Weekday Morning Sports – Tuesday 3/15/16

sportsreport

Sports Radio 1400 WSJM     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Tuesday, March 15, 2016

NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Los Angeles Kings 5, Chicago Blackhawks 0

Kings 5, Blackhawks 0 – Versteeg, Kings beat slumping Blackhawks 5-0
Kris Versteeg and Milan Lucic scored 18 seconds apart in the first period, and the Los Angeles Kings routed the slumping Chicago Blackhawks 5-0 on Monday night in a matchup of Western Conference powers looking for another championship run. Vincent Lecavalier, Dustin Brown and Tyler Toffoli also scored as Los Angeles improved to 8-2-1 in its last 11 games. Jonathan Quick made 32 saves in his 41st career shutout, helping the Pacific Division leaders kill off each of Chicago’s six power-play opportunities. The Blackhawks (41-23-6) lost for the fourth time in five games, including three in a row against St. Louis, Dallas and Los Angeles _ three potential playoff opponents. The defending Stanley Cup champions are just 9-10-2 since their franchise-record 12-game win streak. The slide has dropped Chicago into third in the tough Central Division with just 12 games left on its schedule.

Tonight
Detroit Red Wings at Philadelphia Flyers, 7:30 p.m.

NHL – Red Wings recall Mantha
The Red Wings have recalled forward Anthony Mantha from the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League on Monday.  Mantha was the Red Wings first round pick in the 2013 draft, he has 21 goals and 24 assists in 56 games with the first place griffins this season.  The 20-year old Mantha will wear number 39 when he makes is NHL debut tonight at Philadelphia.

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Chicago Bulls 109, Toronto Raptors 107
Washington Wizards 124, Detroit Pistons 81

Bulls 109, Raptors 107 – Bulls win ninth straight against Raptors, 109-107
Reserve Doug McDermott scored 29 points to lead the Chicago Bulls to their ninth straight victory over the Toronto Raptors, 109-107 on Monday night. E’Twaun Moore and Nikola Mirotic added 17 points apiece as Chicago swept Toronto in the series for the second straight season, handing the Raptors just their second loss in their last 16 games at home. Toronto’s last win against Chicago was on Dec. 31, 2013. Jimmy Butler scored 13 points on 5-of-18 shooting after missing three games because of knee soreness. Kyle Lowry had 33 points and 11 rebounds for Toronto, which also got 27 points from DeMar DeRozan. McDermott nearly matched the season-best 30 points he scored against the Raptors in a 116-106 win last month in Chicago. The second-year forward hasn’t scored more than 20 points in any other game this season.

Wizards 124, Pistons 81 – Wall, Nene lead Wizards to 124-81 blowout of Pistons
John Wall had 15 points and 12 assists, and the Washington Wizards routed the Detroit Pistons 124-81 Monday night to snap a five-game skid and gain ground in the playoff race. Nene scored a season-high 20 points off the bench to lead seven Wizards players in double figures during Washington’s biggest win and Detroit’s worst loss of the season. Bradley Beal added 12 points in his return after missing three games with a sprained pelvis, helping the 10th-place Wizards close within 2 ½ games of a playoff spot. Chicago (33-32) leads Detroit (34-33) by a percentage point for the eighth and final Eastern Conference berth. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 18 points for the Pistons, who fell to 0-3 against the Wizards and have allowed 110 or more points in three straight games.

Tonight
Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers, 7:00 p.m.

MLB – Major League Baseball – Spring Training
Yesterday
Detroit Tigers 9, New York Mets 2
San Diego Padres 10, Chicago Cubs 2
Kansas City Royals 9, Chicago White Sox 3

Tigers 9, Mets 2 – J.D. Martinez finds his swing with 3-run HR in Mets’ 9-2 win
J.D. Martinez broke out of a spring training slump with a three-run homer to lead the Detroit Tigers past the New York Mets 9-2 on Monday. Martinez raised his spring average to .217 with his third home run of the spring _ and second in two days. Daniel Norris and Shane Greene both pitched for the Tigers and are fighting for the final spot in the rotation. Norris started and allowed an earned run in two innings. Greene pitched the final four innings and struck out six, allowing no runs. Tigers’ designated hitter Victor Martinez suffered a strained hamstring after a single to right field. Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said he wasn’t concerned. Seth Lugo, filling in for the scheduled Mets starter Jacob deGrom, threw two scoreless innings.

