Super Bowl LVIII/Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O: Super Bowl rematch number two for Chiefs and 49ers

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San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan addresses the media at Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas (NewsNation photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O:

#1 Charlie, this Super Bowl LVIII is rematch of the 2019 Super Bowl LIV which the Kansas City Chiefs won. The Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in that one 31-20.

#2 Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes was under center for the Chiefs and three Super Bowls later Mahomes is back to face the 49ers again.

#3 The last time the 49ers won a Super Bowl was 1994 for Super Bowl XXIX when the 49ers crushed the San Diego Chargers 49-26 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami. That was when Steve Young was the 49ers quarterback and ironically Steve recently did an interview with 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.

#4 The 49ers came into the post season as the No.1 seeded team in the NFC and has even though barely carried their position all the way through to get to the Super Bowl.

#5 The Chiefs were the No.3 seeded team in the AFC but you can say that was only in name as they Chiefs was the most feared team to face through the playoffs.

#6 Last question it’s a headline question with the Super Bowl in Las Vegas after Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodwin saying that the Oakland A’s belong in Oakland it got the attention of the media covering the Super Bowl in Vegas and took off.

Charlie O does the Headline podcasts Sundays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cardinal Bombarded the Men of Troy, 99-68; Many of the Capacity Crowd’s Eyes on the Farm were on Prince James

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The Stanford Cardinal forward Maxime Raynaud (left) who led with 25 points and 19 3’s celebrates a win over the USC Trojans with head coach Jerod Haase (right) at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Sat Feb 10, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif. — A school record 19 threes helped propel the Stanford Cardinal (12-11, 7-6 Pac-12) to a 99-68 blowout win over the University of Southern California Trojans (9-15, 3-10 Pac-12) in front of a sold out (7,563) Maples Pavilion crowd.

An electric atmosphere surrounding the Northern/Southern rivalry between the two California conference rivals, was also exacerbated by the son (Bronny) of the NBA All-Time Leading scorer, Lebron James, making his first and only appearance at Stanford. The full house was cheering and booing Bronny James, in the same polarizing scenario his father has been through during his storied career. The jeers were apparently directed at James Sr. vicariously through his son.

James Jr. had an unimpressive 6 points and 3 assists, without his father being in the Palo Alto crowd. However, when the Trojans played Cal last Wednesday, King James was inside Haas Pavilion, to witness his son’s team lose an overtime battle to the Golden Bears.

Cal actually started the game off with a 4-0 lead. Unfortunately for them, that was the last lead they would possess in the game Bronny bounced a dime assist to put the Trojans on the scoreboard first, and later hit a three and got an exciting breakaway dunk, stuntin like his daddy. Other than that, it was all Stanford with the excitement and thrills.

The Cardinal stroked a school record 12 treys in the first half. They also had three players in double-figures after 20 minutes of play. Maxime Raynaud (15), 2 threes, Andrej Stojakovic (14), 4 threes, and Benny Gealer (11), 3 threes. The Trojans had 0 players with 10+ points.

After the early 4-point deficit, Stanford went on a 25-0 run and led by as much as 31 points before recess. USC was scoreless for nearly 7 1/2 minutes and approximately 9 minutes without a made FG. At halftime, the Cardinal led by 29 points, 55-26.

In the second half, the onslaught continued, as the team added seven more 3-pointers to their record tabulations. Their lead reached a margin of 33 points, and they managed to maintain that advantage – minus two points – at the final whistle, 99-68.

During the second 20-minute block two Cardinal players recorded career highs in scoring: Freshman Andrej Stojakovic (20) and sophomore Benny Gealer (14). Maxime Raynaud was almost perfect from the field (10-11) and contributed 25 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 2-2 from threeland. Spencer Jones had 15 points on 5 made threes, and Kanaan Carlyle added 10 points, 4 assists and 2 blocks.

The Trojans only had a single soul reach double-digits, and it was not Bronny James. Freshman Isaiah Collier posted 18 points for his USC squad, but that was not nearly enough for the offensive barrage of their NorCal opponent.

After the impressive 31-point beatdown, the Cardinal will next be in action in the Great Northwest, as they will battle the Washington Huskies, Thursday, February 15, at 6 PM PDT on ESPN2. The Trojans will head to the Beehive State on the same date to take on the Utah Utes at 8 PM MST .

