Icy and spicy
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Finally Friday!
Did this week dunk harder on you than Portland Trailblazer Shaedon Sharpe dunked on the Washington Wizards on Wednesday? Same. Have no fear, though — no posters here, just some sports news to start the weekend off right.
— Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, shaking off the haters ahead of his 19th Formula 1 (F1) season. Not only is Hamilton a seven-time champ and the first and only Black driver in the sport, he’s also a vocal advocate for equity on the track and beyond. Iconic doesn’t begin to cover it.
NCAA women’s basketball
🎓🏀 March, is that you?
The GIST: The calendar still says February, but NCAA women’s basketball is giving March. And while No. 3 Notre Dame’s 86–81 loss to No. 24 Florida State was the biggest upset of a wild Thursday, last night featured all sorts of bizarre scorelines as teams careen towards the postseason.
- Speaking of, this weekend marks the last regular-season women’s games before conference tourneys begin, where squads have a shot at clinching automatic bids to March Madness. Hooping right in.
Huge blowouts dominate the night: A stunning eight games featuring top-25 teams ended in landslides last night. Both No. 15 Kentucky and No. 16 Duke notched big upsets over No. 11 Tennessee and No. 8 UNC respectively, but it was No. 13 Oklahoma who ran up the score the most in their 89–65 spanking of unranked Florida. Holy moly.
- Surprisingly, one of the few games that wasn’t a smackdown was No. 1 Texas’ distressingly narrow 68–64 win over Mississippi State, which was neck-and-neck until the very end.
- Toss in No. 7 LSU’s 88–85 overtime loss to No. 20 Alabama, and you have one weird night on the hardwood.
Two winner-take-all matchups ahead: Tomorrow holds a rematch made for Hollywood as No. 2 UCLA seeks redemption against crosstown rival No. 4 USC at 9 p.m. ET. The Trojans handed UCLA their only loss of the season back on Galentine’s Day, but it’s not just revenge on the line: The winner will also clinch the Big Ten regular-season ’ship. And the winner for Best Drama is…
- And in the Big 12, No. 10 TCU (where Sedona Prince is still a starter, BTW…) and No. 17 Baylor will duke it out to break their tie for the regular-season title Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET. Clear your cal now, you’re booked and busy all weekend.
🏎️ McLaren, Ferrari poised for strong start after F1 preseason testing in Bahrain
There’s still two weeks to go until all 20 drivers are on the grid for the first race of the 2025 season, but with the final day of testing (the first opportunity for drivers to test this year’s cars) nearly in the books, the last three days have offered a glimpse of who to watch this season — and it’s the aforementioned Hamilton, who impressed in his Ferrari debut. So back.
- And it’s not just Hamilton, there’s been plenty of other movement on the grid — and in the regulations — over the last few months: Four additional drivers are donning new threads this season while five others will hit the circuit for the first time. Chaos, loading.
🔥 NBA’s Detroit Pistons extend impressive win streak while NHL’s Winnipeg Jets see theirs snapped
No, that’s not a typo — the Pistons, who won an abysmal 14 games total last season, snagged their eighth straight dub on Wednesday, marking the franchise’s longest win streak in 17 years. Now sporting a 33-26 record, Detroit’s won more games this year than in the last two seasons combined. Wild.
- The same can’t be said for the Jets, who had strung together a franchise-record 11 wins before falling 2–1 to the lowly Nashville Predators last night. Smile because it happened.
🏈 NFL to replace first down chains with virtual measurements in 2025
The tech takeover has reached the gridiron. The first down chains (the orange sideline sticks that mark the distance a team needs to travel to achieve a first down) will still exist, but the virtual measurement system, aptly named Hawk-Eye, will be the primary way to determine a team’s forward progress starting this fall.
- And the chain gang isn’t the only thing sticking around despite all odds: Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is officially returning for another year of football. Who are we to fight the alchemy?
Together With Northeastern University
🧠 Don’t get left behind: Secure your future with tech
Trying to break into the tech industry, but don’t have the “right background?” Pssh — ever-impressive Northeastern University is leveling the playing field (sound familiar? *winks*) and putting that rumor to rest with their Pathways-to-Tech master’s degrees.
- These programs encourage folks from all walks of life to pursue a tech career, regardless of prior computing experience. See, that undergrad English degree is useful after all.
Plus, becoming a Northeastern student grants you access to its global alumni network, with connections to companies like Amazon, BMO, and Scotiabank. Channel that big brain energy and check out programs at their Toronto and Vancouver campuses today.
⛳ LPGA: HSBC Women’s World Championship — Ongoing — Golf Channel
- There’s a logjam atop the leaderboard heading into the third of four rounds in Singapore. Both World No. 2 Lydia Ko and World No. 34 A Lim Kim have looked sharp, but watch for plenty of jostling as the Tour’s top players vie for a piece of the $2.4M purse.
🏀 Unrivaled: Vinyl vs. Laces — Tonight at 7:15 p.m. ET — TSN
- It’s the penultimate weekend of regular-season action, meaning squads will be contending to punch one of three remaining playoff tickets. No clinching can be done tonight, but a dub would bolster the odds for these middling squads.
🥌 Curling: The Brier — Tonight through March 9th — TSN
- Canadian curling legend Brad Gushue is playing for a record seventh career Brier win and fourth straight dub — but with a new-look team behind him, Team Gushue’s first test is tall: escaping the nine-team gauntlet in Pool A, aka the group of death. Icy and spicy.
🏒 PWHL: Boston Fleet vs. Montréal Victoire — Tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET — CBC
- Expect the third regular-season meeting between these two sides to be decided between the pipes: Montréal’s Ann-Renée “brick wall” Desbiens boasts the best save percentage in the league, only slightly better than the masonry of Boston’s Aerin Frankel.
Celebrate Black History Month with these recs:
🎬 What to watch
“Black Girls Play.” This short film dives into the hand games that Black girls made famous, tracing their impact on music, style, and culture from jazz to TikTok. Pure joy, pure history. Stream on ESPN+.
✨ What to wear
STRIPT Official. Ari Davis’ brand is built for bold baddies and will take you from the gym to a night out.
🏀 Who to know
Carolyn Peck, the first Black woman to coach an NCAA Division I women’s basketball championship team. A true trailblazer.
Question of the Day
The Oscars are just two days away, and all eyes are on the hotly contested Best Actress race. Choose your winner below, then build your bet with the PROLINE app before placing it in-store. Can you say drama?
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