#1 The Sharks have lost two of their last four games last night at SAP Center. The Washington Capitals took it to them 5-2.
#2 The Caps Jakub Vrana and Garnet Hathway both scored twice for Washington
#3 The Capitals really established themselves and made themselves at home on Sharks ice with three goals in the first period
#4 Sharks goalie Marty Jones stopped 18 out of 23 shots before he got pulled for goalie Aaron Dell
#5 Sharks head onto Carolina and face the Hurricanes on Thursday night. The Sharks after losing to the Caps 5-2 and the Jets 5-1 on Wed Nov 27th are looking forward to getting back into the win column.
SAN JOSE–After a torrid stretch of November, the San Jose Sharks December has been a good reminder of how difficult it is to win in the NHL. Tuesday night, the Sharks were visited by the NHL leaders the Washington Capitals (20-4-5) and despite Alexander Ovechkin being held pointless, the Caps still crushed the Sharks 5-2.
San Jose (15-13-1) opened the scoring, but three Washington goals in three minutes swung momentum in a hurry. The Caps added two more goals before the Sharks could add another for a decisive victory for the 2018 Stanley Cup champs. Norris Trophy frontrunner John Carlson had three points (1g, 2a) and Garnet Hathaway and Jakub Vrana each scored a pair of goals. Martin Jones made 18 saves on 23 shots before being pulled in favor of Aaron Dell. Melker Karlsson had a two point night, scoring and assisting on Evander Kane’s third period goal.
Karlsson beat Braden Holtby for his third goal of the season just 2:33 into play, but Garnet Hathaway scored with 6:29 left in the first to tie the game. No more than 55 seconds later, Vrana found the back of the net for his 13th of the year. Just about two minutes later, Carlson scored his ninth of the year to have the Sharks reeling. Carlson now has 37 points on the season, leading all defensemen and putting him 14 points behind Connor McDavid, the scoring race leader.
Hathaway and Vrana scored again in the second, and Evander Kane scored his team-leading 13th goal in the 13th minute of the third period, but any hopes at a comeback stopped there. In total, Braden Holtby made 23 saves on 25 shots.
The Sharks head to Raleigh Thursday night looking to bounce back against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes will also be trying to rebound after getting shut out by the Boston Bruins in Beantown Tuesday night.
#1 The Atlanta Hawks handled the Golden State Warriors 104-79 loss Eric Paschall lead all Warriors scorers with 24 points on Monday night. The Warriors’ Draymond Green didn’t play.
#2 Have the Oakland Raiders sank to their lowest point of the season losing huge to the Kansas Chiefs 40-9 on Sunday for their second straight loss?
#3 The San Francisco 49ers saw Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker kick a winning field goal to end the game Sunday in 20-17 loss for San Francisco.
#4 Last Saturday, the Sacramento Kings came back from a long four city road trip going 1-3. On Saturday they defeated the Denver Nuggets 100-97. The Kings lost to the Chicago Bulls on Monday night 113-106.
#5 The Cal Bears insured themselves a bowl spot after their victory over the UCLA Bruins 28-18. Cal quarterback Chase Garbers went 17-29 for 230 yards.
#1 The Kings came back after a four-game road trip to defeat the Denver Nuggets on Saturday 100-97 and then played the Chicago Bulls on Monday night and lost it 113-106.
#2 Talk about the recent consistent scoring from the Kings’ Harrison Barnes.
#3 Buddy Hield has come into his own, consistently scoring in the Kings’ top three.
#4 Talk about the Kings defense. For example in their game against the Denver Nuggets last Saturday, they held them to just seven points in the fourth quarter and they closed in on the Bulls on Monday night.
#5 The Kings head to Portland to face the Blazers on Wednesday. Talk a little about what’s in store for the Kings.
Just moments after Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football David Shaw thanked his fifth-year and departing seniors for their fight and leadership–players, coaches and staff applauding twice–fifth-year senior outside linebacker Casey Toohill urged his teammates to let the disappointment of the year fuel them going forward.
“Nobody did enough,” Toohill said passionately.
