The Bird to your Rapinoe
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Whether you’re spending it with the Bird to your Rapinoe or waiting for tomorrow’s discounted chocolates, thanks for starting this day of love with us and today’s sports news.
— Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, confirming he hasn’t made up his mind about retiring. Who could blame him — there’s no time to think about it when you’re auditioning for the Nacho Libre remake and clubbing with Taylor Swift’s parents.
Caitlin Clark’s record chase
🎓🏀 Records are meant to be broken
The GIST: Eight. More. Points. Barring absolute disaster, No. 4 Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark will break the NCAA women’s basketball career scoring record when her Hawkeyes host Michigan tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET for one of the sport’s most in-demand games ever. Chills already.
Her impact: This hometown girlie put Iowa basketball on the map when she committed in 2019, and the rest is (literally) history. Clark leads the NCAA with a jaw-dropping 32.1 points per game thanks to her lethal jump shot and offensive vision.
- But the Hawkeye senior’s off-court records are even more impressive: She draws consistently astounding attendance and viewership, and her logo threes and swagger dominate social media, inspiring future hoopers left and right. The “Caitlin Clark Effect” is real.
The context: Clark’s currently chasing WNBA star Kelsey Plum’s 3,527-point NCAA record, but she still has a bunch of buckets to go before passing two pre-NCAA trailblazers — Kansas alum Lynette Woodard leads all Division I women with 3,649 points, and Francis Marion alum Pearl Moore holds the overall collegiate record with a mindblowing 4,061 points.
- As discussed on yesterday’s episode of The GIST of It, these barrier-breaking women helped pave the way for Clark’s impending achievement, and giving them their flowers is crucial to celebrating Clark’s soon-to-be NCAA record-breaking bucket.
🍁 On the heels of defenseman Morgan Rielly’s five-game suspension for cross-checking an Ottawa Senators player in the head, the depleted Toronto Maple Leafs squad topped the St. Louis Blues 4–1 last night.
📺 This year’s Super Bowl was the most watched program in the U.S.…ever, averaging 123.4M viewers. Hut, hut, holy sh!t.
🥌 Six-time Canadian curling champion Jennifer Jones announced yesterday that she will be retiring from curling at the end of the season, making this weekend her final Scotties Tournament of Hearts appearance.
🇨🇦 After helping Team Canada women’s basketball qualify for the Paris Olympics over the weekend, Gonzaga star (and Calgary ’s own) Yvonne Ejim was one of 30 players named to the Naismith Trophy Women's College Player of the Year Midseason Team, putting her in the running for the annual award given to the best NCAA basketball player.
🎾 Leylah Annie Fernandez advanced to the Round of 16 at the Qatar Open and is facing 2024 Australian Open finalist world No. 5 Qinwen Zheng as we speak.
⚾ Longtime baseball announcer Jenny Cavnar was named as the Oakland A’s primary play-by-play announcer yesterday, making her the first woman in MLB history to hold the role. Diamonds really are a girl’s best friend.
🏊 Swimmer Ingrid Wilm took home the 100m backstroke bronze medal at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar, yesterday, putting Canada on the podium for a third straight day. Splash.
Together With RBC
🏆 Who wants to be an Olympian?
Do you have a sneaking suspicion that with the right training and resources, you could be an Olympian? Enter: RBC Training Ground, the program that changes young athletes’ lives and discovers Team Canada’s future stars through open tryouts.
- RBC Training Ground breaks down barriers to Olympic glory by matching young athletes with sports they could master, then providing those athletes with resources to make their dream happen.
- Register for a free qualifying event near you, then show ’em what you got.
🏀 NBA: Indiana Pacers vs. Toronto Raptors — Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET — Sportsnet
- The Dinos (specifically Scottie Barnes) have no place to go but up following Monday’s 122–99 rout at the hands of Victor Wembanyama and the otherwise unimpressive San Antonio Spurs. Here’s hoping the fellas keep their heads in the game during former Raptor Pascal Siakam’s first trip to Scotiabank as foe, not friend.
🏒 PWHL: Ottawa vs. Minnesota — Tonight at 8 p.m. ET — TSN+
- Yes, Ottawa’s at the bottom of the standings, but it took overtime for the very good Minnesotans to beat the Canadian squad in January. Anything can happen.
⛳ PGA: Genesis Open — Tomorrow through Sunday — Golf Channel
- Likely clad in his newly minted Sun Day Red, world No. 893 Tiger Woods will make his
New York Fashion Week2024 PGA Tour debut amid a star-studded field that includes world No. 28 Nick Taylor, fresh off his raucous WM Phoenix Open win.
Giveaway Alert
Ready to party? HSBC SVNS is coming back to Vancouver from February 23rd to 25th and we want to give you and a pal a chance to win two elite three-day passes for this rugby-filled weekend.
- Enjoy a VIP experience that includes the best seats in the house, along with access to a private lounge equipped with live game play, a private bar, and the opportunity to interact with the best rugby players in the world.
Prep your costume and enter this contest today. An unforgettable weekend in beautiful B.C. awaits.
Here’s what has GIST HQ buzzing:
💗 Who’s stealing hearts
Joe Montana. The four-time Super Bowl champ used to call his wife from the sidelines just to tell her that he loves her. If he wanted to, he would.
🏈 What to watch
Coach Prime. The six-episode docuseries follows Deion ”Coach Prime” Sanders as he transforms the University of Colorado Boulder’s football program.
📕 What to read
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman. Read along with The GIST on Fable and subscribe to The GIST Book Club’s newsletters to stay in the know.
Question of the Day
Happy love day! Why not revisit some sports rom-coms to celebrate? Vote for your fave from the list below (or reply with what we missed!) then press play on your top flick with some chocolates by your side.
Today’s email was brought to you by Lauren Tuiskula, Alessandra Puccio, Marga Sison, Lisa Minutillo, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Laura Pastore, Janine Kiefer, Emma Leishman, Rachel Fuenzalida, and Lindsay Jost. Fact-checking by Parul Kanwar. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Marga Sison. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alexis Allison, and Dee Lab. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.