Iguodala returns, Warriors cruise to 104-93 win over Pelicans

Photo Credit: Rocky Widner/NBAE/Getty

By Gabe Schapiro

The Golden State Warriors (14-12) made easy work of the New Orleans Pelicans (11-12), cruising to a 104-93 victory, Tuesday night at Oracle Arena. The final margin of victory doesn’t do justice to a game that Golden State controlled from the tip-off. Andre Igoudala returned to the lineup after missing 12 games with an injury, and Stephen Curry was his usual electric self.

In a pleasant departure from the last several games, the Warriors started the game guns blazing. They hit seven of their first 10 shots, and in general played with a sense of urgency we haven’t been seeing until the second half of games. They held a seven-point first quarter lead, and extended that into an 18-point lead at half time.

They never gave New Orleans even a glimmer of hope. Golden State kept their foot on the gas pedal, opening up a whopping 23-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. From there the Warriors emptied their bench, but the final 11-point win was as close as the Pelicans ever got.

Golden State never trailed in this one, and led for 47 of 48 minutes. They had an uncharacteristically poor game from the three-point line, hitting just five-of-20 from beyond the arc, but that was just about the only negative on a night full of positives.

From start to finish Curry was phenomenal. He finished the game with a double-double, posting a game-high 28 points and 12 assists. For good measure he also had four rebounds and three steals. This marks his 11th consecutive game with 20+ points, the longest active streak in the NBA, and a personal career high.

David Lee had possibly his best game of the season. He was extremely active on both ends of the floor, and produced his almost customary double-double. He finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds.

Bogut finished just two points shy of the teams third double-double on the night. He had eight points and 10 boards.

Iguodala had a quiet night, as he was slowly eased back into game action. He played just 17 minutes, scoring two points and dishing out two assists. As always he was active on the defensive end, and seemed to be moving around well and without pain.

Five New Orleans players finished with double-digit points in the loss. Ryan Anderson led the team with 21 points, and had six rebounds.

Golden State is back in action this Thursday against the always tough San Antonio Spurs. The game begins at 7:30pm, back at Oracle Arena.

Big win for the Sharks in St. Louis

by Jerry Feitelberg

Big Win for the Sharks in St.Louis

The San Jose Sharks skated to a big win in St.Louis Tuesday night. The Sharks have had a rough stretch so far in December having won just two of seven games this month. The Sharks controlled the first period but St. Louis came back and had the momentum on their side late in the second period.

The Sharks knew that St.Louis played tougher in the third period but they played well and were able to score a goal to put them ahead 4-2 and they shut the Blues down the rest of the way. Final score 4-2

in favor of San Jose. The scoring summary follows below.

The Sharks played the final game of the regular season against the St.Louis Blues. The Blues have lost just six times prior to the game today in St. Louis but two of those losses were to the Sharks.

Jaroslav Halal in goal for the Blues while Antti Niemi tended the nets for the Sharks.

Joe Pavelski started the scoring when he put the puck in the net on a rebound with 10:22 left to play in the period. For Pavelski it was his13th goal of the year. Martin Havlat got the only assist on the play. The Sharks took a 2-0 lead when Matt Irwin scored on a rebound with 7:26 left. It was Irwin’s first goal of the year. Braun and Marleau assisted on the play. Irwin drove the net and was in position to bang in the rebound. The Sharks out shot the Blues 10-4 in the period.

Thee Sharks took a 3-0 lead with just two minutes played in the second period. Brent Burns scored his ninth goal of the year. Joe Thornton got the primary assist on the play. It was Joe Thornton’s 700th point as a Shark. Tomas Hertl got the second assist on the play. The Blues scored with 4:29 left. The Sharks

turned the puck over in their end and Kevin Shattenkirk capitalized and scored his fourth goal of the year to make it a 3-1 game. The Blues scored again with just 24 seconds left in the period. Both teams had a man in the penalty box and it was four on four when the goal was scored. The second period belonged to the Blues. 3-2 in favor of the Sharks after two periods of play.

