July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Hoops, football highlight weekend
This annual feature has gone through many different incarnations.
Long before I arrived in Portland, then-managing editor Tom Casey started writing about the televised sporting events on the extended Thanksgiving weekend. That was before sports were so widely accessible via cable, satellite and the Internet, so a weekend loaded with games was more of a novelty.
It remains one of the busiest times of the sports year, even with the NBA out of commission. There are a host of college basketball tournaments — the 76 Classic, Las Vegas Invitational, Maui Invitational, NIT Season Tip-Off and Old Spice Classic — as well as three days of college football, two days of NFL football and all of the Indiana high school football state championship games.
Since I started writing the TV sports Thanksgiving roundup 10 years ago, I’ve taken several different strategies. Sometimes it has been a look at every game on tap for the weekend. Last year I focused on one sport for each day, giving a little bit of information on the key games.
This year I’m going to narrow it down even further. If you can only find the time to watch one game each day, these are my suggestions.
Today
Men’s college basketball
Maui Invitational Championship
Michigan/Duke vs. UCLA/Kansas
10 p.m. - ESPN
This article had to be completed before the semifinal rounds were played Tuesday evening, but regardless of who plays tonight it should be a good game.
The Maui Invitational always brings in an impressive field, and this year is no different. The tournament includes teams from each of the seven major conferences — Big Ten, Pac-12, Big 12, SEC, ACC, Big East and Conference USA — led by sixth-ranked Duke.
The Blue Devils always have plenty of spotlight on them as one of the best programs in the country, and had even more attention earlier this month when coach Mike Krzyzewski passed former Indiana coach Bob Knight for the top spot on the all-time wins list. The Blue Devils, who are getting a combined 18 points and 17 rebounds per game from Warsaw natives Miles and Mason Plumlee, were 5-0 heading into Tuesday’s semifinal battle with No. 15 Michigan and will visit No. 3 Ohio State on Tuesday.
Michigan, which upset eighth-ranked Memphis in the first round, gets another crack at Duke Tuesday after losing to the Blue Devils 73-71 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Tim Hardaway Jr., a sophomore, leads the Wolverines, averaging 16 points, 3.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.
No. 15 Kansas is led by a couple of upperclassmen, with senior Tyshawn Taylor and junior Thomas Robinson averaging 16.7 and. 16.7 points respectively. The lone loss of the season for the Jayhawks came by 10 points to second-ranked Kentucky.
UCLA is the only unranked team in the Final Four, and their season, so far, has been a struggle. They suffered losses at home to Loyola Marymount and Middle Tennessee before beating host Chaminade in the opening round in Hawaii.
A tournament title might be a good omen. Connecticut won 84-67 over Kentucky in the Maui Invitational title game last season and went on to win the national title.
Thursday
NFL football
Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions
12:30 p.m. - FOX-45,59
This one promises to be a blast.
Ever since Barry Sanders retired, having Detroit as one of the regular Thanksgiving Day hosts has been a bane. The Lions simply haven’t been competitive. They haven’t won on Thanksgiving since 2003, and each of their seven straight losses have come by double digits.
But all that has changed this year.
Detroit has made a habit out of erasing deficits this year. On the way to a 7-3 record it rallied from 20 down against Minnesota, 24 against Dallas and most recently 17 against Carolina.
Boasting an up-and-coming quarterback in Matthew Stafford and one of the most feared receivers in the league in Calvin Johnson on an offense that ranks among the top five in the league in points per game.
And it just happens that this year the NFL schedule makers saw fit to pair up Detroit with the defending Super Bowl champion Green Packers.
A year ago Green Bay battled through injuries, squeaked into the playoffs and fought its way to the title. This year, it is dominating.
The Packers, now 10-0, certainly look as if they could make a run at becoming the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to go undefeated. And even if that’s a long shot, they’re certainly heavy favorites for a repeat.
Aaron Rodgers is in the midst of one of the best seasons in NFL history as he is on pace to throw 45 touchdown passes. He currently has 28 TDs compared to just eight interceptions.
At 35.6 points per game, Green Bay averages four points more than any other team in the league.
All signs point to a shootout. First team to 50 wins.
Friday
College football
Arkansas at LSU
2:30 p.m. - CBS-7,8,15
The Alabama versus LSU battle just a few weeks ago was touted as the latest “Game of the Century” — there seems to be one of those every year — but this one will be just as important to the national championship picture.The Southeastern Conference has dominated college football over the last half-decade, winning five straight BCS national titles, and this year is no different. The top three teams in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls — LSU, Alabama and Arkansas — are all from the SEC.
