1.28.20

NEWS | PAGE 3

TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2020

CULTURE | PAGE 17

VOL. 112 NO. 3

31.

PAGE

The Penn

BASKETBALL COMPLETES COMEBACKS, SWEEPS CLARION

SPORTS | PAGE 29

WWW.THEPENN.ORG

The Penn // INDIANA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

News

Cover Photo By Autumn Dorsey

Culture

SPORTS

The Penn S P R I N G

2 0 2 0

EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-Chief Katie Mest Managing Editors Steven Langdon Jr. Jess Truby News Editor Jake Slebodnick

06.

GOV. WOLF FUNDS ‘IT’S ON US’ CAMPAIGN FOR THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR

W

E

T U E S D A Y

35 HI |24 LO

A

T

17.

H

29.

STUDENTS FIND HOME IN CLUBS, ORGANIZATIONS

E

R

MAMBA FEVER: NBA STAR BRYANT DIES

F O R E C A S T

W E D N E S D A Y

T H U R S D A Y

F R I D A Y

39 HI |26 LO

35 HI |21 LO

39 HI |28 LO

Culture Editor Heather Bair Sports Editor Elliot Hicks Copy Editor Marty Weaver Graphic Designer Teddy Jeannette Photo Editor Autumn Dorsey Video Editor Sean Seaman Audio Editor Kyle Scott

The Penn

CHECK OUT ONLINE FOR EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

TWITTER.COM/THEPENNIUP

P

The Penn’s SPOTIFY PLAYLIST

This issue is brought to you by:

BUSINESS STAFF THEPENN.ORG

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

FACEBOOK.COM/THEPENNIUP

TRANZ Gorillaz DVP PUP

Secretaries Tessa Matulis Audrey Cameron Advertisement Designers Nala Johnson Na’eem Allen-Stills

TIGHT PANTS BODY ROLLS Leslie Hall MONEY, MONEY, MONEY ABBA MARIE DOUCEUR, MARIE COLERE Marie LaForet IMMIGRANT SONG Led Zeppelin MR. BRIGHTSIDE The Killers JOHN WAYNE Lady Gaga

CONTACT US

TUSK Fleetwood Mac

the-penn@iup.edu penn-ads@iup.edu PHONE: 724.357.1306 FAX: 724.357.0127 #IUPSTUDENTVOICE

SWEEPSTAKES Gorillaz

FOLLOW THEPENNIUP ON SPOTIFY FOR ACCESS TO THIS PLAYLIST

BROUGHT TO YOU BY MARTY WEAVER

NEWS

News Editor: Jake Slebodnick – qdvw@iup.edu

IT announces transition from iTube to Microsoft Stream JAKE SLEBODNICK

News Editor J.C.Slebodnick@iup.edu @Jake_WIUP

IUP’s IT department announced that video streaming services will change during the 2020 spring semester.

Following discussions by the Academic Computing Policy Advisory Council (ACPAC), it was determined that IUP will switch from iTube, the main infrastructure and implementation of Kaltura’s open-source video platform, to Microsoft Stream throughout the duration of the semester.

Stream was released to the public in 2017 as a predecessor to the Microsoft Office 365 video service. It offers a more user-friendly interface in which users can upload and organize videos to where they can share them with colleagues.

How it works: Users will be able to develop their own home pages which will feature a selection of a company’s videos, and viewers can watch, like or comment on content produced. Essentially, it will act as if one is operating through Facebook mixed with YouTube.

There will be a navigation bar at the top of the homepage where users can either create or search for different videos, pages, etc. and invite colleagues to view produced material.

When users invite colleagues or associated personnel to a video, they will be able to upload their own content and share it with your businesses, and they can also view your content.

If you are new to the Microsoft Streaming experience, you can view tutorial videos directly on the home page. This is Microsoft’s user-friendly way to remain interactive with the plat-

News

(Facebook) IUP’s Information Technology department will transition to a more user-friendly video streaming service throughout this semester. Stream, which was released in 2017, acts similarly to YouTube and Facebook and makes streaming and sharing videos easier.

form while also giving resources in case someone is brick-walled.

Channels are also utilized on Stream. Users can follow channels and view newly uploaded directly from the home page.

If users want to unfollow a channel, all that needs done is to click “Following” on the videos portion.

Trending and popular videos will be featured at the bottom of the home page, leaving it out of the way for business home pages to promote their content to shared partners.

While it’s nice to keep them out of the way, it’s still a good way to keep mainstream topics prevalent. The Popular Channels section highlights the more trending channels rather than those already popular.

Keeping Privacy Relevant: Users can choose from allowing everyone in a company to view uploaded content to selecting a limited group to view certain videos.

There is a Shared With feature in which users can select to share

their video with either a group, certain channels that can be companywide and even certain people.

The People option can allow users to share to individual viewers, active directory security groups (these groups are responsible for assigning permissions and resources to users) or Office 365 groups that have no contributing restrictions.

While Microsoft Stream groups are not security groups, they will be able to assign who is the sole owner of a page. This determined owner can then select whether they want all members to contribute content or if they will be the only one able to upload.

Those involved with a security group will have the capabilities to upload without the option to restrict access to others.

Contributors to pages will find a display box for certain groups which will control if videos appear in a group page. If the box is unchecked, viewers will only be able to watch videos if they have a direct link or manually search the video.

Uploads can go to any group or channel from any page. However, different videos will have different defaults.

January 28, 2020

Companywide videos will need to be set for who is able to access certain videos, while group videos will automatically display in a group or channel. In simpler terms, group videos will have fewer restrictions when it comes to viewing content.

When talking about viewership, the concept of permissions comes to mind. Microsoft Stream has done away with utilizing permission methods for single viewers, and will instead allow users within a group to inherit “permission” so group members can act as moderators instead of a generic audience.

Can any organization create channels/groups?

Groups of all kinds can create Microsoft Stream groups and channels to collaborate on projects, share content and utilize resources within the platform.

Organizations will have to provide their names and a descriptions of the group and can choose to remain confidential if needed.

Additionally, creators can choose who to include in groups and if they want their content to

be viewed by everyone involved or if only certain members can view content.

Can you live stream events/videos?

Live streams can be scheduled and created using either Stream, Microsoft Teams (already utilized on computers around campus) or Yammer. Streams are said to be of high-definition (720 pixels) in the visual aspect, interactive options for discussions among a group and enhanced recording.

Only administrators to groups can schedule and monitor live events. This setting can be activated under the Admin settings tab and a sub tab called Live Event will allow users easy accessibility to live stream.

Admins can even view the number of likes, views and current viewers during a live stream.

Like YouTube, it will even allow active editing for thumbnails, descriptions and languages.

Another unique feature of live streams is the ability to live stream for a maximum time of four hours and the face recognition and speech-to-text feature that takes effect following a live streams.

3

4

January 28, 2020

News

Police Blotter Theft

• An unknown person attempted to steal a stop sign from the intersection of S. Sixth Street and Washington Street between Jan. 19 and the morning of Jan. 20. The sign was located at S. Fifth Street and Locust Street, according to Indiana Borough Police.

The police are investigating this incident further.

Corona Virus General Facts Coronaviruses usually cause mild to moderate upper-respiratory tract illnesses, like the common cold.

Symptoms may include: Runny nose Headache Cough Sore throat Fever A general feeling of being unwell

Human coronaviruses can sometimes cause lower-respiratory tract illnesses, such as pneumonia or bronchitis. This is more common in people with cardiopulmonary disease,people with weakened immune systems, infants and older adults.

(TNS) Two Minnesotans’ sicknesses came back negative for the rapid-spreading corona virus, which stemmed from China.

Results come back negative in Minnesotans corona virus scare JEREMY OLSEN Star Tribune TNS

Tests by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have confirmed that two Minnesotans who became sick after recent travels to Wuhan, China, were not infected by the novel coronavirus that has emerged there and spread to more than a dozen countries.

The two Minnesotans were among 32 people in the U.S. whose tests by the CDC for the novel coronavirus turned up negative, the federal agency reported Monday. The CDC has so far identified five positive cases of the coronavirus in people from Arizona, California, Illinois and Washington state and is investigating another 110 suspect cases from 26 states.

None of the current cases under investigation by the CDC is from Minnesota, said Doug Schultz, spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Health. The health department had asked the two people with suspicious infections to quarantine themselves at

home, to prevent the possibility that they could spread the virus to others, but Schultz said those restrictions are now lifted.

The negative tests were not that surprising given that this is the peak of the flu season. The CDC has asked states to be liberal in sending lab samples from people who have suffered fevers and respiratory symptoms after recent travels to Wuhan in an attempt to catch positive cases of novel coronavirus infections before they spread to others.

"We're going to be catching a lot of influenza," Schultz said.

The CDC came up last week with a test for the novel coronavirus, known formally as 2019-nCoV, and is now distributing it to state public health agencies. Schultz said Minnesota expects to have the capability to test for the virus on its own in a couple of days.

The continued spread of the coronavirus throughout China and Asia has prompted the CDC to issue travel warnings, discouraging Americans from nonessential travel to Wuhan, and asking them to talk to their doctors before traveling to other parts of China. However, the CDC is immi-

nently considering more restrictive travel recommendations, said Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director for the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

Federal health officials said the incubation period of infection is anywhere from two to 14 days, and that so far there is no evidence that people are infectious until they have respiratory symptoms or fevers. Screening of travelers returning from China will continue at five U.S. airports, Messonnier said, in part to check for existing illnesses but also to teach returning travelers what to do if they suffer symptoms later on.

Known coronaviruses cause anywhere from a quarter to a third of common colds in the U.S., but health officials are concerned because this virus is new and has shown the ability to spread through human contact with infected animals but also with other infected people.

Whether it causes more severe symptoms is unclear, but the coronavirus has been confirmed in more than 2,700 people and 80 deaths in China.

January 28, 2020

News

Be A Census Taker  Extra income

 Flexible hours  Weekly pay

Apply Online 2020CENSUS.GOV/JOBS

 Paid training For more information or help applying, please call 1-855-JOB-2020 Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339 TTY/ASCII www.gsa.gov/fedrelay The U.S. Census Bureau is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

D-419 | April 2019

5

6

January 28, 2020

News

Gov. Wolf funds ‘It’s On Us’ campaign for third straight year ANNA MECHLING Staff Writer A.Mechling@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

On Jan. 16, Gov. Tom Wolf announced IUP as the recipient of the “It’s On Us” grant for the third year.

The $30,000 grant is through Pennsylvania Gov. Wolf’s initiative to combat campus sexual assault through a Community Bystander Intervention Program.

IUP will use this funding to expand the Green Dot bystander curriculum, add risk education, personal protection workshops and other educational programming.

The campaign “Break a Silence” campaign will also be introduced.

The “Break a Silence” campaign focuses on anonymous reporting and protection from sanctions for reporting sexual violence.

The goals of these initiatives are to continue to improve awareness and prevention training, increase mechanisms and capacities for reporting and to improve institution response to sexual violence.

The initiative work will begin this month and will continue

(Flickr) Gov. Tom Wolf will donate $30,000 to combat sexual assault through a Community Bystander Intervention Program.

through May 2021.

The Green Dot model sees community members as potential bystanders and gives them the tools they need to recognize and response to high-risk situations.

It’s built on the base of significant national research, which has been shown to prevent multiple forms of interpersonal violence when a critical mass of individuals is engaged as peers in the effort.

The Green Dot’s mission is to have less people hurt by power-based personal violence. For more information on the Green Dot model, visit iup.edu/haven/green-dot/ or contact green-dot@iup.edu The Green Dot model is based in the Haven Project.

The Haven Project provides counseling and support for those who experience sexual and

domestic/relationship violence.

“We have heard the voices It also provides education on of thousands of students. We things like sexual and domestic/ continue to listen to their feedback relationship violence, stalking, and look for innovative ways to consent and bystander education. improve awareness and training for There are students.

"We continue to listen to their feedback our many different Our goal is to and look for innovative ways to improve make sustaineducational programming awareness and training for our students." able changes and awareness on our campus events that through the - Dr. Jessica Miller, Psychologist, IUP Counseling Center are held on integration of campus throughout the year. key messages into our permanent The Haven Project’s mission is infrastructure. to make IUP’s campus a safer place “Mobilizing a critical mass of inusing the Green Dot bystander dividuals requires moving beyond intervention program and knowing increasing awareness and changthat students and staff have the re- ing attitudes to providing educasponsibility to do something about tional programs that equip people violence if they see it. with the skills and motivation The Haven Project believes necessary to act. We have reached “It’s On Us” to make IUP a safer out to our community, and they are campus. fully supportive of this initiative.”

