Last Updated on January 9, 2023 by CCAR Staff
By Tom Hoffarth
thomas.hoffarth@langnews.com@tomhoffarthLANG on Twitter
Ranking top 10 sports events March 14-20 you won’t want to miss:
NO. 1: NASCAR SPRINT CUP AUTO CLUB 400
Details/TV: At Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Sunday, 12:30 p.m., Ch. 11
Brad Keselowski was pretty pumped up in Las Vegas a couple weeks ago, and it had nothing to do with any kind of wager he made at a casino on The Strip. All stripped down, the gamble he made that paid off was passing Kyle Busch with six laps to go, allowing him to cruise to a win in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Turns out, that victory in the third event of the 2016 season was Keselowski’s first Sprint Cup triumph going all the way back to last March at Auto Club Speedway. “This is such a good feeling to be back in victory lane; it’s been way too long,” he said.
A year ago in Fontana, Busch, who started on the pole, assumed the lead with 11 laps to go after a restart. Jeff Gordon, in his last Auto Club Speedway appearance, slipped into the lead during a caution flag. But when they tried a green-white-checker flag finish, Busch zipped back to the head of the pack. But then came Keselowski – again. The Team Penske driver took the lead on Turn 2 of the final lap and held off both of the Steward-Haas teammates, Busch and Kevin Harvick. Keselowski, who started eighth, said afterward that Harvick and Busch “had great cars the whole weekend and probably had the field covered on speed.” But maybe not on smarts. As it turned out, Busch won the Sprint Cup series championship eight months later at Homestead-Miami, with Harvick, who squeezed out a win in Phoenix on Sunday, finishing second. Keselowski? Seventh. But in the end, he still got to keep a trophy from Auto Club Speedway that included a giant surf board.
Also this week at Auto Club Speedway:
Fanfest and hauler parade: Thursday, 5-9 p.m. (beginning at LoanMart Field in Rancho Cucamonga)
Sprint Cup qualifying: Friday, 4:30 p.m., FS1. (Practice on Friday, 10:30 a.m., FS1; Saturday, 8 a.m., FS2 and 11:30 a.m., FS1).
Xfinity Series NXS 300: Saturday, 1 p.m., FS1. (Practice on Friday, noon and 2:30 p.m., FS1; Qualifying Saturday, 9 a.m., FS1)
NO. 2: COLLEGE BASKETBALL
MEN’S NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND: EAST REGION
USC vs. PROVIDENCE
Details/TV: At Raleigh, N.C., Thursday, approx. 6:50 p.m., TBS
No favors done here for the 21-12 Trojans. But don’t let that color your outlook. This season, we’ve seen USC wear four different colored jerseys: Basic white, bright gold, rich Cardinal and the occasional black – the latter of which it sported during their last loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament. How will Nike try to dress them up for their Big Dance appearance? It might matter. The Elias Sports Bureau, working with NCAA sponsor LG, did some research on what teams wore a certain predominant color and how they did in the NCAA Tournament since it went to 64 teams in 1985. For example, of the 31 that have won the title, 23 wore blue. Fine for North Carolina, Duke or Kansas, not a great sign for USC. Red, however, has shown to be the dominant color for teams registering the most points per game (79.2) and the most assists (15.8). Black has also come on strong for teams that have had the largest average margin of victory (with a plus 11.1). The lesson here: If the Trojans go gold or white, it could be a cause to go one-and-done. Then again, there’s that urge to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. Please refrain.
The NCAA Tournament begins with “First Four” contests on Tuesday (Florida Gulf Coast vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, 3:30 p.m.; Vanderbilt vs. Wichita State, 6 p.m.) and Wednesday (Holy Cross vs. Southern, 3:30 p.m.; Michigan vs. Tulsa, 6 p.m.) all at Dayton, Ohio, on truTV. The official first- and second-round games air on Ch. 2, TBS, TNT and truTV starting Thursday and Friday, and continuing Saturday and Sunday, beginning at 9 a.m.
