Month: January 2020

The Kings play defense and beat the Bulls 98-81 on Friday in Chicago

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment

By Charlie O. Mallonee @Charlieo1320

The long national nightmare is over for “Sacramento Proud” as their team’s six-game losing streak has come to an end in Chicago. The Kings (16-29) downed the Bulls 98-81 on Friday night at the United Center.

The last time the Kings won a basketball game was on January 7th in Phoenix. Those 16 days between wins seemed like an eternity for Sacramento fans.

A major change to the starting lineup

Sometimes a coach must shake things up to in order to get his team’s attention. In this case, Kings head coach – Luke Walton – made a change to his starting lineup. Guard Buddy Hield has been in a shooting slump, so Walton took Hield out of the starting rotation and replaced him with Bogdan Bogdanovic who has been the Kings sixth man all season.

Moving a starter to the bench is always dangerous because a coach never knows how the player will react. In this case, the lineup moves worked.

Hield took the change in stride

In reality, Hield did more than take things in stride – he thrived. Hield led the Kings in scoring by putting up 21 points in the game. He shot 7-for-12 overall and hit 5 of 9 from behind the 3-point line. Hield also grabbed eight rebounds.

After the game, Kings head coach Luke Walton was full of praise for Hield for his play and his reaction to his change in the rotation.

The key to the win was defense

This was the second game this season that the Kings held their opponent to under 90 points. The Kings are 2-0 in those games.

Sacramento held Chicago to just 39.2% (31-for-79) shooting overall and the Bulls hit only 8 of 37 (21.6%) from 3-point range.

The Kings caused the Bulls (17-30) to turn the ball over 21 times which resulted in 16 Sacramento points.

The Bulls largest lead of the game was three points.

Top performers

Leading scorers

  • Buddy Hield was the Kings leading scorer with 21 points
  • Zach LaVine led the Bulls scoring attack with 21 points

The Glass cleaners

  • Cristiano Felicio of the Bulls was the game’s leading rebounder with nine
  • Buddy Hield led the Kings with eight rebounds

Dropping dimes

  • De’Aaron Fox was the game’s assist leader with seven dimes
  • Kris Dunn led the Bulls with six assists

Up next

The Kings travel to the Twin Cities where they will play the Timberwolves on Monday night.

The Bulls will play in Cleveland on Saturday night.

 

 

 

Warriors improved play still lose to Pacers 129-118

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The Utah Jazz’ Rudy Gobert (27) and the Golden State Warriors Willie Cauley-Stein (2) scramble under the basket for the loose ball at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Fri Jan 24th

By Jerry Feitelberg

San Francisco- The Golden State Warriors hosted the Indiana Pacers at the Chase Center Friday night. The Warriors were hoping to rebound after being blown out by the Utah Jazz Wednesday night.

The Warriors played with a lot of energy. They moved the ball well as they recorded 31 assists. They shot 49% from the floor, and they made 19 threes. It was not enough as they turned the ball over 20 times, and Indiana put 33 points on the board as a result of the Warriors sloppy play.

The Pacers, who average about 27 three-point attempts per game. Knocked down 17 in 28 tries Friday night. The Pacers like to make a lot of two-point buckets, and Friday night’s game was no exception. They shot 57% from the floor to beat the Warriors 129-118.

The Warriors got off to a good start early in the first quarter. They led 22-16 about halfway through the first period. The Pacers got their offense going, and they went on a 13-0 run to lead 29-22. The Pacers finished the first quarter leading 35-30.

The Pacers played well as they increased the lead to 50-38. The Pacers defense held the Warriors scoreless for over three minutes in the period. The Warriors continued to turn the ball over, and the Pacers capitalized on the Warriors miscues.

The Pacers finished the first half with a 16-point advantage 67-51. D’Angelo Russell led the W’s with 16. Marquese Chriss was the only other Warrior in double figures with 10. The Pacers’ T.J.Warren led his team with 21. Doug McDermott coming off the bench knocked down 15, and he helped propel the Pacers to the 16-point advantage.

The Warriors turned things around in the third period. D’Angelo Russell made several threes, and the Warriors went on a 14-2 run to cut the deficit to six points as they trailed 80-74. The Pacers regrouped and were able to finish the third period leading by 98-86.

In the fourth quarter, The Warriors continued to make threes. Jordan Poole made two consecutive threes to make it 110-103. The Pacers refused to fold. They went up by thirteen 121-108. The Warriors went on a 7-0 run to trail 121-115. The Pacers were not fazed, and they went on to win 129-118.

