Weekday Morning Sports – Wednesday 1/28/15

sportsreport

Sports Radio 1400 WSJM     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Wednesday, January 28, 2015

NCAA Basketball – Men’s
Last Night
Michigan 58, Nebraska 44
Buffalo 77, Western Michigan 71
Kent State 63, Central Michigan 53
Eastern Michigan 76, Ohio 40
Michigan State at Rutgers, PPD – Blizzard (game will be played Thursday, 6:00 p.m.)

Michigan 56, Nebraska 44 – Michigan beats Nebraska 58-44
Zak Irvin had 14 points and 12 rebounds and Michigan rode a strong second-half start to a 58-44 victory over Nebraska on Tuesday. The Wolverines (13-8, 6-3 Big Ten) led 23-18 at intermission and blew the game open after starting the second on a 13-2 run. Irvin closed the spurt with a 3-pointer and the Cornhuskers never got closer than eight points the rest of the night. Aubrey Dawkins scored 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting and Max Bielfelt added 12 points and nine boards for Michigan. The Wolverines shot 49 percent and were perfect (8 of 8) from the line. Shavon Shields had 14 points to lead Nebraska (12-8, 4-4), which fell to 0-5 against the Wolverines since joining the conference before the 2011-12 season. The Huskers were outrebounded 34-26.

Buffalo 77, WMU 71 – Buffalo beats Western Michigan 77-71
Justin Moss scored 23 points with 10 rebounds and Buffalo pulled away in the second half to beat Western Michigan 77-71 on Tuesday. Western Michigan (13-7, 4-3 Mid-American) led by two at the half as David Brown and Thomas Wilder combined for 24 of the Broncos’ 35 points.

Kent State 63, CMU 53 – Kent St. beats Central Michigan 65-53, win 6th straight
Devereaux Manley and Kris Brewer scored 16 apiece to help Kent State beat Central Michigan 63-53 last night to extend its win streak to six games. Chris Fowler led Central Michigan, which came into the game averaging 83.9 points per game, with 15 points.

EMU 76, Ohio 40 – Eastern Michigan clamps down on Ohio 76-40
Raven Lee scored 19 points and Mike Talley added 16 with seven assists as Eastern Michigan beat Ohio 76-40 last night. The Eagles held Ohio to a single basket for nearly four minutes while building a 31-16 lead by halftime. Ohio shot 16 percent in the opening half.

Tonight
(4) Duke at (8) Notre Dame, 7:30 p.m.

NCAA Basketball – Men’s – Krzyzewski concerned whether Duke will be ready for Irish
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski is concerned whether his fourth-ranked Blue Devils will be ready to face No. 8 Notre Dame after all the buildup to his historic 1,000th victory. Krzyzewski says he’s trying to figure out how to make sure Duke (17-2, 4-2 ACC) is ready for tonight’s game. The Irish (19-2, 7-1) are off to their best start since opening 24-1 in Digger Phelps’ third season as coach in 1973-74. The game will mark the first time in nearly 12 years that two top 10 teams have played at Purcell Pavilion. Notre Dame coach Mike Brey predicts Irish fans “are going to be through the roof.”

NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Detroit Red Wings 5, Florida Panthers 4

Red Wings 5, Panthers 4 – Red Wings take over division lead with win over Florida
Luke Glendening scored twice and the Detroit Red Wings held off the Florida Panthers for a 5-4 win on Tuesday, putting the Red Wings one point ahead of Tampa Bay for first place in the Atlantic Division. Stephen Weiss posted a goal and two assists, Drew Miller scored a short-handed goal, Henrik Zetterberg also lit the lamp and Petr Mrazek made 37 saves in the Red Wings’ sixth straight win. Aleksander Barkov finished with a goal and two assists, Nick Bjugstad supplied a goal and a helper and Brad Boyes and Brandon Pirri also scored for the Panthers, who dropped their fifth game. Al Montoya made 10 saves in relief of Roberto Luongo, who gave up five goals on 17 shots.

