Category: Sports

Nicholls State uses long ball to upset Pitt 75-70

Nicholls State uses long ball to upset Pitt 75-70
By ALAN SAUNDERS Associated Press
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The first time Nicholls State had a chance to upset a high-major opponent this season, the Colonels fell behind Illinois before coming back to force overtime.
After losing that game in the extra period, the Colonels knew what they needed to do to get a win on Saturday in a tough road environment at Pittsburgh.
“Hit them in the mouth first.”
That’s the message redshirt senior guard D’Angelo Hunter professed as the Colonels faced Pitt, and then he led the charge doing just that.
Hunter scored a team-high 17 points as this time it was Nicholls that raced out to a 10-point first-half lead and then held on late to upset the Panthers 75-70.
“We’ve been stressing these last few days to come out and try to jump on them,” Colonels head coach Austin Claunch said. “The way we play, we can do that.”
Pitt mounted a second-half comeback bid, but a turnover on a traveling violation by sophomore Pitt guard Au’Diese Toney with the Panthers trailing by three and 25 seconds left on the clock ended any chance of that.
The turnovers were a theme, as Nicholls jumped out to a big lead with a defense that created 21 turnovers that turned into 26 points. The Colonels supplanted that with a red-hot afternoon from 3-point range.
“They came out with great energy, great togetherness early and really just took it to us, right from the start of the game,” Pitt head coach Jeff Capel said. “They had so many guys step up and make big plays, make big shots.”
Hunter, a West Virginia transfer playing in his second game at Nicholls, shot 7 of 15 from the floor and 3 of 6 from 3-point range as the Colonels dominated from beyond the 3-point arc. Kevin Johnson hit 4 of 8 from long range and Jeremiah Buford came off the bench to make 2 of 4. As a team, Nicholls shot 11 of 24 from 3-point range.
“I’ve been preparing for a while,” Hunter said. “I just finally got the opportunity. . I’m just excited to be here.”
Junior college transfer Ryan Murphy was a dominant force for the Panthers. He came off the bench just over three minutes into the game and never came out. He scored a game-high 28 points on 10 of 17 from the floor and made all four of Pitt’s 3-pointers, going 4 of 7 from long range while the rest of the Panthers were 0 for 9.
BIG PICTURE
Nicholls State might have a hard time finding high-major sparring partners if they keep this up. The Colonels took Illinois to overtime before falling 78-70 in their season opener on Tuesday before upsetting Pitt. They’ll have two more chances at big-time upsets when they visit LSU on next Saturday and West Virginia on Dec. 14.
Pitt fell victim to a classic trap game, with their afternoon battle with the Colonels coming on the heels of Wednesday night’s season-opening win against ACC foe Florida State. The Panthers proved in that one they can play with anyone, but slow starts shooting have been a common thread. Pitt started 2 of 15 from the floor against the Seminoles and 3 for 15 to begin the game against Nicholls.
UP NEXT
Nicholls State will return to Louisiana for its home opener against Paul Quinn College, an NAIA school from Dallas, on Wednesday night.
Pitt will travel across Allegheny County to play Robert Morris in Moon Township, Pa. on Tuesday to open the Colonials’ new UPMC Events Center.
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For more AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Goodwin leads Notre Dame past Robert Morris 92-57

