Welcome to Monday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.
MONDAY’S BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
NBA: Magic at Celtics, 7:30 p.m. (CSNNE)
NBA: Spurs at Hornets, 7 p.m. (NBA TV)
NBA: Grizzlies at Suns, 10 p.m. (NBA TV)
NIT: George Washington at Monmouth, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
NIT: Georgia Tech at South Carolina, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
NIT: Washington at San Diego State, 11:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
NHL: Flyers at Islanders, 7:30 p.m. (NBCSN)
MLB preseason: Red Sox at Cardinals, 1:05 p.m. (ESPN)
MLB preseason: White Sox at Indians, 4:05 p.m. (MLB Network)
MLB preseason: Reds at Padres, 10:10 p.m. (MLB Network)
AROUND THE WEB:
— Northern Iowa was poised to produce yet another upset in an NCAA Tournament filled with them, but the Panthers ended up making history for a different reason — the biggest last-minute collapse ever in Division 1.
The 11th-seeded Panthers led third-seeded Texas A&M by 12 points with 44 seconds remaining — and 10 with less than 30 seconds left — before they suddenly could not stop turning over the ball under their own basket.
Texas A&M took advantage and came up with some big baskets to force overtime, then went on to win in double OT.
“We knew it was kind of impossible, man, but we just said that we were going to fight until the end,” said A&M’s Danuel House, who was scoreless with 5:14 remaining in regulation but finished with 22 points.
Said Aggies coach Billy Kennedy: “I’ve never been a part of a game like that, never saw one. [I] still really don’t know what happened.”
Northern Iowa had won its first-round game against Texas on a halfcourt buzzer-beater by Paul Jespersen, but this time the Panthers had no magic, committing four turnovers in the final 44 seconds — the last allowing A&M’s Admon Gilder to score a layup with 1.9 seconds left for the tie. It didn’t help that primary inbounder Matt Bohannon was sitting at the end of the bench after hurting his knee.
“It’s just tough,” Bohannon said. “It’s the NCAA Tournament, though, that’s what happens.”
Meanwhile, as the UNI-A&M game was wrapping up, Wisconsin guard Bronson Koenig delivered a fallaway 3-pointer at the buzzer for a win over Xavier (much to the dismay of actor Bill Murray, whose son is a Xavier assistant coach).
— The director of the women’s tennis tournament at Indian Wells, California, found himself in some hot water after criticizing the WTA Tour and commenting on the looks of the players.
“In my next life when I come back I want to be someone in the WTA because they ride on the coattails of the men, They don’t make any decisions and they are lucky. They are very, very lucky,” BNP Paribas Open director Raymond Moore told reporters after Sunday’s final. “If I was a lady player, I’d go down every night on my knees and thank God that Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal were born, because they have carried this sport.”
Responded top-ranked Serena Williams, who lost in Sunday’s final to Victoria Azarena: “Those remarks are very much mistaken and very, very, very inaccurate. … Obviously I don’t think any woman should be down on their knees thanking anybody like that.”
Said Azarenka: “What women do best is rise above those comments. You don’t hear complaints or bad comments towards men. If we rise above that and keep working hard in everything we do, we’re better. We’re better at taking opportunities and being graceful. It’s our duty to keep just working hard through whatever comments there is. We’ve got to rise above that.”
Moore, a 69-year-old South African, also commented on the looks of some young players, noting, “They are physically attractive and competitively attractive. They can assume the mantle of leadership once Serena decides to stop. They really have quite a few very, very attractive players.”
He later issued a written apology.
“I made comments about the WTA that were in extremely poor taste and erroneous,” he said. “I am truly sorry for those remarks, and apologize to all the players and WTA as a whole. We had a women’s final today that reflects the strength of the players, especially Serena and Victoria, and the entire WTA. Again, I am truly sorry for my remarks.”
— Brewers outfielder Rymer Liriano is recovering after being hit in the face by a pitch from Dodgers reliever Matt West in the eighth inning of Sunday’s spring training game in Phoenix.
The pitch went just under the brim of Liriano’s batting helmet and hit him on the left side of the face. Liriano fell to the ground and rolled around in pain as trainers raced out to assist him. He was strapped to a backboard and taken off the field and to a hospital for testing and observation.
The 24-year-old Dominican made his major league debut in 2014 with the Padres, spent last year in the minors and was traded to the Brewers two months ago.
ON THIS DAY TRIVIA (answer below): On March 21, 1991, the Bruins peppered Quebec Nordiques goalie Ron Tugnutt with 73 shots — 10 short of the NHL record set by the B’s in 1941 — in a 3-3 tie. Which Bruin set an NHL record with 19 shots in the game?
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I think it’s foolish. But it sounds like something somebody who’s never played the game would say, something that they would suggest, because he doesn’t understand. He’s just a face. He’s just a suit. He’s never stepped foot on the field and understood how you can get a personal foul.” — Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, on NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s recommendation that players be ejected for two personal fouls in a game
STAT OF THE DAY: 17 — Consecutive missed shots by the 76ers in the first quarter of Sunday’s 120-105 loss to the Celtics
‘NET RESULTS (mobile users, check the website to see the videos): Kings guard Darren Collison throws up a desperation 3-pointer to beat the shot clock and banks it in.
Confusion reins as Pirates switch-hitter Antoan Richardson can’t figure out with which hand Blue Jays switch-pitcher Pat Venditte plans to pitch to him.
A fan at the Dodgers-Brewers game snags a long foul ball and then takes a victory lap around the concourse.
TRIVIA ANSWER: Ray Bourque
SOOTHING SOUNDS: Russell Thompkins Jr., known for his falsettos leads with the Stylistics, was born on this day in 1951.
