That’s Amaury News and Commentary: A’s Work of Art

Photo of art gallery containing Donald Fisher and Doris Fisher’s art collection who are the parents of Oakland A’s owner John Fisher (photo from Artsy)

A’s Work of Art

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Las Vegas most famous museums are The Mob Museum, The Neon Museum, the Atomic Museum, and the Discovery Children’s Museum. Now, the Oakland Athletics, planning to be the Las Vegas A’s in 2028, have a museum in mind for their new 30,000-seat stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

According to the Las Vegas Business Journal, Athletics owner John Fisher plans to display a selection from his family’s acclaimed collection at the A’s stadium on the strip. For months, multiple sources familiar with Fisher’s design plan have included talks about developing an art program in Las Vegas.

The museum will display the art at the team’s new home at the Tropicana Hotel-Casino site. The A’s owner plans to exhibit these pieces of art in the team’s new house at the Tropicana Hotel-Casino site.

The Doris and Donald Fisher Collection, parents of John Fisher, is among the world’s most significant collections of contemporary art. This is according to SFMOMA website. The founders of the Gap apparel company began buying art pieces in 1969 in San Francisco after they opened their first big store.

Later, it was located in Burlingame, 20 miles south of San Francisco. Allan Schwartzman, a veteran Manhattan curator, told the New York Times the Fishers Collection is one of the great collections assembled in our time.

This A’s Art has nothing to do with Art Howe who managed the Oakland A’s from 1996 to 2002.

Amuary Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary weekly at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Warriors Squeak Past Portland 118-114

The Portland Trail Blazers forward Tourmani Camara (33) is sandwiched between Golden State Warriors forward Kevon Looney (left) and Brandon Podziemski (right) in Portland on Sun Dec 17, 2023 (AP News file)

By Barbara Mason

Sunday night the Golden State Warriors (12-14) closed out another tight game, the second in a row beating the Portland Trail Blazers (6-19) 118-114. They set the pace in the first half but Portland battled back tying the game a number of times in the second half but never taking the lead. Klay Thompson was the high for the team with 28 points.

After beating the Brooklyn Nets last night at Chase Center, the Warriors took on the Trail Blazers at Moda Center Sunday night. The Trail Blazers have been struggling this season but they come into this game full strength. They are a young team and have a lot of growing to do. The Warriors on the other hand are filling in their starting roster and have that to contend with. After pulling Saturday night’s game out, the Warriors were able to string two wins together Sunday night. 

Game recap: The Warriors had a good start leading 27-23 after the opening quarter. They were more aggressive than the Trail Blazers in this game and really got going in the second quarter. They led at the half 65-49 after winning the second quarter 38-26. 

Stephen Curry only had four points in the first half but the rest of the team stepped up big time giving the Warriors the lead at the half. Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga and Trayce Jackson-Davis all put together a great first half giving Golden State a sizable lead.

Despite being down by 16 points at the half Portland continued to fight. In the third quarter, the Warriors extended their lead to 22 points only to have the Trail Blazers cut their lead to 11. Golden State had cooled off considerably in the third quarter and Portland was coming up with some great defense.

With five minutes left in the quarter the Trail Blazers trailed by six points. At 2:12 this game was tied at 82 and it was a brand new ball game. Portland had taken control of this game in a real turnaround and the 22 point Warrior lead was gone. 

The Trail Blazers offense cooled off a bit as the third quarter came to an end and the Golden State’s offense had a surge to end the quarter. The Warriors had pushed their lead to 89-84 with one quarter left in this game.

With ten minutes left in the game the Trail Blazers refused to go away trailing by two points 91-89. Portland had not led once the entire game but at 8:08 this game was tied again at 93 as the Trail Blazers fought to take the lead.

Curry checked back into the game as the team was looking for some more Curry magic in the fourth quarter. Golden State pushed their lead back to nine 102-93 with five minutes left in the game as the Warriors were looking to end their road game losing streak. 