Curry Magic Spells Final Second Win For Golden State 113-112; Defeat Suns at Chase Center

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) hits a basket to put the Warriors ahead of the Phoenix Suns and guard Devon Booker (right) in the second half at Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Feb 10, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

Friday night Chase Center was rocking as the Golden State Warriors (25-25) took on the Phoenix Suns (31-21). With the clock running very close to empty, Warriors guard Stephen Curry pulled off yet another “miracle shot” hitting a 33-foot three point jumper for a 113-112 win. 

This game a was real see-saw affair with the Warriors hanging on for the win. The Curry shot could very easily be his shot of the year. This was another clutch game for the team and sent the Warrior’s record to the .500 mark (25-25).

This was a wild game from the very beginning to the very end. It was a see-saw game and after the first 12 minutes the Warriors were on top 33-28. The Suns took the second quarter 30-26 but trailed at halftime. The Warriors led by a single point after two quarters 59-58.

The battle continued into the third quarter with the Suns winning it by a single digit 25-24. The Warriors held onto the lead going into the fourth quarter 84-82. This was a real nail-biter but Golden State took it up another level in the final quarter of the game. 

The Suns took the fourth quarter by a single digit 30-29. Golden State hung onto this game winning by the score of 113-112. The fourth quarter in itself was exciting, but the manner in which it came to a close was a real barn burner. 

It all hinged on Curry and what he could do with 7.1 seconds left on the game clock. Time and time again this guy has come up clutch and this game was no exception-a 33-foot jumper for the win. Golden State has now improved to 25-25 and now sits in 11th place in the Western Conference. This was their sixth win in seven games.

This game was filled with tension to the very end. There was a last-minute foul called that was reviewed and the Warriors would go on to win. The monster shot from Curry was the deal buster. He would finish with 30 points, the team high. 

Jonathan Kuminga shot for 21 points. It was another quiet game for Klay Thompson finishing with 5 points and 1 rebound. Gary Payton returned to the court after missing the last 16 games with a left hamstring strain. 

He had a great return game with 11 points and 4 rebounds. Both teams had 14 turnovers in an extremely fast-paced game. The Warriors had 17 three’s with Curry owning nine of them.

Draymond Green had avoided any technicals until tonight. He picked up a technical arguing about a foul call after a successful layup in the third quarter. He was seen exchanging words with Suns center Jusuf Nurkic who was hit in the face by Green back in December which led to his suspension.

Monday night the Warriors will take on the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Tipoff for that game is scheduled for 6:00 PM.   

Todd’s hat trick propels Barracuda 4-2 over Condors 3-2, split weekend series

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San Jose Barracuda forward Nathan Todd skates with the puck past Bakersfield Condors forward Ben Gleason during the Barracuda’s 4-2 win over the Condors at Tech CU Arena on Saturday FEB 10, 2024. (San Jose Barracuda)

by Marko Ukalovic

Nathan Todd made it rain hats on the ice during ‘Cuda Country Night where a trucker’s hat was the giveaway for the fans in attendance.

Todd scored his first career hat trick which included the game winning goal and the ice sealer as the San Jose Barracuda shot down the Bakersfield Condors 4-2 on Saturday evening at Tech CU Arena.

San Jose split the home and home weekend series with its Pacific Division rival. Bakersfield has its three-game winning streak snapped.

Todd’s second goal of his hat trick, which also was the Cuda’s first team hat trick of the season, was the eventual game winning goal with 3:34 remaining in the third period. Brandon Coe centered the puck out in front of the crease from behind the net and Todd tucked home the puck inside the near post for his 12th goal of the season sending hats everywhere on from the announced crowd of 3,986.

San Jose (15-22-8-0) drew first blood past the halfway mark of the first period. Ethan Cardwell set up Jacob Peterson who beat Condors’ goalie Jack Campbell with a backhander through the five-hole for his sixth goal of the season at the 11:43 mark.

Thomas Bordeleau who returned to the lineup after dealing with an illness, recorded the secondary assist on Peterson’s goal.

The Barracuda doubled its lead at the halfway mark of the second period with Todd’s first goal of the contest. Scott Sabourin wrestled the puck away from a Condors defender. Cole Cassles centered the puck over to Todd who buried a one-timer past Campbell for his 11th goal of the season at the 10:03 mark.

Bakersfield (22-14-2-2) cut the lead in half late in the middle frame. Seth Griffith glided down the right wing from the red line and snapped home a wrist shot past the blocker side of ‘Cuda goalie Georgi Romanov for his 10th goal of the season with 21.8 remaining.

