Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Cardinal could apply same technique on Arizona as they did on UCLA

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The Stanford Cardinal forward Oscar da Silva (13) go for the bucket against the UCLA Bruins guard Jules Bernard (1) at Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz on Saturday, January 23, 2021 (AP News photo)

On the Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry F:

#1 Jerry, the Cardinal (9-5) open tonight with two games in Arizona, tonight against the Wildcats, who are one of the best at 12-3, and on Saturday against the ASU Sun Devils, who are 4-8. Let’s take tonight’s game first. How much pressure will it be on star scorer for Stanford Oscar da Silva tonight?

#2 Stanford has won four of their last six game, including their last game against UCLA, which was by a razor margin 73-72, but an impressive win.

#3 In the game against UCLA, da Silva was once again top scorer with 26 points. He was followed by Jaiden Delaire, who scored 19. That’s saying a lot when you’re dueling with a team defense like the Bruins.

#4 The Wildcats are no match for a lot of teams in their last game. They pounded the Arizona State Sun Devils 80-67. The Wildcats are loaded on offense. Their top scorer on Monday night’s game was Terrell Brown 18 points and Azuolas Tubelis and James Akinjo both finished with 16. The Cardinal could have their hands full tonight in Tucson.

#5 Stanford head coach Jerod Haase could coach another game similar to the one he coached against UCLA. Lots of skill shots, aggressive inside and da Silva taking lots of outside shots.

Join Jerry F for Stanford Cardinal men’s basketball podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Hield scores season-best 29, Kings beat Magic 121-107 for solid road win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @NBA

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings’ last two games had been postponed, but not on Wednesday night. The Kings defeated the Orlando Magic 121-107 at Golden 1 Center.

The Kings’ last game before Wednesday was against the New York Knicks last Friday at home. The Kings managed to take down the Knicks 103-94 to snap their four-game losing streak. The next two scheduled games were supposed to be played against the Memphis Grizzlies. 

However, due to COVID-19 protocols, the two games were postponed on Sunday and Monday. The Kings were not the source of the delay, but nonetheless, I’m sure they appreciated the extra time off. The Kings were set to be back in action on Wednesday taking on the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center.

In the first half, the Kings played well. The Kings outscored the Magic 32-23 getting back into the swing of things. In the second quarter, it was more for the same from the Kings. They managed to outscore the Magic 33-27 and build a 65-50 lead going into halftime. What was important for the Kings was to finish off the Magic. It has become a theme with this team the last few years to not finish off opponents.

In the second half, the Kings would look to do just that. The Kings started off strong. They outscored the Magic 31-27 in the third and looked poised to seal the deal and win their second game in a row. In the fourth quarter, they didn’t play as well, but still held onto the lead and managed to win the game. The Magic out scored the Kings 30-25 in the last quarter, but the Kings still managed to win the game 121-107.

Leading the way for the Kings (7-10) in victory was Buddy Hield, who had 29 points.

In contrast, the Magic (8-11) were led by Nikola Vucevic, who had 26 points. The Kings are now on a two-game winning streak and look to carry that momentum into their next contest. 

Up Next: The Kings will travel to Toronto and take on the Raptors on Friday night at 4:30 PM PST. 

Warriors grind out a 123-111 win over the Timberwolves

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Photo credit: @warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors downed the Minnesota Timberwolves 123-111 Wednesday night at the Chase Center.

The Warriors had their hands full with a young Minnesota team. Their point guard, D’Angelo Russell, and their best player, Karl-Anthony Towns, were not in the lineup. Russell is recovering from a quadriceps injury, and Towns has to sit out due to the NBA protocol for the coronavirus.

Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders was ready to play defense Wednesday night. The Warriors, no strangers to playing great defense, had to work hard to finish the first quarter with a meager two-point advantage 23-21. Warriors forward, Kelly Oubre Jr., had to go to the bench as he picked two fouls in the first minute of the game. Warriors head coach Steve Kerr picked Kent Bazemore to replace Oubre. Bazemore responded by scoring seven of the Warriors’ first nine points. 

Oubre returned to start the second quarter. He knocked down 16 points to lead the Warriors to a 58-51 lead at the end of the first half. Oubre had the highest-scoring quarter of his career. He was also a force on defense. He had two steals and a blocked shot. The Warriors needed Oubre’s offensive performance as Steph Curry was ice cold in the first half. Curry had two points on 1-for-9 shooting.