Tonight
Chicago Blackhawks at Los Angeles Kings, 10:30 p.m.

NHL – Goalie great Brodeur to retire
Martin Brodeur has made his final NHL save. The NHL’s all-time leader in wins and shutouts by a goaltender will formally announce his retirement at a news conference Thursday and discuss his new front office position with the St. Louis Blues. Brodeur wrapped up a 22-year career with St. Louis after signing as a free agent on Dec. 2.  He spent his first 21 seasons with the New Jersey Devils, winning three Stanley Cups and four Vezina trophies.

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Cleveland Cavaliers 103, Detroit Pistons 95
Chicago Bulls 113, Golden State Warriors 111 – OT

Cavaliers 103, Pistons 95 – Irving, James lead Cavs to 7th straight, 103-95 over Pistons
Kyrie Irving matched his season high with 38 points and LeBron James added 32 to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to their seventh straight victory Tuesday night, 103-95 over the Detroit Pistons. The Cavs avenged a 23-point home loss to Detroit late last month. That game was part of a seven-game winning streak for the Pistons, but now Detroit is struggling to overcome the loss of Brandon Jennings, who ruptured his left Achilles tendon last weekend and will miss the rest of the season. James fell to the floor near the basket during the final seconds of the third quarter and got up grimacing, apparently concerned about at least one of his wrists. He went to the bench, but only briefly. His two-handed breakaway dunk early in the fourth put Cleveland up 80-68.

Bulls 113, Warriors 111 – OT – Rose’s shot lifts Bulls over Warriors 113-111 in overtime
Derrick Rose hit a step-back jumper with 7 seconds remaining in overtime, and the Chicago Bulls ended Golden State’s franchise-record 19-game home winning streak with a thrilling 113-111 victory over the Warriors on Tuesday night. Rose dribbled to his left and created space to get the shot off over Klay Thompson, skipping around the court after the Warriors called timeout. Rose finished with 30 points, and his final basket overshadowed a night when he committed a career-high 11 turnovers and made just 13 of 33 shots. Thompson misfired on a running bank shot as time expired to finish off Golden State’s first loss at rowdy Oracle Arena in more than two months. The Warriors forced overtime on Draymond Green’s tying tip-in with 1.4 seconds left.

Tonight
Detroit Pistons at Philadelphia 76ers, 7:00 p.m.

NBA – Pistons’ Brandon Jennings has successful Achilles surgery
The Detroit Pistons say guard Brandon Jennings has undergone successful surgery to repair a ruptured left Achilles tendon, an injury that ended his season. The team said Tuesday it has “no timetable” for his return following the procedure at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.  Jennings was injured in the third quarter of Saturday night’s 101-86 loss at Milwaukee. He averaged 15.4 points and 6.6 assists in 41 games this season. Jennings tweeted Sunday that he would be back in “6/9 months” saying that “not being able to play basketball is the worst thing.”

NCAA Basketball –Women’s
Tonight
Indiana at Michigan State, 7:00 p.m.
Kent State at Central Michigan, 7:00 p.m.
Eastern Michigan at Western Michigan, 7:00 p.m.

NCAA Basketball – Women’s – Eastern Michigan teams plan tributes to basketball player
The athletic department at Eastern Michigan University has planned tributes for a women’s basketball player killed in a car crash over the weekend. Twenty-one-year-old junior forward Shannise Heady was killed Sunday morning in Ypsilanti Township when she lost control of her vehicle and hit an oncoming vehicle. Her passenger and fellow Eastern Michigan student, 23-year-old Jordan Hopkins, also was killed. Investigators say Heady was speeding and neither woman was wearing a seatbelt.  The Ann Arbor News reports both the men’s and women’s basketball teams plan to honor Heady by having No. 32 embroidered on their jerseys. The athletic department also will request a moment of silence before the teams’ basketball games this week.

