By: Jeff Arnold

This past week featured two main sporting events: The Masters Tournament and the NCAA  Men’s Basketball National Championship Game. Both were highlight filled and had intriguing storylines, so let’s run it back.

 Men’s Basketball National Championship Game

Kentucky and UConn faced off in a game that would not fail to disappoint. Kentucky struggled early, while UConn pounced behind the play of stand-out guard Shabazz Napier. However, the talent of Kentucky would eventually reveal itself as they cut the halftime deficit to 5 after trailing by almost 20 earlier in the game. After slugging back and forth for the first ten minutes of the second half, UConn held a slim lead before Kentucky freshman forward, James Young, threw down the dunk of the tournament. This would not be enough for Kentucky, however, as both Napier and junior guard, Ryan Boatright, overwhelmed the Wildcats in the closing minutes on their way to a 60-54 victory.This game was a fitting end to a magical tournament run from UConn and showcased just why college basketball and March Madness is so special.

The Masters

The greatest  tournament in all of golf was contested from Thursday through Sunday this past week. Despite the “buzz factor” being down because of Tiger Woods’ forced absence due to injury, the tournament did not fail to disappoint. Big names such as Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, and Dustin Johnson all failed to make the cut; however, the final round was still filled highly anticipated. This anticipation was caused mainly by the presence of 20 year old Jordan Spieth. Entering the final round tied with 2012 Masters champion, Bubba Watson, Spieth was trying to become the youngest Masters champion of all time. Early in the final round Spieth seemed to be on the verge on accomplishing just that. Four early birdies gave him a two shot lead over Watson; one of these birdies was this hole-out from a front-greenside bunker on the long par three fourth. Despite the hot start, Spieth struggled over the closing 11 holes playing them at three over par. This struggle opened the door for Watson who grinded his way to a three shot victory. This was his second Masters victory and an especially emotional one as it was the first he shared with his son, Caleb.  Overall it was a great tournament and showed that the future of professional golf, especially in Spieth’s case, is bright.