Yesterday the nation celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, and we were inspired by his famous “I Have A Dream” speech. We are all still in pursuit of a dream, and the sports world is no different.
National Football League (NFL)
Is it opposite week? As you probably remember from our previous TINK newsletter, all four Wildcard playoff home teams lost last week. This week, however, sleeping at home and eating mama’s food proved to be the winning formula for New England, Denver, Arizona and Carolina.
AFC
Boston Tea Party…The New England Patriots defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, who had won their previous 11 games, 27-20. The ladies’ guy Tom Brady threw for 302 yards and two TDs leading the Pats to victory. Brady welcomed back from injury his top two receiving targets, little guy Julian Edelman (5’ 10”) and big guy Rob Gronkowski (6’ 6”). The Pats will play in their fifth straight AFC Championship game next Sunday.
The Denver Broncos beat the injury-riddled Pittsburgh Steelers 23-16. Aging and recovering from injury, Denver QB Payton Manning had enough power in his Buick to lead a fourth quarter comeback, assisted by a solid running game and a stingy defense.
NFC
The Arizona Cardinals outlasted the Green Bay Packers 26-20 in an overtime thriller. The game went to overtime on Packers QB Aaron Rodgers’ “Hail Mary” touchdown pass as time expired. In overtime, Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (8 catches, 176 yards, 1 TD) caught a 75-yard pass followed by a 5-yard touchdown pass to seal the victory
It was a tale of two halves on Sunday in Charlotte. The Carolina Panthers (who had the league’s best regular season record) jumped out to a 31-0 lead over the Seattle Seahawks and started prematurely dreaming of the Super Bowl. The Seahawks almost turned those visions into nightmares as they scored 24 unanswered points but ultimately fell short 31-24.
The conference championships are set. The winners will play in Super Bowl 50 on Sunday, February 7: Here is the playoffs TV schedule:
AFC Championship – New England Patriots @ Denver Broncos (Sunday, January 24, 3:05pm ET). Hall of Fame bound quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning (five Super Bowl victories between them) will be playing for the 17th time.
NFC Championship – Arizona Cardinals @ Carolina Panthers (Sunday, January 24, 6:40pm ET). These two fan bases are dreaming of a Super Bowl as neither franchise has won The Big Game.
National Hockey League (NHL)
Halfway through the hockey season we have a few teams dreaming of taking home the Stanley Cup. The Chicago Blackhawks have won 11 straight games led by MVP candidate Patrick Kane, and have overtaken the Dallas Stars as the Best in the West. In the East, the Washington Capitals are running away with the conference and the league’s best record. More hockey to come as All-Star weekend is just two weeks away.
College Basketball
The stock market isn’t the only thing that took a nosedive last week. Five of the top-10 teams in college basketball lost (Kansas, Maryland, Michigan State (twice), Miami, and Duke (twice)). Add Oklahoma to the list as they lost to #19 Iowa State 82-77 Monday, just hours after being named this week’s #1.
Here are the AP top-5 teams:
#1 Oklahoma
#2 North Carolina
#3 Kansas
#4 Villanova
#5 Xavier
National Basketball Association (NBA)
What did you do on your day off? The NBA played its Martin Luther King Day games highlighted by a Finals rematch between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors. The defending champion Warriors continued their dream season embarrassing the Cavs 132-98. Reigning MVP Steph Curry had 35 points for the Warriors, outplaying Cavs’ Kyrie Irving (held to eight points) who might want to revisit Uncle Drew for some more moves.
Another notable MLK game saw the Los Angeles Clippers, winners of 12 in a row, defeat the Houston Rockets in overtime 140-132. The Clippers are winning despite playing without injured star Blake Griffin. Luckily, fellow all-star and assist guru Chris Paul has picked up the slack and ranks second in the league in assists.
Home sweet home…The red-hot San Antonio Spurs have won 11 in a row and own the league’s second best record. In a potential Finals preview, the Spurs beat the Cleveland Cavaliers Thursday and have won 33 straight home games (24-0 at home this season).
Remember at TINK Sports we watch the games so you don’t have to.
See you next time…
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