Month: April 2024

Headline Sports with Bruce Magowan: Where Klay Thompson will end up; Giants and Diamondbacks conclude series today at Oracle

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During last Tue Apr 16, 2024’s game in Sacramento Klay Thompson (11) takes an off balance shot against the Sacramento Kings Harrison Barnes (40) at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. Thompson could be a free agent if the Warriors do not sign him this off season. (AP News photo)

On Headline Sports with Bruce Magowan:

#1 Bruce, talk about Klay Thompson his future. He is expected to ask for a bigger contract from Golden State. Is he overvaluing himself and do you see an exit for Thompson during this off season.

#2 Golden State is going to have make some tough decisions who else do you see also leaving the Warriors and what adjustments and changes are coming at Chase Center?

#3 The Giants in this Arizona Series saw Logan Webb retire 19 hitters in a row in a 5-0 shutout on Thursday. The Diamondbacks clobbered the Giants 17-1 on Friday night behind the first time pitching appearance of the Diamondbacks Jordan Montgomery. On Saturday the Giants Patrick Bailey went 4-4 with a home run and Jung Hoo Lee extended his 11 game hit streak.

Bruce Magowan is a podcast contributor for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O: Coyotes quick exit out of Arizona; Kings will be remembered for taking out Warriors; plus more news

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The Delta Center in Salt Lake City Utah which will be the home of the NHL Utah team for the 2024-25 season (AP News photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O:

#1 Short notice came from the NHL and the Arizona Coyotes when they had announced during the last week of the season that they were moving from the Mullet Center at ASU in Tempe to the Delta Center in Salt Lake City in Utah.

#2 The Sacramento Kings will be remembered for their win over the Golden State Warriors in the play in game. The Kings took down one of the most experienced teams in the NBA and were underdogs going into that game.

#3 The Kings as everyone knows were eliminated on Friday night by the New Orleans Pelicans. The Kings went into that play in game 0-5 against the Pelicans and the odds were not in the Kings favor. Talk about the mismatch between these two teams.

#4 New York Yankees radio voice John Sterling is hanging up the mic after 36 years as the Yankees voice and after a 64 year career. Sterling was honored before Friday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium with his family and a long list of Yankee greats. Sterling 85 years old first worked Yankee games since 1989. Sterling got a jersey with the number 5631 which represents the games he had called.

#5 The Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Jordan Montgomery had a good first outing with the Diamondbacks pitching six innings, four hits, one earned run, three strikeouts in the Diamondbacks crushing of the San Francisco Giants 17-1 last Friday night. The Diamondbacks in that first game from Jordan got what they expected from him.

Join Charlie O for Headline Sports each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Bay Area Panthers come from behind to win a thriller defeat Strike Force 53-50

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The scoreboard says it all as the Bay Area Panthers defeated the San Diego Strike Force by three points in a thriller at SAP Center in San Jose on Sat Apr 20, 2024 (Bay Area Panthers X photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg and Lauren Smith

SAN JOSE–If you have never been to an arena football game, I am here to tell you that you are missing out on a fun experience. It’s entertaining with much action, and the fans are fantastic. There is lots of scoring, interceptions, recovering a fumble in the end zone, some defense, and missed extra points, and it is a joy to watch.

Each team has eight players, three offensive linemen, and five players eligible to carry the ball. Defense is at a premium. It is wide-open football. Also, the SAP Arena is known for its loud noise. The fans, mostly young and enthusiastic, were cheering so loud I thought I was at a Sharks’ game.

The Bay Area Panthers defeated the San Diego Strike Force 53-50. Each team came into the game with a 3-0 record. The play in the first half was fast and furious. Felix Harper’s pass was intercepted on the Panthers’ first offense play. Not to worry, fans.

The Strike Force fumbled on their first play, and the Panthers recovered for the score. San Diego tied the game. Both teams missed the extra point after the touchdown. The Score was 6-6. The Panthers intercepted a pass for their second tally. San Diego had to settle for a field goal. The Panthers led 13-9. The Panthers kept the pressure on the San Diego defense. Bay Area went ahead 19-9.

