The Sportsletter - Calming the Storm ⛈️

BY JEFF YODER

FEB. 26, 2024 |  SUBSCRIBE  |  WEB VIEW

Welcome Back 👋

It was a busy sports weekend with too many stories to snap-shot in today’s edition — an NBA mini-brawl, NHL win streaks, the MLS return and more top-10 upsets in college hoops. We’ll cover a little bit of everything in short links near the bottom, but one weekend story keeps reverberating as we get closer to March (Madness).

Please remain in your seats…

Letter Rip!

  NCAA  

Calming the Storm ⛈️

Photo: Grant Halverson / Getty Images

Debates Rage Across Sports World After Wake Forest Court-Storming Injures Duke’s Kyle Filipowski

Monday morning’s biggest story from the weekend took place "inside the lines" but after the buzzer on Saturday night. It wasn’t during gameplay, but still on the playing surface, and it's been a source of controversy in recent years. You’ve probably seen it everywhere by now — the court-storming catastrophe that injured Duke's Kyle Filipowski. The calls for action are getting louder, and they reach ear-blasting decibel levels when these events impact star players like Filipowski or Iowa’s Caitlin Clark — arguably two of the best players in college basketball. Court-storming may soon be a thing of the past after what happened Saturday in Winston Salem.

ICYMI, Here’s What Happened

Wake Forest fans stormed the court Saturday night at LJVM Coliseum after the Demon Deacons upset 8th-ranked Duke (83-79). It was another top-10 takedown in a year of crazy upsets, but that’s not the story here. Duke sophomore Kyle Filipowski was at center court when the buzzer sounded, attempting to walk toward Duke’s bench when he and a fan collided. Filipowski appeared to suffer a knee or ankle injury from the incident. A student manager came to his aid and shielded him from the rush of fans. Filipowski is Duke’s leading scorer (16.9 ppg) and rebounder (8.2 reb), and he’s projected to be a top-10 pick should he declare for the NBA Draft this year. Several slow-motion videos make it look like Filipowski could be faulted for extending his arms, but he’s (most likely) reacting to the oncoming contact. Some Wake Forest fans were clearly taunting him, too.

“I’m more concerned about the well-being of our guys… When are we gonna ban court storming? When are we gonna ban that? How many times does a player have to get into something where they get punched or they get pushed or they get taunted right in their face? It’s a dangerous thing.” — Duke Head Coach Jon Scheyer

Calming the Storm ⛈️

The aftermath of the event sent a shockwave through college sports. One month ago, Iowa’s Caitlin Clark was clipped by a fan after an upset at Ohio State. That’s two of the game’s biggest stars in dangerous post-game incidents just before March Madness. Major injuries could've been a devastating outcome that would've demanded change. Lucky for the NCAA, the lack of a “home-court advantage” and upset etiquette in the NCAA Tournament doesn’t lend itself to fans rushing the courts at neutral-site games. Storming the court (or the field in football) has been a collegiate tradition for decades, but it carries a dangerous element for athletes caught in the chaos. Banning court-storming appears to be the next major change coming to college athletics.

📊 Poll: Should the NCAA ban storming the court? (click to vote)

Yes | No

Read More

CBS Sports: Who Initiated Contact: Filipowski or Wake Fans?

ESPN: Injuries Intensify College Basketball’s Court Storming Debate

Yahoo! Sports: Don’t Expect College Hoops’ Court-Storming Problem to Get Fixed

NCAA Basketball Highlights

Men

Zach Edey Drops 35 as #3 Purdue Tops Michigan (84-76)

St. John’s Stuns #15 Creighton After Pitino’s Rant (80-66)

#2 Houston Holds Off #11 Baylor in Overtime (82-76, OT)

#17 Kentucky Beats #13 Alabama in Shootout (117-95)

Women

Juju Watkins (42) Fuels #7 USC Over #11 Colorado (87-81)

Duke Women Upset #6 NC State (69-58)

Caitlin Clark Notches 16th Triple-Double in Iowa’s Win

*Needs 51 Points to Break Pete Maravich’s All-Time NCAA Record (3,667 Points)

  NFL  

NFL Raises the Cap 💰

Photo: Jacob Kupferman / Getty Images

NFL Increases Salary Cap $30.6 Million to $255.4 Million (Per Team) in 2024

The best news of the weekend for NFL teams, fans and players (heck, everybody!) was the league’s announcement of the new salary cap number. The NFL announced on Friday that the 2024 season cap will rise $30.6 million per team to a whopping $255.4 million. That’s a record-setting 13.6 percent increase over last year’s cap, by far the most the league has ever seen year over year. Most teams had positioned themselves for an expected increase into the $240-245 million range. The beauty here is that everyone's a winner.

The Big(gest) Winners

Franchises struggling to keep an expensive core roster together just got a huge boost. And if that's your team, you're happy, too. That includes teams like the Buccaneers — trying to salvage contracts for WR Mike Evans and QB Baker Mayfield — or teams like the 49ers, Eagles and Ravens preparing to try and keep rosters with upcoming high-contract demands. Plenty of other teams just found themselves in position to make a run at free agents who they might've previously considered to be too expensive. The other big winner? Anyone who’s about to be a free agent. Cuh-ching!