Also: The 32-team NIT begins Tuesday and includes Long Beach State playing host to Washington (6 p.m., ESPN2). The 16-team College Basketball Invitational (ESPNU) begins Tuesday; The 32-team CollegeInsider.com tournament (CBSSN) begins Monday. Meanwhile, a 16-team “Vegas 16” tournament with teams that did not make the NCAA or NIT will be held March 26-30 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas (CBSSN).
So what it means: 164 teams are playing in the post-season?
NO. 3: NBA: CLIPPERS at SAN ANTONIO
Details/TV: Tuesday, 5:30 p.m., Prime
So what if the Spurs have managed to maintain a menacing 32-0 record at home this season. And if one of those wins was against the Clipper in mid-December. Blake Griffin played in that game. Recent memory: A Griffin-less Clippers’ 105-86 win over the Spurs at Staples Center coming out of the All-Star break in February was sparked by Chris Paul’s 28 points with 12 assists in 37 minutes. Tim Duncan had just two points in 20 minutes. This is the last Clippers-Spurs matchup before the playoffs, and the start of a five-game road trip that will end up in Golden State (where the Warriors will likely be 32-0 as well at home at that point).
Also this week: At Houston, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m., ESPN, Prime; Saturday at Memphis, 5 p.m., Prime, Sunday at New Orleans, 3 p.m., Prime.
NO. 4: TENNIS: BNP PARIBAS OPEN FINALS
WTA WOMEN’S AND ATP MEN’S FINALS
Details/TV: At Indian Wells, Sunday, 11 a.m., ESPN
The official website (www.bnpparibasopen.com) has been posting celebrity sightings photos that include Bill Gates, Hillary Swank, Mike Tyson, Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner. (Somehow they missed Wayne and Janet Gretzky, Larry Ellison and Kaley Cuoco). The site has also been diligent in posting results that reveal names such as defending champions Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Stan Wawrinka, Andy Murray, Martina Hingis (in women’s doubles) and the Bryan brothers (just a third seed?) are still in play for a title. (Somehow, Maria Sharapova didn’t show up on anyone’s list).
NO. 5: COLLEGE BASKETBALL
NCAA WOMEN’S TOURNAMENT BRACKET PAIRINGS
Details/TV: Monday, 4 p.m., ESPN
No. 10-ranked UCLA (24-8) couldn’t get past No. 6 Oregon State (28-4) in the Pac-12 Conference championship, but according to those who do the math, the Bruins and Beavers could still land No. 2 seeds and stay at home for their first two games in the tournament. Trouble is for UCLA, however, is they could land in the same regional as three-time defending champion UConn, which has won five of the last seven titles and nine overall since 2000, and saunters in at 31-0 with a 69-game win streak. Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck, Moriah Jefferson and Katie Lou Samuelson have been leading the Huskies by leading the nation in scoring offense (87.6 points a game) as well as scoring defense (opponents average just 47.9). A likely Final Four would see UConn with 31-1 Notre Dame (two-time national runner-ups to the Huskies, and its one loss is 91-81 at UConn in December), 31-1 South Carolina (a 66-54 loss to visiting UConn in February) and 32-1 Baylor (didn’t face UConn, but lost 52-45 at Oklahoma State in late December). The first-round games start Friday and Saturday. The SEC stands to get as many as nine schools picked; the Pac 12 could get five (with Stanford, Arizona State and Washington).
NO. 6: NHL: KINGS vs. N.Y. RANGERS
Details/TV: At Staples Center, Thursday, 7:30 p.m., FSW
Fifteen games left in the regular season for the current Pacific Division leaders, with seven of those at home, including this. What’s the over/under on McDonald’s Green Flurry giveaways if the Kings manage to score at all against Henrik Lundqvist on St. Patrick’s Day? The Kings pulled off a 5-4 overtime win at New York about a month ago with backup goalie Peter Budaj recording his one and only win before a return to the minor leagues. Anze Kopitar had a hat trick against Rangers backup Antti Raanta. Lundqvist missed a handful of games because of neck spasms but returned to the lineup last weekend and absorbed a 5-3 loss against Pittsburgh. Rick Nash also recently returned after being out with a bone bruise back in late January.
