The Sports Xchange: SB XLIX: Relieved Brady is MVP again

By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange

GLENDALE, Ariz. — He was weary and battered, a champion once again, an MVP once more. 

Tom Brady, who wasn't necessarily the man who made the difference — although certainly he was a difference-maker — stood there as much in gratification as in glory. 

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 The Sports Xchange

Newsday (N.Y.): Tiger Woods finishes with career-worst 82

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tiger Woods may have lost his touch — his 82 Friday in the second round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open was his worst as a pro — but he retained his sense of humor.

"I'm only doing this so I won't get fined" was Woods' opening comment to the media. Clearly he's been watching the interviews with Marshawn Lynch, whose Seahawks will play the Patriots Sunday in Super Bowl XLIX in nearby Glendale.

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 Newsday. All rights reserved.

Newsday (N.Y.): Tiger Woods scrambles for 73 in return to PGA Tour

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tiger Woods' return to PGA Tour tournament golf for the first time in 5 1/2 months was a struggle to be expected by everyone aside from the man himself.

Woods, who turned 39 at the end of December and hadn't competed in a full-blown event since the PGA Championship last August, started erratically, 4 over par in his first four holes, then rallied impressively and shot a 2-over-par 73 in the opening round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 Newsday. All rights reserved.

S.F. Examiner: 'Silent Mode' just a game Seahawks' Lynch plays

By Art Spander
Special to the Examiner

PHOENIX — They weren't going to trap Marshawn Lynch. He would talk Tuesday on Super Bowl Media Day. He would sit there at his rostrum and declare, "I'm only here so I won't get fined."

Declare it 28 times before adding, "Time up."

Read the full story here.

© 2015 The San Francisco Examiner 

The Sports Xchange: Media Day brings madness

By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange

PHOENIX — There was a guy wearing only a barrel. No, not the late, great Tim McKernan of Denver; this was someone representing a local C&W station, KNIX.

There was a young lady from a Hispanic sports station wearing something so tight it could barely be confused with a dress, much less a barrel.

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 The Sports Xchange

The Sports Xchange: Pete's repeat would put Carroll in rare category

By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange

PHOENIX — Think of the great NFL coaches over the last half century, the Lombardis, Shulas, Nolls, even the Belichicks, because no matter what we think of Bill, he is part of this category and a much rarer category -- a winner in back-to-back Super Bowls. 

Now consider adding the name of Pete Carroll to that list. Silly, you suggest, because Carroll, a product of California's fantasy-land Marin County, a guy whose easy-going ways when he coached the Jets were derided as "the good ship Lollipop?" 

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 The Sports Xchange 

The Sports Xchange: Seahawks notebook: Carroll learns game-ball procedures

By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange

PHOENIX — Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, in his rimless glasses and dark suit, looked more like a businessman than a football coach. However, the questions he was asked moments after the Seahawks arrived for next Sunday's Super Bowl had nothing to do with finance.

Seattle's jet arrived at Sky Harbor Airport in the early afternoon, and not long after that, after the Seahawks' buses crept through the crowd of cheering, banner-waving fans at the motor entrance to the Arizona Grand Hotel, he was dealing with, yes, "deflategate."

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 The Sports Xchange

S.F. Examiner: Success breeds even more success for Warriors

By Art Spander
San Francisco Examiner

We have grown accustomed to the Warriors' success now, even demanding of it. One winning streak after another. Two brilliant backcourt artists, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Nirvana. At last.

The Warriors with the best record in the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics -- nemeses since eternity -- trapped in the wasteland where the Warriors once resided.

Read the full story here.

© 2015 The San Francisco Examiner 

Klay makes a 40-point splash, brother

By Art Spander

OAKLAND — The kid is almost too cool, but that’s hardly an indictable offense. Klay Thompson knows who he is, and exactly what he’s supposed to do.

That he wasn’t traded for Kevin Love, or anyone else, proves the people in charge of the Warriors also know who Thompson is. And very well what he may become.

The man scored 40 points Wednesday night, so easily it was almost obscene. Whoosh, whoosh. Swish, swish. “Credit to my teammates,” said Thompson. “They got me the ball.”

But Thompson, half of the so-called Splash Brothers — is he Splish or Splash, and yes, it does bring back memories of that long-ago Bobby Darin song — got the ball where it’s supposed to be, in the net.

