Month: November 2014

Thats Amaury’s News and Commentary: Why Subban S.I. cover was blown out stateside by non hockey fans

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by Ivan Markarov

SAN JOSE–The lack of demographic interest by hockey fans in the U.S. forced Sports Illustrated to drop it’s cover of the Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban. SI is going with a football cover instead of the Subban cover for the U.S. market. It’s not surprising and we’ve seen similar patterns that took place in the past where the Chicago Blackhawks would win the Stanley Cup and they would have a hockey magazine from SI for Chicago only and something else for the rest of the country.

This happens in most U.S. markets and hockey might not be here at the right time right now, it’s December and November and this is the sort of thing that just doesn’t get front page coverage in most non traditional hockey markets which also includes San Jose. For some hockey fans in the U.S. the hockey season doesn’t start until it’s the playoffs in April there’s no surprise there.

From a hockey fans prospective you want the cover to be presented and to be more visable here and you want it to be the talk of the town. It goes both ways he’s a hero now but we’ve all heard plenty of stories of hockey players who want to escape hockey obscurity here in the States especially in the smaller markets.

There’s plenty of attention in the bigger markets in the east coast where hockey is popular and hockey is a geographical sport here in the states there’s a large market out in the east coast out in New York, Boston, Detroit, and Philadelphia.

There’s also Minnesota where there’s a strong fan base but once you enter middle America where you enter Ohio where there’s a hockey team the Columbus Blue Jackets and some other states hockey is not big there. We can see it from games that are broadcast in Arizona and some of these less popular markets.

The arenas are not selling out and there is not as much interest there as there is in football, baseball and basketball. It’s popular in California and it’s an exception even in the Bay Area and in Anaheim the Sharks and Ducks they get some crowds often. These teams however don’t get talked about until it’s time for the playoffs.

Hockey in the states definitely takes a back seat to football, baseball and basketball with the exception of San Jose where hockey is very popular with the only pro team in Northern California here. Other than that it’s a very much geographical sport, SI has to sell magazines so they have to focus on other things.

Ivan Markarov is filling in for Amaury Pi Gonzalez who is taking the week off and Ivan is a beat writer for Sharks hockey for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

March Madness returns to Sac in 2017

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march madness

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Five months after the new Sacramento Entertainment and Sports Center opens, the first and second rounds of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament – aka March Madness – will be held in Sacramento. The last time the tournament visited Sacramento was in 2007.

“Today’s announcement marks another significant moment in our effort to make Sacramento a global destination for sports, civic and entertainment events,” said Sacramento Kings Owner Vivek Ranadivé. “In the past, the NCAA determined Sacramento was not equipped for a tournament, but today we know that March Madness will thrive in our city. I can promise you that in 2017, March Madness fans will experience something totally unique and exciting in Sacramento.”

The games will held on March 17 and 19, 2017. The tournament is expected to bring a minimum of $4 million in spending to the city and surrounding areas.

“Being selected to host the NCAA Basketball Tournament is a testament to all the hard work of our city and region,” said Sacramento Sports Commission Director Mike Sophia. “NCAA officials, student-athletes and fans from across the country will enjoy an unparalleled experience at the new world-class arena and will witness our vibrant city at its best.”

Sacramento State will be the host university for event. The opportunity to host the prestigious tournament will also be a benefit to the school.

For the City of Sacramento, securing the tournament is confirmation that “if you build it (the arena), they will come.”

NCAA Commentary: Look for Brown, Nastic, and Randle to light it up this year on the farm

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by Jeremy Harness

PALO ALTO CA–Stanford Men’s (2-0) head coach Johnny Dawkins came up under Duke University head coach Mike Kryzewski and Dawkins has the same expectations that Kryzewski has for his team that he had at Duke. He’s been trying to build a winner at Stanford and some years have been more successful than others.

Even though they were able to make it to the lead eight where they eventually fell to Dayton, more often than not year after year they fell off into the middle of the pack and never really make any noise and at this point you have to wonder when this team is going to finally break out. Hopefully we’ve seen a little bit of that based on what we’ve seen from the NCAA Tournament.

