Sports Radio 1400 WSJM @wsjmsports wsjmsports.com Friday, April 01, 2016
NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Chicago Bulls 103, Houston Rockets 100
Orlando Magic 114, Indiana Pacers 94
Bulls 103, Rockets 100 – Mirotic scores 28 as Bulls edge Rockets 103-100
Nikola Mirotic scored 28 points and Jimmy Butler added 21 to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 103-100 win over the Houston Rockets on Thursday night. In a pivotal game for two teams fighting for the final playoff spots in their respective conferences, the Bulls were fueled by a strong fourth quarter in which they outscored the Rockets 32-20. Chicago entered the fourth facing a nine-point deficit but was able to overcome thanks to hot shooting from Mirotic. Trevor Ariza attempted a tying 3 at the buzzer, but it rimmed out and Chicago held on. The Bulls won their second consecutive game following a four-game skid and trail Indiana by one game for the final playoff spot in the East. Houston dropped a half-game behind Utah and Dallas, who are tied for the seventh and eighth seeds in the West. James Harden led Houston with 24 points and eight assists.
Magic 114, Pacers 94 – Magic pull out all tricks to pull away from Pacers 114-94
Evan Fournier scored 25 points and Nikola Vucevic added 24 on Thursday night to lead the Orlando Magic past the Indiana Pacers 114-94. The Magic have won three straight since snapping a six-game losing streak, including their first win at Indiana since Feb. 4, 2012. And it came on a night the Pacers couldn’t afford to lose. Indiana, which slipped into the No. 8 slot in the East with Tuesday’s home loss to Chicago, now trails Detroit for the No. 7 spot by one full game. Paul George scored 27 points and had eight rebounds while Lavoy Allen finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds, but it wasn’t nearly enough. The Magic took control with a 7-0 second-quarter run that made it 53-41. Indiana finally tied the score at 62 early in the third, but Orlando answered with a 14-5 run and steadily pulled away.
Last Night
Dallas Mavericks at Detroit Pistons, 7:30 p.m.
NHL – National Hockey League
Tonight
Minnesota Wild at Detroit Red Wings, 7:30 p.m.
Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets, 8:00 p.m.
NHL – Blackhawks D Keith waives right to in-person hearing
Blackhawks star defenseman Duncan Keith has waived his right to an in-person hearing for high-sticking Minnesota Wild forward Charlie Coyle. The NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced late Thursday night that Keith will have a phone hearing instead on Friday afternoon. The offer for an in-person hearing meant the league can suspend Keith more than five games, but it doesn’t have to. Chicago has five regular-season games remaining, starting with Friday’s visit to Winnipeg. After being knocked onto his back during the first period of Chicago’s game Tuesday at Minnesota, Keith lifted his stick into Coyle’s face. He was given a 5-minute major and a match penalty, an immediate ejection. Coyle needed stitches to close a cut on his nose, which wasn’t broken.
US Soccer – Women players challenge USA Soccer on pay
Five players from the World Cup-winning U.S. women’s national team have accused the U.S. Soccer Federation of wage discrimination in an action filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd, Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn and Hope Solo maintain in the filing they were paid nearly four times less than their male counterparts on the U.S. men’s national team.
NCAA Basketball
Last Night – Men’s NIT Finals, Madison Square Garden, NYC
George Washington 76, Valparaiso 60
GW 76, Valpo 60 – George Washington takes NIT title with 76-60 win over Valpo
George Washington won its first National Invitation Tournament championship, getting 18 points from Kevin Larsen and pulling away in the second half to beat Valparaiso 76-60 at Madison Square Garden. Patricio Garino had 14 points and Joe McDonald added 13 as the fourth-seeded Colonials set a school record with their 28th win this season.
Saturday – Men’s NCAA Tournament Semifinals, NRG Stadium, Houston
(2) Villanova vs. (2) Oklahoma, 6:09 p.m.
(10) Syracuse vs. (1) North Carolina, 8:49 p.m.
Live Coverage on Sports Radio 1400 WSJM
Sunday – Women’s NCAA Tournament Semifinals, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
(2) Oregon State vs. (1) Connecticut, 6:00 p.m.
(7) Washington vs. (4) Syracuse, 8:30 p.m.
Live Coverage on Sports Radio 1400 WSJM
NCAA Men’s Basketball – Michigan State’s Valentine wins AP Player of the Year
Denzel Valentine of Michigan State is The Associated Press Player of the Year, edging out Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield by three votes. Valentine is the first Spartans player to win the award. He accepted the trophy Thursday in Houston. Valentine received 34 of 65 votes from the national media panel that selects the weekly AP Top 25. Hield was the only other player to receive votes. Hield and Valentine were the only unanimous selections to the AP All-America team. Valentine, a 6-foot-5 senior, led Michigan State (29-6) to a second-place finish in the Big Ten regular season and was the conference player of the year. He averaged 19.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.6 assists. The Spartans were ranked No. 1 for four weeks and finished second in the final AP Top 25. They lost to Middle Tennessee State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Voting was done before the tournament.
