First ACC Win For Cal: Bears Survive A Shootout At Wake Forest, Win 46-36

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By Morris Phillips

Fernando Mendoza’s late fourth quarter dash for 24 yards came with a pair of Cal companions that were poised to escort their quarterback the remaining 16 yards to paydirt.

Then Mendoza tackled himself.

If you know Cal’s recent history regarding late game collapses, it made complete sense. Mendoza popped up and signaled the next play to his teammates, a couple of whom looked stunned. Mendoza’s reasoning was a narrow 3-point lead, and ball possession was far more comforting than a 10-point lead without the ball, even as just 1:49 remained in the game.

That’s Cal football, and the residual fear created by four, agonizing ACC losses by a combined total of nine points.

Did we mention that streak of conference defeats has ended?

It has, as Cal enjoyed a cool, comfortable Friday evening in North Carolina by outlasting Wake Forest, 46-36. Mendoza continued his hot run with 385 yards passing, two touchdown passes, and one touchdown run that could have been two.

“We found a way to win,” coach Justin Wilcox said. “It’s hard to win. We have a ton of respect for Wake Forest. I’m proud of our players.”

The Bears’ (5-4, 1-4) special teams set the tone early when Hunter Barth ripped the ball loose from kick returner Demond Claiborne, Miles Williams scooped the football and dashed nine yards to give Cal a 10-0 lead five minutes in.

Cal built leads of 20-7, 29-14, and 39-29 with 6:38 remaining only to see Wake Forest respond each time. With Cal clinging to a 39-36 advantage after the two-minute warning, Mendoza broke free, but his calculated move forced the Demon Deacons to burn a pair of timeouts.

Jaivian Thomas then ran 11 yards with 1:10 remaining for Cal’s final score, which re-established a two-score lead.

Ryan Coe, demoted from his position due to missed field goals, re-emerged with a pair of 54-yard field goals. Freshman Derek Morris, the new starting kicker but lacking Coe’s leg strength, also converted from 38 and 29 yards, along with nailing all four of Cal’s extra points.

“I’m just proud of that guy for continuing to stick with it through some tough times,” Wilcox said of Coe. “For Ryan to come in and hit two 54-yarders, that’s big time. We knew he could do it. We’ve seen it. It’s not surprising. It’s really a testament to him.”

Hank Bachmeier was 19 of 36 passing for 274 yards for the Deacons, but he was picked off three times. Nohl Williams was the recipient of one of Bachmeier’s errant throws, his seventh interception of the season, a total that leads the nation.

“They were the more physical team on both sides of the line of scrimmage,” Deacons coach Dave Clawson said. “Their defensive line really kind of got the best of our offensive line. We did not take care of the football. The sequence of the blocked field goal that led to the touchdown was really costly.” 

Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium didn’t exactly benefit from the first gridiron meeting of the two universities, despite the near perfect fall weather. The actual in-stadium attendance appeared to be fewer than 5,000 people in a facility that seats 30,000.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings host Clippers tonight at Golden One Center

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The Toronto Raptors guard Ochai Abaji (left) defends against the Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray in first half action at Golden One Center in Sacramento on Wed Nov 6, 2024 (AP News photo)

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson:

#1 The Sacramento Kings DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points fired up the Kings with a record setting job in defeating the Toronto Raptors 122-107 on Wednesday night at Golden One Center.

#2 Domantas Sabonis had his third triple double of the season going with 17 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds. Sabonis was six for six from the field and shot a perfect five for five from the free throw line.

#3 Keegan Murray chipped in with 22 points and 12 rebounds and De’Aaron Fox shot for 21 points. DeRozan has scored already 20 points in his first eight games in Sacramento.

#4 Fox played a tough defensive game for the Kings on Wednesday. Fox has been suffering a finger injury going 5 for 17 and was only 2 for 8 on three pointers.

#5 The Kings have won five of their last six games and host the Los Angeles Clippers (4-4) tonight at Golden One in Sacramento. The Clippers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night 110-98. The Clippers after losing three straight loses have won two games in row going into tonight’s game.

Jeremiah Salmonson does the Kings podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Bruins Marchand scores gamer in OT to beat Flames; Panthers win 6th straight game with 6-2 win over Preds; plus more NHL news

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Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand right celebrates his goal with teammate defensemen Charlie McAvoy (left) in overtime at the Boston Garden on Thu Nov 7, 2024 (AP News photo)

On NHL podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 The Boston Bruins Brad Marchand with 20 seconds left in the overtime stanza to help the Bruins with a 4-3 win over the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Arena in Calgary. The Flames battled earlier scoring two goals in the third period forcing a tie.

