🏒 Oil Spill

It’s Wednesday! We have another short letter for you today, as our team of football gurus has spent the past 72 hours in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to prepare for Sunday. While they begin the meticulous process of crafting the perfect Super Bowl preview, we'll focus on the sports that were in action last night. The Oilers looked to make history in Vegas. The Tar Heels tumbled against the Tigers. Kyrie lit up an ex-flame in Brooklyn. And the Knicks got back on track — but at what cost?! You’re about to find out. Let’s roll!

WTF Stat: Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes has a 10-3 career record in games when Kansas City is the underdog. Additionally, Mahomes is 11-1-1 against the spread (ATS) when Kansas City is the underdog - the Chiefs are currently 2.5-point dogs for Sunday’s game.

🏀 76ers C Joel Embiid underwent successful surgery to address a lateral meniscus injury in his left knee and will be re-evaluated in four weeks - having already missed 15 games this season, Embiid’s four-week absence will make him ineligible for a second straight MVP award, which requires a minimum of 65 games played

🏀 Hawks PG Trae Young and Raptors F Scottie Barnes will replace Embiid and injured Knicks F Julius Randle (shoulder) in the 2024 All-Star Game - Young and Barnes were named as Eastern Conference team replacements by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver

⚾️ Astros signed 2B Jose Altuve to a 5-year, $125M extension that won’t take effect until 2025 and will carry him through his age-39 season - Altuve, an eight-time All-Star, has spent his entire career with Houston and won two World Series titles

⚾️ Dodgers and SP Clayton Kershaw agreed to a new 1-year contract that includes a player option for 2025 - Kershaw, 35, is rehabbing from major shoulder surgery and won’t return until later this summer

📺 ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery announced plans to launch a sports streaming platform in the fall that will include offerings from at least 15 networks and all four major North American professional sports leagues - also known as “Cable TV”

NHL - Top Games

• Vegas Golden Knights 3, Edmonton Oilers 1: All good things must come to an end. Entering the night on a 16-game heater, the Oilers were one victory shy of tying the 1992-93 Penguins for the longest winning streak in NHL history, and Connor McDavid (1 G) gave them an early lead with a shorthanded goal in the 1st period. But Vegas’ goaltender Adin Hill (30 SV) settled in, and Nicolas Roy (1 G) tied the game later in the 1st before Chandler Stephenson (1 G) and William Karlsson (1 G) finished off the job in the 3rd, as the Knights ended Edmonton’s incredible run - the Oilers’ 16-game win streak is the second-longest in league history

• Philadelphia Flyers 2, Florida Panthers 1: Cates downs the Cats! The Flyers started the second half of their season with a big dub over Carter Veghaeghe (1 G) and the Panthers as Noah Cates (1 G) scored the go-ahead gino early in the 3rd period to snap his 22-game goal drought and halt Philly’s five-game skid

• New Jersey Devils 5, Colorado Avalanche 3: Colorado’s Cole Makar (1 G) and Samuel Girard (1 G) scored back-to-back goals in 29 seconds to tie the game midway through the 3rd period, but John Marino (1 G) retained the lead for New Jersey with 2:17 remaining, and Erik Haula (1 G) added an empty-netter to give the Devs a well-earned victory at home - Vitek Vanecek (35 SV) made some big stops for New Jersey

• Calgary Flames 4, Boston Bruins 1: The Bruins were scheduled to return from the All-Star break last night but failed to show up as Jonathan Huberdeau (1 G, 2 A), Nazem Kadri (3 A), and the Flames roasted Boston on their home ice to climb above .500 - Boston (31-10-9) still leads the NHL in points with 71, while Calgary (23-22-5) is sixth in the Pacific Division with 51

See the full box scores here and the current NHL standings here.

College Basketball - Top Games

• NCAAM | Clemson 80, #3 North Carolina 76: The Tar Heels got a huge win on Saturday against rival Duke, but — coupled with last week’s loss to Georgia Tech — have now dropped two of their last three games as PJ Hall (25 PTS, 9 REB) and Clemson recovered from blowing a 16-point lead in the first half to stun Armando Bacot (24 PTS, 13 REB) and company at the Dean Dome, giving the Tigers a massive resume-booster after a pair of recent one-point losses to Virginia and Duke - at 15-7, Clemson is eighth in the ACC and considered a bubble team for the NCAA tournament

• NCAAM | #13 Baylor 79, #23 Texas Tech 73: Baylor notched their second ranked win in a row as RayJ Dennis (21 PTS, 5 AST) and seven-foot freshman Yves Missi (17 PTS, 7 REB) helped the Bears pull away down the stretch to top Joe Toussaint (18 PTS, 6 AST) and Texas Tech in Waco, marking the Red Raiders’ third consecutive loss - Baylor (17-5) will visit Allen Fieldhouse this Saturday for a date with No. 4 Kansas

• NCAAM | #14 Iowa State 70, Texas 65: In another Big 12 brawl, Tamin Lipsey (12 PTS, 7 REB, 5 AST) and the Cyclones bounced back from Saturday’s loss at Baylor by picking up a wire-to-wire road victory against Dylan Disu (28 PTS, 10 REB) and the Longhorns, who managed to cut a 17-point deficit to just three with 2:59 left but couldn’t pull it out - Texas (15-8) is 4-6 in their last 10 games

• NCAAW | #21 Creighton 77, Xavier 46: Mackayla Scarlett (26 PTS, 5 REB, 5 STL) was the lone bright in what has become another nightmare season for Xavier, as Crieghton ran the Musketeers off the floor to keep them winless in Big East play while dropping their overall record to 1-19 - Xavier went 0-20 in Big East play last season, and their last conference win came against Butler on Feb. 20, 2022

See the full men’s scoreboard here and the current rankings here. See the full women’s scoreboard here and the current rankings here.

