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Memphis Grizzlis Vs Sacramento Kings

Kings Overtake a Tough Memphis Team

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AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

By Jeff Hall

SACRAMENTO –

The Kings hosted a tough team in the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies are one of the NBA’s best teams and the Kings came away with a 102-90 win.

The Kings got off to a good start in the first quarter against the Grizzlies an opened the game with a 32-25 lead. The Grizzlies struggled with poor shooting in the first shooting 43 percent from the field. The Kings shot 53.8 percent with just two turnovers that led to four Grizzly points. Ben McLemore led the Kings in scoring with 11 first quarter points.

The Kings carried their lead to the end of the first half of action with a 61-52 lead as the Grizzlies there poor shooting finishing the first half shooting 44.4 percent from the field Late In the second quarter Kings Head coach George Karl received his first Technical and DeMarcus Cousins got into foul trouble and picked up his third foul with three minutes remaining in the first half. Cousins walked off the court extremely frustrated with the officiating and kicked a chair on the bench Rudy Gay then put on a scoring show with six quick points inside the paint. Gay had 16 points in the first

But Zach Randolph fired a desperation shot and finished the half firing a sixty-two foot shot and sinking the long three pointer as time expired in the second.

Early in the third quarter the Grizzlies began showing their frustrations when Zach Randolph and DeMarcus Cousins got into a heated exchange under the basket at the Grizzlies end. Randolph was charged with a technical.

Once Cousins got into foul trouble the Kings began to struggle in the third quarter and saw their 10 point lead evaporate. The Grizzlies began stepping their game up both defensively and physically and that play would gain a one point lead 77-76 at the end of the third. The Grizzlies outscored the Kings 25-14 in the third.

The Kings responded with a strong fourth quarter outscoring the Grizzlies

Cousins foul trouble kept his scoring numbers down, However Cousins still had a Solid performance with 16 points and Nine rebounds and six assists despite limited minutes

Rudy Gay led the way in scoring for the Kings with twenty-eight points and 10 rebounds and six assists.

Coach Karl was pleased with the play of Cousins despite the foul trouble. “Cousins had a great game considering he played twenty-four minutes, most guys don’t have games like that in that amount of time.” said Karl after the game.

Up next the Kings will host the San Antonio Spurs at Sleep Train Arena on Friday.

Kings Notes: The Kings announced Vance Walberg as a new assistant coach. Walberg has more than three decades of experience at the pre, collegiate an professional levels. Walberg was formerly an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers. He was an Assistant for George Karl with the Denver Nuggets.

Cal Spoils Stanford Senior Day

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By: Joe Lami

Earlier in the week it was Stanford that spoiled Cal’s senior night, as they defeated the Bears 59-47 on Wednesday at Haas Pavilion. However, this time it was the Bears that got the last laugh, as once they defeated the Cardinal 63-53 on Sunday afternoon. This week’s past series reminds us of the one played two years ago, where Stanford knocked off Cal in Berkley to start the week, and the Bears were able to return the favor at Maples Pavilion later on in the week.

Reshanda Grey led the way for the Bears with 17 points, but Mercedes Jefflo was the key for Cal, as she followed closely with 15 points. Jefflo made two three-pointers down the stretch that helped Cal get on a run to help beat the Cardinal. Jefflo then said after the game “It just puts out a statement that it’s not only Stanford anymore, it’s multiple teams, and always going to be a battle.” Cal coach, Lindsay Gottlieb later commented, “This is a big one for us, Stanford is so good and our conference is so good.”

Brittnay McPhee led the Cardinal with an astonishing 24 points, making head coach, Tara VanDerveer, thinking about getting her into the starting lineup. Before scoring 24 points, a career high, on Sunday, McPhee had only put up 45 points all season.

Amber Orrange was the only other Stanford player to hit double figures with 11 points, as the rest of the lineup distributed scoring equally.

The Cardinal have been officially eliminated from regular season champion contention with the loss, as it is now up between Oregon State and Arizona State. Both the Bears and Cardinal hope to ruin the hopes of Oregon State, as they each head up to Corvallis next weekend, as well as Eugene to take on the Oregon Ducks to end the season.