Also this week: At Chicago, Monday, 5 p.m., NBCSN; Tuesday at Dallas, 5:30 p.m., FSW; Saturday vs. Boston, Staples Center, 7:30 p.m., FSW
NO. 7: NBA: LAKERS vs. SACRAMENTO
Details/TV: At Staples Center, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m., TWCSN
The topic came up on an edition of ESPN’s “Pardon The Interruption” last week: What’s the over/under on the Lakers reaching 20 wins this season? With 14 wins going into Sunday night’s game against the Knicks, the Lakers would have to finish 7-9 to stick on 21. Underwhelming foes this week such as Sacramento and Phoenix (Friday at Staples Center, 7:30 p.m.) makes it feel like it’s somewhat doable. “Why do they want to win that many games and maybe lose a (high) draft pick?” asked Tony Kornheiser, stating the obvious. “They want to lose these games. I go under.” Mike Wilbon replied: “If you are proud men who wear championship rings … the answer for me is still under. They have not put themselves in a position where they could lose a draft pick and they can’t afford to.” Yeah, but have you measured up some of the draft picks out there, outside of Ben Simmons?
NO. 8: MLS: GALAXY vs. SAN JOSE
Details/TV: At StubHub Center, Saturday, 7:30 p.m., TWCS, TWCD
The California Clasico rivals ended up facing either four times last year – one of them was the U.S. Open Cup – and they split the difference. The Quakes won, 1-0, in their last head-to-head in August, 2015.
NO. 9: MLB EXHIBITIONS
DODGERS vs. SAN DIEGO
Details/TV: At Glendale, Ariz., Sunday, 1 p.m., SportsNet LA
ANGELS at TEXAS
Details/TV: At Surprise, Ariz., Sunday, 1 p.m., FSW
This is the day when spring officially springs. And two weeks to go before the regular season opens. Let’s give Corey Seager another week off.
NO. 10: CYCLING
WORLD CYCLING LEAGUE TEAMTRAK
Details: At Cal State Dominguez Olympic VELO Sports Center in Carson, Friday, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
In the first event of its kind, six teams – the California Wave, Colorado Cyclones, Connecticut NorEasters, Pennsylvania Lightning, Dublin Thunder and Mexico Heat – featuring 42 international cyclists go head to head in three sessions with “one gear, no fear” (according to the promotional posters). It’s also high-tech with scoring and stats flashing up on scoreboards and available on personal communication devices. Batteries not included. More info: worldcyclingleague.com
ALSO:
MOVIE: “THE BRONZE”
Details: In theaters Friday
Hope Ann Greggory (Melissa Rauch, who plays Bernadette in “The Big Bang Theory”) was America’s sweetheart at the 2004 Olympics, winning a bronze for the U.S. team while she competed on a ruptured Achilles, and bringing glory to her hometown of Amherst, Ohio. Since then, she hasn’t done much. She lives in the basement of her dad’s house, wears her Team USA gym suit and keeps her teeny-bopper bangs, ponytail and scrunchie to people recognize her, and spends her days at the mall milking her minor celebrity for free food and favors. She then meets Amherst’s newest gymnastics prodigy Maggie (Haley Lu Richardson) and is forced to coach her in order to receive a sizeable financial inheritance. Hope could do it and keep her ‘hometown hero’ status, or sabotage Maggie. Rausch and her husband, Winston Rausch, wrote the screenplay, and she, with the Duplass brothers, are among the exec producers. They’ll tumble for you. More info at the official website.
