A Photo Finish
Posted February 18, 2007, 9:19 PM ET

The sports weekend was captured in a snapshot.

It didn't matter whether you were watching the Daytona 500, college hoops, the PGA Tour, the NBA or even the police blotter. It was an exciting weekend that was filled with great finishes.

The Daytona 500 always seems to produce miraculous storylines and conclusions, and this year was no exception. Even lukewarm NASCAR fans were glued to the fiery end of the Daytona 500. No sport in recent memory started the year with more controversy and fascinating storylines than the '07 Nextel Cup season. Leave it to the Daytona 500 to upstage all the pre-race hype....even though the concert involving American Idol hack Kelly Clarkson was truly pathetic and completely out of place. She was so lame, that I was hoping that Prince might make a surprise guest appearance to save the day and Clarkson from sucking out loud. I love the FOX coverage of NASCAR, but they need to lay off the American Idol cross-promotion.

Kevin Harvick's last-second pass of Mark Martin was mesmerizing. If Martin could have hung on to the last lap lead, it would have made for a great story. The long-time racing veteran from Arkansas has always been respected in the garage and by race fans, and given his racing reputation, a win in the Daytona 500 under these conditions would have been remarkable. The fact that Harvick won by two hundredths of a second was heart-stopping. Directly behind Harvick and Martin were cars on fire, destroyed and Clint Bowyer upside down on his roof....it looked like a Hollywood script for Days of Thunder II.

The only other race that had such a dramatic ending involved the NBA All-Star weekend.....no, I'm not talking about the games or the skills challenge. I was referring to the footrace between Charles Barkley and Dick Bavetta. It was hilarious, and both contestants put on a great show. In the end, Barkley narrowly beat Bavetta....the 67 year-old referee dived at the finish line and Barkley fell over backwards while crossing the finish line first. I couldn't tell if there was more damage to Barkley and Bavetta, or Clint Bowyer's 07 car in Daytona. It was funny stuff, and the Boys and Girls Club of Las Vegas was $50,000 richer in the process due to the efforts of Barkley and Bavetta.

The NBA Saturday Night showcase was entertaining. Normally, I don't care much for the Skills Challenge, 3-Point Shooting or the Slam Dunk competition, but I found myself enjoying the NBA players showcasing their talents. By the way, Michael Jordan deserves a lot of credit for making the biggest comeback of the week.

Last week, the basketball icon was in Chapel Hill for a reunion of the 1982 (and 1957) Tar Heel national championship teams. He was seen in one of the most talked-about outfits in recent memory. This week, in Vegas, Jordan was back to his ultra-cool style, wearing a black leather jacket while judging the Slam Dunk competition....unfortunately, TNT's Craig Sager didn't get the memo and he was wearing something from the Jordan Pimp Collection...so much for the fashion breakdown; now, back to sports.

To my knowledge, nobody made the headlines in Vegas for all the wrong reasons....unfortunately, that can't be said for the guys at the University of South Carolina. Steve Spurrier's big-time recruiting class is highlighted by 5-star quarterback Stephen Garcia. The 19 year-old QB enrolled last month at the Columbia, SC school, and this past weekend he was arrested by local authorities and charged with drunkenness and failure to stop for a police officer......and I thought all the action was going to be in Las Vegas. Hopefully, Garcia gets his act together in time to be a big-time player for Spurrier's Gamecocks.

Congratulations go out to Mike Krzyzewski for winning his 700th game at Duke. The Blue Devils had a good week and seem to be getting their act together at the right time.....Can somebody explain the Virginia Tech Hokies to me? They win at Chapel Hill and complete a sweep of the Tar Heels, and they follow that up by getting blown out in Raleigh and getting swept by the Wolfpack. Speaking of carrying the broom, Sidney Lowe and his Pack head to Chapel Hill on Wednesday and look to sweep Roy's boys....I wonder if Sid wears that neon-red blazer to the Smith Center? OK, I promised, no more fashion statements.