NASCARSprint Cup: The
Auto Club 500 in
Fontana, California is red-flagged twice due to hazardous conditions from a combination of rain and water seepage at the track, and finally halted after 87 of 250 laps. The race will resume on Monday.
Final:
Houston Dynamo 1 – 6
Gamba OsakaBaré showed dominance over North America's premier league, scoring four goals and carrying the J. League side to the PPC title.
Third-Place Game:
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 – 1
Sydney FCThe Galaxy got revenge on Sydney for their earlier friendly loss, with
David Beckham assisting on both L.A. goals.
In a showdown between the two top-ranked teams in the country
in Memphis, second-ranked
Tennessee beats top-ranked
Memphis 66–62. The result ends the Tigers' regular-season winning streak at 45 games and their home winning streak at 47, and will almost certainly elevate the Volunteers to No. 1 for the first time in school history.
The only other game today to feature two ranked teams, the showpiece of
ESPN's annual BracketBusters event, sees
Drake (#16
AP, No. 18
Coaches) travel to
Indianapolis and surprise
Butler (#8 in both polls) 71–64. This is Drake's first win over a top-10 team since 1982.
At the other end of the men's
Division I spectrum,
NJIT loses 76–50 to
Utah Valley, completing an 0–29 season. This sets a new Division I record for losses in a winless season.
Indiana announces that it has reached an agreement with its head coach,
Kelvin Sampson, that effectively terminates him after a series of scandals became public during the week. Under terms of the deal, IU will pay Sampson $750,000: in return, he resigns and agrees not to pursue any further legal action. His assistant,
Dan Dakich, takes over as interim head coach.
Three-Point Shootout:
Jason Kapono of the Raptors defended his three-point shootout championship as he scored 25 points to tie the record set by
Craig Hodges in the 1986 contest.
Commissioner
David Stern says that he expects the
Seattle SuperSonics to move to
Oklahoma City, either after this season or when the team's lease at
KeyArena expires in 2010. He also states that while he is interested in expanding the league to Europe, the league has no plans for such a move at this time, contrary to a report by Sports Illustrated.
(AP via ESPN)
Sports Illustrated, citing an unnamed league source, reports that
NBA commissioner
David Stern will announce during the upcoming
All-Star Weekend that the league plans in the next decade to create a European division with five teams.
(SI.com)
In the final game of the
NFL season, the
NFC beats the
AFC 42–30 behind two touchdowns apiece from
Adrian Peterson and
Terrell Owens. Peterson is named the game's MVP, becoming only the second rookie (after
Marshall Faulk in 1995) so honored.
During their march to the crown, New Zealand set an all-time record with 35 consecutive match wins in the
IRB Sevens World Series by defeating Kenya in the Cup semifinals. They took their record to 36 by winning the Cup. They are also the first team ever to win the first four tournaments of an IRB Sevens season.
The Indomitable Lions eject the Black Stars from their own competition, through
Alain Nkong's 71st-minute goal, but Lions will be without
André Bikey in Sunday's final following his red card.
Bob Knight, the winningest coach in
NCAA men's
Division I history with 902 career wins, unexpectedly resigns as head coach at
Texas Tech, effective immediately. His son and designated successor,
Pat, takes over.
(ESPN)
With a fierce defense led by defensive linemen
Michael Strahan and
Justin Tuck and a productive final drive fueled by wide receiver
David Tyree, the Giants shock the heavily favored and previously unbeaten Patriots and become World Champions. After three quarters dominated by defensive play, New England goes ahead, 14–10, on a
Tom Brady touchdown pass to
Randy Moss with 2:42 left. The Giants reach striking range on
a circus catch by the little-used Tyree, setting up the game-winning touchdown pass from quarterback
Eli Manning to a wide-open
Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds left in the game. Manning finishes 19-for-34 for 255 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Even though many observers consider Tuck to be more deserving, Manning is selected
Most Valuable Player. With the upset, the
1972 Miami Dolphins remain the only NFL team to complete a season undefeated from opening regular season game to the Super Bowl.
With 97.5 million viewers, Super Bowl XLII is the most-watched Super Bowl in history, and the second-most watched television event in American television history.
[2]
In college football's final post-season game,
Erick Jackson of the
Texas Longhorns returned a 50-yard fumble for a touchdown that helped the Texas squad obtain victory over the Nation all-stars.
Memphis 70,
UTEP 64 – The No. 1 team in the country survives a scare from the Miners.
Chris Douglas-Roberts had 24 points and 7 rebounds, while UTEP star
Stefon Jackson had 27 in the loss.
Georgetown 73,
Seton Hall 61 – The Pirates' five-game winning streak is ended by the No. 6 Hoyas.
Jessie Sapp led the team with 17 points.