95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports @wsjmsports wsjmsports.com Thursday, January 12, 2017
NFL – Chargers reportedly pick LA
ESPN.com has reported that the San Diego Chargers plan to announce as early as today that they are moving to Los Angeles. According to the report, the Chargers have notified team owners and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell of their intent to relocate for the 2017 season. However, the website added that nothing was final. A team employee has told The Associated Press that the Chargers have called a staff meeting for 8 a.m. Pacific (11 a.m. Eastern). The report comes as the deadline for the Chargers to exercise their relocation option was extended two days to Jan. 17 by the NFL. That decision was made because the 15th falls on a Sunday and Monday is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday. The league’s stadium and finance committees met for about 31/2 hours Wednesday to discuss relocation of the Chargers and Raiders. Should the Chargers actually decide to stay put, the Raiders could invade the L.A. market unless owner Mark Davis ships the team to Las Vegas as he has previously indicated.
NFL – Broncos, Bills get new field generals
The Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills have filled their head coach vacancies, completing the task 10 days after the regular season ended. The Broncos have selected Vance Joseph, who had served as one of the NFL’s top secondary coaches before spending this season as the Dolphins’ defensive coordinators. He replaces Gary Kubiak, who was hired over Joseph by Broncos vice president and general manager John Elway two years ago. Sean McDermott has a much tougher task in Buffalo. He takes over a club that has hired eight other head coaches since 1999, the team’s last playoff appearance. McDermott worked the last six years as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator and helped Carolina reach the Super Bowl last season.
NCAAMBB – Men’s College Basketball
Last Night
Michigan State 65, (24) Minnesota 47
Illinois 85, Michigan 69
Michigan State 65, #24 Minnesota 47 – Miles Bridges-led Michigan State tops No. 24 Minnesota 65-47
Miles Bridges scored all 16 of his points in the first half, helping Michigan State build a huge lead it used to cruise to a 65-47 victory over No. 24 Minnesota on Wednesday night. The Spartans (12-6, 4-1 Big Ten) started the night in a five-way tie atop the conference with the Golden Gophers (11-7, 3-2) and moved a half-game ahead of No. 17 Purdue, Maryland and Nebraska. Michigan State led the entire game, went ahead by 22 points at halftime and easily kept a comfortable lead. Joshua Langford scored nine of his 13 points in the first half for the Spartans and Nick Ward, who fouled out, had nine points and eight rebounds in 13 minutes. The Golden Gophers have four players averaging at least 10 points a game, but had just two score in double digits against Michigan State. Nate Mason scored 14 and Dupree McBrayer had 11 points.
Illinois 85, Michigan 69 – Morgan leads Illinois to 85-69 win over Michigan
Maverick Morgan scored 16 points, leading Illinois to a dominating 85-69 win over Michigan on Wednesday night. Illinois (12-5, 2-2 Big Ten) changed up its lineup after its 96-80 loss to Indiana on Saturday and the improvements showed as six different players finished in double figures. The Wolverines had a 4:30 field-goal scoring drought and the Illini put together a 17-2 to close the first half for a 49-36 halftime. Both teams shot better than 60 percent in the first half but the Illini were even better in the second, making 17 of 21 shots, and finished 9 of 14 from 3-point range. Michigan cooled off to 45 percent in the second half but finished 7 of 14 behind the arc. Kipper Nichols had his strongest performance of the season, coming off the bench for 13 points and eight rebounds, helping the Illini to a 30-17 rebounding advantage. Illinois outscored Michigan 28-9 off the bench. DJ Wilson led Michigan (11-6, 1-3) with 19 points and Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman added 14 points.
Tonight
(20) Notre Dame at Miami (FL), 7:00 p.m.
NHL – National Hockey League
Tonight
Detroit Red Wings at Dallas Stars, 8:30 p.m.
NHL – Ovechkin passes Richard
Alex Ovechkin moved into sole possession of 29th place on the NHL’s all-time goals list while becoming the 84th player in league history to collect 1,000 career points. Ovechkin notched his 545th and 546th goals in leading the Washington Capitals to their seventh consecutive win, 5-2 against Pittsburgh. He scored just 35 seconds after the opening faceoff to reach the 1,000-point milestone and pass Hall of Famer Maurice Richard on the goal-scoring list.
NBA – National Basketball Association
Today
Indiana Pacers at Denver Nuggets, 3:00 p.m.
Chicago Bulls at New York Knicks, 8:00 p.m.
Detroit Pistons at Golden State Warriors, 10:30 p.m.
NCAAWBB – Women’s College Basketball
Last Night
Western Michigan 75, Bowling Green 58
Central Michigan 101, Ball State 92
Miami (OH) 72, Eastern Michigan 61
Tonight
Pittsburgh at (6) Notre Dame, 7:00 p.m.
