Sharks Light Up Flames, Win 4-1

San Jose Sharks’ Nicolas Meloche (right) plows Calgary Flames’ Mikael Backlund (left) into the boards during the first period at SAP Center in San Jose on Tue Nov 9, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks started this road trip with a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames, scoring three times in the third period. Alexander Barabanov, Logan Couture, Tomas Hertl and Jonathan Dahlen scored for San Jose, and Adin Hill made 37 saves for the win. Brent Burns and Adin Hill each earned two assists in the game and Dahlen’s goal tied him for the NHL rookie lead in goals this season. Andrew Mangiapane scored for Calgary and Jacob Markstrom made 22 saves in the loss.

After the game, Sharks Assistant Coach John MacLean talked about what he saw during the third period:

“It’s always fun when you can feel them just kind of, they’re excited to be out there, and going and cheering for one another and blocking shots and cheering for a good change, cheering for getting a puck deep. That’s when you can see them, you know, playing for one another and that when you know you have a shot.”

Sharks Captain Logan Couture talked about goaltender Adin Hill’s performance in the net: “Tremendous, played great. Big saves, a few times there off tips. Always looked composed. I mean, there were a few times when the puck as bouncing around but he was a rock for us tonight.”

In a scoreless first period, the Sharks were out-shot 8-4, despite having two power plays. Two of their shots in the period came on the power play. In the face-off circle, they won just 4 out of 11 draws.

Alexander Barabanov scored the first goal of the game 47 seconds into the second period. Brent Burns made a pass from the Sharks red line to Barabanov on the Flames blue line. Barabanov made a beeline for the net and beat Markstrom with a quick wrist shot. Assists went to Burns and Hill.

Andrew Mangiapane tied it up 20 seconds later through a melee at the net. Assists went to Milan Lucic and Dillon Dube.

There was an official review after the on-ice official called no-goal. The video review reversed the call. The Sharks then challenged the goal for goaltender interference, as it appeared that Milan Lucic had pushed Adin Hill ‘s pad into the net. The challenge failed and the team had to kill their first penalty of the game.

The Sharks were out-shot again, 19-8 in the second period. They also had to kill three penalties, allowing six shots to the Flames power play. In the face-off circle they improved, winning 46% of the draws.

Logan Couture scored the game winner at 4:18 of the third period. He carried the puck over the blue line and took a shot from the boards that went off of a Calgary defender and into the net. Assists went to Santeri Hatakka and Nicolas Meloche.

With just over a minute left, Adin Hill collected the puck behind the net, and passed it to Brent Burns in the corner. Before taking a hit, Burns sent the puck all the way up the ice. He missed the net, but Tomas Hertl won the race, and put the puck in the empty net with a spin around the Calgary defender.

With 41 seconds left, Jonathan Dahlen scored another into the empty net from deep in the Sharks zone.

The Sharks finally out-shot Calgary in the third, 14-11. The Sharks also won 54% of the face-offs in the third period. Tomas Hertl led all skaters with seven shots in the game.

The Sharks play next on Thursday in Winnipeg against the Jets at 5:00 PM PT.

Cardinal claims season-opening 62-50 hoops win over Tarleton State

Stanford Cardinal Harrison Ingram throws down against visiting Tarleton State at Maples Pavilion on opening night Tue Nov 9, 2021 (photo by Stanford Cardinal)

By Daniel Dullum
Tuesday, November 9, 2021

Stanford opened its 2021-22 men’s basketball season on Tuesday with a 62-50 non-conference victory over Tarleton State at Maples Pavilion.

The visiting Texans (0-1), members of the Western Athletic Conference, took a 26-24 halftime lead. The Cardinal tied the game at 18:24 of the second half on a layup by Michael O’Connell, but Tarleton used a 5T-2 run – capped by a Jonathan Jackson Jr. dunk – to build a 35-28 lead.

Following a Stanford timeout, the Cardinal (1-0) used 3-pointers bu Spencer Jones and Jaiden Delaire to pull within 35-34 with 13:20 left in the second half. At 11:54, Delaire’s free throw tied the game at 35-35.

