NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum: Sharks drop tough game to LA comeback Sat to beat Flyers; Ovechkin to skip All Star game; plus more

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sfgate.com photo: The Philadelphia Flyers Shayne Gostisbehere (53) defends against the San Jose Sharks Marcus Sorenson (20) on Saturday night Dec 28 at SAP Center

NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum:

1 Sharks drop a tough OT game to Kings on Friday night, beat Flyers next night 6-1 Saturday

2 Ovechkin to skip All-Star weekend – again

3 Key Pacific Division showdown between Coyotes and Golden Knights

4 Maple Leafs’ Ilya Mikheyev out for at least 3 months after wrist laceration

5 Annual New Year’s Day outdoor showcase coming up in Big D at the Cotton Bowl

Join Daniel every Sunday for the NHL podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Beat Flyers 6-1, Hat-trick for Meier

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photo from sfgate.com: The San Jose Sharks Timo Meier (28) scores a goal in the second period against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night at SAP Center in San Jose

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks played like a new team Saturday, defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-1 at SAP Center. Timo Meier scored three of those goals for his first NHL hat trick. Mario Ferraro and Joel Kellman scored their first NHL goals and Patrick Marleau addded the sixth. Martin Jones made 26 saves in the win. Ivan Provorov scored the one Flyers goal and Carter Hart made 23 saves in the loss.

The lop-sided win was in stark contrast to the Sharks’ loss Friday night, when they gave up a 2-0 lead during the third period and then lost in overtime. After the win, Sharks captain Logan Couture said: “from the start of the puck drop I thought we were physical, we won more battles and got rewarded.” Nevertheless, he also said: “in the grand scheme of things we’re still near the bottom so we need to win a lot more games.”

Asked about what Timo Meier and Evander Kane did in the win, Sharks Interim Head Coach Bob Boughner said:

They’ve both been struggling a little bit of late and, you know, we had a good meeting this morning where we sort of called each other on the carpet about the details and why we’re struggling. And I think both those guys, along with Goody on that line I thought were obviously our most effective line but they played a lot more straight and north and they were stopping on pucks, they were being physical and I think that’s the results you get when you play that kind of detail.

The Sharks’ first goal came near the halfway mark of the first period. The Sharks had just one shot on goal when Mario Ferraro tried to move the puck out of his zone. the pass was intercepted and bounced back in his direction. He was already moving to chase it down and it came right to him. He moved it through the neutral zone where Barclay Goodrow caught it and carried it into the Flyers’ zone. Ferraro continued his pursuit and was closing on the net when Goodrow passed it back to him. Ferraro shot it past Hart for his first NHL goal. Assists went to Goodrow and Timo Meier.

By the end of the period, the Sharks had seven shots to Philadelphia’s five but were lagging in face-off wins with just 33% going their way.

The Sharks had killed off the only first period penalty, but had lost Melker Karlsson in that kill. He took a shot to the head and had to be helped off the ice. The shot hit him close to or below the bottom of his helmet, near the base of his skull. After the game, Bob Boughner said that Karlsson received some stitches and “he’ still being evaluated but hopefully we can have him back here. It’s a day to day thing.”

The Sharks scored again at 2:39 of the second period. Joel Kellman, playing his third NHL game, scored his first goal on a nice breakaway. He had to collect the puck from his skates on his way to the net but he managed in time to get a neat backhand under Hart’s pads. Assists went to Radim Simek and Mario Ferraro.

Timo Meier added a third goal at 9:21, his 12th of the season. He tipped Burns’ shot from the blue line while he and Goodrow both screened the goaltender. Assists went to Burns and Brenden Dillon.

The Sharks finished the second period with eleven shots to the Flyers’ eight. They also had one power play and took two penalties. One of those was Barclay Goodrow’s and gave the Flyers almost two full minutes of power play time to start the third period.

The Flyers scored on that power play, 51 seconds into the third. Claude Giroux, on the edge of the face-off circle, made a backhand pass to Ivan Provorov up on the blue line. Several Flyers converged on the net just as Provorov took the shot and it went by Jones on the blocker side. Assists went to Giroux and Travis Konecny.

The Sharks got that goal back with a three on one from Evander Kane, Barclay Goodrow and Timo Meier. Kane carried the puck into the zone and waited until defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere went down, trying to block the pass. Kane’s pass floated over Gostisbehere’s stick to Meier. Meier took the shot and put it past Hart as the goaltender tried to get across.