Pep talks inspire Cardinal to needed win over Cal

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>
>By Daniel Dullum
>Sports Radio Service
>Saturday, February 21, 2015
>
>There might be something to pre-game pep talks after all.
>
>Stanford Coach Johnny Dawkins brought in a trio of guest speakers prior to the Cardinal’s 72-61 men’s basketball victory over California on Saturday at Maples Pavilion. >
>One of them was former Stanford center Adam Keefe. Another was 49ers legend Ronnie Lott. Dawkins said afterward he thought it was “an appropriate time” to have Lott and Co. speak to his ballclub. >
>It must have worked, as the Cardinal led from start to finish before holding off a late Bears rally. The Bears (16-11 overall, 6-8 Pac-12) outscored Stanford 38-37 in the second half. >
>One of the keys to Stanford’s win was the return to form of Chasson Randle, who had been in a slump of late, especially on the road. Randle bagged 19 points, to go along with eight assists and three rebounds. >
>Besides Randle’s effort, it’s hard to overlook the contributions off the bench from Michael Humphrey, who scored 14 points (7 of 8 FG) and grabbed 11 boards. Anthony Brown was also instrumental, getting 16 points and 11 rebounds while hitting 3 of 5 from 3-point range. >
>The win also keeps the Cardinal (17-9 overall, 8-6 Pac-12) in the hunt for a potential first-round bye in the upcoming conference tournament in Las Vegas. Stanford was fifth in the Pac-12 standings going into Saturday’s contest, 1 1/2 games out of third. The top four teams get a first-round bye. >
>The Cardinal not only led from start to finish, they were up 15 with nine minutes remaining in the second half. Cal then caught fire, as David Kravish scored on two straight possessions and reserve Brandon Chauca sank a 3-pointer with 4:40 to play, cutting Stanford’s lead to 63-55. >
>Randle had a subpar night shooting, hitting 5 of 16 from the floor, but he sank a pair of free throws to stem Cal’s rally. On the Cardinal’s next possession, Randle found Stefan Nastic open for a layup to extend Stanford’s lead to 67-55. The Cardinal finished their scoring at the free throw line. >
>Stanford held the rebounding edge 38-25, and hit 44 percent from the floor and 5 of 9 3-pointers. >
>The Cardinal host Oregon State on Thursday.

Pep talks inspire Cardinal to needed win over Cal

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, February 21, 2015

There might be something to pre-game pep talks after all.

Stanford Coach Johnny Dawkins brought in a trio of guest speakers prior to the Cardinal’s 72-61 men’s basketball victory over California on Saturday at Maples Pavilion.

One of them was former Stanford center Adam Keefe. Another was 49ers legend Ronnie Lott. Dawkins said afterward he thought it was “an appropriate time” to have Lott and Co. speak to his ballclub.

It must have worked, as the Cardinal led from start to finish before holding off a late Bears rally. The Bears (16-11 overall, 6-8 Pac-12) outscored Stanford 38-37 in the second half.

One of the keys to Stanford’s win was the return to form of Chasson Randle, who had been in a slump of late, especially on the road. Randle bagged 19 points, to go along with eight assists and three rebounds.

Besides Randle’s effort, it’s hard to overlook the contributions off the bench from Michael Humphrey, who scored 14 points (7 of 8 FG) and grabbed 11 boards. Anthony Brown was also instrumental, getting 16 points and 11 rebounds while hitting 3 of 5 from 3-point range.

The win also keeps the Cardinal (17-9 overall, 8-6 Pac-12) in the hunt for a potential first-round bye in the upcoming conference tournament in Las Vegas. Stanford was fifth in the Pac-12 standings going into Saturday’s contest, 1 1/2 games out of third. The top four teams get a first-round bye.

The Cardinal not only led from start to finish, they were up 15 with nine minutes remaining in the second half. Cal then caught fire, as David Kravish scored on two straight possessions and reserve Brandon Chauca sank a 3-pointer with 4:40 to play, cutting Stanford’s lead to 63-55.

Randle had a subpar night shooting, hitting 5 of 16 from the floor, but he sank a pair of free throws to stem Cal’s rally. On the Cardinal’s next possession, Randle found Stefan Nastic open for a layup to extend Stanford’s lead to 67-55. The Cardinal finished their scoring at the free throw line.

Stanford held the rebounding edge 38-25, and hit 44 percent from the floor and 5 of 9 3-pointers.

The Cardinal host Oregon State on Thursday.

