Queen of Sports

Sports Date Of The Week: MLB Opening Day

The baseball season was ushered in with the opening series last week in Japan, and the St. Louis Cardinals are taking on the Miami Marlins tonight, but we’re calling tomorrow the official Opening Day for the MLB.

Seven regular season games are on the schedule, and baseball fans from coast to coast are gearing up. The Empire State Building was lit up red, white and blue to mark Opening Day, and the new Marlins ballpark is getting prepped for its big debut.

Here’s the schedule of games for tomorrow:

• 10:05 am PST-Boston Red Sox vs Detroit Tigers
• 10:10 am PST-Atlanta Braves vs New York Nets
• 10:35 am PST-Philadelphia Phillies vs Pittsburgh Pirates
• 11:20 am PST-Washington Nationals vs Chicago Cubs
• 12:05 pm PST-Toronto Blue Jays vs Cleveland Indians
• 1:05 pm PST-Miami Marlins vs Cincinatti Reds
• 4:05 pm PST-Los Angeles Dodgers vs San Diego Padres

Who will you be rooting for this season?

Sports Date Of The Week: Miami Heat vs Los Angeles Lakers

Last weekend, we were treated to a showdown between some of the best in the NBA. This weekend, we get another showdown: this time it’s between two of the best teams in the league. The Miami Heat, who currently hold a better record than the Los Angeles Lakers, will be heading to Los Angeles on Sunday.

After Dwyane Wade‘s hard foul on Kobe Bryant which almost kept him out of tonight’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, tensions between the two teams should be heightened.

Catch the game with friends, your significant other, or solo at a sports bar or at home. Tip-off is scheduled for 12:30 pm PST.

Sports Date Of The Week: NBA All-Star Weekend

This weekend, the NBA’s finest will showcase their skills in a variety of events which will lead up to the All-Star Game.

Here’s what you can expect to see this weekend:

On Friday, you can catch the All-Star Celebrity Game with everyone from rapper Common to Jersey Shore’s Vinny Guadagnino competing. Dwight Howard and Kevin Durant will serve as captains of each team. The game starts at 4 pm PST on ESPN.

Later that night, a new format to the Rookies Challenge will take place with the Rising Stars Challenge. Rookies and sophomores will play together on teams managed by Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal. A draft of the teams was held last week, and a surprise decision to add Heat rookie Norris Cole and the Knicks’ newest star Jeremy Lin has added some allure to the event. The rosters are stacked, from Blake Griffin and Ricky Rubio on Team Shaq to John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins on Team Chuck. The event starts at 6 pm PST on TNT.

On Saturday, a number of events will air. Saturday night All-Star coverage begins at 5 pm PST on TNT beginning with the Shooting Stars Challenge, then the Skills Challenge, Three-Point Contest, and finally the holy grail of All-Star Weekend: the Sprite Slam Dunk contest. The dunk contest will also have a new format: only one single-round will be voted on solely by fans with the introduction of Twitter voting. All contestants are first-time dunkers.

On Sunday, catch the All-Star Game on TNT at 5:30 pm PST. Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Durant and others from the West will take on the East roster that includes Derrick Rose, LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Paul Pierce.

Sports Date Of The Week: Super Bowl Sunday

The big day for football is almost here! Get ready to watch some great commercials, catch some exciting on-field action, and eat some delicious food, after all isn’t that what Super Bowl Sunday is all about?

If you’re hosting a party, why not go with some themed dishes to represent each of the competing teams’ regional culinary specialties? Here are a couple recipes you can whip up for your guests or bring to a party:

New England Clam Chowder (via BrownEyedBaker.com)

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes

4 slices center-cut, thick-cut bacon (about 4 ounces), cut into ¼-inch pieces
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cans (6½ ounces each) minced clams, drained and juice reserved
2 bottles (8 ounces each) clam juice
1 cup water
1½ pounds red potatoes (about 4 medium), scrubbed and cut into ½-inch dice
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

1. Fry the bacon in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium-low heat until the fat renders and the bacon crisps, 5 to 7 minutes.

2. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the flour and stir until lightly colored, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the reserved clam juice (from the cans), the bottled clam juice and the water.

4. Add the potatoes, bay leaf, and thyme and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Add the clams, cream, parsley, salt and pepper to taste; bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, discard the bay leaf, and serve immediately.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza (via TasteOfHome.com)

• Prep: 20 min. Bake: 20 min.
• Yield: 4 Servings

1 tube (13.8 ounces) refrigerated pizza crust
1 cup buffalo wing sauce, divided
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1/2 teaspoon each garlic salt, pepper and chili powder
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Celery sticks and blue cheese salad dressing

1. Unroll pizza crust into a lightly greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan; flatten dough and build up edges slightly. Bake at 400° for 7 minutes. Brush dough with 3 tablespoons buffalo wing sauce. Combine cheddar and mozzarella cheeses; sprinkle a third over the crust. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, cook the chicken, garlic salt, pepper and chili powder in butter until chicken is no longer pink. Add the remaining wing sauce; cook and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Spoon over cheese. Sprinkle with oregano and remaining cheese.

3. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Serve with celery and blue cheese dressing. Yield: 8 slices, 4 servings.

Enjoy!

The New York Giants take on the New England Patriots at 3:30 pm PST on NBC.

Sports Date Of The Week: NHL All-Star Game

The NHL’s top players will gather in Ottawa on Sunday, Jan. 29 to compete in this year’s NHL All-Star Game.

The two captains named for each team are Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins and Daniel Alfredsson of the Ottawa Senators. They will choose their teams tomorrow at the All-Star Player Fantasy Draft.