Timo Meier completed his hat-trick at 12:52 of the third. Barcay Goodrow sent the puck around the boards as he crossed the blue line. Evander Kane was coming around the other side and picked the puck up behind the net. Timo Meier arrived at the net, ready to receive the pass from Kane across the ice. Assists went to Kane and Goodrow.

With 2:40 left in the period, Marcus Sorensen made a nice move after carrying the puck into the zone at speed. He chipped the puck around Provorov to attempt a shot. Sorensen’s shot failed but Patrick Marleau was right behind him to tap the puck in. Assists went to Sorensen and Joe Thornton.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in Detroit against the Red Wings at 4:30 PM PT.

Dallas Mavericks behind Luca Doncic, snap Warriors four-game winning streak 141-121

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By Jerry Feitelberg

San Francisco- The Dallas Mavericks’ superstar, Luka Doncic, led the Mavs over the Warriors by a score of 141-121. The Warriors were hoping to pull off another upset Saturday night. The Mavs are the highest-scoring team in the NBA, and they lived up to their reputation.

The first two periods of the game were highly entertaining. Both teams were hitting three-point shots. In the first quarter alone, the Mavs made ten, and the W’s tied a franchise record with nine. The nineteen threes in the first quarter set an NBA record. D’Angelo Russell led the Warriors with 18 points, and he connected on four threes. Damion Lee hit three threes for nine points. The first period ended with the score tied 41-41.

The pace did not subside in the second quarter. The Warriors outscored the Mavs 33-31 to finish the first half leading 74-72. Russell led the W’s with 30 points. Lee and Marquese Chriss also had 9. Luka Doncic finished the first half with 25 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, and five threes in six tries. Tim Hardaway, Jr. had 13, Seth Curry (Steph’s brother, 14, and big Ktristaps Porzingis had 9. The W’s shot 60.4% from the floor. Dallas shot 54.3%.

The second half was a different story. The Mavs continued their onslaught. They continued to make threes. The Warriors could not get their offense going. Things went south for the W’s when D’Angelo Russell ran into Luka Doncic’s hip and fell to the floor. Russell did not move for a few minutes. The paramedics brought out a stretcher, but Russell was able to get to his feet and was taken to the locker room to be examined. It was not known if Russell had suffered either a head or neck injury. The air came out of the W’s balloon. The Mavs went on to expand the lead to 117-98. The W’s defense was not able to stop the Mavs’ offense. They outscored the W’s 45-24 to put the game away. DeeLow returned to the bench late in the third quarter. He suffered a right shoulder contusion.

Russell started the fourth quarter but was not a factor. The W’s could not overcome the 19-point deficit. The Mavs won going away 141-121.

Game Notes and Stats. The Warriors dressed just 10 players for the game. Kevon Looney, Eric Paschall, and Omari Spellman were not available to play. Alen Smailagic, the 19-year old player from Serbia, played 20 minutes and kicked in with 5 points.

The Warriors had five players in double figures. Russell led the team with 35 points, 4 rebounds, and six assists. He made nine threes. Damion Lee had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Alec Burks and Marquese Chriss each had 16. Draymond Green made two threes and finished with 10 for the night.

The Mavs also had five players in double figures. Doncic had a triple-double with 31 points, 12 rebounds, and 15 assists. He made 5 threes. Tim Hardaway, Jr (son of the former Warrior Tim Hardaway, finished with 25 points. Seth Curry had 14. Dwight Powell, who played his college ball at Stanford, had 12. Porzingis had 18 points, 7 boards, and the big man from Russia connected on 4 threes in nine tries.

After the game, W’s head coach Steve Kerr said this about Russell returning to the game and that the injury was not as bad as first thought: “It was the best news of the evening.” He also said that the team, with four wins in five games: “really had a good homestand.”

The Warriors travel to San Antonio to face the Spurs Tuesday night.

Kings hit rock bottom can’t stop Suns’ Booker in 112-110 loss

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azcentral.com photo: Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker, center, is defended by the Sacramento Kings guard Buddy Hield, left, and Kings forward Richaun Holmes, right, during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Saturday, Dec. 28, 2019.

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings have hit rock bottom. In what was a season with such high expectations going in, the Kings have not impressed. Granted, the Kings have had a fair share of adversity this season. Early season injuries to Marvin Bagley and De’Aaron Fox have not made things easy for the Kings as the Kings have now lost six straight losing to Phoenix 112-110 Saturday night.