Cardinal Pac-12 road woes continue with loss to Colorado

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Sunday, February 16, 2015

Colorado held off a late Stanford run Sunday afternoon, as the Buffaloes outlasted the Cardinal 64-58 in Pac-12 men’s basketball at Coors Events Center in Boulder, Colorado.

The Cardinal pulled to within 61-58 when Chasson Randle sank a pair of free throws with 20 seconds remaining in the second half. Randle intercepted Xavier Johnson’s inbound pass and headed for the hoop, but Johnson drew an offensive foul.

From there, free throws sealed the Buffs’ win, which snapped a three-game losing streak for CU. It was also the fourth time this season Stanford was held under 60 points.

Askia Booker led Colorado (12-12 overall, 5-7 Pac-12) with 17 points, three rebounds and four assists. Booker scored 14 of his points in the first half and didn’t score again until hitting a 3-pointer with 2:30 to play, putting the Buffs up 58-51.

Johnson also pulled down 13 boards to go with his 10 points, and Josh Scott added 10 rebounds as the Buffaloes outrebounded Stanford by 46-38 and held the Cardinal to 33 percent shooting. Colorado led 29-23 at halftime.

Stefan Nastic netted 24 points and seven rebounds for the Cardinal (16-9, 7-5), Anthony Brown grabbed 13 rebounds and Randle finished with 14 points, six below his average.

The Cardinal were without the services of swingman Roscoe Allen for the second straight game, Allen, who is averaging 8.8 points and 5.0 rebounds, has a back ailment.

This Saturday, the Cardinal return home to host cross-bay rival California.

Samuelson Sisters Shoot Stanford to Victory

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By: Joe Lami

The Stanford Cardinal defeated the UCLA Bruins 68-50 on Sunday, with much thanks to the Samuelson sisters, who combined for 38 of the Cardinals’ 68 points.

Older sister, Bonnie, led the way with 24 points, all of which came from beyond the arc, as she hit a career high eight three-pointers in the victory. Karlie was second in Cardinal scoring, adding 14 points, with 12 of them coming from three-point land.

Stanford finished the night shooting 43% from the field, though Lili Thompson was the only Stanford player not named Samuelson to score more than ten points, as she finished with 12.

UCLA was led by Jordin Canada scoring ten points. The Bruins were also held scoreless from three-point range.

Stanford improves their record to 19-7 going into the big week with games again Cal on Wednesday and Sunday.

18th hole at Pebble Beach

AT&T PEBBLE BEACH PRO-AM: Steady Snedeker runs away with crown

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By Jeremy Harness

PEBBLE BEACH – Brandt Snedeker is a very simple guy and has a simple golf game to go along with it. Take the $25 putter he has been using for the past few years, for instance.

Turns out that on a challenging, majestic course like Pebble Beach, simple worked out just fine for him.

Using a nice touch around the greens as well as his familiar short, popping putting stroke that allowed him to roll in more than his share of birdie putts throughout the weekend, Snedeker blew past the field en route to his second AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am title in three years by a three-stroke margin.

Snedeker, who had only three top-10 finishes all of last season, shot a bogey-free 67 and only had to write down one bogey on his card the entire tournament. In the process, Snedeker punched his own ticket to this year’s Masters with the victory.

“This win means a lot more than the last one did (in 2013) because of everything I’d gone through in the last year and a half,” said Snedeker, who started working with new instructor Butch Harmon shortly after last year’s U.S Open.

His closest competitors were not as consistent, particularly down the stretch. Jim Furyk began Sunday with a one-stroke advantage over Snedeker, Nick Watney and Matt Jones following a blistering 63 in the third round. Unlike Saturday’s round that saw him roll in putt after putt, however, he could not get on track in the final round.

Even though he put himself in good positions with his ball striking, his putts simply did not find the hole like Snedeker’s, and as a result, he ended up gradually falling out of contention as the round went along.

“I couldn’t have hit two better shots at (all of the first three holes), but I couldn’t make any of the putts,” said Furyk, who added that frustration built as the round went along, as he continued to hit good shots but could not capitalize with the putter. “It started snowballing on me.”

In the early going, Furyk was patient, but while that was going on, Watney had a white-hot start to his final round. He birdied the first four holes, and at that point, he was ahead by a pair of shots while consistently finding the fairway.

