Jimmy Kimmel Loses To Conservative Senator Ted Cruz In Basketball Game
June 17 2018, Updated 10:08 p.m. ET
Liberal Jimmy Kimmel, who delights in trash-talking conservatives, lost a charity basketball game to Republican Texas Senator Ted Cruz on Saturday.
In a bizarre competition between two nerdy guys, Cruz, 47, beat the 50-year-old ABC late-night talk show host, 11-9.
The game, dubbed the Blobfish Basketball Classic, was played in front of a huge crowd at Texas Southern University's Health and Physical Education Arena in Houston.
Deadline reported that Kimmel had said, "The reason this is happening is because after Game 7 of the NBA Western Conference Finals, I likened Sen. Cruz to a blobfish. And he did not like that … so he challenged me to a game of one-on-one. And I accepted."
Kimmel and Cruz had agreed that the loser would donate $5,000 to a charity picked by the winner; but both later agreed to donate $10,000 to both charities.
While Cruz reportedly selected Generation One Texas, an anti-poverty organization, Kimmel chose the Texas Children's Hospital.
It's not the first time Kimmel has seemingly lost to a conservative. He had a high-profile feud with Fox News host Sean Hannity that ended badly for him.
Hannity, 56, had blasted late night TV titan Kimmel after the comedian had made fun of President Donald Trump's wife Melania.
On his ABC show, Kimmel had mimicked the First Lady's foreign accent as she read a book to children for the White House Easter event. He also told his audience there was no way Melania had helped to organize the Easter festivities, as the President had said.
Hannity cried foul, railing against what he felt was Kimmel's offensive and mean-spirited attack on Melania. The Fox News anchor slammed Kimmel on TV, his radio show, and Twitter.
Kimmel finally cried uncle, admitting via Twitter that he was wrong to mock FLOTUS Melania.
In a stunning turnaround, Kimmel wrote on April 8, "Mrs. Trump almost certainly has enough to worry about without being used as a prop to increase TV ratings."
Kimmel added, "I will take Sean Hannity at his word that he was genuinely offended by what I believed and still believe to be a harmless and silly aside referencing our First Lady's accent."
But Kimmel, an avowed liberal, will never stop bashing Republicans and badly wanted to beat Cruz in basketball!
Prior to the game, Kimmel said, "I think this could bring an end to the sport of basketball as we know it. I'm not a basketball player and yet I know deep in my heart I know that I must be able to beat Ted Cruz."
But the funnyman was wrong!
Video from the game is scheduled to air Monday night on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
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