Reasons for the Major Increase

Part of the reasoning for the massive increase in 2024 is because the league has paid back player benefits deferred in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The NFL spent the 2021-22 seasons recovering the 2020 losses. Now, they’re free of those recovery years, and the 2023 media revenue went through the roof. So all of the Peacock paywalls and Amazon Prime games could've just helped your team land a better free-agent. Pros and cons, I guess.

Read More

CBS Sports: NFL Salary Cap Skyrockets to $255.4 Million for 2024 Season

Forbes: $30 Million Salary Cap Increase Gives Added Meaning to FA Signings

Yahoo! Sports: League Executives Weigh In on What NFL Salary Cap Increase Really Means

  HIGHLIGHTS   🎥

🏀 NBA

Bucks def. 76ers (119-98)

*Doc Rivers Wins in Return to Philly

Nuggets def. Warriors (119-103)

*Nikola Jokic Notches 32-16-16 Triple Double

Magic def. Pistons (112-109)

*Paolo Banchero Hits Incredible Game-Winner

🏒 NHL

Red Wings def. Blackhawks (3-2, OT)

*Patrick Kane Hits OT Winner in Chicago Reunion

Maple Leafs def. Avalanche (4-3)

*Tyler Bertuzzi’s Hat Trick Earns TOR 7th Straight

Predators def. Ducks (4-2)

*Nashville Wins 5th Straight to Rejoin Playoff Race

⚽️ Soccer

EFL: Liverpool def. Chelsea (1-0) in Cup Final

*Virgil Van Dijk’s Late Header (118’) Wins It

MLS: Inter Miami draw LA Galaxy (1-1)

*Lionel Messi Levels Score in 92nd Minute

Gold Cup: USWNT def. Argentina (4-0)

*Jaedyn Shaw (2), Alex Morgan & Lindsey Horan Score

⚾️ MLB Spring Training

Juan Soto Blasts Moonshot in Yankees Exhibition Debut

⛳️ PGA Tour

Rookie Jason Knapp Wins Mexico Open (-19) After 11 Birdies in Round 3

  STORYLINES   

🏀 The Heat-Pelicans Brawl Fallout

A scuffle broke out in Friday’s Heat-Pelicans game after Kevin Love committed a hard foul on Zion Williamson. Jimmy Buter and Naji Marshall got into it. Five players received suspensions, but no one was severely injured. (Sporting News)

⛳️ 'The Match 9' Tees Off Today

The ninth rendition of ‘The Match’ tees off tonight (6:30 pm ET) at West Palm Beach’s The Park course with four superstar golfers in the spotlight. Rory McIlroy, Max Homa, Rose Zhang and Lexi Thompson headline the event. (Bleacher Report)

🏈 NFL Combine Players to Watch

A total of 321 players are invited to this year's NFL combine with player interviews and medical evaluations beginning today. The action on the field starts on Feb. 29 as scouts and coaching staffs drill prospects ahead of April's NFL Draft. (DAZN)

  NEWS   📰 

• Chicago Cubs Re-Sign Cody Bellinger to 3-Year, $80 Million Contract (Yahoo! Sports)

• UCLA to Hire Eric Bieniemy as Offensive Coordinator (The Athletic)

• Former NFL Player Richard Sherman Arrested on Suspicion of DUI (ESPN)
• PSG’s Kylian Mbappe Booed at Home in Draw With Rennes (CBS Sports)
• Jen Pawol Becomes 1st Woman to Umpire Spring Training Game Since 2007 (FOX Sports)
• Hawks’ Trae Young to Undergo Finger Surgery, Out At Least 4 Weeks (B/R)
• Eagles WR A.J. Brown Calls Out Rumors on Philly Radio Show: ‘I Want to be Here’ (ESPN)
• Former Cowboys Receiver Golden Richards, Known for Famous Super Bowl Catch, Dies at 73 (AP)
• Ex-NFL MVP Cam Newton Involved in Fight at Georgia Youth Football Camp (USA Today)

  SCHEDULE   🗓️

Today's Must-Watch List

⛳️ Golf

The Match 9 (6:30 pm ET, TNT)

⚽️ Concacaf Gold Cup

USWNT vs. Mexico (10:15 pm ET, Paramount+)

🏀 NBA

Raptors at Pacers (7:00 pm ET, NBATV)

Heat at Kings (10:00 pm ET, NBATV)

🏒 NHL

Islanders at Stars (8:00 pm ET, NHLN)
Kings at Oilers (9:30 pm ET, ESPN+)

🏀 NCAA Basketball

M: Miami at #10 N. Carolina (7:00 pm ET, ESPN)

M: #11 Baylor at TCU (9:00 pm ET, ESPN)

W: #11 Colorado at #12 UCLA (9:00 pm ET, ESPN2)

  THE TEAM  

Writer & Editor: Jeff Yoder

Lead Designer: Joe Stella

Assistant Writer: Marissa Kasch

Social Media: Aaron Yorke

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