Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips and Michael Duca: 18-point rally not enough to catch red-hot Redhawks in Cal’s latest loss

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calbears.com photo: The Cal Bears guard Paris Austin (3) takes a drive against the Seattle Redhawks guard Terrell Brown (23) at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Saturday night

On the Cal podcast with Morris and Michael:

The Bears (5-7) fell behind by as many as 18 points in the first half, only to rally, but ultimately lose to Seattle, 82-73 at Haas Pavilion. The loss concluded Cal’s non-conference schedule without providing much belief that they can right the ship with Pac-12 play next up beginning Thursday at UCLA.

Coach Wyking Jones surely didn’t get any assurances from his team that they’ll be engaged come Thursday, not after they led 2-0 Saturday, only to fall behind 21-4 with 12:11 remaining before halftime. The Redhawks with the win notched their win loss record to 12-3.

Morris and Michael do the Cal Bears basketball podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford squeezes past Long Beach State 93-86

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gostanford.com photo: Stanford Cardinal Josh Sharma goes up for the throwdown against the Long Beach Matadors at Maples Pavilion on Saturday night

by Joey Friedman

PALO ALTO — Coming off a loss to an outstanding San Francisco Dons team on the road, Stanford (now 7-5 on the season) returned to Maples Pavilion for their final game of the 2018 calendar year and their final game of the non-conference schedule against Long Beach State (now 5-10 on the season). Star freshman guard Cormac Ryan remained out for the third consecutive game with an ankle injury, giving freshman Jaiden Delaire his first career start in the win. Stanford was successful in avenging last year’s road loss to the Long Beach State 49ers by the score of 93-86.

The game remained tight throughout the first half as copious turnover and fouls committed by both teams stunted any runs. The Cardinal and The Beach exchanged small advantages with Josh Sharma and KZ Okpala leading the team with 9 and 8 points in the half, respectively. Sharma also collected 10 rebounds in the first half, setting a career record. Stanford would take a 37-36 lead to halftime.

Long Beach State’s lead with the score 45-43 was their last of the night as Stanford caught fire and, on the back of a pair of Oscar da Silva 3-pointers, went on a 13-1 run, which put the score at 56-46 with less than 14 minutes left in the game.

The Beach didn’t go quietly, however. Stanford’s free throw shooting down the stretch allowed for the 49ers to crawl back to within two points with under a minute to go. Bryan Alberts, who finished with 22 points (6-13 from beyond the arc), nailed a pair of 3s while Temidayo Yussuf, who finished with 13 points (5-7 from the field), added 6 points of his own in the closing minutes to narrow the gap. Towards the end of the game, Stanford shot 5-19 from the charity stripe.

Down by 3 and with a chance to tie the game with under 10 seconds left in the game, Long Beach State head coach Don Monson tried to call a timeout to presumably set up a play for his team on offense but was unsuccessful at getting the referees’ attention. Subsequently, Long Beach State threw up a poor, air-balled shot on their final possession. Monson was understandably irate with the referees which drew a pair of technical fouls and an ejection from the court. Stanford padded their lead in the closing seconds with the fouls shots.

Josh Sharma finished the game for the Cardinal with his first career double-double. He set career-highs in both points and rebounds, blowing his previous career highs out of the water. He finished with 23 points and 18 rebounds.

Daejon Davis, who had 17 points and 5 assists for the Cardinal, left the game with an apparent ankle injury with about seven minutes left in the game. Head coach Jerod Hasse said he does not know the extent of the injury.

KZ Okpala and Jaiden Delaire each had 20 points and 10 points, respectively, in the win.

What’s next?
Stanford will open Pac-12 Conference play with the LA schools as the Card head south for games at UCLA on January 3rd and at USC on January 6th.

Long Beach State opens Big West Conference play at home against UC Davis after they face Bethesda at home on January 5th.

Rousted by Redhawks: Cal closes non-conference schedule with home loss to Seattle, 82-73

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, Calif. — Saturday was not the Pac-12’s finest hour, and the Cal Bears’ performance was partly responsible for what ranks among the darkest days for the Conference of Champions in men’s basketball.