The message from Toohill resonated after Stanford’s season-ending 45-24 defeat to #15 Notre Dame (10-2) on Saturday at chilly, breezy and sometimes rainy Stanford Stadium. Playing one of the toughest schedules in the country, the Cardinal finished 4-8, the program’s first losing record since 2008.
“Any team that goes through a season like this never wants to feel this way again,” sophomore defensive end Thomas Booker said. “I know I don’t. Whenever I’m lifting or thinking about putting in extra work, it’s going to be on my mind.”
Junior tight end and team captain Colby Parkinson felt the same.
“If you’re able to brush this off, you don’t care,” Parkinson said. “We are all more than football players and we have lives outside of football. At the same time, if you don’t care about the football game you just lost and think about it, you have some issues. I don’t think we have any of those guys in here. Different things didn’t go our way, but we’ll use it as motivation.”
Stanford stated strong again on both sides of the ball against Notre Dame, claiming leads of 7-0 and 17-7. But miscues–including the first blocked punt since 2014–and missed opportunities, did in the Cardinal, who was outscored 24-7 in the second half.
“You can say a lot of things about this year, the injuries and all that,” said Booker. “But that’s not an excuse and we know that. When the offense and defense are clicking, we can get it going and I think the first half showed that. It’s about sustained effort. When we put all that together in the offseason and get it right, it’s going to be a beautiful thing.”
Coming off a close and emotional loss to Cal last week, Parkinson never doubted players would respond on Senior Day.
“If we had packed it in, that would be a big culture change we had to make in the offseason,” Parkinson said. “But we still have guys who are fighters and giving it their best every play. There’s definitely room for growth, but it was good to see some fire in this game.”
Booker praised the seniors for leadership, attention to detail and resiliency.
“Everyone knows this wasn’t the outcome we wanted, but I can’t be more proud of the senior class,” Booker said.
SENIOR DAY
Prior to the game, the following seniors were introduced: inside linebacker Ryan Beecher; wide receiver Isaiah Brandt-Sims; quarterback K.J. Costello; tight end Scooter Harrington; running back Dorian Maddox; long snapper Richard McNitzky; inside linebacker Andrew Pryts; punter/kicker Colin Riccitelli; quarterback Jack Richardson; running back Cameron Scarlett; defensive end Thomas Schaffer; wide receiver Harry Schwartz; wide receiver Donald Stewart; defensive end Jovan Swann; Toohill; outside linebacker Anthony Trinh; and defensive tackle Michael Williams.
STRONG FINISH
Scarlett ran 13 times for 43 yards, but his last carry was memorable. With 3:12 remaining in the game, he broke tackles up the middle and dove into the end zone to complete a nine-yard scoring burst, his seventh touchdown of the season.
“I saw the opening backside and knew my carries were coming to a close, so I wanted to make sure I finished in the end zone one more time,” Scarlett said.
Scarlett and sophomore wide receiver Simi Fehoko had a friendly competition all season on who would score more touchdowns and were tied coming into the contest.
“So it was a good way to end it,” said Scarlett.
Scarlett finished his Stanford career with 1,676 rushing yards, No. 18 on the school’s all-time list. Scarlett now ranks eighth in program history with 24 rushing touchdowns.
“Every game I was bringing my hard hat,” Scarlett said. “Didn’t matter what linemen were playing, weren’t playing, I came in with the mindset I was going to give it my all every game. And that’s something that was instilled in me from players before. Stanford football is really just a bunch of grimy guys who like to get after it and play good football.”
Scarlett predicts big things for the Cardinal next season.
“Next year’s team is going to be so deep,” Scarlett said. “We weren’t really able to showcase everything we had because we had so many injuries and it’s nothing we can complain about. But we were a really dangerous team coming into that first game and it wasn’t in God’s plan for us to all stay healthy.
“Next year I can tell they’re going to be a dominant unit up front once everybody gets healthy. And the run game is going to be nasty with those two young running backs (freshmen Austin Jones and Nathaniel Peat). And then with the pass game, Davis Mills is a special talent and I think he’s going to show if off next year.”