The Sharks came back in the third period to take a 4-2 lead. Martin Havlat scored his third goal of the year with help from Justin Braun and Patrick Marleau. The score came at the 8:19 mark of the period.

The Blues tried to come back but the Sharks would not let them score. The Blues had a man advantage

with 2:01 left. It was six on four but the Sharks held them off for the win.

Final score Sharks win 4-2.

Notes- The Sharks have won all three games played against the Blues this year. They will not play again unless they meet in the playoff. The win was the 21st of the year. Their record for the year is 21-7-6 for a total of 48 points. After the game, Coach Todd McLellan said “ a win’s a win. I haven’t seen anybody play a perfect game this year no matter how many we watch. We did let the momentum get away on us,but we needed to take advantage of a team that was tired and beat up. And we did that.”

The Sharks finish the three game road trip Thursday in Los Angeles.

Bobcats dethrone Kings, 95-87

By George Devine, Sr.

A visit to Charlotte proved devastating to the Kings, who lost to the Bobcats, 95-87. The home team led in all quarters excepting the second, when each team scored 21. The game ended a three-game losing streak for Charlotte.

For the Bobcats, Kemba Walker led the scoring with 24 points and Gerald Henderson had 20. Ramon Sessions had 16 and Al Jefferson 10. Sessions was 10 for 17 from the three-point line. For Walker this was the tenth game with ten or more points; he also had 5 assists.

New acquisition Rudy Gay had only 4 points for the Kings, playing only 24 minutes. DeMarcus Cousins had 30 points and 17 rebounds. Isaiah Thomas had 21 points.

A Night of Records as Stanford Stomps Lobos

stanford womens bb

By: Joe Lami

The Stanford Cardinal hosted the New Mexico Lobos on Monday in their final tune-up before the big matchup this Saturday, where the number six-ranked team hosts the third ranked Lady Vols.  They defeated the Lobos by the final score of 75-41, to move their record to 9-1.  The team has also won the last 8 in a row.  For the Lobos, they saw their two-game winning streak snapped and their record falls to 4-5 in the process.

The night for Stanford started great for Chiney Ogwumike, who recorded her 2,000th career point just minutes into a first half that she will never forget.  The Stanford All-American Senior recorded 24 of the team’s 40 first half points.

“She’s such an anchor for us” raved VanDerveer on Ogwumike’s performance.

Ogwumike eventually would slow down the production as she finished off her night with eight in the second half ending with 32 points, only four shy of tying her career high, which is set earlier this season against Cal Poly.

The team production was something to be impressed about, as eight different players got on the scoreboard.  The bench scored 32 points of their own. Bonnie Samuelson and Taylor Greenfield led the bench with eight each.  Alex Green and Erica McCall were right behind them with six.  McCall also added eight rebounds, tying her career high, which she set against Purdue in November.  Though Mikaela Ruef only scored two points, she was outstanding on the boards, leading the team with ten.

“Mikaela got it done on the boards”praised VanDerveer on Ruef on her performance.

New Mexico was led by Guard, Bryce Owens, who scored 12 points.  She was the only Lobo to get into double-digits.  Brooke Allemand came off of the bench to add eight points. She was also great on the defensive side of the ball, with her only steal being a memorable one as she anticipated a pass, jumped in front of it and it led to a lay-up.

Lobos coach Yvonne Sanchez stated “it was an opportunity for us to go and play a great team” in her chance to go up against the sixth-ranked team.

The only down side for the Cardinal was that they once again gave up way too many offensive rebounds, with 20.  “We have to do a lot better job of keeping teams off of the glass offensively, but that will give us something to work on between now and when we play Tennessee” said VanDerveer.  The Lobos, who are ranked second in the Mountain West in rebound differential, did a great job against the Cardinal as they were out-rebounded by only two.  The Cardinal won the rebound battle 43-41, however lost the offensive rebound battle 20-12.

The win for the Cardinal also marks the 750th win for VanDerveer as Stanford’s head coach.