Playing off the bench really lit a fire under Andrew Wiggins; he was having a terrific game. Last night Curry carried the team and tonight it was the team that took the pressure off Curry bringing this win home. 

It was a tight finish with the Warriors holding a two point lead when the veteran experience of Chris Paul stepped in draining a three giving Golden State a 115-111 lead with 20.9 left on the clock. 

The Trail Blazers got to within one point 115-114 but fouled Curry who made one shot and missed the second. Portland fouled Brandin Podziemski who made both free throws and that was the game 118-114. The Warriors had broken a seven road game losing streak.

Thompson had a huge night with 28 points and off the bench Wiggins was lights out with 25 points and seven rebounds. It was a quiet night for Curry who finished with seven points and not a single three. 

Despite only seven points for Curry, his teammates filled in the gaps with some excellent play from Thompson, Wiggins, Kuminga, Podziemski and Tracyce Jackson-Davis. It was a complete team effort in this game tonight bringing home this win against a stubborn Trail Blazer team.

The Warriors head home to Chase to take on the Boston Celtics Tuesday night. The Celtics have a 20-5 record and sit in first place in the Eastern Conference. The Warriors will need all hands on deck from top to bottom in this game. Golden State will be looking for a third win in a row. Tipoff for this game is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

  

Sharks Buried by Avalanche 6-2 in Denver, Studnicka Makes Sharks Debut

Colorado Avalanche Nathan MacKinnon gets congratulated by the Avalanche bench after scoring in the second period against the San Jose Sharks at Ball Arena in Denver on Sun Dec 17, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks were defeated 6-2 by the Colorado Avalanche Sunday. Colorado goals came from Valeri Nichushkin, Mikko Rantanen, Miles Wood, Ryan Johansen, and two from Nathan MacKinnon. Alexander Georgiev made 27 saves for the win. Tomas Hertl scored twice for the Sharks and Mackenzie Blackwood made 23 saves in the loss.

The Sharks’ newest player, Jack Studnicka, made his debut Sunday. Studnicka was acquired Friday from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for defenseman Nick Cicek and a 2024 sixth-round pick. Sunday he had one shot, three hits and won 4 of 16 faceoffs in 12:18 time on the ice.

After the game, he described his performance as “Just okay. I didn’t really have my legs, it’s kind of been a whirlwind. That’s no excuse but it’s been a lot of travel recently. Some ok moments, some good moments, some moments I’ve got to work on.”

Sharks Head Coach David Quinn said, of Studnicka’s first game: “Tough game to be thrown into, you know, I’m sure he’s just glad it’s over with. Didn’t really think he had a lot of pop in his skating tonight which usually he does. So it’s a tough situation to be put into but I thought he was fine.”

Less than three minutes into the game, Sharks defenseman Jacob MacDonald was called for boarding Sam Malinski. Malinski seemed to catch his skate and was off-balance before MacDonald hit him. Malinski was injured and bleeding. He missed a substantial amount of time in the first period, but returned to play before the period ended. MacDonald, however, was given a game misconduct.

During the ensuing five minute penalty, Colorado scored once. The Sharks penalty kill held the Avalanche off for 4:30. In the final seconds, Jonathan Drouin found Valeri Nichushkin next to the net for a tap-in goal. Assists went to Drouin and Nathan MacKinnon.

The Sharks were back on the penalty kill at 10:37, and Colorado scored at 12:15. Mikko Rantanen deflected a shot from MacKinnon, again late in the power play. Assists went to MacKinnon and Devon Toews.

Miles Wood made it 3-0 with a sharp angle shot at 18:20. Assists went to Ross Colton and Jonathan Drouin. Nathan MacKinnon made it 4-0 at 3:44 of the second period with an unassisted goal.

Tomas Hertl scored on the power play to make it 4-1 at 9:01 of the second. Hertl deflected a shot from the blue line by Mikael Granlund. The secondary assist went to Alexander Barabanov.

Ryan Johansen made it 5-1 at 9:01 of the third period. A rebound off of a Caleb Jones shot went right to Johansen with an open net in front of him. Assists went to Jones and Andrew Cogliano.

