Court storming concern, RJ Davis makes history and a genius Fantasy Football punishment in the sports moments of the week
Will Saturday's court storming injury to Duke's Kyle Filipowski end a college basketball tradition? Plus, Cam Newton goes beast mode, a wacky Spring Training highlight and more!
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Duke launches crusade against court storming
Duke took an upset loss at Wake Forest last Saturday, but the game result quickly took a back seat because of what happened after the final buzzer.
Turns out it was thankfully just a close call. Filipowski notched 9 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils in a blowout win over Louisville on Wednesday.
However, in the three days leading up to Wednesday's game, we were treated to nationwide discourse surrounding the same question: Should court storming be banned?
It's a hot button issue that seems to be at a boiling point now, especially considering Caitlin Clark's own close call at Ohio State earlier this season.
Red-hot RJ Davis saves the Tar Heels
North Carolina almost gave one away to Miami on Monday night, but RJ Davis wouldn't let them.
Davis' performance on Monday was truly special and something that Carolina fans will remember for a long time.
There's a good chance this isn't the only piece of history that Davis claims this season. The New York native is less than 100 away from the exclusive 2,000 career point club and is also within striking distance of the single-season free throw percentage and 3-pointers made record.
Oh, and he's the clear front runner for ACC player of the year. Pretty, pretty good!
Wild week in women's hoops
I'd like to start with a quick apology to NC State. I can't help but feel that my lavish praise of them in last week's column played a small part in their two rivalry losses last week.
With that said, major props are in order for the Tar Heels and Blue Devils because both of these wins were huge.
Of course, the Tar Heels have been unable to replicate that performance in their two games since -- a pair of road losses to Virginia Tech (no shame there) and Boston College (woof).
Duke didn't shoot it as well as NC State, but their defense did most of the talking as they built a big early lead en route to Sunday's win.
The Blue Devils held the Wolfpack to just 19 first half points. They rank first in the ACC in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense and blocks.
Cam Newton unfazed in viral brawl
News flash: It's still a very bad idea to try to mess with Cam Newton.
Per Joe Person of The Athletic, the scuffle ensued the day after a “heated game” between Newton’s C1N under-18 team and TopShelf Performance’s under-18 team.
Says Person, "Individuals involved with TopShelf Performance, a wide receiver training facility in Atlanta that had youth teams in the event, approached Newton at the top of a set of steps underneath a We Ball Sports tent Sunday afternoon. Newton was grabbed and a fight ensued. Two men shown fighting with Newton were both coaches for TopShelf Performance and formerly coached with the quarterback, according to a source with knowledge of elite 7-on-7 football. The video shows Newton grabbing one of the combatants and dragging him aside, where the fracas continued. Police and security guards broke up the altercation."
So that's what we know about why the fight happened, but the big takeaway here is that Cam Newton continues to be Superman, even if he's not currently on an NFL roster.
Durham Bulls player scores on a hilarious inside-the-park home run at Spring Training
Not all home runs are built the same. Just ask Durham Bulls outfielder Kameron Misner.
The Tampa Bay Rays prospect got a home run in the box score of Sunday's Spring Training game against the Tigers, but that doesn't tell the whole story.
Misner hit a pop fly into shallow right-center field. Four Tigers gave chase, but none of them could make the catch. Sounds like a routine bloop single, right?
Well, not this time because Detroit shortstop Andrew Navigato tripped and ended up executing a perfect scorpion kick that sent the ball further into right field!
Misner crossed home plate standing up and now has a story to tell the rest of his career. Baseball is so delightfully weird sometimes.
Blue Jays pitcher (literally) wears his Fantasy Football punishment
Speaking of Spring Training fun, we may have a new leader in the clubhouse when it comes to Fantasy Football punishments for professional athletes.
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Tim Mayza had to change his jersey number for Saturday's game, but not to anything you've seen before.
To further the humiliation, Mayza served as the bat boy against the Phillies, which is how he got away with wearing the unorthodox number.
But I'd like to see this go a step further. This should be Mayza's number the entire regular season too.
Seriously. Who does this hurt?
The idea that a jersey number has to be a whole number between 1 and 99 is outdated.
This kind of thing is fun. Sports should be fun. Make it happen, MLB!
We'll see you next week.
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