Warriors star rookie, James Wiseman, kicked in with 14 points. Wiseman was 3-for-3 shooting 3-pointers. Andrew Wiggins had 8.

Timberwolves rookie phenom, Anthony Edwards, showed the Warriors and the NBA why he was the number one pick in the NBA Draft this year. He finished with 15 points and connected on three 3s.

As they have done so many times over the past six seasons, the Warriors won the third quarter 37-24. As everyone knows, Steph Curry can’t be bottled up all night. Curry started to make buckets. Damion Lee made two 3s, and Andrew Wiggins continued to drive the lanes to help the Warriors break open the game. The Warriors were leading 79-67 when they went on a 13-0 run to lead 90-67. They finished the third quarter with a 20-point advantage 95-75.

The Timberwolves continued to play hard. The Warriors refused to wilt. The Timberwolves cut the lead to 12 points, 112-100. The Warriors responded as they built the lead back to 16 points, 116-100. Steve Kerr pulled Curry off the floor. The Warriors held on to win 121-111. 

Game Notes and Stats: With the win, the Warriors are 10-8 for the season. The Timberwolves are 4-13.

James Wiseman had a career-high 25 points to lead the team in scoring. Kelly Oubre had 20 points, nine rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot in 20 minutes of playing time. Andrew Wiggins continued to play well at both ends of the court. Andrew tallied 19 points and three boards. Steph Curry had 16 points, six rebounds, eight assists, and he made four three. Curry has made a three-point in 80 consecutive games. Draymond Green’s line was six points, six rebounds, and eight assists. Kevon Looney recorded ten rebounds in 11 minutes. Damion Lee had a season-high 17 points. Lee knocked down four threes.

The Warriors shot 53% from the floor and held the Timberwolves to 42.5%. The Timberwolves made 14 3s, while the Warriors made 15. The Warriors moved the ball well and recorded 32 assists.

One stat that Steve Kerr would not like is the number of turnovers committed. The Warriors turned the ball over 21 times. That number will get Kerr very grumpy.

Up Next: The Warriors play the Suns in Phoenix on Thursday night. The game will start at 7 pm PT.

DeSimone’s late heroics lift Barracuda to 4-3 victory over Roadrunners

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

TUCSON, Ariz. — Nick DeSimone scored the game-winning goal with 24 seconds left in the third period as the San Jose Barracuda rallied back from a two-goal deficit to beat the Tucson Roadrunners 4-3 on Wednesday afternoon at Tucson Convention Center Arena.

In the first period, Kevin Hancock opened up the scoring at 6:17 mark as Ryan McGregor and former Bakersfield Condor’ Cameron Hebig picked up the assists. Less than a minute later, Blake Speers doubled Tucson’s lead to 2-0.

The Barracuda were outshot 13-to-12 in the opening 20 minutes.

In the middle frame, sophomore forward Joachim Blichfeld found paydirt at 11:28, cutting Tucson’s lead in half.

The Barracuda outshot Tucson 15-7 in the second for a two period total of 27-20.

In the third period, rookie forward Brandon Coe would even the score with his first professional goal at 3:53 as Karlis Cukste picked up the only assist. Blichfeld scored his second of the game at 15:02, netting his team-leading third goal of the preseason, giving the Barracuda a 3-2 lead.

With 1:24 left to go, Lane Pederson leveled the score at 3-3 on the power-play. But exactly one minute later, DeSimone’s late goal magic gave the Barracuda its lead back, and the eventual 4-3 win.

Josef Korenar (1-1-0-1) made 22 saves on 25 shots to collect his first victory of exhibition play. Ivan Prosvetov suffered the loss, allowing four goals on 36 shots.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda are back in action on Friday, 1/29 in Las Vegas, as they square off with the newest member of the AHL, the Henderson Silver Knights, at 7 pm PT.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Tony Renteria: Kings coming off win against Knicks face Magic in Orlando tonight

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The Sacramento Kings Glen Robinson III (left) fouls the New York Knicks Julius Randall (right) in the first quarter of Fri Jan 22, 2021’s game at Golden One Center in Sacramento (AP News photo)

On the Kings podcast with Tony R:

#1 Tony, the Kings (6-10) got a big win in their last game against the New York Knicks 103-94 after losing four straight games. How much of a morale booster is that for them starting out on the road trip tonight?

#2 The Knicks are not a slouch team by any means. They came into Sacramento last Friday with a four-game win streak, but the Kings wanted it more.

