Time Out For Sports: Duke Wins In Overtime, The XFL Is Back, And There's A Hornets Shakeup

[King_of_lion]

It's Time Out for Sports on WFAE. The Super Bowl is over, but there are still tons of sports events happening for those who are in the dumps because the NFL season has ended. Perk up. The XFL is in full swing. And there's a lot going on in college and high school sports. Veteran Charlotte Observer sportswriter Langston Wertz Jr. joins WFAE "All Things Considered" host Gwendolyn Glenn to help bring everybody up to speed on the sports world. Langston Wertz, sportswriter for the Charlotte Observer. Gwendolyn Glenn: So, there was a big game on Saturday between Duke and UNC Chapel Hill that went into overtime. Langston Wertz Jr.: Oh, wow. That was an incredible game. A lot of people were saying, you know, Duke and Carolina is gonna rise up and be a great game, even though North Carolina's not having the best of seasons. And it did turn out that way. It was a sort of crazy game. And then it comes down to a perfect missed free throw by Tre Jones off the front of the rim. Wendell Moore, who is from Cox Mill High School, grew up in Charlotte, tips the ball out. They get it back. Tre Jones misses a jump shot and Wendell Moore makes a shot that’s going to, you know, put him indelibly in Duke history. To be a freshman and have that kind of thing happen... he just came back from a broken hand. He's gonna be on ESPN 20 years from now when they talk about the history of this great rivalry. And for North Carolina, their season is not going well, anyway. And just to look at the reaction. Those guys, it's like, you know, we played the best we could play and we still lost. Glenn: What did you think about that foul toward the end? A lot of people were saying, oh, they've taken a game. And I was with one friend who is a ref. And he also thought that play was questionable. What did you think? Wertz: Yeah, you talked about a play when Andrew Platek was fouled by Wendell Moore right in front of the Duke bench. Yes, it was a foul. And yes, it did give Duke possession and ultimately it gave them the game. But the flipside is Carolina had 17 chances to put the game away. They missed 17 free throws. Glenn: Well, in more basketball news, there is a lot going on with the high school basketball conference. Tournaments begin next week. What teams are you watching? Wertz: The private schools start on Tuesday in Charlotte, and the state championships are in Charlotte in a couple of weeks. So I think the teams to look out for are going to be Cannon School on the boy’s side. I think they have a really strong chance to win in 4A. And I think Concord First Assembly, maybe one of the best teams in the state, public or private. They look really good in 3A. Then in 2A, Davidson Day is as big a favorite as there is. On the girl’s side, I think Providence's girls have a shot. But I think you're going to have three local boys’ teams win state championships at Charlotte Latin on Feb.22, which should be pretty exciting. On the public school side, they're going into the last week of the regular season. They start conference tournaments the following week. Glenn: OK. Well, let's go to football and the XFL season kicked off this weekend. A lot of people really excited about it. It debuted in 1999. And it’s back.