# 2 The Florida Panthers are hot they have now won six in a row defeating the Nashville Predators on Thursday night 6-2. The Predators have won five of their last six games. The Panthers Carter Verhaeghe had three points scoring a goal and with two assists.

#3 The New York Islanders Bo Horvat scored a goal and had two assists and stopped the Ottawa Senators from coming back in the Isles 4- 2 win at Canadian Centre in Ottawa. The Isles Anders Lee scored a goal and an assist, Jean-Gabriel Pageu and Oliver Wahlstrom added goals.

#4 The Utah Hockey Club’s Dylan Guenther scored what later be the game winning goal with 3:21 left in the game as Utah defeated the St Louis Blues 4-2 at Enterprise Center in St Louis on Thursday. Guenther had an assist at 16:39 intercepting a pass by the Blues Jordan Kyrou when his centering pass deflected off of the Blues defensemen Colton Parayko.

#5 Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck stopped all 35 of the Colorado Avalanche’s shots for a 1-0 shutout at the Canada Life Centre. The Jets set a record with the win becoming the second NHL team to win 13 of their first 14 games ironically joining the 2007-08 Senators. The win was the Jets fifth straight.

Len Shapiro does the NHL podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Early Start Served Fast: Cal blitzes Idaho State 88-36 to start 2-0

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Crazy kids wanting to yell and scream half-filled Haas Pavilion Thursday morning. They were obliged by the Cal Bears, who provided three-point shooting, blocked shots, nifty steals, and rebounds that led to fastbreaks… a lot of fastbreaks.

A howling success was realized as Cal posted a lopsided 88-36 win to move to 2-0 on the season. Ioanna Krimili paced Cal’s balanced scoring with 18 points.

“It’s amazing to see all those kids, and I had the opportunity to also work with some of them in some of the schools, so it was great,” Krimili said. “The energy was very high, and it’s always amazing to play in front of them.”

A 14-1 start to the game immediately pushed the visiting Bengals to the brink, and their tepid shooting wasn’t anything near what was needed to recover. Idaho State shot 22 percent from the floor, which was the biggest reason Cal posted a 52-point margin of victory, the first time they’ve dominated to that extent since December 2015 against Cal State Northridge.

Idaho State was limited to single-digit scoring in three of the quarters. They outscored Cal 12-11 in the second and trailed by 16 at the half, by 39 after three.

The pace, in the half court and transition, was fast throughout. Coach Charmin Smith wants her team to hustle for quality shots in transition, and they achieved that with 22 fastbreak points, augmented by 13 offensive rebounds and 14 second-chance points. 

“We’re really trying to emphasize good shot selection and getting easy baskets, and I think we have weapons all over the floor, so it’s really hard to stop us when we’re sharing the basketball,” Smith said. “Our defense fuels our offense when we’re getting stops, and we get to play fast. I think we’re a really hard team to guard.”

Kayla Williams and freshman Zahra King were blurs attacking the basket. The graduate/freshman duo at the point combined for 20 points, seven rebounds, including the first nine points of King’s career. Michelle Onyiah added 10 points, eight rebounds.

Cal isn’t pre-ordained to be an effective shooting team from distance, but they certainly can trust shot artists Krimili and Lulu Twidale, who undoubtedly have the green light from the 3-point arc. Krimili has the most made threes of any returning player in Division 1 and Twidale is in Krimili’s class with her fast, confident release as soon as daylight breaks. The duo have combined for 16 of Cal’s 24 3-point makes to start the season.

“I think the nice thing about our team is that we have so many people that can score the ball, and I knew I can score the ball. I know my teammates are going find me.”

Idaho State, picked to finish eighth in the 10-team Big Sky conference, got seven points each from Halle Wright and Maria Dias. Piper Carlson was the Bengals’ leading rebounder with seven.

Cal visits San Jose State on Saturday to meet the Spartans at the Events Center at 1pm.

Bears storm back from early deficit and power themselves to 91-73 win over Cal Poly for first 2-0 start in five years

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Cal Bears guard Andrej Stojakovic (2) takes the ball down court against the Cal Poly Mustangs on Thu Nov 7, 2024 (Cal Bears X photo)

Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024

Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California

Cal Poly Mustangs 73 (0-2)

California Golden Bears 91 (2-0)

By Stephen Ruderman

After falling behind early, the Bears came back to take the lead in the first half, and they pulled away in the second half on their way to a 91-73 win over Cal Poly.

