Barracuda put on an offensive show in 7-1 victory over Roadrunners

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photo from sjbarracuda.com

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif. — When teams are on a losing skid, coaches will take away some of their luxuries like a post-game meal to motivate their teams to perform better.

This media outlet doesn’t know if head coach Roy Sommer actually did such a thing, but whatever method he used, the San Jose Barrucuda put on an offensive explosion to route the Pacific Divsion leading Tucson Roadrunners 7-1 on Sunday evening at SAP Center.

Maybe it was the specialy jerseys San Jose wore on its “408 Night”, that featured a waffle eating contest between San Jose natives Joey Chestnut and Matt Stonie during one of the intermissions. The win snapped a six-game losing streak, the longest in franchise history, and ended Tucson’s five-game winning streak and four-game road winning streak.

San Jose (5-8-0-1) drew first blood a little over half way through the first period when Keaton Middleton sent a pass behind the net to Jayden Halbgewachs. Halbgewachs quickly sent a no-look backhand pass out to John McCarthy who was camped out in front of the crease. The ‘Cuda captain wristed a shot just inside the left corner past Roadrunners goalie Adin Hill for his second goal of the season at the 11:10 mark.

The ‘Cuda doubled their lead three and a half minutes later when Jeffery Viel was able to get his body in front of a clearing attempt along the right boards by Hill. Viel then skated toward the back of the net where he centered a pass right out to Anti Suomela who buried the puck past the stick side of Hill for his fourth goal of the season at the 14:50 mark.

“Tonight (we played) 60 minutes,” said Sommer. “You know it’s amazing when you do that. I thought at our end we stopped (the opposition’s chances), we came out as five. I think that was the biggest thing tonight.”

The beginning and the end of the second period belonged to Joachim Blichfeld who scored the next two goals, both on the power play for the Barracuda. Just over a minute into the second period Blichfeld was at the right place at the right time when he tipped home a shot from Thomas Gregoire from the left point for his fifth goal of the season on the evening at the 14:50 mark.

Then with under a minute left in the middle frame, Noah Gregor, who was back playing in his first game since being reassigned from the San Jose Sharks, collected his own rebound from a tough angle shot. He then fed the puck to an open Blichfeld whose wrist shot trickled in off the glove of Hill for his sixth goal of the season for his team leading sixth goal of the season. Blichfeld finished with a three-point night (2G, A), the first of his career.

San Jose blew it open in the third period with three more goals and seven unanswered. Maxim Letunov centered a pass from the left board out in front of scrum that caromed off Blichfeld and right to the stick of Lean Bergmann who snapped a wrist shot past Hill for his fourth goal of the season at the 2:24 mark.

The Cuda went up 6-0 just over two minutes later when Halbgewachs won a battle along the boards among three Roadrunner defenders. He sent the puck over to Suomela who centered a pass over to a streaking Trevor Carrick, who skated in from the point, and he fired a wrist shot past Hill for his second goal of the season at the 4:32 mark.

San Jose’s final goal was a reward after some relentless play from Gregor. His initial shot and rebound chance were stopped by Hill. Alex True’s attempt was also stoned away by Hill but he wasn’t able to control the rebound that skidded out to the left of the crease where Evan Weinger found it and shot it in for his third goal of the season at the 14:35 mark.

Tucscon (11-4-0-0) spoiled the shutout bid for ‘Cuda goalie Josef Korenar when they scored their lone tally with under five minutes remaining in the game thanks to a nice pass from Jon Martin over to a wide open Hudson Fasching who skated in all alone, and made a forehand to backhand move to slide the puck past Korenar for his third goal of season at the 15:05 mark.

“They (Tucson) will be ready Wednesday night. They just had an off night. It happens. We had one a couple of nights ago in San Diego. It will be a different game on Wednesday”, said Sommer.

Korenar finished the game stopping 22 of the 23 shots he faced to earn his fourth victory of the season. Hill suffered the defeat, ending a five-game winning streak, making 26 saves on 33 shots.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was 2/5 on the power play. Tucson went 0/5.

Gregor collected a pair of helpers in his first game in the AHL since October 13. The two assists were a career-high for the rookie forward.

Four Barracuda players had multiple points, led by Maxim Letunov who had a career-high three assists.

