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Monday’s Hot Clicks: Iowa’s Jordan Bohannon Holds March Madness Rug Hostage—To Make a Statement
Let us make money and the rug doesn’t get hurt
The Wall Street Journal ran a story this weekend about how the March Madness rugs that can be found in team’s locker rooms are the must-have souvenir for NCAA tournament participants. Just like going home with a few extra towels from a hotel, players like to swipe the rugs when they skip town—sometimes scheming days in advance how they’ll abscond with them.
The Iowa Hawkeyes were no exception to the trend and once the string of thefts was uncovered, star guard Jordan Bohannon saw a negotiation opportunity.
Bohannon, whose three older brothers also played college hoops, isn’t shy to rib the NCAA over the way it treats athletes, whether it’s over the organization preventing his postgame snack or snapping back at a bad tweet about free WiFi.
But the rug tweet may have crossed a line, because Bohannon later issued an apology touting “the incredible opportunities” of NCAA participation.
Bohannon is only a junior, so he has to be careful not to upset the NCAA too much. But it’s clear he feels strongly about the way the system treats athletes, so you can bet on him taking the gloves off next season.
That’s it for Zion
Michigan State ended Zion Williamson’s college career with a thrilling victory over Duke in the Elite Eight yesterday. Zion achieved what should be impossible—getting the majority of America to pull for Duke. It would have been amazing to see him on the stage of the Final Four and for even more people to discover him on that stage. I wanted his college career to go on for as long as possible because we’ll never get to see him so thoroughly outmatch his opponents on a physical level again.
The best of SI
Who should be the favorite to cut down the nets now that the Final Four is set? ... Technological advances like radar and high-speed cameras are altering baseball as we know it. ... Lou Williams is the smart NBA fan’s cult hero.
Around the sports world
The NFL wanted to cut down a bunch of cherry blossom trees in Nashville for the draft but the city overruled the league. ... An auctioneer believes Zion Williamson’s busted shoe could fetch as much as $250,000, but no one knows where it is. ... Christian Yelich tied an MLB record by hitting a homer in each of his team’s first four games, then added a walk-off hit in the ninth.
It turns out brackets are hard
They rolled Toomer’s Corner after Auburn beat Kentucky
I can’t stop watching this
Wayne Rooney still has it
This kid loves rugby
This is a baseball thing, believe it or not
Ready to feel old?
This is spot-on
Yes, those are teeth marks
Undefeated Kash Ali earned his first career loss after being disqualified for biting his opponent.
Philly fans love their former players
Why not even Steve Nash could shoot 100% on free throws
A lot happened in six seconds
Johnny Manziel’s AAF career went south quickly
Manziel was pulled from Saturday night’s game after taking a knee to the head.
Not sports
A comedian is poised to become president of Ukraine. ... Newsday scored an interview with a 102-year-old former mob boss who had never before spoken to the media. ... A California deliveryman was busted on camera sneaking a sip of the milkshake he was delivering. ... L.A. rapper Nipsey Hussle was killed in a shooting at his clothing store.
This tweet reeks of AXE
A classic pairing
I haven’t seen a deadpan this perfect
This is stupid but hilarious
When you open a can of Coke on the bottom of the ocean
A good song
Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.
