By Caela Fox
2013 NBA All-Star Weekend
The 2013 NBA All-Star weekend was from February 15th to February 17th in Houston, Texas. On February 15th the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge was played. On February 16th the Sears Shooting Stars Challenge, the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, and the Sprite Slam Dunk contest were played which makes up All-Star Saturday Night. On February 17th the NBA All-Star Game was played. The Rising Stars Challenge is a game between players who are in their first year or two in the NBA. In the Shooting Stars Challenge there are four teams consisting of three players, two teams representing the Eastern Team and the other two the Western Team. The Skills Challenge consists of six players, three for each team, and they all compete. There are two rounds; in the first round all six players compete and in the final round only two players compete. The Three-Point Contest also consists of six players, three for each team; whoever makes the most baskets wins the contest. The Slam Dunk contest again consists of six players, three for each team. There are three rounds in the first two; the judges give the points and in the final round the fans get to vote who had the best dunk. Once all the challenges and contests are over, they add up all the points and see what team wins. The All-Star Game is just like any normal basketball game but the best players of both conferences play each other.
The BBVA Rising Stars Challenge: The teams were Team Shaq and Team Chuck. The players for Team Shaq were Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers; Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, and Tyler Zeller of the Cleveland Cavaliers; Andre Drummond of the Detroit Pistons; Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes of the Golden State Warriors; Chandler Parsons of the Houston Rockets; Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Bobcats; and Andrew Nicholson of the Orlando Magic. The players for team Chuck were Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Hornets; Kenneth Faried of the Denver Nuggets; Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs; Bradley Beal and Alexey Shved of the Minnesota Timberwolves; Tristan Thompson of the Cleveland Cavaliers; Nikola Vucevic of the Orlando Magic; Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons; and Isaiah Thomas of the Sacramento Kings. In the first half, Team Shaq scored 66 points and Team Chuck scored 90 points to take the lead 90-66. In the second half, Team Shaq scored 69 points and Team Chuck scored 73 points to win the game 163-135.
The Sears Shooting Stars Challenge: The teams were Team Harden, Team Westbrook, Team Bosh, and Team Lopez. The players on Team Harden were James Harden of the Houston Rockets; Tina Thompson, a women’s basketball player of the Seattle Storm; and Sam Cassell, a retired basketball player. The players on Team Westbrook were Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder; Maya Moore, a women’s basketball player of the Minnesota Lynx; and Robert Horry, a retired basketball player. The players on Team Bosh were Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat; Swin Cash, a women’s basketball player of the Chicago Sky; and Dominique Wilkins, a retired basketball player. The players on Team Lopez were Brook Lopez of the Brooklyn Nets; Tamika Catching, a women’s basketball player of the Indiana Fever; and Muggsy Bogues, a retired basketball player. In the first round Team Westbrook and Team Bosh won to go to the final round, and in the final round Team Bosh won.
The Taco Bell Skills Challenge: The six players in this event were Jrue Holiday of the Philadelphia 76ers, Brandon Knight of the Detroit Pistons, and Jeff Teague for the Eastern Conference; Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers, Jeremy Lin of the Houston Rockets, and Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs for the Western Conference. In the first round Jrue Holiday finished in 29.3 seconds, Brandon Knight finished in 32.2 seconds, Jeff Teague finished in 49.4 seconds, Damian Lillard finished in 28.8 seconds, Jeremy Lin finished in 35.8 seconds, and Tony Parker finished in 48.7 seconds. So the finalists were Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard. In the final round, Jrue Holiday finished in 35.6 seconds and Damian Lillard finished in 29.8 seconds, winning the Skills Challenge as a rookie.
The Foot Locker Three-Point Contest: The players in the three-point contest were Paul George of the Indiana Pacers, Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Steve Novak of the New York Knicks for the Eastern Conference; Ryan Anderson of the New Orleans Hornets, Matt Bonner of the San Antonio Spurs, and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors for the Western Conference. In the first round Paul George made 10 baskets, Kyrie Irving made 18 baskets, Steve Novak made 17 baskets, Ryan Anderson made 18 baskets, Matt Bonner made 19 baskets, and Stephen Curry made 17 baskets. So the finalists were Matt Bonner and Kyrie Irving. In the final round Matt Bonner made 20 baskets and Kyrie Irving made 23 baskets to win the Three-Point Contest.