Goodwin leads Notre Dame past Robert Morris 92-57
By ANTHONY ANDERSON Associated Press
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Mike Brey liked what he saw at both ends of the court, and particularly in light of how young this college basketball season is.
“This is what, 20 home openers?” Brey said of his time as Notre Dame coach following Saturday’s 92-57 blowout victory over Robert Morris.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever been more pleased about one, given what I needed to see after last year,” the coach said. “I saw some stuff today that I was going, man, that’s really good to see in November.”
Last season, the Fighting Irish (1-1) went 14-19, their worst record under Brey. On Saturday, according to the coach, they were a team that was fast, yet controlled, on offense, a team that guarded effectively and a team that performed fearlessly.
Dane Goodwin led a balanced attack with 18 points off the bench as Notre Dame improved to 20-0 in home openers under Brey.
T.J. Gibbs added 15 points, Prentiss Hubb 13, Robby Carmody 13 and John Mooney a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Already leading 39-20 at the break, the ball-sharing Irish effectively put the game away with a 16-2 spree over the first four minutes of the second half for a 55-23 advantage. All five ND starters scored during that spurt.
Josh Williams netted 18 of his game-high 21 points for the Colonials (0-2) in the second half, finishing 6-of-16 on 3-pointers, but little else went right for the visitors.
“I thought our effort was horrendous,” RMU coach Andrew Toole said. “Obviously, their guys really know how to play. They take advantage of any crack in your armor. They’ll expose your weaknesses if you’re not engaged or urgent, and they did it to us all day long.”
The Irish shot 57% from the field while holding the Colonials to 34%. Notre Dame also made 22 of 25 free throws to the visitors’ 2 of 4.
“I think we sent a big message today,” senior Rex Pflueger said of ND’s bounce back from Tuesday’s season-opening 76-65 loss at No. 9 North Carolina. “It was a tough game down there. We had a real shot to win, but the maturity to come to practice the next day and get after it, get after each other, and to come into today and play the way we did, I think it sends a good message.”
BIG PICTURE
Robert Morris: The Colonials, who appeared to offer little in the way of defensive resistance, will need to get accustomed to trying to solve opposing offenses on the road. Nine of their first 11 games are away from home.
Notre Dame: Returning nearly their entire team from a season ago, the Irish have a chance to continue building momentum before they get into the thick of their Atlantic Coast Conference schedule. Just two of their first 15 games are against currently ranked clubs and one of those already took place with the loss at Carolina.
BENCH POTENCY
Goodwin’s 18 in just 18 minutes were part of 42 points that the Irish bench contributed. Carmody’s 13 points also came in a reserve role.
“We didn’t have any drop-off,” said Brey, who indicated that he’ll likely remain comfortable with a rotation of nine players.
Goodwin finished 6 of 8 from the field and 5 of 5 at the line, while Carmody was 4 of 6 and 5 of 6. Nate Laszewski chipped in nine points and eight rebounds over 15 minutes off the bench.
All three are sophomores.
HUBB HEATING
Hubb’s 5-of-8 shooting included 3 of 6 outside the arc, and it followed the sophomore guard’s career-high 22 points at Carolina.
Hubb is 13 of 25 from the field overall and 8 of 15 on 3-pointers over two games after struggling mightily during his freshman season at just 35% overall and 26% on triples.
“He’s a big-time threat,” Brey said. “He’s really quarterbacking us now, running stuff, and now our (other) passers find him. I love that he’s stepping up and taking it. He was streaky last year, but throughout his life, he’s been able to make open shots, so I just want him confidently pulling up.”
UP NEXT
Robert Morris: The Colonials host neighboring nemesis Pittsburgh on Tuesday in their only home contest among their first seven games. RMU has never beaten the Panthers over 30 meetings, the last coming in November 2011.
Notre Dame: The Irish play the second of six straight home games when Howard visits Tuesday. Notre Dame has never faced the Bison.
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For more AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