The Stanford Cardinal have the rest of the week to prepare for what will be their toughest challenge at home yet, in number three ranked Tennessee.  New Mexico will take a break for Christmas holiday and will return to the court on December 28th.

 

Ball bounces 49ers way in 33-14 win over Tampa Bay

Image

By Morris Phillips

It’s the one thing million of fans, 106 football players and 48 coaches gathered and paired on any given Sunday can’t control.  Given the effort, passion and countless film study that goes into a NFL game, it’s confounding and frustrating to all involved.  And while you may get used to it, it doesn’t get any easier to endure.

Yes, it’s the unsolvable mystery of the bouncing football. On Sunday in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, the football took a cruel bounce on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Bucs suffered through a rough first half in which the defending NFC champs controlled the football and the scoreboard, leading 17-7 at the break.  But with a much better third quarter, Tampa Bay trailed just 20-14 after Mike Glennon connected with receiver Tim Wright on the first play of the fourth quarter.

But instead of continuing their surge, the Buccaneers collapsed while the 49ers and the mysterious bouncing ball took over.  Incredibly, Tampa Bay would have the ball for just 105 seconds in the fourth quarter and go on to fall to San Francisco, 33-14.

The 49ers continued their march to the playoffs, winning their fourth straight and improving to 10-4 with two games remaining.  The Bucs failed to continue their late season surge—they had won four of five after opening the season with eight straight losses—and fell to 4-10.

But back to the critical play; the Bucs trailed 23-14 after the 49ers responded to Tampa Bay’s surge with a 17-play drive and a Phil Dawson field goal that gave them a two-score margin once again.  That meant the Bucs needed a big play to regain momentum.  So Head Coach Greg Schiano dialed up the reverse on the ensuing kickoff, but watched it go horribly wrong.

“We were going to run a reverse if the opportunity presented itself in the right way,” Schiano recounted.  “It didn’t, yet we still ran it.  We made a mistake.”

“I don’t think anyone planned for it to go that way… that wasn’t the way it was supposed to work out,” Eric Page—who handles both punt and kickoff return duties for Tampa Bay—said.  “It was going smooth in practice, and we knew it was going to be open.  When I looked back, I thought he had the ball… then I saw him fall.”

“Him” was rookie Russell Shepard, who took the handoff from Page, going left to right.  While the play may have worked in practice, in the game, 49er Kendall Hunter had it sniffed out and was in perfect position to tackle Shepard after only a few strides.  Shepard—without having a chance to completely secure the ball—tried to make a big step in attempt to elude Hunter.  But he plant foot slid, and suddenly he was on his way down, face first.  That’s when the football, operating with a mind of its own, popped up directly into Hunter’s hands.  The 49ers’ backup running back then saw his momentum take him and the ball into the end zone for the back breaking score.

Shepard, who was waived by the Eagles at the end of the pre-season, then picked up by Tampa Bay, where he’s stuck for the entire season, became the goat.  But afterwards, he wasn’t shirking responsibility or placing blame on the power of the randomly bouncing football.

“I’ve got to secure it,” Shepard said.  “I have to be able to secure the ball.  Unfortunately, at a tight point in the game, it happened.  I have to give our offense an opportunity to come out and have a game-winning drive.”

Colin Kaepernick continued his strong play since the return of Michael Crabtree with a 19 for 29 performance, 203 yards and touchdown passes to Crabtree and Vernon Davis.  Repeatedly in the first half, Kaepernick dropped back to pass, but used his legs and strong arm to make plays.  First, Kap scrambled and threw for a 17-yard pass play to Crabtree that picked up a first down along the sideline.  Then another scramble bought time and Kaepernick found Crabtree for a 4-yard touchdown that put the 49ers up 7-0.  Later in the half, the third-year signal caller showed off his arm on a 52-yard pass and score to Davis.

“It was a heck of a throw,” Coach Jim Harbaugh said of the big pass play.  “We had really good protection on the play, but the way Vernon extended and ran that ball down, I mean it looked like Willie Mays running down a long fly ball to center field.”

