WATCH FOR two Florida college basketball teams to continue their seasons this week with an eye on a National Championship.
The Florida Gators (34-2 and winners of 27 straight games) continue their run through March Madness, when they meet the UCLA Bruins (28-8) on Thursday night in Memphis, Tennessee with the winner advancing to the Elite Eight to meet the winner of the Dayton/Stanford game.
The Florida State Seminoles (21-13) have won two games in the National Invitational Tournament and meet the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (29-7) in Tallahassee Wednesday night. The winner advances to the Final Four to be played in New York City at Madison Square Garden.
WATCH FOR the final week of the Florida Grapefruit League as the 15 teams holding their Spring Training in Florida break camps and head to their home markets for the 162-game season. With only 20 games remaining from Wednesday through Saturday, over 1.3 million fans have attended 192 games so far this season.
Five teams have topped 100,000 total attendance already this season with the Atlanta Braves (ESPN Wide World of Sports-Walt Disney World), Boston Red Sox (Jet Blue Park-Fort Myers), Detroit Tigers (Joker Marchant Stadium-Lakeland), New York Yankees (Steinbrenner Field-Tampa) and Philadelphia Phillies (Bright House Field-Clearwater) hitting six figures.
The largest crowd of the 2014 season was recorded at Bright House Field when the Phillies hosted the Boston Red Sox before 11,210 fans on March 21. The New York Yankees game against the Red Sox on March 18 drew 11,032 fans.
The 2014 Florida Grapefruit League season has seen more games cancelled due to rain this year than the last three years combined. A total of 12 games have been lost to rain this season, compared to eight over the last three years combined.
WATCH FOR the 10th Anniversary of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg when the Indy cars fire up their engines on March 28 in downtown St. Petersburg.
The INDYCAR-sanctioned event is a 1.8 mile, 14-turn temporary street course that is one of the most respected motorsports races in North America, due to its combination of spectacular road courses, short ovals and exciting super-speedways.
Here’s a few storylines for Indy Car fans to follow as the cars racing through the streets of downtown St. Petersburg.
WATCH FOR more Sunshine State Games events to open up for online registration. Currently, the following three championship events, Lacrosse events and Sarasota County and Polk County Olympic-style Sports Festivals are available for amateur athletes to register online.
Sunshine State Games Basketball Championships, Alachua County, May 9-11
Sunshine State Games Figure Skating Championships, Ellenton Ice Complex, May 16-18
Sunshine State Games Lacrosse Series, Broward County, May 16-18
Sunshine State Games Lacrosse Series, Sarasota County, June 7-8
Sunshine State Games Sarasota County Festival, June 6-8
Sunshine State Games Polk County Festival, June 21-22
Sunshine State Games Water Polo Championships, Coral Springs, June 27-29
This year is the 35th Anniversary of the Sunshine State Games and is now in its fourth decade of providing amateur sports opportunities for Floridians. The 2014 Sunshine State Games is expected to attract over 10,000 athletes to its nearly 30 sport offered.
The Weekly “What to Watch For in Florida Sports,” is compiled by the Florida Sports Foundation, the state’s lead sports promotion and development organization. Follow the Florida Sports Foundation on Facebook and on Twitter #fla_sports. Visit http://www.flasports.com for more information about the Florida Sports Foundation and the vibrant sports industry in the Sunshine State. Florida is Where The World Comes to Play.
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