The Bears (5-7) fell behind by as many as 18 points in the first half, only to rally, but ultimately lose to Seattle, 82-73 at Haas Pavilion. The loss concluded Cal’s non-conference schedule without providing much belief that they can right the ship with Pac-12 play next up beginning Thursday at UCLA.

Coach Wyking Jones surely didn’t get any assurances from his team that they’ll be engaged come Thursday, not after they led 2-0 Saturday, only to fall behind 21-4 with 12:11 remaining before halftime.

“I don’t know why, but I have to do a better job of making sure that we’re ready to play,” Jones conceded. “I could see it in shootaround. The energy level wasn’t there for whatever reason, but we can’t dig ourselves a hole. Typically we start games well, but we weren’t ready to play today. We fought back, and had some energy and spurts, but you can’t dig yourself an 18-point hole and expect to win.”

The Bears got hurt in the paint, primarily by Myles Carter who post a career-best 26 points and 13 rebounds to lead Seattle. Seattle’s leading scorer Morgan Means added 24, which included a school-record 16 for 16 performance from the free throw line, eight of those in the final two minutes of the ballgame.

Matej Kavas, Seattle’s second leading scorer who has 36 3-pointers this season, missed the game with ankle injury suffered in the team’s most recent practice. But even that setback seemed to bolster the Redhawks as they intensified their attack inside where they enjoyed a 38-30 edge on the glass and scored 19 second chance points.

“We showed a lot of grit and hung in there for all 40 minutes,” said Seattle coach Jim Hayworth. “Morgan did a great job of leading and was spectacular from the free-throw line. And (Cal) had no answer for Myles who had a great game.”

The Bears were led by point guard Paris Austin with 20 points, 17 of those after halftime. Darius McNeill added 19, and Justice Sueing added 15.

Cal was one of five Pac-12 schools to lose non-conference games on Saturday, including the league’s only ranked team, No. 17 Arizona State which fell at home to Princeton, 67-66. UCLA was shocked by Liberty, losing 73-58 at Pauley Pavilion, a loss that Steve Alford said was the most disappointing in his 28 years of coaching.

Utah lost at home to No. 5 Nevada, and Washington State lost at home to Santa Clara. The league’s 38-36 record in December is the worst won-loss record of any major conference (including the Big East) in this month in the last 20 years, a fact revealed on ESPN.com’s front page, much to the Pac-12’s dismay.

 

Warriors regain their mojo, defeat the Blazers 115-105

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors snapped a two-game losing streak as they beat the Portland Trail Blazers 115-105 at the Moda Center Saturday night. The Warriors, coming off two ugly losses to the Lakers and Blazers, excelled on both ends of the court Saturday night. Klay Thompson, who had mired in a shooting slump, came alive and led the team to the victory with 32 points including four 3-point shots in four tries. The Warriors won the first three quarters, and each team scored 22 points in the fourth quarter.

The Warriors won the first quarter 30-27. Kevon Looney helped out with seven points early in the quarter. Looney hit his first 3-pointer of the season to help the Warriors get rolling. He, along with Draymond Green, was tasked with defending Jusuf Nurkic. The Blazers’ big center torched the Warriors for 27 points Thursday night at Oracle Arena. Warriors’ head coach Steve Kerr did not want Nurkic to be a force inside. Looney and Green responded and played well. Nurkic finished with 21, but the Warriors were able to defend him better in this game. The Warriors started the second quarter on a 10-0 run. Curry scored the first seven points, and Jonas Jerebko knocked down a 3 to give the Warriors the lead 40-27. They led by 18, 56-38, but Portland finished the first half on a 12-2 run. The score at the half was 58-50 in favor of Golden State. Andre Iguodala was charged with a technical foul and had to leave the game when he threw the basketball into the stands with force as the buzzer sounded to end the second quarter. The refs had no choice as it is an automatic ejection.