However, he soon cooled off a bit as his driving accuracy faded. He dropped a shot on each of the next two holes, including the par-5 sixth hole that saw him get too aggressive with his second shot and wound up in the hazard, resulting in a one-stroke penalty.

“Probably (the) worst swing of the week,” Watney said. “(I) just wasn’t as committed as I needed to be.”

From there, it was a Jekyll-and-Hyde round for Watney, as he traded two birdies for a pair of bogeys for the next seven holes. Then he got to the par-5 14th, where he hit his tee shot into the fairway bunker and was forced to lay up.

He then hit his approach shot left of the green and ended up chipping onto the green twice, after his first chip didn’t make it up the slope and rolled back into the rough, resulting in another bogey to drop him four shots back.

Watney was able to retrieve his game a bit after that, making birdie on the last two holes, but by that time, it was too late, as Snedeker did not give Watney – or anyone else – a chance to catch up.

“He didn’t really show a weakness,” Watney said of Snedeker. “There’s not much to not like about today. He played really well. He made the putts that you would expect him to make, and he got the ‘W.’”

Bill Murray at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Post Third Round Interviews

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AP Photo/Eric Risberg

By Jeff Hall

PEBBLE BEACH –

Jeremy Harness and I were on the job talking with several great current Bay Area athletes and some of the greatest sports athletes to ever play their games, Including the Great One, Wayne Gretzky, who spoke of great memories playing in the Cow Palace against the Sharks in San Francisco. Add to that the premiere celebrity at the AT&T National Pro-Am tournament Bill Murray.

Matt Cain’s play of the day was a chip-in on the third hole a Pebble Beach in the 3rd round. Matt talked about wrapping up the off-season and having a throwing session while spending time in Monterey.

In a short conversation Bill Murray talked seriously about life and the game of golf and his participation in the tournament.

 

 

Jim Furyk in the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

AT&T PEBBLE BEACH PRO-AM: Furyk rips through Pebble, grabs lead

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AP Photo/Eric Risberg

By Jeremy Harness

PEBBLE BEACH – Jim Furyk was a little off the mark in preparation for his round Saturday at Pebble Beach. As soon as he hit the course, however, he was on point, and it showed.

Furyk took control of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on Saturday, as his bogey-free 63 at Pebble Beach planted him on top of the leaderboard heading into the final round at Pebble. He currently sits one stroke ahead of both Matt Jones and Brandt Snedeker.

He got himself three birdies on the front nine, and after the 10th hole, he went on an absolute tear. He ran off three straight birdies on holes 11 through 13 before going back-to-back at the 15th and 16th. Following a par at the 17th, he stuffed a wedge shot at the par-5 18th to six inches to close with another birdie.

After a bogey-free opening round at Monterey Peninsula, he had a pair of bogeys tagged to his card Friday at Spyglass Hill but still managed to finish with a two-under 70 to keep his good momentum going and set him up for his third-round performance.

However, Furyk said that he didn’t hit the ball very well on the practice range prior to Saturday’s round, which can drain a player’s confidence rather quickly. On the other hand, he said that made him focus a bit more, and the results proved his point.

“When I’m hitting it (good on the range), when I got a lot of confidence and I feel like I’m clicking and firing on all cylinders with my swing, sometimes we get a little greedy,” he said. “We try to hit a shot that we shouldn’t try to hit, get a little lackadaisical at times and make a bad swing from loss of concentration.

“That’s happened to me in the past,” he continued. “I tended to play some of my best tournaments when I was really close to being on, but just a notch off.”

Furyk’s last win came in the 2010 Tour Championship, a victory that netted him $10 million.

Unlike Furyk, however, Jones’ ball-striking issues showed up on the golf course. He was in the fairway only five times on Saturday and only hit 11 greens in regulation, putting a lot of stress on his short game.

“It was just a battle of my ball striking that made the course tougher than it had to be for me,” Jones said. “Not being able to hit the drivers I wanted or control the ball flight or trajectory or the distances with my irons, I just put myself in bad positions off the tee, which makes it tougher to get access to these pins.”

He had his struggles on the back nine, where he started his round, but he heated up in a huge way as soon as he made the turn. He ran off six birdies in the first seven holes of the back side before stumbling into the clubhouse with back-to-back bogeys.

“I’m in a good position,” said Jones, who finished with a 67 to get himself into the final grouping on Sunday with Furyk.