NHL star Alex Ovechkin decided this week he would not participate in the All-Star game after the NHL suspended him for a “launching head shot” against a Pittsburgh Penguins player. James Neal of the Penguins is replacing Ovechkin.

All-Star goalies are Jonathan Quick of the LA Kings, Brian Elliot of the St. Louis Blues, Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings, Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens, and Tim Thomas of the Boston Bruins.

Drake has been announced as the major performer, the Grammy-award nominated rapper will take the stage during the second intermission.

Tune in at 1 pm PST on ESPN on Sunday to catch the game.

Sports Date Of The Week: Haywire

This Friday, action-thriller film Haywire directed by Steven Soderbergh starring MMA star Gina Carano is coming to theaters. We got a chance to catch the film last night, and can vouch for the quality of Carano’s high-adrenaline stunts which were all performed by her.

Carano makes her film debut as Mallory Kane, a former Marine who now works as a covert operative for a government security contractor. Kane performs jobs the government won’t authorize. She travels all over the world, getting into dangerous situations but always finding a way out. After she is betrayed and left for dead, she must attempt to make her way home safely to protect her family and exact revenge on those who betrayed her.

Other stars of the film include Michael Fassbender, Bill Paxton, Michael Douglas, Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas and Channing Tatum.

Carano prepared for her role with an intense six-week tactical training course taught by an ex-Israeli special ops fighter. She went to target practice, so handling a gun would feel like second-nature when filming.

Carano was introduced to directer Steven Soderbergh in 2009, shortly after a big loss to Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos. In the film, Soderbergh seeks to reimagine the spy drama by stripping away many of the special effects, stunt doubles, and quick film cuts. He envisioned Carano and her fighting capabilities would make the film look more real.

If you get a chance to check out the film, we want to hear what you thought of it! Let us know in the comments section or hit us up on Twitter at @QueenOfSports.

Photo: Suntzulynn for LE / Splash News

*Special thanks to Jeff Freedman for the invite

Sports Date Of The Week: NFL Divisional Round Games

This weekend, the divisional round of the playoffs will take place. The teams that come out winners in this round will then go on to the conference finals before two teams advance to the Super Bowl.

On Saturday, the Saints will play the 49ers in San Francisco at 1:30 pm PST on Fox. Later in the day, an exciting match-up between Tim Tebow and Tom Brady will take place in New England as the Broncos fight to advance past the Patriots at 5 pm PST on CBS.

Start your Sunday morning off right with a little football as the Texans will play the Ravens in Baltimore at 10 am PST on CBS. Later, the Giants play the Packers in Green Bay at 1:30 pm PST on Fox.

Sports Date Of The Week: Wild Card Weekend

The NFL postseason officially gets underway this weekend, with four wild card playoff matchups.

First of all, on Saturday, the Cincinnati Bengals will play the Houston Texans at 1:30 pm PST in Houston. The winner of that game will go on to play the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional playoffs.

Later, the Detroit Lions play the New Orleans Saints at the Superdome at 5 pm PST. The winner from that game will play the 49ers next.

On Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons take on the New York Giants in New York at 10 am PST. The lucky winner from that game has a huge challenge ahead, facing last season’s Super Bowl Champions the Green Bay Packers.

Finally, at 1:30 pm PST the Steelers take on Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos in the Mile-High City. Will it be Tim Tebow vs Tom Brady next?

There are some pretty exciting matchups you won’t want to miss.

Sports Date Of The Week: Bowl Games

From now until the end of the year, 13 bowl games will played in college football. Depending where your allegiance lies, there’s a game for nearly everyone this week and weekend. If you’re a Cal fan but he’s a Notre Dame fan, compromise and check out both games. Most restaurants and bars will be showing the game, or you can always catch them at home. All games are on ESPN unless otherwise noted.

Here’s a list of the bowl games for the remainder of the year:

Dec. 28

-The Military Bowl: Toledo vs Air Force in Washington, D.C. at 1:30 pm PST

-The Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl: Cal vs Texas in San Diego at 5 pm PST

Dec. 29

-The Champs Sports Bowl: Florida State vs Notre Dame in Orlando at 2:30 pm PST

-The Valero Alamo Bowl: Washington vs Baylor in San Antonio at 6 pm PST

Dec. 30

-The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: BYU vs Tulsa in Dallas at 9 am PST

-The New Era Pinstripe Bowl: Rutgers vs Iowa State in the Bronx at 12:20 pm PST

-The Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: Mississippi State vs Wake Forest in Nashville at 3:40 pm PST

-The Insight Bowl: Iowa vs Oklahoma in Tempe at 7 pm PST

Dec. 31

-The Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas: Texas A&M vs Northwestern in  Houston at 9 am PST

-The Hyundai Sunday Bowl: Georgia Tech vs Utah in El Paso at 11 am PST on CBS

-The AutoZone Liberty Bowl: Cincy vs Vanderbilt in Memphis at 12:30 pm PST on ABC

-The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Illinois vs UCLA in San Francisco at 12:30 pm PST

-The Chick-fil-A Bowl: Virginia vs Auburn in Atlanta at 4:30 pm PST

Sports Date Of The Week: HBO’s Road to the NHL Winter Classic

HBO’s newest NHL reality series is airing tonight. The series, 24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic will chronicle the fierce rivalry between the two teams and give viewers a behind-the-scenes look at each team’s journey to one of the NHL’s biggest games of the season.

The series is sure to be drama-filled. The Philadelphia Flyers and the New York Rangers hate each other. The fans, the coaches, and the teammates all participate in the rivalry with such passion. Catch the first episode tonight on HBO at 7 pm PST.

To see a 12-minute preview of the show, watch below:

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