The Warriors were able to increase the lead to 10 at the end of the third quarter. The Warriors behind Curry, Thompson and Durant increased the lead to 14. The Blazers refused to wilt and were able to cut the deficit to five 83-78. Quinn Cook was in for Curry, and he made two big 3-point shots to propel the Warriors to a 10-0 run. Nurkic was a force for Portland in the third quarter as he kept using his big body to barrel into the rim. The Warriors led 93-83 at the end of three.

Neither team scored in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter. Both teams played excellent defense, and the Warriors started to play sloppy and make mistakes as they did Thursday night in Oakland, Thompson’s shooting helped propel the Warriors to a 105-89 advantage. Portland went on a 9-0 run to make it 105-98. It was gut-check time for the Warriors. The Warriors scored the next four points, but Portland made a bucket to trail 109-100 with 2:07 to play. Curry was fouled attempting a 3-point shot. The best free throw shooter in the NBA missed two shots. However, on the ensuing play. The Blazers were charged with two technical fouls. Curry increased the lead to 112-100 with 1:49 left. Kerr pulled his regulars, and the Warriors coasted to the win 115-105.

Game Notes and Stats: With the win, Golden State is now 24-13 for the season. Portland falls to 20-16.

Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 32 points, and he made four treys. Steph Curry had 22, and he connected twice on three-point shots. Kevin Durant had 25. Kevon Looney had 12, Jonas Jerebko 8, and Quinn Cook had six. Draymond Green scored three points, but he was a force on the floor. He had 9 boards and 6 assists. However, when Green was on the court, the Warriors were a plus-28. Jerebko was a plus-18 as he had another stellar performance. The Warriors shot 50% from the floor and made 12 3s in 25 attempts. The Warriors defense held the Blazers to 42.9% from the floor and the Blazers were 9-for 31 from 3-point range.

The Blazers were led by Damian Lillard’s 40 points. Nurkic had 21, and CJ McCollum finished with 14.

Up Next: The Warriors meet the Phoenix Suns Monday night in Phoenix. Game time is at 5 pm.

San Jose State gets blown out by Saint Mary’s 75-45

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Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu

San Jose State men’s basketball had hoped to wrap up its Bay Area road trip with a win over Saint Mary’s at McKeon Pavilion Saturday evening. A win would mean the Spartans’ two-game losing skid would come to an end. While there was a sign of hope for the Spartans in the early minutes of the game, their wish wasn’t granted Saturday.

Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau went with this starting lineup: Brae Ivey, Noah Baumann, Craig LeCesne, Michael Steadman and Oumar Barry.

After the tip, the game went underway at McKeon Pavilion. The early score wasn’t in favor of the Spartans, but they battled back from a 9-0 deficit, thanks to Ivey’s corner trey. Then, they tied the game 14-14 at the 14:51 mark of the first period.

San Jose State, however, fell behind from there. The Spartans trailed 22-17 at the second media timeout. Baumann led the Spartans with 5 points at the time. Fast forward to the final media timeout, where the Spartans trailed 38-17 with 3:25 left on the clock. SJSU didn’t score in the last 10 minutes and 46 seconds, which was sad like the sadness LeCesne had cope with this past week. LeCesne recently lost a close friend, Emil Isovic. Isovic collapsed during a game and died at a hospital Wednesday.

SJSU had no choice but to shrug off the horrific ending as Saint Mary went on a whopping 26-0 run to end the first. The Spartans trailed the Gaels 44-14 at halftime.

Saint Mary’s continued to stay hot at home. Tanner Krebs’ shooting remained on fire as he was 5-7 in 3-point field goals with 15 points. SJSU trailed 50-23 at the 15:29 mark of the second period.

The Gaels outshot the Spartans 47 percent to 37 percent with 7:47 left in the second. Krebs’ fiery shooting remained in tact as he was well on his way to a season-high 20 points. The Gaels’ defensive effort versus the Spartans was strong to say the least.

The Spartans lost to the Gaels 75-45. SJSU fell to 3-9, while Saint Mary’s improved to 9-6.

SJSU will return to the Event Center to host rival Fresno State on Wednesday, January 2 at 7 pm PST.

