CLEVELAND, OH – OCTOBER 30: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers smiles after a play in the second quarter against the New York Knicks at Quicken Loans Arena on October 30, 2014 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
The Cheat SheetBy David Lauterbach on

Congrats! You’ve made it to Friday! But before you get on with your Friday, take a look back what happened in the world of sports and pop culture on Thursday!

LeBron James and the Cavs finished off an incredible 26-point comeback over the Pacers in Game 3

Cavs LeBron James

Never doubt LeBron James.

In honor of 4/20, The King was blazing as he simply dominated the second half of Thursday’s Game 3 against the Pacers, leading the Cavs back from a 26-point deficit on the road. They went on to win 119-114, and James finished with a divine state line of 41 points (28 in the second half), 13 rebounds, 12 assists and two blocks.

According to Basketball Reference, James joins Charles Barkley as the only players since 1984 to record 40-10-10 with less than five turnovers in a playoff game. The Cavs have not looked great throughout the series, but with a 3-0 lead they’ve all but guaranteed they’ll advance to the conference semifinals without a problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcbiU02saWA

You may have heard on Twitter that this tied the biggest comeback in NBA playoff history. That’s not true, even though the TNT play-by-play man Brian Anderson broadcast that bit of trivia and the NBA itself tweeted it out.

The Lakers came back from down 29 points against the Sonics in 1989, and the Clippers completed a 27-point comeback against the Grizzlies in 2012.

Corey Crawford and the Chicago Blackhawks dropped game 4 and were swept by the Nashville Predators

The Chicago Blackhawks were swept out of the playoffs by the Nashville Predators on Thursday night to conclude a wild and unpredictable series. There are plenty of shocking stories to emerge from the four-game set, including the fact that Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne had just as many points (two) as Chicago stars Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.

Another topic which will inevitably be debated long into the summer revolves around the play of Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford who was less than stellar in the series.

Initially, the shot came in and rang off the post before the puck settled in under Crawford. In an effort to scramble and find the puck, he accidentally knocked it back into his own net. The Predators added on a couple more goals before all was said and done, but this was effectively the end of the Blackhawks’ season.

With their big win, the Predators took the time and pleasure to troll everyone who picked against them.

Tiger Woods hasn’t played in quite some time due to back issues and had back surgery AGAIN on Thursday

Stop us if you have heard this before, but Tiger Woods seems to feel confident he’ll be back in the swing of things fairly soon. Woods has been battling back spasms and other injury concerns for some time now, but after undergoing yet another surgery on his back, Woods says he is ready to move past it all.

“The surgery went well, and I’m optimistic this will relieve my back spasms and pain,” Woods said in a released statement on his official website. “When healed, I look forward to getting back to a normal life, playing with my kids, competing in professional golf and living without the pain I have been battling so long.”

Dr. Richard Guyer, who performed the surgery on Woods, says the rehab will take some time to fully heal, which would suggest we’re not going to see Woods back in a competitive mode for a while, perhaps at least six months. But are you really surprised by that?

“After he recovers from surgery, he will gradually begin his rehabilitation until he is completely healed,” Guyer said. “Once that’s accomplished, his workouts will be geared to allowing him to return to competitive golf.”

I think I speak for a lot of people when I say, Tiger please get better so you can do this again.

Aaron Hernandez’s death ruled a suicide and now his brain will be donated to researchers

In an effort to support medical research concerning CTE, the family of former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez decided to donate his brain to research in an attempt to determine whether or not he was battling CTE.

Hernandez’s death was officially was ruled a suicide on Thursday by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and his brain was released.

“The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner released Mr. Hernandez’s body on Wednesday, but withheld some tissue including his brain until the cause and manner of death was determined,” said District Attorney Joseph D. Early, Jr. in a statement. “Now that the cause and manner of death have been determined, the brain will be released to Boston University’s Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy Center as Mr. Hernandez’s family wishes.”

Earlier in the day, Hernandez defense lawyer Jose Baez called on the state to release Hernandez’s brain, questioning the legality of their holding it.