Royals 9, White Sox 2 – Cain, Gordon, Snider homer in Royals’ 9-2 victory
Lorenzo Cain, Alex Gordon and Travis Snider homered as the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 9-3 Monday.  Cain hit his first spring home run in the third off Jacob Turner after Mike Moustakas walked. Gordon homered on a 0-2 pitch from Turner to lead off the first. Gordon is 8 for 12 with three home runs and four RBIs in his past four games. Snider ripped a three-run shot in the Royals’ five-run seventh. Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura struck out six in four innings, allowing one run and three hits. Turner, who was limited to two minor league starts last season because of an elbow injury, allowed three runs and six hits in three innings. Jason Coats homered for the White Sox.

Padres 10, Cubs 2 – Arrieta strong in Cubs’ 10-2 loss to Padres
The Cubs’ Jake Arrieta struck out five batters in four innings of work and left with the game tied 1-1 before the Padres got to Chicago’s bullpen for a 10-2 win Monday. The reigning Cy Young winner had a solid second outing, allowing two hits, one earned run and two walks. San Diego starter Colin Rea also went four innings, giving up one hit, one earned run and three walks. Third baseman Kris Bryant got the Cubs on the board in the first inning with a double off the outfield wall, scoring Ben Zobrist. The Padres answered in the third when Jemile Weeks singled, stole second and scored on Jon Jay’s ground-rule double. They broke it open in the fifth as Jabari Blash and Alexei Ramirez both hit two-run homers off of Pierce Johnson.

Tonight
Atlanta vs. Detroit at Lakeland, Fla., 1:05 p.m.
L.A. Dodgers vs. Chicago White Sox at Glendale, Ariz., 4:05 p.m.
Chicago Cubs vs. San Diego at Peoria, Ariz., 4:10 p.m.

NCAA Basketball – Women’s – UConn top overall seed
The Connecticut women’s basketball team’s run at an unprecedented fourth straight national championship will begin at home. The 32-0 Huskies are top overall seed in the women’s NCAA and potentially won’t have to leave the Nutmeg State until the Final Four, which is in Indianapolis this year starting April 3. The UConn women, who have been a No. 1 seed for 10 straight years, open against 16-seed Robert Morris on Saturday at Storrs. Joining the Huskies as the other No. 1 seeds are South Carolina, Notre Dame and Baylor. Both UConn and Tennessee won three straight women’s titles, but no women’s teams has four consecutive championships. The UCLA men’s team won seven in a row under legendary coach John Wooden. As expected, the top team in the final AP women’s poll is Connecticut. The Huskies, who are 32-0, received all 32 of the first-place votes by the media panel. The rest of the top five consists of Notre Dame, South Carolina, Baylor and Maryland. This marks the third year in a row UConn has finished No. 1 and 13th time overall.

NCAA Basketball – First four tips off tonight
The NCAA men’s basketball tourney tips off Tuesday with the first two of the “First Four” games tonight in Dayton. That’s where Florida Gulf Coast takes on Fairleigh Dickinson and Vanderbilt plays Wichita State in a doubleheader.

NFL – Lions re-sign tight end Tim Wright
The Detroit Lions have re-signed tight end Tim Wright.  The team announced the move Monday. He appeared in nine games for Detroit in 2015, finishing with nine catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns. Wright was acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay last year. He spent the previous season with New England, catching 26 passes for 259 yards and six TDs. Wright entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2013. He caught 54 passes for 571 yards and five touchdowns for Tampa Bay in 2013. The Patriots cut him after the 2014 season, and he was picked up by the Buccaneers again before being sent to Detroit.