San Diego answered with a touchdown. to make it 19-15. The Panthers increased the lead with two more scores to lead 31-15. San Diego countered with a TD and a two-point conversion to trail 31-23 with just one minute left in the half. The Panthers’ offense did not fail, and they scored with seven seconds left. The Panthers lead 38-23 at the end of the first half.

The Strike Force drew first blood in the second half. The Panthers’ defense let a San Diego wide receiver get past them, and the pass was on the mark for a touchdown. The extra point was good. The Panthers lead 38-30. The Panthers answered with a TD. The Kicker missed the extra point.

Bay Area leads 44-30 with 7:54 left in the third quarter. As mentioned above, the game is played at a frantic pace. San Diego closed the gap to seven points as they scored with 3:09 left. The Panthers are clinging to a seven-point advantage, 44-37. There was no more scoring in the third quarter.

The Panthers’ first drive of the fourth quarter stalled at the 10-yard line. The Kicker made the field goal to make it a 47-37 game. San Diego needed three plays to get into the endzone for another touchdown. The extra point was blocked. The Strike Force’s defense stiffened.

The Panthers had to kick from their end zone, and the kick was blocked and recovered on the Panthers’ six-yard line. San Diego scored on the first play. The extra point could have been better, but San Diego had their first game lead, 50-47. With 31 seconds left, the Panthers got a first down due to a penalty.

They got the ball to the Strike Force’s seven-yard line with 24 seconds left. A running play got the ball to the four-yard line. Harper could not find a receiver, so he ran the ball into the end zone for the score. They failed to make the extra point.

The Panthers lead 53-50 with 13 seconds left on the clock. The Panthers’ kickoff was returned to the Strike Force’s five-yard line. The noise level is off the chart. San Diego has to go 45 yards with ten seconds left. San Diego’s attempt for a field goal was not good. The Panthers win 53-50 to improve to 4-0 for the season.

After the game, I had the opportunity to talk with three Panther players. They knew time was running out, but they were confident they would pull out the win, and they did. Many of these young men may not make it to the NFL. They love the game of football, and they had a lot of fun playing arena football. Their next home game is on May 4th at the SAP Arena. The game will start at 6:056 pm.

Barracuda close out season with OT victory over Roadrunners 5-4

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Photo courtesy of San Jose Barracuda.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

The Barracuda closed out their season against the Roadrunners on Saturday, April 20th.

In goal for San Jose was Gabriel Carriere who was making his first start in a San Jose uniform.

On the other side of the rink, it was Dylan Wells in between the pipes. Heading into this one Wells had a 10-5-2 record with a 3.20 GAA and .900 SV%.

Tuscon ended up getting off to a scorching hot start in this one as just 24 seconds in former Shark John Leonard scored his 12th of the season.

The period though ended up being one of firsts as Mitchell Russel got his first career goal in the AHL to tie the game. Less than five minutes later it was another first as Gannon Laroque scored his first-ever goal in the AHL to give San Jose the lead.

Scoring took a little longer to get going in the second as the first goal wouldn’t come until 15:26 into the period when Filip Bystedt scored his fourth of the campaign. Shark fans have to be excited by Bystedt’s play so far as in just eight games he has seven points.

The final period in this one was one that San Jose probably would want to forget as they found a way to blow their lead.

It started with Milos Kelemen scoring just 1:05 into the period which was then followed up by a power play goal from Colin Theisen.

With the game tied the Roadrunners kept their foot on the gas and scored just 26 seconds later as Travis Barron got them the lead 4-3.

It looked like the Roadrunners were gonna pull off the comeback until Mason Klee also got his first goal in the AHL tying the game back up at four.

The game went to overtime and was ended by a breakaway goal scored by Tristen Robins getting his seventh of the season and securing the Barracuda’s 23rd win of the season.