Three stars of the game:
1) Blichfeld
2) Korenar
3) Letunov

The announced attendance was 4,041.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda host the Roadrunners on Wednesday, November 19 at 7:00 pm at SAP Center.

Stanford’s Mills joins elite company with record-setting performance

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Photo credit: gostanford.com

By Ana Kieu

The Stanford Cardinal record book is filled with accomplished quarterbacks such as Frankie Albert, John Brodie, Dick Norman, Jim Plunkett, Steve Dils, Guy Benjamin, Mike Boryla, John Elway, Steve Stenstrom, Todd Husak, Andrew Luck and Kevin Hogan.

Add Davis Mills to the record book.

On Saturday in Pullman, Wash., Mills achieved something no other Cardinal signal caller had done. In just his fourth college start, the junior from Duluth, Ga., threw for 504 yards against Washington State, breaking the single-game record of 450 set by Husak against Oregon State in 1998.

“You see the potential, you see the ability,” said Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football David Shaw. “This kid has a chance to be very special.”

It was the first 400-yard passing game for Stanford since Luck went for 423 at Arizona in 2009.

Mills was subbing for senior starter K.J. Costello, who has now missed four and a half games this season due to injury. Shaw’s game plan wasn’t to air it out or attempt 50 passes, but when the Cardinal fell behind 19-0 early in the second quarter to the top passing team in college football on its home turf, he had little choice.

“Once we were down three scores, we had to throw the ball,” Shaw said.

Mills, who passed for 6,290 yards and 66 touchdowns at Greater Atlanta Christian High, obliged.

Showing poise, patience and accuracy, Mills connected with 10 different receivers for 33 completions, three producing touchdowns in the 49-22 defeat.

With Mills leading the way, Stanford clawed within three points (23-20) with 4:18 remaining in the third quarter on his 10-yard scoring toss to sophomore Simi Fehoko and fifth-year senior running back Cameron Scarlett’s two-point conversion.

Four Stanford players finished with 80 or more receiving yards, led by junior Connor Wedington with eight catches for 119 and sophomore Michael Wilson with five for 114. Fehoko grabbed three for 92 and junior Colby Parkinson collected five for 80.

“We’ve got outstanding receivers,” Shaw said.

Wedington and Wilson recorded career-highs in receiving yards, each topping 100 for the first time. Wedington has a reception in all 27 games at Stanford, while Fehoko registered his second two-touchdown game and has six scoring grabs in his last five contests.

THIN SECONDARY
With junior cornerback Paulson Adebo, the Pac-12 leader in passes defended and No. 5 nationally, and senior captain and free safety Malik Antoine sidelined by injuries, Shaw started true freshmen Jonathan McGill at nickel back and Kyu Blu Kelly at cornerback. The situation became more challenging when senior cornerbacks Obi Eboh and Treyjohn Butler went down.

“Obviously, we were shorthanded,” Shaw said. “We fought hard.”

Unable to mount a pass rush against Cougar quarterback Anthony Gordon, a transfer from San Francisco City College and the nation’s leading passer, Washington State piled up 624 yards — 520 through the air — and never punted.

Photo credit: gostanford.com

BIG GAME
After two road losses, Stanford (4-6, 3-5 Pac-12) looks to regroup at home on Saturday at 1 p.m. against Cal (5-5, 2-5 Pac-12). The Bears lost to USC 41-17 on Saturday night.

Stanford has won a series-high nine consecutive games against Cal. Shaw has grappled with injuries all season and might not know who is available until late in the week.

“We’ve got the talent to hang with them, but we can’t make a lot of mistakes and we don’t have a large margin of error,” Shaw said. “We might have a lot of young guys out there, but we’ll get them ready to battle.”

Last year’s game in Berkeley was postponed due to poor air quality from the Camp Fire in Paradise, Calif. It marked the first time in 55 years the game date was moved.

MORE MOTIVATION
Shaw said there is plenty to play for against Cal and Notre Dame. Stanford needs two wins to become postseason eligible.

“We’re not even thinking about a bowl game right now,” said Shaw. “We’ve got two of our big-time rivals at home in November. We have to craft the best game plan possible.”

REMEMBERING RALSTON
A public celebration for former Stanford head coach John Ralston will be held on Monday at 4:30 p.m. at Stanford Memorial Church. Limited parking is available near the Campus Oval, and a shuttle service will run between the Stanford Faculty Club (439 Lagunita Drive) and Memorial Church starting at 4 p.m.

