Orlando

Burke’s Big Game Off the Bench Helps Knicks to Victory

Published

8 years ago

February 22, 2018

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN SPORTS) – Trey Burke scored 26 points off the bench as the New York Knicks spoiled the return of two of Orlando’s starting lineup by the score of 120-113. Burke hit 12 of his 22 attempted shots in 30 minutes and had four rebounds and six assists. He had 14 of his points in the second quarter as the Knicks started to erase the memory of a bad opening quarter, when they allowed Orlando to score 41 points.

“You know he can put the ball in the hole, and he can get hot. He can control the pace. He’s a guy that when they’re putting a lot of pressure on, if you get him the ball, he’ll be able to get something going. But defensively I thought he was key because he got up on the guy. He was in that locker room, looked like he was dead tired. So that’s how guys are supposed to be when they come in that locker room. Trey was great on both sides of the court.” -New York Knicks Head Coach Jeff Hornacek on Trey Burke’s perfomance

In that first quarter, Orlando played what could have been considered their best opening 12 minutes of the season. The Magic shot 68.4 percent from the floor and hit 5 of their 6 attempts from downtown as they raced out to a 10-point lead. The team was sparked by the return of Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic to the starting lineup.

Gordon missed the last 10 games with a hip injury, struggled to find a rhythm in his first game back a little less than a calendar month. He finished with nine points and five rebounds in the 25 minutes he played. The spring that he was playing with to end the month of January seemed to be missing throughout the game.

Vucevic returned after injuring his hand in the Miami game on December 23rd, scored 19 points and had 6 rebounds. He missed only 3 of his 11 attempted shots in his 24 minutes played.

“Yeah, well his shot making was great, his playmaking was pretty good, there were some out-of-synch possessions with guys trying to hit him on rolls to the basket and whatnot and that’s to be expected but [I] thought he played with great energy.” – Magic Head Coach Frank Vogel on Vucevic’s return to the lineup

Even though the Magic had their top rebounder back in the lineup, he couldn’t help the Magic on the glass, as they were outrebounded 47-39. The Knicks were lead by Enes Kanter, who had 12 in the 21 minutes he played. The rebounding and the Knicks’ team defense allowed them to overcome the early deficit and hold the Magic to 44 points in the second half after allowing 69 in the opening half.

New York had eight second half blocks and the Magic couldn’t figure out how to keep up after having a hot start. Michael Beasley and former Magic center Kyle O’Quinn had three blocks apiece and the Knicks finished the game with 12.

Orlando was led in scoring by Evan Fournier, who had 25 points and finished 9 for 14 shooting from the field. Mario Hezonja had another solid offensive game, scoring 15 points off the bench.

Orlando returns to the court on Saturday for an early evening game against All-Star Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers at 5pm.

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Danny Thompson is a sports contributor for Florida National News. | info@floridanationalnews.com

Golf

Russell Henley Wins Red Cardigan at 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

1 year ago

March 9, 2025

Mike Brodsky

Russell Henley wins the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Russell Henley wins his first red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. This is Henley’s fifth win on the PGA Tour.

Russell Henley is greeted by his family on the 18th green after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

Henley finished at 11 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 70 today. Collin Morikawa finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, finished today at 4 under par, tied for 11th place.

Scottie Scheffler tees off at the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo Credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.

NFL

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Published

1 year ago

October 30, 2024

Mike Brodsky

UCF Hall of Fame Inductee Shaquem Griffin Launches Search For Greatness Combine With Joey Grant and GMTM

Former UCF football players Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant have partnered with GMTM to launch their Search for Greatness Combine at UCF on Saturday, November 9th. They’re giving local athletes a chance to showcase their talents and explore new sports opportunities. Griffin will be inducted into the UCF Hall of Fame on Saturday, November 2nd, during halftime of the Arizona vs. UCF football game. He is remembered for his tenacity, setting an NFL Combine record with the fastest 40-yard dash by a linebacker, and playing four seasons in the NFL, overcoming the challenge of only having one hand. He is now training to make the USA Paralympic Track and Field Team and hopes to compete in the 2028 Olympics. Joey Grant, the co-founder and CEO of GMTM, is a former UCF team captain, playing mostly Center for the Knights from 2011-2015.

Participation at the upcoming combine is free and invite-only, targeting athletes over the age of 18. To be considered, athletes must submit a highlight video via GMTM’s platform, showcasing their athleticism. GMTM will evaluate submissions and invite the most promising athletes to participate in the combine. The goal for this year’s event is to get 1,000 athletes to submit videos and be part of the combine process. Athletes chosen will receive personalized invites with further instructions, including event time slots and details. The athletes will be evaluated for their key athletic traits, to identify opportunities for them across multiple Olympic sports or professional sports programs. To learn more, or to apply for the combine, visit: https://gmtm.com/articles/the-search-for-greatness-at-ucf-with-shaquem-griffin-what-you-need-to-know.

Florida National News spoke with Shaquem and Joey about the combine, college football in the era of NIL and the transfer portal, and Griffin’s hall of fame induction. You can watch the full interview here:

Shaquem Griffin and Joey Grant interview

Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com and www.FloridaSportsChannel.com for more.

Florida

Scottie Scheffler Wins Second Red Cardigan at 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational

Published

2 years ago

March 10, 2024

Mike Brodsky

Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Scottie Scheffler wins his second red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. Scheffler first won the API in 2022.

Scottie Scheffler wins the Arnold Palmer Invitational. (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)

The number one ranked golfer in the world, Scheffler finished at 15 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 66 today. Wyndham Clark finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Kurt Kitayama, did not make the cut, this weekend, finishing 7 over par after the first two rounds on Thursday and Friday.

This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for the 50th anniversary of The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.