A lot happened in the world of sports this weekend — Zach Edey vs UConn is set for the men’s title game, the South Carolina women win their second title in three years, and the Bruins extend their Atlantic Division lead.
It's time to recapp a busy weekend in sports.
Before getting into the weekend's sports recapp be sure to check out the brand new season of VaynerSports Pass Rewards!
Season 1 of VSP Rewards is Live
Do you want the opportunity to participate in digital sports competitions, enter sweepstakes for sports collectibles, or open exclusive packs of sports cards? With the purchase of a VaynerSports or VSP BartBridge hat, you can earn points towards these great opportunities!
Check out the link below to elevate your wardrobe and accumulate VSpoints!
Dunk and Decaf: Men’s Title Game Slugfest is Set; South Carolina Wins its Second Title in Three Years
(1) Purdue Boilermakers (34-4) vs. (1) UConn Huskies (36-3); Monday at 9:20 pm EST on TBS
After Purdue’s dominant win over NC State and UConn outlasting Alabama on Saturday night, the title game is set. The nation’s best player Zach Edey will go head to head with the nation’s best team in UConn for a chance at immortality. Both programs could not be more different historically. The Boilermakers have a chance to win their first national championship in program history. They previously reached the national championship in 1969 but lost to John Wooden and Lew Alcindor led UCLA. UConn is seeking its sixth national championship and looks to be the first repeat champion since the Florida Gators from 2005-2007.
Moving onto women’s college basketball…
(1) South Carolina Gamecocks (38-0): 87, (1) Iowa Hawkeyes (34-5): 75
The South Carolina Gamecocks are your 2024 NCAA Women’s National Champions! After as bad of a start as you could have, trailing 10-0 three minutes into the game, the Gamecocks stormed back to defeat the Hawkeyes for their second title in three years. Kamilla Cardoso was dominant all game finishing with 15 points and 17 rebounds. Head coach Dawn Staley enters an exclusive club as she is only one of five head coaches to win at least three titles. The other coaches in that club include Geno Auriemma (UConn), Pat Summit (Tennessee), Kim Mulkey (Baylor, LSU), and Tara VanDerveer (Stanford). Caitlin Clark’s collegiate career ends without a national championship but with a multitude of other accolades. Most importantly is the impact she had on women’s basketball as a whole, inspiring children around the world to chase their dreams. Salute to number 22 🫡.
Coffee and Curveballs: Astros Return to the Win Column After Rough Start to Season
Houston Astros (3-7): 3, Texas Rangers (6-3): 1
Ronel Blanco is now responsible for two of Houston’s three wins, as he followed his no-hit bid up with another fabulous performance on Sunday Night Baseball. In what was a fairly mellow game that saw only six total hits, Yordan Alvarez opened up the scoring with a 3-run home run in the third inning. The Rangers answered back in the bottom of the ninth with a Justin Foscue single to center, but at that point it was too little too late. The Astros and Rangers will clash once more Monday night to conclude the four-game series.
—
Let’s look at how VaynerSports athletes have fared thus far this season. The Blue Jays Justin Turner is playing well so far and leads the team in batting average. He’s batting .286 with one home run, five RBIs, four doubles and six runs scored through ten games this season. His teammate, Bo Bichette, picked it up this weekend against the New York Yankees. Bichette had three hits, one RBI, and one run scored in this weekend’s series in New York. Alejandro Kirk also had a good series against the Yankees, finishing with three hits and two RBIs in three games this weekend. Finally - Cleveland Guardian David Fry continued his hot start to the season. Through nine games (six of which he’s played) Fry is batting .455 with five hits, one home run, 6 RBIs, and four runs scored.
Check back next week for another update on VS athletes in the MLB!
Blue Line Brew: Bruins Win In OT for Five-Point Lead Over Panthers
Boston Bruins (46-17-15): 3, Florida Panthers (48-24-6): 2
The Boston Bruins completed the season sweep of the Florida Panthers and extended their win streak to four with a 3-2 victory Saturday afternoon. The Panthers, who defeated the record-breaking Bruins in the playoffs last season, move to 3-5-2 in their last ten games. Goals from Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov and 26 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky simply weren’t enough to stop the red-hot Bruins. After getting ripped at practice by head coach Jim Montgomery for a lack of attention to detail and not being prepared for the playoffs, the Bruins have won five of their last six. Both teams will be back in action Tuesday, with the Bruins taking on the Carolina Hurricanes and the Panthers hosting the Ottawa Senators.
Cappuccino Corner Kicks: Liverpool Saved by Late Salah Penalty Kick
Manchester United (15-4-12, 49 pts): 2, Liverpool (21-8-2, 71 pts): 2
After the weekend’s results, we now have a tie at the top of the Premier League table. Entering the weekend with a two-point lead in the EPL table Liverpool has now surrendered that lead and sits tied with Arsenal at 71 points a piece. After getting out to an early lead thanks to a Luis Díaz goal in the 23rd minute, Liverpool would take a comfortable 1-0 lead into the break, with Man United not even getting a shot off in the first half. That would change shortly into the second half as Man United scored in the 50th and 67th minute to snatch the lead away from Liverpool. The Reds were able to salvage one point thanks to Salah’s 84th-minute PK but ultimately left the pitch disappointed that they let this one get away from them. Manchester United is back in action on Saturday against AFC Bournemouth, and Liverpool is back in action on Thursday in a Europa League quarterfinals matchup against Atalanta.
Check out Sports Cappuccino’s new weekly newsletter, Soccer Recapp Wednesdays, for all the latest footy news!
Macchiato Mulligans: Playoff Holes Decide PGA Tour and LIV Golf Winners
After dominating the weekend, but needing a playoff to secure his victory, Akshay Bhatia is heading to his first major tournament next weekend after qualifying for the Masters with a win at the Valero Texas Open. Bhatia had to fend off Denny McCarthy, who made eight birdies in his last nine holes to force a playoff Sunday evening. McCarthy chunked a wedge on the first playoff hole to secure the win for Bhatia. Tune into next weekend’s Masters Tournament to see how Bhatia fares in his first major.
—
Dean Burmester defeated Sergio Garcia in a playoff at Trump National Doral Golf Course for his first LIV Golf tour win. Shooting -11 on the weekend, he narrowly defeated Garcia (-11), and Matthew Wolff (-10). Last year's Masters champion Jon Rahm finished T4 with March Leishman and Tyrell Hatton at -8. Rahm will look to defend his Masters title and become the second player on the LIV Golf tour to win a major next weekend.
Immaculate Iced Coffee
Play the basketball edition of the Immaculate Grid and see if there are any college basketball greats on board!
Be sure to follow us on our socials to ensure you get your daily hit of sports caffeine and don’t miss any of the action!
Sports Cappuccino:
Until Friday … we’ll miss you a latte!
Nice tribute to Caitlin Clark. She really did have a huge impact on women’s basketball - yes: "inspiring children around the world to chase their dreams."
Can't wait for tonight's men's final!