NBA - Top Games

• New York Knicks 123, Memphis Grizzlies 113: Donte DiVincenzo (32 PTS, 5 REB, 5 AST) and Jalen Brunson (27 PTS, 8 AST, 3 STL) were cooking, and the Knicks never trailed to improve to 16-3 over their last 19 games. However, the victory came with a price, as Brunson rolled his ankle late in the 4th quarter and did not return - New York HC Tom Thibodeau did not provide any injury updates on Brunson after the game, and New York is still without Julius Randle (shoulder), OG Anunoby (elbow), and a handful of rotation players

• Dallas Mavericks 119, Brooklyn Nets 107: Exactly one year after being traded to Dallas, Kyrie Irving (36 PTS, 6-10 3PT, 5 AST) made his return to Brooklyn and silenced the boobirds with a masterful scoring display, while Luka Doncic (35 PTS, 18 REB, 9 AST) put up more video game-like numbers to lead the Mavs past Mikal Bridges (28 PTS, 4 AST) and the Nets - Kyrie threw down a nasty one-handed alley-oop to give Dallas a 24-point lead in the 3rd quarter

• Phoenix Suns 114, Milwaukee Bucks 106: The Bucks are now 1-4 since hiring HC Doc Rivers to replace the fired Adrian Griffin, as the Suns’ big three of Devin Booker (32 PTS, 4 AST), Kevin Durant (28 PTS, 10 REB), and Bradley Beal (25 PTS) overpowered Giannis Antetokounmpo (34 PTS, 10 REB, 6 AST) and the Deer in the Valley - Phoenix is 11-3 since Jan. 10, and Bucks F Khris Middleton (6 PTS, 3 REB) left the game in the 1st quarter with a sprained ankle 

• Chicago Bulls 129, Minnesota Timberwolves 123 (OT): The Timberwolves’ late-game woes are no longer a minor fault; they’re a serious problem. Coby White (33 PTS, 5 REB, 7 AST) and Chicago trailed by 22 points at the half and were down 12 early in the 4th quarter but came storming back to steal one from Anthony Edwards (38 PTS, 12 REB, 5 AST) and Minnesota in overtime - the T-Wolves (35-16) are ranked 27th in 4th-quarter offensive efficiency since Dec. 9

See the full NBA scoreboard here and the current standings here.

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What was the average cost of a 30-second ad spot for this year’s Super Bowl?

A. $3 million

B. $5 million

C. $7 million

D. $9 million

On February 7, 2010, the Saints beat the Colts, 31-17, to win Super Bowl 44 in Miami, Florida. Seeking his second ring in four years, Peyton Manning led Indianapolis to an NFL-best 14-2 record in the regular season before cruising through the playoffs. On the other side, Drew Brees and New Orleans finished the regular season at 13-3 and were coming off an overtime victory over Brett Favre and the Vikings in the NFC Championship. It was the Saints' first Super Bowl appearance in 43 years as an NFL team, coming just under five years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. It was also the first time since Super Bowl 28 that the game featured both conferences' No. 1 seeds. After a slow first two quarters, Indianapolis entered the break leading 10-6, but the game’s momentum shifted when the Saints recovered a surprise onside kick to begin the second half. The recovery led to a Pierre Thomas touchdown, and after Joseph Addai responded with six for Indy, the Saints scored 18 unanswered points, capped by Tracy Porter's 74-yard pick-six to clinch the victory. Drew Brees (32/39, 228 YDS, 2 TDs) won the game's MVP, and not only did the win mark the Saints' first Super Bowl title, but it was also the first major league championship for the state of Louisiana - fun fact: this was the last Super Bowl with a uniquely designed logo... SAD!!! Bring them back, Roger!

NBA

• Golden State Warriors @ Philadelphia 76ers 7:30pm ET, ESPN

• Atlanta Hawks @ Boston Celtics 7:30pm ET, Local

• New Orleans Pelicans @ Los Angeles Clippers 10:00pm ET, ESPN

• Full Schedule

NHL

• Dallas Stars @ Toronto Maple Leafs 7:00pm ET, NHLPP / ESPN+

• Tampa Bay Lightning @ New York Rangers 7:00pm ET, TNT

• Minnesota Wild @ Chicago Blackhawks 9:30pm ET, TNT

College Basketball

• NCAAM: #16 Alabama @ #12 Auburn 7:00pm ET, ESPN2

• NCAAM: #11 Wisconsin @ Michigan 7:00pm ET, BTN

• NCAAM: Notre Dame @ #9 Duke 9:00pm ET, ACCN

• NCAAM: Full Schedule

• NCAAW: Seton Hall @ #11 UConn 7:00pm ET, Local

• NCAAW: TCU @ #24 Oklahoma 7:00pm ET, ESPN+

• NCAAW: Full Schedule

Grab $20 off tickets to your favorite games, concerts and events using code TORCH20 at Vivid Seats - Promo is for first-time buyers and orders over $200!

Trivia Time Answer

C. $7 million. For the second consecutive year, the average cost of a 30-second ad spot during the Super Bowl was $7 million. Ten years ago, the average cost of a 30-second spot was $4 million, and ten years before that, it was $2.4 million. CBS, which will broadcast Sunday’s game, sold out its ad spots in a matter of weeks in November.

Prime Lock of the Day

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Chargers hired Michigan DC Jesse Minter as their next defensive coordinator, marking the third Wolverines assistant (DL coach Mike Elston, strength coach Justin Tress) to join Jim Harbaugh in Los Angeles.