Dr. Jessica Miller is an associate The grant follows a $30,000 professor and a psychologist at funding received in 2016 to IUP’s counseling center. She is also launch the Green Dot bystander the director of IUP’s Haven Project. intervention program at IUP. In “Throughout our journey to 2018, $30,000 of funding was create a positive culture change at received to continue the Green IUP, we have talked to students, we Dot initiative with special focus have created student evaluations on programs for men, including and we completed a pre- and speakers, film screenings and an post-sexual violence climate surextensive “It’s On Us IUP” social vey,” Miller said. marketing campaign.

Connecticut DMV approves selection of non-binary license designation ELIZA FAWCETT Hartford Courant TNS

The Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles now offers residents a non-binary gender designation on drivers' licenses and non-driver identification cards, joining at least a dozen other states.

The policy, which went into effect Monday, allows residents to select their gender designation, choosing between female (F), male (M) and non-binary (X). A new form, which allows applicants to update the gender designation on their current driver's license or identification card, does not require medical documentation.

"We felt that as a state and as a DMV this was important, because it's all about inclusion, acceptance, and respecting our customers who need to obtain identification that accurately re-

flects who they are," DMV deputy commissioner Tony Guerrera said.

There is a $30 fee to complete the process outside of a renewal period. The policy change also applies to learner's permits for new drivers.

Guerrera said that offering a non-binary option had been one of the department's top priorities since he and commissioner Sibongile Magubane were appointed

by Gov. Ned Lamont last year.

Connecticut is now one of at least 12 states to offer residents a non-binary gender designation on state drivers' licenses, according to a press release Monday from the Connecticut General Assembly.

"This option on license applications tells all Connecticut residents that we are welcoming and that we are open for business," Lamont said in a press release Monday.

In the last year, Connecticut has moved toward expanding gender designations on some

(TNS) Drivers in Connecticut will now have the option to choose whether they identify as male (M), female (F), or non-binary (X).

state paperwork. Following the 2019 legislative session, the Department of Children and Families began to include a non-binary option on several forms, according to the General Assembly release.

During the 2019 legislative

session, state Rep. David Michel, D-Stamford, introduced legislation which would require all state agencies to include a non-binary gender designation on all forms and applications. Last year, Sen. Matt Lesser, D-Middletown, also introduced legislation to allow

intersex applicants to identify as such on their drivers' licenses or identification cards, which passed the Senate but was not taken up by the House.

"It's really a wonderful thing.

It doesn't cost taxpayers a penny – the DMV was able to do this with their own resources," Lesser said Monday of the new DMV policy. "For people for whom a non-binary identification is the best option, it's a big deal. I've gotten overwhelmingly positive feedback from folks today."

Updates to existing licenses and identification cards began to be available at non-DMV sites like AAA on Monday and will begin at state DMV offices on Tuesday.

Guerrera said that offering a non-binary option reflects a more progressive DMV. "It's a DMV that's being proactive in many areas, whether it's gender X or e-government or doing things online," he said. "It's a different day for the Department of Motor Vehicles."

News

January 28, 2020

7

8

January 28, 2020

News

Proceed with caution around campus this winter with these tips HALEY BROWN Staff Writer H.Brown@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

From the negative temperatures on our weather apps that urge us to stay in bed to the treacherous, slippery trek across campus to reach class, winter can prove to be quite the trial here in Indiana, but there are plenty of tips and trick to make bearing with the freezing conditions more doable and maybe even enjoyable for some.

One of the best ways to avoid freezing to death this winter involves layering. A long-sleeved thermal shirt under a chunky sweater or sweatshirt topped off with a winter coat is guaranteed to keep you toasty during your morning walk to class, whether it’s across the entirety of campus or across the street.

People can put leggings on under jeans if it’s especially chilly.

There are even those who wear their flannel pajama pants under jeans for longer walks to class.

It is also easy for it to feel like your toes are getting more frostbitten by the second while outside, so wearing a few pairs of socks along with trusty winter boots is a great way to avoid any unnecessary toe amputations this winter and helps with traction on slippery stairs or iced sidewalks.

Wiping your wet feet after walking into the college’s buildings is a courteous and smart way to keep the hallways and staircases of IUP safe for others, as well as less dirty.

“Personally, I cope with the cold by just wearing a coat and scarf IUP can be very slick with ice in the winter months. Be sure to notice where ice is, carefully maneuver around it and walk cautiously. occasionally,” Alexis Hoffer (junior, writing studies) said. as much,” Hoffer said. triggered by shortening hours of Cracked knuckles are sure to make “Sometimes I'll even wear sunlight associated with late fall any sufferer a little grumpy, so “My favorite part [of winter at gloves, but usually I just brave the and winter. Some ways to cope keeping your hands from getting IUP] would probably be seeing cold long enough to get to the with this disorder involve getting too dry can be great for your the snow at night when it's nice next warm building, complaining outside for some fresh air, spendmentality. and quiet and going for walks about the cold the whole way. I'd ing plenty of time with good Noses and throats can also until my cheeks burn say to take shortcompany and possibly investing in suffer this time of year because of and I can't feel my “Sometimes I'll even wear cuts through other an S.A.D. light. central heat circulation that dehyfingers.” gloves, but usually I just buildings to avoid If your hands are often and drates your body. Keeping up your Mindset about just the cold if you can, brave the cold long easily cold, grabbing a favorite hot fluid intake, not including coffee or about every part of but be courteous and drink from the campus Starbucks, energy drinks, using nasal spray if enough to get to the life can change your wipe your feet. I cut you get nosebleeds in winter and perspective if you are Java City, Einstein’s or other eaternext warm building, through Maple when ies is promised to keep your hands even utilizing a humidifier while determined enough I go to HSS from Pratt complaining about the about trying it. Makand belly warm for your walk to you sleep can do wonders to ease or the police station class. Another option for frozen the dryness of the air as well as ing peace with the cold the whole way." and vice versa.” fingers is portable hand warmers, some of your winter discomforts. fact that sometimes Winter can be a the kind activated by the oxygen “Sometimes you have to wear winter is uncompain. But once you in the air. These are perfect to two pairs of socks, and a good - Alexis Hoffer, Junior, Writing Studies fortable but can figure out how to keep in your coat pockets, and pair of boots goes a long way [to be one of the most deal with the weather, you can you can even tuck them into your keep out the cold],” Drew Booth beautiful seasons can be a real enjoy the good parts that come mittens if need be. (junior, marketing) said. “Other game changer if you’re especially with winter as well.

Cold hands lead to dry hands, than that, walk fast and just stay negative about cold weather.

“I love the snow with every fiber and keeping your knuckles moisinside. One of my favorite ways Some students suffer from in my being, and I find it to be so turized with hand lotion can do a [to avoid the cold altogether] is Seasonal Affective Disorder, which beautiful, but I hate the cold just lot to help with your winter mood. staying in with my roommates and causes depression-like symptoms

(Rob Hinkal/The Penn)

watching movies.

“When we had the really bad cold front, my whole friend group piled into my living room to play ‘Mario Party’ all day because classes were cancelled. We had no room to sit everyone, but it was a lot of fun.”

Sometimes the best ways to brave the cold involve your best friends, and there are plenty of group activities that help the cold seem a little less biting. The best winter appreciation ranges from watching the snow fall through the Starbucks windows to building ridiculous snowmen in the Oak Grove to sledding down the hills of campus.

There seems to be a fun activity for every type of winter-braving student, even if that activity is just drinking hot cocoa inside with a cuddle buddy, or 10, on the coldest of days.

News

January 28, 2020

9

10

January 28, 2020

News

Passing the torch: McConnell becomes House’s ‘boogeyman’ SIMONE PATHE CQ-Roll Call TNS

While Democrats in Washington are attacking Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's management of the impeachment trial, it's his role in blocking Housepassed legislation that is getting the most campaign airtime so far this year.

The latest example, and a likely preview of what is to come, is the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's announcement Monday of a seven-figure cable and online ad campaign focused on the Senate bottling up a bill intended to lower prescription drug prices.

That House Democrats are using McConnell as their foil, and not the Republican leader of their own chamber or President Donald Trump, speaks to the legislative and political realities confronting Democrats this cycle.

After winning a historic majority in 2018, House Democrats passed bills on key priorities they had campaigned on, including a campaign finance and ethics overhaul, legislation to expand background checks for gun purchases and a health insurance measure that targeted prescription drugs and expanding Medicare to cover hearing aids, eyeglasses and dental care.

Those measures were all dead on arrival in the Senate, however. For Democratic incumbents looking to talk about what they've done – but why it hasn't become law – McConnell gets the blame.

That's especially true for Democrats in the 30 districts Trump won in 2016 because they won't have to attack a president their constituents may have supported.

Not all Democrats agree this is an effective or even worthwhile strategy, especially during a presidential election year, when Trump will be at the top of the ticket, whether candidates talk about him or not.

At this point, however, Democrats love to talk about how unpopular McConnell is, just as Republicans have long talked about how voters dislike Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

In the DCCC's mid-January survey of 1,835 likely voters across battleground districts, 23 percent viewed McConnell favorably, while 50 percent rated him unfavorably.

End Citizens United, a Democratic PAC, conducted similar polling in

(TNS) Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell (R) is under fire for his management of President Trump’s impeachment trial.

2018 that found that talking about McConnell was more effective than talking about Trump when trying to move voters on a generic congressional ballot question.

"Even in districts where Trump is more popular than he is nationwide, McConnell just isn't," a national Democratic operative said.

While the utility of polling that isn't focused on a specific district may be limited, Democrats who have embraced this narrative think they've found a credible villain who can work in a wide variety of districts.

"It works everywhere as an explanation for why House Democrats couldn't bring about changes they campaigned on," said Ian Russell, a veteran Democratic strategist and former DCCC political director.

The DCCC ads, which are running on CNN, MSNBC and Univision, tout the Democrats' prescription drug bill and accuse Republicans of being corrupted by "special interest" money.

"It's time for Mitch McConnell and the Republicans to start working for us," the narrator says.

It's a new message for a new political reality. In 2018, Russell said, the villains were Republicans who wouldn't stand up to Trump.

That will not work now that Democrats are in control of the House.

"He's an important foil because he fits into the story, especially for House Democrats who ran on health care and government corruption," Russell said.

McConnell may also provide a good political contrast because tying Republicans to Trump could backfire in districts where the president did well in 2016.

"If I'm in a Trump district, and I say, 'Hey, she's just following Trump' – well, he won that district and probably will win it again – so they'll vote for her," said a Democratic strategist who has worked on House races.

It may be easier to reach Trump

voters by talking about Republicans being beholden to McConnell.

"Trump has his own unique identity and own supporters," the strategist added. McConnell, however, is easier to paint as a creature of Washington. He's served six terms in the Senate, and his wife is a Cabinet secretary.

The majority of Democrats running in competitive districts are not eager to talk about impeachment on the campaign trail, even if they voted for it. They prefer kitchen table issues, especially to win over Trump supporters. But for those Democrats who do talk about impeachment, they see a role for the "McConnell as foil" message.

"Impeachment is just another proof point," Russell said. "It shows that he's an unrelenting partisan."

Republicans – and even some Democrats – question whether focusing on McConnell will be effective in 2020.

For starters, building up a boogeyman takes time. Pelosi became speaker after the 2006 election, but it took two cycles and passage of a sweeping health insurance overhaul with only Democratic votes for the GOP's call for voters to "fire Pelosi" to flip control in 2010.

It's also unclear how well-known legislative leaders are in specific districts.

"McConnell is more universally despised, but not universally known," said the Democratic strategist, contrasting the majority leader to Trump. "Question is: Can you make him a known enough boogeyman in these districts?"

The same Democrat expressed skepticism about using the message in a presidential election year.

"The truth of the matter is, no matter how hard you try, the top of the ticket will be what matters at the end of the day," the strategist said.

On that point, at least, Republicans agree.

"Trump is the biggest thing in town – good or bad – and there's just no getting around that. Like Obama was," a GOP operative said. "Those things work when there's not somebody else to fill the void."

McConnell's defenders argue that the boogeyman argument becomes even harder when Democrats are drawing attention to Trump by impeaching him.

"Say what you want about (McConnell), you're impeaching the president," said Josh Holmes, the Kentucky Republican's former chief of staff and campaign manager.

"In presidential elections, pick a name out of the phone book and campaign against it because none of it's going to matter."

Another Democratic strategist questioned why Democrats would even bother telling voters that their legislation has not become law.

"Rather than explaining, 'I got HR 1 done but McConnell won't sign it,' just say you passed it," the

strategist said.

The same Democrat feared that bringing up McConnell – who is associated with the GOP defense of the president – would only remind voters about impeachment, which Democrats in Trump districts are not eager to publicize.