Ralston revived the Stanford football program and led the team to consecutive Rose Bowl victories in 1971 and 1972. Known for his outgoing personality, energy and positive attitude, he coached at Stanford for nine years from 1963-1971 and compiled a 55-36-3 record.

Photo credit: gostanford.com

NOTES
Curtis Robison returned to the lineup and shared game tackling honors with nine. Kendall Williamson and Stuart Head had seven stops … Stanford used nine true freshmen on the kickoff coverage team … Scooter Harrington started at tight end, marking the 37th different player to start for the Cardinal this season … With Bradley Archer, Joshua Pakola and Nicolas Toomer seeing their first game action, Stanford has now used 20 true freshmen this season … Casey Toohill blocked an extra point, the third blocked kick by the Cardinal this season (Eboh on a field goal against Oregon State and Spencer Jorgensen on a blocked punt against UCLA) … Toohill also had a sack, his team-leading seventh of the season, and ranks third in the Pac-12 and 27th nationally … McGill made his first career pass interception to thwart a WSU scoring drive … Alex Gracey punted for the first time as a Cardinal. Two of his three kicks were downed inside the WSU 5-yard line … Jeff Raikes ’80, Chairman of the Stanford University Board of Trustees since 2012 and Co-Founder of the Raikes Foundation, served as Stanford’s honorary captain.

QUOTE
“I like to think it was my tutoring over the summer as he was my intern @CBRE_PaloAlto.” — Husak, the Stanford football radio analyst, on his Twitter account about Mills breaking his passing record.

Despite nine healthy players, Warriors fall to the Pelicans 108-100

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors’ miseries continued Sunday night as the team, who has just nine players available, lost to the New Orleans Pelicans 108-100 at Smoothie King Center.

Warriors starting point guard, D’Angelo Russell, suffered a sprained right thumb Friday night in the loss to Boston. Russell will be out for the next two weeks. As a result, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr had to redo his starting lineup. He had Draymond Green start at the point guard position. He was joined in the backcourt by Alec Burks. Eric Paschall and Glenn Robinson III started at forward, and Willie Cauley-Stein was at the center position.

The Warriors were competitive in the first quarter. They trailed 26-23. The Pelicans’ JJ Redick led the Pelicans to the three-point advantage. The Pelicans outscored the Warriors 29-26 in the second period to finish the first half of play leading 55-49.

The Pelicans continued to control the game as they built a 17-point lead. The Warriors got things going as they cut the deficit to three 77-74 early in the fourth quarter. The Warriors did not have enough firepower in the lineup to overtake the Pelicans down the stretch. The Pelicans held on to win 108-100.

Game Notes and Stats: The star of the night for Golden State was rookie Eric Paschall. The young man, who played college basketball at Vilanova, continued to impress as he tallied 30 points and had 7 rebounds. The backup point guard, Ky Bowman, knocked down 19. He was 3 for 7 from 3-point range. Bowman had 4 assists in the game. Marquese Chriss, coming off the bench, had 10 points and 7 boards. Glenn Robinson had 14 points and 6 rebounds. Draymond Green had a tough night as a point guard. Green scored seven, had 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He was also charged with his fourth technical foul of the season.

The Pelicans had six players in double figures. JJ Redick led his team with 26 points. Redick connected on six three-pointers. The other guard, Jrue Holiday, had trouble scoring throughout most of the game. Holiday caught fire late and ended with 22 for the night. Nickeil Alexander-Walker knocked down 19. He made 5 threes. Nicolo Melli had 16. E’Tuan Moore had 10. Six-foot-11 inch Jaxson Hayes, making his first start in the NBA, had a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards. He also blocked three shots.

After the game, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr had this to say:

“There are some funky lineups that are out there because of our injuries, and we’re short on shooting … If you can’t spread the floor shooting, you’ve got to be able to play with pace and make all the cuts. You’ve got to play faster. You have to get stops defensively so you can run.”

“I didn’t think we did a very good job of making New Orleans guard,” Kerr added. “We just kind of took quick shots.”

With the loss, the Warriors fell to 2-12. The Pelicans improved to 4-9.

Up Next: The Warriors meet the Memphis Grizzlies Tuesday night. Game time will be at 5 pm PST.