MLB – World Series champion Cubs to visit White House on Monday
The World Series champion Chicago Cubs have accepted President Barack Obama’s invitation and will visit the White House on Monday. White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Wednesday that Obama is “really looking forward to it” and that any sports fan could appreciate “the historic run that the Chicago Cubs had through the playoffs and to a World Series title this year.” The president invited the Cubs shortly after they beat the Cleveland Indians to end a title drought that dated to 1908. Obama has a home in Chicago and is a fan of the White Sox, but he rooted for the North Siders since his favorite team didn’t make the playoffs. The visit will come just days before Obama leaves office. The president also hosted the Chicago Blackhawks after their three Stanley Cup championships since 2010, along with other championship teams from college and the U.S pro leagues.
MLB – M’s obtain Smyly
The Seattle Mariners engineered two trades Wednesday in an effort to solidify their starting rotation. The M’s have picked up Drew Smyly from the Rays for outfielder Mallex Smith, infielder Carlos Vargas and lefty Ryan Yarbrough. The move was possible after Seattle picked up Smith and right-hander Shae Simmons from the Braves for left-handed pitching prospects Luiz Gohara and Thomas Burrows. The 27-year old Smyly made 30 starts last season for Tampa Bay, throwing a
career-high 175 1/3 innings and striking out 167. He was 7-12 with a 4.88 ERA.
Golf – U.S. 2018 captain named
Veteran PGA player Jim Furyk has been named U.S. captain for the 2018 Ryder Cup in France. He’ll be in charge of a team that will try to win on European soil for the first time since 1993. The Americans ended a three-match losing streak last year at Hazeltine (HAY’-zuhl-teen) in Minnesota with a 17-11 victory. Furyk has played on nine consecutive Ryder Cup teams and has a 10-20-4 record. He played on only two winning teams, in 1999 and then in 2008. The European team has named Thomas Bjorn (byorn) as captain.
NASCAR – Edwards done driving
NASCAR driver Carl Edwards has officially announced that he is walking away from the final year of his contract with Joe Gibbs Racing, but he stressed that he’s not retired. Edwards says he made the decision because he’s content with his career accomplishments, wants to spend more time on other interests and wants to maintain his current health. Edwards admitted the concussion issues that plagued Dale Earnhardt Jr. most of last season were a wakeup call to the industry. Reigning Xfinity Series champion Daniel Suarez is replacing Edwards in Gibbs Racing’s No. 19 Toyota. Edwards was in the running for last year’s Sprint Cup championship heading into the last 10 laps of the final race before losing the title. He also lost the championship to Tony Stewart in 2011 and leaves the circuit with 28 victories.
MCCAA – Junior College Basketball – Men
Last Night
Jackson Community College 88, Lake Michigan College 85
MCCAA – Junior College Basketball – Women
Last Night
Lake Michigan College 73, Jackson Community College 61
AHL – American Hockey League
Last Night
Chicago Wolves 2, Milwaukee Admirals 1
ECHL – East Coast Hockey League
Last Night
Kalamazoo Wings 3, Tulsa Oilers 2
Wheeling Nailers 5, Toledo Walleye 2
NBADL – NBA Developmental League
Last Night
Windy City Bulls 108, Erie Bayhawks 97
Salt Lake City Stars 129, Grand Rapids Drive 94
MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Boys Basketball
Berrien Springs 57, Lake Michigan Catholic 49
Devin Nickels had a game high 16 points as Berrien Springs beat visiting Lake Michigan Catholic 57-49. TJ Jones and Sam Spaulding each added 11 points for the Shamrocks. Tomas Koening led the Lakers with 14 points in the loss.
New Buffalo 65, Centreville 64
Three New Buffalo players scored in double figures to lead the Bison to a 65-64 road win at Centreville. Seth Margaritis had 19, Julian Hymes had 14, and Creo Brewster added 12 in the victory. Hayden Stauffer had a game high 22 points for Centreville in the loss.
Girls Basketball
Michigan Lutheran 64, Andrews Academy 39
Emily Witkowski had a double double with 27 points and 10 rebounds to help lead Michigan Lutheran to a 64-39 win over Andrews Academy. Illana Mun scored 16 points in the loss for Andrews. Michigan Lutheran improves to 6-1.
Tonight
Girls Basketball
Buchanan at Berrien Springs, 7:15 p.m.
Michigan Lutheran at River Valley, 7:30 p.m.
New Buffalo at White Pigeon, 7:30 p.m.
Parchment at Brandywine, 7:30 p.m.
Mendon at Cassopolis, 7:30 p.m.
Centreville at Bronson, 7:30 p.m.