STEP UP
Scarlett didn’t mention Stanford’s receiving group, which came on strong in the second half of the season. Junior Connor Wedington returns, as do sophomores Michael Wilson, Fehoko and Brycen Tremayne and junior Osiris St. Brown.
Wilson caught a career-high 10 passes for 94 yards on Saturday, including a 27-yard touchdown. Fehoko grabbed a personal-best six for 63 and St. Brown caught three.
Fehoko finished with 24 receptions for 566 yards and established a new school record by averaging 23.58 yards per catch, breaking the old mark of 22.93 set by Devon Cajuste in 2013.
Tremayne had three receptions this season and all resulted in touchdowns. He hauled in a 5-yarder from Mills in the first quarter against Notre Dame.
Earlier this season, Tremayne recovered a blocked punt for a score.
FAST START
In just his sixth collegiate start, Mills completed 28 of 46 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns. The junior started fast, hitting his first six attempts and 10 of his first 12. Mills was also victimized by several drops.
Mills showed good mobility, running seven times for 36 yards.
Photo credit: gostanford.com
HANG IN THERE
Despite the final score, the Stanford defense kept the game within reach until the fourth quarter. In the second and third stanzas, the unit forced three consecutive punts. Notre Dame scored 10 points off turnovers.
“We played great defense in big, long spurts,” said Shaw. “And then a couple of big plays shift the balance. But that’s a really good football team and they made plays at the end of the game.”
Photo credit: gostanford.com
YOUTH MOVEMENT
Twenty true freshmen saw game action this season, with 12 playing more than four games and using a year of eligibility.
Counting punter/kicker Ryan Sanborn, eight true freshmen started at least one game, tied for the fourth-most in the country.
In all, 38 Cardinal players started at least one game, 18 for the first time in their college careers.
INSTANT STUDIES
Once again, three true freshmen–left tackle Walter Rouse, left guard Barrett Miller and right guard Jake Hornibrook–started on the offensive line and held their own against a veteran defensive front.
“I couldn’t be more proud of them,” said junior center Drew Dalman. “I don’t think a lot of people know the mental aspect of the game to kind of get yourself up to speed so you can play in a game like this as an offensive lineman. They got better every week.”
So did Dalman. He was the only offensive lineman to start every game and did an admirable job coordinating the group at the line of scrimmage and tutoring and encouraging the younger players.
SHAW SPECIALTIES
Shaw had special praise for the efforts of Rouse, Sanborn and freshman cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly.
“I would be shocked if we didn’t have three first-team freshmen All-Americans,” Shaw said. “What our punter (Sanborn) did this year as a true freshman is unbelievable. What Kyu Kelly did this entire year is unbelievable. What Walter Rouse did, starting at Game 2 at USC and playing the entire season at left tackle; I want to say maybe gave up two sacks on the year? It’s unreal.”
CHANGEABLE COSTELLO
Shaw met with Costello on Friday and they will convene again to discuss his future. Hampered by injuries all season, Costello played in only five games and has one year of eligibility remaining.
“I just told him that I love him,” said Shaw. “And this entire year, I’ve just felt for him. The aspirations that he had, difficult when you can’t attain them. We’ll see how it goes over the next couple weeks. One thing about K.J., you never question his heart.”
NOTES
The loss snapped a streak of 22 consecutive non-conference home wins and was the first under Shaw (12-1) … The last setback came against Notre Dame in 2007 … Junior strong safety Stuart Head matched his career-high with eight tackles … Stanford recorded eight tackles for loss, 2.5 by junior outside linebacker Gabe Reid … Stanford finished the decade with 98 victories, tied for the eighth-most in college football, and went to nine bowl games … Half of Stanford’s opponents this season finished with seven or more wins … Stanford scored points on its opening possession in eight of 12 games this season (four touchdowns and four field goals) and in seven of its final nine contests … Former Stanford great Toby Gerhart ’10 was recognized as part of the program’s 125-year anniversary of Stanford football. He ran for 3,522 yards, the fifth-most in school history, and his 44 rushing touchdowns rank No. 1. In 2009, Gerhart led the nation in rushing, won the Doak Walker Award and was a unanimous All-American. He played in the NFL for six years and now attends the Stanford Graduate School of Business … Michael McFaul ’86, MA ’86 and a Professor of Political Science at Stanford since 1995, served as the team’s honorary captain. A Rhodes Scholar, he served as Ambassador to Russia for the U.S. State Department from 2012-14 and has been Director of the Freeman Spogli Institute since 2005.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose State men’s basketball team plays host to No. 25 ranked Utah State on Wednesday night at 8:15 pm in a televised Mountain West clash on ESPN2.
