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Clippers Blow Out Rockets

Apri 10, 2017

Chris Paul led the way with 19 points, and Blake Griffin had 18 as the Clippers hammered the Rockets 125-96. It was the Clippers 6th straight win and kept them tied with Utah in the race for 4th place in the West.

The Rockets were led by Eric Gordon, who scored 19 points. James Harden had 14 points on just 2-9 shooting.

The Jazz and the Clippers each have one game left. Utah won on Monday night at Golden State, and they’ll host the Spurs on Wednesday night, while the Clippers will face Sacramento at Staples Center.

After an even 1st quarter, the Clippers managed to take a 4 point lead into halftime. Jamal Crawford would score the final 5 points of the 1st half.

By the 3rd quarter, they would break it open, outscoring the Rockets 36-12 in the period. The quarter was highlighted by a 24-3 run, which included a DeAndre Jordan dunk off an alley-oop from Chris Paul, and a steal and a 3-pointer from J.J. Redick. Griffin had 8 points in the quarter.

The 4th quarter was highlighted by Paul Pierce scoring 10 points in the game’s final five minutes. He moved into 15th on the NBA career scoring list with 26,397 points, which fired up all of his teammates on the bench.

If the Clippers win on Wednesday night at home against the Kings, they will earn home court advantage in the 1st round against Utah. They own the tie-breaker with the Jazz, after winning the season series 3-1.

Monday Morning Coffee

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April 10, 2017

It’s funny how the Dodgers don’t look that great against real competition. If only they could play the Padres every week. They still also don’t look great against left handed pitching. Any team facing the Dodgers might as well go get a 12-year-old left hander, and start them against the boys in blue, and they should have no problem shutting them down. Maybe if Andrew Friedman stopped forcing Dave Roberts to move guys in and out of the lineup like he was changing lines on a hockey team, the Dodgers might have more success hitting against pitchers that have no business shutting them down. It’s also no surprise Rich Hill is back on the DL with a blister injury. Hopefully he has already started peeing on it to make it better.

As for the Angels, they are off to a nice 5-2 start after a huge comeback win yesterday afternoon. However, it feels like we’re waiting for the other shoe to drop and the season to fall apart. Ricky Nolasco has put up a decent effort in two starts, but if the Halos are relying on Nolasco to be their most reliable pitcher, they can count on being eliminated from playoff contention before the Clippers. There’s no true ace on the staff. Garrett Richards could be, but his arm could need to be replaced by the time he throws his next pitch. The bullpen has no defined roles, and the division is tougher than facing Mike Tyson in the ring with one hand tied behind your back.

To the NBA, where the Lakers tanking efforts aren’t going well. Then again, what more do you want them to do? The Lakers have shut down Timofey Mozgov, Luol Deng, and Nick Young. They are even sitting D’Angelo Russell and Brandon Ingram when they start to play well. All of this, and they have found a way to win 4 in a row at the worst time. Each win further damaging their chance to hang on to their top 3 protected pick. Now there’s no chance the Lakers will have better than a 46% chance at keeping the pick, because you can bet they will finish with the 3rd best record. If the Lakers come away from this garbage season without a lottery pick, I’m going to want to jump off the Santa Monica pier. It’s especially frustrating knowing how pointless that 10-10 start was.

As for the Clippers, they have the inside track for home court advantage against the Jazz in the 1st round. They are starting to play well, and should have no problem taking care of Utah in 4 or 5 games. However, they also have the inside track on taking a serious beating from the Golden State Warriors in the 2nd round. The Clips have proven by now that they have a major matchup advantage against the Spurs. Unfortunately, they probably won’t get the chance to exploit that matchup in the playoffs. As good as Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are, they may have just come along at the wrong time. I guess we’ll find out in a few weeks.

I was wondering what happened to Lavar Ball since we hadn’t heard from him in a few weeks. Sure enough, he emerged from his silence, and blamed the UCLA loss on having “three slow white guys” on the court. I guess nobody told Lavar that his son is only half black. Of course Lavar decided to blame the media for taking his words out of context. It’s only a matter of time before the man gets a radio show on ESPN Radio 710 AM, as well as his own reality show.