The three stars of the game were: 1st: Tristen Robins 2nd: Milos Kelemen 3rd: Kyle Rau

The shots in this one favored San Jose 33-22 while the Barracuda went 0/4 on the power play and the Roadrunners went 1/5.

San Jose will end their season 23-34-10 with 60 points good enough for last place in the Pacific Division.

It was another dissapointing season for the Barracuda who will look to bounce back next season with a playoff berth.

KC opens up offense on Bay FC at CPKC Stadium 5-2

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It was a rough evening of football for Bay FC who were outscored by the KC Current at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City on Sat Apr 20, 2024 (Bay FC X photo)

By William Espy

Bay FC is on the road this weekend, visiting the Kansas City Current at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Lysianne Proulx returned from injury for tonight’s matchup, however, Scarlett Camberos is still out of the lineup with a leg injury.

It was also a milestone night for Caprice Dydasco who was appearing in her 150th regular season match. Alex Loera won the NWSL’s goal of the week award for her goal against the Seattle Reign last week and had the captain’s armband to start tonight’s game. Kansas City is known for their high-powered offense, and Bay FC is near the middle of the table for goals conceded so they’d need a strong defensive effort to walk away with three points in this game.

Bay FC Starting XI: Proulx, King, Sharples, Menges, Dydasco, Loera (C), Bailey, Castellanos, Kundananji, Oshoala, Boade

Kansas City Current Starting XI: Franch, Mace, Wheeler, Chawinga, Ball, Zaneratto, Hutton, DiBernardo, Feist, Robinson, Spaanstra

Kansas City took the lead in just the second minute, a turnover from Emily Menges allowed Bia Zaneratto to get behind the defense and Proulx had no chance to make a save. It wouldn’t take long for them to extend their lead either.

Off of a corner kick, a cross from Alexa Spaanstra was headed in by Bayley Feist to give the Current a 2-0 lead. This marked Feist’s first goal with her new team, and only the second of her NWSL career. She previously scored one with the Washington Spirit in 2019.

Bay FC got on the board during the 17th minute as Kayla Sharples scored her second goal in as many games. Off of a corner kick, Deyna Castellanos crossed it in and Sharples was able to find the back of the net off of a header.

Sharples was called for a yellow card in the 23rd minute following a challenge. She missed the ball entirely and caught the ball carrier’s legs, leaving the official with no choice but to book Bay FC’s goal scorer.

Early in the first half momentum was on Kansas City’s side and they were undoubtedly the better team. Once Sharples scored though, things started to even out a bit. Proulx was getting tested, however not as regularly as she was in the first 20 minutes.

In the 28th minute, Loera made a challenge on Zaneratto and after come contact she went down with an apparent leg injury. Based on her reaction as she went down, it seems like it’s going to be a serious injury. As one of Bay’s most important players was down on the pitch, manager Albertin Montoya attempted to fire up the remainder of his team and get them back in the game.

Eventually, Loera was removed from the game, and Joelle Anderson came into the game in the 32nd minute as the delay ended. With Loera leaving the match, the captain’s armband was passed to Emily Menges. The final 15 minutes of the half were fairly even and Bay FC was unable to tie it up in the first 45 minutes. Kansas City would hold a 2-1 lead heading into halftime.

The second half started with a great scoring opportunity for Bay, however, a header from Asisat Oshoala went too high and it remained 2-1. In the 56th minute, Kansas City made it 3-1 when Temwa Chawinga received a breakout pass from Vanessa DiBernardo and toe-poked it past Proulx.

History repeated itself just a few minutes later, as a breakout pass from Dibernardo once again found Chawinga. Prolux was playing forward, and as a result there was no chance to make a save. Chawinga’s shot found an empty net, and Kansas City led 4-1. Immediately after the kickoff, the Current got the ball back and Proulx was out of her net once again, and needed to make a late save to keep it 4-1 for the time being.