Moments later, a layup by Isa Silva put the Cardinal up 37-35 and sparked a six-point run that gave Stanford a 43-35 advantage. The Cardinal led by as many as 15 with just under five minutes remaining en route to their first win of the season.

Harrison Ingram led Stanford with 16 points, followed by Delaire with 14 and Lukas Kisunas with 12. Silva had four assists, while Ingram grabbed seven rebounds. Delaire and Maxime Raynaud each had six boards as the Cardinal outrebounded Tarleton State 36-25.

Guard Montre Gipson topped the Texans with 15 points, with Tahj Small next with 11 and Shakur Daniel added 10.

The Cardinal travel to Santa Clara on Friday to face the 1-0 Broncos. Santa Clara won its opener 84-77 on Tuesday over Cal State Fullerton. Game time is 7 p.m.

Cal Bears Football report: Cal’s next game vs. USC postponed to Dec 4th due to Covid 19 protocols

Cal Memorial Stadium will sit empty this Sat Nov 13, 2021 as this week’s game against the USC Trojans has been canceled due to more than half of the team positive for Covid 19 or Covid 19 protocol issues. USC and Cal has rescheduled the game to Dec 4, 2021 (photo from the Pac 12)

SRS Staff Report

Last week when the Cal Bears left to take the flight to Tucson and play at Arizona the team left 26 players behind including starting quarterback Chase Garbers. The result was Cal losing to a team the Wildcats who had a 20 game losing streak and who were 0-8 this season by a 10-3 final.

The quarantine and testing situation at Cal doesn’t look like things have improved much as multiple Cal players have either tested positive or they are in quarantine trying to recover from Covid 19 and the Bears who were supposed to play USC this Saturday in Berkeley have rescheduled the contest to Dec 4th. The Bears next game will be the Big Game at Stanford on Nov 20th so far that game is still on target to be played and it will be over ten days as the players should be out of quarantine by then.

Cal Athletic Director Jim Knowlton said the decision to cancel the game was not an easy choice to make saying, “It was a difficult decision to postpone this Saturday’s game against USC, we know how important every one of our games is to our student-athletes, especially our seniors who have been incredible representatives of the program, but it was the right thing to do. Due to additional impact on specific position groups, we have decided to postpone Saturday’s game. We have had multiple COVID-19 positives within our program, and we are taking every step we can to mitigate the spread and protect the greater community.”

Oh-Oh Opener: Cal upset at Haas by upstart UC San Diego, 80-67

By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Defend and start the season in the win column were the objectives for the Cal Bears, and neither were met.

Toni Rocak, the 6’8″ senior from Switzerland, had 27 points, eight rebounds as the UC San Diego Tritons, in year two of their four-year transition from Division II to Division I, pulled the upset on the Bears at Haas Pavilion, 80-67. The Tritons trailed 37-33 at the half, but took the lead in the first five minutes after the break, and maintained it, in a 47-point outburst that was littered with Cal defensive breakdowns.

The Bears were led by Jordan Shepherd, the transfer from Charlotte, who had 27 points, and Andre Kelly with 17. The Bears started fast, building a 28-17 first half lead, but led by just four at the break, and scored just 30 points in the second half. Cal didn’t settle for threes, making five of 18, but they were most hurt at the free throw line where they missed 10 of their 24 attempts. Cal shot 45 percent from the floor during the opening 20 minutes, only attempting 10 3-pointers, making three.

Rocak paced the Tritons in the opening half with 16 points, including four of six from the line. Rocak averaged just 12.8 points in 2020-21 in 17 minutes per game, and apparently is enjoying a bigger role with UCSD this time around. The Tritons opened the second half on a run, gaining a 45-43 advantage with 15:05 remaining. They held only one lead in the game’s first 25 minutes–2-0.

“We stuck with what we know and what we do and kept trusting each other,” Rocak said. “In those moments it’s easy for everybody to try to do their own thing but we stuck with being in group and being unselfish, and great things happen when we share the basketball.”

