What happened on Sunday, February 15, 2015?

  1. The NBA All-Star Game: That’s the most that can be said about it, really. It happened. The West beat the East, 163-158, in a game that (as always) was more of an offensive exhibition than actual basketball. Russell Westbrook scored 41 points and won the MVP award but the real MVPs of the game were former President Bill Clinton and retired NBA player Dikembe Mutombo who sat together and generally seemed like they were having a great time.
    Line: The NBA All-Star game is fun, I guess, but without real competition, basketball isn’t really worth watching.
  2. USA Rugby teases viewers: Playing at home in the one stop of the Rugby World Series in the United States, the USA Rugby Sevens team made the semifinals before hitting a wall. In their semi-final game against New Zealand, the USA team jumped out to a 7-0 lead before letting up (or more likely, just getting outclassed) and eventually losing 26-12. In the third place game, the United States was shut out by South Africa, 31-0. Fiji won the tournament, beating New Zealand 35-19.
    Line: It figures that the US team plays great when virtually no one is watching and then stinks up the joint on Sunday when they are on NBC.
  3. Chicago wins in a shootout: No, it’s not prohibition — we’re talking about a hockey shootout. In the nationally televised NBC game of the week, the Chicago Blackhawks played a tight, 1-1 game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. In the shootout to decide the game, Chicago’s Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Sharp each scored against the Penguins goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury. The loss left Fleury, who usually stops over 90% of shootout attempts against him, hopping mad.
    Line: The shootout is not the best way to decide a hockey game because it’s pretty much a separate skill, but it can be extremely entertaining.

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