The Sprite Slam Dunk Contest: The players in the Slam Dunk contest were Gerald Green of the Indiana Pacers, Terrence Ross of the Toronto Raptors, and James White of New York Knicks for the Eastern Conference; Eric Bledsoe of the Los Angeles Clippers, Jeremy Evans of the Utah Jazz, and Kenneth Faried of the Denver Nuggets for the Western Conference. In the first round Gerald Green scored a 50 on his first dunk and a 32 on the second dunk for a total of 82 points. Terrence Ross scored a 50 on his first dunk and a 49 on the second for a total of 99 points. James White scored a 45 on his first dunk and a 32 on his second dunk for a total of 77 points. Eric Bledsoe scored 39 on his first dunk and a 50 in his second dunk for a total of 89 points. Jeremy Evans scored a 47 on his first dunk and a 43 on his second dunk for a total of 90 points. Kenneth Faried scored a 39 on his first dunk and a 50 on his second dunk for a total of 89 points. So the two finalists were Terrence Ross and Jeremy Evans. In the final round the fans get to vote on who had the best dunk. Terrence Ross got a 58% of the vote and Jeremy Evans got a 42% of the vote. So Terrence Ross won the Slam Dunk contest. At the end of the night, when all the points from each event were added up, the Western team won 140-125.
NBA All-Star Game: The All-Star game was between the East and the West. In the first quarter the East scored 26 points and the West scored 31 points to have the lead at the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter the scoring was a bit closer with the East scoring 39 points and the West 38 points for a 65-69 lead at halftime. In the third quarter both the East and West scored 39 points, but the West still held the lead at 104-108. In the fourth quarter the East scored 34 points and the West scored 35 points to win the All-Star Game 143-138.
Congrats to Team Chuck for winning the Rising Star Game and the Western Conference on winning the All-Star Saturday night and the All-Star Game. Good luck to all the players and their teams in the rest of the season.
Super Bowl XLVII (47)
This year’s Super Bowl was between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49er at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Super Bowl was on February 3rd 8:30 Eastern Time. The half time show was performed by Beyonce. This is the seventh time the 49ers have made it to the super bowl they have never lost a super bowl. The Ravens have only been to one super bowl that they won against the New York Giants in 2001 34-7.
First Quarter: The Ravens were the first to score. They scored a touchdown two minutes into the first quarter. The 49ers scored a field goal five minutes into the first quarter to make it 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.
Second Quarter: Eight minutes into the second quarter the Raven scored another touchdown to make it 14-3. With two minutes left in the quarter they scored another touchdown to make it 21-3. The 49ers scored another field goal with only seconds left in the quarter to make it 21-6.
Half Time Show: Here are the songs Beyonce sang for the half time show. “Love on Top”, “Crazy in Love”, “End of Time”, “Baby Boy”, “Bootylicious” with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams aka Destiny’s Child, “Independent Women (Part 1)” with Destiny’s Child, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” with Destiny’s Child, and “Halo”.
Third Quarter: The first play of the quarter was Jacoby Jones running a Kickoff Return for a touchdown to make it 28-6. Then there was a blackout caused by a device that was made to prevent a blackout but it malfunctioned. This device is called a relay. After about 40 minutes the third quarter started again. The 49ers controlled the rest of the quarter scoring two touchdowns eight and ten minutes into the quarter and a field goal with only three minutes left in the quarter to make the game 28-23.
Fourth Quarter: Three minutes into the quarter the Ravens scored a field goal to make it 31-23. Three minutes later the 49ers scored a touchdown to make it 31-29. With four minutes left in the quarter the Ravens scored a field goal to make it 34-29. The 49ers got a safety with only four seconds left in the quarter but it still wasn’t enough to win the game ending 34-31.
