Kings run and gun Friday night to beat the Cavs 129-110 at the “Q”

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Cavs Kings NBCS
Photo:@NBCSKings

By Charlie O. Mallonee

The Sacramento Kings won their third game in a row and the second game of this four-game road trip on Friday night as they took down the hapless Cleveland Cavaliers 129-110 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. It was the Cavs’ second loss in three days to a Northern California team as they were beaten by the Warriors at the “Q” on Wednesday night.

Sacramento was coming off a convincing win over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night and knew they had a chance to add to their win total on this road trip if they just focused on playing their type of basketball.

On Friday night, the Kings taught the Cavs what Sactown basketball is all about.

SAC ran CLE into the ground

  • The Kings outscored the Cavaliers 72-42 in the paint
  • SAC had a 57.1 FG% (56/98) and was 13-for-29 (44.9%) from 3-point land
  • The Kings recorded 19 second chance points to the Cavs’ 8
  • Sacramento had 35 rebounds — 10 were offensive rebounds
  • Cleveland also booked 35 rebounds, but only 7 were on offense
  • The Kings outscored the Cavs on the Fast Break 12-5
  • SAC had 30 assists and just nine turnovers (12 CLE points)
  • CLE dished out 20 assists, but turned the ball over 18 times (31 SAC points)

Outstanding individual efforts by Kings players

cavs kings nbcs 2
Photo: @NBCSKings
  • De’Aaron Fox was the game’s high scorer with 30 points and he made it a double-double by dishing out 12 assists (some of which were Top 10 worthy)
  • Buddy Hield recorded 25 points, sinking 9-of-17 shots (5-of-8 3-pointers)
  • Marvin Bagley III returned to action after missing two games and put up 17 points in just over 25 minutes on the floor
  • Bogdanovic 15; Bjelica 13; Cauley-Stein 10; Jackson 7; Koufos 6; Shumpert 6

Cleveland leaders

  • Jordan Clarkson was the leading scorer for the Cavs with 26 points
  • Guard Colin Sexton put up 23
  • The just added Alec Burks put 22 points and 7 rebounds in the book

It has to be said

The Kings record now stands at 13-11 for the season which gives them sole possession of eighth place in the Western Conference. Yes, that means if the season ended today the Kings would be in the playoffs. That cannot be ignored.

Dwelling in the cellar

The Cavs record is now 5-20 after the loss to the Kings. They are now tied for 14th or last-place in the NBA Eastern Conference with the Atlanta Hawks.

The Cavaliers made big news before the game

Cavs Delly
Photo:@Cavaliers

Cleveland took part on Friday in a three-team, five-player trade that involved the Cavs, Bucks, and Wizards. Some well-traveled veterans went to new teams while others went home to places where they have played before.

The Cavaliers sent veteran guard (and former King) George Hill to the Milwaukee Bucks along with forward Jason Smith.

The Cavs received Matthew Dellavedova — who was a very popular player in Cleveland before leaving in free agency — and center John Henson from Milwaukee.

The Wizards get Sam Dekker from Cleveland via Milwaukee along with draft picks.

The Cavs end up with the 2021 first and second-round draft picks from the Bucks. They also get a 2022 second-round pick from the Wizards.

Milwaukee winds up with a 2021 second-round selection from Washington.

Finally, the Wizards get a 2021 draft pick from the Cavs.

All of these draft picks have conditions tied to them. If you want the complete details, go to NBA.com transactions.

Up Next

The Kings will be back in action on Saturday night in Indianapolis when they will take on the Indiana Pacers. The Kings beat the Pacers 111-110 last Saturday night in Sacramento and Indiana will have revenge on their minds.

The Cavs will host the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

Warriors defeat the Bucks 105-95

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By: London Marq

A few weeks and sideline argument ago, the Golden State Warriors were dysfunctional. People were questioning the organization’s loyalty to Draymond Green would he be traded before the deadline? Wondering if the on-going drama between Green and Durant would derail their season, especially after the incident was followed by a 3-game losing streak. But winning covers up all manner of sins.