In the 66th minute, Kansas City made a trio of substitutions as it seemed that they had the game won at that point. In the 67th, Bay FC countered with a couple of substitutions of their own. Princess came on for Castellanos, while Caroline Conti made her NWSL debut, taking Dorian Bailey’s spot.

In the 69th minute, Zaneratto got a quality scoring chance with Tess Boade attempting to come back and defend but the shot went just wide. In the 73rd minute, Zaneratto got her second of the night as well powering through the debuting Conti before firing it into the back of the net.

Shortly after the second goal though, she went down in some discomfort and was eventually substituted off for 16-year-old Alex Pfeiffer. Boade made it 5-2 after a fantastic solo effort, essentially walking through the entire defense in the 78th minute.

Savy King and Sharples came off for the debuting Maddie Moreau and Jordan Brewster in the 81st minute. In the 87th minute, Princess was shown a yellow card for a foul on Ellis Wheeler. Bay threw everything they had at Kansas City late in the game in an attempt to overcome the odds and claw their way back into the game, but they were unable to do so and the game ended with a final score of 5-2. After the game, Montoya was unable to give an update on Loera’s injury, stating that they were waiting for test results.

A’s Struggle With Guardians Pitching Losing Game Two 6-3

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Oakland A’s Max Schuemann slugs a top of the fifth inning home run off of the Cleveland Guardians pitcher Logan Allen at Progressive Field in Cleveland on Sat Apr 20, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Oakland A’s (8-13) were a lot more competitive than they were in Friday’s game although coming up short losing to the Cleveland Guardians (15-6) 6-3. The Cleveland pitching is a tough nut to crack, one of the reasons that they are the best team in baseball right now.

Game recap: Unlike the game Friday, it was the Guardians first up on the board in the first inning taking a 2-0 lead. Jose Ramirez doubled and David Fry scored for the early 1-0 lead. Cleveland would add to their lead in the first off the bat of Ramon Laureano driving Ramirez home for a 2-0 tally.

Neither team would score in the second, third nor fourth innings. Oakland tied up this game in the fifth inning when both Ryan Noda and Max Schuemann hit back-to-back solo home runs. This was Schuemann’s first MLB hit and it was a dandy, in fact he came very close to a home run in his first at bat in this game.

This tie game was short-lived. In the bottom of the fifth inning the Guardians broke the tie taking a 4-2 lead. Josh Naylor homered with Steven Kwan on base and Cleveland had a 2-run lead 4-2.

Oakland pitcher Alex Wood went five innings before being relieved by Michael Kelly. He allowed 8 hits, four runs with 4 strikeouts. It was a challenging game for Wood on the mound. Kelly pitched one inning allowing one hit, no runs with 2 strikeouts.

In the sixth inning, the A’s Abraham Toro tripled and Oakland was threatening to tie up this game. The A’s were unable to tie up the game but Shea Langeliers hit a sacrifice, Toro scored and Oakland trailed by a single run 4-3 in this highly competitive contest. The question now, could the A’s remain competitive.

Oakland’s Austin Adams relieved Kelly on the mound in the seventh inning. The Guardians added another run in the inning taking a 5-3 lead with one out and runners on first and second. Josh Naylor singled Steven Kwan home for the 5-3 tally.

Cleveland would strike again in the seventh when Tyler Freeman singled and David Fry scored for a 6-3 Guardian lead. Through seven innings the A’s had five hits while Cleveland had 13. There was some lop-sided offense going on in this game. Again it was the Guardian pitching that was giving Oakland a lot of trouble.

In the top of the eighth inning, the A’s tried to put something together. They had a runner, Zach Gelof on base on a walk with one out and Abraham Toro at the plate. Toro struck out and Shea Langeliers came to the plate and pop flied out and the A’s were unable to add to their score continuing to trail by the score of 6-3.

Oakland was running out of innings. In the bottom of the eighth inning there was a pitching change for the A’s as TJ McFarland took over on mound. He faced Steven Kwan who had been on fire the entire series.