However, after spending a significant amount on players such as Harrison Barnes and Buddy Hied, Kings fans expect more. After a tough loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday, the Kings would look to bounce back against the Phoenix Suns at 6 PM PST.

In the first, both teams were shooting the ball well. The Kings managed to put up 30 points on 48% shooting floor. Having struggled in his last few contests, Buddy Hield put up a team-leading 8 points in the first quarter. The Suns shot 57% in the first led by Kelly Oubre Jr. who had 9 points. The Kings would look to play a little more solid defense in the second to take the lead on the Suns. It was 31-30 Suns leading going into the second quarter.

In the second quarter, the shot-making disappeared for the Kings. With 4:45 left in the second, the Kings had only scored 8 points in the quarter. Bad shot selection and the inability to hit shots. The Kings only managed to score 19 points as the Suns dropped 28 points on the Kings lacking defense. Leading the Kings in scoring through the first half was Corey Joseph who scored 10 first-half points.

The Suns were led by Kelly Oubre Jr. who had 15 points followed by Devin Booker who had 14. The Kings would go into the second half trailing the Suns 59-49 and in need of a comeback to snap the teams five-game losing streak.

In the third quarter, the Kings played better than the previous quarter but not well enough to take the lead. The Kings put 28 up on the scoreboard in the third compared to the Suns 22. Buddy Hield continued a good bounce-back night for the Kings ending the third with 19 points on 7-15 shooting. Devin Booker did what Devin Booker does in the first three quarters putting up 21 points on 9-15 from the field. In what has been a rough stretch for the Kings they looked to put a solid fourth-quarter together to snap the skid.

In the fourth, the Kings came storming back to tie the game at 81 with 10:48 left in the game. It was a new game and whichever team played better the rest of the way would win the game. The next five-plus minute’s teams would trade baskets back and forth. The game would come down to the final 30 seconds.

With 20.9 seconds left and the score 109-107 Suns ahead, Richaun holmes was fouled and made only 1 of his free throws to make it 109-108. The Suns had the ball with the shot clock off and took a timeout. Out of the timeout and with 18.9 seconds left, they inbounded to Devin Booker in the backcourt while leaving Aron Baynes wide open for a layup.

The score was 111-108. After a few fouls from both teams, the final possession would be the Kings down 112-110 and 5.9 seconds remaining. The Kings inbounded after the timeout to Buddy Hield who kicked to Harrison Barnes on the perimeter and missed the open three to end the game.

Up Next: The Kings travel to Denver to take on the Nuggets on Sunday at 5 PM PST. The Suns Travel to Portland to take on the Trailblazers on Monday night.

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: NJ’s Severson puts goal in wrong net; Rinne allows 3 goals in Preds loss, plus more

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nhl photo: New Jersey Devils defenseman Damon Severson (28) back handed a goal into his own net as New Jersey goalie McKenzie Blackwood (29) could only watch. The goal was the game winning goal for Toronto.

On the NHL podcast with Matt:

#1 Toronto goaltender  Michael Hutchinson said that lucky bounces go your way which it did for Toronto when New Jersey defenseman Damon Severson backhanded the puck into his own net to give Toronto a 5-4 win on Friday night.

#2 Pittsburgh goaltender Tristan Jarry stopped 30 shots as the Penguins won their fifth game out of six. Pekka Rinne for the Nashville Predators allowed three goals and was pulled as the Pens beat the Preds 5-2.

#3 The St Louis Blues David Peron scored at 3:14 in overtime to give the Blues the win over Winnipeg Jets 5-4. Tyler Bozak scored twice for the Blues to help with their five goal tally.

#4 What happened to the San Jose Sharks they led after two periods 2-0 but the Los Angeles Kings came roaring back to victory with three unanswered goals two in the third period to tie the game and Jeff Carter to score the game winner in overtime.

#5 The Boston Bruins Patrice Bergeron scored two goals and Jaroslav Halak stopped 26 shots against the Buffalo Sabers in a 3-0 shutout. For Bergeron it was his third straight game to scored two goals.

Join Matt each Saturday for the NHL podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Warriors rally in fourth quarter for win 105-96 over Suns; Their fourth in a row

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sfgate.com photo: Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry playing the capacity of unofficial assistant coach gives the younger players tips and advice in the Warriors victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night at Chase Center in San Francisco

By Jerry Feitelberg

San Francisco- The Golden State Warriors won their fourth in a row coming back from a 12-point deficit at the end of three quarters beat the Phoenix Suns 105-96.