Undefeated at 11-0, LSU has the clear inside track to the BCS Championship game. The Tigers are a team built on defense, allowing an average of just 10 points per game. Only two teams have scored more than 11 against them.
Arkansas stands in stark contrast to LSU as it’s offense rather than defense that makes it dangers. The Razorbacks, led by receiver Jarius Wright’s 1,002 yards and 10 touchdowns, have scored at least 28 points in every game and have cleared 40 five times.
So while LSU and Alabama have been the SEC teams involved in title talk all season long, Arkansas should not be forgotten. It boasts a 10-1 record, and an upset of LSU would create the possibility of a three-way tie atop the conference’s West Division. (Alabama would also have to defeat Auburn in its regular-season finale.)
The SEC’s tiebreaker system favors LSU, leaving the Tigers likely to play either Georgia or South Carolina in the conference title game regardless of what happens. But the BCS would probably favor Alabama, which missed four field goals in its overtime loss to LSU and defeated Arkansas 38-14.
The prospect of a dynamic offense going up against a stifling defense is always interesting. And it becomes even moreso when both teams are in the hunt for the national championship.
Saturday
High school football
Class 5A state championship
Penn vs. Carmel
6:30 p.m. - WTTV-4, NBC-33
Football is the choice for the third straight day, and this time it’s the high school variety.
You’d be doing yourself a favor to watch any of the IHSAA state title games — Class 1A and 2A are Friday evening followed by the 3A and 4A championships on Saturday afternoon — but I’m choosing to highlight the big-school game because of the teams’ combined 27-1 record.
Penn (14-0), ranked third, joins Class 1A’s Lafayette Central Catholic as the only two undefeated teams playing in the state finals. It is a squad predicated on defense, allowing the fewest points in Class 5A at 10.4 per game.
The last trip to the state finals was not so pleasant for the Kingsman as it came in a 57-7 loss to Warren Central in 2003. But they have a storied program, having made nine previous state championship-game appearances. They have won five titles, including three straight from 1995 through ’97, with the most recent coming in 2000.
Though Carmel has one loss at 13-1, it finished the regular season as the No. 2 team in Class 5A. That’s because it’s only defeat came against top-ranked Warren Central.
The Greyhounds, who are led by Jalen Duncan’s 1,574 yards and 23 touchdowns, avenged that loss in the sectional championship. They rank second, trailing only Penn, in Class 5A in defensive average and have an offense that puts up 40.3 points per game.
Carmel has had the more challenging tournament road, having eked out wins of 11-9 over Ben Davis and 21-17 over Center Grove after beating Warren Central by four in the sectional championship round.
Penn, on the other hand, has won every game this year by double digits. It’s closest games were a 21-10 win over Valparaiso in the season opener and a 17-6 win over Class 4A state finalist South Bend Washington.
The teams have met in the state finals once before, with Carmel defeating Penn 10-7 in 1989.
Sunday
Men’s college basketball
Butler at Indiana
7 p.m. - BTN
With five national titles, Indiana is one of the most storied programs in all of college basketball. They have been to the Final Four eight times, including an undefeated season on the way to the 1976 national title.
But since suffering penalties from recruiting violations under Kelvin Sampson, the program has been struggling to get back to its previous levels of success. The Hoosiers haven’t been to the NCAA tournament since 2008, having posted a combined 28-66 record over the last three seasons.
Meanwhile, Butler has become the darling of college basketball fans in the state.
With a roster loaded with players from Indiana, the Bulldogs made a dramatic run to the national championship game in their hometown of Indianapolis in 2010. They narrowly missed an upset of Duke when Gordon Hayward’s shot from just inside half court rimmed out at the buzzer.
Fans everywhere expected such a run was an isolated incident, but Butler did it again by reaching the 2011 title game. Again they fell short in a loss to Connecticut, but Brad Stevens’ team gained a lot of fans along the way.
The Bulldogs (2-2) have gotten off to a bit of a slow start, having lost the season opener 80-77 to in-state rival Evansville in overtime. But it’s important to remember they were 3-4 early last season and later ran of 14 straight wins on the way to the national championship game.
Indiana, on the other hand, has its fans excited after a 5-0 start including a 21-point win over that same Evansville squad. All five of their wins have come against much smaller schools, but their true test is on the way as they play Butler, North Carolina State, No. 2 Kentucky and Notre Dame in their next five games.
Sunday’s game is a chance for both teams to make a statement.