Garoppolo’s Career Day Powers Comeback for Niners

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Photo credit: cbssports.com

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA — The San Francisco 49ers continue to find ways to win football games and improve to 9-1. On Sunday, they came firing back from a 16-point deficit despite not having a run game to beat Arizona 36-26. It also marks the first time since 2013 San Francisco has swept Arizona in the season series. Coincidently, 2013 was also the 49ers’ last winning season.

Jimmy Garoppolo joined rarified air in Niners’ history, joining Joe Montana and Steve Young as the only players to throw 400+ yards and four touchdowns in a single game. Garoppolo shattered his previous career-high of 371 yards, passing for 424, yet wasn’t perfect throwing two interceptions in the process.

Jimmy was forced to be excellent, with no support from a run game that finished with 34 yards on 19 carries and leading the comeback. His 424 yards were the 10th most in San Francisco history. Garoppolo did so without George Kittle and with Emmanuel Sanders limited. Instead, he used the entire roster to his advantage, completing receptions to ten different receivers.

Ross Dwelley was the star on Sunday, standing in for the injured Kittle, catching four balls for 14 yards and two touchdowns and is proving himself to be the swiss-army knife the red and gold need. They marked his first two career touchdowns of his NFL career.

The Cardinals jumped on the Niners’ early, especially targeting Richard Sherman, who was tacked with three pass interference penalties in the opening half. The first came on Arizona’s opening possession and pinned San Francisco inside their own five-yard line on a third down. Fortunately, the Niners defense bent but didn’t break, forcing Zane Gonzalez to kick a 26-yard field goal.

Later in the first quarter, Kyler Murray found Larry Fitzgerald in the end zone for the hall-of-famer’s 118th TD reception of his career. Zane Gonzalez kept the score at 9-0 after a missed PAT.

Arizona took the 16-point advantage in the second quarter when Kyler Murray found Pharoh Cooper for his second touchdown of the day. Murray was electric, and one can see why the Cardinals spent their first-overall pick on him. His 150 passing yards, 67 rushing yards, and three touchdowns don’t do him enough justice. The Niners’ defense adjusted, clamped down, and made his life difficult for the majority of the day.

The Niners looked dead to rights in the second quarter until they ran a screen pass to the left side to Richie James Jr. James showcased his incredible speed, darting down the sideline for 57 yards and sparking the 49ers’ offense and setting up Dwelley’s first score.

The Niners cut the deficit to six, as Chase McLaughlin nailed a 43-yard field goal to end the half.

San Francisco made it 17-unanswered points, scoring on the second half’s opening drive with Dwelley’s second TD of the day to take a 17-16 lead. After another Gonzlez field goal, San Francisco would re-take the lead again early in the fourth with Kendrick Bourne’s third touchdown of the season, making it 23-19 after a missed two-point conversion.

Shanahan mentioned his chart and being “the right thing to do” when explaining the two-point attempt.

Murray ran in his only rushing touchdown of the game from 22-yards out to retake the lead at 26-23 with 6:30 to go. The ball and game would fall onto the lap of Jimmy G once again.

In his first attempt, a deflected ball targeting Dwelley was intercepted with 4:41 to play. Luckily, the defense had his back, buckled down, and ensured he would get a second chance at the comeback.

Jimmy G drove down the field, bringing the ball inside the 30-yard line. With under a minute to go, a short pass to Dwelley on third-and-three triggered a lengthy review on whether or not the Tight End picked up the first down. Following the review and with a first down, Shanahan drew up the perfect play, targeting Jeff Wilson Jr. in his first snap of the game. Wilson found himself wide open and scampered into the end-zone for the last-minute touchdown.

“Kyle’s a mastermind. I give [all the credit] to him, I can’t give any credit to me. He called the right play for me. I just did what I had to do to make a play,” explained Wilson Jr. He became the 12th different receiver to haul in a touchdown from Garoppolo on the year.

The Niners put a feather in the cap on a crazy defensive score to finish the game. DJ Reed was credited with the score after an errant Fitzgerald lateral as time expired, making it 36-26.

The Niner’s ability to find various ways of winning continues to be their greatest strength. They’ll need to rely on these early experiences and the success they’ve seen as the schedule continues to get tougher. In the next three weeks, we’ll fully comprehend what the red and gold are made of, with Green Bay in town next weekend before back-to-back road games against the Ravens and Saints.