Congrats to the Ravens on their second Super Bowl their first in the last decade. Have a good off season and good luck to you next season.
Sport Events in March
NHL: There will be 223 hockey games in the month of March.
MLB: There will be 448 Spring Training Baseball games in the month of March.
NBA: There will be 238 basketball games in the month of March.
PGA Golf Tour: The Honda Classic is from Feb 28th to Mar 3rd. The Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com and the World golf Championships-Cadillac Championship are from Mar 7th to Mar 10th. The Tampa Bay Championship is from Mar 14th to Mar 17th. The Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard is from Mar 21st to Mar 24th. The Tavistock Cup is from Mar 25th to Mar 26th. The Shell Houston Open is from Mar 28th to Mar 31st.
European Golf Tour: The Tshwane Open is from Feb 28th to Mar 3rd. The World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship is from Mar 7th to Mar 10th. The Avantha Masters is from Mar 14th to Mar 17th. The Mayback Malaysian Open is from Mar 21st to Mar 24th. The Trophee Hassan 2 is from Mar 28th to Mar 31st.
LPGA Golf Tour: The HSBC Women’s Champions 2013 is from Feb 28th to Mar 3rd. The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup is from Mar 14th to Mar 17th. The Kia Classic is from Mar 21st to Mar 24th.
Men’s Tennis: The ATP Abierto Mexican Telcel and the ATP Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships are from Feb 25th to Mar 2nd. The ATP Delray Beach International Tennis Championship is from Feb 25th to Mar 3rd. The ATP BNP Paribas Open is from Mar 7th to Mar 17th. The Sony Open Tennis is from Mar 20th to Mar 31st.
Women’s Tennis: The WTA Brasil Tennis Cup is from Feb 24th to Mar 2nd. The WTA Abierto Mexicano TELCEL is from Feb 25th to Mar 2nd. The WTA BMW Malaysian Open is from Feb 25th to Mar 3rd. The WTA BNP Paribas Open is from Mar 6th to Mar 17th. The WTA Sony Open Tennis is from Mar 19th to Mar 30th.
Caleb Moore
Caleb Moore was born to his parents Wade and Michelle Moore on August 28th 1987 in Krum Texas. He is a professional snowmobiler as is his brother Colton. They both have competed in the Winter X-Games. He started his career as ATV racer. When he switched from ATV’s to snowmobiles he learned to do a back flip by landing his sled in a foam pit that his dad built. The 2010 Winter X-Games was Caleb’s first professional competition as a freestyle snowmobile racer. At this point he had only had one month of practice. He won the Bronze medal in the Freestyle division and finished sixth in Best Trick. He won a bronze and a silver medal the next year. Bronze in Freestyle and the silver in Best Trick in the 2011 Winter X-Games. For the third year in a row he won the Bronze medal in the Freestyle and his brother Colton took the gold medal in the 2012 Winter X-Games. So in only three years he went from “Beginner’s Luck to Serious Threat”. On January 24th 2013, during the Snowmobile Freestyle part of Winter X-Games XVII, that was held in Aspen, Colorado. He was attempting a back flip (a trick he has done several times) when the skis of his snowmobile got caught on the ground as he was about to land. He ended up flipping over the handlebars and upon landing, the snowmobile fell on top of him. On that same day his brother was also injured, sustaining a separated pelvis. At first his injury didn’t look to be that bad because he got up and walked of the course under his own power. He went to the hospital to be treated for a concussion. While there the doctors discovered bleeding around his heart, and he was diagnosed with a heart contusion. They airlifted him to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado, where he underwent heart surgery. After the surgery they found a complication in his brain. He died on January 31st 2013 at age 25. One week later his family invited the public to observe a moment of silence for Caleb. Best wishes to the family our prayers go out to them and may Caleb rest in peace. God Bless.
Caela’s byline: I am the oldest of six children. I am a Christian. I love watching movies, playing on my computer, and I love watching sports. I want to go to Syracuse University, and eventually become a sports journalist. My favorite sports are hockey, football (soccer), and golf.