The Suns and the W’s were nip and tuck in the first period. The Warriors only lead came when rookie Alen Smailagic, making his NBA debut, made his second basket of the night to give the W’s a short-lived lead 23-22. The Suns outscored the W’s 7-2 to finish the quarter with a 29-25 advantage.

Devin Booker continued to lead the Suns in scoring. The Suns outscored the W’s 22-18 in the second quarter. The Warrior offense just could not get going. The W’s went cold for over three minutes late in the quarter. The Warriors defense forced 13 Phoenix turnovers, but the W’s could not take advantage. The Suns finished the first half leading 51-43.

The Suns shot 52.5% from the floor. The Warriors shot a miserable 35.4%. Booker led the Suns with 17. Dario Saric, Aron Baynes, and Ricky Rubio all had nine each. The only warrior in double figures was D’Angelo Russell, who had 11.

The Warriors continued to flounder in the third quarter. Alec Burks could not get anything going. Damion Lee and D’Angelo Russell were the only players putting points on the board. Alec Burks was cold all night long. He just couldn’t nake a bucket. The Suns finished the third period with a 12-point advantage 78-66.

In the long history of the NBA, many teams have come from behind to win. The fans in the stands did not have that feeling at the start of play for the last 12 minutes of the game. The Suns led 86-76 with 7 1/2 minutes left to play. The Warrior went on an 11-3 run to tie the game at 89. Alec Burks came to life with two baskets.

Russell made a three-pointer, and Will Cauley-Stein came through with a bucket and free throw to help tie the game. The momentum was clearly with the Warriors. The W’s added six more points to finish the now 19-3 run. The W’s led 95-89. Damion Lee, Alec Burks, Draymond Green, and Russell all scored to finish with the win 105-96.

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors won their fourth in a row and are now 9-24 for the year. The Suns lost their eighth in a row, and they fell to 11-20.

The Warriors had four players in double figures. Russell led the team with 31 points. He connected on four threes in eleven tries. Damion Lee played well on both ends of the court. Lee knocked down 16 points to go along with 8 boards. Draymond added 11 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. Draymond made two three-point shots in the fourth quarter to help the W’s comeback effort. Burks finished with 13.

The W’s 19-year-old rookie from Serbia, Alen Smailagic, played five minutes in the first quarter and made scored four points.

Devin Booker led the Suns with 34. The Warriors put the clamps on him in the final period. He was not a factor at all. Saric had 11, Rubio 11, Frank Kaminsky 10, Aron Baynes 9.

The Warriors moved the ball well and committed just 10 turnovers. The Suns, however, turned the ball over 27 times, and that led to 28 Warrior points. After the game, Warrior Head Coach Steve Kerr said: “We were solid defensively.” He also said this about the team’s fourth-quarter rally: “We now believe we can win down the stretch.”

The Warriors play Saturday night again against the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks beat the W’s by 48 points in the first meeting of the teams earlier in the season. The game will be played at the Chase Center Saturday night. The game will start at 5:30 pm.

 

Cal’s Comfort Zone: Bears at home in the Redbox Bowl in more ways than one

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Last year the Cal Bears played awful and were the brunt of jokes. This year, they seem to have the hang of this bowl season thing. Team captain Jake Curhan showed as much, by setting ground rules for the Redbox Bowl press conference at the outset.

“Before we begin real quick: Nikko, Cam and I are really excited to join our teammates on Alcatraz, so respectfully we’re going to be pretty efficient with our answers, and we would appreciate the same from you guys. Thanks.”

A year ago in Phoenix at the Cheez-It Bowl, the Bears were one-half of a turnover fest, throwing five interceptions in a 10-7 overtime loss to TCU that left the Chase Field crowd and the television audience shaking their collective heads. The Horned Frogs kicked in four interceptions of their own in a game that no one wanted to win–in regulation–leaving the decision to an overtime period that brought out social media trolls in droves.

This bowl season, the Bears are in their backyard, playing good football coming in, and looking healthy for Monday’s kickoff at Levi’s Stadium against Big Ten opponent Illinois. A matchup of Cal’s vaunted defense against a team that lost it last two while scoring just 10 points in each game seems favorable.

Coach Justin Wilcox knows turnovers can’t litter the landscape at Levi’s. Illinois (6-6) thrives on them, using seven turnovers to upset Wisconsin and win at Michigan State in their two marquee wins.

