By Sonny Jones
Wow! Wow! Wow! What a Saturday of NFL playoffs. Both conference top seeds lose at home on field goals on the last play of the game.
Rookie Evan McPherson booted a 52-yarder that gave Cincinnati a 19-16 win at Tennessee. Veteran Robbie Gould kicked a 45 yard field goal in the snow as San Francisco knocked off Green Bay 13-10. So much for home field advantage and receiving a first-round bye. For the Titans and Packers, it’s bye-bye for the season.
Special teams and defense lifted the 49ers in their win at Lambeau Field. It was a hard-hitting, intense contest. Is there anything better than a night playoff game played in the snow at Green Bay? I think not.
A late interception set up the Bengals for their win in Nashville. Unfortunately, Elizabethtown’s Larrell Murchison was placed on Tennessee’s inactive list prior to the game and did not play. Hate that, but the East Bladen graduate played more for the Titans this season than in his rookie year. He missed six games because of injury. Here’s hoping for continued improvement next season.
What can we expect today when the Los Angeles Rams play at Tampa Bay and the Buffalo Bills play at the Kansas City Chiefs. Surely, it can’t beat Saturday’s games, can it?
• Not really much of a basketball fan, but will watch a game at times. Saturday, Florida State-Miami game was about as good as it gets. The Seminoles’ 61-60 win was truly a game of two halves. Florida State outscored the Hurricanes 43-19 in the first half. Miami won the second half 41-18, but missed a jump shot at the buzzer that could have won the game. An instant classic.
• Impressive wins by Duke (79-59 over Syracuse) and Wake Forest (98-76 over UNC) and solid win for N.C. State (77-63 over Virginia) on Saturday. Kudos to Coach Steve Forbes for quickly turning around the Wake program. The Deacons were 6-16 in his first season and now are 16-4 after Saturday’s win against the Tar Heels.
• Hockey probably doesn’t have much of a fan base in Bladen County, but I follow the Carolina Hurricanes closely. Saturday’s 7-4 loss at New Jersey showed that college goalie Jack LaFontaine isn’t ready for the NHL. LaFontaine was playing for the University of Minnesota two weeks ago. The Hurricanes, who had the rights to sign LaFontaine, had several injuries to goalies within their organization and made an offer to LaFontaine. Saturday, Carolina decided to see what they had. It didn’t go well. It’s not to say that LaFontaine won’t be a top NHL goalie, but he needs some time in the minors.
SUNDAY’S WATCHING FROM THE COUCH
NFL Playoffs
3 p.m. – L.A. Rams at Tampa Bay (NBC)
6:30 p.m. – Buffalo at Kansas City (CBS)
College Basketball
Noon – Women: North Carolina at Georgia Tech (ACCN)
2 p.m. – Women: Wake Forest at Louisville (ACCN)
4 p.m. – Women: Virginia Tech at N.C. State (ACCN)
6 p.m. – Women: Virginia at Duke (ACCN)
NBA
6 p.m. – L.A. Lakers at Miami (NBATV)
7 p.m. – Atlanta at Charlotte (Bally Southeast)
8:30 p.m. – Utah at Golden State (NBATV)
Golf
Noon – LPGA: Tournament of Champions (GOLF)
3 p.m. – PGA: American Express (GOLF)
Soccer
9 a.m. – Burnley at Arsenal (USA)
NHL
1 p.m. – Winnipeg at Pittsburgh (NHLN)
Tennis
9 a.m. – Australian Open (ESPN2)
9 p.m. – Australian Open (ESPN2)
Sonny Jones can be reached at wibbyj@gmail.com.
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