Kwan singled with two outs after already having 4 hits and two runs. David Fry struck out looking for the third out and the A’s had the ninth inning to make any sort of move. Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase got the job done striking out the A’s Lawrence Butler for the final out and that was the ballgame 6-3.

After the first two games in this series it is easy to see why Cleveland has one of the best records in MLB. They now have a 15-6 record with the Yankees right on their heels. They have extraordinary starters and an excellent bullpen.

These were a couple of tough games for the Oakland A’s. They had six hits while the Cleveland Guardians finished with 14 hits. Oakland did have two home runs in the game but both were solo. The highlight of this game for A’s fans in attendance was the home run coming off the bat of Schuemann his first career hit, which turned out to be his first career home run.

His first big-league hit was his first big-league homer, a very special moment for Schuemann and his family and friends in the stands supporting him. This was Oakland’s 6th game with 2+ home runs.

Game notes: Friday, the A’s took a beating at the hands of the Guardians in game one of this series at Progressive Field. The A’s hit solo home runs in the first and the ninth innings but the Guardians scored ten runs in innings two through nine for the 10-2 win. Cleveland was relentless and the A’s had a lot of trouble offensively. Cleveland had an excellent game on the mound and Saturday’s game was no exception either as the won again beating Oakland by three runs 6-3.

Oakland will try to salvage the series Sunday and avoid the sweep in game three of this series before moving on to New York and a four-game series with the Yankees on Monday. First pitch in game three Sunday is scheduled for 10:40 AM. Ross Stripling (0-4 ERA 5.32) will get the start for Oakland and Tanner Bibee (1-0 ERA 4.82) will take the mound for the Guardians.

Patrick Bailey Goes 4-4 As The San Francisco Giants Beat The Arizona Diamondbacks 7-3

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San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey goes yard with a bottom of the fifth inning home run off the Arizona Diamondbacks at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sat Apr 20, 2024 (AP News photo)

Saturday, April 20th, 2024

By Troy Ewers

SAN FRANCISCO–The San Francisco Giants bounced back with a 7-3 win this afternoon in a quick turnaround after last night’s 17-1 defeat at the hands of the Arizona Diamondbacks. San Francisco is in the midst of its longest homestand of the season with this 10-game stint…after the Diamondbacks depart Oracle Park following Sunday’s game, the Giants will host the New York Mets for a three game series Monday-Wednesday and the Pittsburgh Pirates for three Friday-Sunday. 

Jung Hoo Lee entered Saturday’s game with a ten game hitting streak still intact following his day off Friday. Lee picked up two hits to extend his hit streak to 11 hits. Lee is slashing .349/.378/.395 with two doubles, an RBI, two walks, two steals and eight runs in that stretch (since April 7). On the mound Saturday was duel between Kyle Harrison for the Giants who went four innings giving up six hits and three runs and Zac Gallen for Arizona who went five innings, nine hits and five runs.

Game recap: Christian Walker got the D-Backs on the board first with an RBI single, 1-0. The Giants took a lead the same inning thanks to a Jung Hoo Lee home run and a Wilmer Flores sac fly that scored Lamonte Wade Jr., 2-1 SF.  Patrick Bailey on his bobblehead day, doubled to center, and scored Wade Jr. 3-1 SF. The Diamondbacks tied it up after Blaze Alexander and Kevin Newman got RBIs, 3-3. 

Bailey had a 4-4 day, but the big moment on his day, hit a two run homer, 5-3 SF. He also had a ground rule double. Lee got an RBI double to add to his streak to 11 games and Michael Conforto hit a single that gave the Giants a 7-3 lead and after Doval came in to close, the game was over and the Giants now hold the series lead. 7-3 SF wins.

Final game in the series is Sunday April 21st and on the mound for the Giants is Jordan Hicks (2-0, 1.57). For the Diamondbacks on the mound is Merrill Kelly (2-0, 2.19) 1:05pm PDT.