The Warriors hosted the Milwaukee Bucks at Oracle Arena on Thursday night, entering play having won the previous two games. Giannis Antetokounmpo, also known as the Greek Freak, and the Bucks have stayed on pace with their development and on track as one of the best teams in the league with hopes that hope to make a deep playoff run.

Perhaps this game will turn out to be a Finals preview. The Warriors certainly played like it, flying high right out of the gate. They opened the first quarter on a 12-4 run behind two Curry threes and excellent defense. Defense would be the theme throughout the game for Golden State, who had a mediocre game by there standards. Despite having 13 turnovers in the game and Durant being scoreless at halftime the Warriors were able to stay in control, holding the lead for the majority of the game.

Behind 20 point outings for both Curry and Thompson, the Warriors played their best defense of the season so far, holding the Bucks to their lowest point total of the season. Antetokounmpo ended up with 22 points, 15 in rebounds in the loss, while no other Buck was able to tally more than 15. It was great defensive outing for Golden State despite their shortcoming.

We all are ready for the end of the dynasty, but it’s not here just yet,

The Warriors defeated the Bucks 105-95.

The Warriors host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday at 7:30 pm PT.

Broncos Set to Roll 49ers on Sunday

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Photo credit: denverbroncos.com

By: Joe Lami

The Denver Broncos head into Sunday’s game with three-straight wins. Since their bye in week ten, they’re the hottest team in the NFL and have brought their record to .500. The Broncos are firing on all cylinders after rolling off wins against the Chargers, Steelers, and Bengals.

They look to continue their success when they visit Santa Clara this weekend. Pushing themselves right back into the playoff hunt, at 6-6, they currently sit in the cluster of teams vying for the AFC Wild Card spots.

Their rejuvenated defense lead the Broncos. The addition of Bradley Chubb opposite of Von Miller has given new life to Miller. The two have combined for 22.5 sacks on the year. Miller is only behind Aaron Donald for the NFL lead with 12.5 sacks.

It’ll be critical for San Francisco to protect Nick Mullens, who is coming off of a 400-plus yards passing game. He was able to find chemistry with rookie, Dante Pettis, who is turning into the one shining light of the season.

Pettis brought in two more touchdown catches last week to bring his season total up to four. If he can continue the success, he should be a dangerous speed option for Garoppollo next season.

Turnovers continue to be a key for the 49ers, the NFL’s worst team at turnover differential. The defense has put the offense in a tight position all season, allowing zero room for error with just five takeaways. San Francisco’s defense went the entire month of November without one and haven’t taken the ball away since Week 8.

Denver is average in the turnover margin but is seventh best in the league with 21 takeaways on the year.

They will have everything to play for. San Francisco has nothing to play for this season.

The 49ers are in the exact opposite situation as the Broncos. Since their week 11 bye, they’ve lost two straight to the Buccaneers and the Seahawks by a combined score of 70-25.

Things are spiraling out of control for the third time in four seasons for the red and gold, and they need a solid performance at home to give any reason why the Faithful should still support them this season.

The 49ers need to show they haven’t quit yet. Things got ugly last week heading into halftime down 20-3, but they pieced something together scoring two touchdowns in the second half to show some pulse.

Sharks Fall to Stars 3-2

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Photo credit: @SanJoseSharks

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 3-2 to the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center on Friday. The game was tied 1-1 going into a three-goal third period, with the Sharks scoring first and last. Stars goals came from Mattias Janmark, Miro Heiskanen and Brett Ritchie. Stars goaltender Ben Bishop made 41 saves for the win. Sharks goals came from Evander Kane and Logan Couture, with goalie Martin Jones making 27 saves in the loss.

After the game, Joe Pavelski talked about how the team is improving despite some of the recent losses:

It’s just about lengthening our stretches of playing good hockey, which we’ve been doing little bit in our games. Still going a good direction. We had good energy I thought, you know, up and down the lineup for most of the night. You know, there’s always momentum swings and I think we’be done a better job lately of handling them.

Evander Kane described a factor in the team’s inconsistency: “I think it’s just spells throughout the course of the season where I think we’re just a little too relaxed and we need to ramp up the intensity a little bit on the ice.

Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer considered it a fairly good road game from the Sharks: “It’s a small margin right now. I don’t think they worked harder than us, I thought we played a pretty good road game. You know, we’re just finding the wrong side of that line right now and we’ve got to get on the right side of it.”

The Sharks scored the only goal in the first period, at 9:22. Brenden Dillon carried the puck out of the Sharks zone and through the neutral zone, then passed it to Joonas Donskoi, who was on his way into the offensive zone with Erik Karlsson and Evander Kane. Donskoi passed to Karlsson in the slot, he sent it left to Kane, and Kane took the shot, catching Bishop as he came across. It was Kane’s eighth goal of the season, with assists to Karlsson and Donskoi.

The Sharks outshot the Stars 13-5 in the first period. They had one penalty to kill in the first, and did so without allowing a shot on goal. That was a hooking penalty against Logan Couture. They killed another penalty right at the start of the second period, a delay of game against Marcus Sorensen for sending the puck out of play. The Sharks power play was unsuccessful.

The Sharks lost a goal to an early whistle at 4:09 of the second. The puck trickled across the line after Sorensen took a shot off the rush, but the whistle blew while the puck was still under Bishop.

The Stars tied the game at 14:05 of the second, when Mattias Janmark got a break during a change. Erik Karlsson had flipped the puck down the ice right as most of the Sharks went to change. Tomas Hertl was not able to get control of the puck one on three. It went back the other way, finding Janmark just off the bench and breaking through the zone. He beat Jones on the blocker side. It was Janmark’s second goal of the season with an assist to Roman Polak.

The shot clock evened out in the second period, with the teams almost tied 15-14 Dallas.

The Sharks had an early power play in the third but did not get a shot on goal. After the power play, the Stars brought a lot of pressure and had the Sharks scrambling on defense. That ended about two minutes later, when Miro Heiskanen gave the Stars the lead with a shot from the boards. Assists went to Tyler Pitlick and Radek Faksa.

The Stars extended their lead less than two minutes later. A zone entry went awry for the Sharks when Heiksanen knocked the puck away from Melker Karlsson and Jason Spezza passed the puck to a fast-moving Devin Shore. Shore took the puck into the zone two on one with Brett Ritchie. Shore made the pass and Ritchie put the puck under Martin Jones as he came across. Assists went to Shore and Spezza.

The Sharks got one back very quickly, at 6:59. Erik Karlsson took a blue line pass from Dillon and took the shot. It went off of Couture’s stick as he battled for position in front of Bishop. It was Couture’s ninth of the season with assists to Karlsson and Dillon.

The Sharks pulled Jones from the net with under two minutes to go but could not tie the game back up.

The Sharks next play on Saturday in Glendale against the Arizona Coyotes at 5:00 PM PT. The Sharks will see the Dallas Stars again next week, on the 13th in San Jose.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Luis Valbuena and José Castillo Dead in Car “Accident” in Venezuela

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By: Amaury Pi-González

This Thursday, a car crash claimed the lives of two former MLB players in Venezuela. But officials are reporting that it could have been a gang of thieves that engineered the accident in order to rob Luis Valbuena and Jose Castillo, who were teammates in the Venezuelan Winter League. They were traveling with teammate Carlos Rivero when the vehicle suddenly slammed into a large rock in the middle of the road. Authorities believe the rock have been purposely placed in hopes it would lead to an accident to allow the thieves to rob the vehicle occupants.

The vehicle was destroyed in the wreck. Both Valbuena and Castillo were not wearing seat-belts and died instantly as they were thrown out of the car. Rivero survived. The Toyota they were driven was looted right there at the place of the “accident.”

The Cardenales de Lara, the team that both Valbuena and Castillo had played for, called the accident a terrible tragedy.

“We are saddened by the tragic news that Luis Valbuena and former major leaguer Jose Castillo have died in a car accident,” MLB wrote in a tweet.

“We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of former Angel Luis Valbuena and former MLB infielder José Castillo. Our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones during this time of grief,” Los Angeles Angels wrote in a tweet.

Valbuena was a very happy guy who was smiling most of the time and ready to play, every time I talked to him he would found a way to mention he was humble and grateful to be playing in the major leagues. The veteran was released in August 2018 by the Angels. Valbuena, 33, played 11 seasons in the majors after beginning his career in 2008 with the Seattle Mariners. He also played for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros and the Angels.