"The last thing these guys and women want to do, especially in districts that Trump carried, is get people running to their corners," the strategist said. "And going after the guy who people are going to view, first and foremost, as the guy who got Donald Trump off, I'm not sure is the right thing to do right now.

"Maybe that changes," the strategist added.

But regardless of whether it works, the boogeyman strategy isn't likely to go away anytime soon. Republicans have moved away from using Pelosi to casting "the squad" and liberal presidential candidates as villains.

In other words, both sides do it.

"We're not a terribly creative bunch," joked the GOP operative.

The Penn

IS HIRING HIRING NEW NEW WRITERS WRITERS IS Are you interested in gaining experience in a professional journalism setting?

Are you interested in turning news stories into money?

If you answered yes to both of those questions, stop by our office on the second floor of the Hadley Union Building (above the food court) to get started.

Applicants do not need to be enlisted as a journalism major or minor in order to write for us.

Applicants also must possess good communication skills, meet deadlines and be available Tuesday nights for writers meetings.

If you have any questions, please contact Jake Slebodnick J.C.Slebodnick@iup.edu (News Editor) or the-penn@iup.edu.

January 28, 2020

News

11

Hemp Haven

Available in: -CBD & Hemp Seed Soaps -CBD Oil -Pain Salve -Tea

at the cabin

Hours of Operation Tues-Fri 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Sat 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.

-Locally Grown in Indiana County

-Featuring Products

by CBDistillery

*Hours subject to change.

Appointments available.

CBD GETS YOU HEALTHY NOT HIGH Cannabidiol (CBD) CAN HELP WITH: Anxiety,, Pain, ptsd, Lyme, Seizures, M.s.,,Parkinson's, && More !

Located at the Cabin 30 McLain Rd Indiana, PA 15701 724--599-7497

Hemp Haven

12

January 28, 2020

In Memoriam

News

Remembering the life of Sara Lynn Austin (1994 - 2020) HEATHER BAIR Culture Editor H.Bair@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

A first-year graduate student at IUP passed away unexpectedly earlier this month.

Sara Lynn Austin, 25, passed away Jan. 14 in her Pittsburgh home. She graduated IUP in 2016 with a bachelor’s in elementary and special education. She also made the Provost Scholars list in Fall 2014, which is given only once during a student’s time of study at IUP. While at IUP, Austin was one of the Board of Governors Scholarship recipients. She served as a “peer buddy” in IUP’s chapter of Best Buddies International, a group that offers one-on-one relationships with individuals who have intellectual disabilities.

Austin was also a member of

(IUP Website) Sara Austin graduated with her bachelor’s in elementary and special education in 2016.

She was in her first year of graduate school at the time of her passing.

Kappa Delta Pi Beta Gamma, an international honor society in education that promotes professional growth, achievement in educational work and fellowship. She served as community service chair during her time

with the society.

A member of Circle K International, a part of the Kiwanis International group, she was a social chair, as well as a member and treasurer of the Golden Key International Honour Society.

Austin was part of IUP’s undergraduate faculty. She worked with the department of communication disorders, special education and disability services.

In her Board of Governor’s Scholarship essay, she wrote, “If I could give new students advice, it would be that joining any organization on campus will help you get more involved, meet new people and feel more at home at IUP. “There are a variety of clubs to choose from that meet your interests, and if a club isn’t for you, there are many athletic activities with which you can get involved, or you can even start

your own club.”

She was working toward her master’s in literacy at the time of her passing.

Austin’s mother passed away in 2016, after which she moved from Florida to Pittsburgh in order to be closer to her brother, Maceo, a former Duquesne University basketball player.

While working on her master’s, she was a graduate assisstant at Helen S. Faison Arts Academy in Pittsburgh, where she taught grades K-5. She was also a Sunday school teacher at the Second Baptist Church in Sharpsville.

“She was an exceptionally gifted poet who possessed a strong love for Christ, which she often shared with others in her role as Sunday School teacher,” said her cousin, Patricia Pugh Mitchell, in a tribute Facebook post Jan. 22.

“You would never see Sara

without a big smile on her face,” said Tom Droney, who created a GoFundMe Page for the Austin family. “She had an amazing personality. She loved her family so much and always put them before herself.”

The homegoing celebration for Austin was 11 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 21 at J. Bradley McGonigle Funeral Home and Crematory, Inc. in Sharon, with Rev. James McKeithan officiating.

The Counseling Center, located in Suites on Maple East, are available Monday through Friday and offer grief counseling to those who are having a difficult time with the passing of a loved one.

“There is nothing better than loving your classes and also enjoying your time at college while getting a great education,” said Austin in her scholarship essay.

“IUP offers you this opportunity.”

Chesapeake Bay Foundation to sue EPA This Day in History: 1988 SCOTT DANCE Baltimore Sun TNS

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation said Monday it is preparing a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency, following Maryland in seeking to force a federal crackdown on Pennsylvania for the pollution it sends downstream to the estuary.

The nonprofit said EPA must be held accountable to its role overseeing environmental cleanup efforts across the bay's 64,000-square-mile watershed. An EPA official raised alarm among bay advocates earlier this month when he said a bay restoration blueprint was an aspirational goal and not an enforceable agreement.

"That EPA is abdicating its responsibility under the Clean Water Act is a tragedy. Failing to hold Pennsylvania accountable undermines the success we have seen in recent years," William C. Baker, president of the bay foundation, said in a statement. "It is snatching defeat from the jaws of victory."

Maryland is preparing its own lawsuit against EPA and Pennsyl-

(TNS) EPA is facing a lawsuit for ignoring the on-going pollution problem in Pennsylvania.

vania, on Republican Gov. Larry Hogan orders. A spokeswoman for Attorney General Brian Frosh, who has sued President Donald Trump's administration repeatedly over rollbacks in environmental regulations, said she could not comment on the status of that litigation.

Neither state nor bay foundation officials would say whether they plan to take legal action jointly. Jon Mueller, the bay foundation's vice president of litigation, said the organization is "in discussion with a range of potential partners concerning the legal strategies we can use to force EPA to comply with the law."

EPA officials could not be reached immediately Monday for comment. They have said they will "continue to provide substantial support, track progress, and take appropriate actions within our authorities to ensure the Bay and local waters are protected

and restored."

The bay cleanup plan dates to 2010, when the six states in the watershed plus the District of Columbia agreed to adopt policies and strategies to reduce the amount of nutrients and other pollutants that wash into the bay. Nitrogen and phosphorus present in farm and lawn fertilizers and sewage pollution harm aquatic vegetation and creatures by clouding waters and stripping them of dissolved oxygen.

The agreement came out of a 2009 lawsuit the bay foundation and other organizations filed, demanding EPA enforce the Clean Water Act in the Chesapeake watershed.

EPA facilitated that agreement and serves as an enforcer, reviewing states' plans and helping steer them toward strategies that will have the biggest positive impact on the Chesapeake. But bay advocates and Maryland officials have criticized the agency and Pennsylvania because its latest cleanup plan falls 25 percent short of the commonwealth's nitrogen reduction targets and lacks more than $300 million in funding needed to carry out its work.

(Wikimedia)

After a 5-to-2 decision which lasted nearly 16 months, Canada’s Supreme Court ruled its restrictive abortion law unconstitutional as it interferes with a woman’s right to her own body. This case is known as R. vs. Morgantaler.

News

January 28, 2020

13

COOK CHIROPRACTIC & REHABILITATION 266 South 7th Street Indiana, PA 15701

Dr. Scott Cook, DC, ACRRT

“Dr. Cook, Thanks for all Your Help!

You are by far the best Chiropractor out there" -Jason Capizzi (Former NFL and IUP Player)

OFFICE HOURS

Monday & Wednesday: 8:15 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Tuesday: 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Friday: 8:15 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Saturday & Sunday: Emergencies only

(724) 465-9160

www.cook-chiropractic.com

14

January 28, 2020

News

News

January 28, 2020

15

SLEB’S SELF-HELP COLUMN:

A GUIDE TO PROACTIVE

LIFE SOLUTIONS

Life can end instantly; make amends, express your love constantly JAKE SLEBODNICK

News Editor J.C.Slebodnick@iup.edu @Jake_WIUP

This article contains opinion and content some readers may find sensitive.

Sunday proved how quickly our lives could change.

Kobe Bryant woke up Sunday morning anticipating going to his daughter Gianna’s basketball game. Gianna woke up looking to use her inherited skill-set passed down by her father and prove why Bryant’s legacy will live on.

Unfortunately, neither would make it to the game as their helicopter dove to the ground shortly after passing Calabasas, California. Kobe was 41; Gianna was 13.

When they said goodbye that morning, they did not think that it would be an eternal goodbye.

I am not going to recap Kobe’s athletic career and what he did both on and off the court, as Jeff will take care of that in the sports section. Instead, what I am going to do is drive home that every breath we take, every second we live should not be taken as an arbitrary factor of life.

Life is probably the greatest gift we could ever receive. We set out on a race against time to make the absolute best of ourselves and write a legacy that will be remembered by generations.

Kobe personified that concept.

Nevertheless, he, as well as his family, friends and fans, didn’t expect his legacy to be cut short.

With this in mind, I want to stress to you that taking that extra second to hug family, tell

(Facebook)

ed death is one of those things.

Our mission in bettering humanity should be to go to bed every night knowing that we’ve expressed love in every way possible, and if we were to pass away unexpectedly, those close to us would say how much they appreciated us rather than what we did wrong.

Make a list, whether physical or implicit, with things to do before you rest after each day. I will include a sample list on the side of this story referring to what I meant.

One thing that will be on there is fixing strained relationships with those around you.

I will be the first to admit that I am not perfect, and I have had my share of making enemies throughout my short life so far.

But as time goes on, I plan on making it a personal goal to settle any and all differences with

those whom I’ve butted heads with, as I know that if I were to go tomorrow, there would forever be a rift that would never be able to be fixed.

No conflict is worth the hassle.

Fix problems with those who have wronged you.

Believe it or not, your parents worry about your safety even when it doesn’t seem like it, so call and tell them you love them whether it’s every day or once a week.

Also, be sure to enjoy time with your friends no matter how long you have known each other.

You and your friends met for a reason: to be there for each other when sh*t hits the fan in life.

If you can follow those simple steps every week, you can breathe easier when you go to sleep at night.

After all, you never know which breath could be your last.

Before you go to bed each night: Hug your parents an extra second or two each night.

Tell your friends and family how much you love them.

(Wikipedia) Kobe Bryant and Chester Bennington (bottom, left) died unexpectedly, but embraced the presence of friends and family daily. Bryant was even reported to have attended mass the morning he died.

friends you love them and burying the hatchet with enemies goes farther than anything. We could go to bed tonight with the anticipation of waking up the next morning, but unfortunately, that may not happen.

I will quote one of my favorite Linkin Park songs, “Sorry for Now” from the “One More Light” album, “I’m sorry for now that I couldn’t be around. Sometimes things refuse to go the way we planned,” and an unexpect-

Bury the hatchet with enemies. No conflict is worth carrying your entire life.

Spend time with close friends. They are the main source for comfort when life gets rough.

"Sorry for now, that I couldn't be around.

Sometimes things refuse to go the way we planned..."

- Sorry for Now, Linkin Park

Opinion

CARTOONS

(Geography) Saint James in England is part of several churches that say sex is reserved for heterosexual marriages.

Get your religion out of my bedroom Last week, the Church of England issued new guidelines saying that sex is reserved for heterosexual marriages.

That’s pretty rich coming from the church that was founded for the express purpose of letting King Henry VIII get a divorce so he could marry (read: have sex with) Anne Boleyn.

Allow me to give a brief Anglican history lesson. Henry VIII asked Pope Clement VII to let him divorce his first wife, Catharine of Aragon, but the Pope refused. So, good ol’ Henry did what any rational person would do: He started his own clubhouse, er, church, that was basically the same as the Catholic Church but allowed divorce.

Granted, the worldwide Anglican community is much different today than it was in the 1520s. There are many denominations that fall under the Anglican communion, including the Espiscopal Church, which I am a part of. I am also unmarried and very much part

16

of the LGBTQ+ community.

Not only is the Church of England’s decree hurtful, it’s idiotic. There is so much happening around the world so far this year, and this is the hill you’ve chosen to die on? Really? I was taught that God loves everyone; why can’t you seem to understand that? God definitely has way more important things to worry about than who’s sleeping with whom.

A statement like this is an embarrassment in the 21st century. Instead of looking at what your American counterpart has accomplished in terms of LGBTQ+ acceptance, you doubled down on bigotry.

Do you think Jesus would be proud? Mr. “Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself”?

The thing is, I can’t understand why you think what adults do behind closed doors is any of your business. That’s weird.