Glennon didn’t have much early success and didn’t get hardly any touches in the fourth quarter.  In between, he was passable, finishing 18 for 34 for 179 yards.  But Glennon felt the pressure from the 49ers’ front four, getting sacked four times.  The Bucs’ run game didn’t provide much support either; two backs combined for just 39 yards rushing on 12 carries.

Former 49er Dashon Goldson got an opportunity to face his team of the previous six seasons but didn’t have much of an impact.  Goldson was in on five tackles, but didn’t have any of his signature run support plays against Frank Gore, who finished with 86 yards rushing on 22 carries.

Gore went over 1,000 yards rushing on the season with the performance, the seventh time he’s reached that milestone in his nine-year career.  Gore joins an elite list of 20 littered with Hall of Famers who also achieved seven 1,000-yard seasons.  The incredibly durable back also made his 42nd consecutive start against Tampa Bay, the longest such current streak in the NFL.

Davis’ touchdown catch was the 52nd of his career, and he became the first tight end in NFL history to register two, 12 touchdown-catch seasons.  Davis also made a touchdown catch for the fifth consecutive week even as the ending—into the wall at the rear of the end zone—wasn’t much fun.

“I didn’t know their wall was right there,” Davis said.  “As soon as I looked up, the wall was right there.  It just knocked the wind out of me a little bit.”

The 49ers return home for the season finale and possible final 49ers’ game at Candlestick Park on Monday night, December 23.  After that, the 49ers conclude their regular season in Glendale against the Cardinals on the following Sunday.

 

Larry Leavitt on Pro Hockey

by Larry Levitt

DALY CITY–The San Francisco Bulls last Friday night took the lead early 1-0 lead against the Ontario Reign and in that first period they played pretty good hockey. The advantage the Bulls had was the Ontario goalie was the back up to the back up so San Francisco could have really taken advantage of the situation. The Bulls ran into big problems on the power play they went 0-8.

In the second period when the Bulls got into penalty trouble the Reign scored all three of their goals on the power play. So they couldn’t capitalize on the power play and they couldn’t hold the penalty kill and keep the game close and that was the tale of the two cities right there.

The Bulls have a lot of fire power on this club right now and if they can really get going they’d be fine and the biggest problem is that their shooting wide at the net and not getting the breaks. On Friday night the power play was very tough getting them set up and they finally got set up in three or four passes instead of shooting the pass would get interupted and they would have to go back and start all over again. The Bulls who went 0-8 on the power play you have to say there’s a problem there and you got focus on that and get that fixed.

On Saturday night the Bulls won it against Stockton and on Friday they lost to Ontario, on Friday night the difference of the two games was Ontario is a pretty well rounded team other than the back up goalie they pretty much played the puck pretty well. Saturday night against the Stockton Thunder was a great comeback game for the Bulls and that come back should give them a lot of confidence.

The Bulls were behind quite a bit for a large part of the game and they were playing from behind and they really rallied to win. At one point near the end of the game they actually took the lead only to give up the tying goal with 2:30 left and it forced overtime and then the shootout and of course the Bulls won it in the skills competition.

San Jose Sharks update: The Sharks who have lost five of their last six games are not panicking and there are no plans to make changes on the team. They’ve just hit a bump in the road no team in the NHL is going to play 100 percent all of the time. No team will be able to walk through any NHL team.

The Sharks know they have problems, they know they have to regroup and look at their system, they know they have to work on the work ethic but it’s not going on the ice and planning to lay an egg. The game in Nashville they had a very slow start on Saturday night and the Sharks were not playing to their speed.

Nashville is a slow methodical defense team they don’t give you a lot of time and a lot of space the Preds lock you down and don’t allow you to do much. They don’t have one player per say who rules the ice. This game was sure to be a tight battle and sure enough it was and it ended up being 3-2 Nashville.

The Sharks tried to come back at the end but they did make a game of it. The Sharks now move onto St.Louis and Los Angeles two tough contenders.

