoppages including a reduction in timeouts. It could work like the NBA, which assesses some media timeouts to the teams on an alternating basis.

''We're definitely going to address that part of it,'' Byrd said in reference to the timeouts. ''The question is how many timeouts can we reduce? It's not like TV isn't utilizing 30-second timeouts to sell product.''
 

The rules committee will evaluate the proposals when it meets from May 12-15 in Indianapolis.
 

Research on whether or not they will work is already underway.
 

Dan Gavitt, the NCAA's vice president of men's basketball championships, said scoring increased about 5 percent to 71.5 points in 2013-14 when 19.1 fouls per game were called but lost almost all of that gain this season, falling to 66.7 points when 18.2 fouls were called.  

Those numbers prompted NCAA officials to experiment with a 30-second shot clock in the three recently-completed lower-tier basketball tournaments. Data showed scoring went up slightly, less than two points per game, while the number of possessions per game increased by just 1.02. 

Numbers are not the only measurement, though.

 While Byrd prefers a longer shot clock because it allows teams to use different styles, a hallmark of college basketball, others argue a change is overdue. The NBA uses a 24-second shot clock. College women's players use a 30-second clock, something that prompted UConn women's coach Geno Auriemma to call the men's game boring.

''People say, 'Why are the men playing a slower game than the women?'' Byrd said.
But faster, higher-scoring games may only be part of the solution.

Byrd said there will be ''serious discussion'' about enforcing a stricter 10-second rule that would not allow a team to reset the 10-second count following a timeout. Another proposal calls for even shorter shot clocks following offensive rebounds.
 

''I think we want more balance between offense and defense,'' said Delany. ''I think it's time for some substantive experimentation.''
 

Delany also wants committee members to go beyond the standard rule-changing fare. He believes the NBA will start relying soon on analytics, technology and transparency to improve the game, and that college basketball would be well-served to take a look, too.
 

''I think it would be OK to say, 'We had 37 judgment calls in this game and 34 were right and three were reasonably wrong,'' Delany said.

Report: Conference title game rules expected to change by 2016.

By Nick Bromberg

 

(USA Today Sports Images) 

 

Conferences may have more flexibility to host and determine the participants for conference championship games after the 2015 season.

According to a report by CBS Sports, legislation is expected to pass that would relax the rules currently in place for football title games, namely the requirement that a conference must have 12 teams to host one.

The Big 12 and ACC are pushing the relaxation of the rule. From CBS:

“I think there's some belief that ACC would play three divisions, have two highest ranked play in postseason,” said Bob Bowlsby, chairman of the new NCAA Football Oversight Committee. “Really, nobody cares how you determine your champion. It should be a conference-level decision.

“But because the ACC has persisted in saying, ‘We're not sure what we'll do,' there's probably a little bit of a shadow over it. In the end, I don't think it'll be able to hold it up. We'll probably have it in place for ‘16.”

To go into effect, the rule would need to go through the oversight committee before it's voted on by the NCAA council. The oversight committees are a new introduction into the governance of college athletics.

Bowlsby is the commissioner of the Big 12, which currently has 10 teams and is barred from hosting a title game. However, since the conference has each team play a nine-game schedule, every team plays each other once during the course of the season.

The league's co-champions, Baylor and TCU, didn't qualify for the College Football Playoff in 2014. While both were winning the same day Ohio State blew out Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game, the Buckeyes' win was in the team's 13th game of the season. Baylor and TCU only played 12 because of the lack of a Big 12 title game.

At 14 teams, a hypothetical three-division ACC would have an uneven number of teams. Adding Notre Dame – the Irish have an affiliation with the ACC – to a division would give the ACC three divisions of five. But it is a longshot to expect Notre Dame to forfeit independent status.

In the 10-year history of the ACC, only once has the conference's title game not featured two ranked teams. The game in 2012 was Florida State against an unranked Georgia Tech team who was at the game because Miami had declared itself ineligible for postseason play and North Carolina was serving a bowl ban. However, Clemson and FSU, the league's two football powers in recent history, are in the same division.

There is no indication that either conference would immediately make the move to change championship structures when and if relaxation of the title game rules is official. A spokesperson for the ACC said “It's the ability for conferences to make their own decisions.” But the ACC and its teams have shown they're already willing to be creative. North Carolina and Wake Forest are playing each other in non-conference games in 2019 and 2021.

