Month: May 2023

The Badgers will have a chance at redemption under the lights at Washington State

The Badgers will have a chance at redemption under the lights at Washington State

The early slate schedule for Wisconsin football’s 2023 season was released on Wednesday, and the Badgers are set for a night game against Washington State on September 9.

To raise the stakes even more, the matchup will be played on ABC. Kickoff is set for 6:30 PM CT at the home of the Cougars.

Last season, Washington State came into Camp Randall and started the beginning of the end for the Paul Chryst tenure in Madison. The Cougars took down the Badgers 17-14 in a game where Wisconsin couldn’t get any offensive rhythm going.

Wisconsin will have a chance to bounce back on September 9.

2023 Lakers draft prospect profile: Adam Flagler

A look at Adam Flagler, a guard from Baylor University.

The Los Angeles Lakers will have the opportunity to add young talent to their roster in an inexpensive way in the 2023 NBA draft.

Fans are focusing most of their attention on the fact the Lakers will have the No. 17 pick in this year’s draft. That pick has the potential to yield a serviceable player, if not a good player, for the team.

But Los Angeles also has the No. 47 selection in the draft, and the team has had some success finding gems late in the draft in recent years.

One prospect they have brought in for a workout that they could use that pick on is Adam Flagler, a guard from Baylor University.

Big Ten Conference announces several Rutgers Football 2023 game times

On Wednesday, Rutgers football received game times for seven contests from the Big Ten Conference and its television partners.

On Wednesday, Rutgers football received game times for seven contests from the Big Ten Conference and its television partners.

Rutgers kicks their 2023 football season off on Sunday, September 3, at noon against Northwestern. The season opener will be a nationally televised conference matchup on CBS against the Wildcats at SHI Stadium. Also, the season opener versus Northwestern will mark the first time the Scarlet Knights open with a home Big Ten game.

[lawrence-related id=26783]

In September, three of the four home games were announced game times for the Scarlet Knights. On September 9, the Scarlet Knights will host Temple at 7:30 p.m., and on September 16 at 3:30 p.m.will host Virginia Tech. The Big Ten Network will provide television coverage for these two home matchups.

Rutgers’ annual Homecoming and Family game is scheduled for October 14 at noon when the Scarlet Knights host Michigan State at SHI Stadium.

[lawrence-related id=27066]

Also, three road contests were provided game times on Wednesday, with the first being Rutgers-Michigan at noon on September 23. On October 7, the Scarlet Knights will travel to Madison to take on Wisconsin for a game that will kick off at noon or 3:30/4 p.m. For their third road game of the 2023 season, the Scarlet Knights will travel to Indiana to take on the Hoosiers on October 21 at noon.

The game times and television designations for all the remaining games will be decided during the season.

[lawrence-related id=22726]

Jordan Walsh not returning to Arkansas, remaining in 2023 NBA Draft

Arkansas freshman forward Jordan Walsh has finally made his decision on whether or not he’ll return to Fayetteville next season.

[autotag]Jordan Walsh[/autotag] will forego his remaining collegiate eligibility and stay in the 2023 NBA Draft. His decision was first reported by Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype and confirmed by many others shortly after.

Walsh’s decision should come as no surprise and happens nearly two months after he originally announced he would enter the draft process.

In his lone season with the Razorbacks, Walsh averaged averaged 7.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.1 steals, shot 43.3 percent from the field and but only 27.8 percent from 3. The former McDonald’s All-American struggled to consistently produce throughout the season, but found a groove towards the end of the year.

Walsh’s draft stock has continued to rise following his freshman season with Arkansas. He was able to put together an impressive NBA Draft Combine two weeks ago, even being named one of the top performers by NBA.com.

The latest mock draft from the Athletic’s Sam Vecenie has Walsh going at No. 48 to the Los Angeles Clippers. ESPN’s latest mock draft has the Charlotte Hornets selecting Walsh at No. 39.