No. 13 Minnesota stays unbeaten vs No. 5 Penn State, 31-26

No. 13 Minnesota stays unbeaten vs No. 5 Penn State, 31-26
By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The progress made by Minnesota in coach P.J. Fleck’s third season had been met by natural skepticism outside the long-languishing program, with even the most ardent fans in full prove-it mode for this game of unbeaten teams against Penn State.
From start to finish, the Gophers matched the moment. They took down the Nittany Lions with a narrative-altering performance.
Jordan Howden picked off Sean Clifford’s pass in the end zone with 1:01 left, the third interception thrown by Penn State’s quarterback, and 13th-ranked Minnesota held on for a 31-26 victory on Saturday afternoon for its first win over a top-five team in 20 years.
“I’m just so proud to be a Gopher, and I speak for our whole team when I say that,” said Fleck, who declared the game ball he handed afterward to the school president for the entire state.
Tanner Morgan passed for 339 yards and three touchdowns in a dismantling of fifth-ranked Penn State’s staunch defense, as Minnesota (9-0, 6-0, No. 17 CFP) stayed on track for its first trip to the Big Ten championship game. For a program has not won the conference since a shared title in 1967, this is a whole new world.
“As an athlete and just in life,” Morgan said, “you should want pressure because that means your life is significant.”
The first sellout crowd for the Gophers at home in four years swarmed the field after the clock ran out, reveling in the first win at home over a top-five team since a shutout of No. 1 Michigan in 1977. The Gophers scrambled the College Football Playoff picture a bit, too, after Penn State (8-1, 5-1, No. 4 CFP) emerged with a top-four spot in the first edition of the rankings.
“We knew they were a good football team,” Nittany Lions coach James Franklin said. “It’s hard to be undefeated.”
Rashod Bateman got the Gophers going with a 66-yard score on their first possession that covered 95 yards. He finished with seven catches for 203 yards, the second-most in program history. Tyler Johnson had seven receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown, too, as Morgan found opening after opening in the Penn State zone to produce enough early gains the Gophers could bank for the inevitable late rally by the Nittany Lions. Morgan went 18 for 20, his second game of the season with a 90% or better completion rate.
“He was reading us very well. He kind of knew what we were in and what they could to do expose us there,” linebacker Jan Johnson said. “They hit their plays. He made their throws.”
Journey Brown’s second rushing touchdown of the game with 3:49 to go cut the lead to five points, and the Gophers promptly went three and out. K.J. Hamler muffed the punt when a teammate backed into him, and though the Nittany Lions recovered, they were pushed back to their 28-yard line.
Clifford, who went 23 for 43 for 340 yards and one score, connected with Jahan Dotson for 49 yards to get Penn State to the 11. Two plays later, however, came the drive killer. Daniel George was called for offensive pass interference during an over-the-middle catch by Brown that reached the 2. Clifford, who was off target for most of the day, overthrew George on the next play before the game-sealing pick by Howden. Clifford, who came into the game leading the Big Ten in total offense, had only three interceptions over the first eight games.
“Everyone’s obviously upset. We didn’t want to lose that game,” left guard Steven Gonzalez said. “They played well. We played our hearts out.”
Antoine Winfield Jr. had the first two picks in the first half, matching the FBS lead and setting the all-time Minnesota record with seven on the season. Both were inside the 10-yard line.
“It shows the culture. It shows the character. It shows their charisma. It shows their ability to overcome, and it shows what they’ve learned,” Fleck said.
THE TAKEAWAY
Penn State: Seeking their first berth in the College Football Playoff, the Nittany Lions watched a defense that had allowed the second-fewest points in the FBS entering the game take a step back against a group of Gophers receivers that Franklin warned would be the best they’d faced all year. Their championship chase can get back on track with a win at Ohio State in two weeks.
Minnesota: Ending a 13-game losing streak to ranked opponents and beating a top-five team for the first time since a win at No. 2 Penn State in 1999, the Gophers produced a potentially program-changing victory that has been missing for so many decades. They have a two-game lead in the West Division with three to go, with their first Rose Bowl bid since 1961 well within reach.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Penn State could fall behind Minnesota, which will certainly climb into the top 10 on Sunday and notch its highest ranking since 1962. The loss will also hurt the Nittany Lions in the CFP pecking order, with the Gophers getting a boost but still with a long way to go to be in the mix.
UP NEXT
Penn State: Hosts Indiana next Saturday. The Nittany Lions have a 21-1 record against the Hoosiers, with the only loss on the road 2013.
Minnesota: Plays at Iowa next Saturday. The Gophers have lost four straight games against the Hawkeyes.
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More AP college football coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Penguins rally, edge Blackhawks 3-2 in shootout