Last week’s NCAA Basketball National Championship game was just a reminder of how awful college basketball has become. Gonzaga and UNC could not throw the ball into the ocean for most of the game. It was competitive, but the UNC victory was sloppier than a Thursday night on sorority row at USC. The one and done has destroyed the quality of college basketball, and the quality of the NBA. I remember when college basketball had great players, and those great players came into the NBA and made an impact right away. Gone are those days, and they probably aren’t coming back anytime soon.

How ironic was this? Tony Romo has intercepted Phil Simms broadcasting career at CBS. Here’s a look at Romo’s inbox after announcing his retirement, and move into broadcasting…..

Good thing Sergio Garcia won the Masters. No pressure or anything, but Donald Trump was going to deport him had he finished in 2nd. Garcia winning the green jacket is like seeing Jay Cutler win a Super Bowl. Let’s be honest though. We’re all just mad that Dustin Johnson didn’t play in the Masters because we didn’t get to see a weekend of Paulina Gretzky on TV. Somewhere at a night club in Vegas, Johnson and Tiger Woods were probably partying with hookers and cocaine.

Let’s go to the ice where the Ducks claimed their 5th straight Pacific Division title yesterday with an overtime win over the Kings, in the regular season finale for both teams. In that time, they don’t have a single Stanley Cup. Are there odds any better this year? I’ll believe it when I see it, but they might as well have a first round bye since they are playing the Calgary Flames. The last time Calgary won in Anaheim, Lance Armstrong was still seen as an American hero. That playoff series is over and it hasn’t even started.

As for the Kings, the story is Bob Miller, their hall of fame play-by-play announcer. Miller is a voice that I will always remember as part of my childhood listening to Kings game. I have always been impressed with his ability to call an exciting game, whether or not the Kings were winning or losing. His professionalism is second to none. Sadly, he is also the last hall of fame LA sports broadcaster to retire between Chick Hearn, Vin Scully, and now him. Congrats on a legendary career Bob, and glad to see that the Kings were able to win two cups for you before you retired. Given the state of the Kings though, it might be a while before we see them win another cup.

Angels With 7-Run Rally In 9th To Beat M’s

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April 9, 2017

The Angels did the unthinkable on Sunday afternoon in Anaheim. The Halos rallied from a 6-run deficit in the bottom of the 9th inning to defeat the Mariners 10-9. The win completed a 3-game sweep over Seattle.

The 9th inning rally was started by Albert Pujols hitting his 592nd career home run, a solo blast which made it 9-4. After an RBI groundout from Danny Espinosa and a 2-run double from Yunel Escobar, the score was 9-7. Pujols would come through again later in the inning, hitting a 2-run single to tie the game at 9-9 with 2 outs and the bases loaded. Cliff Pennington had the game-winning RBI single after that, scoring Mike Trout, which capped the epic comeback.

Andrew Bailey collected the win for the Angels, after he pitched a scoreless 9th. Edwin Diaz took the loss for Seattle, after allowing the final 3 runs of the game.

The Angels couldn’t generate much against M’s starter Hisashi Iwakuma. Iwakuma went 6 innings, giving up just 1 run on two hits. Matt Shoemaker didn’t fare very well in his start for the Angels. Shoemaker went 4 1/3rd innings, yielding 6 earned runs on 5 hits.

“That was unbelievable,” Shoemaker said. “That was absolutely awesome. Those guys picked me up huge. I had a really, really sour day turn out sweet.”

It was the first time since Aug. 28, 1986, that the Angels scored at least seven runs in the ninth inning to win.

“We found some holes, those guys helped us with a couple of walks and we just had good at-bats all the way through,” manager Mike Scioscia said. “There was some incredible clutch hitting at the end.”

The Angels will get Monday off before beginning a 3-game set with the Rangers at the Big A on Tuesday. The first game of the series will feature Tyler Skaggs pitching for the Angels, and Cole Hammels on the Hill for the Rangers.