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors announced that they have traded center Willie Cauley-Stein to the Dallas Mavericks for a second-round draft choice. The Mavs needed to replace former Stanford star, Dwight Powell. Powell suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon injury. He will miss the rest of the season and part of the 2020-21 season, too.

With the loss, the Warriors drop to 10-37. Indiana won its eighth game out of the last ten played. They are 30-16 and are within two games of being in second place in the Eastern Conference. They will be in the playoffs. Malcolm Brogdon did not play due to an injury, and the Pacers’ Victor Oladipo is close to returning to action.

The W’s were led by D’Angelo Russell’s 37 points. Russell was nine for 13 from behind the three-point arc. Glenn Robinson had 18. Chriss finished with 13. Alec Burks had 11 points, five rebounds, and seven assists. Draymond Green recorded a double-double with ten points, six boards, and 11 assists. Jordan Poole, Omari Spellman, And Eric Paschall each added nine.

T.J.Warren had 33 for Indiana, Doug McDermott finished with 24, Jeremy Lamb and Damontas Sabonis each had 16. Sabonis pulled down ten rebounds to record a double-double. Aaron Holiday had 12. His brother Justin, a former Warrior, contributed eight to help the Pacers win.

The Warriors go on the road for the next two weeks. They meet the Philadelphia Sixers Tuesday night. Thursday they are in Boston, Saturday they play the Cavaliers. They go to Washington and Brooklyn before returning home to face the Lakers on February 8th.

Super Bowl LIV/San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Lami: What a difference a year makes from 4-12 to 13-3

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Kwon Alexander (56) San Francisco 49ers linebacker in this Oct 31st file photo against the Arizona Cardinals returned to practice on Jan 2 after suffering a pectoral muscle pull mid season

On the 49ers podcast with Joe Lami:

#1 Joe what a difference a year makes the 49ers at this time last season finished at 4-12 and this season a incredible 13-3.

#2 They also at one point during the season looked as if they could have gone perfect that’s how dominating they were

#3 Talk about some of the important acquisitions the 49ers made to improve the team for this season in Kwon Alexander, Dee Ford, Tevin Coleman, Raheem Mostert, Nick Bosa, and Deebo Samuel.

#4 Joe talk about the great job that Kansas City head coach Andy Reid has done for the Kansas City Chiefs as the Chiefs enter their first Super Bowl in 50 years

#5 Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes has been throwing lights out all season 4,031 yards, 26 touchdowns, 5 interceptions. Led the team under center to the AFC Championship and into the Super Bowl.

Join Joe each Friday for the 49ers podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Super Bowl LIV podcast with Joe Hawkes: Mahomes can throw for days as his record speaks for itself

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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes puts a stop on New England Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy, right, with his left arm on Sun Dec 8th at Foxborough MA, Mahomes got a personal foul penalty on the play ap.com file photo

Super Bowl LIV podcast with Joe Hawkes:

#1 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes had a great regular season throwing for an impressive 4,031 yards, for 26 touchdowns and only five interceptions.

#2 One thing that could be said about Mahomes he has an offense that prevents him from turning the ball over.

#3 It’s been over 50 years since 1970 for the Kansas City Chiefs to be in the Super Bowl but head coach Andy Reid has put together a power house team how do you see them matched up against a San Francisco 49er team who made very little mistakes

#4 On the other hand the 49ers have won five Super Bowl since 1982 and made their last appearance there in 2012.

#5 The oddsmakers have this game as a toss up how do you see it?

Joe Hawkes is doing the Super Bowl LIV podcasts throughout the Super Bowl at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers’ defense will have their hands full against Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City’s offense in Super Bowl LIV

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ap file photo: Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes drops back to pass in the first half of their game against the Chicago Bears on Aug 25th in pre season play. Little did Mahomes know at the time he and the Chiefs would wind up in Super Bowl LIV 

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

SANTA CLARA–The San Francisco 49ers made winning the NFC Championship over the Green Bay Packers, 37-20, to advance to Super Bowl LIV on Sunday night look like a walk in the park. It will be San Francisco’s first trip to the Super Bowl since 2013, where they lost to the Baltimore Ravens 34-31.