Penguins rally, edge Blackhawks 3-2 in shootout
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Penguins keep losing high-profile players and keep winning games. It’s not ideal, but they’ll take it — for now at least.
Jake Guentzel and Jared McCann scored in a shootout and the Penguins ended a 10-game losing streak against the Chicago Blackhawks by rallying for a 3-2 victory Saturday night despite captain Sidney Crosby leaving in the third period with a lower-body injury.
The Penguins were already playing without Kris Letang and Patric Hornqvist when Crosby gingerly made his way off the ice early in the third and did not return. Pittsburgh still improved to 4-1-1 in its last six despite spotting Chicago a two-goal lead.
Guentzel’s eighth of the season late in the second period gave the Penguins life and Bryan Rust’s fifth in six games since his return from injured reserve tied it midway through the third period. Guentzel and McCann both beat Corey Crawford in the shootout, and when Matt Murray turned away Alex DeBrincat, the Penguins had their first victory over Chicago since March 30, 2014.
“Shows a lot of character in this room, but we’re not making it easy on ourselves,” Rust said. “We do seem to have a pretty good leadership group in here and we do kind of know when to push a little bit harder.”
Patrick Kane collected his sixth goal of the season for Chicago and used some nifty stickhandling to slip the puck by Murray in the shootout. Dominik Kubalik added his fourth for Chicago. Crawford made 29 saves but couldn’t stop Guentzel’s flip between the goaltender’s legs or McCann’s wrist shot in the shootout.
“Would’ve been nice to come away with that game, but they’re a good team,” Kane said. “They’ve been playing well all year. They had a big comeback against the Islanders the other night. Obviously, nice to get a point. Hopefully keep building on what we have going on here, but it would’ve been nice to have two.”
Two days after storming back from three goals down in the third period to stun the Islanders in overtime, the Penguins followed a similar script to top the Blackhawks for the first time in more than five years.
Chicago squandered a chance to take the lead early in the second period when it failed to convert on an extended 5-on-3 power play. Kane had an excellent opportunity for the right circle but his one-timer missed everything, sailing over the goal, over the boards and into the netting.
Crawford turned aside Pittsburgh’s surge after the teams returned to full strength, and Kubalik gave the Blackhawks the lead 7:09 into the second when Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin whiffed while trying to keep the puck in the offensive zone. The mistake led to a three-on-one the other way, with Kubalik taking a feed from Brandon Saad and slamming it past Murray for his fourth of the season.
Kane doubled Chicago’s advantage just 98 seconds later, pouncing on the puck after teammate Calvin De Haan blocked a shot then racing the other way before beating Murray with a wrist shot at 9:47 to extend his scoring streak to a season-high five games.
Just as they did against the Islanders, Pittsburgh scrambled back. Guentzel drew the Penguins within 2-1 with 3:56 left in the second, though Malkin did much of the dirty work, swiping the puck near center ice, zipping down the left side and beating Slater Koekkoek to the post. Malkin then slipped a pass between Koekkoek and Crawford to a wide-open Guentzel racing down the slot. Guentzel easily put the puck into the open net for his eighth of the season.
Rust tied it when he finished off an extended Penguins’ push by camping below the left dot and delivering when a pass from John Marino found his stick.
“The biggest thing for me that Rusty has shown since Day 1 of training camp is a sense of urgency,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “When he plays that way, he’s at his best. I think he’s done that consistently day in and day out.”
NOTES: Penguins C Evgeni Malkin had two assists for the Penguins. … Letang is dealing with a lower-body injury Sullivan described as “week to week.” … The Penguins scratched Letang, D Chad Ruhwedel and C Sam Lafferty. … Chicago scratched D Adam Boqvist and C Kirby Dach. … Chicago D Olli Maatta, who won a pair of Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017, played 18:09. … The Blackhawks went 0 for 2 on the power play. … The Penguins were 0 for 3 with the man advantage and haven’t scored on the power play in 11 straight games. … Pittsburgh’s has killed off 14 consecutive penalties and 20 of their last 21 overall. … Pittsburgh improved to 7-2-1 against the Western Conference.
UP NEXT
Blackhawks: Host Toronto on Sunday.
Penguins: Visit Metropolitan Division rivals the New York Rangers for the first time this season on Tuesday.
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More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

“Worst Day Of The Year”: Joe Greco Assesses New Brighton’s 2019 Season After Loss To Avonworth

Losing is never easy to deal with. Joe Greco is no exception.