Super Bowl XLIX – Media madness
Super Bowl media day offered little in the way of substance as the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots fielded questions in Phoenix.  Patriots coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady didn’t comment much on all the controversy surrounding the team and deflated footballs, saying the topic will not be part of the teams mindset. Both coach and player stressed the team is focused on one thing, the NFC champion Seahawks. Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch took part in the festivities for five minutes. He set a timer on his phone, caught a bag of Skittles tossed from the crowd and stopped to pick up a reporter’s recorder off the floor before he walked away.

NFL – Bears move Hurtt from assistant defensive line to OLBs coach
The Chicago Bears say Clint Hurtt is moving from assistant defensive line coach to outside linebackers coach. Hurtt just finished his first season on Chicago’s staff after spending 13 years coaching on the college level. The Bears’ Willie Young led the team with a career-high 10 sacks after totaling just six over his previous four seasons with Detroit. Chicago also announced Tuesday that offensive quality control coaches Brendan Nugent and Carson Walch will not return and that receiver John Chiles was signed to a reserve/future contract.

NASCAR – Stewart back with swagger
Walking without a limp for the first time in 18 months, Tony Stewart declared himself pain-free and never more eager to start a season. After a tumultuous two seasons that affected him both physically and mentally, the three-time NASCAR champion said his troubles are behind him and he finally feels like the old Smoke again. His chance to prove it begins next month at Daytona International Speedway. That’s where Stewart will climb back into his No. 14 Chevrolet for the first time since November, when his 15-year winning streak in the Sprint Cup Series came to an end. He failed to win a race last year for the first time since his 1999 rookie season.

Tennis – Australian Open – Keys beats Williams
Venus Williams is done at the Australian Open following a quarterfinal loss to an American teenager. Madison Keys shook off a sore leg to pull out a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 triumph over Williams. Keys was behind 3-1 in the final set before breaking Williams’ serve three times in a row to close out the match. The 19-year-old Keys will play either Serena Williams or 2014 finalist Dominika Cibulkova in the semifinal. Second seed Maria Sharapova will take on No. 10 Ekatarina Makarova in the other semifinal.

Golf – PGA – Woods is ready to play
Tiger Woods is in Scottsdale, Arizona, for this weekend’s Phoenix Open, his first event of the year. While meeting reporters he talked about how he lost a front tooth recently when in Italy to celebrate girlfriend Lindsey Vonn’s breaking of a World Cup Alpine skiing record. He described how a videographer stood up in front of him and hit him in the mouth, chipping one tooth and knocking out another. A mask he was wearing was covered in blood. He has since had the teeth replaced.

Golf – PGA – Allenby insists he was beaten and robbed
Robert Allenby is sticking to his story that he was robbed and beaten in Honolulu, basing the account on what he remembered and what he was told by a homeless woman who came to his aid.  Allenby says he was at Amuse Wine Bar with his caddie and a friend from Australia on the night he missed the cut at the Sony Open. He said surveillance tape shows him leaving the bar with three people he doesn’t recognize, and that his next memory is being in a park.

NBADL – NBA D-League
Tonight
Oklahoma City Blue at Grand Rapids Drive, 7:00 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports – Boys Basketball
Last Night
SMAC
Battle Creek Central 50, St. Joseph 47
Battle Creek Central held on for a 50-47 win over St. Joseph.  St. Joe cut the Central lead to 48-47 with 9 seconds left, but two free throws and a missed three pointer by St. Joe at the horn gave the home team the win.  St. Joe’s Mac Shimulunas led all scorers with 16 points , who fall to 5-5 on the season.  Jordan Brewer added 10 for the Bears.

Lakeshore 49, Battle Creek Lakeview 31
Lakeshore picked up their 10th win of the season (10-1) with a 49-31 win at Battle Creek Lakeview.  Braden Burke led the Lancers with 14 points and 7 rebounds while Jimmy Gathright scored 12 in the win.

Benton Harbor 70, Mattawan 47
A 25-7 third quarter helped lead Benton Harbor to a 70-47 win over Mattawan.  Three Tigers scored in double figures with Jaton Gunn scoring 19 to pace Benton Harbor.  Malik Hall added 13 and Curtis Dawson chipped in 11 for the Tigers who improve to 9-3 on the season.  Darek Ditto had 14 for Mattawan who fall to 3-7.