Regardless of who wins, it’s hard to imagine a better way for college basketball fans in the state of Indiana to end the long weekend of sporting events.[[In-content Ad]]
Long before I arrived in Portland, then-managing editor Tom Casey started writing about the televised sporting events on the extended Thanksgiving weekend. That was before sports were so widely accessible via cable, satellite and the Internet, so a weekend loaded with games was more of a novelty.
It remains one of the busiest times of the sports year, even with the NBA out of commission. There are a host of college basketball tournaments — the 76 Classic, Las Vegas Invitational, Maui Invitational, NIT Season Tip-Off and Old Spice Classic — as well as three days of college football, two days of NFL football and all of the Indiana high school football state championship games.
Since I started writing the TV sports Thanksgiving roundup 10 years ago, I’ve taken several different strategies. Sometimes it has been a look at every game on tap for the weekend. Last year I focused on one sport for each day, giving a little bit of information on the key games.
This year I’m going to narrow it down even further. If you can only find the time to watch one game each day, these are my suggestions.
Today
Men’s college basketball
Maui Invitational Championship
Michigan/Duke vs. UCLA/Kansas
10 p.m. - ESPN
This article had to be completed before the semifinal rounds were played Tuesday evening, but regardless of who plays tonight it should be a good game.
The Maui Invitational always brings in an impressive field, and this year is no different. The tournament includes teams from each of the seven major conferences — Big Ten, Pac-12, Big 12, SEC, ACC, Big East and Conference USA — led by sixth-ranked Duke.
The Blue Devils always have plenty of spotlight on them as one of the best programs in the country, and had even more attention earlier this month when coach Mike Krzyzewski passed former Indiana coach Bob Knight for the top spot on the all-time wins list. The Blue Devils, who are getting a combined 18 points and 17 rebounds per game from Warsaw natives Miles and Mason Plumlee, were 5-0 heading into Tuesday’s semifinal battle with No. 15 Michigan and will visit No. 3 Ohio State on Tuesday.
Michigan, which upset eighth-ranked Memphis in the first round, gets another crack at Duke Tuesday after losing to the Blue Devils 73-71 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. Tim Hardaway Jr., a sophomore, leads the Wolverines, averaging 16 points, 3.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.
No. 15 Kansas is led by a couple of upperclassmen, with senior Tyshawn Taylor and junior Thomas Robinson averaging 16.7 and. 16.7 points respectively. The lone loss of the season for the Jayhawks came by 10 points to second-ranked Kentucky.
UCLA is the only unranked team in the Final Four, and their season, so far, has been a struggle. They suffered losses at home to Loyola Marymount and Middle Tennessee before beating host Chaminade in the opening round in Hawaii.
A tournament title might be a good omen. Connecticut won 84-67 over Kentucky in the Maui Invitational title game last season and went on to win the national title.
Thursday
NFL football
Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions
12:30 p.m. - FOX-45,59
This one promises to be a blast.
Ever since Barry Sanders retired, having Detroit as one of the regular Thanksgiving Day hosts has been a bane. The Lions simply haven’t been competitive. They haven’t won on Thanksgiving since 2003, and each of their seven straight losses have come by double digits.
But all that has changed this year.
Detroit has made a habit out of erasing deficits this year. On the way to a 7-3 record it rallied from 20 down against Minnesota, 24 against Dallas and most recently 17 against Carolina.
Boasting an up-and-coming quarterback in Matthew Stafford and one of the most feared receivers in the league in Calvin Johnson on an offense that ranks among the top five in the league in points per game.
And it just happens that this year the NFL schedule makers saw fit to pair up Detroit with the defending Super Bowl champion Green Packers.
A year ago Green Bay battled through injuries, squeaked into the playoffs and fought its way to the title. This year, it is dominating.
The Packers, now 10-0, certainly look as if they could make a run at becoming the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to go undefeated. And even if that’s a long shot, they’re certainly heavy favorites for a repeat.
Aaron Rodgers is in the midst of one of the best seasons in NFL history as he is on pace to throw 45 touchdown passes. He currently has 28 TDs compared to just eight interceptions.
At 35.6 points per game, Green Bay averages four points more than any other team in the league.
All signs point to a shootout. First team to 50 wins.
Friday
College football
Arkansas at LSU
2:30 p.m. - CBS-7,8,15
The Alabama versus LSU battle just a few weeks ago was touted as the latest “Game of the Century” — there seems to be one of those every year — but this one will be just as important to the national championship picture.The Southeastern Conference has dominated college football over the last half-decade, winning five straight BCS national titles, and this year is no different. The top three teams in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls — LSU, Alabama and Arkansas — are all from the SEC.
