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00:03 Hello and welcome to a Thursday live right here on the early line on SportsGrid and
00:07 all across the SportsGrid network.
00:09 That includes sportsgrid.com/watch,
00:12 where you can find your favorite destination and
00:14 consume everything all across the grid.
00:17 He is Donnie Wrightside, I am Ben Stevens.
00:19 We are here together for the next three hours up until 11 AM Eastern Time,
00:24 a huge Thursday in the world of sports.
00:27 We look back on a Wednesday night, a double header of NBA playoff action.
00:32 Two game fives featuring the top overall teams in each conference.
00:36 One already on to the conference finals round.
00:39 The other in danger of being eliminated here in the second round of the NBA
00:44 playoffs.
00:45 To the ice we go after that, Major League Baseball recaps from a jam-packed Wednesday.
00:50 The NFL schedule was released on a Wednesday evening as well.
00:55 The insert at social media team was rather creative on your favorite
00:59 social media app and DRS on this Thursday.
01:03 It is the opening round of the second major championship this year in golf,
01:07 the 2024 PGA Championship.
01:10 >> Now a lot of big things happened in sports yesterday, but let me say this.
01:13 >> Getting choked up a little bit.
01:15 I did the Dallas Cowboys, they finally listened to me, the NFL.
01:18 [LAUGH] They're gonna play a true Road Thursday football game for
01:24 the first time in their history.
01:25 It's been my cause.
01:28 It really has been my cause and they finally listen.
01:31 All right, let's get back to it.
01:34 The Cowboys finally play a Thursday night true road game, people.
01:38 It's happening right in front of our eyes.
01:40 Let's move on and get ready for the show cuz now I got that energy.
01:43 I just wanted to get the emotional moment out of the way here, that's all.
01:47 >> I think we were breaking down the NBA playoff games two days ago to start
01:51 with the power three when you brought up the Cowboys not being forced to play
01:56 a short week true road Thursday night football game in their history in the NFL.
02:01 And I thought that was rather random but to see it pay off about 48 hours later.
02:06 Congrats to you Donnie right side maybe not so
02:08 congratulatory to the Dallas Cowboys.
02:11 But we'll look at the marquee matchups that we got throughout the entirety of
02:15 the 2024 NFL season as the full schedule for
02:18 all 32 NFL organizations unveiled last night.
02:22 But we start in the NBA playoffs with the number one overall seed in
02:26 the Eastern Conference, the NBA's best team, frankly, all year long.
02:31 In only five games, wins its second consecutive playoff series and
02:36 advances to the Eastern Conference Finals for a third straight year.
02:40 That's the Boston Celtics, 15 point win last night at home inside TD Garden,
02:45 over the Cleveland Cavaliers, 113-98 as expected.
02:51 But before game number five, we got the big news out of Cleveland.
02:55 No Donovan Mitchell, no Jarrett Allen, no Karris Levert,
02:59 line balloon to 16 points prior to tip.
03:02 So the Celtics technically even winning by 15, do not cover.
03:06 But Boston in five games, wins this second round series, four games to one.
03:12 >> And it was what was supposed to happen.
03:13 Without your superstar player against a better opponent,
03:15 you're not supposed to win those games, particularly on the road.
03:18 Even though Mobley gave you 33 points.
03:20 You saw Marcus Morris Jr.
03:21 coming off the bench, senior, excuse me, 25 points off the bench,
03:24 knocked down five triples.
03:25 Sam Merrill, three triples off the bench, but
03:27 it still wasn't enough because you're not as good as the Boston Celtics.
03:30 This was anticipated, but also as you pointed out, man,
03:33 it's sometimes it's not about what line you get, it's when you get that line.
03:37 13 and a half, 14 and a half, 15 and a half, 16, came right into play.
03:40 Celtics are moving on.
03:41 No surprises here, Ben.
03:43 >> Yeah, no surprises whatsoever.
03:46 Boston was a minus 1500 series outright favorite before this set even got underway.
03:52 That was with a healthy Donovan Mitchell,
03:54 who misses the last two games of this series.
03:57 But again, as we were breaking down the basketball game yesterday,
04:00 the C's were a 14 and a half point home favorite.
04:04 I hope you got in on the number then and not after Spida and
04:08 Carislaver were officially ruled out.
04:11 To the other conference we go with the other number one overall seed,
04:15 the Oklahoma City Thunder, in a series tied at two games apiece against
04:20 the Dallas Mavericks, the Thunder back at home last night in OKC.
04:24 But no home cooking in Oklahoma City.
04:26 Dallas goes on the road behind a 31 point triple double and
04:30 a dominant Luka Doncic performance as Dallas wins game five outright
04:35 as a four and a half point underdog 104-92.
04:39 The Mavs now DRS take a 3-2 series advantage.
04:43 >> We'll cover this game more in the next segment here, but
04:45 let me just get this point out here, which I talked about yesterday.