Furyk and Jones are scheduled to tee off at 10:05 am PST, and one group ahead of them will be Brandt Snedeker and Sacramento-area native Nick Watney, a die-hard San Francisco Giants fan who has been paired with Giants catcher Buster Posey for the first three days of this event.

For much of Saturday morning, Snedeker either had – or was tied for – the lead, but was surpassed by Jones and Furyk. The putts did not roll in for him like they were during his opening-round 64 at Monterey Peninsula, but he nonetheless finished with a five-under 67 and has continued to put himself in position to win.

“I kind of scraped it around a little bit today,” Snedeker said. “You’re going to have a bad stretch of golf, when you’re not playing your best. I was able to survive that and kind of get up and down when I needed to.

“I was able to gut out a good round. You kind of have to do that.”

Like Furyk, Watney birdied holes 11 through 13 as well as the 18th and shot a 65 and did not drop a single shot the entire day.

“It was a great day,” said Watney, also referring to the fact that Posey also made the cut and will be playing Sunday. “It’s beautiful weather, and the courses are there for the taking, but you can still make bogeys if you get too aggressive.”

One player who will not be playing Sunday is John Daly, who missed the cut by a single stroke. After shooting an opening-round 65 at Pebble, he could not sustain that momentum the next two days and culminated in a one-over round of 73 at Spyglass Hill.

He would have fallen out of contention quicker had it not been for his playing partner, effervescent former NFL cornerback-head coach Herman Edwards, a Seaside native whose never-ending positive attitude had a definite effect on Daly.

A particularly-telling moment came at the par-3 sixth, after Daly’s pitch shot off the green rolled past the hole and down a steep slope, leaving him with a 20-foot putt for par and compelled him to tear up the grass in the immediate area out of frustration.

He missed the par putt and dropped a shot when he could least afford to, after which Edwards walked over to him and put his arm around the struggling pro, offering words of encouragement in the process. It seemed to have an immediate effect, as Daly was smiling again by the time they hit their tee shots at the next hole, which Daly birdied.

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am commentary & podcast: Jones and Snedeker leading the way on the boards weather conditions permitting big time

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by Jeff Hall & Jeremy Harness

PEBBLE BEACH–The thing about the course at Pebble Beach Spyglass Hill it rained here with the big storm one week ago Friday the greens are a little wet and the ball is sticking on the greens and the players are taking advantage of it. Matt Jones who led the leaderboard with -12 mentioned on Friday that the conditions at Spyglass was the best he ever has seen in the seven years that he’s played here.

Brandt Snedeker said that he enjoyed the conditions and no wind it gave him a great chance to not play the weather but play the game good enough to get him in a two way tie with Jones with a -12, “There’s no hitting toward the middle of the greens the rest of the week. You’ve got to keep your foot on the gas pedal and keep going low” Snedeker said.

Pebble has the smallest greens, the greens start to harden up that golf course becomes more and more difficult, so we’ll see how that plays out because you have the leaders there today. “last year, I remember playing the Monterey Penninsula in 35 MPH wind and rain blowing sideways. It was not very much fun at all. It’s a far cry from that this year, 75 degrees and sweating out there. When the weather’s like this, there’s no better place to be on the planet” said Snedeker.

Working the course we had to find a place to plant ourselves and watch some golf and get a good view of the action out there. There’s nothing like seeing the best in the world playing golf. It’s a thing of beauty of course, the golf course itself is gorgeous and you can’t get any better weather than what were getting right now out here and Snedeker used that to his advantage of be on the top with Jones on the leaderboard “I haven’t been competitive in a while. I just need to get myself some chances to win, and all that stuff will take care of itself” said Snedeker.

John Daly struggled on Friday with a bogey on the first hole at the Monterey Peninsula Course Daly finished Friday with a one over within six shots of the lead and plays Spyglass on Saturday. It was the best round he’s had in ten years even though he struggled with that bogey on that first round he battled on the first night and came back on the second night.

Charlie Beljan had and an 8 under day and finished -10 for the tournament he did have an amazing Friday and he got a little bit aggressive in the last hole he couldn’t even believe the score he shot yesterday. He ended up with a Bogey on the last hole he just overplayed it. That was the only hole that he struggled with other than that it was a great day. If someone told him he was going to shoot that well going into the day he would have been happy.

Jeff Hall and Jeremy Harness are covering the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am for http://www.sportsradioservice.com