For the franchise to claim its sixth Vince Lombardi trophy in seven trips to the Super Bowl, the 49ers are going to have to take down Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, who are returning to the Super Bowl for the first time in 50 years after defeating the Tennessee Titans, 35-24, to capture the Lamar Hunt trophy, named after the Chiefs’ late owner as the winner of the AFC.

The Chiefs defeated the Minnesota Vikings, 23-7, in Super Bowl IV.

The play of San Francisco’s defense will be critical when the football is kicked off at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Feb. 2. If San Francisco’s defense plays anywhere near it did against both the Vikings and Packers respectively, than the 49ers will be in primed position to win the game.

In two playoff games, the 49ers stood head and shoulders above the rest on defense, finishing first in points (15.0), total yards (252.2), rushing yards (41.5), takeaways (5), and third down percentage (23.8).

But neither Minnesota or Green Bay can match Kansas City’s offense, which can go nuclear within a blink of an eye with the aforementioned Mahomes as the trigger man. The third-year quarterback has a stacked offense, a track team of wide receivers in Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and Mecole Hardman, and an electrifying tight end in Travis Kelce at his disposal.

In the AFC Championship Game, Kansas City found itself down 10-0 and 17-7, but Mahomes and that high-powered Chiefs offense didn’t flinch, building a 35-17 lead over the Titans thanks in large part of controlling the clock with a strong ground game. Mahomes, who finished the game throwing for 294 yards and three touchdowns, his final touchdown came on a 60-yard strike to Watkins for the Chiefs’ 28th straight point midway through the fourth quarter.

That’s the type of offensive explosion that the 49ers must avoid if they have any shot at winning this football game. That means the 49ers, who may arguably have the NFL’s best defensive line, featuring Nick Bosa, DeForest Buckner, Dee Ford and Arik Armstead must make life difficult for Mahomes every time Kansas City has the football.

The 49ers have the league’s best pass defense and ranked fifth with 48 sacks during the regular season. They have nine more this postseason, largely by taking opponents off schedule and setting up favorable pass-rush situations.

That’s huge against a quarterback that has the penchant of eluding would-be tacklers like Mahomes. Especially in a game with so much on the line like the Super Bowl.

 

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry Feitleberg: Will Cal challenge Stanford in spite of their record on Sunday?

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gostanford.com photo: Stanford guard Bryce Wills (2) drives the lane against the UCLA Bruin defense on Wed Jan 15th’s game at Pauley Pavilion

On the Stanford podcast with Jerry F:

#1 Jerry the Cardinal (15-3) took a took loss to USC (15-3) last Saturday as USC is a tough building to play in

#2 Try as they may the top scorer for Stanford Oscar da Silva came up with 21 points but da Silva has been consistent

#3 Jerry you also have to like Spencer Jones he came in second in Stanford scoring with 18. The Cardinal are proving potent on offense but USC was a tougher customer.

#4 Jerod Haase coached a great game even though Stanford didn’t get the win with the Cardinal dominating in the first half 45-25.

#5 In spite of the Cal Bears record could all the stats and what’s on paper go out the window and the Bears who are hosting Stanford make a game of this one on Sunday?

Jerry does the Stanford Cardinal podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: Cal odds aren’t great but with the home floor can they beat Stanford

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calbears.com photo: The expression on the Cal Bears players says it all as they’ve struggled of late and host Stanford on Sunday

On the Cal podcast with Morris:

#1 Sunday is the Big Game with Stanford (15-3) and Cal (8-9) the Bears are coming off a tough ten point loss to UCLA, Cal has the home floor do they have a shot at beating a very successful Stanford team?

#2 Matt Bradley scored 17 points and grabbed five rebounds as the team leading scorer last Saturday in UCLA how much of a load will he have to carry on Sunday against Stanford.

#3 The Cardinal will come in with some of their top scorer in Oscar da Silva who led Stanford against USC in their last game with 21 points what does Cal head coach Mark Fox and Cal need to do to shut da Silva’s game down.

#4 After beating the Washington schools two weeks ago is would that be something positive to look at going into the Stanford game?

#5 Some critics say Cal is missing a lot in talent talk about Mark Fox’s needs and can they look forward to recruiting for next season

Catch Cal Bears podcasts with Morris on Mondays and Michael on Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Royalty Flushed: Kings drop sixth straight in Detroit,127-106

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By Morris Phillips

Losing streaks are hard enough to digest, and the individual moments within those streaks even more so.

For the Kings, losing at the middling Pistons, the ninth-ranked team in the Eastern Conference, for their sixth straight loss while allowing Detroit 19 points more than their season average may rank as the nadir for fading Sacramento.

It certainly felt like it in the third quarter when the Pistons turned a 57-50 advantage at the half into a rout.

“Basketball is a simple game: Defend without fouling, make the right play and knock down shots early,” coach Bill Walton said. “I feel like we didn’t do any of those things.”

The Kings certainly didn’t defend. The Pistons were without Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin, along with taking the occassion to send a message regarding punctuality to rookie Sekou Doumbouya, who didn’t start for the first time in 10 games. Despite the absences, the Pistons got way too comfortable shooting the basketball at 53 percent for the game, and at an even higher clip than that in their 36-point, third quarter that put the game away.

Meanwhile, the Kings certainly didn’t have a coherent plan to match the high-scoring Pistons. Missing 25 of their 35 3-point shot attempts kept Sacramento’s offense disjointed and unable to make up the deficit, which grew and grew.

“There are times where we are out there playing good basketball and there are times when we’re not,” De’Aaron Fox said. “I said it before, you just try to play the best basketball you can for the most amount of time. I don’t think we’re doing that right now.”

With the recent trade of Trevor Ariza to Portland, and the Pistons’ lineup changes, the game became a battle of new faces. One stood out: Reggie Jackson, playing in his first game after missing 42 due to a back injury, led the Pistons with 22 points and four assists.

“When you alternate (Jackson with Derrick Rose, who also scored 22 points), you have stability at the point guard position, and that’s what this league is all about, guys that can create and run the floor,” coach Dwayne Casey said of his team’s offense.

Rose, the NBA’s renaissance man, and the guy most frequently mentioned to upgrade a playoff contender’s outlook down the stretch of this season, scored better than 20 points for the 10th straight game, matching his career-best stretch from his MVP season in 2011.

Christian Wood added 23 points to give Detroit three scorers with 20 or more, and Svi Mykhailiuk added 13. The Pistons poured it on in a 70-point, second half that far too much resembled a basketball clinic for the Kings’ liking.

“It’s about where we’re going and I’m a very patient person,” Walton said. “I believe in our group, but we need to do a lot of things including starting games with a much more competitive, engaged mindset. So, I still have all the belief in the world in our team. It’s still surreal to be coaching this team, but there are some things that we need to improve on and improve on quickly because it’s too late in the season to be having these same types of mistakes so frequently.”

The Kings continue their road swing on Friday in Chicago. The Kings and Bulls will be meeting for the second time this season after the Chicago held on for a 113-106 win at Golden 1 Center on December 2.

 

 

 

 

 

Condors take down Barracuda in 5-0 shutout win

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by Marko Ukalovic

BAKERSFIELD, Calif- The Bakersfield Condors used five different goal scorers and received excellent goaltending from Stuart Skinner in a dominating 5-0 victory over the San Jose Barracuda on Wednesday evening at Mechanics Bank Arena.

Skinner stopped all 35 shots he faced to record his first career AHL shutout. The loss snapped San Jose’s three-game point streak. Bakersfield is now eight points ahead of the ‘Cuda with 38 and currently sit in sixth place in the Pacific Divison.

Bakersfield (17-18-4-1) opened up the scoring in the first half of the first period. Brad Malone sent a cross ice pass from the left boards down to Cameron Hebig, who beat two Barracuda defenders, and lifted the puck over the pad of ‘Cuda goalie Josef Korenar for his second goal of the season at the 7:23 mark.

Korenar suffered an injury at the end of the first period and never returned to the game. Zachary Sawchenko replaced Korenar to start the second period.

The Condors doubled their lead in the second period. Josh Currie received a pass along the right boards. He dropped it back to Matt Benning who snapped a shot on goal that Tyler Benson redirected past Sawchenko for his ninth goal of the season at the 11:54 mark.

Benson now has nine points in six games against San Jose this season.

San Jose (14-21-1-2) had two power play opportunities in the second period but the Condors penalty killing led by Skinner kept the ‘Cuda off the board after 40 minutes.

Bakersfield sealed the game in the third period with three third period goals.

Anthony Peluso led a 2-on-1 rush up the ice with Joe Gambardella. Peluso fed a pass over to the left to Gambardella who skated all alone on Sawchenko and snapped a wrist shot top-shelf into the left corner for his eighth goal of the season at the 8:14 mark.

Bakersfield scored an empty net goal when San Jose lifted Sawchenko for an extra attacker with over three minutes remaining. Kirill Maksimov received a pass from Luke Esposito and tapped it into the net for his fourth goal of the season at the 16:59 mark.

The Condors completed the scoring with 28 seconds left in the game when Jakob Stukel sent a pass behind the net where Peluso sent in a wrist shot from a tough angle that went past Sawchenko for his second goal of the season.

Sawchenko finished with 23 saves on 26 shots in relief duty.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was 0-for-3 on the power play. Bakersfield also went 0-for-3.

Benson snapped his eight-game goalless drought and now has four goals against the Barracuda on the season after his tally on Wednesday.

Noah Gregor led all Barracuda skaters with five shots on net.

Joachim Blichfeld returned to the Barracuda lineup after missing the last three games on recall with the Sharks and recorded two shots on net and a pair of penalty minutes.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda return home to take on the Ontario Reign on Saturday 1/25 at 7:00pm at SAP Center.

Red-hot Utah Jazz blowout Warriors 129-96

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By Jerry Feitelberg

San Francisco- The visiting Utah Jazz, coached by Quin Snyder, pounded the Golden State Warriors Wednesday night at the Chase Center. The Jazz, who have won 13 of the last fourteen and are 18-2 in the previous 20 games, excelled on both ends of the court to win their third game of the year against the W’s by a score of 129-96. The Jazz, for the first time in ten years, swept the season series against Golden State.

Utah added two players to the roster before the start of the season. They signed Bojan Bogdanovic, who played for the Indiana Pacers as a free agent. They made a trade with Memphis for Michael Conley. Conley, a former All-Star, had missed several games with a hamstring injury. Conley, slowly rounding into shape, was available off the bench.

The Warriors, who won a close game over Orlando last week and then lost a thriller in overtime to the Portland Trailblazers, were hoping to continue playing well. Alas, that was not the case Wednesday night.

Rudy Gobert, the massive center from France, dominated the Warriors on both ends of the court. He clogged up middle and protected the rim. The W’s could not get by big Rudy. On the other end of the court, Rudy made layups, dunks, and showcased a left-handed hook shot that was reminiscent of Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s skyhook.

The Jazz easily won the first period 31-17. They finished the quarter on a 20-7 run. Gobert and Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz offense. They held the Warriors scoreless for over four minutes in the quarter as they made the run.

In the second quarter, the W’s played better. They scored 26 points. Their problem was that the Jazz scored 34 to finish the first half with a 22-point lead 65-43. Gobert and Mitchell each had 15 points apiece. Gobert pulled down 11 rebounds. Bogdanovich and Jordan Clarkson each had 9. Joe Ingles, who is a terrific 3-point shooter, finished the half with 8. The Warriors’ D’Angelo Russell paced the team with 15. No other Warrior had more than 6 points.

The Jazz owned the third quarter as they outscored Golden State 35-26 to finish the quarter with a 31-point lead 100-69. The Jazz had the game in their pocket. D’Angelo Russell provided most of the offense in the period. The W’s just could not pierce Utah’s defense.

The Warriors lost the fourth quarter 29-27. Utah removed all their starters from the game. The Warriors’ big men Omari Spellman, Eric Paschall, and Marquese Chriss were able to put points on the board in the final stanza. The Jazz reserves still outscored Golden State and finished the night with a win 129-96.

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors lost for the 12th time in the last 13 games. Their record for the season is 10-36. Glenn Robinson and Draymond Green were back in the starting lineup after missing the previous two games.

Russell led the W’s with 26 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. He made two threes in 7 tries. Omari Spellman had 12, most of which came in the fourth quarter. Eric Paschall and Marquese Chriss each had 11. Glenn Robinson finished with 10.

Donovan Mitchell finished with 23 points. He made 4 threes in 8 tries. Gobert recorded 22 points, 15 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots. Bogdanovic had 18, and he was 4 for 8 from beyond the three-point arc. Joe Ingles had 11, Georges Niang 11, and Jordan Clarkson 10.

The Jazz shot 54% from the floor, and they held the Warriors 39%. They made 17 threes while the Warriors connected on 6. The Jazz outrebounded the W’s 56-37.

The W’s Marquese Chriss and the Jazz’ Tony Bradley were hit with double technicals with 22 seconds left in the game. Both players were ejected.

The Warriors welcome the Indiana Pacers to the Chase Center Friday night. The game will start at 7:30 pm.