After an 86-73 win over CSU Bakersfield to open the season on Monday night, the Bears welcomed the Cal Poly Mustangs to Haas Pavilion tonight. The Mustangs opened their season across the bay with an 86-78 loss to the University of San Francisco Tuesday night.

The Mustangs wasted no time getting to work tonight. Mike Riniker made a layup, and Isaac Jessup hit a three ball to stake Cal Poly to an early 5-0 lead.

DJ Campbell made a layup to put the Bears on the board, but Jessup hit another three, and Ethan Menzias hit a three of his own to make it 11-2. Cal Poly would make it 17-5 a few minutes later with 14:01 to go, and the Bears needed to get things under control before this game got out of hand.

As the game approached the halfway mark of the first half, the Bears started to chip away at Cal Poly’s lead. Jovan Blacksher Jr. hit a three to make it 17-8, and that would start an 11-2 run for the Bears that would close the Mustangs’ lead to 19-16.

The game would remain steady over the next few minutes. Rytis Petraitis was fouled and hit both from the line to close the gap to 24-22, and two minutes later, he hit a three to give the Bears their first lead of the night.

The Bears then went on another 11-2 run to jump out to a 35-26 lead with 2:27 to go. However, the Mustangs suddenly regained the momentum and went on an 8-2 run to close Cal’s lead to 37-34. The Bears would go into the half up 39-35.

Come the second half, the Bears put the game away. Andrej Stojakovic hit a three 36 seconds in, and Cal scored 12 unanswered points to blow the game open, as they now led 51-35. The rest of the game was smooth sailing, and the Bears won it 91-73.

Blacksher once again led the Bears in scoring tonight with 18 points, as he was 6-for-13 in field goals, and 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. Stojakovic scored 15 points, though he struggled and missed a lot of shots, as he was 5-for-17 in field goals, and just 2-for-9 from beyond the arc.

Petraitis scored 13 points going 3-for-4 in field goals and hitting his only three. The bulk of Petraitis’ scoring came on free throws, as he was 6-for-8 from the line. B.J. Omot scored 10; Christian Tucker and Lee Dort scored eight; and Joshua Ola-Joseph and Jeremiah Wilkinson scored six.

The Bears are off to a 2-0 start for the first time in five years, and they will have the next five days off as a nice reward. Then, they will hit the road for the first time this season, as they will travel to Nashville, Tennessee to play the Vanderbilt Commodores on Wednesday, and then they will return to California to play the USC Trojans down in Los Angeles next Saturday.

Tipoff next Wednesday will be at 7 p.m. CST/5 p.m. PST.

Hockey Fought Cancer, Sharks Did Not Show any Fight, lose to Wild 5-2 at SAP

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The Sharks once again for Thursday night action at SAP Center hosting the second-best team in the Central

Mac. Celebrini cellies his first goal in his return from injury at SAP Center in San Jose, CA on Nov 7, 2024 (Photo by San Jose Sharks)

By Fernando Abarca – San Jose Sharks Beat Writer.

SAN JOSE–Another night of action for the Sharks as the celebrations in commemoration of the fight against cancer begin league-wide. The Teal celebrates this fight Thursday night while hosting one of the best teams in the Western Conference.

San Jose pulled a good battle on Tuesday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets with a win in OT adding another win to the standings but couldn’t take out the Minnesota Wild lacking in offense the Sharks took a three goal loss 5-2 on Thursday night at SAP Center.

The Sharks have seen some improvement in getting wins. However, the Teal has struggled to manage to hold leads and keep the score in their favor.

The good news besides the victory was the return of our own Macklin Celebrini, who was injured during the first week of the regular season with a lower-body injury. Mac was clear and healthy to return to the ice.

Also, a wholesome moment happened on the ice before the start of the first period. Ezra, a local kid, witnessed his first hockey game ever and had the chance to be featured during the face-off. Erza just completed a nine-session chemo for the Medulloblastoma brain tumor. As hockey writers, we are glad Erza won the battle.

The first period started with the Wild scoring just two minutes after the start of the period Zach Bogosian, assisted by D. Chisholm and M. Foligno with a wrist shot, netted the first one for the visitors.