It's also hard to blame both conferences for wanting to have all options open to them as the Playoff proceeds. While the Big 12 was left out entirely in the first year, undefeated Florida State dropped as far down as No. 4 before entering the Playoff as the No. 3 seed behind two one-loss teams. Another couple years of perceived unfair treatment may make the conferences very reactive.

And while the focus of the rules changes are on the Power Five conferences, it's a move that could help the Sun Belt as well. The conference is the only other FBS conference besides the Big 12 that won't have a title game in 2015 and it can add some extra revenue in the form of a championship without finding a 12th team if it's allowed to host one.

Geno Auriemma ties John Wooden with 10 titles as UConn beats Notre Dame.

By Kyle Ringo

 (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)

 

John Wooden has company.

And so does Geno Auriemma.
 

Wooden became a legend coaching the UCLA men to 10 national championships in basketball in a 12-year span in the 1960s and 1970s, earning the nickname the Wizard of Westwood. 

Auriemma equaled that achievement Tuesday night in Tampa when his Huskies defeated Notre Dame 63-53 to earn his 10^th national championship, two more than legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt.

In the buildup to the game Tuesday, Auriemma warned that he and his Huskies are bound to eventually lose one of these title games. But that warning seemed almost ridiculous during the championship game, which the Huskies controlled throughout. Auriemma is 10-0 in national championship games. 

“I’ll be the first to say, I’m not John Wooden,” Auriemma said in his postgame interview with ESPN. “I’ve got a bunch of friends that would tell that I’m right. I’m not. But as I said the other day, I just think what we’ve done here the last 20 years is pretty remarkable in its own right.

“I’ll let the people who write the history decide where I fit in.”

While he is not as revered as Wooden --  perhaps because he’s still coaching, maybe because he is viewed as opinionated and brash -- Auriemma is building a mountain of accomplishments that might prove every bit as difficult to match for future women’s coaches as Wooden’s achievements have been on the men’s side.

Auriemma was asked repeatedly before Tuesday’s game about matching Wooden’s 10 titles and building a dynasty in the women’s game the way Wooden dominated for more than a decade in the men’s game.

“I just know that in our sport, from 1995 to today, what we've done against our peers is as good if not better than anybody else has done in their sport against their peers,” Auriemma said. “I don't care whether it's harder in that sport or this sport or that sport.

“I understand all that. Don't get me wrong. But given the rules that we play with, with all the people we compete against, I'm pretty proud we've done it the way we've done it for as long as we've done it.”

Notre Dame and coach Muffet McGraw lost in the championship game for the fourth time in five years. The Fighting Irish watched Texas A&M celebrate in 2011, Baylor in 2012 and UConn last year and once again Tuesday night.

Once again this season, Naismith Player of the Year Breanna Stewart played a huge role, leading the Huskies to their eighth consecutive Final Four and helping Auriemma make history. But junior guard Moriah Jefferson, a product of Glenn Heights, Texas, gave Notre Dame fits in the title game.

Her quick hands and feet allowed her to tip balls and disrupt the flow of the Notre Dame offense. The Fighting Irish chose to play off her on the other end, perhaps remembering her 0-for-8 performance in UConn’s win at Notre Dame in the regular season in December. Jefferson came up big offensively as well, scoring 15 points with four steals and five assists.

Stewart was held to eight points but grabbed 15 rebounds, overcoming a first-half ankle injury. Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis also scored 15 points including two big shots late in the game to thwart a Notre Dame run.

“I know we’ve won a lot of these but I don’t know that I’ve ever been more proud of a group of kids that I am of this group because I didn’t trust them in the beginning of the season,” Auriemma said in his postgame ESPN interview. “I didn’t trust them one bit.

“…Each day they got more trustworthy themselves I think that just culminated tonight.”

On This Date in Sports History: Today is Wednesday, April 8, 2015.

Memoriesofhistory.com

1911 - The first squash tournament was played at the Harvard Club in New York City.

1974 - Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run to break Babe Ruth's home run record.

1975 - Frank Robinson of the Cleveland Indians became first black manager of a major league baseball team.

1987 - Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis resigned over remarks he had made. While on ABC's "Nightline" Campanis said that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball.

1991 - Oakland A's stadium became the first outdoor arena to ban smoking.

1992 - Tennis player Arthur Ashe announced that he had AIDS.

2008 - The Mets lost their last home opener at Shea Stadium to Philadelphia Phillies.

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