The Condor scored the equalizer a minute into the third period. A turnover in the neutral zone led to a break for Ty Tullio who skated down the right wing and beat Romanov with a wrist shot for his fourth goal of the season at the 1:15 mark.

Todd completed the hat trick with 1:17 left in the game for his 13th goal of the season to seal the deal for the ‘Cuda.

Romanov (5-6-4-0), who made back-to-back starts for the first time this season, finished the game stopping 31 of the 33 shots he faced to earn his fifth win of the season. Campbell (10-8-0-1) made 33 saves on 36 saves in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished 0-for-4 on the power play. Bakersfield went 0-for-3.

The Three Stars of the Game: 1) Todd 2) Peterson 3) Romanov.

UP NEXT: San Jose takes on the San Diego Gulls on Wednesday 2/14 at 7:00pm at Pechanga Arena of San Diego.

Oakland A’s Relocation podcast with Augie Mesenburg: Did Vegas Mayor have some weight behind her “A’s belong in Oakland” comment?

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Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman just recently won the hearts and minds of Oakland fans saying “the A’s belong in Oakland” this week in an interview with Front Office Sports (photo by the City of Las Vegas)

On the Oakland A’s Relocation podcast with Augie:

#1 Augie, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman’s remark’s that the “A’s belong in Oakland” after seeing that the Oakland A’s missed the deadline on presenting renderings and that owner John Fisher is asking the Las Vegas business community to help invest in the team.

#2 Later Goodman partially walked back what she originally said saying that she wanted what was best for Las Vegas, Paradise, and Clark County and that she wanted to welcome the A’s to Las Vegas and that the A’s only belonged in Oakland if they can’t get the financing their looking for.

#3 The interview with Mayor Goodman was conducted with Front Office Sports and it was audio recorded as well. Goodman said that the A’s “need to listen to the people that are up there (in Oakland). It’s there team.”

#4 Fisher has said that he is seeking financial assistance and that had put doubt in Goodman’s mind that Fisher doesn’t have the money. Goodman is not mayor of the A’s future home at the Tropicana location which is located in the Paradise city limits and ran by Clark County. Goodman and her husband former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman have been trying to bring MLB to Vegas for 20 years.

#5 Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao upon hearing what Goodman had to say that the A’s are Oakland ‘s team said with excitement in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea, “100%! Keeping the A’s in Oakland is what’s best for everyone including Las Vegas. My door is open to John Fisher and to anyone else that has the means and desire to purchase the A’s and keep them in the town. We have the plan, the sites, and the money. Let’s keep the A’s rooted in Oakland.”

#6 John Fisher is a vilified figure as many fans in Oakland want Fisher to sell the team and find a buyer who will keep the team in Oakland. Fisher repeatedly has said the team is not for sale. Daniel, in the hypothetical circumstance that Fisher can’t pay for the costs of the stadium in Vegas or if the whole Las Vegas ballpark plan fails can you see him going back to Oakland as Mayor Thao who says she has a existing offer on the table.

#7 Augie, a political action committee group Strong Public Schools has filed a lawsuit on Monday which also named the State of Nevada, Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo and state Treasurer Zach Conine as defendants saying that the state is “financing a world class Stadium for a California billionaire while ignoring Nevada’s second class education system.” The A’s nor anyone from Major League Baseball would not make a comment on the lawsuit that argues the SB1 bill violated the Nevada constitution because it was passed on a majority vote and not a two thirds vote. The A’s nor anyone from Major League Baseball are named as defendants.

#8 Schools over Stadiums according to sources has raised funding for their legal fees to get the proper petition language to put an initiative on the November ballot that would stop the public funding for the A’s ballpark on the Las Vegas strip with legal counseling. Schools over Stadiums can thank Oakland A’s fans namely the Oakland 68s and the Last Dive Bar who helped raise funds to help pay for the legal fees.

Augie Mesenburg filled in for Daniel Dullum who hosts the Oakland A’s Relocation podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Bears nearly pull off another comeback but ultimately fall to Bruins 61-60

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The Cal Bears forward Fardaws Aimaq (00) gets the rebound in front of the UCLA Bruins forward Adem Bona (3) in the second half at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Sat Feb 10, 2024 (AP News photo)

Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024

Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, California

UCLA Bruins 61 (13-11 Overall; 8-5 Pac-12)

California Golden Bears 60 (10-14 Overall; 6-7 Pac-12)

By Stephen Ruderman

BERKELEY–After another thrilling win Wednesday night over the USC Trojans, the Bears’ momentum appeared to carry over into today, as they came back from down 14 points to take the lead, but ultimately fell to the UCLA Bruins, 61-60.