Sharks Win 7-4 Over Oilers: Two Karlssons score three goals

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Edmonton Oilers 7-4 at the Rogers Place Saturday. Sharks goals came from Joonas Donskoi, Tomas Hertl, Logan Couture (2), Erik Karlsson and Melker Karlsson (2). Erik Karlsson, returning from his two game suspension, garnered four points in Saturday’s game. San Jose’s Martin Jones made 22 saves for the win. For the Oilers, goals came from Connor McDavid (2), Caleb Jones and Leon Draisaitl. Cam Talbot made 33 saves for Edmonton.

After the game, Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer said: “It was a good game for us, I think we took advantage of a team with some depth issues on defense and some young guys playing in key spots there. But, to our credit, we showed up and took advantage of what we needed to take advantage of. I thought we did a good job of playing in their end and putting some pressure on them.”

The Oilers scored first in Saturday’s game. It was a strange play, involving an early signal from the official, a review by the NHL, and a goal that came after the official had signaled a goal. At 6:26 of the first period, Ty Rattie took a shot that Martin Jones just barely stopped. While the official was waving a goal there and the goal horn was blaring, Connor McDavid knocked the puck in around Jones. The NHL reviewed the first shot to determine that it was not a goal but said nothing about the official’s gesturing before the whistle. Assists went to Ty Rattie and Leon Draisaitl. Time of the goal was 6:28.

Down 1-0, the Sharks carried on to score at 6:44. Joonas Donskoi went into the Oilers zone three on one with Erik Karlsson and Tomas Hertl. The three exchanges passes until Donskoi was almost at the goal line, when he took the shot and beat Cam Talbot over the pad. Assists went to Karlsson and Hertl.

The Sharks took the lead at 10:13 with a goal from Tomas Hertl. Hertl caught the pass from Burns, spun around in front of the net, looking like he might backhand it and drawing Talbot to the left side of the net. Instead, he kept turning and shot into the other side. Assists went to Brent Burns and Erik Karlsson.

The Sharks added to the lead at 6:39 of the third period. Logan Couture pulled the puck off the boards away from McDavid, who was tangled up with a prone and sliding Joe Pavelski. He found Joe Thornton behind the net with a pass. Thornton held the puck there until Couture was in a good shooting position above the goal line. Couture’s shot slipped under Talbot and trickled over the line after a short delay. Assists went to Thornton and Pavelski.

Erik Karlsson added another goal and his third point of the game at 18:45 of the second. The Sharks had just completed a distinctly lackluster power play and the Sharks were having a heck of a time holding the zone. They pulled themselves back together after disorderly spell. Joonas Donskoi was in the offensive zone with Barclay Goodrow and Marcus Sorensen. The trio caused some havoc around the net and Goodrow got the puck to Karlsson at the point. Donskoi was battling with Caleb Jones in front of the goalie, creating a good screen for Karlsson’s shot. Assists went to Goodrow and Donskoi.

Melker Karlsson scored the Sharks’ fifth goal at 2:41 of the third period. He tipped a Brent Burns shot from the point, with Goodrow creating a screen in front of Talbot. Assists went to Burns and Kevin Labanc.

Couture added a sixth goal, this one short-handed, at 8:25. Timo Meier was in the box for high-sticking. Evander Kane beat the Oilers defense to the puck and took it away from the goalie, who was up at the half-boards. Kane carried the puck around behind the net (tended by Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse) and found Couture coming to the net. Couture’s shot went under Talbot as he was getting back into position.

The Oilers got one back as Caleb Jones scored his first NHL goal at 10:40. Ty Rattie made a pass around a sliding Brenden Dillon to get the puck in front of the net, where Jones was ready to take the shot. He put the puck past Martin Jones as he slid across to follow the pass. Assists went to Rattie and Drake Caggiula.

Melker Karlsson scored a second time at 14:09. Erik Karlsson took the puck off the faceoff and carried it at high speed behind the net. Instead of going around the net, he made a last-second pass to the front of the net, where Melker Karlsson was waiting to knock it in. Assists went to Karlsson and Goodrow.