Hertl scored his second of the night, again on the power play. Right in front of ther net, Hertl gathered up a rebound after William Eklund took a shot. Assists went to Eklund and Granlund.

Nathan MacKinnon scored his second of the night at 15:11, into an empty net. The Sharks pulled their goaltender with five minutes left in the game.

The Sharks did well in shot count for the game, just one behind Colorado’s 29. In the face-off circle, the Sharks struggled again, winning only 38.2% of the draws.

The Sharks started the game missing several veteran players. Apart from the injured players, Anthony Duclair was a healthy scratch. After the game, David Quinn declined to share details about that decision and said only that Duclair would be back.

Sharks next play on Tuesday back in San Jose at 7:30 PM PT against the Los Angeles Kings.

Cardinal Prevented any VANDALism by Idaho on the Farm, as they won 82-64

Stanford Cardinal guard Andrej Stojakovic (2) goes up for a lay up against the Idaho Vandals at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Sun Dec 17, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif — The Stanford Cardinal (5-4. 0-0 Pac-12) subdued the Idaho Vandals (6-5, 0-0 Big Sky) 82-64 on a rainy Sunday in the Bay, without Spencer Jones..

Senior forward Spencer Joneswas out with a leg injury, but it didn’t prevent his fellow Cardinal from performing a dominant win inside Maples Pavilion. They not only picked up the slack, but freshman Kanaan Carlyle gave a great contribution in his Stanford debut.

Despite Idaho scoring the first two points of the game, the Cardinal led threat of the way, after taking a 4-2 lead. During that time frame they went on a 9-0 run and led by as much as 19 points.

The team ended the first 20 minutes with the 19-point lead, shot 63% from the field grabbed 22 rebounds and dished 11 assists. The Cardinal defense was steller too, as they forced the Vandals to shoot a putrid 27% from the floor, and 19% from threeland.

Neither team had a player in double-digits at the half, although Stanford’s junior forward Maxime Raynaud offered eight points and five rebounds and freshman guard Andrej Stojakovic also chipped in 8 points. The aforementioned Carlyle dropped seven points himself. Idaho’s redshirt-freshman Tyler topped his team with five points.

At intermission, Stanford 41-22, and was seemingly in total control of the game. The half ended with the vandals only leading for 23 seconds, while the Cardinal had the advantage for more than 18 minutes.

In the second half, despite many comeback attempts (6-0 run) by Idaho, Stanford had extended the lead as much as 23 points and never looked back

To the Vandals’ credit, they did shoot 53% in the second half, in addition to scoring 20 more points (42) than the previous half of play. Stanford on the other hand, scored the exact amount of points (41) in both halves.

When it was all said and done, the major damage was executed in the first half, and turned out to be enough to complete the mission/win. Stanford led a total of 38:22 and shot 56.4% overall for the game. This dominance led to the 18-point victory, 82-64.

The Cardinal had four players reach double-digits, and Jared Bynum was close, with 9 points and 6 assists. Raynaud (12) and 13 rebounds, Stojakovic (17), Michael Jones (14) and Carlyle (11).

Idaho produced three players with more than 10 points: Linhardt (16), senior guard D’Angelo Minnis (12) and junior guard Quinn Denker (13).

Stanford will next be in action in Southern California Thursday, December 21 at 6 PM PDT, as they take on the San Diego State Aztecs. Idaho also heads south in California on the same date, to take on the University of California – Riverside Highlanders at 5 PM PDT.

San Jose State Lose To Montana 86-75 At Home

San Jose State Spartans guard Alvaro Cardenas (13) takes a shot against the Montana Grizzlies defense at Provident Credit Union Event Center San Jose on Sun Dec 17, 2023 (San Jose State Spartans photo)

Sunday, December 17th, 2023

By Troy Ewers

San Jose, CA – The San José State Spartans host Montana on Saturday afternoon inside the Provident Credit Union Event Center. The Spartans have had tremendous success on their home floor early in the season, playing to an undefeated record of 4-0 in San Jose with wins over UC Irvine, Bethesda, North Dakota State and New Orleans.