That’s super weird.

All these guidelines will do is further alienate your church

from the public. If your goal was to increase church membership, you done goofed about as hard as is possible.

Get with the times, Church of England. So many people around the world, and certainly in England, don’t live by that sentiment. Instead of condemning them, why not open your doors to them?

If you continue spouting nonsense like this, I can guarantee that young people will quit going to church altogether.

Eventually, your population will dwindle as your members grow old and die out, and so too will your creed.

Just suck it up and accept the fact that people are going to do what (and whom) they want. You don’t stone people for eating shellfish or wearing garments of mixed fabrics, so maybe you should calm down about the sex stuff.

Brought to you

By Marty Weaver

January 28, 2020

Opinion

Culture

Culture Editor: Heather Bair – zzzx@iup.edu

(Facebook) IUP Cru (left) and Alpha Phi Sigma: Criminal Justice Honor Society (right) are two organizations that students can join at IUP.

Students find home in clubs, organizations ANNA MECHLING Staff Writer A.Mechling@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

College is about receiving an education and a degree that can help students progress into the professional world. However, college is also about finding a community and areas of interest outside of academics.

That’s where clubs and organizations come into play, of which IUP has a vast number.

From 3 – 6 p.m. Feb. 14 at the KCAC, IUP’s Center for Multicultural Student Leadership and Engagement will host its annual Winter Warm-Up event where the clubs and organizations come together and table for students who may be interested in joining or finding more information out about them.

According to the Center for Multicultural Student Leadership and Engagement, there will be more than 120 organizations or clubs at the event.

Crimson Connect is another great way to get a quick gist about all the clubs and organizations and what they have to offer. For more information about

Culture

Crimson Connect, go to iup.edu/ crimsonconnect.

There are many different sororities and fraternities at IUP. Some are social and others are academic. To name a few, there are Alpha Phi Sigma: Criminal Justice, Eta Sigma Delta and Delta Phi Epsilon.

There are also many different sport-related clubs like fencing club, women’s and men’s rugby, ultimate frisbee and even a martial arts club.

Some clubs are focused on major-specific fields. There’s IUP PreDental Society, Sociology Club and IUP Fashion Association.

There are so many different kinds of clubs and organizations that students are sure to find one or even more to join that can fit their interests.

Cru is a Christian ministry offered at IUP, a para-church organization focused on opportunities to grow in faith but also serve others and the community.

Cru’s mission is to connect people to Jesus, but members recognize they aren’t a church.

Their vision isn’t to be a church but to come together as college students and as people who love

Jesus and meet people where they are to give them a sense of community and love they might not get anywhere else.

“Anyone is invited to be a part of Cru,” Rachel Myers, IUP Cru intern, said. “Whether you’re a believer and you want to grow more in your walk with God, a seeker and you want to learn more about Jesus or aren’t interested in Jesus and want to meet new people.

“We love connecting to students and we want them to feel connected. I was part of Cru in college, and being part of that community is how I made friends and created a community for me to belong in.”

“Cru has given me the opportunity to grow in my faith ever since I came to college,” said Abby Williams (sophomore, chemistry), Cru outreach/community team leader. “I knew I had to have some sort of spiritual influence in my life, and Cru has definitely been impactful.

“The one-on-one spiritual guidance has helped. I was able to go on a summer mission on Cru. I saw exponential growth when I went to Ocean City, Maryland, with Cru. We had jobs

January 28, 2020

where the primary purpose was to show the gospel to our coworkers.

“That summer mission was by far the most impactful event of my life. I came back a completely different person. I wouldn’t have gotten the opportunity if it wasn’t for Cru.” Cru will hold its annual event, The Collective, an event in which different campus ministries and churches come together to plan a joint worship day on March 1.

Asian Studies Club is another major club on campus.

This school year, the club is an umbrella organization for most of the Asian organizations on campus. Asian Studies Club comprises of Chinese Language and Culture Club, Association of Korean Interests, Japanese Student Association and Taiwanese Student Association. The clubs are open to Asian studies majors and non-majors.

“Chinese Language and Culture Club is an organization that is dedicated to the promotion of Mandarin and traditional Chinese culture,” said Ronald Inniss (sophomore, Asian studies), Asian Studies and Chinese Language

and Culture Club president. “Last year, we had meetings bi-weekly to discuss topics on Chinese language, history and modern society.

“We play a lot of traditional Chinese games like Chinese chess and Mahjong. For Chinese Club, we did a dragon dance in the Indiana parade during homecoming weekend. As an organization, our staff adviser, Liu Shijuan, took us out to eat a Fortune Buffet.”

Asian Studies Club hosts an annual event called East Asian Night. It is usually held in November each year and is organized by different East Asian clubs and associations on campus at IUP. It’s a social event where there are many different things like food, games and performances.

“The past few years, there wasn’t as good of a relationship between the different East Asian Organizations on campus,” Inniss said. “However, this school year we had a lot more events than East Asia Night.

“For Asian Studies Club, last winter we had a Sports Night and a winter Christmas party between the four organizations.”

17

18

January 28, 2020

Culture

‘Nora from Queens’ review: Awkwafina’s sitcom is a winner VERNE GAY TNS Newsday

This article contains opinion.

(Facebook) Students prefer certain classes over others, especially when they’re hobby-oriented classes.

Students choose favorite classes for second semester HALEY BROWN Staff Writer H.Brown@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

This article contains opinion.

As college students, we all have required classes we probably dread taking, but many of us enjoy the learning process more than one might think.

Some enjoy the more rigorous and involved courses, while others prefer to coast through their classes as effortlessly as possible.

Many different types of students enjoy wildly different ways of learning, and all students has preferences about how they support their learning style, how involved their professor is in their learning process and how much work a course may require to be completed satisfactorily.

“My favorite class this semester is fashion forecasting,” Thea McCullough (junior, fashion merchandising) said. “The most challenging is probably business communications and application of apparel buying because I know it will require a lot of work for business application.

“Application of apparel is mathbased, so that will be hard, and it’s a lot of work on Excel.”

It is usual for many students to admit that they don’t particularly enjoy mathematics-heavy courses, and, although a challenge is welcomed, at times the math-heavier classes may prove to be overwhelming, especially if a student’s experience with math wasn’t well supported in younger years. While some love the challenge and structure that math brings, others see it as a threat and as a discouraging and confusing subject in many cases.

“My favorite class is my online composition class, and my most challenging class is paleontology,” Isabelle Jabour (sophomore, political science) said. “I don’t

dread [the paleontology class], but I think it will be challenging because it seems very skills-based and hands-on. All of my classes this semester keep me engaged, and that keeps me motivated and excited to go to them. “[When it comes to the effort a class might require] I prefer somewhere in the middle. I don’t like classes that are too challenging because I get stressed out, but I don’t like to feel as if I’m not being challenged at all.”

Most students admitted to not being worried about many specific courses but expressed that generally, the more work that will be required for a class, the more likely it is that it will be stressful for them and therefore less enjoyable as a whole.

“My favorite class this year definitely has to go to women music and media taught by Dr. Stiegler because the class seems very interesting and shows the underappreciation of women in the music industry,” Liam Noble (junior, communications media) said. “The class multimedia news production [will be my biggest challenge] because we have to make our own news segments and put them on IUP-TV, so [it is] somewhat intimidating yet exciting that my project will be on television.

“I wouldn’t say I’m dreading any of my classes this semester, just find them challenging.

A challenging yet productive learning experience overall is what I’m looking forward to most this semester.”

Classes that offer information about topics that aren’t often discussed in previous classroom environments pique many students’ interest and keep them engaged with the material. Course work that involves unique and specific topics, like women in the music media, keep them involved mentally and encourages them to avoid missing class.

Nora (Awkwafina, the comedian, rapper and movie star - “The Farewell,” “Crazy Rich Asians”) lives at home in Flushing with her grandma (Lori Tan Chinn, “Orange Is the New Black”) and her dad (BD Wong, most recently, “Mr. Robot”). She’s struggling to figure stuff out, or how to move out, but jobs are hard to come by. At least grandma and dad are patient. This series, which Comedy Central just handed a second season to, is based on the life of Nora Lum, aka Awkwafina.

“Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens” poses one of the great questions of our time, specifically this one: Will millennials watch a TV show with commercials in it?

You probably remember those kind of shows. They “air” on “commercial networks” and were the sort of shows everyone used to watch, until shows started to stream, and cords started to get cut, and millennials fell off the Nielsen radar. The world changes fast, really fast, and even “Broad City” feels like some relic from a distant age. That, by the way, ended just last year.

In some ways, “Awkwafina” is the next “Broad City,” full of the same vitality, the same dislocation in the same city, where “gigs” rule and a steady paycheck is for parents (or grandparents), and hardly for someone who’s still trying to find themselves at the age of 27.

Mostly though, “Awkwafina” is next Awkwafina, or the logical extension of those considerable gifts she already has and which we’ve already witnessed elsewhere. What’s so good about this, however, is that she has doubled back on the world she knows, and the life she’s lived.

Lum is the perfect person to play the heightened version of her own story, because only she can fully appreciate how absurd that life can be for a Chinese American bisexual woman in Flushing, circa right-about-now.

Or how funny. This is a situation comedy bound by the oldest of rules -- situations -- but in the same sense that “Seinfeld” was

(Facebook) Comedian, rapper and movie star Awkwafina (top) stars in her own sitcom “Nora From Queens” 10:30 p.m. on Wednesdays on Comedy Central.

once bound by them. Nora’s world is so specific that they almost seem to write themselves.

The grandmother who takes her to Atlantic City to spend the promotional $67 voucher on free food. The pompous high-tech cousin (“Saturday Night Live’s” Bowen Yang) who may have a “vestigial tail.” The high school friend with the Emerson MFA who got laid off from BuzzFeed, then from Jamie-Lynn Sigler’s production company, then from her own ill-fated Snapchat series, as if the trajectory of millennial life was a tragicomic downward spiral, or exactly like Nora’s life in fact.

Nora’s own response to adversity is on the other end of a bong pipe. But even when stoned, she’s still self-aware enough to know that life (like TV) does move pretty fast. If you stop to look around too often, then you could end up as a hoarder in Queens, playing online video games with tweens on the other side of the world, and “borrowing” someone’s old bottle of ADHD meds.

But anyway, the answer is obviously yes. Millennials will watch, and you will too because this is the best new comedy of the brand-new decade. Just don’t be surprised if you wait until it ends up on Hulu or Netflix, however.)

Culture

January 28, 2020

19

20

January 28, 2020

Culture

Culture

January 28, 2020

21

(Facebook) “To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You” (top left), “National Lampoon’s Vacation” (top right), “Toy Story 4” (bottom left) and “The Lion King” (bottom right) are four movies coming to the streaming services in February.

New additions to streaming services help ignore winter blues MARAN DAVIS

Staff Writer M.Davis@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

February brings many changes and new editions to all of our favorite streaming services.

The new month will bring more cold weather, which means more time to stay inside with your laptop or television and marathon all the recently added movies and television shows.

Listed below is all of our favorite streaming services and the new programs coming this February.

Netflix: “To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You” (Feb. 12) The sequel to Netflix fan-favorite original movie, “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” will arrive on the platform in the middle of the month.

The plot revolves around main character Lara Jean (Lana Condor) as her relationship with Peter (Noah Centineo) grows. Lara Jean ends up coming in contact

with a different recipient of her infamous old love letters and she begins to wonder if she can be in love with two boys at once.

Based on the book series by Jenny Han, this movie is sure to delight fans of the first movie.

“Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves” (Feb. 1) This ‘90s classic will be hitting Netflix on the first day of the month. The movie stars Morgan Freeman, Alan Rickman, Christian Slater and Kevin Costner.

The film focuses on nobleman Robin Locksley as he breaks out of a Jerusalem prison with a fellow inmate, only to discover his father is dead and their home in ruins, thanks to the evil sheriff.

Robin teams up with other outlaws to stop the sheriff’s terror.

“Locke & Key” (Feb. 7) Netflix’s newest original series is based on the comic series, “Locke & Key.” The series revolves around a family that moves back into their ancestral

home called Keyhouse. In this house, they discover magical keys that lead to answers surround their father’s death.

The children accidentally awake a demon who is set out to take them all.

Hulu:

mance classics for the upcoming holiday. “When Harry Met Sally” is a classic ‘80s film starring Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan as they navigate how a man and a woman can strictly be platonic friends. The two struggle to stay friends without sexual tensions coming between them.

“Where’d You Go, Bernadette?”