Dodgers Get A Win In Colorado

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April 9, 2017

The Dodgers avoided being swept on Sunday by defeating the Rockies 10-6 at Coors Field. Corey Seager hit a 2-run homer, Justin Turner added a 2-run double, and the Dodgers finally produced some offense against a left-handed pitcher.

Kenta Maeda pitched five innings, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits, while striking out 5 batters to earn his first win of the season. Logan Forsythe also had a breakout performance for the boys in blue. The Dodger 2nd baseman had 3 hits, scored 2 runs, and had an RBI.

Forsythe was acquired to help the Dodgers overcome their issues against left-handers. Sunday was the first time this season we saw him do just that.

“It was definitely more of a feel thing,” Forsythe said. “Mechanically, it wasn’t anything too different. I just had to try and find that feel again.”

LA blitzed Rockies lefty Tyler Anderson for 5 runs in his 5 innings of work. That snapped the Rockies 3-game win streak.

“It was big to get a win today, salvage the series and get out of here on that note,” Turner said. “For whatever reason, we always seem to have a tough time playing here.”

The Dodger bullpen held the Rockies scoreless until the 9th, when Kenley Jansen gave up two runs. However, it was too little too late for Colorado.

The Dodgers improved to 4-3 on the season, and now head to Chicago to take on the defending World Series Champions, the Cubs. It will be a 3-game series with Alex Wood getting the ball for the Dodgers on Monday. The Cubs will counter with Jon Lester.

Ducks Edge Kings To Win Division

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April 9, 2017

The Ducks outlasted the Kings in overtime 4-3 on Sunday night at the Honda Center. The victory clinched Anaheim’s 5th straight Pacific Division title.

Nate Thompson scored the game-tying with with almost 8:30 left in the 3rd, and Shea Theodore won the game in overtime.

Theodore’s goal came on a breakaway 53 seconds into overtime to give the Ducks the victory. Anaheim has earned a point in 14 consecutive games, which is currently the longest streak in the NHL. The Ducks will open the playoffs against the Calgary Flames.

“We went through a lot of ups and downs this year,” Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf said. “We grew as a group as we went along, and that was a good sign. I thought the second half of the year, we did a lot better job with our composure, with our game, and we built toward this.”

The Kings gave a spirited effort despite playing for nothing but pride, and to honor their hall of fame play-by-play announcer, Bob Miller. Miller was calling the final game of his storied career. He got to call 7 goals on the night. Drew Doughty, Kyle Clifford, and Dustin Brown all scored for the Kings. Patrick Eaves and Antoine Vermette also scored for Anaheim.

Jerome Iginla might have played the final game of his NHL career for the Kings. The 40-year-old said he will discuss his future with his family before making a decision.

“We hung in there,” Kings’ coach Darryl Sutter said. “I’ve said that lots. We didn’t score enough goals this year. We didn’t have enough goal-scorers in our lineup.”

The Kings season is over, and they’ll have to do some soul searching after missing the playoffs for the 2nd time in the last 3 seasons.

The Ducks will open the playoffs on Thursday against Calgary at the Honda Center. One concern for Anaheim will be the loss of defenseman Cam Fowler, who is out 2-6 weeks with a knee injury.

Russell Beats Wolves At Buzzer

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April 9, 2017

D’Angelo Russell hit a game-winning 3-point basket at the buzzer, and the Lakers defeated the Timberwolves 110-109 on Sunday night at Staples Center. It was the 4th straight win for the Lake Show.

Russell revealed that he was playing the game with a very heavy heart, after his grandmother, Pamela Russell, had passed away early Sunday morning. Russell even considered sitting out of Sunday night’s game, but elected to play in honor of his grandmother.

“She was a strong woman,” Russell said. “She did a great job raising my dad. Piggybacking off that my dad did a great job raising his sons and his kids in general. Being a great father. That’s what she was put on this Earth for.”

Russell had 16 points on the night, while Tyler Ennis led the way for the Lakers with 20 points. The T-Wolves got 41 points from Andrew Wiggins, and 40 points from Karl-Anthony Towns. It was the first time in T-Wolves franchise history that two players had reached the 40-point mark in the same game.

