February 27th update

Daytona 500 rained out for first time

• The Super Bowl of Nascar, the Daytona 500, was supposed to take place Sunday, marking the beginning of the Nascar season, but the rain came down too hard, making it impossible for Nascar officials to clear the track up in time to start the race. The race will commence at Noon on this afternoon instead, making it much tougher for fans to catch the race.
• It was the first time in more than 50 years that the race had been postponed, and Jimmie Johnson summed it up with a good quote saying, I guess the deal [Nascar owner] had with the man upstairs was put on hold this year.
• It will still be a great race with lots of fanfare but there will be significantly fewer in the stands and it's expected that teams will have a rough time getting all the way across the country to Phoenix by Thursday for the next race since they would generally have left Sunday night but instead will have to leave late Monday afternoon. Carl Edwards, who barely lost the 2011 championship to Tony Stewart, has the pole (or leading) position when the race starts.


West Wins Climactic All-Star Game

• The Western Conference won the 2012 NBA All-Star game 152-149, the highest ever combined score in an All-Star game. Both Kevin Durant (for the West) and LeBron James (for the East) scored 36 points leading their respective teams. Durant won the MVP, most likely just because his side won. This game, that usually focuses on offense, saw much better defense being played towards the very end, especially by the East.
• The West had a major lead most of the game, and had a 20 point lead in the 4th quarter, but Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony and James led a furious comeback and the East had the ball with 16 seconds left and a chance to tie or take the lead. Deron Williams missed a 3-point shot that would have given the East a lead and then Wade missed a last second 3 that would have tied the game at the buzzer.
• Kobe Bryant scored 27 points to move past Michael Jordan for first place on the All Star Scoring list. His 14 All-Star Game appearances is equal to Jordan as well, but still short of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record 19 games.
• On Saturday, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love won the 3-point contest, and Utah Jazz forward Jeremy Evans won the Slam Dunk Competition.


As we approach March Madness in College Hoops, Sportico will be recapping the NCAA season.

Big Weekend in the Big 12

• Having two of the top 4 teams in the country (at least as of this weekend) the Big 12 arguably has the best chance to win a National Championship.
• We have previously written about Baylor, but the Bears have slipped recently allowing for Missouri and Kansas to jump to the top of the Conference. This past weekend these two teams played for the second time this season. Kansas avenged an earlier season loss defeating Missouri 87-86 in overtime. All three of these teams have good chances to make it through the second weekend of the NCAA tournament, and send at least one representative to the Final Four in New Orleans.
• While Kansas has been a national power for years on the College Basketball scene, Missouri is a relative newcomer, entering the top ranks for the first time in a long while. This success is built on an explosive offense and a very experienced roster. Of the 5 players who play the most, 4 are Seniors and the other is a Junior.