(Feb. 12)

“National lampoon collection” (Feb. 1)

This 2019 blockbuster movie will hit the streaming platform right before Valentine’s day. The movie is based on the best-selling book by Maria Semple. It stars actresses Emma Nelson and Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett. The story focuses on Bernadette Fox, a former architect who disappears, leaving behind her husband and daughter. Her family, concerned about Bernadette’s disappearance, set off on a journey to find her.

The National Lampoon collection has been around since 1983. They center around Clark Griswold, a man who can’t catch a break when taking his family on vacations around the world.

This satirical comedy guaranteed to make everyone laugh.

“When Harry Met Sally” (Feb. 1) Hulu is bringing back many ro-

Disney+: “Toy Story 4” (Feb. 5): This film will finally be released onto Disney’s streaming platform after a long wait from fans. The movie is the end to the “Toy Story” movie series. The gang of toys goes on a trip with

their new owner, Bonnie, and her new toy, Forky. The story takes a turn as Woody is reunited with a long-lost friend, Bo Peep. The movie received a 97 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and is beloved by old and young fans alike.

“The Lion King” (2019) (Jan. 28): While this movie hit the streaming platform before the turn of the month, it is one of Disney’s biggest hits from the previous year. The movie is Disney’s live-action remake of their original animated film. The movie has a long list of celebrity voice actors including Beyoncé, Seth Rogen, James Earl Jones, Keegan-Michael Key, Chance the Rapper and Donald Glover (Childish Gambino).

New episodes of many of Disney+’s popular series will be premiering on the streaming service in February too, including “Diary of a Future President,” “Disney’s Fairytale Weddings.”and “Marvel’s Hero Project.”

January 28, 2020

22

Culture

Cult classic returns to the stage for one night on ABC HEATHER BAIR Culture Editor H.Bair@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

(Facebook) Billie Eilish won five awards of the year, including “Best New Artist” and “Best Song of the Year” for her song “bad guy.”

The Grammys awarded everyone with stellar show, performances MEGAN DONNY Staff Writer M.Donny@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

This article contains opinion.

One of the most glamorous nights in music, The Grammys, was full of fabulous fashion, new music and big winners.

The night began on the red carpet, hosted by the network E! with Ryan Seacrest and other E! Network hosts like Snapchat’s “The Rundown” host, Erin Lim. On the red carpet, the hosts spoke to many of the future winners, asking them about their new music, upcoming projects and what is in the works for them.

Seacrest talked to stars like Billie Eilish, Billy Ray Cyrus, Lil Nas X and Dan + Shay.

The color on the red carpet was a brick, deep rose color and white. Many stars were dressed in variations of this color, including Shawn Mendes. Dua Lipa and Lizzo showed up in white. Lizzo wore a white Versace dress that fitted her figure well.

Bill Porter stole the show in a light blue, rhinestone-jeweled jumpsuit. To top off the ensemble, he wore a matching blue, widebrimmed hat that had strands of rhinestones hanging off the brim.

These rhinestones covered his

face, and when he entered the red carpet, the rhinestones mechanically moved along the brim to reveal his face.

Ariana Grande appeared in a huge gray-blue tulle dress with matching gloves and custom Louboutin heels. She had her hair in her iconic ponytail, and her dress was 20 feet in diameter.

The night was mainly focused around the loss of basketball star, Kobe Bryant, which occurred the morning before the Grammys.

The Grammys are held in the Staples Center, where Kobe Bryant played for the Lakers. Fans of the basketball star gathered outside of the center to mourn his death, adding to the crowd that was there for the awards show.

Many of the stars on the red carpet spoke about the basketball star, like Ryan Seacrest, Trevor Noah and DJ Khalid.

The show began with a performance by star Lizzo, who started by saying, “This one is for Kobe.”

She sang “Cuz I Love You” and her biggest hit, “Truth Hurts.” The number included lots of dancers dressed in different costumes, some matching Lizzo and others dressed like ballerinas.

Alicia Keys, who hosted the show, also touched on Kobe’s passing and sang a short tribute.

The show was comprised of

many, many musical performances.

It seemed like there were more musical performances than actual awards given out at the show.

Demi Lovato sang an emotional ballad toward the end of the show, recounting her recent struggles with addiction. She had to start the song over after getting too emotional to begin.

Honestly, this year's Grammys were extremely uneventful and there were no stand-out performances.

The only performance that was engaging was Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’ performance of “Old Town Road.” The set on the stage moved around and they sang a remix, created by Diplo with many special guests, including BTS. They saved the biggest awards of the night for the last half-hour of the show. Billie Eilish won “Best New Artist,” “Best Album of the Year” as well as “Best Song of the Year” and “Best Record of the Year” for her song “bad guy.”

DJ Khalid, John Legend and Nipsey Hustle won “Best Rap Song of the Year” for their song “Higher.”

If you want to know about who won from your favorite genres, it is easier to go online and find out than watching the three-and-ahalf-hour show, in which less than half of the awards were presented.

A cult classic among comedy horror buffs will find its way to television come this Fall.

“Young Frankenstein,” a film that takes place after the events of Mary Shelley’s 1818 “Frankenstein” novel, is being produced as a live musical on ABC this Fall. Mel Brooks is producing the musical, although the cast and airdate have not been announced.

The live musical will be loosely based around the 2007 Broadway stage version of the 1974 film starring Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Teri Garr and Peter Boyle.

In “Young Frankenstein,” Wilder played Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, a lecturing physician who discovers he is the descendant of the original Victor Frankenstein, who first re-animated “The Creature.”

Frankenstein, who becomes exasperated at the mention of his grandfather, insists his name is pronounced “Fronkonsteen,” discovers he has inherited his family’s estate in Transylvania. Upon arriving at the train station, he is greeted by the famous Igor (Feldman), the hunchbacked servant of the original Dr. Frankenstein, and Inga (Garr), a young assistant.

When Frankenstein discovers his grandfather’s journals in the hidden lab, he decides to resume his grandfather’s work and experiments in re-animating the dead.

The townspeople feel cautious about this and demand that he does not follow in his grandfather’s footsteps and reanimate another monster.

However, not heeding the townspeople’s warnings and concerns, he reanimates a creature using a brain labeled “abnormal.”

The creature is introduced to the townspeople by Frankenstein when they perform the number “Puttin’ on the Ritz.” When a stage light explodes and frightens the creature, he charges into the audience, eventually being captured by the local police.

Elizabeth (Madeline Kahn), who was engaged to Frankenstein, falls in love with The Creature.

She eventually is shown with the hairstyle of the female creature from “The Bride of Frankenstein” and marries the monster once he is civilized and sophisticated.

(Facebook) The 1974 film has been transformed into a Broadway musical by Mel Brooks and Susan Stroman.

Frankenstein and Inga share their own happy ending as Frankenstein sings a refrain of the song “A, Sweet Mystery of Life.”

The film was the third highest-grossing film of 1974 and was filmed in black-and-white to add to the element of what was the original story.

The film, referenced as a comedy horror, was as much fun on set as was the end result. Wilder kept laughing during his takes and sometimes would have to film the same scene 15 times in order to get it right.

Igor’s famous line of “walk this way” to Frankenstein, to which he obliges and mimics Igor’s walk, was the inspiration for Aerosmith’s hit song “Walk This Way.” The band saw “Young Frankenstein” in Times Square, and they found the scene hilarious.

The band had the tune for the song down, but no lyrics. Inspiration was lacking and for a break, the band, minus Steven Tyler, went for a walk around New York City, where they were recording. They watched the film and informed Tyler the next day that the title of the song would be “Walk This Way.” With a rise of musicals making their way to television, like “The Little Mermaid: Live!” last year, there may be more on the way in the coming years. While “The Little Mermaid” was the mostwatched made-for-TV musical in 2019, “Young Frankenstein: Live!” is hoping to come out on top with their newest creation.

Culture

January 28, 2020

23

24

January 28, 2020

Westgate Group offers luxury, quality, and class so that our residents can enjoy easy living. In addition to our well-manicured landscaping, we offer a superb location conveniently located along a central bus line. This community grants you access to all of Indiana.

The Westgate Group community offers welldesigned studio, one, two, and three bedroom apartment homes for your convenience and lifestyle.

CALL TODAY

1935 Merry Place #3, Indiana, PA 15701 724-313-2212 H: Mon - Fri: 8:30A-5:30P Sat: By Appointment Only westgategroup.theapartmentgallery.com

Culture

January 28, 2020

Culture

25

(Facebook) “Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts” (left) and “Adventure Time” (right) are two kids’ shows that focus on the end of the world, but they make it happy at times.

In kids’ TV, it’s the end of the world, don’t expect ‘gloom and doom’ TRACY BROWN TNS Los Angeles Times

This article contains opinion.

The postapocalyptic world of “Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts” includes lumberjack cats, rocker snakes and wolves that rap about science.

Full of giant mutant creatures called “mutes,” this fantastic and dangerous place would harden anybody trying to survive in it. But that doesn’t stop 13-year-old Kipo Oak from being excited about pretty much every new thing she encounters.

The first season of the DreamWorks animated series, now streaming on Netflix, follows Kipo (voiced by Karen Fukuhara) as she tries to reunite with her underground community after she has been flushed out into the surface world for the first time in her life.

Set around 200 years after the world has been turned into a whimsical wasteland, the show is anything but a bleak story about the end of civilization.

Despite the prevalence of postapocalyptic TV shows, from the gritty, zombie-centric “The Walking Dead” to the comedic “The Last Man on Earth,” children’s programming set after a global catastrophe is still rare.

The exceptions --“Kipo,” Cartoon Network’s “Adventure Time” and Netflix’s “The Last Kids on Earth” among them -- present their postapocalyptic worlds as places of wonder and adventure, not to mention backdrops for

standard adolescent issues like crushes and having a falling-out with friends.

Executive producer Bill Wolkoff told The Times in a recent phone interview that he and Radford Sechrist, “Kipo” creator and executive producer, wanted their apocalypse to be “dangerous but also a wonderland.”

Sechrist explained that his original plan for “Kipo,” initially envisioned as a web comic, was to go “super dark, like ‘Game of Thrones’ or ‘Walking Dead.’”

“But my drawing style just came out kind of fun,” Sechrist said. “I just kind of leaned into it.”

In the show, Kipo befriends surface-dwelling humans Wolf (Sydney Mikayla) and Benson (Coy Stewart), along with the talking insect Dave (Deon Cole) and four-eyed pig Mandu (Dee Bradley Baker). The new friends help Kipo navigate the dangers of the world and, in turn, learn that there is more to life than mere survival.

“We wanted to make the stakes real, and make the end of the world very real, but lean into the playfulness of what that could be,” said Wolkoff. “It doesn’t have to be dark, but it can be dangerous.”

In “Kipo’s” case, “playfulness” means many of the mutants out hunting humans are pretty cute on top of being deadly.

By contrast, the postapocalyptic setting of “Adventure Time” was initially downplayed -- though it was no less cute.

“When I pitched (‘Adventure Time’), I didn’t pitch the apocalypse part of it -- just the fun part,” creator Pendleton Ward told io9 in 2012. “They were like, ‘That

sounds good!’ And then I put the apocalypse in the background. It’s not hit over the head in the show.”

Following the adventures of Finn the Human (Jeremy Shada) and Jake the Dog (John DiMaggio), the critically acclaimed series was a coming-of-age story set in a postapocalyptic world filled with magic. The first episode involved a potential zombie apocalypse of candy people -- just one of the many crises Finn had to avert over the show’s 10 seasons.

The backstory of how the Land of Ooo came to be and the fate of the rest of humanity was revealed over the course of the series as Finn grew up and became aware of the complexities of the world.

(As it turns out, it’s not just beating up bad guys and finding treasure.)

Though the Cartoon Network series ended its original run in 2018, four new specials, titled “Adventure Time: Distant Lands,” are in production for the forthcoming streaming service HBO Max. “The Last Kids on Earth” executive producer and writer Max Brallier told The Times that when he first pitched the books that became the basis for the animated series, he was told the end-of-theworld scenario was “really sad” and that “the tone doesn’t work.”

“But in my head it seemed very fun,” said Brallier, who grew up with an appreciation for films such as “Dawn of the Dead,” “Mad Max” and “Waterworld.” “I just like end-of-the-world stories because there’s this sort of feeling of total freedom. That you kind of do whatever you want and get away with whatever you want.

“There’s no parents, there’s

no rules, and it clicked with the way that I would daydream and imagine getting into adventures with my friends,” he continued.

“Adventures that you couldn’t really have with grownups and rules around.”

Set in the aftermath of a mysterious zombie and monster outbreak, “Last Kids” follows Jack Sullivan (Nick Wolfhard) as he tries to thrive in this new world with his best friend Quint (Garland Whitt), his crush June (Montserrat Hernandez) and former bully Dirk (Charles Demers). He approaches challenges as if they are video game quests.