When you look at it it was really a surprise even going into the basketball tournament they were still middle of the road so nothing had really changed from that point in time. They somehow got into the NCAA tournament and got hot. The Cardinal won their first two games of the season and their expected to win those games.

Anytime your a Pac 12 team your expected to take care of business with those mid major teams and actually lower than that. Their first semi-test will be this coming Friday in Brooklyn vs. UNLV. From that point the next real test after that is next month in December when they go to Texas on the 23rd.

At that time we’ll see what kind of team that the Cardinal really are, they don’t really have the strengthened schedule they’ve had in the past few years. They played UConn and Syracuse and those types of teams you don’t really see that other than the Texas game. The Cardinal went to the NCAA Tournament and made it to the second round.

Anytime you face a 2-0 team they have a winning streak going on there’s something that goes along with it. The feeling of winning the conference is great and this is a tournament that you have to be prepared for. Thankfully for Stanford they have enough returning players where they should be equipped to deal with that.

Some of the key Stanford players thus far are Stefan Nastic who is a classic post up center he has a lot of skills and has great passing skills, guard Chasson Randle can get really hot he’s a scoring machine, he can go for 20 and there was a game in the NCAA Pac 12 Tournament a couple years ago against Arizona State where he scored in the 37-40 point range. Anthony Brown is a much improved player at the guard-forward position, he’s got long arms and he makes a lot of noise on defense he a great player and he’s an up and comer.

Jeremy Harness is filling in for Michelle Richardson for the NCAA commentary and covers Stanford basketball on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford Ends Connecticut’s 47-Game Winning Streak, Beats Huskies in Overtime 88-86

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By: Joe Lami

STANFORD, Calif.—

The Stanford Cardinal defeated the Connecticut Huskies 88-86 in overtime on Monday night, ending the Huskies’ 47-game winning streak.

The Cardinal forced overtime due to a clutch three-pointer made by senior point guard, Amber Orrange, with just three seconds left in the game to bring the score to 77-77. “That shot that Amber made, I thought was the shot of the night,” added Stanford coach, Tara VanDerveer. Orrange finished second in scoring for the Cardinal, with 17 points. She also had five rebounds and four assists.

Connecticut jumped out ahead in overtime with a three-pointer made by Morgan Tuck, just seconds into the third period. Connecticut owned the first part of overtime, until Stanford went on a 6-0 run that lasted two minutes, allowing the Cardinal to take the game.

Stanford did a great job on defense, as UConn’s two pre-season All-Americans were held to 35 points combined. Brianna Stewart led the way with 23 points, but shot only 8-for-18 while doing so. Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was no where to be seen in the first half, as she finished the first twenty minutes with only two points, both of which came from the foul line. She ended up finishing the night with 12 points, after putting up 30 against UC Davis on Friday, and a terrible shooting percentage of 28%. Much in thanks to Stanford Sophomore, Karlie Samuelson, who was on Mosqueda-Lewis like glue all night. “Karlie was great tonight on Kaleena,” added VanDerveer.

The Cardinal worked the ball around well all night, as nine different players got on the board. Sophomore, Lili Thompson, once again led the way, as she finished the game with 24 points. Samuelson’s older sister Bonnie added 14 points, nine of which came from beyond the arc. Freshman, Kaylee Johnson got into double digits in rebounding for the first time in her career, as she led the way with 13 boards helping the Cardinal outrebound the Huskies 41-37. “Kaylee was dominant on the boards,” VanDerveer praised.

Both teams were dreadful from the free-throw line, as each team shot below 68%. Connecticut coach, Geno Auriemma, added “both teams were awful for the night, especially when nearly 60 shots were attempted”. VanDerveer also brought up the bad free throw shooting saying “it needs to get better”.

Monday night marks the first time Connecticut has lost since March 12, 2013 during the Big East Tournament. Since then, they have won two straight National Championships, which includes an undefeated season. “Games like this tonight, just go to show how damn hard it is to go undefeated,” Auriemma commented.

With Connecticut not losing a game in over a year and a half, the locker room had some mixed emotions Stewart brought up. “It was a shock. Some of them have never lost a game before,” said the All-American.