The Bears were heavily dependent on the quartet of Joel Brown, Grant Anticevich, Kelly and Shepherd with 6’9″ Kuany Kuany the fifth starter who logged just 13 minutes. 6’3″ guard Jarred Hyder was the first reserve off the bench, playing 15 minutes, and holdover Dimitrios Klonaras along with 6’7″ freshman Sam Alajiki were the remainder of the eight-man rotation. Junior center Lars Thiemann and freshman Obinna Anyanwu saw five minutes of action each, with Jared Celestine and Makale Foreman as the two most conspicuous absences from the Cal rotation.

“We just have to be sharper,” Kelly said of his Bears. “It was the first time with this group together. We’ll bounce back. We’ll respond the right way.”

“I’m very disappointed in our team’s play today,” Cal coach Mark Fox said. “It’s my responsibility to get it cleaned up and make sure this doesn’t define our season.”

Further information could clear up the status of Celestine and Foreman, both of whom played extensively in 2020-21, and are expected to be significant contributors going forward.

The Tritons got 18 points from Bryce Pope, and 10 from Matt Gray, who received his first ever starting assignment. Freshman Francis Nwaokorie was the most significant UCSD reserve, scoring nine points before fouling out in his first collegiate game. The win was UCSD’s first against a Pac-12 opponent, they had been 0-12 against Pac-12 competition previously. They also captured their first ever road win since transitioning to Division I. They went 0-7 last season. The Tritons and the Bears had met just four times previously with the last meeting in 1985.

The Tritons welcomed six new faces to their roster but it mattered little when the game was on the line. The Bears shot just 40 percent for the game as their offense and defense wilted in the second half.

The Bears travel to Las Vegas on Saturday to face the UNLV Rebels at 5pm. The first road contest of their season will be televised on the Stadium network.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Will A’s consider hiring Ron Washington as manager?/ Wash would entertain job offers

Atlanta Braves third base coach Ron Washington during batting practice before game 1 of the 2021 World Series in Houston on Tue Oct 26, 2021. The big question was raised will Washington get a chance to manage the Oakland A’s where the job is open once again for Wash (AP News file photo)

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commetary:

#1 How serious should the Oakland A’s get about bringing Ron Washington back to Oakland and making him their manager?

#2 The A’s missed the boat on having Wash as their manager and his coming off coaching a World’s Champion team the Atlanta Braves is all the reason why the A’s should consider him.

#3 Washington has taken the Texas Rangers to World Series as manager twice in 2010 and 2011and A’s team vice president Billy Beane knows Wash’s body of work but will he even give Washington an interview and most importantly hire him as the A’s new skipper?

#4 Turning to NBA basketball the Golden State Warriors are 8-1 and have won five straight games and have been rock solid consistent it looked like they were going to have problems since last year they didn’t make post season and struggled but this year they look like one of those teams they used to have that made the finals.

#5 The San Jose Sharks (6-4-1) have lost three straight games and have seven players out with Covid 19 protocols including head coach Bob Boughner the Sharks are in Calgary tonight to start a five game road trip and without most of their key players want to start this road trip with a win.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead Spanish play by play announcer for the Oakland A’s on flaghsip station 1010 KIQI Le Grande San Francisco and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Suns take advantage of Kings mistake laden third quarter in 109-104 win

Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) takes it to the hoop against Sacramento Kings guards Davion Mitchell (15) and Terence Davis (3) at the Golden One Center in Sacramento on Mon Nov 8, 2021 (AP News photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

SACRAMENTO—One quarter can make or break a team.

For the Sacramento Kings, it was a horrendous third quarter doomed them in a 109-104 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Monday evening at Golden 1 Center.

Sacramento have lost three out of its past five games. Phoenix has won a season best five games in a row after starting the season 1-3.

Sacramento (5-6) were without the services of guard Tyrese Haliburton who was out with lower back tightness.

Phoenix (6-3) were without their star center DeAndre Ayton who was out with a lower leg contusion.

The Kings got off to slow start for its second consecutive game. The Suns opened the game on a 12-4 run led by the backcourt duo of Chris Paul and Devon Booker who combined for 10 of the 12 points.

Sacramento were able to get back into the game thanks for forward Harrison Barnes’ eight points to pace the Kings in the second quarter.