“One of the things we really tried to do with the series was focus on how much the kids are enjoying themselves while they’re in the apocalypse. It’s not gloom and doom,” said executive producer Scott Peterson. “Jack is an orphan, and so he actually likes life better in the apocalypse. He’s formed a new family, a family of choice, from the friends that he’s encountered. For him, this is the best time he’s ever had.”

Kipo’s endless positivity is key to seeing the bright side of her show’s postapocalyptic world.

“It can be scary thinking about your world changing in ways that you don’t recognize. But there’s also something really positive in that,” said Wolkoff. “That’s where the character Kipo really came into play for us. She’s the kind of person who can recognize and find the beauty and wonder in a world that everybody else would find very dangerous.”

One way such series maintain their optimism in the face of dire

circumstances is by focusing on the importance of friendship.

“You’re thrown into a postapocalypse but you’re really kind of just watching these characters meet each other, and the muddiness of getting to know each other and overcoming your personal boundaries,” Sechrist said of “Kipo.”

For Brallier, it was important that the characters in “Last Kids” be “good people you want to spend time with.”

“Growing up, I always liked watching stuff where I felt like I wanted to be friends and hang out with the characters -- be in their world and join their group of friends,” Brallier said. “I think that’s an important thing for kids who aren’t having their best days, so watching the show can hopefully feel like a sort of escape from everyday stuff.”

Still, the series’ sunniness isn’t without dimension: They also offer a model for kids navigating situations that may be out of their control.

“There’s an overarching theme (in ‘Last Kids’) of making the best of the cards that you’re dealt. This is a really bad situation they’re in, but the main character, Jack, is trying to not only survive but also have fun,” said Peterson. “That’s something we’re trying to sell the kids on -- that you can make things better just by your attitude.”

“Kipo’s” Wolkoff shared similar sentiments.

“The draw of (working on ‘Kipo’) is giving kids a sense of power in a time when that can be really scary,” said Wolkoff. “Even though it seems like the world (is) ending, it’s gonna be OK.”

26

January 28, 2020

Culture

(Facebook) “Black Christmas” stars Imogen Poots, Aleyse Shannon and Lily Donoghue as a group of female students who are stalked by a stranger during their Christmas break.

How ‘Black Christmas’ became a ‘fiercely feminist’ movie for #MeToo era SONAIYA KELLEY TNS Los Angeles Times A few years after Donald Trump’s election coincided with the birth of the #MeToo movement and mere months after the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, director Sophia Takal set out to write a horror movie about being a woman in 2019.

“I just felt tapped into a lot of the rage that women felt and also a lot of the camaraderie that we felt with one another,” she said.

“I wanted to make a movie that wasn’t about women being pitted against each other but finding strength through one another.”

The resultant film, Universal’s “Black Christmas” remake, turns the 1974 horror cult classic on its head by exploring the adversarial relationship between fraternity and sorority members at the fictional Hawthorne College. The updated movie, in theaters this weekend, stars Imogen Poots as Riley Stone, a sorority girl and sexual assault survivor who demands answers after several women go missing over the holiday break.

Where the original centered on a group of girls terrorized by a killer hiding out inside their sorority house (it was the first film to use the “calls are coming from inside the house!” trope), Takal and screenwriter April Wolfe, who co-wrote the script for Blumhouse, wanted to imbue the traditional slasher story with a nuanced portrait of female solidarity

and a timely examination of the entrenched nature of misogyny.

“When Blumhouse approached me about making this, one thing that was really important to me was making a movie that felt like it was moving the slasher subgenre forward,” said Takal.

“We weren’t just making a movie about expendable women whose primary purpose was to be killed for entertainment.

“When we started to write this movie, we had just gone through this whole reckoning and a lot of men were being called out for their bad behavior,” she added.

“Then all of a sudden Louis C.K.’s doing comedy again, people are getting book deals and going back on the air. And I felt a little bit of that feeling that you can’t ever really let your guard down.”

In response, the filmmaker resolved to make a PG-13 horror movie that would frankly address tough issues like sexual assault and rape while remaining accessible to young women and girls.

“At one point I just assumed the MPAA would automatically give it an R rating because we’re dealing with issues of sexual assault,” said Takal. “But we shot it with the intention of a PG-13 rating. I was very vocal about the fact that if I had to pull back on any of the specificities of Riley’s experience or the sexual politics of the movie, that would be a problem for me. That was really the only sticking point.”

Ultimately, the subject matter was less of a concern to the MPAA than some of the film’s language. “It’s so funny the

things that are allowed and not allowed,” said Takal. “Like ‘The Dark Knight’ and ‘Taken’ are PG-13 movies, but ours would’ve been R-rated if we said ‘slipped me a roofie and then your dick.’”

“It’s really up to the discretion (of the MPAA),” said Wolfe. “And its discretion is not consistent across the board. But how cool is it that young girls get to see this ... movie?”

To illustrate an intersectional portrait of feminism, Takal and Wolfe made sure to incorporate female experiences that differed from their own. For example, the character Kris (played by Aleyse Shannon) is a mixed race woman and a social justice crusader who frequently butts heads with her fellow sorority members.

“From the beginning it was a matter of having a cast that felt inclusive while being aware of our own biases,” said Wolfe. “We live in Los Angeles. My life is not (filled with) a lot of white people.

Reflecting what most people feel or see in everyday life onscreen felt really important in the same way that we wanted the women to feel realistic.

“I mean, we are white women and we have lived in this world for a long time so I think there is a tendency to kind of just write that experience but I think that is maybe incorrect,” she added. “It’s not OK to do at this point. We want people to feel good and for these characters to be rounded.

And if we weren’t hitting that then we would do a quick rewrite or reassessment.”

For Takal, who calls the film

“fiercely feminist,” seeing a nuanced portrait of women depicted onscreen in and of itself is revolutionary. “I think there’s something still subversive about making movies that are about real women who are complicated and flawed and don’t have to be perfect,” she said.

“I think a lot of times in this modern era people talk about strong women and sometimes people mistake flawless, badass women with feminist characters. I think part of being a woman and making movies about women is allowing us to be flawed.”

“We might all be on the ‘same side’ but there’s definitely different lived experiences,” said Wolfe. “You can’t just be like ‘All women are really great together all the time.’”

“Exactly,” Poots agreed. “I felt that certainly in the quartet of girls, all of their idiosyncrasies were there but they’re all fundamentally different women with different priorities.”

While Wolfe describes being a woman in 2019 as “ ... terrible sometimes,” she says one of the biggest barriers to meaningful change is the inability for people on opposing sides to hear each other.

“The feeling of people talking past one another sometimes feels like an insurmountable problem,” Takal agreed. “Like, how can we open up to each other? I think one of the things we hope for with this movie is that it’s a fun holiday horror movie, but that it also is saying something about a particular experience. And

maybe it will open up people to talk about their own experiences and have less defensive conversations.”

“Certain people have had the podium for a long time and it’s time for other people to take the opportunity to listen,” said Poots.

“Yeah, I think it’s about listening,” said Takal. “I think some people are hesitant to listen because it feels like something is being taken away. And it can feel like eating spinach if you’re watching a harrowing drama about men and women and rape, but if you’re able to give people an opportunity to laugh and scream, it kind of mitigates the dialogue that we’re trying to have.”

“Genre movies open up an incredible platform for female performance,” added Poots. “Often more than other films do. I think with the nature of horror movies in general, there’s a reason why Toni Collette’s performance in ‘Hereditary’ was so lauded.”

And ultimately the opportunity to have female filmmakers shaping those performances is what most excited all three women about “Black Christmas.”

“Growing up, the place that you would see lead actors who were women was in horror or soap operas,” noted Wolfe. “I love a melodrama and I love horror and we have some aspects of both in our movie. It’s a great genre, it just sucks that women haven’t been able to tell those stories before. Now we get to be behind it and have more control over those dynamic female characters.”

Culture

January 28, 2020

27

Contact Us: (724) 349-0462 philadelphiasquare.com

28

January 28, 2020

Culture

Sports

Sports Editor: Elliot Hicks – E.Hicks@iup.edu Lead Sports Writer: Jeff Hart – J.R.Hart2@iup.edu

(TNS) Kobe Bryant died Sunday at the age of 41.

Mamba forever: NBA star Bryant among nine dead in helicopter crash JEFF HART

Lead Sports Writer J.R.Hart2@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

Basketball and the entire world lost one of its brightest flames Sunday in Kobe Bryant.

Bryant, a 17-time NBA All-Star for the Los Angeles Lakers, passed away this weekend at the age of 41 during his helicopter flight to his daughter’s youth basketball game.

For reasons yet to be discovered, Kobe’s helicopter lost control and crashed in the Los Angeles County area.

Bryant regularly travelled via helicopter between his home and the Lakers famed Staples Center.

Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna (13) were among the nine confirmed deaths aboard the aircraft.

This devastating news came as a shock to everyone. The name Kobe

Sports

Bryant rings bells around the world, even outside of basketball circles.

Entering the NBA right out of high school, his work ethic on the court made him synonymous in the basketball community with his dynamic and aggressive style of play.

During the span of his illustrious 20-year career with the Lakers, Bryant had done more than most NBA players could have dreamed of. He was a 17-time all-star, 11 time firstteam NBA, league MVP and fivetime champion, to name a few.

After Kobe and Gianna’s sudden passing, practically everyone with a phone was paying respects to one of the greatest to lace up.

“Kobe was a legend on the court and just getting started in what would have been just as meaningful a second act,” former President Barack Obama said.

“Most people will remember Kobe as the magnificent athlete

who inspired a whole generation of basketball players,” Hall-ofFamer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said.

“But I will always remember him as a man who was so much more than an athlete.”

While Bryant’s play on the court will always be remembered, Kobe stands for so much more than just basketball.

He is a standing memory of perseverance. Bryant’s famous “Mamba Mentality” pays homage to his work ethic and perseverance which was second to none.

Bryant came into the league at the mere age of 17 and set out to be just as good if not better than the great Michael Jordan.

Most would say Bryant accomplished this goal, as most of his statistics and style of play are close or identical to Jordan.

After retiring from the Lakers in 2016, he set out on a goal to win

January 28, 2020

an Academy Award, and that’s exactly what he did. Bryant fulfilled his goal with his film “Dear Basketball” winning best animated short film in 2018.

Among some of his achievements and goals after basketball, Kobe was a dedicated father to his four children. His youngest daughter, Gianna, who passed away on the flight, took after her father and strived to become great at the game her dad had played for so many years.

Kobe was heavily involved with Gianna’s training and basketball team and tried to be everything a great father could be. The helicopter was on its way to one of Gianna’s games when it crashed.

Kobe’s impact on the world was and still is profound. All NBA teams playing Sunday took 24-second and 8-second violations to honor Kobe’s jersey numbers during his

time with the Lakers.

Kobe Bryant had played against and changed the lives of hundreds of players during his time in the NBA, and his Mamba Mentality will live on in all who were directly involved with him.

Kobe Bryant had accomplished so much in so little time: NBA player, champion, academy award winner, husband, leader and father.

These are only some of the many great accomplishments Kobe Bean Bryant was able to achieve during his life.

Our hearts and prayers are out to the Bryant family during this time of hardship for their loss of two beautiful souls.

While Kobe may no longer be with us, his name and legacy will live on forever. He always was and always will be one of the greatest players to have ever lived.

Rest in peace, Kobe.

29

January 28, 2020

30

Sports

Kobe’s death reminds us what really matters LZ GRANDERSON Los Angeles Times TNS

Almost as soon as LeBron James scored his 33,644th point midway through the third quarter of Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers, Twitter exploded with a familiar debate: Who is better, Kobe or LeBron? It’s a familiar question with an unsatisfactory answer because loyalty can’t be quantified. Stats can be cited, championships counted, analytics and the eyeball test butt heads and yet at the end of the day, no consensus is reached.

Yet, again.

Then Sunday came ... and none of it mattered.

In America we’ve been programmed to treat nuance like tiny speed bumps to be ignored on the fast track to the conclusions we’ve already drawn. We script rebuttals to arguments yet to be made, the byproduct of a society obsessed

(TNS) Gianna Bryant was also lost in the helicopter crash that killed her father, Kobe.

with being the best. We don’t stop to smell the roses because well, we’re moving too fast to even notice there are roses. Social media don’t help, of course, but the truth

is we were like this long before Tom wanted to be our friend on MySpace.

Sports is not immune to this.

One could say it is a focal point

with its parade of MVP awards, Hall of Fame inductions and constant pursuit of the GOAT – the greatest of all time – which is the most pressing issue among fans regardless of the sport. There’s nothing wrong with wanting your favorite athlete to be the best, it just seem as if it is supplanting the reason we connect with the sport they play in the first place. So when James supplanted Kobe Bryant for third on the NBA scoring list, fans did what we always do.