Here’s what you need to know about Wednesday’s game.
SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (3-5, 0-0 MW)
PPG: 66.4 | FG%: 39.5 | 3FG%: 25.7 | FT%: 65.6
NOTES: The Spartans enter conference play coming off a pair of Pac-12 road losses. SJSU is 2-2 at home this season and will be the host in five of its next seven games. Seneca Knight is averaging a team-high 11.8 points per game with Richard Washington just behind at 10.1. The Spartans have shot 40% or better in all three wins and shot under 40% in all five losses.
LAST: SJSU lost both games vs. Utah State last year
NOTES: Utah State opened the season with seven straight wins before falling at Saint Mary’s on Friday, 81-73. Sam Merrill, who’s averaging a team-high 17.4 points per game, had 23 points in the loss to the Gaels. The Aggies have been playing without Neemias Queta, who has missed all eight games thus far with an injury.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: ESPN2 with Roxy Bernstein and Richie Schueler
RADIO: Justin Allegri on the call through TuneIn.com and the TuneIn app. Search for “San Jose St. Basketball”.
ZEALOUS ZACH
A constant in the Spartans’ last five games has been the play of reserve guard Zach Chappell. Chappell posted a season-high 17 points, including 3-of-3 shooting from deep, in a loss to Portland State on Nov. 23. Chappell tallied 14 points in a win over Simpson on Nov. 17, going 5-of-7 from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers. The Spartans are shooting just 25.7% from 3 on the season, but Chappell is shooting 42.1% from deep.
SAN JOSE STATE STYMIES GRAMBLING STATE
Grambling State entered the game on Nov. 20 with the nation’s #1 scoring offense, averaging 114 points over its first three games. The Spartans held the Tigers 38 points under their average in an 83-76 win at the Provident Credit Union Event Center. Grambling State was 1-of-10 shooting on three-pointers.
EQUAL EFFORT IN HOME WIN OVER SIMPSON
The Spartans had 13 different players score in an 85-60 win over Simpson on Nov. 17. Zach Chappell came off the bench to score a season-high 14 points, including a pair of 3s. Seneca Knight was 6-of-8 shooting for 15 points. Craig LeCesne added 13 points in 19 minutes. Ralph Agee posted 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting. Harminder Dhaliwal made his collegiate debut and had 2 points and 2 rebounds in 6 minutes.
SAN JOSE STATE STUNS HOFSTRA IN SEASON OPENER
SJSU opened the 2019-20 season with a bang, defeating Hofstra 79-71 on the road on Nov. 6. Hofstra won 27 games last year, while SJSU lost 27 games. In his Spartan debut, JUCO transfer and former Wake Forest guard, Richard Washington, posted a team-high 23 points off the bench on 8-of-13 shooting. Washington scored 12 of his 23 points in the final four minutes, including a stretch of three straight 3s to put the game away. Craig LeCesne had his first career double-double with a career-high 19 points plus 11 rebounds. It was the Spartans’ first win in a road opener since 2010-11 when SJSU topped Eastern Washington, 67-60. The Spartans snapped a 21-game road losing streak dating back to 2017-18. SJSU won on the East Coast for the first time since 2001-02, when the Spartans defeated Fairleigh Dickinson at the BCA Tournament hosted by NC State in Raleigh, N.C.
