Kobe Bryant Passing, College Basketball Week Recap, Australian Open, Cyborg Wins, Derek Jeter in the HoF, Super Bowl 54

It’s Super Bowl Week, which means lots to discuss the week before. Kentucky beat a prominent hoops squad, a couple of major tennis stars fell at the Aussie Open while a popular mixed-martial arts fighter made her Bellator debut. Also, one of the most popular Yankees in history is headed to Cooperstown. Check out the week in sports!

Weekly Sports Update – Jan 27th Edition

NBA Legend Kobe Bryant Passes Away at 41

A tragedy happened this past Sunday on Jan. 26. One of the greatest basketball players in history, Kobe Bryant, passed away at the age of 41. Kobe was in a helicopter crash that also took the life of his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna.

MyBookie wishes to provide our condolences to the entire Bryant family as well as to all the families affected by this tragedy. 

College Basketball: Kentucky Makes Statement in Win Over Texas Tech

The Kentucky Wildcats headed to Texas Tech a +3 ½ underdog. The Wildcats left Lubbock 76-74 overtime winners. Kentucky shot an awesome 47% from three. They shot 44% from the field. How did John Calipari’s squad shoot so well from behind the arc?

Shot selection. The Wildcats took just 15 three-point shots. They made 7. They also committed 19 turnovers and still beat the Red Raiders. It means that Coach Cal’s squad has room for improvement.

Calipari does this every season. His team, often because they’re full of freshman, struggle early before turning it on towards the end of the season. The 2019-2020 Kentucky Wildcats are following the formula. Although they don’t often cover, the Wildcats have won 7-of-8. They beat the Red Raiders and Louisville in 2 of the victories.

Unless the squad suffers injuries, expect the Wildcats to make noise in this year’s NCAA Tournament. With every game, Calipari’s squad is learning. By the time March Madness rolls around, forget it. Kentucky should be one of the favorites.  

Tennis: Naomi and Serena Upset at Australian Open

Last week, a couple of major upsets happened at the 2020 Australian Open. Both Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams lost. Let’s start with Serena before moving to Naomi.

Williams, the Aussie Open pre-tournament favorite, took the ASB Classic title in the tournament she played before the Australian Open. In hindsight, she was supposed to win that tournament. The top player she beat on her way to the trophy was Amanda Anisimova.

Serena didn’t face a player of Qiang Wang’s caliber at the ASB Classic. So when Williams got into a tussle with Wang in Round 3 at the Australian Open, Qiang came out ahead. It took Wang 5-sets but she delivered the knockout punch.

Serena can take solace in the fact that she’s on track for a great 2020. At the next major, we can expect Williams to provide fireworks.

We might not be able to say the same thing about Naomi Osaka. 15-year-old Cori Gauff beat Naomi 6-3, 6-4. Unlike Serena versus Wang, Osaka lost in straight sets. Gauff lost to Sofia Kenin in Round 4. That’s a sign that Noami didn’t have it against Cori.

It’s a bad sign. Osaka finished 2019 on a down note, falling to Petra Kvitova in Round 1 at the WTA Finals Shenzhen. Alarm bells haven’t gone off yet. But Cori beat Naomi so easily at the Aussie Open that the bells could go off soon. Osaka must get it together in the next tournament she plays, or 2020 could be one to forget for the 22-year-old.

MMA: Cyborg Makes History at Bellator 238

Cris Cyborg’s relationship with Dana White and UFC ended on a sour note. Her relationship with Bellator started out like gangbusters. At Bellator 238, no doubt, Cyborg was the main attraction. She didn’t disappoint.

Cris dominated an overmatched Julia Budd forcing knocking out Budd via TKO at 1 minute and 14 second into the fourth round. She pummeled Budd with a ferocious combination: knee, left to the head, right to the body, right to leg, etc. It was the kind of combination that fight fans expect from the 15-year MMA veteran.

Cyborg and Bellator are a perfect match. She’s not good enough to battle Amanda Nunes, the best woman brawler on the planet. She is good enough to take on Bellator’s women fighters. That’s okay for MMA fans.

Amanda already knocked out Cyborg. Why waste time watching her do it again when we can watch Cris battle a tough foe and come out ahead at Bellator?

MLB: Derek Jeter Makes it to the Hall

Most believed Yankee great Derek Jeter was a lock to make the hall-of-fame. Those who believed that were right. Jeter garnered 99.7% of the votes to easily stamp his ticket to Cooperstown. That’s about as lock city as it gets!

Jeter is a lifetime .310 hitter. He accrued 3,465 hits and 260 home runs. By any measure, Derek Jeter is one of the greatest baseball players to ever step onto a diamond. So, it makes sense that he got into the hall.

Larry Walker also made it to the Baseball Hall-of-Fame. Walker only got 76.6% of the votes. He wasn’t as lock city as Jeter, but he made it. Walker is a .313 lifetime hitter with 383 home runs and 1,311 RBIs. He deserves his bust.

A few name players didn’t get the nod. Curt Schilling only got 70% of the vote. Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds, 2 known steroid users, also got shunned. We’ll see what happens next year. But if you did roids like Bonds and Clemens, you’ll probably never make it to Cooperstown.

NFL: Chiefs Favored Heading into Super Bowl Week

As we head into Super Bowl Week, the Kansas City Chiefs maintain their favorite’s status. KC is a -2 chalk to beat the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 54. But before jumping all over the Chiefs, let’s dig deeper.

Yes, Kansas City is the chalk, but they’re -2 (-105). It means the oddsmakers don’t mind relinquishing 5% juice to attract wagers on the Chiefs. Why? Because Chiefs-49ers is more an even game than one where a single team should be favored by 2 points.

It costs 15% juice to wager on the 49ers at +2. The action tells us that every opinion about Super Bowl 54 is a good opinion. Nobody, not the NFL fan who never bets to the NFL pro bettor, has a wrong opinion about the game.

That’s good news. It means that no matter what bet you make, you’re making a smart bet. It doesn’t mean you’ll win your Super Bowl 54 bet. It does mean you made a play with a chance, though. That’s all we can ask for, right?

Enjoy Super Bowl 54!