“You go into a game playing with great ball security. So we want to play with really, good habits,” Wilcox said. “Possessions will be a premium in this game.”

Wilcox lifted Garbers after throwing his third interception against TCU. That put the ball in Chase Forrest’s hands, and he threw two more picks, including the most damaging one in overtime. Forrest was thrust into the fire, seeing his first, significant time in his five-year Berkeley career. This season, Garbers is in control, throwing just three picks in 184 pass attempts. More importantly, Garbers has rounded into a winner, posting a 6-0 record this year and 12-2 in his career when he starts and finishes the game.

Besides a healthy Garbers, the Bears (7-5) have regained their health and depth on the offensive line, and they figure to cover for their one significant, personnel omission, injured safety Ashtyn Davis, by utilizing their secondary depth, the team’s most impressive unit.

Wilcox said Elijah Hicks will see time at safety against Illinois, with the possibility that corner Cameron Bynum will also see time there as well.

Illinois received good news on the injury front when quarterback Brandon Peters was cleared for action after suffering a concussion against Iowa, which forced the Michigan transfer to miss the Illini’s season-ending loss to Northwestern. Of course, Peters will have his hands full dealing with Cal’s All-American linebacker Evan Weaver and fellow linebacker Cameron Goode, who is coming off two of the most impressive outings of his Cal career.

“His body’s changed, as you probably noticed he gained 25-30 pounds. I think that helped him to be to sustain the season and be able to withstand the rigors of a full season. He’s worked hard at that. And I still think Cam’s best football is front of him. He’s a talented kid,” Wilcox said of Goode.

 

Sharks Give up Lead, Lose 3-2 to Kings in OT

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photo from sfgate.com: Los Angeles Kings Jeff Carter (77) scored the game winning goal in overtime at 1:31 to get the Kings the victory on Friday night over goalie Aaron Dell (30) and the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center in San Jose

By Mary Walsh

SAN JOSE- The San Jose Sharks lost 3-2 to the Los Angeles Kings in overtime Friday night at SAP Center. Sharks goals were scored by Erik Karlsson and Joe Thornton. Aaron Dell made 35 saves in the loss. Both regulation goals for Los Angeles came from Martin Frk, while Jeff Carter scored the overtime winner. Jack Campbell made 22 saves in the win.

The teams played a scoreless first period, trading power plays and finishing close in most respects, shots 10-8 Kings, five blocked shots each, hits 9-6 Sharks. In the face-off circle, though, the Kings walloped the Sharks, winning 71% of them. Tomas Hertl and Anze Kopitar took the lion’s share of those.

The Sharks took a lead at 6:16 of the second period with a shot from Erik Karlsson just below the blue line. He got the puck just off of an offensive zone face-off, and he held on to it until he saw his chance. A screen created by several skaters, including Patrick Marleau, blinded Campbell to the shot. Assists went to Marleau and Joe Thornton.

Joe Thornton scored his first of the season at 11:39 of the period. Marcus Sorensen carried the puck across the blue line and dropped it to Thornton on the left side. Thornton passed it across the ice to Marleau, who moved it closer to the center of the ice with a pass to a speeding Radim Simek. Simek made a back-hand pass just as he approached the blue paint, finding Thornton open while attention was drawn to Simek. Assists went to Simek and Marleau.

The teams finished the second period with 11 shots each. The Sharks narrowed the face-off gap a bit, winning 44% of them.

The Kings scored at 1:30 of the third period. Jeff Carter took a hit from Mario Ferraro in order to send the puck around behind the net to Nikolai Prokhorkin. Prokhorkin sent it post-haste to the front of the net where Martin Frk was arriving fast. Frk took a diving shot and beat Dell for his first goal of the season.

Near the mid-point of the period, the Sharks still had no shots on goal, while Los Angeles had five. In the final minutes, the Sharks had all of three shots on the period, and they were dumping the puck in during the final two minutes when the Kings broke through the neutral zone.

Prokhorkin knocked Erik Karlsson off the puck in the corner, Jeff Carter took the puck and lifted it over a Sharks stick to Frk in the slot. Frk scored his second of the game. The goal sent the game to overtime.

The Sharks had recovered in the face-off circle during the third period, but obviously winning 69% of those did them little good. Being out-shot 15-4 may also have contributed to letting the Kings tie it up.

