The Seawanhaka Sports Rundown is a weekly roundup of five stories that examine developments in sports news at the local, state, national, and international levels.
BY: COOPER ALBERS / CHIEF SPORTS EDITOR
Steph Curry Defeats Sabrina Ionescu in 3-Point Challenge
Game recognize game.
Warriors Guard Stephen Curry defeated Liberty Guard Sabrina Ionescu in a first-of-its-kind NBA vs. WNBA 3-point shootout at All-Star Saturday Night in Indianapolis.
Ionescu, opting to shoot from the NBA 3-point line, caught fire early and tallied 26 points. Impressively, her score matched Bucks Guard Damian Lillard for the highest number of points by any NBA player in the 3-point contest held earlier that night.
Curry trailed Ionescu by five points heading to his final rack. Luckily, he saved his money balls for last and hit his last four shots to beat the Liberty Star 29-26.
"Me and Sabrina talked about how cool of an opportunity it is to do something that's never been done before in our game," Curry said earlier Saturday. "And for her to have a presence on this stage is going to do a lot to inspire the next generation of young boys and girls that want to compete and see themselves in either one of us."
Nets Fire Head Coach Jaque Vaughn
There’s new leadership in the Borough of Kings.
On Monday, the Brooklyn Nets confirmed reports that they have dismissed head coach Jaque Vaughn.
Vaughn was promoted to head coach in 2022 and led the Nets to the playoffs last season. However, the Nets have struggled this season, going 21-33 and sitting at 11th in the Eastern Conference.
“This was an incredibly difficult decision, but one we feel is in the best interest of the team going forward,” Nets General Manager Sean Marks said.
The team quickly announced that assistant Kevin Ollie has been promoted to interim head coach. He will lead the team, for the first time, on Thursday night against the Toronto Raptors.
Ilia Topuria Dethrones Alexander Volkanovski
The reign of Alexander the Great has come to an end.
On Saturday, UFC Featherweight Ilia Topuria defeated Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in Anaheim to become the new UFC Featherweight Champion. Impressively, Topuria called his shot by knocking out the Australian champ in the second round.
"Guess what? The only person that has your back in this life is yourself," Topuria said in his post fight interview. "Just trust yourself ... and everything is possible. Look at me now. Look."
With the victory, Topuria (15-0) ended the four-year title reign of the aging Volkanovski. He dealt the former-champ his second straight knockout defeat and his first ever loss in the Featherweight division.
NHL Stadium Series Results
Fans filled the stands for two historic games in the Garden State.
The NHL Stadium Series took place over the weekend with a pair of matchups in East Rutherford, New Jersey. A total of 150,018 fans packed Metlife Stadium for the first two outdoor NHL games ever played in Jersey.
On Saturday, The New Jersey Devils showed out in front of the home crowd by defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3. Devils Captain Nico Hischier led the charge with two goals and an assist, Nathan Bastian scored twice and goalie Nico Haws had 45 saves.
"It was a game you'll never forget," Hischier said.
The following day, the New York Rangers defeated their inner-state rivals, the New York Islanders, 6-5. In front of the third largest crowd in NHL history, the Rangers rallied late in the game to score two power-play goals with their goalie pulled, coming all the way back and winning in overtime.
LIU Softball Wraps Up San Diego Classic
LIU Softball is starting the season off strong.
This weekend, LIU Softball traveled to the Golden State, where they went 3-2 in the San Diego Classic.
On Friday, the Sharks defeated the San Diego Toreros 8-7. The squad jumped out to an early lead and was able to thwart San Diego’s comeback attempt behind impressive performances from Alexia Castro and Kira Buckner.
The Sharks split their second day of the classic, defeating Southern Utah 7-2 before taking a 1-0 loss to Eastern Illinois. Lindsey Cowans dominated SUU, tossing a complete game with six strikeouts. Her second win of the season was protected by strong offense from Dallas Andrews, Devon Medina, Gabby Padilla and Alexia Castro.
Rounding out the trip, LIU once again defeated Southern Utah 5-2 after falling 4-1 to Colorado State. The Sharks tied it up against SUU late in the game and never looked back, riding behind the bats of Mari Narvaiz and Dallas Andrews.
LIU Softball resumes action on Friday against Green Bay at 9:30 a.m. in the Stetson Invitational.