Undefeated at 11-0, LSU has the clear inside track to the BCS Championship game. The Tigers are a team built on defense, allowing an average of just 10 points per game. Only two teams have scored more than 11 against them.
Arkansas stands in stark contrast to LSU as it’s offense rather than defense that makes it dangers. The Razorbacks, led by receiver Jarius Wright’s 1,002 yards and 10 touchdowns, have scored at least 28 points in every game and have cleared 40 five times.
So while LSU and Alabama have been the SEC teams involved in title talk all season long, Arkansas should not be forgotten. It boasts a 10-1 record, and an upset of LSU would create the possibility of a three-way tie atop the conference’s West Division. (Alabama would also have to defeat Auburn in its regular-season finale.)
The SEC’s tiebreaker system favors LSU, leaving the Tigers likely to play either Georgia or South Carolina in the conference title game regardless of what happens. But the BCS would probably favor Alabama, which missed four field goals in its overtime loss to LSU and defeated Arkansas 38-14.
The prospect of a dynamic offense going up against a stifling defense is always interesting. And it becomes even moreso when both teams are in the hunt for the national championship.
Saturday
High school football
Class 5A state championship
Penn vs. Carmel
6:30 p.m. - WTTV-4, NBC-33
Football is the choice for the third straight day, and this time it’s the high school variety.
You’d be doing yourself a favor to watch any of the IHSAA state title games — Class 1A and 2A are Friday evening followed by the 3A and 4A championships on Saturday afternoon — but I’m choosing to highlight the big-school game because of the teams’ combined 27-1 record.
Penn (14-0), ranked third, joins Class 1A’s Lafayette Central Catholic as the only two undefeated teams playing in the state finals. It is a squad predicated on defense, allowing the fewest points in Class 5A at 10.4 per game.
The last trip to the state finals was not so pleasant for the Kingsman as it came in a 57-7 loss to Warren Central in 2003. But they have a storied program, having made nine previous state championship-game appearances. They have won five titles, including three straight from 1995 through ’97, with the most recent coming in 2000.
Though Carmel has one loss at 13-1, it finished the regular season as the No. 2 team in Class 5A. That’s because it’s only defeat came against top-ranked Warren Central.
The Greyhounds, who are led by Jalen Duncan’s 1,574 yards and 23 touchdowns, avenged that loss in the sectional championship. They rank second, trailing only Penn, in Class 5A in defensive average and have an offense that puts up 40.3 points per game.
Carmel has had the more challenging tournament road, having eked out wins of 11-9 over Ben Davis and 21-17 over Center Grove after beating Warren Central by four in the sectional championship round.
Penn, on the other hand, has won every game this year by double digits. It’s closest games were a 21-10 win over Valparaiso in the season opener and a 17-6 win over Class 4A state finalist South Bend Washington.
The teams have met in the state finals once before, with Carmel defeating Penn 10-7 in 1989.
Sunday
Men’s college basketball
Butler at Indiana
7 p.m. - BTN
With five national titles, Indiana is one of the most storied programs in all of college basketball. They have been to the Final Four eight times, including an undefeated season on the way to the 1976 national title.
But since suffering penalties from recruiting violations under Kelvin Sampson, the program has been struggling to get back to its previous levels of success. The Hoosiers haven’t been to the NCAA tournament since 2008, having posted a combined 28-66 record over the last three seasons.
Meanwhile, Butler has become the darling of college basketball fans in the state.
With a roster loaded with players from Indiana, the Bulldogs made a dramatic run to the national championship game in their hometown of Indianapolis in 2010. They narrowly missed an upset of Duke when Gordon Hayward’s shot from just inside half court rimmed out at the buzzer.
Fans everywhere expected such a run was an isolated incident, but Butler did it again by reaching the 2011 title game. Again they fell short in a loss to Connecticut, but Brad Stevens’ team gained a lot of fans along the way.
The Bulldogs (2-2) have gotten off to a bit of a slow start, having lost the season opener 80-77 to in-state rival Evansville in overtime. But it’s important to remember they were 3-4 early last season and later ran of 14 straight wins on the way to the national championship game.
Indiana, on the other hand, has its fans excited after a 5-0 start including a 21-point win over that same Evansville squad. All five of their wins have come against much smaller schools, but their true test is on the way as they play Butler, North Carolina State, No. 2 Kentucky and Notre Dame in their next five games.
Sunday’s game is a chance for both teams to make a statement.
Regardless of who wins, it’s hard to imagine a better way for college basketball fans in the state of Indiana to end the long weekend of sporting events.[[In-content Ad]]
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