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast with Mary Lisa: A run down for this weekends NHL Playoff games

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Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho celebrates with teammates after the Hurricanes defeat the Washington Capitals on Fri Apr 5, 2024 in Raleigh NC. The Hurricanes face off against the New York Islanders in game 1 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs in Carolina on Sat Apr 20, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs with Mary Lisa:

#1 Mary, lets take each of the NHL Playoffs games that are coming up this Saturday and Sunday. The first game New York Islanders (39-27-16) and the Carolina Hurricanes (52-23-7). The Islanders Matt Barzal led with 80 points, Brock Nelson 34 goals, Noah Dobson 60 assists. The Hurricanes Sebastian Aho leads in 89 points, 36 goals, and 53 assists.

#2 Next match up are the Boston Bruins with David Pastrnak leading in all three categories with 110 points, 47 goals, and 63 assists. The Toronto Maple Leafs have Auston Matthews leading in points at 107, 69 goals, and Mitch Marner with 59 assists.

#3 The next pairing are the Tampa Bay Lightning with Nikita Kucherov leading with 144 points and 100 assists and Brayden Point leading in goals with 46. The Florida Panthers Sam Reinhart leads in points with 94 and 57 goals and Matthew Tkachuk has 62 assists.

#4 The Washington Capitals Dylan Stronme leads with 67 points, Alex Ovechkin 31 goals, and 42 assists for John Carlson. For the New York Rangers Artemi Panarin leads in all three categories in points 120, goals 49 and assists 71.

#5 Mary, to round it off just to get your picks for these two more playoff games being played on Sunday with the Colorado Avalanche at the Winnipeg Jets and the Nashville Predators @ Vancouver Canucks.

Mary Lisa is an NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast contributor at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Roadrunners dominate Barracuda in 5-1 win

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Players from the Tucson Roadrunners huddle up to celebrate Aku Raty second period goal against the San Jose Barracuda on Friday APR 19, 2024. (Tucson Roadrunners)

by Marko Ukalovic

The Tucson Roadrunners scored five unanswered goals, including four in the third period, after the first period in a 5-1 convincing win over the San Jose Barracuda in both team’s penultimate game on Friday evening at Tucson Convention Center Arena.

San Jose has lost two games in a row after winning two in a row with one more game left in the regular season. Tucson has won a season best six games in a row as they battle the Ontario Reign for second place in the Pacific Division with the Roadrunners with a 91-89 edge in points.

The Barracuda (23-34-10-4) drew first blood late in the first period with an even strength goal. Tristen Robins won a battle along the boards. Robins centered the puck back to Scott Sabourin, who had just come on to the ice on a line change, who fired a wrist shot past Roadrunners goalie Matthew Villalta for his 18th goal of the season at the 15:36 mark.

San Jose out shot Tucson 7-4 in the opening frame that didn’t feature many good scoring chances by both teams.

Tucson (43-23-3-2) scored the only goal of the second period while on the man advantage. Aku Raty picked up a loose puck after a scramble in front of the crease. Raty beat ‘Cuda goalie Magnus Chrona with a snipe top shelf to the short side for his 15th goal of the season at the 3:42 mark.

The Roadrunners scored four unanswered even strength goals in the third period in the final 5:12 of the final frame. First at the 14:48 mark, Max Szuber cleaned up the rebound of a Hunter Drew shots into an empty net for his seventh goal of the season.

Tucson scored 53 seconds later to go up 3-0. Austin Poganski centered the puck from behind the net out to Cameron Hebig between the face off circles. Hebig’s one-timer beat Chrona to the far side for his 12th goal of the season.

Nathan Smith scored an empty net goal at the 17:54 mark, when the ‘Cuda pulled Chrona for an extra attacker, for his 1tth goal of the season.

Ben McCartney completed the scoring with his sixth goal of the season with 40 seconds left in the game. Szuber found McCartney in the left wing. The Tucson center skated back into the middle before roofing a backhander past Chrona for his sixth goal of the season.

Villalta (31-17-3-3) finished the game stopping 19 of the 20 shots he faced to earn his 31st win of the season. Chrona (6-17-6) made 30 saves on 34 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished 0-for-1 on the power play. Tucson was 1-for-4.