In the second period, that was the period where competitive hockey started to take place when Macklin Celebrini scored the first for the Sharks, making a statement of his return to the ice, The Barn certainly missed him. Assisted by Mikael Granlund and Henry Thrun.

The tie did not last that long as the Wild came harder on the Sharks.

Two goals were scored in the second period for the Wild. One slap-shot by Matts Zuccarello plus a snap-shot by Matt Boldy on a Power-Play goal. These two goals turned off the vibes at the tank for the rest of the period.

However, it could have gone a 4-1 score in the second due to a coach’s decision for a goal overturned as Ryan Hartman preceded the puck on an off-side position in an offensive zone.

The action continued in the third period with Minnesota scoring a definite fourth goal, and this time not being overturned with Jonas Brodin putting the four on the scoreboard of the SAP Center assisted by Frederick Gaudreau and Kirill Kaprizov.

Close to the end of the game, Celebrini delighted the 10,526 in attendance with another goal, making two goals for the Sharks with the help of Grandlund. The goal created a little hope, but not enough to keep fighting.

As the period nears its end, bad decisions are once again affecting the Sharks. Minnesota’s Matt Boldy took the lead, making his second of the night, and buried any hopes of a win for San Jose with an empty net goal. Sadly, The ideas could not be properly implemented.

This time, Celebrini did not get help from his teammates, but what he had been building could look special.

The Sharks will get some rest and are back in action this Saturday evening at Prudential Center in New Jersey for a 4:30pm PST faceoff.

Sharks are back home on Mon Nov 18 when the Teal face the Red Wings.

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips: Cal needs to tighten up on turnovers; Bears rank 16th in six turnover categories

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Cal Bears wide receiver Mikey Matthews (8) and wide receiver Nyziah Hunter (13) celebrate at Cal Memorial Stadium in Berkeley against the Oregon State Beavers on Sat Oct 26, 2024 (Cal Bears X photo)

On Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips:

#1 After Cal Bears (4-4) had lost four straight and crushed the Oregon State Beavers (4-4) last Saturday there is little doubt that Cal head coach Justin Wilcox had this team prepared and turned around and it was a weight off their back to get back in the win column.

#2 Cal has outscored opponents 212-138 in it’s four wins that averages out to 20.75. In contrast in their four loses Cal have averaged to 2.25 points.

#3 Not a good category for Cal they are number 16 in six statistical categories in turnovers, Cal is second in turnover margin (+1.63 per game), tied for third in interceptions (14), tied for fourth in fewest passes intercepted (3), tied for fifth in turnovers lost (5), tied for sixth in turnovers gained (18) and tied for 16th in fumbles lost (2).

#4 Morris, Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza is coming off throwing 27-36, for 364 yards, and two touchdowns against Oregon State last week. Will this be something that could carry over for Mendoza in terms confidence and piling up the throwing yards against Wake Forest for Friday night?

#5 There have been surprising results in the ACC and how do you see the Championship chase nationally.

Join Morris Phillips for the Cal football podcasts Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings sink Raptors 122-107; DeRozan leads Sac with 27 points

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Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan (10) defends as the Toronto Raptors guard RJ Barrett (9) reaches for a rebound in the first half at Golden One Center in Sacramento on Wed Nov 6, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SACRAMENTO–The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Wednesday night, playing their first game since returning from a four-game road trip. Their trip included stops in Utah, Atlanta, Toronto, and Miami, where they went 3-1, improving their season record to 4-3.

The Kings returned home on Wednesday to face the Toronto Raptors at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, with tip-off set for 7 PM PST. The Kings defeated the Raptors 122-107 Wednesday night.

In the first quarter, the Raptors jumped out to an early lead, scoring 33 points, led by Chris Boucher and RJ Barrett, who combined for 22 points. These two quickly made themselves known as “Kings killers” in Sacramento.

The Kings’ offense managed 30 points in the first quarter, led by Keegan Murray with 12 points. The Kings seemed to start slow in both games they had played against the Raptors to open the 2024 season.

In the second quarter, the Kings’ defense picked up the pace, holding the Raptors to only 21 points. Meanwhile, the Kings scored 27 points to take a 57-54 lead into halftime. Solid adjustments made in the second quarter raised the question of whether they could continue to limit the Raptors’ offense in the second half. Keegan Murray led the Kings in first-half scoring with 14 points, while RJ Barrett led the Raptors with 14 points.