Castillo, 37, played in the majors from 2004 to 2008 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants and Astros.

They were two players who really loved the game, and like many Latino players, they go back to their countries to play winter ball.

Today, Venezuela today is suffering a national calamity with an economy that is basically non-existent, a government that has basically destroyed what once was, but one of the richest countries in Latin America with great oil reserves. Moreover, the population is suffering from malnutrition and violence. Over 1 million Venezuelan citizens fled to Colombia to live in exile.

Many reports report that by 2021, as many as 4 million Venezuelans would be living in neighbor Colombia if the situation continues to deteriorate in Venezuela. Venezuela, under Hugo Chávez and now Nicolas Maduro, have followed the socialistic ideas of Cuba.

Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast with Joey Friedman: After being dominated by Kansas, the Cardinal are back at home against Washington State

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Photo credit: @GoStanford

On the Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast with Joey Friedman:

#1 Joey, to no one’s surprise, the No. 2 Kansas Jayhawks shut down any chance for the Stanford Cardinal to get past them last Saturday in a 90-84 win at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Ks.

#2 The Hawks’ Lagerald Vick was key to the victory. Vick drilled the game-tying 3-pointer with 7 seconds remaining in regulation, then scored eight of his 27 points in overtime.

#3 Stanford’s Daejon Davis sank a pair of free throws with 13.3 seconds remaining, giving the Cardinal a 75-72 lead. Vick made the tying 3-pointer on the ensuing possession. How frustrating was it to lose in a game where Stanford was in shouting distance all night?

#4 The Jayhawks hold an 11-3 all-time series lead over Stanford. Next season, the teams complete their four-game series in December at Maples Pavilion.

#5 Next up for the Stanford Cardinal, they host Washington State on Sat. Dec. 15th and our very own Joey Friedman has your game coverage on that contest.

Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast can be heard each Friday with Joey Friedman at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Fantasy Football Doctors Week 14: Welcome to the Playoffs!!!

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FFPlayoffs

your hosts: Dr. Vasu Vaddiparty & Dr. Charlie O

  • Is Phillip Rivers the QB start of the week?

  • Should you count on Jameis Winston vs the Saints?

  • What about Andrew Luck? Should you start him?

  • Would you dare start a Browns QB on a playoff weekend?

  • Why “Big Ben” is a must start!

  • The Pats Sony Michel could be a game changer

  • Jaylen Samuels of the Steelers could be a starter at RB or TE

  • The 49ers Jeff Wilson could be a point producer on Sunday

  • Amari Cooper is coming alive as a WR for the Cowboys

  • Chris Godwin could be a good play versus New Orleans

  • With a new head coach, will Jimmy Graham have a bigger role in Green Bay?

The Fantasy Football Doctors have the answers to these questions and many more in this week’s podcast. Spend a few minutes with the doctors and win your playoff game!

San Francsico 49ers preview: Niners return home, hope to end skid

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@49ers photo: San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Dante Pettis adjusts his gloves during game against the Seattle Seahawks last Sunday at Century Link Field

By Jeremy Harness

SANTA CLARA–The 49ers are currently riding a three-game losing streak, and things are not looking good for their being able to put an end to it this Sunday, either.

After getting smacked around in Seattle by the Seahawks, the 49ers will make their way back to Levi’s Stadium and play host to the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

While the 49ers have been out of the playoff picture for quite a while now, the Broncos have an outside chance of getting in, with a current 6-6 record.

The 49ers have some good news, however. After missing the last two weeks with assorted injuries, receiver Marquise Goodwin returned to practice in a full capacity this week and is expected to be on the field Sunday afternoon.

At the same time, though, there are a few names that remained on the injury report this week, as running back Matt Breida has not practiced this week with an ankle injury that is expected to keep him off the field come Sunday.

Meanwhile, receiver Pierre Garcon’s bad knee has kept him out of practice and will likely not play this weekend, either. Safety Jaquiski Tartt, who has been riddled with injuries during his young NFL career, also has not practiced, as he is dealing with a bad shoulder.