The Three Stars of the Game: 1) Szuber 2) Poganski 3) Smith.

UP NEXT: Both teams conclude their two-game series and their regular season finales on Saturday 4/20 at 7:00pm at Tucson Convention Center Arena.

New Orleans Pelicans beat Kings, 105-98, to advance to first round of playoffs

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The New Orleans Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas takes a shot over Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) in the first half of the NBA Play In game at Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans on Fri Apr 19, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Sacramento Kings, fresh off a huge thumping of the Golden State Warriors last Tuesday night, were beaten by the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans’ star forward, Zion Williamson, suffered a leg injury in the loss to the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night. The Pelicans are now the eighth seed in the Western Conference and will face the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night in OKC. The Lakers are the seventh seed and will play the defending NBA Champions, the Denver Nuggets. The Pelicans were in control for most of the game defeating and knocking out the Kings of the post season with a 105-98 play in win at Smoothie King Arena.

The Kings had met the Pelicans five times during the regular season. The Pelicans won all five. In one game, with Williamson injured, the Pelicans put 130 points on the board to beat the Kings. The Kings had two key players out with injuries. Malik Monk, a great coming off the bench, and Kevin Huerter, a good three-point threat, would not dress for the game.

The Kings hoped that Keegan Murray could play as he did against the Warriors. Murray put 32 points on the board and made eight threes. Rookie Keon Ellis, who was undrafted from the University of Alabama, scored fifteen against the Warriors, and his defense slowed down Stephen Curry’s efforts last Tuesday night.

One of the keys to the Pelicans’ win was their bench. The Pelican bench outscored the Kings’ bench 34-12. The Pelicans had three bench players in double figures. Larry Nance, Jr had 13, Naji Marshall,11, and Jose Alvarado 10. The Kings’ Damion Mitchell had ten for Sacramento.

The Pelicans and Kings started the game with a highly competitive first quarter, with the Kings managing to edge ahead with a 24-22 win. However, the Pelicans’ offense came alive in the second quarter, scoring 32 points and holding the Kings to just 21 points. This strong performance allowed the Pelicans to finish the first half with a 54-45 lead, a lead they would maintain for the rest of the game.

The Kings won the second half 53-51, but it was not enough to overcome the nine-point first-half deficit. De’Aaron Fox led the Kings with 35 points. Fox was an offensive force, but he could do it alone. The Kinks’ Domantis Sabonis had a double-double with 23 points and 14 rebounds.

Sabonis showed off his passing skills as he recorded seven assists. Former Warrior Harrison Barnes tallied 17 points. Keegan Murray had a tough night. He was brilliant against the Warriors last Tuesday. He was a dud on Friday night in New Orleans. Murray scored 11 points and made two three-pointers and seven tries. Keon Ellis, who played so well against Golden State, did not score a point. 

Brandon Ingram led the Pelicans with 24 points. The Pelicans’ big man, Jonas Valanciunas, had a double-double with 19 points and 12 boards. Trey Murphy added 16. The veteran guard, C.J. McCollum, tallied seven. Even with McCollums’ off-night, the Pelicans had enough firepower to beat the Kings.

The playoffs start on Sunday. The Pelicans face the OKC Thunder, the Lakers play the Nuggets, the Minnesota Timberwolves tip off against the Phoenix Suns, and the Los Angeles Clippers play the Dallas Mavericks.

In the Eastern Conference first round, the Boston Celtics will play the Miami Heat, The New York Knicks will see the Philadelphia 76ers, The Milwaukee Bucks will go against the Indiana Pacers, and the Cleveland Cavaliers will battle the Orlando Magic.

It had to be a crushing defeat for the Kings. The Kings had a year to think about their loss to the Warriors last year, who beat them in the seven-game series. The Warriors and the Kings will be in the playoffs this year. The Kings’ front office will have to assess their roster and make moves to get them back into the playoffs next year.