Sports Briefs March 3, 2010

Gold medal game pulls huge numbers

Sunday’s gold medal hockey game between Canada and the United States wasn’t just huge on the ice, but on the airwaves as well. The game, which is being called one of the most exciting and intense ever played by some pundits, was watched by 27.6 million people in the United States and another 16.6 million people in Canada. According to Steve Lepore’s Puck The Media, a blog dedicated to examining the media’s hockey coverage, the game was the most-viewed in Canadian history. Lepore also cited a report by Truth & Rumors’ William Houston, which said that 80 percent of Canadians watched at least some of the game, which was won by Canada, 3-2 in overtime. In America, only two hockey games have ever had more viewers: the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” game between the United States and the Soviet Union, and the gold medal game between the United States and Finland that same year. The game received high ratings locally as well. The Boston area had the sixth-highest market ratings for the game, pulling a 24.1/46 rating on the Nielsen scale. Buffalo came in at number one, with a 32.6/51 rating.

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Lady Rams invited to ECAC tourney

Despite their first-round exit in the GNAC playoffs, the 2009-2010 season will continue for the Lady Rams. Suffolk’s women’s basketball team was one of two GNAC teams to be selected for participation in the ECAC New England Women’s College Basketball Tournament.

The other GNAC team selected was Norwich, which finished second in the conference during the regular season.

The Lady Rams are seeded eighth, the bottom seed in the tournament. They will take on top-seed Keene State College tonight at 7 p.m. in Keene, N.H.

Norwich is seeded fifth. If both Norwich and Suffolk win their games, they will play each other in the tournament semifinals.

Sports Briefs Feb. 24, 2010

Wilfork gets tagged by the Patriots

As was widely expected, the Patriots applied the franchise tag to nose tackle Vince Wilfork on Monday. According to Comcast SportsNet New England’s website, CSNNE.com, the tag is “non-exclusive,” meaning that Wilfork is allowed to negotiate with other teams but that the Patriots have the right to match any offer he receives. If Wilfork reaches a deal with another team and the Patriots elect to let him walk away, the team that signs Wilfork would owe the Patriots two first-round draft picks. … Continue Reading

Sports Briefs Feb. 17, 2010

New faces in the top 25

The tumultuous times in the men’s college basketball season continued this week as a few unfamiliar teams crept into the Associated Press’ top 25 poll, including one team that hasn’t been ranked in over two decades. According to FoxSports.com, the University of Richmond is ranked twenty-fifth in this week’s poll, marking the first time the school has been nationally-ranked since 1986. Also making some serious noise is Kansas State University, which is ranked seventh in the nation, the highest the school has been ranked since 1962. At the top of the poll for the third-straight week is Kansas, which received 62 of the 65 first-place votes. Kentucky, which got the other three first-place votes, is ranked second. Rounding out the top five are Villanova, Purdue and Syracuse.

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