The Seawanhaka Sports Rundown is a weekly roundup of five stories that examine developments in sports news at the local, state, national, and international levels.
By: ANTHONY NOSOFF / STAFF REPORTER
LIU Sharks Win First Ever NEC Men’s Volleyball Conference Match
The LIU Sharks men’s volleyball team made a historic triumph over the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights on Friday. With a straight sweep in three sets, with scores of 25-19, 25-14, and 25-21, the Sharks secured the first-ever men’s volleyball conference game win of the newly-added volleyball to the Northeast Conference (NEC). This comes after the NEC made the decision to sponsor men’s volleyball for the first time in the 2023 season. The Sharks then followed up with another conference game win against Saint Francis University (SFU), coming back from a 2-1 SFU lead to win in five sets, 3-2. With a perfect 2-0 home series record, the Sharks will go on to play at Hawaii on Feb. 22.
MLB Spring Training Begins
MLB teams are off to Florida and Arizona for spring training pre-season games. These games will prepare the teams for the upcoming season commencing at the end of March. The 30 teams are split into the western Cactus and the eastern Grapefruit leagues, playing in stadiums across Arizona and Florida, respectively. Games begin on Friday, Feb. 24 with two Cactus League games in Arizona: Texas Rangers vs Kansas City Royals, and Seattle Mariners vs San Diego Padres. All 30 MLB teams will play in Cactus and Grapefruit League games on Saturday, Feb. 25. Some games will also feature World Baseball Classic teams on March 8 and 9.
Team LeBron Defeated at the NBA All-Star Game
After a high-scoring affair, Team Giannis beat Team LeBron, 184-175, at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game, which was played on Feb. 19 at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics won MVP honors after scoring a record-breaking 55 points for Team Giannis. The game also marks LeBron James’ 20th-consecutive All-Star game appearance, as well as the end of James’ five-game win streak as an NBA All-Star Game captain. Despite the multitudes of exciting flash plays, Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone was fed up with the lack of defense in the game, going as far as to giving the game the title of “worst basketball game ever played.”
The Champions League Returns for the Round of 16
The Champions League has returned for its round of 16 first leg games, which began last Tuesday, Feb. 14, and will continue through Wednesday, Feb. 22. So far, on Feb. 14, AC Milan won against Tottenham 1-0 thanks to a goal from Zlatan Ibrahimovic, while Bayern Munich also won against Paris Saint Germain 1-0 with a strike from Kingsley Coman. On Feb. 15, Borussia Dortmund beat Chelsea 1-0 with a stunning solo goal from Karim Adeyemi. The second leg games of round 16 will take place on March 7-15, with some teams facing uphill battles to overturn their deficits and others hope to hold on to their advantages.
Talks To Keep Giants QB Daniel Jones Go Awry
The Giants are off to a rocky start with negotiations to re-sign quarterback Daniel Jones. After having a breakout season in 2022, Jones led the Giants to their first playoff appearance since 2016. The dual-threat quarterback is set to become a free agent in 2023, unless he signs a long-term contract extension with the Giants or gets franchise-tagged by them. However, with Jones recently switching agents, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk says Jones wants “possibly as much as $45 million per year, or more,” unwilling to take current Giants offers. The Giants’ potential spending on Jones may affect their ability to re-sign other key players, such as running back Saquon Barkley.
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