Monday marks the second time in the last nine matches, where the Cardinal have come out on top. The last time, Stanford also ended a long winning streak held by the Huskies, as on December 30, 2012, the Cardinal ended the 90-game winning streak.

Monday’s game also extends Stanford’s home winning streak to 28 games, remaining the third longest in the country.

Kings file game protest over loss in Memphis

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings have filed an official protest with the NBA over the team’s loss to Memphis last Thursday night. The Kings lost the game 111 – 110 on lay-up made by the Grizzlies’ Courtney Lee with 0.3 seconds left in the game.

The play was reviewed at courtside by the officiating crew because it appeared that Vince Carter’s inbound lob to Lee was tipped by the defender. If the ball was tipped, the clock should have started immediately and time would have expired before the lay-up could have been made by Lee. The referees ruled the ball was not tipped and upheld the Memphis victory.

The Kings are contending the shot was made after time had expired.

Under the protest procedure, both Memphis and Sacramento will have the opportunity to submit evidence to the league in support of their position. The decision on the protest should be rendered by December 2.

Where will Harbaugh be in 2015

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By Jeremy Kahn

If there is a question or a statement that will not go away, it is where will in the world will Jim Harbaugh be coaching in 2015.

According to multiple reports, Harbaugh could leave the San Francisco 49ers and head across the Bay to coach the Oakland Raiders, who are in the midsts of a 16-game losing streak at the present time.

Other reports have him heading back to college football, either to his alma mater, the University of Michigan, where he quarterbacked the Wolversines from 1983-1986, while playing for the legendary Bo Schembechler or to the University of Kansas, near his wife’s family.

It does seems bizarre that Harbaugh, who joined the 49ers after a successful stint at the University of San Diego and at Stanford would leave a team that he led to three consecutive NFC Title Games and one Super Bowl in his first three years on the job.

On the contrary, Harbaugh could return to the Raiders, a place where broke into the coaching business in 2001 and coached for two seasons as an Offensive Assistant.

After leaving the Raiders, Harbaugh went onto become the head coach at the University of San Diego, where he led the Toreros to the pinnacle of NCAA Division 1-AA and to the Championship of the Pioneer League

Harbaugh then returned to the Bay Area, when he replaced Walt Harris at Stanford University i 2007, a university that his father was the Defensive Coordinator at in the 1970s and across the street from where he went to high school.

While with the Cardinal, Harbaugh led them back to dominance, including stopping USC’s 34-game regular winning streak in 2007 and creating a rivalry with then Trojan head coach Pete Carroll.

Harbaugh led the Cardinal to a 12-1 record in the 2010 season and they won the Orange Bowl in convincing fashion over the Hokies of Virginia Tech.

Just one week after leading the Cardinal to the Orange Bowl Championship, Harbaugh was on the move again, as he was named the head coach of the 49ers, where he replaced former Chicago Bears teammate Mike Singletary.

In his first season with the 49ers, he led the team to their first NFC Western Division Championship since 2002 and to brink of the Super Bowl in his first season as a Professional Head Coach.

The following season, Harbaugh and the 49ers made it to their first Super Bowl since 1995, where he faced his brother John and despite a frantic comeback, the 49ers came just short of winning their sixth Super Bowl.

Harbaugh and Carroll renewed their rivalry from Stanford and USC respectively on the pro level, as Carroll is now the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, a team that put an end to the 49ers season in 2013.

Wherever Harbaugh ends in 2015, it will be fun to watch him coach.

Cal hosts Stanford in Big Game

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By George Devine, Sr.

The 117th Big Game will kick off at 1 p.m. PST on Saturday, November 22 at California Memorial Stadium on the Berkeley campus. The Bears are coming off a loss to USC and the Cardinal a 20-17 overtime defeat at the hands of Utah. Stanford is now third in the Pac-12 North, with a conference record of 5-4 and an overall tally of 5-5. Right behind in the standings are the Bears, at 5-5 in both categories. Each team is a win away from bowl eligibility, so whoever wins this game can look forward to a chance for a postseason invitation, as well as possession of the coveted Axe.

On paper, and based on previous performances of both teams this season, the odds seem to favor Stanford. But as everyone from Joe Starkey to the peanut vendors can tell you, anything can happen in a Big Game.