Kalamazoo Central 83, Niles 42
Portage Central 67, Gull Lake 63
Portage Northern 61, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 49

Wolverine
Edwardsburg 82, Three Rivers 62

SAC
Marcellus 57, Watervliet 48
Hartford 63, Decatur 54
Lawrence 71, Lawton 26
Gobles 57, Bloomingdale 49
Bangor 48, Saugatuck 43
Fennville 67, Martin 33

BCS
New Buffalo 75, Buchanan 66
Marquez Artz had 26 points as New Buffalo beat Buchanan 75-66

Red Arrow
Eau Claire 57, Lake Michigan Catholic 54
Eau Claire had to withstand a 4th quarter rally by Lake Michigan Catholic at held on for a 57-54 win.  Kyrek Alexander had 15 points to lead Eau Claire and Nikoda Keefer had 14.  Noah Konler tied for game high honors with 15 for LMC.

Michigan Lutheran 41, River Valley 37
Zach Burkhardt had 13 points and Sam Sievert scored 12 as Michigan Lutheran beat River Valley 41-37 in Red Arrow Conference play.  Gabe Zeiger led all scorers with 19 for River Valley.

Howardsville Christian 53, Watervliet Grace Christian 22

Non Conference
Vicksburg 67, Parchment 52

MHSAA – High School Sports – Girls Basketball
Last Night
SMAC
St. Joseph 55, Battle Creek Central 39
Freshman Katie Algyre had 14 points and Robyn Priebe had 12 points as St. Joe beat Battle Creek Central 55-39.  Ka-Leah Ryan had a game high 23 points for BC Central.  St. Joe improves to 8-3 on the season.

Lakeshore 53, Battle Creek Lakeview 39
Lakeshore’s Morgan Kaiser scored 15 points, Lindsay Ebeling scored 12 as Lakeshore beat Battle Creek Lakeivew 53-39.  Taylor Wagner added a double double for the 10-2 Lancers with 11 points and 17 rebounds.

Benton Harbor 65, Mattawan 32
Kalabrya Gondrezick had a triple double with 17 points, 12 assists, and 11 rebounds in Benton Harbor’s 65-32 win over Mattawan.  The Tigers outscored Mattawan 24-0 in the third quarter.

Niles 67, Kalamazoo Central 62 – 2 OT
Gull Lake 61, Portage Central 28
Portage Northern 70, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 43

Wolverine
Edwardsburg 52, Three Rivers 32

SAC
Watervliet 28, Marcellus 14
Gobles 69, Bloomingdale 13
Saugatuck 36, Bangor 23
Fennville 38, Martin 33

BCS
Buchanan 62, New Buffalo 30
White Pigeon 51, Cassopolis 48

Non Conference
Vicksburg 28, Parchment 24

Tonight
Michigan Lutheran at Eau Claire, 7:30 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports – Wrestling
Tonight
SMAC Quad at St. Joseph, 5:00 p.m.
St. Joseph, Benton Harbor, Portage Central, Portage Northern

SMAC Quad at Lakeshore, 5:00 p.m.
Lakeshore, Niles, Battle Creek Central, Battle Creek Lakeview

Wolverine Quad at Allegan, 6:00 p.m.
Coloma, South Haven, Allegan, Otsego

Wolverine Quad at Paw Paw, 6:00 p.m.
Dowagiac, Edwardsburg, Berrien Springs, Paw Paw

MHSAA – High School Sports – Competitive Cheerleading
Tonight
Rock The House Invitational at Berrien Springs, 6:00 p.m.
Lakeshore, Lake Michigan Catholic, Berrien Springs, Buchanan, Berrien Springs, Coloma, Dowagiac, Eau Claire, Edwardsburg, Gobles, Hartford, Niles, Marcellus, Three Rivers.