Larry Levitt does Pro Hockey commentary on the Sharks and the Bulls each week for Sportstalk radio

Kings Handle Houston 106-91

Image

By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings took the floor on Sunday against the Houston Rockets and looked like an entirely different team than the one that lost to Phoenix on Friday. They moved the ball on offense, blocked shots, made steals and played solid defense. The Kings beat the Rockets 106-91 because they played like a different team.

The game came down to the fact that Sacramento’s big three – Cousins, Gay and Thomas outplayed Houston’s big three of Howard, Harden and Parsons. The Kings big three outscored the Rockets big three 66-57.

Rudy Gay had a big game in his Sacramento home court debut. He scored 26 points (14 in the first quarter), shot 50.0% (10-20) from the floor, pulled down 5 rebounds, added four assists, made four steals and had one blocked shot. Yes, Rudy Gay is a difference maker for this Kings team.

DeMarcus Cousins posted a double-double, 21 points and 10 rebounds, despite not scoring his first points until 6:01 in the second quarter. Isaiah Thomas scored 19 points, had eight assists and made two steals in his 41 minutes on the floor.

Dwight Howard scored 13 points for the Rockets. He really hurt his team at the free throw line where shot 5 for 13. “Hack-a-Howard” looks like a solid defensive plan.

Harden put up 25 points and was 3 for 9 from 3-point land. Chandler Parsons recorded 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 40 minutes of playing time.

The Rockets jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first quarter. It looked like Houston might make it an early runaway. Then, Rudy Gay made a steal and a score that led the Kings on a 6-0 run. Gay, in his home debut, kept the Kings in the game with 14 first quarter points. Sacramento needed that from Gay as Cousins was held scoreless in the first period. At the end of one, the game was tied at 28 all.

The second quarter started off with the teams trading easy baskets. Derrick Williams led the Kings early in period and ended the first half with nine points. Isaiah Thomas hit a 3-pointer and was fouled. He hit the free throw for the rare 4-point play. Cousins scored his first points with 6:01 left in the half on a breakaway dunk. Sacramento opened up a 48-38 lead. The Kings also helped themselves from the free throw line. The Kings shot 16 for 19 (84.2%) from the line while Houston went just 10 for 20 (50.0%) from the stripe. Dwight Howard went 3 for 8 for free throws.

At the half, the Kings led the Rockets 57-49. Sacramento held Houston to just 21 points in the second quarter.

James Harden opened up the third quarter with a long 3-pointer. The Kings answered with an “alley oop” from Isaiah Thomas to Rudy Gay. At 10:54, Harden rolled his ankle while driving the lane. He shot two free throws one footed and left the game. The Rockets responded by stepping up their game and cut the Kings lead to one, 61-60. The Kings woke up and started scoring. Dwight Howard continued to kill his team from the charity stripe. Sacramento made steals, blocked shots and make baskets that allowed them to open up a 10 point lead. Harden returned at 5:26 but was obviously not at 100%. The third quarter ended with the Kings leading 81-71.

The Rockets made a mini run to open the fourth quarter cutting the Kings lead to 81-75. Howard continued to shoot poorly from the free throw line. The Kings settled down and opened up a 91-78 lead. Cousins, Thompson and Gay continued to break down the Houston defense and score baskets down low. The Rockets started looking tired, Harden was quiet and the Kings opened up a lead that they would never relinquish. Sacramento won the game 106-91.

After the game, Kings Head Coach Michael Malone said, “I felt better about the defense. We must have had a great film session.” Malone felt his team was ready to play.

Malone also stated, “I want DeMarcus (Cousins) or Rudy (Gay) on the floor at all times. Rudy makes us tougher to guard.”

With his team facing four games in five days on the road, Malone is hoping that the tough road trip will help his team build chemistry.

Note: Quincy Acy saw his first playing time as King versus the Rockets. He played 12 minutes, scored four points, had three rebounds and blocked one shot. Aaron Gray did not play on Sunday, but Malone indicated that Gray would see action on the road trip.

 

 

Smith and Charles combine for huge day

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND-Even though Alex Smith never played a regular season game at the Oakland Coliseum before Sunday, he definitely owned the place on this afternoon.