In the third quarter, the Kings’ defense faltered again, struggling to find rhythm in defensive shifts, allowing the Raptors to retake the lead. The Kings scored a respectable 32 points, but the Raptors scored 39, leading 93-89 going into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings took control. DeMar DeRozan and the Kings’ offense dominated, outscoring the Raptors 33-24 to secure a 122-107 victory and improve to 5-3 on the season. DeRozan led the Kings with 27 points, while RJ Barrett led the Raptors with 23 points in defeat.

Kings head coach Mike Brown had high praise for Keegan Murray, who finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds in the game. “His transformation is all about him and his work ethic. His will and determination to become the best possible player he can be… Look out for Keegan Murray,” Coach Brown said of Murray after the win.

The Kings will aim to keep up the momentum on Friday as they take on the LA Clippers at Golden 1 Center, with tip-off set for 7 PM PST.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Mayor of Oakland also leaving “a recall”

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Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao will be recalled by the voters of Oakland. Thao has served two years as Oakland Mayor. Voters have complained of high crime, homelessness is out of control, and her losing the Oakland A’s. Here she is addressing A’s fans at a City Hall meeting in her attempt to get a ballpark built at Howard Terminal at the time. Thao lost the A’s after raising the lease at the Oakland Coliseum when they wanted to play there until 2028 before moving to Las Vegas. The A’s turned down her offer and are playing in Sacramento in 2025.

Mayor of Oakland also leaving “a recall”

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao inherited a good situation when Mayor Libby Schaff left her term, and Thao started hers in 2023. At the time, the Oakland A’s were in a good position with the possibility of the A’s ownership building the new $1.5 billion ballpark in Oakland.

Back then, even Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred spoke positively about Mayor Schaff. Thao did not handle the negotiations with the A’s very well, and things deteriorated quickly. The citizens of the City of Oakland started a campaign to recall the mayor.

Early in June of this year, a big unexpected problem occurred when FBI agents conducted an early-morning raid on the home of Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, looking for documents with a warrant under a corruption investigation.

This was news from coast to coast carried by most networks, and it was not a good look for Oakland’s leadership. It was a ‘punch in the gut’ for the reputation of Oakland. Even comedians were making fun of Oakland.

On November 5, election day, the recall measure was voted with 65% in favor. Mayor Thao will be leaving Oakland, just like the Athletics, not for Sacramento, but she is losing her job as the top executive in the city.

Sheng Thao is not leaving just because of the A’s departure but because of the high percentage of crime in her town that she could not correct. Many businesses have been vandalized multiple times, and some of them, like the famous burger chain “In N Out,” closed their restaurant on Hegenberger Road.

It was the first time the popular fast-food chain closed one of its franchises anyplace in the country because of crime. That is what “In N Out” corporate office released to the media after they took action.

Budget problems are under her leadership and missing a grant deadline did not help, and the high crime and negative press across the country were too much for her to survive (“In-N-Out currently has locations throughout California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Oregon, Colorado and Idaho)

According to the latest reports, as of Wednesday afternoon, Mayor Thao was trailing in the recall, 65% to 35%, and there is a likely outcome for her removal. It would be the first time this happened in Oakland in 100 years.

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson: Taylor said Wolfpack’s Bailey had time to run on the pass rush

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Stanford Cardinal Tobin Phillips (40) attempts to pass rush NC State Wolfpack quarterback CJ Bailey in the first half in Raleigh NC on Sat Nov 2, 2024 (AP News photo)

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Michael Roberson:

#1 Michael in Stanford head coach Troy Taylor’s presser this week coach explained what happened as the NC State Wolfpack had a good first half as the Wolfpack scored two touchdowns in the first quarter and 17 points in the second quarter.

#2 Coach Taylor said that Wolfpack kept rolling until the fourth quarter when Stanford got an interception.

#3 Coach Taylor said that NC State quarterback CJ Bailey had time to throw the ball and that Bailey is “talented and a heck of a player” Bailey wound up throwing three touchdowns last Saturday.

#4 Coach said that if you don’t pressure the quarterback the Wolfpack didn’t make any mistakes. ” (Bailey) had a lot of time to throw and he did a great job when we had him covered down he would run for yards”

#5 The Cardinal (2-7) return home to host the Louisville Cardinals (6-3). Louisville beat the Clemson Tigers in their last game 33-21 at Clemson last Saturday. Louisville has won three of their last four games. What’s your take as it’s the Cardinals vs. the Cardinal this Sat Nov 16 at 12:30pm PST.

Join Michael Roberson for the weekly Stanford Cardinal podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com