NCAAF podcast with Michelle Richardson: Tagovailoa will be out for rest of season; Wolves get big win over MSU; Penn State goes over Indiana

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espn photo: Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is carted off the field after getting a dislocated hip and a bloody nose. Tagovailoa will be out for the rest of the season.

On the NCAAF podcast with Michelle:

#1 The Alabama Crimson Tide’s Tua Tagovailoa will be out for the rest of the season due to a dislocated hip and he got a bloody nose in the Tide’s game with Mississippi State. Alabama won it 38-7. What will the loss of Tagovailoa mean for the Crimson Tide?

#2 Penn State picked a big win over the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday with a 34-27 win. The Nittany Lions quarterback Sean Clifford threw for 178 yards, 11-23 and one touchdown.

#3 Michigan improved to 8-2 with a 44-10 win over Michigan State and the Wolverines quarterback Sean Patterson threw for 384 yards, 24-33, and four touchdowns.

Michelle’s Final Thoughts

Michelle Richardson does the NCAAF podcast each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose State downs Simpson 85-60

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Photo credit: @SanJoseStateMBB

By Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose State men’s basketball team returned home to host the Simpson Red Hawks at the Provident Credit Union Event Center on Sunday. SJSU got blown out by #19 Arizona, 87-39, last Thursday.

SJSU’s starting five was Brae Ivey, Seneca Knight, Christian Anigwe, Eduardo Lane and Craig LeCesne.

SJSU won the tip-off and the home game was underway. SJSU opened the scoring, thanks to Knight’s 3-pointer just 20 seconds into the first half. Simpson responded with a 3 of their own, courtesy of Blake Trent, at the 18:47 mark.

The 3-3 tie wasn’t the only tie of the game. The Red Hawks’ Nathan Presnell hit a jumper and Knight made a game-tying layup to tie it 5-5 at the 16:31 mark. The Spartans’ Richard Washington made a layup in the paint and Presnell hit a jumper to tie it 7-7 at the 14:48 mark.

From there, SJSU got ahead of the game. Ralph Agee hit back to back jumpers in the paint, Zach Chappell hit a 3 and Washington hit a fastbreak 3. The Spartans led 17-9 at the 12:19 mark.

But Simpson had other plans. The Red Hawks pulled within 3 at the 11:07 mark. Kon Anguik hit a 3 and Brycen Wight made a fastbreak layup in the paint.

The Red Hawks never got back up for the remainder of the half. The Spartans went on a 8-0 run and a 9-0 run, respectively, to take a 42-26 lead to the locker room at the halftime break.

The Red Hawks scored first to open the second half, but the Spartans maintained their lead from that moment on. LeCesne made a pair of layups to extend the Spartans’ lead to 46-28 at the 18:14 mark. Then, SJSU went on an 8-0 run to make it 56-29 at the 16:06 mark. Lane made a layup, Ivey hit a 3 and Knight made a fastbreak layup in the paint, fastbreak free throw and a dunk.

But the Spartans refused to back down. SJSU continued to make the plays and put the points on the scoreboard. These two teams went on their own little runs, and while the Red Hawks’ Wight capped off the scoring with a fastbreak layup in the paint, it was the Spartans who won the game by a final score of 85-60.

With the win, SJSU improves to 2-2, while Simpson falls to 0-1.

“Yes, the chemistry definitely played a role in the win and our points off the bench,” Seneca Knight and Zach Chappell said when asked about the team’s chemistry. “Some guys, including us, have been getting along with each other and they’ve been practicing really hard because they want to do a great job and also make the fans happy.”

“Agee means a lot to our team,” Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau said when asked about Ralph Agee. “He brings a lot of energy. I thought he was really good tonight in the middle of our zone because he communicates, and when he communicates, he allows the forwards and whoever’s on the back side to kind of match up and know where they’re supposed to be. I thought he did a really job there. He’s really athletic. He’s a great team player. He loves being here. He loves being on the team. We’re expecting a lot out of him and I think the sky’s the limit for him, and I appreciate the fact that he’s thinking about the team rather than himself.”

The Spartans host the Grambling State Tigers on Wednesday, November 20 at 7 pm PST.