Smith went 17-for-20 with 287 yards passing and five touchdown passes, as the Kansas City Chiefs simply throttled the Oakland Raiders 56-31 at the Oakland Coliseum.

Besides the five touchdown passes, Smith also ended the game with a passer rating of 158.3, a perfect rating and is the second opposing quarterback to end the game with a perfect rating against the Raiders this season.

Nick Foles of the Philadelphia Eagles turned the trick on November 3, as he also threw seven touchdown passes against the Raiders in a 49-20 Eagles victory.

The Raiders are the first team in NFL history receiving end of a perfect passer rating twice in the same season.

Things began to look bleak on the first play from scrimmage, as Smith found Jamaal Charles on a screen play and the running back raced 49 yards into the end zone to give the Chiefs a 7-0 just 22 seconds into the game.

From then on, it would turn out to be a huge day for the talented running back out of the University of Texas.

Charles caught passes eight passes for 195 yards and four touchdowns, and added eight carries for 20 yards and a rushing touchdown to end the afternoon with a team-record tying five touchdowns.

Abner Haynes scored five five touchdowns against the Raiders in 1961, when the Chiefs were not even the Chiefs, as they were in their second of three seasons as the Dallas Texans.

The 56 points scored by the Chiefs are the most ever allowed by a Raiders team in a game since the founding of the team in 1960.

It breaks the record of 55 that was set just last season, when the eventual Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens accomplished the feat.

Following a Sebastian Janikowski field goal, the duo of Smith and Charles was at it again, as Smith found Charles for a 39-yard touchdown to increase their lead up to 14-3 with under eight minutes remaining in the first quarter.

Eric Berry then intercepted a pass to make it 21-3, as he took a Matt McGloin pass 47 yards into the end zone.

On the ensuing Raiders drive, Rashad Jennings scored from one yard out to cut the lead down to 11 points.

McGloin fumbled the ball on his own 11-yard line, and it was recovered by Chiefs defensive lineman Tamba Hali.

After the fumble, Charles then caught his third touchdown of the first half, as he took a handoff from Smith and went into the end zone from one yard out to increase their up to 28-10.

Berry then ended Raiders next drive again, as he picked off his second pass of the half and returned it 49 yards to the Raiders 31-yard line.

Charles then scored his fourth touchdown in the first half, and his third receiving touchdown, as he took a Smith 16 yards to the end zone.

Jennings then made it 35-17, as he scored his second touchdown of the afternoon on a one-yard touchdown run.

After the half, the Raiders drove the right down and scored, as McGloin found Andre Holmes in the end zone for a six-yard touchdown pass.

The Chiefs then went three-and-out, and then McGloin did it again, finding Mychal Rivera for a 14-yard touchdown pass to narrow the Chiefs down to just four points.

Unfortunately, the Chiefs would have none of that, as Smith hooked up with Charles again, as Charles went 71 yards to the end zone much to the dismay of the Raiders sitting in “The Black Hole.”

Taiwan Jones then fumbled the ball on the ensuing kickoff, and it was recovered by Husain Abdullah at the Raiders’ 29-yard line.

Smith then threw his fifth touchdown pass of the afternoon, a six-yard pass to Sean McGrath to increase the Chiefs up to 49-31.

After three straight possessions that ended in turnovers by each team, Knile Davis put an end to scoring, as he went over left tackle from 17 yards out.

When the day was over the Raiders committed seven turnovers, their most in a game since also committing seven turnovers against the Miami Dolphins in 1998.

McGloin ended the day going 18-for-36 for 297 yards passing with a touchdown and four interceptions.

Terrelle Pryor threw one completion in four attempts for 12 yards and an interception.

After 53 years Cuba rejoining the Carribean series

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

The Elefantes del Cienfuegos ( Cienfuegos Elephants)in 1960-61 were the last Cuban champions to play in the Caribbean Series in 1960.

Since the first Caribbean Series, which took place in Cuba in 1949, Cuba was the team to beat and won the Series, 7 to 4 for Puerto Rico and one for Panamá . As a matter of fact Cuba they won the last five Caribbean Series in which they participated.