STAGNANT STARTERS
The Spartans return seven players who started at least one game a season ago. Seneca Knight is the most experienced, as the sophomore started 17 games, including the final 12, of his rookie season. Brae Ivey was just behind Knight, as the former junior college transfer started 16 games last season. Craig LeCesne and Zach Chappell both started 15 games last year. Christian Anigwe, Isaiah Nichols and Trey Smith–a walk-on guard–each started one game.
SIX NEW PLAYERS
Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau will have the help of six newcomers on the roster in 2019-20. The Spartans have three new junior college transfers in Richard Washington (Tallahassee CC), Eduardo Lane (Marshalltown CC) and Ralph Agee (East LA College). Washington started his collegiate career at Wake Forest, where he played eight games as a freshman before an injury caused him to miss the entire 2017-18 season. Another Wake Forest transfer will join the Spartans on the floor this season, as center Samuel Japhet-Mathias will be eligible after a redshirt season last year. The former 4-star recruit appeared in 17 games off the bench at Wake Forest as a freshman in 2016-17. Japhet-Mathias posted 6 points and 4 rebounds at No. 17 Xavier. Prioleau added two freshmen this season in guard Omari Moore and walk-on center Harminder Dhaliwal.
FOUR WINS FOLLOWED BY A TITLE
SJSU hopes to duplicate the success of the 1995-96 squad. SJSU won the Big West Conference tournament and advanced to the NCAA Tournament a year after going 4-23 during the 1994-95 season. The Spartans went 4-27 last season.
SAN JOSE STATE TELEVISION SCHEDULE
SJSU will play 10 games on TV this season, including three at home. SJSU hosts an ESPN networks game this year for the first time since 2010-11, when either ESPN2 or ESPNU will carry the SJSU tip against Utah State on Dec. 4. SJSU will also be on ESPN2 or ESPNU when visiting Utah State on Feb. 26. SJSU will have four non-conference games on TV, all against Pac-12 foes. The Spartans will be on CBS Sports Network when hosting Stanford at the Provident Credit Union Event Center on Dec. 14. SJSU will battle both UCLA and Arizona on Pac-12 Networks and meet Oregon State on FS1 for a neutral site game in Las Vegas. SJSU will also have four Mountain West contests on AT&T SportsNet this season — Jan. 15 at UNLV, Jan. 21 at New Mexico, Feb. 8 at Nevada and Feb. 29 vs. UNLV.
#1 Former Oakland A’s reliever Blake Treinen, who had a spectacular 2018 season, was the A’s All Star rep that season, but has now been non tendered for his unconditional release. In 2019,Treinen had an 4.19 ERA, walked 37 batters and allowed nine home runs in 58 2/3 innings.
#2 How bad of a move was it for the Oakland A’s to let infielder Jurickson Profar get away? The A’s acquired San Diego Padres catcher Austin Allen and another player to be named later. How do the A’s make up for a loss like Profar? A’s catcher Josh Phigley is up for being non tendered and facing a release as well.
#3 Kevin Pillar was called a clubhouse guy for the SF Giants with career numbers .261, 76 home runs, and had 318 RBIs some have criticized Giants team president Farhan Zaidi for letting Pillar get away.
#4 The San Francisco 49ers lost by a narrow margin to the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore 20-17 on Sunday. One thing that 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan could agree on the Ravens were a worthy opponent.
#5 The Raiders continue to spiral dropping a key game to the Kansas City Chiefs 40-9. Raiders quarterback Derek Carr didn’t have a chance.
Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish play-by-play radio talent and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
SACRAMENTO–The rope-a-dope strategy employed by the Kings that shocked the Nuggets on Saturday didn’t translate on Monday against the visiting Chicago Bulls.
The Kings again spotted their opponent a sizeable lead, but this time the comeback fell short. Behind 28 points from Laurie Markkanen, and 20 from Zach LaVine, the Bulls survived Sacramento’s fourth quarter rally to win 113-106.
The Kings failed to climb within one game of .500, falling to 8-11 on the season. The loss also dropped the Kings a game behind the Suns–who won in Charlotte Monday–for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The Kings had won 8 of 13 coming in, including their unquestioned best win of the season to date over the Northwest Division-leading Nuggets, in which they trailed by 17 at the half, only to rally for an overtime win, 100-97. Against the Bulls, the Kings trailed by 11 at the half, and 10 after three, but could get no closer than 102-100 with 2:18 remaining.
