Greg Cote's Hot Button Top 10: Immortality or ignominy: Can Rory hold on? Plus Messi, Tyreek & more
Note: Around two years ago we decided to bring back the Sunday notes column, coining ours the Hot Button Top 10. They said it wouldn't last. Today we celebrate our 100th edition. Thanks for joining us each week!
GREG COTE'S HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (APRIL 13): WHAT IN SPORTS HAS GRABBED US THIS WEEK: Our Sunday Hot Button Top 10 notes column brings you what's on our minds, locally and nationally but from a Miami perspective and accentuating stuff that's big, weird, damnable, funny or otherwise worth needling, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. Welcome to the 100th edition of your HB10:
1. GOLF: Can McIlroy hold on for elusive first Masters green jacket?: The 89th Masters wraps Sunday with Rory McIlroy up two strokes on Bryson DeChambeau atop a starry leaderboard entering the final round. The 18 former Masters champs playing did not include Tiger Woods, who had March surgery to repair an Achilles tendon. The list did controversially include Angel Cabrera, who served a two-year sentence in Argentina for violent abuse against an ex-girlfriend. He missed the cut. The big story: Can Rory hold on for his first Masters win. The Irish star, 35, needs the ugly, beautiful green jacket to join Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger as the only golfers with a career majors Grand Slam in the Masters era. This will be Rory's 11th try at that Slam.
2. HEAT: Miami wraps season today, faces must-win road play-in Wednesday: A disappointing regular season dragged down by the Jimmy Butler drama and trade ends today at home vs. Washington with the Heat at 37-44 and No. 10 East seeds for a must-win Wednesday play-in game at Chicago. Miami had huge home win Friday, 153-104, over depleted New Orleans, with 10 players in double-figures to tie NBA record. But a road loss to Bulls before that was a critical defeat that has Miami now needing two straight play-in wins to extend its season into the proper playoffs.
3. INTER MIAMI: Messi drives Herons to CCC semis; De Bruyne joining?: King Leo! Lionel Messi magic is still a thing. Miami rallied for a 3-1 win over MLS rival Los Angeles FC on a pair of goals by Messi to reach the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup tournament -- a big deal. Team Messi next faces another MLS squad, Vancouver, April 24 (there) and April 30 (in Fort Lauderdale). Meantime Miami is a still-unbeaten 4-0-2 in MLS as league play resumes Sunday in Chicago. Herons also now own MLS 'discovery rights' to Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne, raising a possibility the Belgian midfield playmaker, 33, could join Messi after the Premier League season ends in late May. De Bruyne already has said he plans to leave Man City.
4. DOLPHINS: TDs and trouble. Tyreek Hill's latest off-field issue: It was the latest domestic violence allegation as the mother of his wife Keeta Vaccaro Hill called police when an agitated Hill reportedly carried their infant child onto their high-rise balcony. No arrest has been involved. The couple is reportedly now headed for divorce. Trade speculation swirls. Two things: 1) Hill's age (31), disappointing 2024 season and the off-field stuff has cratered his trade value; 2) Coach Mike McDaniel and GM Chris Grier need Hill to help save their jobs.
5. PANTHERS: Cats win third straight, seek health as playoffs near: Defending NHL champ Florida has chased a season-long five-game losing streak with three straight wins and is 47-33 as the regular season ends with a home finale Monday vs. the N.Y.Rangers and Tuesday at Tampa Bay. Playoffs begin April 19, with rival Tampa the near-certain first round foe for the Cats. Depleted Panthers hope and expect to have Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett back from injuries and Aaron Ekblad back from his PEDs suspension by the first round.
6. UFC: Volkanovski reigns in UFC 314 in Miami: Miami hosted a UFC numbered event for the third straight year and fourth time overall Saturday at the Heat arena as Alexander Volkanovski beat Diego Lopes by unanimous decision in the main event in UFC 314 to win the featherweight belt for the second time.
7. MARLINS: Miami has lead host-role (again) in 2026 WBC: Marlins Park again will be main host of '26 World Baseball Classic next spring. One of four cities to host pool play, Miami has drawn Dominican Republic, Israel, Netherlands, Nicaragua and Venezuela for 10 games next March 6-11, then will host five elimination games -- including the championship March 17. Miami also hosted previous WBC finale in 2023, Japan beating the U.S., 3-2. Meantime, the low-budget Marlins are off to a (relatively) good start in MLB at 7-7 entering Sunday, after ace Sandy Alcantara (2-0) was not sharp Saturday but won.
