12/31/21 Sports Wrap Up
Happy New Year’s Eve to everyone. Please be safe and considerate of others as you celebrate this season.
NCAA: Men’s Football
The NCAA College Bowl Season is winding down and soon we will know who will be in the National Championship game but first things first. Let us talk about the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. I did not see the dumping of the five-gallon jug of mayonnaise, over the head of the winning coach during the post-game press conference coming. It was not a quick and easy dump. It was more of a dolloping; it included a wack to the back of the head from the five-gallon jug.
The Gamecocks scored first and never lost the lead; they get the upset win over the Tarheels 38-21. South Carolina ends the season with a winning record and Head Coach Shane Beamer gets away without needing concussion protocol.
In other Bowl action:
Music City Bowl—Purdue Boilermakers 48-45 over the Tennessee Volunteers on a 39-yard field goal as overtime expired.
Peach Bowl—The Michigan State Spartan’s march away with the victory, 31-21, over the Pittsburgh Panthers.
Las Vegas Bowl—The Arizona State Sun Devils end the season with a loss to the Wisconsin Badgers, 20-13.
Of the five games scheduled for today, four will be played.
The Arizona Bowl has been cancelled due to Covid-19 and two games already underway at the time of this writing.
Gator Bowl—In the third quarter and the Rutger Scarlet Knights are trailing the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, 23-10.
Sun Bowl—This game is in the second quarter. The Central Michigan Chippewas lead 13-0 over the Washington State Cougars.
Cotton Bowl– The 13-0 Cincinnati Bearcats will face the 12-1 Alabama Crimson Tide at 3:30 p.m.
Orange Bowl– The 12-1 Georgia Bulldogs go against the 12-1 Michigan Wolverines.
There are five Bowl games for you to enjoy tomorrow, New Year’s Day. The Outback Bowl is kicking it off at noon. Make sure to check back in tomorrow for all of today’s scores and tomorrow’s complete bowl schedule.
NBA: Last night the big story was to be the return of Kevin Durant. Joel Embiid grabbed the attention leading all scorers with 34 points. Embiid also had seven rebounds and an assist. Durant had 33 points in his return for Brooklyn and James Harden had a triple double with 33 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. That was not enough, as the 76er’s won 110-102.
The Hornets will be off till Jan 2, 2022, when they host the Phoenix Suns at the Spectrum Center. The Hornets are currently 19-17.
NHL: The Carolina Hurricanes were happy to get back on the ice at the PNC Arena against the Montreal Canadians last night. They scored an easy shutout victory, 4-0. The Hurricanes sit alone in first place in the Metropolitan Division with a 22-7-1 record. Teuvo Teravainen had two goals. Seth Jarvis and Nino Neiderreiter each added a goal as well. Sabastian Aho had two assists.
The Hurricanes will face the Blue Jackets tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Columbus at the Nationwide Arena.
NFL: Week 17 and the Carolina Panthers have decided to start quarterback Sam Darnold. Carolina will take on the struggling New Orleans Saints. Kickoff is 4:25 p.m. The game will be aired on FOX.
NBC’s Sunday night’s game is the 7-8 Minnesota Vikings against the Green Bay Packers. The Packers sit in sole possession of the No. 1 seed in the NFL with an 11-3 record. Weather looks like the “Coldest Conditions of the Season”. The temperature for game time is expected to be three degrees, with a real feel of minus eight degrees.
Monday night is the Cleveland Browns versus Pittsburgh on ESPN/ABC at 8:15 p.m. Both teams need a win to keep their post season hopes alive.
LOCAL SPORTS: Last Night’s Varsity Boys Basketball:
West Columbus goes to St. Pauls and gets the win 47-43 yesterday, moving to 8-2 on the season.
Girls Varsity Basketball
The Whiteville Lady Wolfpack lost 66-59 to Ashley last night, falling to 4-7 on the season.
State Mandates require facial masks for entrance to all high school games
– Vinny Pagano is the Sports Editor for Columbus County News and Sports Director for WTXY Kool 103.9FM & AM1540. Local Sports stories can be sent to sports@kool1039radio.com