Following their epic win against the Trojans, the Bears were taking on the UCLA Bruins, whom the Bears beat on Jan. 6 in Los Angeles. That win snapped a plethora of losing streaks for the Bears. Most notably, it was their first win at UCLA since 2010. Today, the Bears would look to keep the mojo going.

It was a packed house for this Pac-12 matchup at Haas Pavilion. Bears fans were revved up and ready to go, and the Bruins fans who had made the trip north from Los Angeles made their presence felt as well.

The game started neck and neck in the early minutes. Cal won the opening tip, but Fardaws Aimaq missed a jumper. UCLA struck first on a layup by Lazar Stefanovic, and then Jaylon Tyson put the Bears on the board with a three.

The teams traded points and leads in the early going until Sebastian Mack put the Bruins ahead 9-7 with a three. From there, UCLA took control, and ended up opening up a 29-16 lead with 6:04 to go in the first half.

UCLA led 35-24 as the second half got underway, and they kept the momentum going. Adem Bona was fouled, and made one of two from the line; and Mack hit a jumper to give the Bruins their biggest lead of the day at 38-24.

It was 40-26 UCLA with 16:37 to go, and the Bruins appeared to be in complete control of the game. However, the Bears were once again down by double digits, and that meant only one thing: that it was time for another comeback.

Indeed, the Bears started to claw back, as they slowly chipped away at UCLA’s lead. Jalen Cone hit a three with 13:21 left to make it a six-point game at 41-35, which completely fired up the crowd at Haas.

The Bruins opened their lead back up to 47-37, but the Bears and the fans did not relent. Jaylon Tyson slammed one down to make it 50-43 with 7:36 to go, further firing up this crowd, and then a three from Fardaws Aimaq made it a four-point game.

Jalen Celestine then hit a three to put the Bears within one at 50-49 with 5:55 remaining, and the crowd was on fire. There would be no scoring for nearly three minutes, with both teams missing shots and turning over the ball.

With each missed shot and turnover came the loud and deafening cheers from both teams’ fans. Then with 3:01 remaining, Tyson hit a jump shot to put Cal back ahead, as the Bears had once again come back from a large deficit to take a late lead.

However, the Bruins were not going to go down quietly. Lazar Stefanovic hit a three to put UCLA back ahead, 53-51. Then Aimaq was fouled, and he hit both from the line to tie it up at 53-53.

Both teams’ fans were on fire, as the game entered the final minutes, and tension mounted as every single second that passed. With 1:01 left, Aimaq laid one in to put the Bears back ahead, but Adem Bona laid one in, and hit his shot from the line after he was fouled on the play to put UCLA ahead.

Aimaq laid one in with 36 seconds to go, and Dylan Andrews responded by hitting a jumper to make it 58-57 UCLA with 24 seconds to go. Tyson then tried to lay one in, but was unsuccessful, and then Stefanovic took the rebound and was fouled.

Stefanovic hit both shots for the line, and the Bears were in trouble. Celestine went for three, but he missed, and Mack took the rebound with just four seconds to go. At that point, there was no choice but to foul Mack, who missed his first shot from the line, but after he hit his second, that would be it, and the dejected Bears fans headed for the exits.

Celestine did hit a three with a second to go, but it was useless, and Bruins won, 61-60.

The Bears played their hearts out in what was almost another miracle win in this painful bounceback, but they were just unable to pull it off.

The Bears fall to 6-7 in Pac-12 play, and 10-14 overall. Now, they will go back on the road, this time up north to Washington. First, they will head to Spokane to take on the powerful Washington State Cougars for a 7 p.m. tipoff Thursday night, and that will be followed up by a trip to Seattle to play the Washington Huskies Saturday night.

Cal Bears podcast with Stephen Ruderman: Cal defense can’t stop UCLA in final seconds in 61-60 loss at UC Berkeley

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Cal Bears guard Jalen Celestine (32) takes a jump shot against the UCLA Bruins at Haas Pavilion Sat Feb 10, 2024 (Cal Bears photos)

On the Cal Bears podcast with Stephen Ruderman:

#1 Cal Bears drop to 11-14 with a 61-60 loss, with four second left the UCLA Bruins Sebastian Mack hit a free throw that pretty much won it for the Bruins making it 61-57.