Leon Draisaitl scored the Oilers’ third goal at 16:53. Draisaitl carried the puck through the neutral zone, skating around Justin Braun and beating Martin Jones over the shoulder. An assist went to Milan Lucic.

Connor McDavid added a fourth goal for the Oilers at 19:54. McDavid tipped a shot from Chris Wideman and it bounced up in a high arc over Martin Jones. Assists went to Wideman and Rattie.

During the second period, Marcus Sorensen took a high hit that went unnoticed by the officials, even though he was pushed into one official in the process. He left the game for a time but did return. He sat during the final five minutes of the game as well, for precautionary reasons per Coach DeBoer.

The Sharks will next play on Monday, New Year’s Eve, in Calgary against the Flames at 6:00 PM PT.

In Division ranking, the Sharks are currently tied at 49 points with first-place Calgary, but the Flames have two games in hand. Those 49 points are good for third in the Western Conference right now, behind Calgary and Winnipeg.

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Oilers try to end loss streak today; Tavares gets two goals to pace Leafs; Habs get 5-3 win over Panthers; plus more

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usatoday.com photo: Toronto Maple Leafs’ Trevor Moore, left, carries the puck up ice as Columbus Blue Jackets’ Boone Jenner defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game on Friday, Dec. 28, 2018, in Columbus, Ohio.

On the NHL podcast with Matt:

#1 The San Jose Sharks open a three-game road trip against the Edmonton Oilers starting today. The Oilers have lost four straight and the Sharks have lost four of their last five games. Matt sets up this game for us.

#2 The Toronto Maple Leafs John Tavares helped get the Leafs a 4-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night. It was Tavares who was the difference maker, scoring two goals to get the Leafs over the hump.

#3 The Montreal Canadiens turned it up a notch with two goals from Tomas Tatar, Tatar’s second goal was the go-ahead goal in the Habs’ 5-3 win over the Florida Panthers.

#4 The New York Islanders’ Mathew Barzal had a big night in the Isles’ 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators. Barzal scored twice and had an assist as the Islanders get a win on home ice at Barclays Center.

#5 The NHL has selected some of the All-Star players. Matt tells us who he likes as the game will be played on Saturday, Jan. 26th in San Jose

Matt Harrington does the NHL podcast each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Sharks coming off win; face Oilers, who are on a four-game losing streak

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sportingnews.com file photo: The Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid (right) and the Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin (left) share pleasantries. McDavid and the Oilers host the San Jose Sharks today in Edmonton.

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 The San Jose Sharks are in Edmonton today at Rexall Center to face the Oilers, who started out with a 9-2-2 record under head coach Ken Hitchcock, but have since lost four straight games. What has been the reason for the slight drop?

#2 Hitchcock, a noted successful coach in previous tilts with other NHL clubs. This has to be just as much as surprise for him as anyone else, but teams do go in a funk, but it’s not a good wear for him.

#3 The Oilers can rebound though they have some potent players and Connor McDavid is no exception with six goals and 20 points in the month of December in 11 games.

#4 The Sharks are coming off a much-needed win against the Anaheim Ducks last Thursday at SAP Center. The Sharks before Thursday had a three-game losing streak going.

#5 The Sharks (20-12-7) are in Edmonton today against the Oilers (18-16-3). How do you see this matchup as the Oilers should be fired up after losing four straight games?

San Jose Sharks podcasts with Len Shapiro are heard each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers Close Out 2018 Season Versus Rams

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Photo credit: news.sportsinteraction.com

By: Joe Lami

The dreadful 2018 season is finally reaching the finish line for the San Francisco 49ers, as the 4-11 club travels to LA to cap-off the season against the Rams.

The 49ers have a chance to play spoiler with the Rams needing the win to secure the two seed in the NFC playoffs. The Rams can also clinch if the Bears lose to the Vikings, which kicks off as well at 1:25 pm PST.

LA will be without star running back Todd Gurley for the second straight week, as he tries to get healthy for the postseason. In his place, CJ Anderson will try and repeat a career day he had last week against Arizona.