A first half that started off with Montana getting up early and hitting 60% from the field, led by Annen Moody with 10 points in eight minutes. The Spartans hulked up and got on a comeback hitting six of seven field goals in that comeback.

SJSU took the lead as the half winded down and held that lead all the way to the buzzer signaling halftime. San Jose State went 7-12 from 3 and 15-31 from the field as a team, but the man in the driver seat for the Spartans in the first half was Tibet Gorener, who had 13 points (5-7 FGs). The score at half was 40-37, Spartans up and in front of their home crowd kept the energy positive and high intensity. 

The second half was the story for SJSU earlier in the season, starting strong and ending low. Montana immediately tied with a three to start the half and never looked back. SJSU kept it close the whole half, even holding a lead, but Montana ended up with a 10 point lead with 2:30 left in the game.

The gap was too big to close for the Spartans as Montana won the game 86-75. Moody was the big dog for Montana scoring 21 points and even though MJ Amey Jr. scored 15 points and four assists, Montana just outplayed SJSU in the second half. 

The Spartans are 1-3 this month and have one more game left in December before they start 2024 with a bang. That last game of the month will be in San Jose against Santa Clara on Wednesday, December 20th and the Spartans are looking to get a W to close the year. 

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Warriors get big scoring help from Curry in defeating Nets

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) takes a jump shot in the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Dec 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason:

#1 How important was it for Golden State (11-14) to end their three game losing streak against the Brooklyn Nets?

#2 Guard Stephen Curry didn’t have a insurmountable amount of points during the three game skid but against the Nets on Saturday night he led with 37.

#3 Curry also had a big fourth quarter scoring 12 three point shots and that gave Golden State enough cushion to defeat the Nets 124-120 to end the skid.

#4 Game have been close and Curry teammate and splash brother Klay Thompson said the he would give him he needs saying it’s still early in the season.

#5 Barbara, the Warriors tip off against the Trailblazers (6-18) tonight at 6:00pm The Trailblazers have won three of their last ten games and are 14th in the Western Conference how do you see this match up tonight.

Join Barbara for the Warriors podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Murray’s 47 & franchise record 12 3s was string music for the Kings,while Jazz was out of Tune,126-104

Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray (13) scores over the Utah Jazz guard Ochai Agbaji in the second half at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Sat Dec 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Michael Roberson

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento Kings (15-9) performed Royal Music in the California State capital, by defeating the Utah Jazz (9-17) Saturday Night 126-104, without their sly Fox.

Sacramento entered the game without the best player, De’Aaron Fox. He was out with a right shoulder injury from their previous game versus the Oklahoma City Thunder. Keegan Murray more than made up the slack of his absence.

Kings’ center Damontasa Sabonis went on a personal 4-0 run to start off the contest. That initial lead lasted the remaining 37 minutes of regulation.. The home team sat comfortably on their throne the whole evening.

Sabonis ended the first 12 minutes with 10 points and four rebounds. After one, the Kings had a 12-point lead, 35-23. Collin Sexton and Simone Fontecchio both tallied 7 points for the visitors.

Quarter number two, the aforementioned Murray started to heat up immensely from beyond the arc. He added three more to the two he hit in the first quarter, and scored 13 points during the second 12 minutes.

By intermission, Murray had 19 points and shot a sizzling 5-6 from 3=point land. Sabonis chipped in 14 points and seven rebounds, while Harrison Barnes gave the team 12 points. The Kings had the same advantage (12) as they did after onew, because both teams scored 27 points in the second period. 62-50, Kings at recess.

In the third quarter, Murray was En Fuego! He hit a franchise record 7 threes in the stanza, breaking the previous record (6) shared by two players. His 26 points during the third 12 eclipsed Mitch Richmond’s record (25).