“It is our position that they are holding Aaron Hernandez’s brain illegally,” Baez said. CTE is a condition, caused by repetitive brain trauma, that has affected some football players. Baez said he was not contending that Hernandez had the condition, but that the family wants to know whether he did.

[…]

“If we don’t get answers and answers quickly, we’re going straight to court,” said Baez. He said he would seek an emergency court hearing to secure the brain.

Quick Hits

– A Nike executive said LaVar Ball is the “worst thing to happen to basketball in the last hundred years.” DAMN.

It may be warranted though.

– Aaron Rodgers got into a hilarious Twitter war with… Shooter McGavin?

READ MORE HERE…

– Indiana University took a big step forward by banning athletes with domestic or sexual violence convictions.

That’s a big deal, especially because it seems like the real deal. Here are the details, via the Indy Star:

The policy bans “any prospective student-athlete — whether a transfer student, incoming freshman, or other status — who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty or no contest to a felony involving sexual violence.” It further defines “sexual violence” as “dating violence, domestic violence, rape, sexual assault or sexual violence as defined by the Indiana University policy on sexual misconduct.”

Approved by the Indiana University-Bloomington Faculty Athletics Committee earlier this month, the policy is the brainchild of Athletic Director Fred Glass, and was written in consultation with a number of campus entities, including IU’s Office of Student Welfare and Title IX, and its Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

“I think this will be an important policy to help protect members of the Indiana University community,” Glass told IndyStar.

– Colin Kaepernick was named to Time 100, and Jim Harbaugh wrote his profile for it. Here’s a sample:

“Colin Kaepernick was alone in his early protests last year when he boldly and courageously confronted perceived inequalities in our social-justice system by refusing to stand for the national anthem. At times in our nation’s history, we have been all too quick to judge and oppose our fellow Americans for exercising their First Amendment right to address things they believe unjust.

“Rather than besmirch their character, we must celebrate their act. For we cannot pioneer and invent if we are fearful of deviating from the norm, damaging our public perception or—most important—harming our own personal interests…”

– The Cleveland Browns still kind of need a quarterback and may trade up to get…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHpQmcZgP3I

– Universal DH? Home plate umpires calling checked swings? Shrinking the strike zone? Some of our writers answered the question of “if you could change one rule in Baseball, what would it be?”

– Some of our staff members also answered the question of “what really is the greatest Simpsons episode of all time?”

– Speaking of the Simpsons, what happens when you try Bart’s megaphone prank in real life?

– The Buffalo Sabres fired their Head Coach and General Manager on Thursday, so what’s next?

– The students at San Diego State voted to keep their nicknames and mascot as the “Aztecs’.

– Boxer Adrien Broner was arrested after he was found in a bullet hole ridden vehicle.

– Reuben Foster is a former linebacker at Alabama and potential NFL Draft pick… but he also failed a drug test at the NFL Combine and is now trying to spin it in a different way.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports Foster was notified last month his urine sample was treated like a positive test after coming back as dilute. Foster thinks the test came back the way it did as a result of food poisoning.

“I couldn’t eat much, but I had to drink water and Gatorade,” said Foster. “Then a few coaches said something about me being too light. And I’m a coach-pleaser. I don’t care what everybody thinks, but I care what coaches think. So I drank and ate as much as I could without throwing up. Then I went in there, drinking and drinking water, trying to flush out my system from whatever was making me sick and trying to keep my weight up and took the test.”

Um what?

– KFC has been selling a sandwich internationally since 1984 and is finally bringing it to the United States.

– The Bucks played the Barney theme song when the Raptors walked onto the court on Thursday and then went on to embarrass them in a 104-77 win.

A Random “The Office” Video:

My new mission is to find out who I can pull these “pranks” on at work (kidding).

One Last Glorious Moment of Procrastination:

More like one last glorious moment of not paying attention in class?

About David Lauterbach

David is a writer for The Comeback. He enjoyed two Men's Basketball Final Four trips for Syracuse before graduating in 2016. If The Office or Game of Thrones is on TV, David will be watching.

View all posts by David Lauterbach