Page 26 - Florida Sentinel 4-3-20

Local Sports
Norfolk State’s Hicks Leads BOXTOROW Division I All-America Team; B-CU Coach Named ‘Coach Of Year’
Sports
Kobe Bryant Towel Auctioned For $33,000
KOBE BRYANT
Imagine being so iconic, so renowned, such a household name that a sweaty towel of yours can be auctioned off for tens of thousands of dollars.
Late NBA superstar Kobe Bryant was and still is that icon.
The “Mamba out” towel that Bryant had draped over his shoulders as he said his farewells to fans from the Sta- ples Center floor in Los Ange- les after his final NBA game was auctioned off for more than $33,000 on Sunday along with two tickets from the game which aired on April 13, 2016.
Chris Godwin Comes To Jameis Winston's Defense
The Tampa Bay Bucca- neers finished 7-9 last season to miss the playoffs for the 12th-straight year. Much of the blame for the team’s shortcomings fell on the shoulders of quarterback Jameis Winston, who de- spite finishing the year with 5,109 passing yards and 33 touchdowns, tossed a league- high 30 interceptions.
With Tom Brady now officially a member of the Buccaneers, Winston’s time in Tampa Bay is done. The number one pick in the 2015 NFL draft is still searching for a home, but despite his departure from the Bucs, teammates still hold him in high regard.
Wide receiver Chris Godwin, who experienced a career-best season in 2019 with 86 receptions, 1,333 yards and nine touchdowns, came to the defense of his former quarterback in a re- cent interview with The Boardroom.
Here’s part of what God- win had to say:
“I definitely think [Win- ston] got more of the blame than he deserved. I think he’s
CHRIS GODWIN AND JAMEIS WINSTON
a really, really talented quar- terback. Obviously there are things that he does that you can’t teach, and there are plays that he made that just weren’t smart plays. But a lot of the mistakes and intercep- tions that he made, I would say half of them were because of a bad read on someone else’s part.”
Several former NFL quar- terbacks, including Carson Palmer, who played for Ar- ians during their time with the Arizona Cardinals, felt Winston was primed for a big Year 2 under Arians, whose offense can be hard to master. But with the Bucs being able to lure Brady away from the Patriots, Win- ston will never get that shot now.
CHANETTE HICKS ...Division I National Player of the Year
BOXTOROW is announc- ing the All-Americans of the 2020 Division I women’s basketball season.
Norfolk State guard Chanette Hicks was named BOXTOROW Division I Women’s National Player of the Year. Hicks led the MEAC and was 12th in Division I in scoring (20.0), and was sec- ond in Division I in steals (4.9).
She also led the conference in assists (5.0), was 8th in field goal percentage (.471), and averaged 4.5 rebounds per game. She recorded a triple double against Virginia- Lynchburg (11/14/19), scoring 31 points, handing out 14 as- sists, and recording 11 steals. The Virginia Tech transfer re- turned home to Norfolk to
VANESSA BLAIR-LEWIS ...‘Coach of the Year’
help lead the Lady Spartans to a second place finish in the MEAC and a 19-11 record.
Amaya Scott, Bethune- Cookman (F, Jr., Sunrise, FL), made the Second Team of All Americans.
Bethune-Cookman head coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis was named BOXTOROW Coach of the Year. In her 12th season at the helm, she led the Wildcats to a 23-6 record, the fifth straight winning season for the B-CU women’s pro- gram.
The 2020 postseason WNIT would have been the fifth-straight year that the Lady Wildcats would have ap- peared in post season.
This is the second straight year that Blair-Lewis wins the award.
Bucs GM Jason Licht Says Tom Brady Pitched Himself To The Bucs
JASON LICHT AND TOM BRADY
Despite leading the Patriots to nine Super Bowl appear- ances over his 20-year career in New England, including six championships, it seems that quarterback Tom Brady still felt like he had something to prove to teams. Brady left the only franchise he’s ever known in favor of the Buccaneers, a franchise not exactly known for its culture of winning.
Given that the Bucs haven’t made the playoffs since 2007 and haven’t won a postseason game since 2002, you’d think Bucs brass would need to pull out all the stops to try and con- vince a future Hall of Fame quarterback to come to Tampa.
Well, according to Bucs GM Jason Licht, Brady was the one who did all the pitching when he got on the phone with Licht and head coach Bruce Arians the other week when the free agency period began.
Everson Griffen,
Seahawks Have Mutual Interest
Everson Griffen re- cently announced that he will not be returning to the Min- nesota Vikings next season, and a market is beginning to develop for the veteran de- fensive end.
Griffen has interest in joining the Seattle Seahawks. The interest is said to be mu- tual, especially with the Sea- hawks not certain to re-sign Jadeveon Clowney.
The Seahawks have re- portedly offered Clowney a deal in the $13-15 million per year range, but he is seeking significantly more than that. There does not appear to be a
EVERSON GRIFFEN
whole lot of interest in Clowney at his asking price, however, so it’s possible he could rethink that offer from Seattle weeks or months down the road.
PAGE 14-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2020