Sports

Signal

Lions enter playoffs on winning streak

Left: Barlow charges the basket for a shot. Right: Devitt looks to pass the ball to a teammate.

By Malcolm Luck Staff Writer

Despite already earning a first round bye in the upcoming New Jersey Athletic Conference tournament, the Lions refuse to ease up on their opponents. On the heels of double-digit-point performances from sophomore forward Shannon Devitt, senior guard Sam Famulare, junior forward Jen Byrne and junior guard Lauren Barlow, women’s basketball dominated conference opponent William Paterson University in the regular season finale by a final score of 64-48 on Feb. 13.

Famulare opened up scoring for both sides by drilling a three-pointer following several empty possessions. After an offensive board on the next possession, she drained one more to tally the sixth of her 11 points on the day. For the remainder of the quarter, Devitt asserted her dominance on the court, scoring the next 10 points for the College while grabbing five boards in the process. Barlow sank a three-pointer in the closing seconds of the quarter to put her squad on top 19-7. William Paterson held close midway through the second quarter, reducing its deficit to as few as eight points with 6:28

Photos courtesy of the Sports Information Desk

remaining in the half. Any attempt at a comeback was quickly thwarted by a hot stretch from freshman guard/forward Rachel Gazzola. Gazzola drilled a three-pointer 15 seconds later to stretch the Lions’ lead to 11. After a layup from Byrne on the next possession, Gazzola followed up with a midrange jumper and another three-pointer on back-to-back possessions to go ahead by 14. Another late three from Barlow sent the Lions to the locker room with a 17point advantage. A closely contested second half was not enough to bring William Paterson back from a deep deficit.

In the end, Devitt, Famulare, Byrne and Barlow collectively scored 54 of the team’s 64 points. Barlow’s 16 points were good for her season high while Devitt also topped her season high mark in rebounds with 20. Coming up for the Lions is the semifinal round against University of RutgersNewark tonight at home at 7 p.m. Rutgers-Newark is coming off of a 65-47 win over University of Rutgers-Camden in the first round of the NJAC tournament, while the College is looking to defeat RutgersNewark for the third time this season following previous wins at home on Dec. 1 and on the road on Jan. 28.

Cheap Seats

March Madness exploits college players

Twitter

Villanova University tips off during last year’s game.

By Jordan Washington Staff Writer

March is on its way and so is the tradition of scrambling together brackets and rushing to the betting lines for NCAA March Madness, the annual riveting college basketball tournament composed of the best 68 teams

Lions Lineup february 20, 2019

I n s i d e

of the year. It has become a right of passage for fans to place bets on the scores of each game in the hopes of winning some money. March Madness money primarily goes to the NCAA, the conferences and coaches, but the group that sees little to nothing in terms of compensation is the players.

Men’s Basketball page 19

The players are considered “amateurs” or “doing it for the love of the game,” which is common rhetoric used to excuse their nonexistent salaries. There are billions of dollars moving around for everyone except the players, who are the ones putting their blood, sweat and tears on the line. March Madness is broadcasted on CBS and Turner Sports, who pay the NCAA $10.8 billion over the course of a 14-year deal that is set to end in 2024. In 2016, the NCAA, along with CBS and Turner Sports, agreed to an eight-year extension worth $8.8 billion. This means there will be $1.1 billion made a year from TV only, according to USA Today. Gambling on sports games has become a new norm, according to the American Gaming Association. Approximately $10 billion is wagered on the tournament, which is primarily done illegally. ESPN, CBS, Yahoo and many other companies have bracket creating services when tournament time rolls around, which is known informally as “Bracketology.” Sponsors come from all over the country in order to get a piece of the March Madness pie. From the team uniforms to the ladder used to cut down a piece of the net, which is a storied tradition, everything is sponsored, allowing the NCAA to make millions from the tournament. Although it is unrealistic to think the NCAA will ever actually create salaries for college players or allow them to unionize as workers, there still is a more feasible option. see BALL page 19

Wrestling page 19