Arkansas basketball currently has one roster spot open for next season.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=130]

Grace Lyons wins Gold Glove Award and 5 Sooners named NFCA All-Americans

Grace Lyons wins Gold Glove Award and five Sooners named NFCA first-team All-Americans.

The Oklahoma Sooners dominated the national awards in softball with five Sooners named NFCA first-team All-Americans. Additionally, Grace Lyons won the Rawlings Gold Glove Award as the best defensive player in Division I.

Grace Lyons is a five-year starter at shortstop for the Sooners and has been great in the infield throughout her career. She has started 256 games for the Sooners, all at shortstop, and holds a single-season career-best .975 fielding percentage in 2023. Lyons has helped turn 11 double plays and has committed just three errors during her fifth and final season with Oklahoma.

Lyons collects OU’s first Rawling Gold Glove Award in program history. The award was introduced to collegiate softball in 2022.

[autotag]Jordy Bahl[/autotag], [autotag]Alyssa Brito[/autotag], [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Kinzie Hansen[/autotag], and [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] were named NFCA first-team All-Americans. Brito was one of six unanimous selections to the first-team.

It’s the second year in a row that Oklahoma’s had five first-team All-Americans and the 10th season out of the last 11 where they’ve had three first-team All-Americans.

The Sooners (56-1) open their seventh straight Women’s College World Series Thursday at 1:30 p.m. CT versus No. 9-seed Stanford (45-13). They look to keep their record-breaking 48-game winning streak intact. 

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=683578888]

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jake on Twitter @jake_faigus

Where UNC WR Devontez Walker ranks in ACC

UNC football wide receiver Devontez Walker was named a player at his position in the ACC.

North Carolina’s offense will still be led by quarterback Drake Maye in 2023 but will look a little different. The team lost receivers Josh Downs and Antoine Green plus offensive coordinator Phil Longo who went to Wisconsin.

But the Tar Heels also added some talented receivers, headlined by former Kent State standout Devontez Walker. The receiver committed to North Carolina out of the transfer total and should be Maye’s go-to target right away.

As we get set for the upcoming season, College Sports Wire ranked the top wide receivers in the Atlantic Coast Conference. And Walker checked in at No. 4:

Why The Ranking:

There is probably no one happier that Tez joined the team over the offseason than Drake Maye. After losing top wideout Josh Downs to the NFL, the Tar Heels gets a long receiver, who can be a big-play threat down the field. With one of the best QBs in the country under center, Walker should get ample opportunity to show what he is made of. He caught 7 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown against the Georgia Bulldogs last season.

The only players ahead of Walker on the list were Florida State’s Johnny Wilson, Virginia Tech’s Ali Jennings and Louisville’s Jamar Thrash.

Walker is coming off a big season in 2022, catching 58 passes for 921 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.

Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.

Notre Dame alumnus gets biggest coaching deal in NBA history

What a boatload of cash.

After being unceremoniously let go as Phoenix Suns coach, it seemed like only a matter of time before [autotag]Monty Williams[/autotag] landed on his feet. He’s landed and then some. Sources have informed Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN that the Notre Dame alumnus is agreeing to a six-year, $78 million contract to coach the Detroit Pistons. It’s the largest deal ever for an NBA coach.

During this year’s playoffs, Williams coached a team with two future Hall of Famers in Kevin Durant and Chris Paul as well as one of the NBA’s best young stars in Deandre Ayton. Now, he’ll head to the Motor City to lead a team with nowhere to go but up. The Pistons finished with the NBA’s worst record in 2022-23 but didn’t even receive a top-four pick in the draft lottery.

While Williams has his work cut out for him, he does have a few building blocks. Among them are 2021 top overall pick Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey, son of Irish women’s coach [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag]. Here’s hoping he gets the Pistons back to respectability before too long. The pressure certainly is on with all the money he’s about to make.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Bengals win Super Bowl, Joe Burrow MVP in new SI projections

Bengals fans will like this one.