Then came Sunday.

I won’t pretend to behave as if I have not engaged in these fruitless comparisons. They’re fun and for the most part harmless. In my business, these arguments are monetized. But unfortunately they also erode our ability to just sit back and enjoy the game, you know, be in the moment. The way fantasy football and/or gambling undermines our ability to watch without obsessing over specific markers to be reached. Why can’t James or

Tiger Woods or Serena Williams or Canelo Alvarez just be great without the need to have their place in history be determined while still in the midst of their career? In a span of 12 hours, many went from dissecting Bryant’s game to wishing we could see him play one more time. The debates faded because we instinctively knew all that really mattered was his family, friends and how watching him play made us feel. Of course the reality is that’s all that really mattered in the first place. In a world driven by talk, it’s easy to forget to feel.

Saturday we monitored numbers.

Sunday we mourned the man.

May the ongoing sports, whether tennis, basketball or football, including watching the brilliance of the play of Patrick Mahomes or Richard Sherman on Sunday be enough. More importantly, may every day be one in which we tell the ones we care about how we feel – if we haven’t done so already.

Father and daughter shared special bond over game they loved ARASH MARKAZI Los Angeles Times TNS The last time I sat down with Kobe Bryant was at his office in Costa Mesa before the regular-season opener between the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers in October.

He laughed when I asked him if he would be at the game.

I knew he wouldn’t be there. He had a more important game to attend that night.

He was going to be at a high school gym 40 miles away to watch his 16-year-old daughter, Natalia, play volleyball.

He rarely went to Lakers games after retiring in 2016. It wasn’t that he didn’t love the Lakers. He loved his family more and loved spending time with his wife, Vanessa, and their daughters, Natalia; Gianna, 13; Bianka, 2; and Capri, who was born last June.

“I have a life and I have my routine at home,” Bryant told me in October. “It’s not that I don’t want to go (to Lakers games), but I’d rather be giving B.B. a shower and sing Barney songs to her. I played 20 years and I missed those moments before.

(TNS) Multiple shrines and tributes were set up at the Staples Center.

“For me to make the trip up to Staples Center, that means I’m missing an opportunity to spend another night with my kids when I know how fast it goes. ... I want to make sure the days that I’m away from them are days that I absolutely have to be. I’d rather be with them than doing anything else.”

Bryant had a special relationship with Gianna. She was his shadow at the end of his career and in re-

tirement. She routinely traveled to work with him and he loved coaching her and her basketball teammates at the Mamba Sports Academy, a training center he opened in Thousand Oaks.

The only magazine cover framed in the lobby of Bryant’s office is the SLAM he appeared on with Gianna and her teammates in their black and white Mamba uniforms.

“It’s a trip to see her move

and some of the expressions she makes,” Bryant said of Gianna. “It’s a trip how genetics work.”

When I saw Bryant and Gianna at the Los Angeles Sparks’ season opener in Las Vegas last May, he said he thought it was funny when fans asked him when he would have a son to carry on the basketball legacy. He said the family name was already in good hands.

“This one,” Bryant said, pointing

to Gianna. “She’s something else.”

It wasn’t a surprise that Bryant was flying to a basketball game with Gianna on Sunday. They were inseparable. He loved taking her to basketball games and talking to her about different plays, tendencies and adjustments.

“What I love about Gigi is her curiosity about the game,” Bryant said. “She’s very curious. Even in a heated situation in a game where it’s going back and forth, she can detach herself and come to me and ask a very specific question, which is not common. She’ll come over and say, ‘OK, on this particular trap when I’m trying to close the gap but she’s getting on the outside, do I need to change my angle?’ It’s a very specific question. That’s pretty damn cool.”

Bryant said Gianna was “hellbent” on going to Connecticut to play for coach Geno Auriemma. He actually took her to some games where she met the Huskies and Auriemma in the locker room. In retirement, Bryant’s focus when it came to basketball was on Gianna.

He didn’t worry how he would be remembered, he just wanted to be there for his daughter and watch her play the game they loved.

January 28, 2020

Sports

31

Basketball completes comebacks, sweeps Clarion JEFF HART

Lead Sports Writer J.R.Hart2@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

TYLER COMO

Staff Writer T.D.Como@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

Big nights from Courtney Alexander (redshirt junior, nursing) and Malik Miller (senior, communications media) helped the IUP Crimson Hawks basketball teams held off slow starts and upset bids, sweeping Clarion at home Saturday night.

The women’s team found itself down by two at the end of the first quarter, but it roared back to defeat the Golden Eagles 82–50.

Prior to the game, Clarion’s women’s conference record was 1–12 in the PSAC and held an overall record of 3–16. But it’s key not to underestimate the enemy.

The box score does not do this game justice. To start the game, Clarion came out and took No. 6-ranked IUP by storm with a 13–4 lead.

Early turnovers plagued the Hawks, and the Golden Eagles simply could not miss making 6–7 of their shots.

The Hawks were shellshocked at the 3–15 Golden Eagles and were in the midst of fighting an uphill battle.

However, the top-ranked IUP team decided that’s not how the rest of the game would go.

The game-changer for IUP came in the second quarter when guard Alexander checked into the game.

She injected her squad with her deadeye sharpshooting from the perimeter.

Alexander led the Hawks on a 12–0 run with three triples to give them a 38–27 lead going into halftime. After this marvelous run by Alexander, IUP would never allow Clarion to come back again.

The Crimson Hawks dominated the boards and outrebounded the Eagles 42–18. IUP also managed to cut down on its turnovers after a season-high 26 last week against University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown.

This was a standout game in a variety of ways. It was a career game for Alexander as she tied her career highs for points and 3-pointers made.

“I came in mentally prepared and gave myself a pep talk and

(IUP Athletics) Courtney Alexander (redshirt junior, nursing) and Malik Miller (senior, communications media) had the top performances in their respective team’s wins against Clarion.

said, ‘I’m going to do what I do best,’” Alexander said in a postgame interview. “We all collectively did a great job...people helped me get the ball and score, so I give it up to them.”

IUP hit a major milestone winning its 16th consecutive game.

This ties the longest streak in program history, dating back to the 1999–2000 season. This team is already making history this season, and the potential for this squad is scary.

Head coach Tom McConnell spoke to his team’s success this season.

“I don’t think we have reached our potential as a team,” McConnell said. “I think we have been consistently solid defensively throughout the season. We can really grow offensively. That’s what we look forward to over the next few weeks, just getting better offensively.”

As things stand, IUP sits atop the PSAC at 18–1 on the year. The Hawks are undefeated in conference matchups and are sitting two games ahead of Gannon in the rankings.

The Hawks have a record of 8–1 against Seton Hill. The Griffins hope to snap their four-game losing streak and look to keep their conference record above .500.

The IUP men’s team faired just a well as the women’s team. Each player that entered the court scored at least a point allowing them to claim victory against the Golden Eagles, coincidently also scoring 82, while Clarion racked up

71 points.

Miller’s career night certainly made himself known on the court, after going 12–13 in FT, and putting up solid numbers in FG (6–14), and 3PT (3–7). Miller’s 27 points surpassed his old record of 26 points, which he scored on two occasions.

Miller was leading the pack in points, but when one player does so well, there’s go to be other successes on the court. Sophomore guard Dave Morris (kinesiology) ral-

lied for 12 points. Morris went 5–10 in FG, made a 3-pointer and accrued the most assists on the team.

The Hawks scored more points off turnovers (24) than they did in the paint (20).

Looking ahead to the next matchup, the IUP men’s team is undefeated with an impressive 8–0 record overall against their upcoming matchup, the Seton Hill Griffins.

The closest the Griffins came to beat them was two years ago, when

IUP won by a single point.

Could Wednesday be the night they snap their streak? Considering the men’s team is on an eightgame winning streak, it seems the odds are certainly not in their favor. Though, we shall see what Wednesday brings.

The IUP basketball teams have a combined loss count of two. Looking ahead both teams have only nine games left, then add to that any potential playoff games.

32

January 28, 2020

Sports

Sports

January 28, 2020

headzup unisex hair gallery 26 N. 5th St. Indiana, Pa 15701 M-F 9:00 am - 8:00 pm Sat 8:00 am - 8:00 pm (724) 801-8345 | headzupindianapa.com

33

34

January 28, 2020

Sports

Pacific Division wins All-Star Game in St. Louis TYLER COMO

Staff Writer T.D.Como@iup.edu @ThePennIUP

Meet me in St. Louis!

I’m not talking about the 1994 film by Vincente Minnelli, but about the All-Star weekend in St. Louis. It surely proved itself to be a star-studded affair. The Enterprise Center welcomed fans, players and celebrities alike.

The Stanley Cup Champs brought the hockey fandom to Missouri in a spectacular fashion.

In addition to welcoming fellow All-Star players, goaltender Jordan Binnington, forward Ryan O’Reilly, d-man Alex Pietrangelo and Captain David Perron performed for the rowdy home crowd.

NHL announcers and players also welcomed selected players from the Women’s U.S. and Canadian hockey teams. They were invited to perform in their own 3 v. 3 game following “Honda NHL Accuracy Shooting” event. For team Canada, Rebecca Johnston tallied the first goal just barely a minute into the event.

The end of the first kept the Canadians ahead 1–0, not to say they were without scoring chances and incredible saves. Melodie Daoust ripped one past U.S. netminder Alex Rigsby Cavallini to make it 2–0 team Canada.

Hilary Knight would be the lone scorer for team USA, and that wasn’t until halfway through the second period. The game was far from over after they managed to get within one goal from Canada, but even with the U.S. team pulling its goalie for a second time with seconds left, Canadian goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens made one more glove save as the clock ran down and the horn sounded.

The women not only got their own event but also participated in the new event, “Gatorade NHL Shooting Stars.” Two players, Marie-Phillip Poulin of Canada scored 15 points, and Knight scored 14.

Though, the winner of the com-

(Facebook) The Pacific Division won the 2020 NHL All-Star Game.

petition came down to a two-way sudden death between Chicago Blackhawks veteran Patrick Kane and Toronto Maple Leafs’ young buck Mitch Marner.

Both tallied 22 points, but Marner missed his OT shot. Kane bounced a puck off a target, earning two points to claim victory in St. Louis, but he was not met with cheers due to St. Louis and Chicago’s heated rivalry.

Even though the Blues fans didn’t get their hometown hero to win in that All-Star event, they had a more interesting time watch their goalie win the save streak event.

Jordan Binnington was the last goalie to perform for the event.

Binnington needed to beat the previous save streak winner of last year’s shutout streak, Andrei Vasilevskiy. In his first all-star event, Binnington showed his confidence as he got closer to beating Andre’s nine saves. He tied Lightning goaltender at nine and faced off against top goal for the Oilers, Leon Draisaitl.

Draisaitl pulled up slow, then quickly broke right to Binnington’s

glove hand and beat the glove but wound up hitting far post and missing the open net behind Binnington, who was sitting just outside of the netminder’s “square.”

Another friendly competition was the fastest skater event. This one has seen Connor McDavid win it multiple times in his few trips and subsequent few seasons in the NHL. But this young speed skater was dethroned in this year’s skater event. Though McDavid placed a close second with 13.215, he was beaten by New York Islander Mathew Barzal, timing his race around the ice at 13.175 seconds.

Jaccob Slavin was the lone player coming from the Carolina Hurricanes. He was the placed into the All-Star competition due to Dougie Hamilton suffering injury prior to attending the event. Hamilton was announced to attend his first AllStar event for the Metro has been sidelined indefinitely after experiencing a broken leg.

Slavin proved to be a worthy replacement after being the only player in the event to be timed under 10 seconds. His final time to

knocking down the digital targets was 9.505 seconds.

The last event for the skills competition was the hardest shot event.

Since the event has been part of the competition, Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara has set (2011, 105.9) then broke (2012, 108.8) his own record in following years, but did not attend the event this year.

This year’s event belonged to Montreal Canadien Shea Weber.

His first shot was scored at 105.9 mph, beating out the previous speed (104.5) set by Washington Capitals’ John Carlson. Then on Weber’s second shot, he beat his first shot, tallying 106.5 mph.

Though Weber may not have been able to break Chara’s record, someone from the AHL All-Star game was. The minor league AllStar competition fell on the same weekend as the national league.

Martin Frk managed to rip the puck at 109.2 mph. Frk is a player for the LA Kings’ AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign. Coincidentally, he managed to break records in front of his home crowd, due to the event taking place in Ontario, California.

On the final night of All-Star weekend, teams finally took the ice with their division rivals, sporting the All-Star sweaters featuring each team’s respective logo, colors and number.