8. NHL: Ovechkin passes Gretzky in goals, 'greatest' debate underway: Wayne Gretzky reigned 31 years as the NHL's top career goals scorer until Washington's Alexander Ovechkin surpassed him this week with his 895th in the regular season. But does that mean 'The Great One' is no longer the greatest? Dubious. Debatable. Gretzky continues to comfortably lead in career assists and total points, and also in total goals, because he has 122 in the playoffs to Ovechkin's 72.
9. COLLEGE HOOPS: Florida rides portal to men's crown: A day after Paige Bueckers and UConn made Geno Auriemma national champion for the 12th time but first time since 2016, the Florida Gators proved the power of the transfer portal in a taut 65-63 win over Houston in which the Cougars' botched final play helped gift UF its third crown and first since 2007. Neither men's finalist had a single freshman play, riding with older teams. Gators star Walter Clayton Jr. was among four key transfers under the now fittingly-named coach Todd Golden.
10. WNBA: Champion UConn star Bueckers fronts Draft: WNBA gathers Monday night at The Shed, a New York City cultural center, for its '25 Draft, with a drop in TV ratings foreseen from last year's ballyhooed Caitlin Clark coronation. This time it'll be newly minted UConn champ Paige Bueckers expected to go No. 1 overall followed by three rounds of young women you likely haven't heard of (yet). The Miami Hurricanes could (sort of) see a player drafted late. Guard Ja'Leah Williams was a three-year Canes starter until portal-ing to Louisville for her senior year.
Note: Miami Hurricanes' football Spring Game was Saturday. (Spoiler: Canes won.) This fails to make today's HB10 because Spring Games -- a glorified practice 4 1/2 months before the season -- are among most over-covered things in all of sports.
THE LIST: HISTORY OF UFC FIGHT CARDS IN FLORIDA: UFC numbered fight cards in South Florida, all at what is now Kaseya Center (Miami Heat arena):
Card / Main bout / Date
UFC 314 / Volkanovski vs. Lopes / Apr. 12, 2025
UFC 299 / O'Malley vs. Vera 2 / March 9, 2024
UFC 287 / Peirara vs. Adesanya 2 / Apr. 8, 2023
UFC 42 / Sudden Impact / Apr. 25, 2003
Notes: Jacksonville hosted UFC 249, 261 and 273 from 2020-22. Other (non-numbered) UFC events in South Florida were held in Hollywood in 2006, '07 (2) and 2015; and in Sunrise in 2012 and '19.
Other most recent stuff from me: Miami Dolphins should be fed up with Tyreek Hill, but team is too desperate to trade him // LeBron vs. Michael, now Ovechkin-Gretzky. Our obsession with ranking greatness // Previous HB10 // Poll Dance: College hoops better worse with transfer portal? // Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders will own NFL Draft. But are they franchise QBs? There are doubts // NCAAs crescendo with exciting Final Fours, but college basketball is broken. Let's fix it // To owner Bruce Sherman of low-hope Marlins: Spend more on payroll, or sell team // After Miami Heat's lost season, urgency this summer will be Riley's epitaph to write // Dolphins' 18-month decline, quiet offseason heap pressure on Tua, coach, GM in '25 // Unraveling NFL free agency mysteries: Aaron Rodgers' next team ... and Zach Wilson to Dolphins!? // New Hurricanes coach Jai Lucas' job: Make Miami college hoops matter like never before // A tribute to Miami sports legend Jimmy Johnson as he retires from Fox TV // Must-win MLS season for Messi, Inter Miami a tough climb, as opening 2-2 home draw shows // 15 years later, Dolphins Cancer Challenge is the life-saving legacy of Jim Mandich // Rivalry! Politics! Power shift? NHL is ice on fire with U.S.-Canada in 4 Nations final // Unprofessional Jimmy Butler quit on Heat, ruined his legacy in Miami // Our Top 10 biggest Miami/South Florida sports stories of 2024 // And my latest podcast:
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