Raiders hold off Bengals, 17-10

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — In a game where the Silver and Black entered the contest an almost two-touchdown favorite, the Raiders narrowly escaped with a 17-10 victory over the winless Cincinnati Bengals Sunday at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

Quarterback Derek Carr threw for 292 yards and a touchdown, while adding rushing for another score as the Raiders (6-4) completed a three-game sweep at home to move into a first-place tie with the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West.

Kansas City (6-4) will play the Los Angeles Chargers in Mexico City on Monday Night Football.

Carr completed 25-of-29 passes and an interception in the contest.

With Oakland trailing Cincinnati 7-0 in the second quarter after running back Joe Mixon scored the Bengals’ first rushing touchdown of the season by a running back, Carr engineered an 11-play, 91-yard drive in 7:07 that was punctuated by a 3-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight Foster Moreau that tied the game at 7-7.

After forcing the Bengals to punt on the following drive, Carr led Oakland on a 10-play, 80-yard drive that ate up 3:39 that resulted in a 3-yard rushing touchdown by Carr who went airborne at the goal line before crashing into the end zone that gave the Silver and Black a 14-7 lead.

Rookie running back Josh Jacobs continues to be a bellcow for Oakland, rushing for 112 yards on 23 carries. It was the fourth time in the last six weeks that Jacobs, a heavy favorite for AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year, rushed for over 100 yards.

Jacobs’ first fumble of the season would set up Cincinnati’s on touchdown in the game.

Oakland’s defense dominated Cincinnati’s offense, registering five sacks, forcing and recovering one fumble, and an interception. The defense was relentless against Bengals rookie quarterback Ryan Finley.

Fellow rookie, defensive end Maxx Crosby recorded a team rookie-record four sacks and finished with five tackles (4 solo) and three tackles for a loss. It was by far Crosby’s best game as a pro. He had a sack and forced fumble to end Cincinnati’s first drive, dropped Finley again in the third quarter and then sacked him twice in the fourth.

Finley completed 13-of-31 passes for 115 yards.

The Bengals are continuing to spiral down the drain as the only winless team in the NFL. Its the second time in Cincinnati’s history that the team has started a season 0-10, matching the 1993 team for the worst start in franchise history.

Coincidentally, it was the Raiders in 1993 that allowed the Bengals to earn their first win of the season but didn’t allow lighting to strike twice today.

With Cincinnati trailing 17-10 in the final minutes of the game, rookie cornerback Trayvon Mullen’s interception sealed the win for the Silver and Black. It was the third-straight game that Oakland’s defense closed out the game with a big stop.

The Raiders look to extend their winning streak to four games, as they will travel east in Week 12 to take on the New York Jets next Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ to begin a two-game road trip.

The Jets (3-7) demolished Washington (1-9), 34-17, at FedEx Field Sunday behind 293 yards and four touchdown passes from second-year quarterback Sam Darnold.

Kings stun the Celtics 100-99 at home

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Photo credit: @SacramentoKings

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO — Sunday was going to be a test for the Sacramento Kings. Their Sunday opponent was the Boston Celtics. The Celtics have started out the season 10-1 and were on a 10-game win streak. It has been well-documented how the Kings started their season. However, the Kings have played much better as of late. The Kings were 4-7 on the year and looking for an upset at home. The tip-off was set for 12:30 PM PST in Sacramento.

The Kings played one of the best quarters of the season to open up the game. Led by Buddy Hield and Nemanja Bjeilica, who had 9 and 7 points, respectively, the Kings would jump out to an early lead 30-18. Leading the way for the Celtics was Jaylen Brown, who had a Celtics-leading 6 points heading into the second quarter. The Kings played really well throughout the opening quarter. The key for the Kings has been the defensive play. When the Kings play good defense, the rest seems to fall into place.

In the second quarter, the Kings didn’t play as well but part of that has to be contributed to the Celtics hitting their shots. Leading the way for the Celtics in the second was Semi Ojeleye. Semi had 8 points in the second to help bring the Celtics closer to the Kings. Going into halftime, the Kings remained in the lead at 50-46. Buddy Hield continued his good play finishing the half at 16 points. Headed into the second half the Kings were looking to keep the game under their control and not let the Celtics flip the script.