Cal’s scores have not translated into as many wins as the Old Blues would like to see, but show great improvement over Sonny Dykes’ first season last year. Particular strengths are not limited to the golden arm of QB Jared Goff. Another key element of the Berkeley attack, developed later in the present season, is a more balanced distribution between passing and running plays, to the point where they now approach equilibrium.

Stanford, on the other hand, has yet to really develop a ground game. Fans of the Cardinal will be hoping to see more creativity in this regard, especially from freshman RB Christian McCaffrey, and with the kind of versatile play-calling that QB Kevin Hogan began to show against Utah. The Bears will have to defend against both facets of the Stanford offense, and also to prevent the visitors from gaining good field position, since kicker Jordan Williamson has shown his ability to score from as far as 51 yards out against Utah.

Cal’s next and final regular season game will be on November 29 against Brigham Young, at Strawberry Canyon, with kickoff TBD. Stanford closes the season at UCLA on November 28 at 12:30 p.m.

Rudy Gay agrees to a contract extension with Kings

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

According to multiple sources, Kings forward Rudy Gay has agreed to a three year, $40 million contract that will keep him with Sacramento through the 2017-18 season. Bill Herenda of Comcast SportsNet California reports that he has confirmed the transaction.

Gay, who is in the final year of his contract, has been one of the major pieces in the Kings plan to build a winning franchise. Gay along with center DeMarcus Cousins are the foundation of the Kings plan to become a playoff contender in the NBA West.

Gay is currently averaging 22.5 points per game and shooting 44.8 percent from the field. He is shooting 34.5 percent from 3-point land and 88 percent from the free throw line. Gay is grabbing an average of 6.8 rebounds per game.

Kings Head Coach Michael Malone frequently emphasizes Gay’s importance to the team and its future development.

The contract would have Gay in a Kings uniform when the new downtown arena opens in 2016. The contract reportedly contains a player opt-out clause before the 2017-18 season. The NBA players union contract expires after the 2016-17 season and the salary cap is expected to significantly larger in next agreement between the league and the players union.

Gay has been the target of accusations of under performing when he played in Toronto and Memphis. He seems to be thriving in Sacramento under the direction of coach Michael Malone. Gay has also become a fan favorite in Sacramento.

Warriors Bigs Center of Attention in Blowout Win over Lakers

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By Matthew T.F. Harrington

The Golden State Warriors flexed their offensive muscle for a second consecutive night, routing the host Los Angeles Lakers 136-115 Sunday night after romping over the Charlotte Hornets Saturday night. Stephen Curry and Andrew Bogut each earned double-doubles for the Warriors, while Kobe Bryant scored a game-high 44 points for the struggling Lakers (1-8).

Curry topped the Warriors (7-2) with 30 points and 15 assists, hitting 10 of 19 field goals and five threes, but it was the Golden State bigs that stole the spotlight. Marreese Speights collected 24 points, including 8 from the field while pulling down nine rebounds off the bench. Starting center Andrew Bogut cracked double digits in points in the first quarter, finishing the night with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Even Ognjen Kuzmic and Justin Holiday, called up from the Warriors D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz, saw playing time with coach Steve Kerr electing to rest his starters with the game out of hand early.

The Warriors hit 46 of 86 field goals, good for a 53.5 shooting percentage. While the turnover numbers were still somewhat high, the 16 committed Sunday are an improvement on the NBA-worst 20.1 the Dubs are averaging a game.

With Bogut on fire in the first quarter, the Warriors took a 34-23 lead. 21 of the 23 points came courtesy of Bryant, with the Mamba bent on passing Michael Jordan’s career points total this season. A 40-32 Warriors scoring margin in the second quarter put Golden State up 74-57. They put up 41 points in the third, while yielding only 24 to Los Angeles. With the reserves in, the Lakers outscored their visitors 36-21 in garbage time for the final score of 136-115.

After winning both ends of a back-to-back, the Warriors get a lengthy respite. They next take the Oracle Arena hardwood Friday night against the Utah Jazz to kick seven straight games against teams at or below the .500 winning percentage.