The Lakers got off to a nice start, but led by only two points at halftime. They trailed by a basket heading into the 4th quarter. That’s when Metta World Peace entered the game.

He played 11 minutes, scoring 8 points, and kept the Lakers in the game. The Lakers trailed by 4 points with 33.8 seconds left. Randle cut the lead to two points, and the Wolves missed an opportunity put the game away on the ensuing possession.

In the final moments, Russell passed the ball to World Peace, who launched a 3-pointer that missed. However, Randle grabbed the rebound, and found Russell for the game-winning shot, which bounced out before bouncing back into the hoop as time expired.

“That’s just God, honestly,” Russell said. “… For me to win the game with a game-winning shot, that’s just God putting the cherry on top. A win would’ve been good enough.”

The win was a missed opportunity for the Lakers to improve their lottery odds though. The Suns defeated the Mavericks, which means they are still 1.5 games worse than the Lakers, with two games remaining for both teams.

The Lakers will take on the Pelicans on Tuesday night at Staples, before closing out the season on Wednesday at Golden State. The Suns final game will be on Tuesday evening at Sacramento.

Clippers Too Much For Spurs

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April 8, 2017

The Clippers got 19 points from Chris Paul and took down the Spurs 98-87 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio. LA improved to 3-1 on the season vs San Antonio, and inched closer to 4th place in the West.

The Clips had 6 players in double figures, including all 5 starters. Blake Griffin had 18 points and 8 rebounds, and DeAndre Jordan had 17 points to go along with 17 rebounds. They also dominated San Antonio in the paint, outscoring them 48-32 for the game.

Kawhi Leonard had 28 points to lead the Spurs, and LaMarcus Aldridge added 18. San Antonio has already secured the #2 seed and will be playing a first round matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies.

After an even first quarter that saw the Spurs finish the period with a 1 point lead, the Clippers would make their move toward the end of the 1st half. A 13-3 run over the final 4:07 of the half gave the Clippers a 52-43 lead going into the locker room.

The Spurs cut the lead to 82-78 after a jumper by Leonard. However, the Clippers countered with an 8-0 run and pushed the lead to 82-70 heading into the 4th quarter.

Neither team shot well in the 4th quarter. The Spurs wouldn’t get any closer than 92-83 however, and the Clips assured themselves of a 1st round matchup with the Jazz. The only question is who will get home court.

The Clippers will return to action on Monday night against the Rockets. Then they’ll wrap up the regular season on Wednesday vs Sacramento.

Trout Leads Halos Over Mariners

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April 8, 2017

Mike Trout hit a 2-run blast in the 7th inning, and the Angels held on to defeat the Mariners 5-4 at the Big A on Saturday night.

Trout was honored before the game by the Angels, recognizing him for his 2nd AL MVP award in 3 years. Owner Arte Moreno presented Trout with a large commemorative ring. The Angels center fielder was 0-3 in his first three at-bats with 2 strikeouts, before connecting in the 7th inning on what would be the decisive blow to Seattle.

Andrelton Simmons also made an incredible defensive play in the 3rd inning. Jean Segura attempted to advance from first to third base on Mitch Haniger’s grounder. Simmons was covering third, and snagged Jefry Marte’s off-target throw and twisted in midair to apply a behind-the-back tag on Segura. It took video replay, but Segura was ruled out on the play.

J.C. Ramirez recorded the win, and Cam Bedrosian got his 2nd save of the season. He threw 18 pitches in the 8th inning, then struck out the side in the 9th for a five-out save.

“He felt great when he got out of the eighth,” skipper Mike Scoscia said. “He had some gas in his tank. And we’re closer to the day off on Monday.”

The Halos got off to a slow start in this one. Ricky Nolasco surrendered a 2-run homer to Haniger in the 1st. Nolasco pitched 6 innings, yielding those 2 runs on 4 hits, while striking out 3.

