daily juice report - ABREU IS Venezuela’s hero
Welcome to another Daily Juice Report, where we quickly go over all the big news from the last 24 hours… and there’s a solid amount to cover today!
Starting off with our headliner, Venezuela upset Japan last night in the quarterfinals of the WBC - sending them to the semifinal’s vs Italy! It all started with a 3-run moonshot from Wilyer Abreu halfway through the game. The offense was fired up, now taking the lead on Japan and giving them the momentum that carried them through the rest of the game. Taking Yamamoto out (though they were required to) is what killed them. They were in complete control until then and realistically could have stayed that way. Almost instantly upon his removal Venezuela was rejuvenated. Taking on Italy in the next round is a GREAT matchup, and this tournament has been full of surprises.
Speaking of surprises, the college basketball nightmares continued on today. UPenn upset Yale in the Ivy League tournament championship, winning 88-84 in OT. Let me just say, the way they even forced OT in the first place was incredible, let alone they carried that momentum into an upset win. TJ Power absolutely dominated the court, 44 points on over 50% shooting. He had 7 3PM and 14 rebounds to top it all off. What an absolute show.
Talking about an absolute show, did anyone see Cam Young win The Players Championship today? Aside from the fact that I hit a 3-unit bet, it was an electric finish to a crazy tournament. Head-to-head with Matt Fitzpatrick, his birdie on the 17th hole secured him a victory in as nail-biting of a fashion as golf can get. I never understood the appeal when I was younger, but I get it now.
How about the performance from Acuff in Arkansas’ SEC title today, or their title run in general? He’s averaging 28p/8a/5r through the SEC tournament and the boy is only going to turn it up in March Madness. Seriously, keep an eye on this guy - his draft stock is about to fucking ROCKET.
The Lakers vs Nuggets game also ended in absurd fashion last night. OT was forced by Austin Reaves, allowing the Lakers to take it after the extra time ran out. Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic both posted triple-doubles and it’s hard to decide who’s was more impressive… Jokic had 26p/16r/14a with 5 steals, but Luka had 30p/11r/13a with the game-winning bucket in OT. Reaves still put up over 30, so this game finished like a fucking movie. The NBA made a statement that Reaves’ OT-forcing free-throws were actually a bad call and shouldn’t have occurred which undeniably would have changed the outcome of the game. Unfortunately, that’s Laker’s basketball.
Lastly, there’s only been one notable singing in the NFL the last 24 hours. Dallas Goedert re-signs with the Eagles on a 1-year deal. I hate this. The man has talent and is getting old, he NEEDS to get out of Philly. It’s not that they don’t use him well, they do, but he’s not going win another ring there. They have sunk as a ship last season, and they have made NO big changes to their roster to sort those out. The energy is beyond negative in Philly, and with no changes or movement of players - it won’t get better. Are they too scared to make a big move? Are they complacent with being mid?