#2 The Bears Jalen Celestine right at the buzzer answered back with a three pointer but Cal fell short losing by just a point in a hard fought effort.

#3 Earlier in the game the Bears were turning the ball over and didn’t execute the shot in the early part second half as well as most of the first half.

#4 In the second half the Bruins Jaylon Tyson hit a go ahead shot with 3:05 left that put the Bruins ahead just to give you and the listeners an idea how tight and how close this game was at that point.

#5 UCLA had a ten point lead for pretty much most of this game but Cal caught up in the end it’s the effort of this team and the last couple weeks Cal has shown it’s competitive self.

#6 Cal hits the road against the Washington State Cougars. The Cougars have won five straight games and are 18-6 Cal could have their hands full.

Stephen Ruderman is a Cal Bears beat writer at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks open second half of season in Winnipeg on Wednesday night

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The San Jose Sharks Marc- Edouard Vlasic (right) is ecstatic over his goal celebrates with left wing William Eklund (72) during the second period at the Honda Center in Anaheim on Wed Jan 31, 2024. The Sharks resume action on Wed Feb 14, 2024 in Winnipeg against the Winnipeg Jets (AP News photo)

On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 Mary Lisa the Sharks have had a good 14 days off during the All Star break and will return to action this Wed Feb 14 in Winnipeg to face the Jets who just recently had their 16 game winning streak snapped.

#2 Tomas Hertl at the All Star Game was able to score a goal and help Team McDavid it had to be a thrill for Hertl to be at the All Star Game and get a goal representing his team.

#3 Before the break the Sharks were able to defeat the Seattle Kraken 2-0 on Tue Jan 20th behind the great goaltending of MacKenzie Blackwood who stopped all 32 Kraken shots.

#4 The Sharks in their next contest lost to the Anaheim Ducks on Wed Jan 31st at the Honda Center it was a narrow loss 3-2 in over time. The Ducks got an overtime goal and as hard as he tried in net Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 31 of 34 shots and allowed three goals.

#5 It’s the Sharks and Jets this Wednesday night in Winnipeg and anytime you face a team coming off a 16 game win streak you know they have a little going for them coming into this game.

Join Mary Lisa for the Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings Blow Out Nuggets 135-106 Sabonis passes Jokic for NBA lead in triple doubles with 16

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Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) forward tries to defend the Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) in first half action at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Fri Feb 9, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

The Sacramento Kings were back in action on Friday night at Golden One Center in Sacramento. The Kings had last played on Wednesday night when they took on the Detroit Pistons. The Kings would fall to the Pistons and give them just their seventh win of the season, 133-120.

On Friday, the Kings looked for a different outcome against one of the best teams in the NBA as they welcomed the Denver Nuggets. Denver was on the second night of a back-to-back as tip-off was set for 7 PM PST. The Kings defeated the Thunder 135-106 on Friday night.

The Kings and Nuggets got off to a quick start in the first quarter. Offense was in good shape, as the two teams both started hot. The Nuggets outscored the Kings 35-32 in the first quarter. However, Nikola Jokic would hurt himself and return to the locker room. The Kings would look to tighten up the defense in the second quarter.

Jokic returned from his brief injury in the second quarter and is healthy. The Kings offense exploded in the second quarter as they scored 35 points. On the other hand, the Kings defense was also much better in the second quarter, as they held the Nuggets to only 22 points.

The Kings led the Nuggets 67-57 heading into halftime. It was the battle of the two bigs as Sabonis and Jokic each led their teams with 13 and 14 first-half points, respectively.

The Kings offense kept firing on all cylinders in the third quarter, carrying over from the first half. The Kings scored 39 points in the third quarter to build on the first-half lead. The Nuggets looked tired on the second night of a back-to-back and scored 29 points in the third. Ultimately, the Kings were just playing better all-around basketball. The Kings would go into the final quarter up 106-86.

In the fourth quarter, the Kings largely subbed out the starters, and it was garbage time for the bench. The Kings bench unit still put up big numbers as the Kings outscored the Nuggets 29-20 in the fourth. The Kings would win the game 135-106. Malik Monk led The Kings in victory, scoring 23 points. Jokic led the Nuggets with a 23-point game of his own.

Up Next: The Kings remain home to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday at noon PST.