In the second half, the Kings were looking to stay on track. It would turn out to be a fairly competitive back and forth third quarter. The Kings didn’t melt down, which has been an issue in the third this year. However, they were unable to maintain the lead. The Celtics managed to put up 29 points in the third compared to the Kings’ 21 to take a 75-71. Buddy Hield continued his torrid stretch from the field, adding 11 points to his total in the third.

Heading into the fourth quarter, the Kings had a shot to win the game against one of the best teams in the NBA. Both teams would trade baskets and keep even through the quarter. The game would come down to the final few minutes of action. With 36 seconds left in the game, the Kings’ Buddy Hield threw the ball out of bounds to make it 99-98 Celtics with the ball. The Celtics were unable to score and Marcus Smart had a foul on the Kings’ Holmes. He made both his free throws and the Celtics failed to score on the other end for a Kings win.

It was a great victory for the Kings, who snapped the Celtics’ win streak and improved to 5-7 on the year. The next game for the Kings will be Tuesday against the Suns at home. Game time set for 7:00 PM PST.

NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum: Trouble is just the Cherry on top for Don Cherry; Crosby out six weeks after hernia surgery; plus more

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ottawacitizen.com: This image of Don Cherry was taken a day after he was fired from CBC Sports for referring to immigrants as “you people” on Hockey Night in Canada telecast in early November. Here Cherry tries to explain himself for what happened in the interview.

On the NHL podcast with Daniel:

1 Fallout continues from firing of Don Cherry

2 Pens’ Sidney Crosby out minimum 6 weeks after sports hernia surgery

3 Lightning’s Steven Stamkos joins 400-goal club

4 Coyotes goalie Darcy Kuemper fights Calgary’s Matt Tkachuk, shuts out Flames

5 Coyotes create special experience for 8-year-old cancer patient

6 Coyotes’ radio analyst Paul Bissonnette gets chance to back up lacrosse boast

Catch Daniel Sundays for the NHL podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Not Here, Not Tonight: Slovis, Trojans overwhelm Bears in 41-17 win

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–The USC Trojans dealt with adversity early, then seamlessly eased into cruise control, whipping the Cal Bears 41-17 Saturday night.

Freshman quarterback Kedon Slovis threw 406 yards and four touchdowns in a game that was tied 10-10 late in the second quarter, but quickly turned for the Trojans at that point.  Slovis connected with Michael Pittman Jr. for a 33-yard touchdown pass 43 seconds prior to halftime. Then on the opening drive of the second half Slovis hooked up with Drake London for an 8-yard score that made it 24-10.

That sequence highlighted the theme for the evening: Cal’s highly-regarded secondary was no match for the Trojans’ receivers and the crafty Slovis.

“Credit the wideouts,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “They did an elite job when they got in one-on-one situations, making big plays for the kid. When you have four touchdowns and zero interceptions, that’s a hell of a day.”

Slovis repeatedly bought time in and out of the pocket in order to make big plays downfield. London, Pittman and Amon-Ra St. Brown each had pass plays for 45 yards or more. USC would go on to reel off 31 consecutive points, turning the game into a rout.

“Our guys wanted to compete against them. I love that about them,” said head coach Justin Wilcox. “But you have to give them credit. The matchups are as tough as it’s been. I’ve seen great receivers in this league, but not a collection like that.”

While USC made highlight reel plays, the Bears struggled to keep their best players on the field. First, Christopher Brown was lost for the evening when USC’s Michael Rector delivered a vicious hit as the Bears were driving. Upon further review, Rector was hit with a targeting penalty and ejected from the game.

Chase Garbers returned to action after missing five games, and appeared sharp, as well as afforded snaps to ease into a competitive ballgame. But that scenario ended abruptly when the sophomore quarterback injured his shoulder in the second quarter and did not return.

Reserve inside linebacker Evan Tattersall was injured during a punt coverage play in which he was pushed backwards and suffered an apparent neck injury. Tattersall remained down on the field for several minutes and was taken to a local hospital. After the game, Wilcox reported that Tattersall had movement in all of his extremities and was expected to be released from the hospital.

On defense, senior safety Ashtyn Davis suffered a knee injury and did not finish the game.

The Bears have not defeated USC in Berkeley since 2003. They remain one win from Bowl eligibility with games remaining at Stanford and at UCLA.

The 122nd Big Game is up first next Saturday at 1pm.