#3 The Kings Friday got offensive help from De’Aaron Fox, who led with 22 points and Harrison Barnes with 21.

#4 There’s been criticism regarding Kings head coach Luke Walton being one of the worse coaches in the NBA and that Walton has simply been out-coached this year. Is Walton’s job on shaky ground?

#5 The Kings had their game against the Memphis Grizzlies (7-6) postponed last Saturday due to the Grizzlies have COVID-19 protocol issues. The Kings are in Orlando tonight against the Magic. The Magic has lost eight of their last ten games and won in their last game defeating the Charlotte Hornets 117-108. How do you see the two teams tonight?

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

Sacramento Kings podcast with Tony Renteria Wed Jan 27, 2021 by Sports Radio Service | Free Listening on SoundCloud

Avalanche Bury Sharks in 7-3 Win

Published on by M WalshLeave a comment

The Colorado Avalanche’s center Nathan MacKinnon (29) gets past the San Jose Sharks Mario Ferraro (38) to put the puck on net and Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (1) in the first period of Tue Jan 26, 2021 game at the Ball Center in Denver (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 7-3 to the high-powered Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday. The Avalanche goals were scored by Valeri Nichushkin, Brandon Saad (2), Joonas Donskoi, Mikko Rantanen, Devon Toews and Samuel Girard. Their goaltender, Philipp Grubauer, made 27 saves for the win. Sharks goals came from Noah Gregor, Ryan Donato and Logan Couture. Martin Jones made 14 saves on 19 shots before being replaced by Devan Dubnyk, who made 21 saves for San Jose.

Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner described the moment he thought the game really started to unravel for his team:

“The most disappointing thing for me was, you know, okay it’s three-one after the first period, we had a good eight, nine minutes and we’re still in the hockey game and then we start on the power play. We turn one over, they go down and get a breakaway. Our next unit comes on, turns one over, it’s in the back of our net, it’s four one. Obviously, that’s when the game opens up a bit and we paid the price for it. You can’t open up against these guys and you can’t mis-manage pucks and that’s exactly what we did.”

Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson said:

“They played a good game today and we did not. I think we started okay but we still defended a lot, even though we got the first goal. I don’t think that was anything we really created. We got a good puck bounce. I think that once they started rolling, we became a little passive and we gave them a little too much room and, you know, we started doubting ourselves a bit. And that’s probably why the game ran away from us against a good team like this.”

The Sharks scored first, a double-tap from Ryan Donato at 10:39. He brought the puck up from the goal line and tried to shoot it through two defenders but it hit a couple of legs. He found it as it bounced and nudged it in for his third of the season. Assists went to Kevin Labanc and Logan Couture.

Colorado tied it up at 16:15. Valeri Nichushkin carried the puck down around behind the net and then sent it back to the blue line for a shot by Erik Johnson. Joonas Donskoi skated across in front of Martin Jones just as the shot came in and the puck hit him on the way in. Assists went to Johnson and Nichushkin.

The Avalanche took the lead less that a minute later. Cale Makar put the puck into traffic in front of Martin Jones and Brandon Saad knocked it in. Assists went to Makar and Andre Burakovsky.

Piling it on, Colorado scored a power play goal in the final minute of play. Nikolai Knyzhov was in the box for hooking against Tyson Jost. The Sharks penalty kill held off the Colorado power play for almost a minute before Mikko Rantanen scored with a hard shot from above the face-off circle. Assists went to Nathan MacKinnon and Makar.

At the end of the first, Colorado led in shots 16-9 and the Sharks had a slight lead in face-off wins of 52%.

The Avalanche kept rolling. The Sharks had an early power play in the second period, but half way through it, Valeri Nichushkin snatched the puck in the neutral zone and took it the other way for a short-handed goal.

Samuel Girard scored a few minutes later with a shot through what looked like all available skaters on the ice. Assists went to Tyson Jost and Kiefer Sherwood.

Devan Dubnyk came in to relieve Martin Jones in the Sharks net. After the game, Bob Boughner said: “I think both goalies were left out to dry multiple times tonight. It’s tough to make a goalie evaluation, I think that, you know, some of the plays that they made through the seam, and we actually made some saves on it, they scored on I think it was the second or third one. But you can’t allow seam plays.”

The Sharks’ third line showed some jump and scored one at 7:44. Some quick passes got the puck to the net just as Noah Gregor got there to tuck it in with a backhand. Assists went to Dylan Gambrell and Timo Meier.

Near the 13:00 mark, Devan Dubnyk got tangled up with J.T. Compher. He took some time to recover but did not leave the game.

