BASKETBALL

This week, the Dinamo teams had trouble. The men's side failed to put away Reyer as Bramos put in 28 of 99 points. This pulled them above Dinamo Sassari in the table with the victors taking their 8th and Dinamo stuck with 6. The women's team had their game postponed. My Italian isn't as good as my dead relatives would like, but I can tell you that the situation is thanks to what you likely guessed already; COVID.

FOOTBALL

The New York Jets continued to disappoint lifelong fans like myself last Sunday. Note that I really hope we don't fuck up and move away from SD. Sure, he's been hit or miss at QB, but he's surrounded by shit and a shiny new toy won't change the bigger issues. Also, if you're a coach on the defense side of things, don't run your mouth against the offense because there's a good chance you'll be left eating your words the next game. Just saying. 0-7 feels a whole lot like 0-16 right now.

On the college side of things, three of my four teams played on Saturday.

Texas A&M came in ranked 8th this week against SEC rival, Arkansas. Mond and crew continue to excel as they propel the Aggies forward and I have to give props to the senior for the growth I've seen during his run. This wasn't even close and A&M showed skill on all sides of the ball. Keep an eye on them.

Syracuse and Wake Forest and, despite the better record that WF carried in, I actually had true hopes that The Orange could pull ahead and get their second win of the season this week. Alas, this was a blow out ending 38-14 and giving 'Cuse a sixth lose on the season. Cringe. The team has shown glimmers but continues to keep their heads down anytime things start to get away from them. It starts at the top and obviously changes are needed in some form.

Ohio State came in ranked 3rd in the nation against #18 Penn St in a Halloween prime time gig. The opening play was a burner for the Buckeyes, and three plays in they scored their first TD of the game. From there, the spark grew into a fire and they continued to snuff out any push their opponents made at getting close. A play on 2nd down late in the third perfectly defined this team as they are capable of making magic out of nothing. This game was full of highlights from both, but make no mistake who the true star was of the show. Watch out Bama.

MOTOR

The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs rolled on, taking us to Texas in the second race of the Round of 8. Kyle Busch won the race and the 42 and 43 were involved in the largest wreck of the evening. One race remains in the round, a trip to Martinsville, and I have strong feelings that the survivors heading into Phoenix will be Logano, Harvick, Keselowski, and Hamlin. Lets see if I am correct!

SOCCER

AS Roma took on top boys Milan this week and came back three times in the game to even the score out at 3 a piece and save a point to maintain decent table position. Admittedly the penalty that was awarded to Roma that set up one of those scores was an iffy call, but a goal is a goal and a point in Serie A is a point. Really, the ref work here in general was spotty. La Lupa also competed against CSKA-Sofia in the UEFA Europa League during the week wearing alt kits. It was closer than expected and got a bit dirty near the end as both teams grew more desperate but inevitably ended 0-0.

The New York Red Bulls took out rivals, New England, in a cool weather game that truly felt like a big rivalry clash. The drama was high and a goal off of a corner in the 88th from Long won out, putting the club up for the sole goal of the game. Late magic is becoming a theme for this group!

RB Leipzig faced Manchester United, a club I sincerely despise, in their Champions League outing and it was a game I had big expectations for. If RBL could pull ahead, it'd confirm to me that they truly were capable of winning the tournament. It's a stance I supported, but this was potentially a way to solidify such thoughts. Alas, the opposite happened and ManU put down Leipzig like an old dog here 5-0 in relentless fashion. Simply put, it was a nasty, demoralizing game. On Saturday, Borussia Monchengladbach gave Leipzig their first L of the season. It was a close game with some strong effort, but a goal in the 59th was unanswerable this time around. Props to Borussia. A rough week for the team, for sure.

Manchester City competed in the Champions League against Marseille on the 27th, and they controlled a large portion of this one. They took the win and built on their confidence nicely at the same time. Winning games you are supposed to win is always a nice sight. On Saturday, they beat Sheffield United 1-0 in Premier League action to build on things. They really dominated the game and with better aim and luck their victory would have been far more defined. 


This week I was planning on covering the tens rubgy tournament, which I was watching as a novelty more than anything else, but time didn't allow it.