Phoenix finished the first quarter on a 7-2 run as they led 34-28. Cameron Payne had nine points off the bench in the opening 12 minutes.

Davian Mitchell gave the Kings its first lead of the game with a mid-range jumper with eight minutes left in the second quarter to put Sacramento up 42-21.

Sacramento found their rhythm in the second quarter as they outscored Phoenix 36-33 to close the gap to three points as they were down 67-64 at halftime.

Point guard DeAaron Fox, who had a quiet first quarter, responded by scoring 10 points in the second quarter. Terrence Davis had a strong half with 11 points and Buddy Hield scored eight points in the second quarter.

Payne paced the Suns with 17 points in the first half as he was the only Phoenix player in double digits at halftime.

The Kings played their worst third quarter of the season. A combination of poor shooting a multiple turnovers allowed the defending Western Conference champions to take control of the game and pull away from Sacramento.

The Suns started the quarter on a 14-0 run aided by four Kings turnovers. Sacramento’s first points of the quarter were a Mitchell layup with 6:52 left. Phoenix outscored Sacramento 31-12 and ended the quarter with a comfortable 98-76 lead. Fox and Hield provided no offense for the Kings.

“We let them get easy shots, easy looks and offensive rebounds,” said Mitchell. “We didn’t play with (any sort of) pace in the third quarter.”

The Suns scored 38 points off of 24 Kings turnovers, 10 of them in the third quarter. They had more fast break points than Kings (15-13) and their bench outscored Sacramento’s 48-33.

Kings head coach Luke Walton emptied his bench in the fourth quarter as he had seen enough watching his starters perform badly after a good first half. He had Mitchell, Chimezie Metu and Damian Jones play the entire fourth quarter along Fox and Barnes.

“What I’m most disappointed in is wasted opportunities,” said Walton. “We let Phoenix take us out of what we’re doing (as a team). We gave in. So at that point, we might as well not even play and stay here and have a practice we how we came out in that third quarter.”

Phoenix allowed the Kings back in the game playing isolation ball on offense for the entire fourth quarter. The Kings stepped up their defense and got the game to under single digits.

Sacramento were able to cut the lead to 105-100 with 2:36 left in the game.

We loved the fight that the group showed, the bench. Unfortunately it took the bench to come in and do that.”

Barnes scored a layup on what was originally called a blocking foul with 1:12 left that would’ve cut the lead to one point. Suns head coach Earl Watson challenged and the call it was overturned after review with Barnes earning the offensive foul and turnover.

Still the Kings had a chance to force overtime when Booker missed two free throws with 7.4 seconds. The ensuing play ended up with a fatal turnover that led to Paul sealing the deal with two free throws to ice the game for Phoenix.

Payne led all scorers with 24 points off the bench. Booker had 18 points on 8-15 from the floor. Mikal Bridges and Paul finished with 16 points.

Barnes led the Kings with 26 points to go along with six rebounds but committed a team high six turnovers. Fox had 24 points with five turnovers. Mitchell finished with 12 points and six rebounds in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: Robert Woodward II was out with a hamstring injury for Sacramento and Dario Saric did not play for Phoenix with a knee injury.

Sacramento finished 5-7 in Pacific Division games and 16-20 at home last season. The Kings averaged 113.8 points per game while allowing opponents to score 117.6 last season.

Phoenix went 51-20 overall and 30-12 in Western Conference play during the 2020-21 season. The Suns averaged 7.2 steals, 4.3 blocks and 12.0 turnovers per game last season.

The two teams played for the second time this season. The Kings defeated the Suns 110-107 in their last meeting on Oct. 28. Buddy Hield led the Kings with 26 points, and Devin Booker led the Suns with 31 points.

UP NEXT: Sacramento begins a four-game road trip on Wednesday 11/10 as they take on the San Antonio Spurs at 5:30pm at AT&T Center.