Buddy Hield led the Kings with 26 points, despite missing 10 of his 13 3-point attempts. Afterwards, he pointed to the Kings’ slow start as the reason for the loss.
“When you give a team confidence, they come back and bite you quick,” Hield said of the Bulls, who had lost both of their previous stops on their current road trip, and seven of nine.
After a fast start, things unraveled for the Kings in the second quarter, when the Bulls surged to a double-digit lead behind their five reserves that saw action.
Rookie Coby White, Ryan Arcidiacono, Thaddeus Young and Denzel Valentine each hit a 3-pointer, and along with center Daniel Gafford combined to shoot 8 for 15 from the field. Meanwhile, the Kings’ reserves committed seven turnovers as the home team fell behind by as much as 16 points, 47-31 with 3:20 remaining before the break.
Hield and Harrison Barnes combined to miss 11 of their 15 shots attempts in the first half, as Sacramento was again without Marvin Bagley III, De’Aaron Fox and Harry Giles.
Bogdan Bodanovic, the Kings’ spark off the bench, admitted afterwards that his balky, left hamstring has forced coach Luke Walton to put him on a minutes restriction where he’s limited to five minutes on the floor in any stretch. Since missing the Kings’ road game in Brooklyn on November 22, Bogdanovic has logged fewer than 30 minutes a game, and failed to make at least half of his shots from the floor. On Monday, Bogdanovic finished with 11 points, on 4 of 9 shooting.
For the Bulls, the win marked the first time this season their two, young stars, LaVine and Markkanen have each reached 20 points in a game.
“We’re still encouraging him,” LaVine said of Markkanen. “He had a great game. He needs to play that way all the time.”
The Kings start a four-game road trip in Portland on Wednesday with stops in Dallas, San Antonio and Houston after that. The Kings are in the midst of a stretch where they play 12 of 16 games outside of Sacramento.
The Golden State Warriors arrived in Atlanta with the hopes of snapping a 2-game losing skid with a win over the equally lowly Atlanta Hawks on Monday night.
The Warriors’ starting five featured Alex Burks, Glenn Robinson III, Eric Paschall, Kevon Looney, and Willie Cauley-Stein.
Golden State started things off with a Willie Cauley-Stein slam early in the first quarter. The Warriors made the game tough for the Hawks in the first, and on another note, Marquese Chriss flew high and knocked down a jumper. The Warriors led 23-20 at the end of the first.
Atlanta, however, stormed back in the second quarter. The Hawks outscored the Warriors 29-17 in the second, thanks to some key plays such as the De’Andre Hunter bucket, which was perfection. The Warriors trailed 49-40 at the halftime break.
Both the Warriors and the Hawks turned defense into offense in the third quarter, but it was Atlanta who made things happen at home. De’Andre Hunter continued to make it with buckets on his 22nd birthday. The Hawks then took a 20-point lead, which likely shocked the Warriors, who entered the game with a similar record.
Atlanta put the game out of reach, but Golden State had something to be thankful for. Eric Paschall scored 20 points, which helped him have his seventh 20-point game of the season (7-of-9 from the field) along with 8 rebounds and 5 assists.
Atlanta showed no signs of slowing down, and frankly, didn’t play much in the final minute of the fourth quarter. The Hawks won 104-79.
With the win, Atlanta improved to 5-16. With the loss, Golden State fell to 4-18.
Eric Paschall led the Warriors with 24 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists. Alec Burks scored 15 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Ky Bowman had 10 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists. Omari Spellman had 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 1 assist. Marquese Chriss had 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 assist. Glenn Robinson III had 6 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist. Willie Cauley-Stein had 4 points and 4 rebounds. Kevon Looney added 2 points and 2 rebounds.
The Warriors visit the Charlotte Hornets in Charlotte, N.C. on Wednesday, December 4 at 4 pm PST.