The Metro division faced off first against the Atlantic. Despite the division going all the way in last year’s competition, there seemed to be key pieces missing to this year’s lineup. But it made for an exciting night nonetheless, as the Metro was defeated by the Atlantic 9–4.

The Pacific division seemed to have a more positive look to its team. It managed to score 10 goals, compared to the Central’s four.

To finish off the spectacular event in St. Louis was a battle between the Pacific and the Atlantic.

It seemed the dynamic duo of Draisaitl and McDavid gave the push the team needed this year to win.

The final score of the game 5–4 Pacific.

The closing ceremonies announced the MVP of the event. After scoring five points in the ceremonies, the Bruins’ David Pastrnak was named MVP.

Sports

January 28, 2020

35

36

January 28, 2020

Sports

HOT TAKE JAKE All-Star Weekend for best sport, worst league below expectations JAKE TAYLOR

Staff Writer J.M.Taylor8@iup.edu @JakeTaylor8726

This is not the first time I will say this, and nor will it be the last: hockey is the best sport, and the NHL is the worst-run league.

Yes, it’s even worse than a league that is doing nothing about a team cheating their way to a World Series win. NHL All-Star Weekend has just finished up in St. Louis, and safe to say, there was trouble on Dookie Island. Sit down, shut up and drink a beer.

Honestly, where to even start?

The NHL All-Star competition is the event that kicks off the weekend. This is when viewers tune in to see their favorite players put on a display of skill. Well, at least that’s what it is supposed to be.

The NHL put on an embarrassing display of games during the competition. The fastest skater and hardest shot held true to their roots and was a simple display of skill. Everything else was disastrous.

The passing competition, for some blasphemous reason, was held on an 80-foot-high platform,

(TNS) Commissioner Gary Bettman and the NHL operates the best sport in the worst way.

and the players shot pucks down onto the ice and huge point-based targets. What resulted was every single player aiming for the same huge 10-point basket in the middle of the ice. Every superstar completely ignored the other 12 targets. The camera angle was so bad, you couldn’t tell where in the world the puck landed. This event requiring zero skill considering players do not practice launching pucks from an elevated platform 30 yards away

from the ice.

Now onto the most disgusting display I have seen in a long, long time: the NHL accuracy shooting contest, something every fan loves.

You’re probably wondering, “how the hell could the NHL ruin the players shooting four targets in the four corners of the net in the fastest time possible?” Well, the jabronis managed to do it with an all-digital board that sat in front of the net. The players blasted pucks

at some electronic board that seemed oversized compared to the real net. Again, how is it a display of skill to shoot at something that isn’t an NHL-regulated net? It’s so damn stupid I don’t have words for it.

Now onto the event that headlined the night: the women’s 3 v. 3 game between Team Canada and Team USA. This could have been so much cooler than it was.

This is solely because NHL puck tracking is the stupidest, dumbest,

most pointless thing the NHL can do. I want to watch hockey; I don’t want to see some delayed black line floating behind the puck. No one wants that besides 80-year-old people watching it on their non-HD TV in the retirement home. Televisions are made in 4K resolution now, so you can see ice particles fly up when the players stop. Trust me, Gary Bettman, I can see the damn puck.

If a viewer needs a line to track the puck, chances are they don’t know the fundamental rules of the sport, either. So why reward the occasional viewer and punish real hockey fans? Pure idiocy.

The NHL did a fantastic job catering to the home crowd. It was in St. Louis, the reigning champions, and the broadcast did not let you forget that. Everything done was for the live audience. They even had a live announcer mid-event on top of the broadcast announcers. Yes, this means that while viewing, audiences had to listen to commentary ontop of commentary. Stupid!

The tournament went well, but how could an NHL 3 v. 3 All-Star game tournament not go well.

This Day In Sports: Noll hired as Steelers’ coach

Carr sets school record in 60-meter dash

(Flickr) On Jan. 27, 1969, Chuck Noll was named as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Noll, who was the youngest coach in the NFL at the time, won four Super Bowl titles and 209 total games during his career, which ended in 1991.

(IUP Athletics) Dre Carr (sophomore, exercise science) set the IUP school record in the 60-meter dash Saturday at the Al Hall Freedom Games in Edinboro. Carr’s time of 6.71 seconds defeated the previous record of 6.80 seconds. Carr, who now holds two of the top three times in that event, also won the 200-meter dash at the event.

Sports

January 28, 2020

37

38

January 28, 2020

Sports

Pirates’ lineup set to change after Marte trade ELLIOT HICKS

Sports Editor E.Hicks@iup.edu @ehicks39

The Pittsburgh Pirates were in baseball’s national news cycle Monday, trading outfielder Starling Marte, the team’s longest-tenured player, to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Bucs received a pair of prospects, shortstop Liover Peguero and pitcher Brennan Malone, both 19-year-old, high upside players.

There’s plenty to discuss in terms of the future impact of this deal and whether or not it will result in future success for both of these teams.

But that’s not as fun for the Pirates since it’s not likely that either of those prospects will see the major leagues in 2020.

The deal, as well as the significant salary freed up in Pittsburgh, could result in more than a few changes to the starting lineup come Opening Day. The current payroll is estimated to take up less than $50 million, leaving room for some additions to the roster.

Let’s take a look at each of the main positions on the roster and who the starters should be: Catcher: Russell Martin The catcher position is, to say it bluntly, anemic in Pittsburgh since the loss of Francisco Cervelli.

Elias Diaz was once thought to be the catcher of the future in Pittsburgh but was non-tendered by new GM Ben Cherington just after he was hired.

The team has signed Luke Maile and John Ryan Murphy to go along with returnee Jacob Stallings, but none of the three are anywhere close to starting caliber.

Martin, the 37-year-old who put up a 0.67 WAR in 2019, quite honestly won’t fare much better on the stat sheet. With that being said, he would be an asset to the stable of young, struggling catchers and a clubhouse leader who will put butts in the new seats at PNC Park.

There won’t be many reasons for tickets to fly off the shelves this year, but bringing back the fan favorite with one of the most popular home runs in franchise history would be one.

First Baseman: Josh Bell If the Pirates are going into a full

(TNS)

(TNS)

Russell Martin should get another chance with the Pirates...

...but Gregory Polanco may be running out of chances.

rebuild, there’s a very legitimate case to trading Josh Bell this year.

He still has multiple years of team control left and despite his second-half slump in 2019, his stats and star power should net the Bucs a decent return.

But there’s no clear answer to who would play first base in the event of a Bell trade, so we’ll keep him here, at least for Opening Day. He’s become the biggest and most popular name in the city since Andrew McCutchen left, and he’s got the best shot at getting some balls over the fence, something the 2020 Pirates won’t do a lot of.

leaguer Charlie Hayes and .265 hitter in a full year with AAA Indianapolis in 2019.

Every indication has shown that he’s got what it takes to be successful and it’s time to bring him up and give him an everyday shot in the show.

Second Base: Kevin Newman While Newman has primarily functioned as a shortstop during his short big league career, I think the upside of Cole Tucker at shortstop should put Newman at second base full time.

In 23 games (20 starts) at the position last year, his fielding percentage was perfect during those 157 innings.

His bat will play well at the position as well, as his .308 average was near the top of the National League last season.

With Adam Frazier also drawing trade interest as a utilityman, he could benefit both his career and the Pirates by being dealt, giving Newman the full-time spot.

Shortstop: Cole Tucker This side of the infield is the door-die side, in that Tucker is one of two top prospects in the Pirates’ system who are all but ready to be in the big leagues for good, and during this rebuild, it’s time to give them the starting spots and see if the competitor in Tucker will thrive.

While he showed a few bright spots in 2019, Tucker hit just .211 in 56 games played, all coming at the shortstop position. But he’s done well enough in the minor leagues to meet expectations and should get the chance to shine in the bigs.

Third Base: Ke’Bryan Hayes Hayes has yet to make his Major League debut, but it’s time to stop pretending that Colin Moran is the answer at third for the Pirates.

He’s been a nice piece to have around, but he’s not likely to ever become a starting-caliber third baseman.

Enter Hayes, son of former big

Outfield: Gregory Polanco, Bryan Reynolds, Guillermo Heredia Starling Marte is gone, leaving Gregory Polanco as the last man standing of the “dream outfield” trio from the happy days of 201415.

If he’s recovered well from an injury-prone 2019, he could be one of the bright spots for the team in 2020, but he’s almost out of chances to succeed in Pittsburgh, especially under a front office staff that had nothing to do with his signing or development.

Though those same things are also true of Reynolds, the return from the McCutchen trade earned some NL Rookie of the Year buzz last year in a very impressive season. He could very well become the next longest-tenured Buc years down the road if his future is as solid as his rookie year.

Heredia is to date the only major league deal signed by a non-catcher, so it’s obvious the Pirates want to give him an extended look, one he may get without Marte in the way.

Starting Pitchers: Chris Archer, Mitch Keller, Chad Kuhl, Joe Musgrove, Trevor Williams A free-agent signing or two could easily sub in here or in the bullpen, but this starting five makes the most sense.

While many a fan would fail to shed a tear if Archer was no longer on the club tomorrow, he has zero trade value and may as well try to rebound with the upside he’s shown in the past.

Musgrove and Williams haven’t given us any reason to remove them from the rotation, both being decent No. 3 or No. 4 starters, bumped up in the Bucs rotation simply because of lack of talent.

Mitch Keller fits into the “do-ordie” prospect status I mentioned earlier, and Kuhl doesn’t seem to fit well in the bullpen but will certainly have the motivation to start following Tommy John surgery, which took his 2019 season.

Sports

January 28, 2020

39

40

January 28, 2020

Sports

(TNS) Super Bowl week festivities have begun in Florida.

Jackson named offensive MVP as AFC wins Pro Bowl JAKE SLEBODNICK

News Editor J.C.Slebodnick@iup.edu @Jake_WIUP

The annual NFL Pro Bowl kicked off Sunday in Orlando.

While the seemingly meaningless game was in the midst of a sports tragedy, it still put on a better game than what we’ve seen in the past.

Prior to the beginning of the game, Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback Russell Wilson gave up his starting role to New Orleans Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees amidst rumors that Brees will hang up his cleats for good.

When asked during the game about handing over the start, Wilson simply said, “Drew means the world to me. I respect the game,

and he does it better than anyone else.”

The scoring began with Brees finding Michael Thomas for a 16yard touchdown to give the NFC an early lead.

The scoring torch would be passed back and forth between each team at the turn of the first quarters, as the AFC would answer back with Lamar Jackson (Ravens) finding Andre Roberts (Bills) in the endzone that was initially ruled an incomplete pass but was ruled a touchdown after a booth review.

The NFC would follow up with a touchdown early in the second quarter as Russell Wilson found Amari Cooper (Cowboys) for a short-lived lead. Jackson would find his teammate Mark Andrews to tie it at 14.

The AFC would strike twice heading into halftime as Deshaun Watson (Texans) would find Jack Doyle (Colts) for a touchdown. Justin Tucker (Ravens) would make his only field goal as the clock expired, and it would go for 50 yards.

The first scoring play of the second half was untraditional to say the least.

Harrison Smith (Vikings) intercepted Watson’s pass at the NFC four yard line and as he was about to be brought down lateralled the ball to defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (Eagles). Cox would take it to the house following a few stiff arms.

The NFC would strike again in the latter part of the third quarter as Kirk Cousins (Vikings) found Davante Adams (Packers) to give them a 27–24 lead.

That lead would be short-lived as Ryan Tannehill (Titans) completed his only pass to D.J. Chark (Jaguars), which was a 60-yard touchdown pass.

The final scoring play by the AFC came at the early part of the fourth quarter.

Steelers’ linebacker and defensive player of the year candidate T.J. Watt took a Cousins’ fumble 95 yards to the endzone to give his side a 38–27 lead.

Cousins would make up for the turnover on the following possession as he found Devante Adams for a short-yardage touchdown.

However, Cousins muffed the snap on the two-point conversion attempt and would take a sack, leaving his team down by five with 4:37 to go in regulation.

As an alternative to an onside kick, the NFC would test a new Pro Bowl rule that they would have a fourth and 15 attempt on their own 25-yard line.

Cousins would put up a Hail Mary pass intended for a double-covered Kenny Golladay (Lions). Sure enough, it was intercepted by Earl Thomas (Ravens).

Tannehill would kneel for the final seconds of the game, cementing an 38–33 for the AFC All-Pro team.

Lamar Jackson and Calais Campbell (Jaguars) won offensive and defensive MVP respectively.

Jackson finished the game with 16 completions, 185 passing yards and two touchdowns, while Campbell finished with one tackle and a forced fumble.