Curry Lights up the Night 50 pts; As Warriors Beat Atlanta 127-113

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry exults in the second quarter on the way to scoring 50 points for the night against the Atlanta Hawks on Mon Nov 8, 2021 at Chase Center in San Francisco (AP News photo)

Curry Lights Up the Night As the Warriors Beat Atlanta 127-113

By Barbara Mason

Despite a 15 point deficit in the second quarter Golden State (9-1) battled back and handed the Atlanta Hawks (4-7) their fourth loss in a row. Stephen Curry spurred the comeback finishing with 50 points in an amazing second half performance.

Monday night the Golden State Warriors took on an angry, hungry Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks have not only lost three games in a row but their last game against the Suns was a very close contest. The Hawks lost that game by four points and Atlanta had no intention of losing a fourth game. The Hawks fight as hard as they may couldn’t catch the Warriors and did end up losing their fourth straight game 127-113.

In the first quarter the Warriors trailed by two points 34-32 and they were being outplayed at times throughout the quarter.

In the second quarter the Hawks brought more than the Warriors could handle. The Hawks began doing whatever they wanted and they were completely outplaying Golden State. The Warriors were down by 15 in the quarter which is the most they have trailed any team all season.

It seemed that the only Warrior that was scoring was Curry. Kevon Looney had three personal fouls and had to sit out the quarter. The Warriors were down by four points at the end of the half after trailing by 15, 65-61. It was all Curry already shooting 24 points in the half. The Hawks were pushing them to their limits. The third quarter should be a dandy as Golden State was starting to come around as the second quarter ended.

Golden State had to hit more shots in the second half of this game. It was of course great to see Curry’s shot production at the half but he needed support from the rest of the team. Probably the most pressing issue was containing the duo of Trae Young and John Collins who was six of six for 18 points in the first half. They had to put the stops on both of these guys.

We saw a different team in the third quarter as Golden State was able to not only tie the game but take a five point lead 87-82 at 3:38. They were all over Young and Collins and as the third quarter came to an end Golden State was playing at a furious pace leading 102-85. The Warriors had gone on a 19-3 run in a complete reversal of roles. Golden State had taken control of this game rendering the Hawks ineffective. Again we saw how this team rises to the occasion in the second half.

Going into the fourth quarter the one thing we knew was that the Hawks were not going to roll over. They are a talented team and they can put up points in a hurry. This game was without doubt a tale of two halves. In the fourth quarter we saw a complete turnaround. It was Atlanta who was playing catch up, missing shots, turning the ball over and playing flat and sloppy. It was the consistent defensive effort by Golden State that turned this game around, wearing the Hawks down.

Next up for the Warriors will be the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday evening. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

Las Vegas Raiders special report: Arnette gun threats won’t be tolerated says GM Mayock/Raiders sign WR DeSean Jackson

Former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Damon Arnette was waived by the Raiders Mon Nov 8, 2021 for brandishing what looked like an automatic weapon in a video he posted and saying he was going to kill a fan on social media. Here is a photo of Arnette during his Raider playing days (file photo by the Las Vegas Review Journal)

By Rich Perez

LAS VEGAS–Second year Las Vegas Raider cornerback Damon Arnette was waived by the Raiders on Monday after a video had surfaced last Friday of Arnette making death threats in a video while showing an automatic weapon in the video. Raiders general manager Mike Mayock said in a press conference Monday afternoon that this was a “very painful decision said “We spent significant time, effort and resources trying to help him in all aspects of his life.” said Mayock.

Arnette was seen in the video carrying what looked to be a serious automatic weapon with a scope on top of it saying, “With everything I love I will kill you” apparently he was responding to a fan who wrote on a thread on social media that Arnette sucked and Arnette responded by putting out the video. Mayock said that “The content was unacceptable, contrary to our values and our owner Mark Davis has been very clear and very consistent that this is not how we will conduct ourselves in this community. The bottom line the Raiders will not tolerate this type of behavior.”

When this video was recorded is still in question whether he recorded it before he joined the Raiders before last season or was it recently. Arnette was selected as a 2020 No.19 pick out of Ohio State and has played only 13 games for the Raiders who started seven times. Arnette has defended three passes last year and has 29 solo tackles. Arnette did not play in last Sunday’s game against the New York Giants in New Jersey.