The Avalanche resumed scoring at 13:30 when Devon Toews scored Colorado’s sixth of the night. Towes took a shot from the blue line that did not go in. Toews took another shot, this time into an empty net while Dubnyk was tangled up with another Colorado forward. Assists went to Gabriel Landeskog and Cale Makar.

Brandon Saad scored his second of the night at 15:01. Johnson, Kadri and Saad entered the zone and got around everyone but Vlasic and in a brief two-on-one, scored the team’s seventh.

The Sharks were outshot in the second 13-6.

Logan Couture got one back for San Jose at 12:43 of the third period. Kevin Labanc made a cross-ice pass to Donato as they entered the zone with Couture between them. Donato moved it back to the middle as they closed on the net and Couture tipped it in. Assists went to Donato and Labanc.

The only stat that favored the Sharks Tuesday was their face-off win percentage, finishing with 53%.

The Sharks next play on Thursday at 6:00 PM PT, against the Avalanche in Colorado again.

No players selected to be in Baseball’s Hall of Fame this year

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Former Boston Red Sox Curt Schilling who failed election in to the MLB Hall of Fame on Tue Jan 26, 2021 namely because of his controversial political views requested to be taken off next year’s ballot and will try and get in in front of the Veteran Committee in 2022 (MassLive.com file photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The eligible members of the BBWAA (baseball writers association of America) did not select any player to the Hall of Fame this year. It was the first time since 1960 that they did not select a player. A player needs 75% of the vote to make it to the Hall. Players have ten years of eligibility. They can gain entrance later if selected by a committee of former players.

There were three players on the ballot that had the best chance of getting selected. They are pitchers Curt Schilling and Roger Clemens. The other player is Barry Bonds. All three are in the ninth year of eligibility.

Schilling received 71% of the vote. He has asked the people at the Hall of Fame to remove him from the ballot next year. He claims that he is willing to take his chances with the players’ committee. The Hall is considering his request. Many people think that Schilling didn’t get the 75% required for entrance due to his political views.

Schilling holds extreme right-wing positions. Many people were shocked that he allegedly made remarks supporting the people who attacked and vandalized the Capitol on January 6th, 2021.

The Hall of Fame vote took place before the attack but might affect the vote later this year. The Hall of Fame is a museum. Many people in the Hall have character less than sterling. The Hall voters have to vote on the players’ performance. Is Schilling worthy enough to be in the Hall? He won 219 games in his career.

Schilling is a three-time World Champion. He won one with the Arizona Diamondbacks and two with the Boston Red Sox. His courage and fortitude on the mound can not be questioned. His performance in game six of the 2004 AL Championship series is legendary. He beat the Yankees to send the series to game seven. The Red Sox won that game and then beat the St Louis Cardinal to win the World Series for the first time in 86 years.

Roger Clemens won over 350 games with the Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, and Houston Astros. He won seven Cy Young Awards as the best pitcher in the American League. His numbers should mean induction into the Hall.

The fly in the ointment is the claim that he, allegedly, used performance enhancing drugs. Clemens never failed a drug test. He received about 61 % of the vote last year and about the same this year. His chances of getting in next year are slim. He will have to wait until later.

Barry Bonds was one of the best hitters ever to put on a uniform to play baseball. Bonds won the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award seven times. No other player in Major League history has won it more than three times.

Bonds holds the single-season record for most home runs with 73. He broke Henry Aaron’s record of 755 homers in a career in 2007. He finished his career with 762. Bonds, like Clemens, never failed a drug test. He, too, had to deal with accusations that he used performance-enhancing drugs.

There may be people in the Hall that used steroids to help them hit or pitch. Many voters are not willing to vote for players that “cheated.” Some voters are willing to say that Clemens and Bonds using steroids during those years was not illegal.

Attendance at baseball games dropped after the player’s strike in 1994. The teams’ owners looked the other way when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa sent balls flying out of the parks in 1998. McGwire finished with 70, and Sosa had 66. Clemens and Bonds will have to wait. They have the numbers for entrance. Many people believe they should be included. Only time will tell.

Jerry Feitelberg is an Oakland A’s beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Marcus Semien says adios to the A’s; Signs one yr $18M deal with Jays

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

Oakland A’s shortstop Marcus Semien signed a one year deal worth $18 million with the Toronto Blue Jays leaving the A’s after six years on Tue Jan 26, 2021. Ironically Semien will not play in the city of Toronto proper as all Blue Jays home games will be played in Florida (USA Today file photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND–The Oakland A’s brain trust now has the unenviable task of replacing star shortstop Marcus Semien. Semien, who had been with the A’s for six years, signed a one-year deal worth $18 million with the Toronto Blue Jays Tuesday.