04:48 Your biggest players in the biggest games need to come up big and
04:51 Luka Doncic absolutely did that yesterday.
04:53 And no shame for SGA either, getting his typical between 27 to 35 points.
04:57 He landed right in that range once again.
05:00 The stars were there, but
05:01 the star was just a little bit brighter on the side of Dallas.
05:04 >> Yeah, it certainly was.
05:06 So good for Dallas in basketball, not so good for
05:09 Dallas on the ice in the Stanley Cup postseason.
05:13 The stars at home in game number five took an early 2-1 lead with a series
05:18 clincher on the line only for the Mavs to respond.
05:22 Colorado steals one on the road in Texas,
05:25 5-3 to keep their season and this series afloat.
05:29 The Mavs will head back to Denver for game number six.
05:33 >> Yeah, by the way, the best maybe defenseman in hockey,
05:35 Kale McCarr, two goals in that on the road when you needed it the most.
05:38 And what do we say, Ben?
05:40 The hardest game to win is that final closeout game.
05:42 You just keep giving that avalanche life.
05:44 Now they go back to their home building.
05:45 Let's see if we go seven here.
05:46 >> Second night of the WNBA season with some star rookies making their debut.
05:52 Angel Reese for the Chicago Sky.
05:55 The Sky lose by eight.
05:57 I bet them when Chicago was an eight and a half point underdog yesterday against,
06:03 I believe it was as I check here, the Dallas Wings.
06:06 Yes, it was 87-79 the final line closed at seven and a half.
06:11 I was sweating it out.
06:12 This game was tied at 75 all with about two and a half minutes remaining.
06:15 Arike Agumboale on the other side for Dallas paces them through the finish line.
06:20 Cameron Brink, the second overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft,
06:25 makes her WNBA debut last night for the LA Sparks against the Atlanta Dream.
06:30 But behind 25 points from Ryan Howard, Atlanta wins big on the road.
06:35 >> And by the way, take a look at some of these opening night statistics here.
06:38 And I'm not talking about on the court, I'm talking off the court and
06:40 people viewing it here.
06:41 Big numbers for the WNBA at the right time here.
06:44 So it's like this sport gaining momentum people as we watch.
06:48 >> What Donnie is referring to was Kaitlyn Clark's WNBA debut on Tuesday night.
06:54 Drew in an audience of 2.12 million viewers,
06:58 becoming the highest watched WNBA game since 2001.
07:03 The first to get more than a million viewers since Candice Parker's WNBA
07:09 debut 16 years ago in 2008.
07:13 Kaitlyn Clark, a market mover to the nth degree.
07:16 Now we go to Major League Baseball.
07:18 The Baltimore Orioles back in action after a rain out on Tuesday with
07:23 an early game on Wednesday.
07:25 And Adley Rutschman walks it off for the O's.
07:28 A 3-2 win for Baltimore over the Toronto Blue Jays inside Camden.
07:34 >> Yeah, it's a big win here coming back on that.
07:35 And also we had a pitching change there for Toronto.
07:37 It seemed like it worked in spades here with Cucucci on the mound.
07:40 Low scoring game, Orioles needed that one.
07:42 Got it in a clutch moment down at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
07:46 >> They were down 2-1 in the home half of the ninth.
07:49 It was a two run shot for Adley Rutschman to win it in Baltimore.
07:53 The O's win that game 3-2.
07:57 Now to the NFL schedule reveal.
07:59 DRS, what a day it was.
08:01 All 32 NFL teams now know the entirety of their schedule.
08:04 All 17 games, when exactly they are going to be played in terms of day of the week
08:09 and what time those games are scheduled to be played at a moment.
08:14 The New York Jets, six prime time games in the first 11 weeks of the season.
08:20 We will see a lot of Aaron Rodgers to begin.
08:23 >> Yeah, and that's expected here.
08:24 That's a big market here with a big player that missed out on last year.
08:27 We'll see how they come back this season.
08:28 But also, I think the NFL hit home runs here.
08:30 Opening night, the first Friday night, as well as Thanksgiving and also Christmas.
08:34 We got some barn burners in the biggest moments.
08:38 >> The Christmas Day doubleheader on a Wednesday is going to be jam-packed.
08:42 But it streamed exclusively on Netflix for the first time.
08:46 It's the Texans and the Ravens, the Chiefs and the Steelers.
08:50 A great Christmas Day slate, but again, only on Netflix.
08:55 The PGA Championship now underway at Valhalla.
08:59 The two guys entering as the frontrunner.
09:01 Scotty Scheffler, 4-1 as the pre-tournament favorite.
09:05 Roy McIlroy looking for his first major title in 10 years,
09:09 since he last won the PGA at Valhalla.
09:12 He entered at a plus 750 price.
09:14 Plenty of live updates from Louisville coming your way later in the show.
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