Arnette has had previous problems according to a TMZ report a woman reported that Arnette injured a woman in a car accident outside the Raiders facilities and Arnette said that he will fight the accusations. In a lawsuit dated Oct 14, 2020 Arnette had slammed into a vehicle at 7:29 AM in Las Vegas.

Arnette was driving and thought he missed his turn into the Raiders facility and had swerved into the facility at 65 MPH to make the right turn. The woman said that Arnette’s turn did significant damage to her driver’s side door and that Arnette had illegally left the scene of the crash afterwards and walked to the Raiders headquarters. It should be noted that Arnette was selected seven picks after former Raider wide receiver Henry Ruggs who is under house arrest for DUI in which victim Tina Tintor 23 died.

Mayock said that maybe in the future Arnette could help another NFL team but for right now he’s finished at the Raiders, “from my perspective, he’s a very talented young man with a good heart. He cleans up his life, I know he can make a living in the NFL. But not now, with the Raiders.”

The Raiders signed former Cal Bear and Los Angeles Rams standout wide receiver DeSean Jackson. Jackson is a three time pro bowler and taking a look at his NFL career numbers has appeared in 167 games, started 154 games, has 620 receptions for 10,877 yards, 57 touchdowns, with 71 carries for 459 yards, he has returned 140 punts for 1,315 yards. He has played for the Philadelphia Eagles (2008-13), Washington Football Team (2014-16), Tampa Bay (2017-18), then back to the Eagles (2019-20), and Los Angeles Rams (2021).

Rich Perez does the Raiders podcasts each Friday and is a Raiders beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: Big test Tuesday as Cal opens at home vs. UC San Diego

Cal Bears practice offense vs. defense at their home gym Haas Pavilion in Berkeley as they prepare to meet UC San Diego in their home opener on Tue Nov 9, 2021 (photo from @CalMBBall)

On the Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris:

#1 Morris, you wrote a pretty enlightening opener to your game recap after the Cal Bears 92-58 pre season win over Cal State LA that nobody really know if the Bears will win enough to satisfy their fan base.

#2 So as head coach Mark Fox was told by Athletic Director Jim Knowlton that after taking the job there is a lot of work in front of him to build up the team. I know you have mentioned that the one hope is that Cal does not go undefeated during the regular season.

#3 How realistic how possible is it that Cal could have some decent performances against conference team in the Pac 12 I know it’s hard to judge just watching one pre season game.

#4 Morris, wanted to ask you about Grant Anticevich who led Cal with 23 points on Monday Nov 1st’s game he’s been at the top of the leaderboard in scoring for numerous games do you see him stepping up to fill some of departed Matt Bradley’s shoes?

#5 Cal opens the season against the UC San Diego Tritons Tuesday, coach Fox wants this team ready and taking off out of the gate how ready do you see this team on Tuesday?

Join Morris for complete Cal basketball podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Happy endings for Barracuda end homestand with 7-5 win over Texas

San Jose Barracuda Jake McGrew (64) got his first AHL multi goal game scoring twice against the Texas Stars on Sun Nov 7, 2021 at SAP Center in San Jose (photo from San Jose Barracuda)

On the Barracuda podcast with Marko:

#1 Marko, after the San Jose Barracuda (3-3-1-0) had that tough contest against the visiting Texas Stars (4-6-0-0) on Saturday night getting clobbered 7-3 they did a turn about with a 7-5 win over the Stars.

#2 Marko, the seven goals by the Barracuda was their highest scoring of the season they’re making some offense and head coach Roy Sommer who said Saturday’s performance was something he wanted to move away from made it all count Sunday against the Stars.

#3 The Barracuda and Texas set a season high total with six opening period goals, Sunday’s game falls one goal short of the all time most opening period goals in Barracuda history.

#4 Marko talk about Jake McGrew who scored twice on Sunday for his first two goal game of his career.

#5 It’s off to British Columbia as the Barracuda take on the Abbottsford Canucks for a Fri Nov 12th 7:00pm face off and the same two meet again in Abbottsford on Sun Nov 14th for a 4:00 pm face off.

Marko Ukalovic does the San Jose Barracuda podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com