By MATTHEW WOODS
Staff Writer
1. Coach K Reaches 1K
Duke University men’s head basketball coach, Mike Krzyzewski, made history last Sunday. Krzyzewski became the first NCAA men’s basketball coach to win 1,000 career games as the Blue Devils came back from a halftime deficit to defeat St. John’s at Madison Square Garden.
“Coach K” relied on his young freshmen Tyus Jones and Jahlil Okafor who helped the Blue Devils pull away late and secure the milestone win. Jones scored a game high 22 points, while Okafor achieved his sixth double-double this season as he totaled 17 points and snatched 10 rebounds.
“There will be others that win more, but it is kind of neat to be the first one to 1,000,” Krzyzewski said in his postgame press conference. “I’m glad it’s over.”
He improved his overall career record to 1,000-308 and 927-249 in his 35 seasons at Duke, second most by any men’s basketball coach at one school behind only Syracuse coach, Jim Boeheim. He is second on the career wins list in college basketball behind only ex-Tennessee women’s coach, Pat Summit, who has 1,098 victories.
Krzyzewski’s milestone was achieved at two different schools as he began his career at his alma mater, Army in 1975, before being named Duke coach in 1980.
In his illustrious career, Krzyzewski has won four national championships and has 11 Final Four appearances, all at Duke. Krzyzewski overtook his former coach and mentor, Bob Knight, with 903 wins for first place in men’s Division I basketball back in 2011, ironically in the same building as his 1,000th victory; Madison Square Garden.
At 67, who knows how many year Krzyzewski will continue coaching. No matter how long he continues to coach, Krzyzewski will go down as one of the greatest coaches of all-time.
2. Rotator Cuff Costs Kobe Court Time
Lakers star, Kobe Bryant, is officially out for the season after undergoing surgery on his torn right rotator cuff. Bryant will be out 9 months to recover from the surgery and has insisted his career is far from over.
The 37-year old is the highest paid player in the NBA this season at $23.5 million and is due to make $25 million next season.
With the Lakers season being as dismal as it is with a 12-35 record 47 games into the season, it’s probably a good thing that Bryant had the surgery. If the Lakers fall into a top five draft position, they will be able to keep the pick instead of handing it over to the Phoenix Suns as part of the Steve Nash trade from 2012. Obviously, without Bryant in the lineup, they have a better chance of that happening.
With another injury plagued season, just how long does Kobe Bryant have left in the NBA? With his return scheduled just before the start of next season, the rehab process will be very important if Bryant hopes to return to the player he once was.
3. Tiger Troubles
Tiger Woods made his 2015 debut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open this past week. It was the first time Woods had competed in the event since 2001 and where he infamously made a hole-in-one on the par-3 16th hole, otherwise known as the “Stadium Hole,” for its resemblance of a football stadium atmosphere.
Only thing was, it didn’t last very long Woods, as he missed the cut after carding a career worst 82. It’s his 13th career missed cut and his second straight dating back to last year’s PGA Championship. By missing the cut, Woods now falls out of the top 50 in the World Golf Rankings for the first time since November 27th, 2011.
Woods looks to bounce back at Torrey Pines this week, where he has 8 career victories, and then the Honda classic two weeks later. At 39, could Woods be on the final stretch of his career? The next few months will be vital as he looks to get his game back on track.
4. The Phenom is Free to Sign
Perhaps the best prospect you don’t know about, is nearing a leap to the MLB. Yoan Moncada is the prospect many major league teams have their eye on as he has recently been cleared by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
The 19-year old infielder has been highly touted as the best Cuban prospect in the past 30 years, and has been called by many scouts as an “organization changer.” Moncada follows in the footsteps of previous Cuban’s to make the jump to the MLB, including Yoenis Cespedes, Yasiel Puig, and Jose Abreu.
The New York Yankees are the leader in the clubhouse to land Moncada, having held a workout session with him recently. Other teams in the mix include the Red Sox, Dodgers, Brewers, Cardinals, Marlins, and Phillies, but watch out for more teams to show interest.
5. Serena Williams Wins 19th Major Title
Women’s world number one, Serena Williams, won her 19th career Grand Slam title after defeating Maria Sharapova (6-3, 7-6) to win the Australian Open this past weekend. Williams stretched her unbeaten streak to 6-0 in Aussie Open finals appearances.
Throughout the match, Williams relied on her serve to fend off Sharapova runs. After a rain delay in the second set, while Sharapova was beginning to heat up, the roof was closed in Rod Laver Arena, and Williams returned to dominance.
At 33-years old, Williams became the oldest winner of the Australian Open, and moved into second place all-time with 19 career major victories behind only Steffi Graf’s 22 Grand Slam titles.
With three majors left this season, Williams looks to draw closer to Graf’s mark, as she will be the favorite in each major.