The Broncos are dealing with their share of injuries as well, the most significant being receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who suffered a torn Achilles tendon in practice this week and will miss the rest of this season.

Former 49ers cornerback Tramaine Brock was hoping to make his return to Levi’s Stadium on Sunday, but it looks like that will not happen, as an injury to his ribs has kept him out of practice this week and is not expected to be ready to go by Sunday.

 

SJSU returns to the win column with a 67-65 win over B-CU

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Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Besides the home opener, not much has been going in the San Jose State Spartans’ favor in the men’s basketball world, but they had a game on Thursday night versus the Bethune Cookman Wildcats inside the Event Center and there was no way to avoid it.

Prior to the tipoff, Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau put together a starting lineup of Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Oumar Barry, Noah Baumann and Craig LeCesne.

The SJSU cheer team got things started, the crowd grew loud and both teams balled it out on the court. SJSU opened the scoring, thanks to LeCesne’s jumper in the paint just 18 seconds into the first period. Steadman followed up LeCesne’s opening score with a pair of free throws and a jumper in the paint. Barry also made his presence felt with a pair of free throws.

SJSU was doing just fine until B-CU made it a 1-point game and subsequently grabbed a 13-12 lead. Shawntrez Davis threw down the dunk to put the Wildcats on top. The Wildcats proceeded to build upon its lead, but the Spartans stayed in the game with Ivey’s jumper, Anigwe’s layup and Barry’s pair of free throws. The Spartans tied the game 20-20, thanks to Steadman’s jumper.

This matchup turned out to be a back-and-forth battle. Anigwe threw down a fastbreak dunk to put the Spartans back on top. Armani Collins hit a 3-pointer to make it a 1-point game in favor of B-CU. Anigwe tied the game 23-23 and Baumann made a fastbreak layup to help the Spartans to a 25-23 advantage. The Spartans had a 27-23 lead before the Wildcats took over to make it a 1-point game. LeCesne helped the Spartans to a 1-point lead, but it was short-lived as Leon Redd hit a 3 and a jumper to put the Wildcats back on top.

The ardent action winded down and SJSU trailed B-CU 35-32 at halftime.

SJSU picked up the pace to start the second period. Barry threw down a dunk and made a layup in the paint, Steadman made a layup and Baumann hit a fastbreak 3 to put the Spartans on top within the first five minutes of the second. But B-CU refused to back down as Malik Maitland hit a 3 to make it a 1-point game and Pope tied the game 41-41 with a free throw.

It was deja vu all over again as both teams engaged in another back-and-forth battle. Brian Rodriguez-Flores hit a 3 to give the Spartans a 44-41 lead, but Mark Gordon hit not only one, but two 3s to tie the game 44-44 and put the Wildcats up 47-44.

The crowd erupted in cheers as Baumann hit back-to-back 3s to tie the game 58-58 and put the Spartans up 61-58 late in the game. There was a slight scare as the Wildcats hastily responded, but Ivey hit a 3 of his own to put the Spartans back on top 64-63.

The game went down-to-the-wire, but SJSU hung in there. Steadman made a layup to give the Spartans a 1-point lead with 39.4 seconds left. The Spartans played defense, which worked this time as B-CU missed as time expired.

SJSU defeated B-CU 67-65. With the win, SJSU notched its second win on the season and snapped its 6-game losing skid.

SJSU concludes its homestand next Saturday, Dec. 15 vs. Northern Arizona. Tipoff is set for 7:00 pm PST.

Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony Renteria: Carr put out a great effort against Chiefs, will try to get team a win Sunday vs. Steelers

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Photo credit: @Forbes

On the Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony Renteria:

#1 Talk about Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and his efforts against the Kansas City Chiefs. He showed a lot of fight against one of the best teams in the NFL.

#2 Carr passed former Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon on the all-time passing list.

#3 Carr has been rumored not to be coming back in 2019. Carr has three years left on his contract. Does Tony see that happening?

#4 Carr and the Raiders fought hard in last Sunday’s game to come back. How much did it take out of them?

#5 The Raiders host the Pittsburgh Steelers next Sunday at the Oakland Coliseum.

Tony does the Raiders podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com