During the 36 minutes of gameplay Murray made an NBA record 11 consecutive 3s, shot 15-19 & 12-13 from three and had 45 points. The team outscored the Jazz by 18, and took their largest lead of 30, 106-76 at the 3/4 mark of the game.

The fourth quarter was just a formality, as the Kings essentially led from wire to wire after Sabonas scored the first two points of the game. The only drama was would Murray get 50?

Keegan ended up 1-4 from the field and 0-2 from behind the 3-point line in the final segment, finishing with a career-high 47 points. There was a bit of controversy when Coach Mike Brown pulled him from the game, to the dismay of the packed Golden1 Center.

When I queried them both about that moment, they both were ok with the decision. Coach Brown said that he gave him a chance to get 50, but he missed both three attempts. Murray was content with his career high and multiple records.

At the final horn/whistle, the Kings win their second in a row and crown the Jazz by 21, 125-104.

The Kings are next in action on Monday, December 18, as they host the Washington Wizards at 7 PM PST. The Jazz head back to Salt Lake City on the same date to host the Brooklyn Nets at 6 PM MST

Cal drops Independence Bowl to end final season in Pac-12

Cal Bears quarterback Fernando Mendoza (15) is hit for a fumble by the Texas Tech Red Raiders lineman Amier Washington (96) at Independence Stadium in Shreveport LA, on Sat Dec 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023

Independence Stadium, Shreveport, Louisiana

California Golden Bears 14 (6-7)

Texas Tech Red Raiders 34 (7-6)

By Stephen Ruderman

Cal dropped the Independence Bowl to the Texas Tech Red Raiders, 34-14, in what was most likely their final game as a member of the Pac-12.

This was Cal’s first bowl game since 2019, as the team went 6-6 and finished in seventh place in the Pac-12 during the regular season to earn a spot in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana. Texas Tech went 6-6, and finished in seventh in the Big 12 Conference, and earned their third-straight trip to a bowl game.

Michael Luckhurst made the opening kick for the Bears, but it was fumbled by Drae McCray, and recovered by Luckhurst on the Texas Tech 25-Yard Line to put the Bears in perfect position to start the game. Then, on the very first play after the opening kick, Bears’ quarterback, Fernando Mendoza, threw a complete pass to wide-receiver, Monroe Young, who ran it 25 yards for a touchdown. After the extra point, Cal led 7-0.

Texas Tech scored a touchdown on a pass from Behren Morton to Coy Eakin, and tied it on the extra point with 4:19 remaining in the first quarter. The Bears responded with a drive of their own. With exactly three minutes remaining, Mendoza threw a 51-yard pass to get to the Texas Tech three Yard Line, and then on the next play, Mendoza handed the ball off to Jaydn Ott, who ran it in to put the Bears back ahead.

Cal led 14-7 at the end of the first quarter, but the Red Raiders scored 17 points in the second quarter, as Morton threw a pair of touchdown passes, and Gino Garcia kicked a field goal from 25 yards with just seven seconds remaining. That put Texas Tech up 24-14 going into the half, and they did not look back.

The Red Raiders scored a touchdown in the third quarter, and kicked a field goal in the fourth to put the game away.

With the loss, Cal finishes their final season in the Pac-12 at 6-7, and now they will shift to the Atlantic Coast Conference, as the focus will turn to the 2024 Season.

Santa Cruz Warriors podcast with Anthony Wang, Michael Wang and Gary Teh: Warriors get the overtime edge on Kings in G League win 121-112

The Santa Cruz Warriors Jackson Rowe (43) holds onto the basketball against the Stockton Kings at Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz on Sat Dec 16, 2023 (Santa Cruz Warriors photo)

On the SC Warriors podcast with Anthony Wang, Michael Wang and Gary Teh:

#1 In contrasting games a close one Saturday night at Kaiser Permanente in Santa Cruz between the Stockton Kings and Santa Cruz Warriors. The Warriors who crushed the South Bay Lakers back on Thursday by 18 saw a tough opponent tonight in the Kings who opened it up with 17 points.