NFL – Bears ink 2 tight ends
The Chicago Bears retained a pair of tight ends, agreeing to a two-year contract with Zach Miller and a one-year deal with Rob Housler. Miller re-established himself in Chicago last year after injuries sidelined him for the 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons. He played in 15 games while setting career highs with 34 receptions, 439 yards receiving and a team-leading five touchdown passes. Housler was in the final four games for Chicago last season and had three catches for 27 yards. He has appeared in 65 games with 27 starts over five seasons with Arizona, Cleveland and the Bears.

NFL –  NFL exec admits CTE-head trauma link
Before a congressional committee, NFL executive Jeff Miller has acknowledged a link between football-related head trauma and the brain disease CTE. It’s the first admission by a league official that there is such a relationship. Appearing before a congressional committee, Miller, the NFL’s senior vice president for health and safety, was asked about a connection between hits in football and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. His answer was “certainly yes.”  The NFL has not previously linked playing football to CTE directly.

MHSAA – Boys Regional Semifinals
Last Night
Class B at Battle Creek Harper Creek
South Haven 68, Three Rivers 63

  • The South Haven Rams advanced to the Region championship game, topping their Wolverine Conference opponent, Three Rivers, 68-63 at Harper Creek high school.  The Rams Junior guard Joe Wilkins led the South Haven charge with 21 points, with DaShawn Palmer dropping in 17.  The Wildcats’ senior forward Adam Reed also netted 21 in the losing cause.

Lakeshore 64, Marshall 57

  • Four Lancers scored in double figures as Lakeshore beat Marshall 64-57 at Harper Creek in the Regional semis.  Colin Brushwyler came off the bench and had 16 points to lead the Lancers, with Braden Burke scoring 14. Gibson Archer had 13, while Logan Steffes added 12.   Jacob Brubaker had a game high 19 points to lead Marshall.  Lakeshore will face South Haven Wednesday at 7:00 for the regional championship at Harper Creek.

Class C at Gobles
Kalamazoo Hackett 65, Constantine 50
Homer 55, Brandywine 52

Class D at Portage Northern
Wyoming Tri-Unity 52, Howardsville Christian 38
Countryside Academy 57, Kalamazoo Phoenix 55

Class A at Mason
East Lansing 52, Battle Creek Central 34
Lansing Everett 56, Kalamazoo Central 49

MHSAA – Girls Quarterfinals
Tonight
Class C at Portage Northern
Brandywine vs. Grand Rapids Covenant Christian, 7:00 p.m.

MHSAA – Benton Harbor’s Gondrezick Is Miss Basketball
Benton Harbor Girls’ Basketball standout Kysre Gondrezick has been named Miss Basketball 2016 for the state of Michigan. The honor is awarded by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan in conjunction with the Detroit Free Press.

Earlier this season, Kysre became the all-time leading scorer in Southwest Michigan. She finished her career with 2,827 points which is second most all-time in the state. Just two weeks ago, she broke a state record with a 72 point performance in a double overtime win over Buchanan in their Class B District opener.

Being named Miss Basketball has been a dream of Kysre’s and it’s added to a long list of honors and accomplishments. “I’m definitely humbled by it, more than grateful”, she said, “but I’m glad I’m in such a great community where people around here embrace that.”

Kysre becomes the 35th recipient of the Miss Basketball award. She was the overwhelming choice, earning nearly 2,000 more votes than second place finisher Mardrekia Cook of Muskegon. Reflecting back on the season, Kysre said, “I know I went out with a bang my senior year, and I enjoyed every last minute of it.”

Kysre was a four time Sports Radio 1400 Student Athlete of the Week winner this season. She was also named Gatorade Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year in Michigan. In addition, she’s gained recognition from ESPN, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated. With the Miss Basketball honor and all of the recognition, Kysre said, “My main goal was to just make everyone around me better.”

In the spring, Kysre will be graduating from Benton Harbor High School as the Class of 2016’s Salutatorian with a 4.3 grade point. From there, she will continue her basketball and academic career at the University of Michigan.