Cuba was undefeated in the 1960 Caribbean Series, which took place February 10 to 15, in Panamá . Their manager was Tony Castaño .

Earlier that year in Cuba, Castro’s communist system has been established, and that would be the last Caribbean Series for Cuba, as Castro banned all professional sports in the country.

The champion Cienfuegos team of Cuba was a powerhouse and they won it in undefeated fashion. Cuba’s Cienfuegos team beat twice each of their rivals: Puerto Rico, Panamá and Venezuela.
Rosters of the teams that participated in that last Caribbean Series in 1960 in which Cuba won for the last time. If you are a real baseball fan for the ages, you will surely recognize some of the names. Until 1960 Cuba was “the place”for American players to play in the winter, not only because Cuba’s proximity to the US,(90 miles)but because it was the best caliber of baseball and the best pay in the Caribbean.

CIENFUEGOS (CUBA):
MANAGER:
Tony Castaño .
PITCHERS
Camilo Pascual (15-5), Pedro Ramos (12-5), Raúl Sánchez (12-4), Ted Wieand
(4-4), Tony Díaz (3-1), Héctor Maestri (1-0), Pedro Carrillo (1-1), Walter
Craddock (0-1), Dagoberto Concepción (0-0), Roberto Tano , quien también
jugó en los jardines (0-0). Orlando Peña (10-9).
CATCHERS
Dutch Dotterer (.212), José Azcue (.264), Rafael “Son” Noble (.222),
Arturo Suárez (.333).
INFIELDERS:
George Altman, 1B (.251,14,32), Ossie Álvarez , 2B (.260), Octavio “Cookie”
Rojas, 2B (.204), Don Eaddy , 3B (.256), Leonardo Cárdenas , SS
(.279,11,34), Hiraldo (Chico Ruiz) Sablón (.214).
OUTFIELDERS
Román Mejías (.281,5,28), Tony ” Haitiano ” González (.310,10,35), Rogelio
” Borrego ” Álvarez (.248,12,36), Dan Dobbeck (.236), Ultus Álvarez (.208),
Roberto Tano (.214).
Del grupo no fueron Arturo Suárez , Ted Wieand y Walter Craddock . Orlando
Peña asistió como refuerzo .
CAGUAS ( PUERTO RICO):
MANAGER:
Victor Pellot Power.
PITCHERS
Juan ‘Term ” Pizarro, Earl Wilson, George Brunei, José ” Pantalones ”
Santiago, Julio Navarro, Bob Guigie , Ray Ripplemayer .
CATCHERS
Hector Valle, Frank Rivera.
INFIELDERS
Victor Pellot Power (1B), José Pagan (2B), Elwood Huycke (3B), Félix
Torres (SS).
OUTFIELDERS
Orlando Cepeda ( también jugo primera ), José García , Félix Mantilla, Tommy
Davis, Herminio Cortez , Herman Davis. Igualmente figuraron Roberto Vásquez ,
Luis De León , George Figueroa, Genito Toman .
MARLBORO (PANAMA):
MANAGER:
Welmer Shantz .
PITCHERS
Bob Milo, William Kirk, Humberto Robinson, Robert Waltz, Stan Pitula ,
Leonardo Martinez Ferguson, Julio Borbón , José Lisondro , Vibert Clarke, Ken
Rowe.
CATCHERS
Welmer Shantz , Marcos Cobos , Abdiel Flyn .
INFIELDERS:
Jim Gentile (1B), Elias Osorio (1B), Pablo Bernard (2B), Héctor López
(3B), Lee Tate (SS), Alonso Brathwaite , Eugenio Houradou and rookie Ruthford
“Chico” Salmón .
OUTFIELDERS:
Stan Palys ( also played first base ), Henry Mitchell, Bob Perry, Eddie
Napoleón , Joe Caffie . Jim Gentile was injured with club, but did not play)
RAPIÑOS (VENEZUELA):
MANAGER:
Lester Moss.
PITCHERS:
Ed Hobough , Billy Muffet , Marcelino Sanchez, Rafael Melendez, Marcos
Barboza , Ted Bowfield , Ramon Castellanos , Julian Ladera .
CATCHERS
Lester Pedden , Lester Moss.
INFIELDERS:
Cedlio Prieto (1B), Bob Aspromonte (2B), Luis ” Camaleón ” García (3B), Luis
Aparicio (SS), Luis Añez .
OUTFIELDERS
Willie Davis, Stan Miley , Al Grunwald , Pastor Romero, Roberto Zambrano ,
Johnny Callison , Johnny Davis y Norman Cash. Los tres últimos no viajaron ,
también jugaron Teolindo Acosta, Alejandro Vargas y Gilberto Valbuena .
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
BATTING
Tommy Davis, Puerto Rico (.409).
RUNS BATTED IN: Stan Palys , Panamá (12).
HOME RUNS
Héctor López , Panamá , Tommy Davis, Puerto Rico y Félix Torres, Puerto Rico
(3).
Rogelio ” Borrego ” Álvarez , Cuba, Dan Dubbeck , Cuba y Stan Palys , Panamá (2)