NCAA Men’s Basketball – Notre Dame, Texas headline 2016 Legends Classic
Notre Dame, Texas and Colorado, which all played in the NCAA Tournament, and Northwestern headline the field for the 2016 Legends Classic, which culminates at Barclays Center on Nov. 21-22. The four teams will each host two regional round games on campus before heading to the championship round. Joining Notre Dame, Texas, Colorado and Northwestern in the field are Eastern Washington, Bryant, Louisiana Monroe and Seattle. Eastern Washington will host the other three schools in a subregional Nov. 21-22, in Cheney, Wash. The complete schedule for the 2016 Legends Classic will be announced at a later date. Marquette beat Arizona State 78-73 in overtime to win the 2015 Legends Classic.
NCAA – NCAA big turns up heat on Tar Heel State pols
NCAA President Mark Emmert says he has spoken to North Carolina’s governor about the state’s new religious exemption law and made clear if it remains in place, it will affect the state’s chances to host major college athletic events. For the second straight year, Emmert faced questions at his Final Four news conference about a state law critics say allows discrimination against gays, lesbians and others. And for the second straight year, Emmert said the association is prepared to refrain from doing business in places that create hostile environments for student-athletes, coaches and fans.
NCAA Hockey – Connor, Demko, Vesey named finalists for Hobey Baker
Michigan freshman forward Kyle Connor, Boston College junior goalie Thatcher Demko and Harvard senior forward Jimmy Vesey are this season’s finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as college hockey’s top player. The Hobey Hat Trick finalists were selected from a list of 10 candidates by a 27-member selection committee and an additional round of online fan balloting. Criteria for the award include: outstanding skills, character on and off the ice, sportsmanship and scholastic achievements. This year’s Hobey Baker Award winner will be announced April 8 in Tampa, Florida, during the NCAA Frozen Four.
MLB – Major League Baseball – Spring Training
Yesterday
Detroit Tigers 10, New York Yankees (ss) 6
Chicago Cubs 5, New York Mets 1
Tigers 10, Yankees 6 – JD Martinez’s 3 homers power Tigers past Yankees squad
J.D. Martinez hit three home runs, one to each part of the ballpark, to lead the Detroit Tigers past a New York Yankees split squad 10-6 on Thursday. Victor Martinez also homered for the Tigers. For Victor Martinez, it was his third homer of the spring and his first since returning from a hamstring strain he suffered on March 14. Logan Kensling started for the Tigers and didn’t allow a run in two innings. Lendy Castillo, the other finalist for the last spot in the Tigers’ rotation, gave up a two-run homer to New York’s Austin Romine. Romine had three hits for the Yankees. J.D. Martinez had three hits for the Tigers and Miguel Cabrera added two more.
Cubs 5, Mets 1 – Cubs beat Mets 5-1 in Las Vegas exhibition
Ben Zobrist had two hits, including an RBI single in Chicago’s three-run fifth inning, and the Cubs beat the New York Mets 5-1 on Thursday in an exhibition that was the teams’ first meeting since last year’s NL Championship Series. Cubs right-hander Ryan Williams, who was assigned to the minors on March 25 but stayed with the team through its Las Vegas trip, tossed three scoreless innings. He allowed two hits and struck out one. Tommy La Stella had two hits for Chicago, which was swept by New York in the NLCS. Yasiel Balaguert homered in the eighth. Lucas Duda had three hits for New York, including an RBI single off reliever Trevor Cahill in the fourth inning.
Today
Tampa Bay (ss) vs. Detroit at Lakeland, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
N.Y. Mets vs. Chicago Cubs at Las Vegas, 4:05 p.m.
Chicago White Sox at San Diego, 10:10 p.m.
NFL – Bears agree to 1-year contract with offensive lineman Larsen
The Chicago Bears have agreed to a one-year contract with former Tampa Bay and Arizona offensive lineman Ted Larsen. The Bears continue to add to their line. The move announced Thursday comes one day after they agreed to a one-year deal with former Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos lineman Manny Ramirez. The 6-foot-2, 305-pound Larsen has appeared in 86 games with 57 starts over six seasons with the Buccaneers (2010-13) and Cardinals (2014-15). He has made 34 regular-season starts at left guard, 13 at right guard and 10 at center.
NFL – Pro Bowl on the move?
The NFL and the state of Hawaii have an additional two months to talk about holding next year’s Pro Bowl in the islands. The Hawaii Tourism Authority says both sides now have until May 31 to opt out of a contract for the Pro Bowl to be held in Honolulu next year. The issue was to have been decided by March 31, but both sides bought some extra bargaining time.
AHL – American Hockey League
Tonight
Grand Rapids Griffins at Rochester Americans, 7:05 p.m.
Lake Erie Monsters at Chicago Wolves, 8:00 p.m.
ECHL – East Coast Hockey League
Last Night
Kalamazoo Wings 4, Greenville Swamp Rabbits 3 – OT
Tonight
Kalamazoo Wings at Greenville Swamp Rabbits, 7:00 p.m.
Manchester Monarchs at Toledo Walleye, 7:15 p.m.