He also helped get the W’s where they’re supposed to be, in the win column, 117-102 over the Indiana Pacers.

There’s more to life than digits, but sometimes the numbers cannot be ignored. First, Klay’s 40, second highest in his NBA career to the 41 on opening night. Next, the 21 by the other Splasher, Stephen Curry, who at 6:22 of the first quarter made his 1,000th 3-pointer, sooner (this is his sixth season) than anyone else ever. Next, the 15 assists by Curry. Next the 18 points by Marreese Speights.

And maybe more importantly, after their fifth straight victory (piddling, yes, after 16 in a row a few weeks back), a 28-5 record. Chew on that: 28-5. Reminds you of the old Celtics or old Lakers.

The new Lakers, crushed Wednesday night by the Clippers, remind you that success in sports is temporary. So enjoy it while you may. And for the normal sellout crowd of 19,596 at Oracle, the victory was particularly enjoyable.

In what the mavens call a trap game, the losing Pacers between the winning Raptors and Cavaliers (even if Cleveland will be without LeBron James), the Warriors began lethargically and imperfectly. They were down 11 before tying it up 50-50 at halftime. After that, it was all Thompson and the W’s.

“A great win,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr. “One of my favorite wins of the year.” We’ll not ask him to rank the other 27, but his exuberance is understandable. You’re down 11, and nothing is going right. Then it all turns out well.

Also not to be neglected was the return of 7-foot center Andrew Bogut, who after a hint or two by Kerr during his pre-game talk to the media, in the opening quarter sent Bogut into a game for the first time since early December. He was out 12 games, knee troubles — as opposed to ankle troubles previously.

Surely, Kerr’s labeling the game one of his favorites had a great deal to do with the return of the big Australian, who along with David Lee, also healed from an injury, will be a necessity when the playoffs arrive and basketball resembles a wrestling match.

“We were tested big time,” said Kerr. “We had to figure out things as we went.”

What the 24-year-old Thompson, in his fourth season, figured out quickly enough was that he had the rhythm and the touch, making 14 of 25 field goal attempts, 6 of 11 on threes. “I had good balance,” he said. And excellent teammates.

“I’ve got to thank them,” he said. “I was going under a lot of screens, and I was getting a ton of open looks. I missed a few, but I knew they were going to go down eventually. I got a couple of easy buckets to the rim as a result of Bogut’s passing and Andre (Iguodala’s) cutting.”

Naturally, Curry was not forgotten.

“He just does everything for us,” said Thompson. “He’s so good at finding us. He attracts so much attention on the offensive end, and his defense is underrated.”

Bogut played 14 minutes 41 seconds and had two baskets and eight rebounds, one fewer than teammate Draymond Green. “I played three-on-three (Tuesday) for the first time and felt OK,” said Bogut. “Thought to start giving it a go. Klay was unbelievable offensively, and it’s going to be a staple for us going forward.”

Thompson, raised in southern California, playing undergraduate ball at Washington State, is rarely lost for an answer. He was raised in the business after all, his father drafted No. 1 by the Trail Blazers, then going to L.A.

Someone pointed out it was a shame the dad was trapped commenting on the Lakers’ 114-89 rout by the Clips while the son was throwing them in some 370 miles to the north.

“I’m sure he had a little TV and was watching me,” said Klay.

On Wednesday night, on TV or in person, so were a great many others. Cool.

Newsday (N.Y.): Oregon crushes Florida State in Rose Bowl to reach College Football Playoff final

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

PASADENA, Calif. — The oddsmakers knew Oregon, even if most of the eastern United States did not.

The Ducks, the aptly named Quack Attack, were a 9 1/2-point favorite over Florida State, a team that hadn't lost a game in two-plus seasons. Some people wondered how that could be. They found out the first day of 2015.

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 Newsday. All rights reserved.

Newsday (N.Y.): Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota square off in national semifinal

By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

PASADENA, Calif. — One team, Oregon, is second in the nation in the playoff rankings. The other, Florida State, is third and undefeated. Each has a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. What else do we need to know?

Other than who will win Thursday's College Football Playoff semifinal, of course.

Read the full story here.

Copyright © 2015 Newsday. All rights reserved.