On Sunday, the Philadelphia 76ers were eliminated from the playoffs in a very low scoring, winner-take-all game seven, with a loss to the Toronto Raptors by a score of 92 to 90.
In recent years, most games in the NBA have averaged over 100 points for both teams. As disappointing as this is for 76ers fans, let's remember the leaps and bounds of improvement they have made, from being one of the worst teams in the NBA only a few years ago to now almost making it to the Eastern Conference finals.
I am quite pleased with the news that the team is keeping Coach Brown for next year. There were rumors that he could be fired. I can't stand when the coach is the scapegoat for the players’ failures.
In golf, it's PGA Championship week in New York at the Bethpage Black course, a public facility that has hosted U.S. Opens in the past. This will probably be one of the highest scoring PGA championships in modern history, because this course is extremely difficult and is one of the longest par 70 golf courses to host a major championship.
I would venture to say that this is possibly the hardest public course in America. There is even a warning sign posted at the first tee to warn the players about the extreme difficulty of the course. To add to my assumptions of there being very high scores this weekend is the additional fact that the course has already received over two inches of rain to start the week. It will be great fun to watch how this unfolds.
Even though Tiger Woods seems to be back in the hunt, winning this PGA Championship is a bit of a long shot. I don’t think he should be considered as one of the favorites because he hasn’t played since the Masters and I don’t think he can drive the ball long enough to win this event. My picks are either Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, or defending champion Bruce Koepka for the win.
In college lacrosse news, the Syracuse women's team has advanced to the quarterfinals to play Northwestern this Saturday. Syracuse has already beaten Northwestern by one goal in the regular season. If they can win this one, they will probably play the number one team in the country, Boston College in the next round. Go Cuse!
In local sports, I was able to go see the Cape Henlopen boys lacrosse team play last week. With the weather finally warming up, it was warm enough for me to watch the whole game. They have a very impressive offense. In the last two games, they have scored 20 goals in each game! The state tournament starts next week and they have a solid chance to go far. Go Cape!
See you on the sidelines!
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A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.
