Sports Weekend Preview

This is weird. No NBA playoffs to watch. No NHL playoffs to watch. We’re going to have to get a little creative here.

The NBA Finals don’t begin until Thursday. The Stanley Cup finals begin Monday. So we’re on our own as we put together the Six-Pack. Hey, we can try new and different stuff!

The Indianapolis 500 is a staple of Memorial Day weekend and we don’t recommend many IndyCar races, but this is the biggie. Weather could be a factor in the Midwest, but the plan right now is to watch the best of open-wheel racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday at noon ET on ABC. Alexander Rossi won last year as a rookie and he’s back to try for two in a row.

Once we leave the Brickyard, we’ll switch over to NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This is the longest of NASCAR’s races. Fox has this one at 6 p.m. Keep an eye on Kyle Busch. He won last weekend’s All-Star event in Charlotte but it carried no Monster Cup Series points; he’s 0 for 26 at Charlotte in points events.

We’ll keep you busy Saturday with the NCAA men’s lacrosse Final Four on ESPN2. No. 3 Ohio State meets Towson at noon, followed by No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 5 Denver at 2:30 p.m. The championship game is Monday at 1 p.m., also on the deuce. On the women’s side, Friday’s semifinals feature No. 1 Maryland vs. No. 4 Penn State at 5 p.m. on ESPN3, followed by Boston College-Navy at 7:30 p.m., same station. The championship game is Sunday at 11 a.m., same TV info.

Tennis’ second major championship is also upon us. You’ll have to get up pretty early on Sunday morning to see opening matches in the French Open at Roland Garros. No Roger Federer (opted out) on the men’s side, no Serena Williams (pregnant) on the women’s side. Sorry. Sunday morning, 5 a.m., NBC.

While you enjoy feasts visual and gustatory, please remember why we have a Memorial Day. Freedom isn’t free. A great many people paid a high price for that freedom.  
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman