Month: April 2021

Timberwolves outlast Warriors to win 126-114

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The Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry (30) struggles on offense against the Minnesota Timberwolves Ricky Rubio (9) on Thu Apr 29, 2021 at the Target Center in Minneapolis (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors (31-32) started the final four-game road trip of the season on a sour note Thursday night at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Then suddenly resurgent Minnesota Timberwolves (20-44) played well in the final 12 minutes of the game to down the Warriors 126-114.

The Timberwolves have won their last four in a row and six of the last eight. Even though the Warriors lost, it was not all bad news. The Warriors will benefit if Minnesota continues to play well. If Minnesota does not finish in the top three in the lottery, the Warriors will get their first-round draft pick.

The Timberwolves currently have the third-worst record in the NBA. The Pick would not go to the Golden State if the season ended today. The Wolves, however, may pass either Detroit or Oklahoma City in the standings. If they do, the Warriors will get the pick.

The Warriors were without the services of forward Kelly Oubre, Jr. Thursday night. Oubre has been an offensive sparkplug coming off the bench. His absence meant the Warriors were down to eight players. Kent Bazemore was back in the lineup after missing several games due to NBA Covid-19 protocols.

The teams played a hotly contested game for all four quarters. The Timberwolves, coached by former Toronto Raptor assistant coach Chris Finch, took a page out of the Raptors’ playbook. Finch has his team double team, Stephen Curry, all night long. The Timberwolves decided to stop Steph and let the other four players on the court figure out how to beat them.

The Plan worked in the first quarter. The Timberwolves held Curry to five points in the first twelve minutes of action. Andrew Wiggins, facing his former teammates, carried the water for the Warriors. The game was tied at 25-25 when Minnesota went on a 10-0 run to finish the quarter leading 35-25. 

The Warriors’ second unit went on a 10-2 run early in the second quarter to get within four 39-35. The Warriors trailed until late in the first half until Curry got hot. Curry made a three to make it 55-54. The Wolves connected on a three to go ahead by four. Curry made two frees, then made a steal and a bucket to tie the game, 58-58. The Timberwolves scored the last bucket of the first half to lead 60-58. Andrew Wiggins paced the Warrior attack with 18 points. Steph had 13. Karl-Anthony Towns led the Wolves with 11. Veteran guard Rickey Rubio had 10. The Timberwolves were 10-for-21 from three-point range. 

The Timberwolves started the third quarter on an 8-0 run to lead 68-58. The Warriors did not fold. They fought back but could not get the lead back. The Warriors tied the game 87-87. Minnesota responded with a two-point basket to lead 89-87. Curry made a four-point play to give the Warriors the lead 91-87. Minnesota scored a basket and the third quarter ended with the Warriors ahead by two. 

As per head coach Steve Kerr’s plans, Curry and Draymond Green would sit on the bench for about the first six minutes of the fourth quarter. The Warriors second unit had their work cut out for them. The Wolves star rookie, Anthony Edwards, came out firing.

The Warriors had no answer. Minnesota went on a 10-2 run to lead 106-99. The Timberwolves’ defense stopped the Warriors’ offense in the last six minutes of the game. Minnesota continued to make three-pointers. Karl-Anthony Towns and Juancho Hernangomez made back-to-back threes to go ahead by ten 117-107. The Warriors ran out of time, and they lost by a final score of 126-114.

Game Notes and Stats: With the loss, The Warriors are 31-32 for the season with nine games left on the schedule. The Timberwolves are 20-44.

The Warriors had five players in double figures. Curry led the team with 37 points, six rebounds, and eight assists. Curry was 11-for-27 from the floor, and he made six threes in 17 tries. Wiggins finished with 27 points, four boards, three assists, and made three threes in six attempts.

Green had 11 points, five boards, and five assists. Bazemore had a double-double with ten points and ten rebounds. Mychal Mulder had 11. As a team, the Warriors shot 49% from the floor. They made 15 threes in 38 attempts. The taller Timberwolf team outrebounded them 68-41. The Wolves pulled down 16 offensive rebounds. The Warriors had four.

Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 25 points. Town had a double-double with 22 points and 11 boards. Ricky Rubio had 22. Rubio knocked down five threes. Naz Reid had 13. The Timberwolves made 20 three-point shots in 41 tries. Teams with 20 threes and shoot about 50% are 43-0.

The Warriors tipoff against the Rockets in Houston Saturday night, The game will start at 4:30 pm.

Sharks could be odd hockey team out; SJ Planning Commission on board with Google Development plan

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Rendering of the Google Village that is on the drawing board for development literally right at the doorstep at SAP Center in San Jose (image from sanjosespotlight.com and Sitelab Urban Studio)

By Marko Ukalovic and Daniel Dullum

SAN JOSE–San Jose Sharks and Sports Entertainment has two choices regarding the future of the NHL hockey team staying in San Jose grin and bear it lose over 4,000 parking spaces and crater to the direction of new and future neighbor Google and their development of a new Downtown West Village that will feature retail, condos, new housing and 7.3 million feet of office development. Not to mention the remodeling and development of the Caltrain and BART stations that Google will push for as a huge public transit hub right across the street from SAP Center.

The San Jose Planning Commission voted unanimously to move forward with the development on Wednesday night. Meaning Google is getting one step closer towards building their 80 acre campus in the Dirdon/SAP Center neighborhood.

Google’s plans are to be the big business developer in the neighborhood and the Sharks would be welcomed by Google to stay but the mega tech company plans to develop or have the run of their parking lot as they are a major purchaser of the surrounding area.

The Sharks are waiting for the next meeting that will take place with the San Jose City Council who will vote on the development on May 25th. Google needs two thirds of a yes vote from the City Council to move forward with the development.

A two thirds vote is critical to the project because the San Jose Airport Commission voted no to the development because the Downtown West Village does not meet the building height and noise standards. Although it’s hard to say who on the City Council will vote in favor or not Google has made the deal interesting for the City of San Jose by pouring billions into developing the Downtown West Village project and the city is looking at the project as huge revenue and tax money income in spite of the City’s only professional team the Sharks who say they will leave if this project goes forward.

The second option on a possible Sharks move in a worst case scenario is narrowed down to three locations if they look past the project development succeeding, the Oakland Coliseum Arena previously served as a site of the defunct NHL California Golden Seals who played in Oakland in the 1970s. That site most likely won’t work for the Sharks because the Oakland A’s and the City of Oakland are considering developing the Coliseum proper if the A’s can land a new ballpark in downtown Oakland. Also the Sharks like the A’s most likely do not want to play their games at the Coliseum location.

The Sharks could turn to the San Francisco 49ers and Levis Stadium and develop a new arena in Santa Clara near Great America. That is if the Sharks will accept being a tenant of the 49ers. The Sharks really want their own location and own building. Right now being in a downtown setting is what the Sharks want and moving to Santa Clara would not offer that downtown ambiance.

The third location is Quebec City Canada. Quebec City lost it’s hockey team the Nordiques when they moved to Denver to become the Colorado Avalanche in 1995 and the city has been hungry for an NHL team ever since and have a NHL regulation facility in the waiting for such a team who is looking for a new home.

It all boils down the the San Jose City Council vote on May 25th and the Sharks will either be happy with the vote if the City Council votes thumbs down to the Downtown West Village project or they will have to look at their options if the vote moves forward with the project.

Marko Ukalovic is a San Jose Barracuda beat writer and Daniel Dullum does Headline Sports podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Why is Ted Williams in The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame?

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Former Boston Red Sox and of Mexican heritage Ted Williams in 1941 hit for .406 a record that still stands today (photo from masslive.com)

Why is Ted Williams in The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame?

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame, was founded in San Francisco, California in 1999, registered by the State of California as a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization. Through the years at many of the exhibits, at different cities, baseball parks, libraries and community events, people ask why Ted Williams is inducted into the museum. Few people knew Teddy Ballgame had Mexican ancestry.

He just did not tell people about it. His father was Teddy Samuel Williams. Ted Williams was named after his father and Teddy Roosevelt. His mother May Venzor, was Mexican-American, born in El Paso, Texas, about 9 miles from Ciudad Juárez, México.

In that time in history (1940’s and 1950’s) Williams did not discussed his mother’s Mexican and Basque heritage. Williams wrote in his biography, ‘My Turn at Bat’, “If I had my mother’s name, there’s no doubt I would have run into problems in those days, with the prejudices people had in Southern California”.

But Williams also had credited his uncle, Saul Venzor, teaching him to hit and throw a baseball. It’s important to understand the era and circumstances when considering why Williams didn’t discuss his mother’s Mexican and Basque heritage. During an exhibit of the museum, at the San Francisco Main Library, in downtown San Francisco, a lot of people asked why Ted Williams is in this Hall of Fame.

Obviously many people still ignore his heritage and that is understandable, since the name Ted Williams is anything but Hispanic. Included in the purpose of the museum mission, is to inform the public in this regard about the great diversity that makes the large group of nations in Latin America as well as those born in the United States of Hispanic heritage.

There are 33 different countries in Latin America, with different cultures and traditions and even different languages. As a matter of fact in Brazil (the largest country in Latinamerica) Spanish is not the predominant language, but Portuguese. Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world by territory, larger than Russia, Canada, US and China. Brazil is one of the great fútbol (soccer) powers of the world with a leading five (5) World Cup titles. But they also play baseball in Brazil.

Yan Gomes today is a catcher for the Washington Nationals. Other Brazilian-born players that have played in the Major Leagues: Paulo Orlando, Luis Gohara, Thyago Vieira and Andre Rienzo. Brazil has also participated in the World Baseball Classic.

The HHBMHOF is dedicated to recognizing the contributions made to baseball by Hispanic players. Since its inception, the HHBMHOF has inducted (74) players, coaches, broadcasters, Negro leagues Hispanic players, MLB Scorers, and Pioneer Executives. The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame, respects the heritage of all players. The museum is proud to have the great Ted Williams in its Hall of Fame. The new museum website http://www.hhbmhof.com.com Stay well and stay tuned.

Mr.Gabriel (Tito) Avila Jr. is the Founder and President of The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame and Amaury Pi-González is co-founder and Vice President. The traveling museum was founded in San Francisco and ex-Athletics and Giants players Orlando Cepeda and Tito #23 Fuentes were co-founders of the popular museum. Amaury does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Matt Chapman’s nine-inning double powers the A’s to victory over the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2

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By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s finished the seven-game road trip with a victory over the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2. The A’s played the Rays four times at Tropicana Field. All four games featured excellent pitching, good defense, and timely hitting. In the four games, the Rays scored nine runs, the A’s eight. Each team showed why they are contenders to win their respective division in the American League. With the win, the A’s finished the road trip with a record of four wins and three losses.

The Rays’ starter, lefty Shane McClanahan, made his first start in the Major Leagues Thursday afternoon. McClanahan made his debut last year in the playoffs. The 24-year-old flame thrower made pitches that registered 101 miles-per-hour on the speed gun. The A’s Chris Bassitt pitched well for Oakland. Bassitt went six innings and allowed two runs and four hits. He struck out nine.

Neither team hit well in the four-game series. Runs were at a premium. Thursday’s game was no exception.
The Rays jumped off to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Chris Bassitt hit Rays’ second baseman, Brandon Lowe, with a pitch. Lowe scored on the double to right field by Austin Meadows.

The A’s tied the game in the top of the third. With one out, Tony Kemp singled to center. Kemp went to second on a wild pitch. Mark Canha singled to right. Kemp was thrown out at the plate. Fortunately for the A’s, Ramon Laureano came through doubled to deep left field to drive in Canha with the tying run.

The A’s took the lead in the top half of the fourth when Matt Chapman hit his four home run of the year. The A’s led 2-1 after four complete.
The Rays tied the game in the fifth. Brandon Lowe homered, leading off the bottom of the fifth. It was Lowe’s fourth of the year. Bassitt settled down and retired the next three hitters. Bassitt exited the game after the sixth inning. A’s manager Bob Melvin called on his bullpen to shut down the Rays. They did just that. Yusmeiro Petit and
Jake Diekman retired the Rays in order in the seventh and eighth innings. The A’s could do nothing against the Rays’ relievers until the ninth inning. Rays’ manager Kevin Cash brought in closer Diego Castillo to pitch the ninth. Castillo earned saves in the games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. It would be a different story Thursday afternoon.
With one out, Castillo walked A’s DH, Jed Lowrie. Castillo retired Sen Murphy for the second out. The next hitter, Matt Chapman, came through with a triple to right field. The ball went over the head of Brett Phillips. Lowrie scored from first to give the A’s the lead 3-2. A’s manager Bob Melvin summoned righty Lou Trivino to close out the game. Trivino retired the first two hitters. Brett Phillips singled to keep the Rays alive. Trivino had to retire Kevin Kiermaier for the final out. It wasn’t easy. Phillips advanced to second on a wild pitch. If Kiermaier were to get a hit, the Rays would have tied the game. Trivino won the battle as he struck out Kiermaier looking to preserve the win for Oakland. The A’s win 3-2.

Game Notes and Stats- With the win, the A’s are 16-10 for the season. The Rays are 13-13. Lou Trivino earned his fourth save of the year. Castillo took the loss.

A’s first baseman, Matt Olson, was injured during batting practice on Thursday. He was struck in his left eye by a ball that somehow bounced back to cause the injury. His eye was swollen, and the injury’s extent is unknown.

The A’s return home to face the Baltimore Orioles for three games starting Friday night. The veteran righty, Mike Fiers, will be making his first start of the year. Baltimore will counter with lefty John Means. Means is 2-0 with an ERA of 1.50. Means beat the A’s last Sunday in Baltimore by a score of 8-1. The game will start at 7:05 pm.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Tony Renteria: Kings were no match for Utah

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The Sacramento Kings had one positive thing going for them on Wednesday when the signed Chemizie Metu to a multi year contract before they met the Utah Jazz on Wed Apr 28, 2021 at Golden One Center in Sacramento (@SacramentoKings photo)

#1 Tony it wasn’t even close as the Utah Jazz (45-17) came into Golden One Center and took care of business and the Sacramento Kings (25-37) 154-105 on Wednesday night.

#2 The Jazz dominated in each quarter it was all Utah from start to finish.

#3 For the Jazz a big first half of scoring against the Kings 30 points in the first quarter and 46 in the second quarter the Kings defense simply didn’t have an answer for them.

#4 The Jazz defense also kept the Kings top scorers in check with Richaun Holmes and Buddy Hield with just 18 points they certainly missed De’Aaron Fox in the lineup who is out with an injury.

#5 Things don’t get easier as the Kings will travel to Los Angeles to face the Lakers on Friday night at Staples Center although the Lakers have lost six of their last ten you can never underestimate them.

Join Tony for the Kings podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: A’s drop second game in four game series

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Tampa Bay Rays third base coach Rodney Linares (27) passes off his congratulations to Mike Zunino who belted a solo shot against Oakland A’s starter Cole Irvin at Tropicana Field on Wed Apr 29, 2021 (AP News photo)

#1 Jerry we’ve seen the Oakland A’s (15-10) do this during their 13 game win streak a starter and the bullpen throws a shutout against their opponent but the tables were turned on the A’s on Wednesday night as the Tampa Bay Rays (13-12) starter Tyler Glasnow went seven innings five hits and no runs. Glasnow had his pitches working for him.

#2 Jerry, I know we do these podcasts remotely you don’t have the privilege to be there a Tropicana Field in person but just watching Glasnow throw he simply looked like he kept the A’s big boppers off balance during his outing.

#3 Do the A’s look like they’ve come down from that high of going 13 straight games or are the Rays who give the A’s fits whether it’s regular season or post season just that much of a team that’s in control.

#4 After losing in Baltimore last Sunday and losing the last two games to the Rays the A’s have been struggling offensively at the plate and are in sure dire need to see Matt Chapman get his swing back he was hitting .152 but got two hits on Wednesday night.

#5 Jerry, the A’s will try and even up the series as they play game four of the series with the Rays at 10:10 AM PDT. The A’s will start Chris Bassitt (2-2 ERA 4.13) and he’ll match up against the Rays Shane McClanahan (0-0)

Join Jerry each Thursday for the Oakland A’s podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants day off report: New acquisition makes immediate contribution

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San Francisco Giants Mike Tauchman didn’t waste anytime showing off his hitting talents at Oracle Park against the Colorado Rockies on Wed Apr 28, 2021 proving to be a good acquisition (photo from nj.com)

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, April 29, 2021

It didn’t take long for newly-acquired Mike Tauchman to make a contribution to the San Francisco Giants offense.

No sooner did Tauchman arrive on Wednesday after a deal with the New York Yankees, he delivered an infield RBI single to help the Giants defeat Colorado 7-3 at Oracle Park. The outfielder was dealt to San Francisco by the Bronx Bombers in exchange for left-handed reliever Wandy Peralta and a player to be named later.

Tauchman was hitting .214 in 11 games with the Yankees. In his five-year MLB career with the Yanks and Colorado, the 30-year-old Tauchman has a .250 average with 26 doubles, 13 home runs, 63 RBIs and 16 stolen bases.

Peralta was 2-1 with two saves and a 5.40 earned run average in 10 appearances – all in relief – for the Giants this season. He is 9-9 with a 4.72 ERA and two saves in nine big league seasons with the Giants and Cincinnati. The 29-year-old lefthander joins lefties Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson in the Yankee bullpen.

Tauchman draws a $624,200 major league salary; $301,550 if he plays in the minors. He could eligible for arbitration after this season. Peralta makes $925,000, is eligible for arbitration following this season, and can become a free agent in two years.

The Giants currently have three players on the injured list – Jarlin Garcia (April 21, left groin strain), Donovan Solano (April 22, strained right calf) and Mike Yastrzemski (April 26, strained left oblique).

The Giants travel to San Diego for a weekend series against the NL West third-place Padres. Kevin Gausman (1-0, 2.14) starts for San Francisco on Friday against the Padres’ Yu Darvish (2-1, 2.27). The other Giants probables for the series are Logan Webb (1-1, 4.03) on Saturday and Anthony DeSclafani (2-0, 1.50) on Sunday.

Welcoming Walks: Rockies provide gifts, as Giants roll to a 7-2 win

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Well, it’s like a walk in the park, or even better, like walking your dog.

Just know, when it goes down at a Major League park, it’s only good for the walkers… seeing highly paid competitors on the other side of a walk parade standing around their infield positions, slumped with their heads down, trying to figure out how their big league clubs reverted to Little League all of a sudden will simply make you uncomfortable.

The Rockies did all of that Wednesday night, as Colorado pitchers issued nine walks–and surrendered nine singles–in their 7-3 loss to the Giants. Alex Wood no-hit the visitors into the sixth inning as well, but now we’re just dumping on the dog. The Giants are playing well, but this one was really about how poorly the Rockies competed.

“That’s unacceptable for a big-league pitching staff to walk nine guys,” manager Bud Black said.

Three of the walks came with the bases loaded–that’s only happened three times in the history of the Rockies–and each one sucked the life out of the team starting in the second inning. Starter German Marquez issued a pair of the costly walks, essentially half of a four-run inning that put the Giants comfortably in front.

The Rockies fell to 1-8 on the road this season, one night after they hit three homers after the eighth inning and drew seven walks, all signs of a club being dialed in even with a string of undesirable results. But Wednesday, the Rockies dialed out and the Giants pounced.

In the seventh, Mike Tauchman, in his three-hit Giants’ debut, reached on an infield single that scored Evan Longoria. The next batter, Curt Casali drew the third, bases loaded walk from Yency Almonte, and the Giants led 6-2. Wilmer Flores, not patient enough to see a couple of balls, concluded the scoring with a hard hit single that plated Brandon Crawford.

“He was exactly as advertised,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said of Tauchman, acquired from the Yankees in s deal for reliever Wandy Peralta. “Comfortable in the outfield. In the batter’s box, he’s a fighter. Very competitive.”

Wood did what many were anticipating, he added a third, brilliant outing to his brief career with the Giants, improving to 3-0 with 20 strikeouts and three walks. The 30-year old was sharp throughout with his slider, and just needed a near diving catch from Darin Ruf to extend his spell on the Rockies to seven innings. The eighth however was a struggle for Wood, who was lifted after allowing three singles and a walk consecutively.

“I feel like I’m dialed in, and I had all three (pitches) working tonight,” said Wood, no longer burdened by the back and shoulder issues that caused the Dodgers and Reds to lose patience with him in recent seasons. “Just commanding the ball well right now.”

The Giants improved to 16-9, tied with the Dodgers atop the NL West. Pitching continues to be their calling card, they rank second in team ERA at 2.93. But the potential of their offense, with 31 home runs despite an anemic, team batting average of .224 gives them hope for even greater growth once their bats gain efficiency.

After winning 5 of 7 at home, the Giants start a stretch of 20 of 28 on the road starting with a Friday night date with the Padres at Petco Park.

–

Sharks Ride 3-Goal 1st Period to 4-2 Win Over Yotes

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The San Jose Sharks get their celebration on after a two game sweep over the Arizona Coyotes at SAP Center on Wed Apr 28, 2021 (@SanJoseSharks image)

By Matt Harrington

The San Jose Sharks playoff hopes, while dimming, still live on after the Sharks 4-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes Wednesday night in San Jose. Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl had two points each, Kevin Labanc scored in his return to the lineup after missing Monday’s game with an injury and Evander Kane scored to continue a streak of six 20-goal seasons. Josef Korenar made 28 saves for his second career and consecutive win to keep San Jose (20-24-5) 5 points back of St. Louis, another victorious team Wednesday, for the final spot in the West.

The Sharks did most of their damage in the first period, scoring three goals on Darcy Kuemper. Kane scored first just 1:12 into play on the rush. Tomas Hertl wheeled into the zone, pulled up and hit Alexander Barabanov on the far post. Barabanov dished the puck to Kane cross-crease for the one-timer. Barabanov now has points in both games he’s appeared in for San Jose.

Rudolfs Balcers beat Kuemper 10:06 into the frame after the Sharks continued to gum up the neutral zone and force turnovers. Balcers caught Niklas Hjalmarsson flat-footed and sped around him for an open lane to the net. Logan Couture and John Leonard assisted on Balcers’ seventh of the year.

The Sharks third goal was a combined effort of Noah Gregor, Alex True and Kevin Labanc. Gregor picked up a homerun pass that would have gone for an icing for a slower skater and fed true net front. The pass drew Kuemper out so that True’s rebound would go to Labanc for an easy empty net goal and a 3-0 lead with 5:52 left in the first. It’s Labanc’s 11th goal of the season, and first since April 9th. He missed Monday’s game with an injury.

Phil Kessel joined rare company, becoming one of three players to score eight goals against the Sharks in a season. He accomplished the feat with 4:13 left in the period for a 3-1 Sharks edge. He joins Teemu Selanne and Luc Robitaille in the outer club and has nearly as many goals against the Sharks as the rest of the league (10) this year. Johan Larsson scored 4:40 into the second to cut the lead to one at 3-2. Hertl’s empty-netter sealed the game for San Jose and gave him an Couture (secondary assist on the play) multipoint nights.

Next up for the Sharks is a road trip to Colorado. They’ll play a two game road set against the Avs before welcoming the second place in-division Colorado side for two at home as the season moves to the final weeks.

Notes: Brinson Pasichnuk made his NHL debut for the Sharks. He’s the first skater and second player from the fledgling Arizona State hockey program to make their NHL debuts this year. Joey D’accord played in net for the Ottawa Senators earlier this year…Matt Nieto skated in practice but a return date is still unclear…Alex True appeared in the lineup for the first time since March 3rd. He had his first point of the season…Evander Kane has seven career 20 goal seasons in total….John Leonard has his first point since an assist April 10th against Los Angeles.

Sacramento Kings game wrap: Kings just can’t keep up Jazz too much in 154-105 loss

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The score says it all as the Sacramento Kings get trounced by the Utah Jazz by 49 points at Golden One Center in Sacramento on Wed Apr 28, 2021 (@JazzNationNews image)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Wednesday night. The Kings last played on Monday night against the Dallas Mavericks. On Wednesday, the Kings were scheduled to take on the best team in the NBA, the Utah Jazz. The Kings weren’t able to match the power of the Jazz and ultimately lost 154-105 on Wednesday night. However, before we talk about the Jazz matchup let’s revisit the Kings last game against the Mavericks.

Flashback Monday: On Monday, the Kings took on the Dallas Mavericks in Sacramento. The Kings played a well-rounded game against a formidable opponent from Texas. The Kings managed to beat the Mavericks 113-106 in a game where Richaun Holmes scored 24 points.

Wednesday night recap: The Kings were set to take on the Utah Jazz on Wednesday at 7 PM PST in Sacramento.

In the first half, it was embarrassing for the Kings. The Kings didn’t seem to show any effort on the defensive end as the Jazz were getting pretty much all the shots they wanted. In the first quarter, the Kings were able to keep up with the Jazz but were still outscored in the quarter 30-27.

However, it was the second quarter that set the Kings in a tailspin. The Kings looked like a G League team against an NBA All-Star team in the second quarter. The Jazz outscored the Kings 46-17 in the second quarter to take a 76-44 lead into the second half. The Kings would need to right the ship against the best team in the NBA to make the game at the very least more respectable.

In the second half, the game was very ho-hum. In the third quarter, The Kings were in pure damage control mode. It was a triage situation unfolding in Sacramento. The third quarter saw the Kings with another massive deficit. The Jazz outscored the Kings 40-30 in the third quarter to run the lead up to 116-74 heading into the final quarter.

You can probably assume the ending. Yes, the Kings were again outscored in the fourth quarter 38-31 to take the loss by a final of 154-105. It was an embarrassing tale of two teams. The Jazz were the up-and-coming playoff-bound team looking to make noise in the playoffs, and the Kings the team with a lot of reflection to do. The Kings were led by Richaun Holmes who had 18 points in the loss. Utah was led by Bojan Bogdanovic who scored 24 points in the victory. The Kings will face a tough opponent in their next matchup looking to get back into the winner’s circle.

Up Next: The Kings will take on the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday at 7 PM PST inside the Staples Center.