#2 At the end of the first half the Warriors closed the gap down by nine points but were getting some offense from Lester Quinones who scored eight and Kendric Davis with seven points.

#3 The Warriors Donavon Williams who led in their last game last Thursday with 29 points was defended well by the Kings and held to just four points in the first half. It was Usman Garuba and Quinones who came out scoring in the second half.

#4 The Warriors trailed for most of the game got back in it with just over six minutes to play in the game and held a two point lead. They were getting offensive help from Donavan, Quinones and Davis.

#5 Michael, Anthony, and Gary, this game was forced into overtime and the Warriors got some great shot selections and came away with the 121-112 overtime and there was a lot of fighting spirit in this one.

#6 One more note this was Christmas ornament night at Kaiser Permanente where the first 1,000 fans came away with ornaments and fans were more than happy coming away from a thriller like this in Santa Cruz.

Michael Wang, Gary Teh and Anthony Wang covered the Santa Cruz Warriors and Stockton Kings contest at Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz on Sat Dec 16, 2023

Warriors Outlast Nets 124-120; Curry leads with 37 pts for Golden State

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry drives on the Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (left) and Nets forward Mikal Bridges (center) at Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Dec 16, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Golden State Warriors (10-14) had a productive first half against the Brooklyn Nets (13-11) leading 70-54. They began to struggle in the third quarter giving up an 18 point lead going into the fourth quarter. 

The Nets not only trailed the Warriors by a single point in the early minutes of the final quarter but took the lead numerous times throughout the fourth quarter. Stephen Curry hit five shots in a row in the fourth giving the Warriors just enough to pull out this win. Giving up the lead this way is of some concern but they did come away with the win 124-120.

Saturday evening the Warriors took on the Nets at Chase Center. The Warriors are coming off a loss to the Clippers Thursday night 121-113. The Warriors are of course seeing a very different starting roster since the suspension of Draymond Green. Jonathan Kuminga is finally getting the chance to start and bench player Brandin Podziemski also joins him as a starter. The Nets Cam Thomas came in as a real threat shooting an average of 22 points. This was a very close and competitive game.

Game recap: The Warriors got on board early in this game winning the opening quarter 32-25. They went on to win the second quarter 38-29 extending their lead to 70-54. Going into the locker room at the half, the Warriors had control of this game and had sailed through the first half. They would have to keep the pressure on in the second half against a very dangerous Nets team. Games like this can turn on a dime; there can be no letdown.

The Nets began their comeback in the third quarter winning it 35-25 but still trailing 95-89. The Nets had erased an 18 point Warrior lead in the quarter and going into the fourth quarter, the Nets trailed by a single point 97-96 at 9:47. 

Curry went crazy in the final four minutes of the game hitting five shots in a row and with under 2 1/2 minutes the Warriors had a 120-115 lead. With just over a minute left in the game, the Nets were double teaming Curry trying to keep the Warriors off the scoreboard. 

There is no stopping Curry double-teamed or not. He hit a two giving Golden State a 122-118 lead. The two teams were trading shots and with 28 seconds left on the clock the Warriors had a 122-120 lead as this game predictably went down to the wire. 

Curry drove to the basket giving the Warriors a 124-120 lead which would be the final. The Warriors had finally been able to hold onto this game after giving up a huge second half lead. With only 14 turnovers, Golden State saw some nice improvement. 

They also hit critical shots in the fourth quarter en route to this win. It is of course concerning seeing Golden State drop the lead the way they did in the fourth quarter but they were able to hold on in the end.

Curry finished with 37 points which is just what this guy does. He carries this team but teammate Klay Thompson also had a great game with 24 points and Podziemski had 19.

The Nets Thomas finished with 41 points but his team came up just short. Brooklyn had a great second half winning both quarters. They gave the Warriors all they could handle and Golden State answered the call in this clutch game.

The Warriors will now head up to Portland playing the Trail Blazers Sunday night with tipoff scheduled for 6:00 PM.