Sports this 'n' that

I haven't watched a lot of golf lately, and that's not about to change. Even with Tiger Woods back on the course.

Woods, 20 years removed from his 1st Masters title, is 5 shots off the lead after 2 rounds of the Hero World Challenge.That's fine, but if the PGA and NBC think that's enough to lure viewers away from college football today, they're dreaming. It's been nearly a year since Woods last set foot on the course for a competitive round, and he's not the ratings draw he once was because of injuries and scandal over the last few years. Just sayin'.
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USC punched its ticket to the Rose Bowl by beating Stanford, 31-28, to claim the Pac-12 title on Friday, but not without some controversy. Seems the zebras blew a 4th & goal call on a Stanford drive with a premature whistle. USC, starting at their own 1, marched 99 yards for the winning score. It was already a given that the Pac-12 champ was not going to be in the College Football Playoff next month, but today's games will have an effect on that for sure.
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After 12, nearly 13 years with the WWE's main roster, mostly as Dolph Ziggler, Nick Nemeth may be ready to move on, and follow a path blazed by former champion and commentator John Layfield.

The Kent State product appeared on Edge & Christian's podcast Friday, dropping hints that he could be heading to Fox News or Fox Business, having appeared on Kennedy a few times on the latter channel. Nemeth holds a degree in political science from Kent State, and, like Layfield before him, may have his future career mapped out already. Layfield began his broadcasting career with both WWE AND Fox News a decade ago, appearing on the latter's Bulls & Bears and Fox & Friends, and is also a best-selling author (Have More Money Now in the early 00's), As Dolph, Nemeth has already proven his worth with a microphone, and if he's ready to walk away from the WWE, more power to him.
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Meanwhile, former baseball player Aaron Boone is headed in the opposite direction.

Boone, who has been an analyst for ESPN since retiring a few years back, was hired by one of his former clubs, the Yankees, on Friday as their new manager. This after the media had been swerved with reports that the Bombers had reached out to a more recent star, newly retired Carlos Beltran, about the position. Bank on this. They aren't digging this in Boston........
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Troy High's women's basketball team opened their season in a tournament in Oneonta Friday, and we'll have the results if at all possible before the end of the weekend. Meanwhile, the boys open at Shenendehowa on Tuesday. As reported on Thursday, the Flying Horses won't have star guard Daniel Buie, who transferred to Gould Academy in Maine, and, while I'm not privy to who may be on this season's roster, interim coach Greg Davis may be looking at avoiding the grey division basement in the Suburban Council. Opening the season at Shen, then a 2-game homestand with Shaker & CBA? Killer, although the Horses have beaten Shaker & CBA in recent years.

The girls open at home with Shen, as the Lady Plainsmen make their 2nd trip to Troy in less than a year, and will have a non-league Sunday matinee on December 10 vs. Baldwinsville before Mohonasen comes in on the 15th. Again, I'm not expecting great things, and that is just this writer being realistic.
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So LeBron James was ejected from an NBA game for the first time in his career the other night. Big whoop.
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It was just a matter of time before Lavar Ball began second-&-third guessing Lakers coach Luke Walton, and that was the case Wednesday when the Lakers lost to Golden State, all because Walton called a timeout late in the game, and didn't set up a play for rookie Lonzo Ball. The real-life Fred Sanford predictably pitched a fit, still living under the delusion that 1) he knows how to coach better than Walton. If that was true, he'd be an NBA coach instead of a mentally deficient stage parent, 2) The Lakers are a playoff team, 3) That Lonzo is better than Warriors star Steph Curry, and 4) He thinks the Lakers would have won the game if Lonzo had the ball on the final play.

Considering that Lavar pulled his AAU summer team off the court at least twice when things didn't go his way, that says he's not of sound mind. The NBA should take note and hire someone to serve as a public relations flack for Ball. Since Jonathan Coachman left ESPN, maybe he can take the job. Ball's nutty enough to remind Coachman of his WWE days.

Speaking of which, before he dropped the Intercontinental title a week and a half ago in order to shoot the next "Marine" movie, Michael "The Miz" Mizanin spilled that Ball wasn't fully cooperative when he appeared on Monday Night Raw when the WWE was last in Los Angeles over the summer. Gee, what a shock. Raw returns to the Staples Center, the Lakers & Clippers' home court, on Monday. Quick, where are the Lakers playing on Monday?