One Homerun each:
Les Padden , Venezuela, Bob Perry, Panamá , Elwood Huycke , Puerto Rico, Joe
Caffie , Panamá , Willie Davis, Venezuela, Eddie Napoleón , Panamá , Elias
Osorio , Panamá , Luis Aparicio , Venezuela, Al Grenwald , Venezuela, Frank Rivera,
Puerto Rico, Octavio “Cookie” Rojas, Cuba and José Pagan, Puerto Rico.
PITCHING
Camilo Pascual , Cuba, (2-0)
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Camilo Pascual , Cuba.
NOTE: George Altman of Cuba and Eddie Napoleón of Panamá had beter batting average than Tommy Davis of Puerto Rico with .438, but they did not have enough at bats.

Can you highlight how many players and managers above were in the show after Cuba?

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Museum and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk Radio

Stanford Continues Dominance of Davis in 83-56 Win as Huestis Moves Up Cardinal All-time Blocks List

By Matthew Harrington

Stanford continued its dominance over UC Davis Saturday night at Maples Pavilion, with the Cardinal (7-2) crushing the visiting Aggies 83-56. The victory stands as Stanford’s 17th triumph against Davis (3-8), while the Aggies’ lone victory in the series came in December of 2005.

Stanford forward Dwight Powell registered a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 10 rebounds while guard Chasson Randle netted a game-high 16 points, all but one of them coming on his five three-pointers. The Cardinal nailed 31 of 53 field-goal attempts, including 11 shots from beyond the arc. Forward Georgi Funtarov led the Aggies on the stat sheet, dropping 13 points for an otherwise offensively-stymied UC Davis squad. In total, the visitors connect on only 20 of 58 field goal tries.

Forward Josh Huestis had 15 points on the night and swatted away four Aggies shots to continue his climb up the Cardinal all-time blocks list. The four rejections places the senior from Great Galls, MT into a tie for third-best alongside Curtis Borchardt who ended his Stanford career with 146 denials.

With UC Davis trailing 8-0 four minutes in to the game, Darius Green made the first Aggie basket, a three-pointer to cut the Cardinal advantage to five points. Corey Hawkins would add the only other two points Davis would score in the next eight minutes of play, as Stanford went on a run to expand its lead to a commanding 22-5 edge. By the half the hosts held a 40-23 lead and did not let up. The closest Davis came to catching up with Stanford came 2:30 into the half after a Hawkins trey trimmed the Cardinal lead to a 16-point, 46-28 margin. That would be the closest they got as Stanford coasted to its second-straight victory.

The Cardinal next travels to Hartford to take on perennial power Connecticut in a Wednesday night tilt that will air on ESPN2. Following the contest, Stanford will travel to Brooklyn for a Saturday marquee match-up against Michigan, the team that nearly upset top-ranked Arizona Saturday afternoon, in the Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports 1.