Semien was the third player the A’s have lost to free agency this season. The A’s lost one of the best closers in all of baseball, Liam Hendriks, to the Chicago White Sox. Robby Grossman, who was in left field, headed to Detroit.

Semien’s departure continues a pattern that has haunted the A’s for many, many years. Because of financial considerations, the A’s cannot afford to pay players that have become stars. A’s president, Billy Beane, and General Manager David Forst have become adept at finding value in players discarded by other teams or finding and developing prospects from their farm system.

The A’s traded for Semien after the 2014 season. They sent pitcher Jeff Samardzija to the White Sox for Semien. Semien was a second baseman there. The A’s wanted him to move to shortstop. His first season at that position did not go well.

He made both fielding and throwing errors. The following season the A’s hired Ron Washington as a consultant to work with him. Washington had been a coach with the A’s and was credited with helping Eric Chavez win six Gold Gloves.

Washington and Semien worked for hours pre-game on his fielding and throwing. Fans could see Semien improve daily. Semien had other skills that helped the A’s win. He could hit and hit with power.

Semien was fleet of foot. The A’s missed the playoffs in 2016 and 2017. They made them in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The A’s were hoping to make it to the World Series this year. Their last appearance in the Fall Classic was in 1990.

Since then, the A’s failed to advance out of the first round with two exceptions. They advanced to the AL Championship round in 2006. The Detroit Tigers sent them home. They made it past the Wildcard round beating the Chicago White Sox. The Houston Astros beat them to advance to the AL Championship round in 2020.

Semien’s best year with the A’s was in 2019. He hit .285 with 33 homers and 93 RBIs. He finished third in the voting for Most Valuable Player.

A’s fans will be sorry to see him leave. They will wish Semien well in Toronto. Hopefully, the A’s will find capable replacements. The fans are hungry for a Championship team. It’s been a long drought.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: 2021 Season It’s Déjá vu all Over Again

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Hohokam Stadium in Mesa AZ may sit empty if the request to the Cactus League and Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred to delay spring training is enforced due to Coronavirus explosion in Arizona (azcentral.com file photo)

2021 Season It’s Déjá vu all Over Again

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

The MLB owners and the Major League Players Association get along just as well as the Democrats and Republicans in Washington and the mistrust is just as bad. It seems if the powers-to-be on both sides in baseball ever agree to (for example) go out to lunch together, then they will argue the time of lunch and probably argue and argue.

But there are outside baseball events (like in 2020) where neither the owners nor the players can control such as covid-19. A recent letter from a Phoenix television station from the Cactus League to Commissioner Rob Manfred (was leaked) and was asking him to delay Spring Training because of the Covid crisis in Arizona. Right away, within hours somebody familiar with the Player’s Union position suggested that MLB pushed the Cactus League to leak the letter.

Arizona cities who have Spring Training camps (15 of the 30 teams train in the Phoenix area) are requesting that MLB delays Spring Training. While owners want the Players Union to delay the start of the season by one month and now received support from Cactus League officials. The Union wants Spring Training to open on time as scheduled on February 17.

Interestingly enough, the other 15 Major League teams who trained in the State of Florida, seem to have little problem, probably because Florida is doing much better with the Covid crisis than Arizona. And as of today looks like Florida will open their Spring Training camps mid-February as scheduled. However Cactus League cities in Arizona want a delay of one month before the teams report to their respective Spring Training camps.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez for News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Warriors could take two game series Wednesday against Minnesota

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The Golden State Warriors Andrew Wiggins (left) takes the ball in front of the Minnesota Timberwolves Jarrett Culver (right) during Mon Jan 25, 2021’s game at Chase Center in San Francisco in game 1 of the 2 game series (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with David:

#1 Dave, the Warriors had absolute control of the Minnesota Timberwolves and got top scoring from Andrew Wiggins with 23 points and Stephen Curry with 36.

#2 Talk about Kevon Looney taking James Wiseman’s place at center do you see this being a permanent line up change or until Wiseman learns the ropes a little more?

#3 The Timberwolves have lost six of their last seven games and are struggling and the Warriors have had some strong wins talk about how you see this match up Wednesday night for game two?

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com