Jerry Micco's Sports Chat Transcript: 3.16.11

The University of Denver women’s lacrosse team dispatched the Pac-12 champions in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday. Next up? A shot at revenge for the end to last year’s historic season. The Pioneers held off Stanford 13-12 in a see-saw affair at Martin Stadium in Evanston, Ill., setting up DU to face top-seeded Northwestern in Sunday’s second round.

Broncos first-round quarterback Bo Nix signed his first NFL contract on Friday, the team announced. Nix, the 12th overall pick in last month’s draft, has a four-year deal worth a fully guaranteed $18.61 million and comes with a $10.36 million signing bonus, multiple sources confirmed to The Denver Post. Like all first-round picks, Nix’s contract has an option for a fifth year. Rookie contracts don’t involve the kind of negotiating that went on before the 2011 collective bargaining agreement instituted a rookie wage scale.

MINNEAPOLIS — Monte Morris would be lying if he claimed this very situation wasn’t one of the first hypotheticals that occurred to him after the trade. “I thought about it,” he admitted as his Minnesota Timberwolves were preparing to face the Nuggets in the playoffs. “I’m like, ‘That’ll be a great story.'” Matching up against his former team in the playoffs was an impossibility at the halfway point of this season, when Morris was playing for the lottery-bound Detroit Pistons.

DALLAS – Peter DeBoer called out some of his top players after Game 1 of this series. It was Jared Bednar’s turn after Game 2. Bednar was quite unhappy with how the second period played out Thursday night at American Airlines Center. The Dallas Stars stretched their lead from one goal to four, and the Avalanche did plenty to help them out. Colorado’s coach was also not happy with how his top line was playing.

With rookie minicamp set to take place this weekend, the Broncos announced the signing of 13 college free agents on Friday. Denver’s undrafted free-agent class consist of running back Blake Watson (Memphis), edge rusher Jaylon Allen (Memphis), tight end Thomas Yassmin (Utah), inside linebacker Alec Mock (Air Force), defensive tackle Jordan Miller (SMU), wide receiver Lincoln Victor (Washington State), safety Cam Allen (Purdue), inside linebacker Levelle Bailey (Fresno State), offensive lineman Frank Crum (Wyoming), defensive tackle Brandon Matterson (UTSA), punter Nik Constantinou (Texas A&M) and safety Omar Brown (Nebraska). Undrafted free agent and cornerback Quinton Newsome is in Denver but hasn’t signed yet, a source told The Denver Post.

Gabe Landeskog has been joining his Colorado Avalanche teammates on the ice with more regularity in a tracksuit as the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs have progressed. But it doesn’t sound like he’ll be out there in full gear in the immediate future. Friday is the one-year anniversary of Landeskog’s cartilage transplant surgery in his right knee.