RBI singles by Danny Espinosa and Kole Calhoun over the next two innings would tie the game at 2-2. The Halos would then take a 3-2 lead on a solo shot from Yunel Escobar in the 5th inning. The Angels’ shortstop had 3 hits on the night.

Mike Zunino tied things up a 3-3 in the M’s half of the 7th inning with an RBI single. However, Trout came through with his big blast just half an inning later. The Mariners got one back in the 8th on a sacrifice fly from Nelson Cruz, but that’s as close they would come.

Felix Hernandez started for Seattle. King Felix went six innings, giving up 3 runs on 10 hits, and striking out 6. Evan Scribner took the loss for the Mariners, after giving up the home run to Trout.

The Angels will go for the sweep on Sunday afternoon in Anaheim. Matt Shoemaker will be on the hill for Halos, while the M’s will give the ball to Hisashi Iwakuma.

Rockies Get To Kershaw

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April 8, 2017

For the first time in his career, Clayton Kershaw gave up back-to-back home runs as the Rockies defeated the Dodgers 4-2 at Coors Field on Saturday night.

Mark Reynolds and Gerardo Parra hit the back-to-back homers in the 6th inning, extending the Rockies’ lead to 4-1, which the Dodgers would never recover from. Nolan Arenado also homered for Colorado. The three home runs were the most Kershaw had surrendered since 2013.

“I didn’t know that,” Kershaw said. “That was cool, for a little bit, I guess. You never expect to give up home runs.”

Kershaw gave up 8 home runs in 21 starts last year. In his first two starts, he’s already surrendered 4.

The Dodgers meager offensive output continued to be a problem as well on Saturday. Their only offense consisted of a solo home run from Andrew Toles in the 5th inning that tied the game 1-1, and an RBI single from Adrian Gonzales in the 8th inning. After some explosive offensive outputs against the Padres, the Dodgers have just three runs in their last two games.

“It’s not from lack of effort,” skipper Dave Roberts said. “We’re going to hit. We’re going to score runs. I don’t think we’re too concerned over these first two games.”

LA couldn’t get the bats going against Jon Gray, who gave up just 1 run on 4 hits in a little over 5 innings of work. Mike Dunn recorded two outs in the 6th inning to earn the win, and Greg Holland pitched a perfect 9th inning to earn his 4th save of the season.

The Dodgers will try to avoid getting swept on Sunday afternoon at Coors Field. Kenta Maeda will be on the hill for LA, and the Rockies will go with Tyler Anderson.

Kings Win In Bob Miller Home Finale

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April 8, 2017

The Kings defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 in overtime on Saturday afternoon at Staples. The win was a nice way to say goodbye to Kings Hall of Fame play-by-play announcer Bob Miller, who was calling the final home game of his career.

Drew Doughty scored the game-winning goal 27 seconds into overtime, after redirecting a pass from Jeff Carter past Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford. The goal finished off an exciting 3rd period, which saw the Kings rally twice from one-goal deficits. Dustin Brown and Tyler Toffoli also scored for the Kings. Chicago’s goals came from Jonathan Toews and and Artemi Panarin.

The Blackhawks had a 1-0 lead after Toews wristed a shot that deflected off of Jonathan Quick’s shoulder at the 6:25 mark of the 1st. That lead would stand until the 3rd.

Toffoli blasted a one-timer by Corey Crawford on the power play at 4:52 of the 3rd period. That tied the game, but the Hawks would strike back 9 minutes later, when Panarin scored his 31st of the season. Panarin took a cross-ice pass from Patrick Kane, which Quick had no chance to stop. However, Brown tied it up again with 55 seconds left in the game, after sneaking backdoor and putting a backhander by Crawford.

That set the stage for Doughty’s heroics in overtime. Quick made 25 saves as well for the Kings, who will miss the playoffs for the 2nd time in the last 3 seasons.

Miller has spent 44 years as the voice of the Kings. Saturday afternoon’s game featured a number of tributes to him, which including the likes of Wayne Gretzky, Barry Melrose, Vin Scully, and many others.

Miller will call the final game of his career on Sunday night in Anaheim, against the Ducks.