Screen Shots: October 31st-November 6th, 2024

Welcome to Screen Shots! This is where I tell you what sporting events you should watch on TV every week! Make sure you subscribe so it comes straight to your inbox! Have your own suggestions? Shoot me an email at [email protected]!

First things first, you need to make sure you watch my show if you haven’t already! I fought through a sinus illness to recap the WNBA Finals for you and tell you why you should be excited for the offseason! Plus, I broke down what annoyed me about Tony Bennett suddenly stepping away from Virginia’s men’s basketball program.

Now, to the sports!

Thursday, October 31st, 2024

• Horror Movie of the Week: Sleepy Hollow (1999) streaming on Prime Video

It’d be lame to not recommend one final horror movie on Halloween. Johnny Depp stars as Ichabod Crane, a constable sent to investigate murders that were alleged to have been done by, you guessed it, the Headless Horseman. It strikes a balance between mystery, horror, and the supernatural perfectly. As a bonus sports tie-in, before he lost his head, the Headless Horseman (played by Christopher Walken) strongly resembles a white Scottie Barnes. Tell me I’m lying.

Friday, November 1st, 2024

• NBA: Orlando Magic @ Cleveland Cavaliers at 7:00 pm (ET) on ESPN

A rematch of last year’s first-round playoff series that the Cavs won in 7 games. Magic F Paolo Banchero went for a career-high 50 points against the Pacers on Monday night as he’s figured out how to use his huge 6’10” frame to get all the way to the rim instead of settling for tough mid-range jumpers. Cleveland has 2 of the best in the league at protecting the rim in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Something has to give!

Saturday, November 2nd, 2024

• College Football: #4 Ohio State Buckeyes @ #3 Penn State Nittany Lions at 12:00 pm (ET) on Fox

This is the 1st matchup between these teams when both are ranked in the top 5 since 1996. Ohio State won that one in a 38-7 route by pretty much just running behind OT Orlando Pace. He was such a dominant force that year that he finished 4th in the Heisman voting. Again, he was an offensive tackle. You know what’s crazier than that? The 2 teams ahead of them in the Big Ten standings are Indiana and Oregon. Imagine ol’ Joe Paterno’s face if we dug him up and told him that.

• College Football: #10 Texas A&M Aggies @ South Carolina Gamecocks at 7:30 pm (ET) on ABC

The last time I went to a night game at Williams-Brice when the Gamecocks were playing Texas A&M, Xavier Legette took the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown while wearing 1 shoe and South Carolina went on to upset the 17th-ranked Aggies 30-24. I’ll be there this Saturday to see if history repeats itself.

Sunday, November 3rd, 2024

• NFL: Los Angeles Chargers @ Cleveland Browns at 1:00 pm (ET) on CBS

Browns QB Jameis Winston made his 1st start in over 2 years last week and managed to beat one of the best teams in the NFL and walk away with AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. I can’t tell if he’s the best bad quarterback ever or the worst good one, but he is must-see TV. He celebrated the victory by quoting Eminem in his post-game interview. Slightly more inspirational than his pre-game pep talks.

• NWSL: Kansas City Current @ Chicago Red Stars at 3:00 pm (ET) on ESPN

We’ve talked about Kansas City’s record-setting goal scorer Temwa Chawinga. In this one, she’ll take on goalie Alyssa Naeher, who you know as the stonewall that leads the USWNT.

Monday, November 4th, 2024

• Women’s College Basketball: #20 Ole Miss Runnin’ Rebels @ #3 Southern California Trojans at 12:00 pm (ET) on ESPN

College basketball season is here! JuJu Watkins attempts to follow up the highest-scoring freshman campaign in Division I women’s basketball history with a national title, and she’s going to have plenty of help. The Women of Troy added star transfers Kiki Iriafen and Talia von Oelhoffen to go along with the #1-ranked recruiting class according to ESPN. They kick off their championship chase against a scrappy Ole Miss squad looking for their 4th straight tourney appearance.

• Women’s College Basketball: #17 Louisville Cardinals @ #5 UCLA Bruins at 2:30 pm (ET) on ESPN2

Let’s keep it rolling with another top-5 LA-based program. Bruins C Lauren Betts is my favorite college post player to watch, men or women. She’s fundamentally sound and physically imposing. That combination is more rare than you think. The Cardinals have flown under the radar, but have plenty of talent themselves, such as freshman G Izela Arenas. Her dad is former NBA player Gilbert Arenas, who I have many thoughts on, which I will save for a separate post so we can focus on all of the good things his daughter does instead.

• Men’s College Basketball: #8 Baylor Bears @ #6 Gonzaga Bulldogs at 11:30 pm (ET) on ESPN2

The men play too! The transfer portal and one-and-done rule have made it nearly impossible to know what’s going on from season to season. It’s easy to complain about it because change stinks, but what if we simply embrace the chaos and uncertainty instead? By the way, Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe is projected to be a top-5 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Tuesday, November 5th, 2024

• Election Day: Go vote for Kamala!

This shit is important and will have long-lasting effects. Vote in your local races too because that’s where they really try to get weird with it.

Wednesday, November 6th, 2024

• College Volleyball: Georgia Bulldogs @ Missouri Tigers at 8:00 pm (ET) on SEC Network

In sticking with the college basketball theme, a matchup for my late ‘90s/early 2000s hoops fans who need a reminder that we’re old. The Rush brothers were all over the basketball scene during that period. Oldest brother JaRon hit this game-winner to help lift his UCLA Bruins over then-#1 Stanford. Middle brother Kareem starred at Missouri before becoming a Lakers playoff hero. And youngest brother, Brandon, won a national title at Kansas before moving on to the NBA himself.

Kareem’s daughter, Kaylen, is a libero (defensive specialist in volleyball) for this Mizzou squad. She faces off against a Georgia team featuring Bianna Muoneke, whose dad, Gabe, was a star hooper for Texas. Both Gabe and JaRon played in the then-NBDL’s inaugural season, where they had the honor of having a chubby, preteen me as their ballboy whenever they faced off against the North Charleston Lowgators.

Thank you again for reading! As always, it would mean a lot to me if you shared this with others. See you next week!