In overtime there were only three shots recorded, two for Los Angeles and one for San Jose. 1:31 in, the Sharks lost track of the puck behind their net and the Kings found it while Aaron Dell was diving for it. With the goalie down and out and no one else covering, Jeff Carter scored the game winner into an open net. Alex Iafallo got the assist.

The Sharks next play on Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers at 7:30 PM PT.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Businesses taking interest in Jack London Square future home of the A’s

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nytimes.com file photo: Oakland A’s team president David Kaval lounges in the upper deck at the Oakland Coliseum during the 2019 season. Jack London Square will start building new restaurants and businesses drawn to the idea of the A’s breaking ground at the site.

On That’s Amaury pod for today:

#1 Amaury businesses are taking an interest to start construction at Jack London Square restaurants, hotels, condos could this be a move in anticipation of an Oakland A’s ball park?

#2 A’s president David Kaval has worked hard this off season to make sure some of these proposals stick he had to sweat through the City of Oakland law suit that was dropped that would have blocked the A’s from purchasing the Coliseum property.

#3 How big is public transportation for this project to get done. Do you agree that some sort of transit must be in place to get people from 12th Street Broadway BART in downtown Oakland to the ball park?

#4 In other baseball news how surprising is it that former San Francisco Giants outfielder Kevin Pillar who was the Willie McCovey Award recipient from last season is still not signed?

#5 The Chicago White Sox are doing some shopping take a look at some of the free agents that their studying, Nolan Arenado, Francisco Lindor, Yasiel Puig, and Nicholas Castellanos.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish radio play by play announcer and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Fighting Illini comes to the Bay Area to face the Cal Golden Bears

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news-gazette.com photo: Josh Imatorbhebhe of the Illinois Illini makes a 83 yard catch against the Michigan State Spartans, Imatorbhebhe and the Illini battle the Cal Bears at Levi Stadium on Mon Dec 30th for the Red Box Bowl

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO-With the Redbox Bowl in basically their own backyard, the California Golden Bears will have the home field advantage, but do not tell that to their opponents, the Fighting Illini of Illinois.

During the 2019 season, the Fighting Illini went 3-2 on the road, including a 37-34 victory over the Michigan State Spartans that came after the Fighting Illini entered the fourth quarter trailing 31-10 when the final stanza began.

Josh Imatorbhebhe was on the receiving end of an 83-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Peters to cut the Spartans lead down to 31-17.

Reggie Corbin then cut the lead down in half, as he scored on a six-yard run just three minutes after the Peters to Imatorbhebhe touchdown pass.

The Fighting Illini defense got in on the act, as they tied up the game, when Sydney Brown returned an interception 76 yards to get them within one.

After Michigan State kicked a field goal to increase their lead up to four points, Peters and the Fighting Illini got the ball back for one final drive.

The Fighting Illini then converted a fourth-and-17, then got another first down when the Spartans were called for pass interference in the end zone on another fourth down possession.

Peters then gave them the lead for the first time on the afternoon, as he found Daniel Barker for a five-yard touchdown pass with five seconds remaining in the game to give the Fighting Illini their sixth win of the season and bowl eligible for the first time since the 2014 season.

This was the biggest comeback in school history, and the 27 points scored by them in the fourth quarter were the most by an opponent in the 96-year, 544-game history of Spartan Stadium.

In all, the Fighting Illini went 3-2 away from Memorial Stadium.

Lovie Smith, who is in his fourth year in Champaign as head coach leads the team to their first bowl game since the 2014 Zaxbys Heart of Dallas Bowl, where they lost to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs 35-18.

As for coming to bowl games in Northern California, this is not the Fighting Illinis first trip to the Bay Area.

The Fighting Illini came to the area in 2011, where behind Nathan Scheelhaase went 18-for-30 for 139 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception. Scheelhaase was also the leading rusher, as he gained 110 yards on 22 carries and the Fighting Illini defeated the UCLA Bruins 20-14 at AT&T Park.

Overall, this is the eighth trip to California in a bowl game for the Fighting Illini, as they are 3-2 in the Rose Bowl, 0-1 in the Holiday Bowl and 1-0 in what was then known as the Kraft Hunger Bowl, now known as the Redbox Bowl.

A graduate transfer from Big 10 rival Michigan, Peters started 10 games for the Fighting Illini and led them in passing, as he went 130-for-238 with 1,611 yards passing with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Corbin was the leading ground gainer, as he carried the ball 129 times for 691 yards and six touchdowns.

Imatorbhebhe led the team in receptions with 33, yards with 634 and nine touchdowns.