[connatix div_id=”3f8b015acdd24c648befc5d5dac47469″ player_id=”afe1e038-d3c2-49c0-922d-6511a229f69c” cid=”7cbcea0d-4ce2-4c75-9a8d-fbe02a192c24″]

It feels like Super Bowl-or-bust mode for the Cincinnati Bengals during the 2023 season.

So good news for the team and its fans — Sports Illustrated projects the Bengals to win it all in 2023 while Joe Burrow reels in MVP honors.

Conor Orr explained in his bold predictions project:

The Bengals and the 49ers have, by my estimation, the two rosters that best embody the hallmark of a Super Bowl team: talent and depth at almost every position. The 49ers have enough options at the quarterback position to make sure they aren’t stuck in the title game with Christian McCaffrey in the Wildcat. Deebo Samuel believed this team was better than the Eagles last year, and, even after Philadelphia’s superb draft, I agree that the 49ers have just as strong of a roster.

As for Burrow? Orr projects he leads the Bengals to 13 wins while throwing 40 touchdowns.

In a nice twist for Bengals fans, these are the sorts of projections that will dominate the offseason given the status of the franchise. And indeed, both Cincinnati and San Francisco look like two of the more complete rosters in the league — never mind the fun historical slant of a rematch.

The Bengals winning it all, Burrow taking a friendly contract (that’s in there too) and the star quarterback winning MVP sounds too good to be true, but it’s a testament to the strong roster and program building by Zac Taylor and Co. over the last few years that even projections like this are a thing.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Bengals’ Alex Cappa featured in PFF’s best guard rankings

Bengals G Alex Cappa gets some love in new rankings.

[connatix div_id=”3f8b015acdd24c648befc5d5dac47469″ player_id=”afe1e038-d3c2-49c0-922d-6511a229f69c” cid=”7cbcea0d-4ce2-4c75-9a8d-fbe02a192c24″]

It’s a sign of the times for the Cincinnati Bengals — new offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. was recently ranked as one of the top players at his position.

Now it’s a similar story with guard Alex Cappa, who checks in as the 18th overall guard in the NFL in rankings compiled by Pro Football Focus’ Gordon McGuinness:

A big part of the Bengals’ ongoing offensive line rebuild, Cappa produced a career-high 71.4 PFF pass-blocking grade in 2022. At 28 years old, he’s probably not vaulting himself into the upper echelon of guards in the NFL at this stage of his career but is a more-than-capable starter.

Before anyone scoffs at that 18th ranking being something worth highlighting, it wasn’t too long ago Bengals guards managed to rank outside the 40th slot, if not worse.

In fact, we could make the argument that Cappa was the best lineman for the Bengals last year outright. That he’s returning and should play at a similar level is a good thing considering Brown at left tackle, Cordell Volson blossoming at left guard, Ted Karras at center and Jonah Williams at right tackle.

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Would Myles Turner be a good trade target for the Lakers?

How wise and beneficial would it be for the Lakers to trade for Pacers center Myles Turner?

To improve their roster enough to win another NBA championship, the Los Angeles Lakers can go in a few directions in this offseason.

One direction is moving Anthony Davis back to the starting power forward position and splitting his minutes between the four and five spots. Doing so would, of course, necessitate having a serviceable starting center.

They were able to get the job done in the 2019-20 season with the tag-team duo of JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard, both of whom provided easy baskets via lobs and fast breaks, shot-blocking and rebounding.

In February, the Lakers traded for Mo Bamba, who has the ability to provide all three of those items, as well as reliable 3-point shooting. But he fell out of the rotation after returning from a sprained ankle in early April.

Before acquiring Bamba, there were incessant rumors the Lakers were interested in Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner. Some fans still want to go after him, as well as possibly sharpshooter Buddy Hield, this offseason. That was the big package the team was rumored to be interested in when it kept dangling Russell Westbrook as a trade chip.

Would Turner be worth going after again?