The Niners will be without three reliable offensive weapons as well. Marquise Goodwin, Matt Breida, and breakout rookie Dante Pettis will all miss the finale with injuries.

Expect Jeff Wilson Jr. to start at running back. Since his debut during week 12, the undrafted free agent has been a surprise for the Red and Gold, rushing for 257 yards on 62 carries. He just needs to take care of the ball better, fumbling already three times, if he wants a chance to return to a very deep backfield next year.

Nick Mullens will get one final audition to be the 49ers’ backup next year or even a starter somewhere else. Kyle Shanahan has seemed unimpressed by his 3-4 record, 91 passer rating, 10 touchdowns, and nearly 2,000 passing yards he’s had since taking over week 9.

He ranks third in the NFL since 1970 behind Patrick Maholmes and Cam Newton for most yards in his first seven games.

Attacking him will be Aaron Donald, who leads the NFL with 19.5 sacks on the year, the most ever by a defensive tackle. He’s just 3.5 away from passing Michael Strahan’s single-season record. The 49ers’ offensive line needs to keep him in check to prevent history.

The 49ers face an uphill battle against the Rams but have had their number in recent bouts. San Francisco is 4-2 in their last six against the Rams, including winning both games since their return to LA.

Duck Soup: Oregon poised to use Redbox Bowl as a springboard for a national title run in 2019

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO — All college football bowl participants want to put their best foot forward, making a statement that caps a successful, winning season and serves as a springboard into the next.

The Oregon Ducks might be best positioned to capitalize on that formula.

With the announcement that prolific passing quarterback Justin Herbert will return for his senior year, along with the highest rated recruiting class in the history of the program, the Ducks are positioned to be the Pac-12 favorite and a national title contender in 2019.

For Oregon, the road to the top of the 2019 college football mountain starts Monday in Santa Clara where the Ducks face Michigan State in the Redbox Bowl.

Herbert, who passed for 2,985 yards and 28 touchdowns, was poised to be a top five pick in this spring’s NFL Draft. Instead he’s staying in Eugene in the hopes he can lead the Ducks to rarified air.

“We couldn’t be more excited for Justin to return for his senior season,” Coach Mario Cristobal said. “He is a special talent on the field, but, more importantly, a special person and leader off the field.”

“I have come to realize, is that nothing could pull me away from the opportunities that we have in front of us,” Herbert said. “As we prepare for our bowl game, I would like to ensure that there are no distractions outside of this game. My commitment to my teammates, our coaches, Duck fans, and the University of Oregon has never been stronger.”

To say Herbert’s decision to remain in school bucks current convention would be an understatement.  The 6’6″, 233-pound junior is rated as the No. 1 quarterback on ESPN’s draft board and a surefire top five pick in several other mock draft scenarios. That type of positioning along with the fact that Oregon is coming off an 8-4 season following a 7-6 campaign in 2017 under previous coach Willie Taggart, who bolted from Eugene after one year to coach Florida State, would suggest Herbert to be the next guy to leave town, in his case for millions of dollars courtesy of the NFL.

But that decision would discount the influence of first-year coach Cristobal on Herbert, his classmates, several of whom have also decided to return, and the highly-rated recruiting class. Simply put, something’s brewing with the Ducks, and it’s not just the opportunity to make a third trip to the BCS National Championship game like they did in 2011 and 2015.

It’s the opportunity to potentially win it this time.

Herbert’s return along with that of offensive  linemen Shane Lemieux, Calvin Throckmorton and Jake Hansen–all highly regarded prospects with a remaining year of eligibility–means the Ducks could return all 11 starters on offense, pending the decision of wide receiver Dillon Mitchell. Rarely does the unsettled landscape of college football yield 11 returning starters, but Lemieux made it clear that Cristobal has his entire roster thinking and dreaming.

“We talked this year about laying the foundation where we want our program to go,” Lemieux said. “I want to come back in ten years or so when we’re winning national championships every year and we turn into this dynasty like Alabama or these other schools, and really say, ‘We started that.’ A lot of these seniors right here are going to look back at the foundation that we started.”