The New Brighton head coach spoke about his team’s fall to Avonworth in the 2A Quarterfinals at Ambridge, feeling that the gameplan that the Lions came up with wasn’t executed as hoped. He praised his seniors for their leadership and said that next year’s squad has a strong core.

To listen to the full interview, click on the player below.

“Thru the Eyes of Sly Washington” New Brighton vs. Avonworth WPIAL Quarter Finals Friday November 8, 2019

(Ambridge, Pa.) In this weeks edition of “Thru the Eyes of Sly Washington” we travel to Moe Rubenstein Stadium in Ambridge and WPIAL Class 2A Quarter Final matchup between the New Brighton Lions and the  Avonworth Antolopes. The game was a rematch of a non-conference game that the two teams played earlier this year at Oak Hill Field in New Brighton that the Antolopes won 21-13.

Avonworth proved to be too much of a challenge for the Lions. The Lopes got the scoring started on the first drive witha 23 yard TD catch by Theo Newhouse. On Avonworth’s next drive, they managed to get into the endzone again after a 54 yard run by Jax Miller. The 2nd quarter was quiet from a scoring perspective. Avonworth failed to get into the endzone twice on 4th and goal. Also, after the Antelopes muffed a punt, New Brighton managed to get to the 5 yard line before their drive stalled as well. The score at the half was 14-0 Avonworth.

New Brighton managed to make the game interesting with 9 seconds left in the 3rd. CCBC player of the game Nya Green caught a 5 yard TD pass to bring the Lions within 8, but a blocked extra point prevented them from getting any closer. On Avonworth’s next play, Jax Miller went 55 yards for a TD, bringing the score to 21-6. A few more scores occurred in the closing minutes of the game, but New Brighton never managed to get within 2 scores of Avonworth. The final score of the game was 38-13 Avonworth.

In the mean time check out this weeks edition of “Thru the Eyes os Sly Washington” below….

Avonworth Pummels New Brighton 38-13

Avonworth proved to be too much of a challenge for the Lions this evening. The Lopes got the scoring started on the first drive witha 23 yard TD catch by Theo Newhouse. On Avonworth’s next drive, they managed to get into the endzone again after a 54 yard run by Jax Miller. The 2nd quarter was quiet from a scoring perspective. Avonworth failed to get into the endzone twice on 4th and goal. Also, after the Antelopes muffed a punt, New Brighton managed to get to the 5 yard line before their drive stalled as well. The score at the half was 14-0 Avonworth.

New Brighton managed to make the game interesting with 9 seconds left in the 3rd. CCBC player of the game Nya Green caught a 5 yard TD pass to bring the Lions within 8, but a blocked extra point prevented them from getting any closer. On Avonworth’s next play, Jax Miller went 55 yards for a TD, bringing the score to 21-6. A few more scores occurred in the closing minutes of the game, but New Brighton never managed to get within 2 scores of Avonworth. The final score of the game was 38-13 Avonworth.


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Scores from across the Valley Friday November 8, 2019

Friday, November 8, 2019:

 

New Brighton
Avonworth          @ Ambridge       1230 WBVP-AM and 99.3 FM		 13
38   Final
Derry
Central Valley   @North Allegheny                                     1460 WMBA		 7
42   Final
                        WPIAL Class 5A  1st Round Play-offs      
Peters Twp.
Moon		 37
7   Final
Bethel Park
Gateway		 13
17   Final
Upper St. Claire
Penn Trafford		 7
31  Final
McKeesport
Penn Hills		 35
20   Final
                        WPIAL Class 4A 1st Round Play-offs      
Blackhawk
Thomas Jefferson		 0
49   Final
Belle Vernon
South Fayette		 41
30    Final
                        WPIAL Class 3A 1st Round Play-offs      
South Park
Aliquippa       (@Ambridge)		 7
21    Final
Derry
Central Valley		 7
42    Final
                        WPIAL Class 2A 1st Round Play-offs      
New Brighton
Avonworth		 13
38  Final
Freedom
Washington		 0
28  Final
Brentwood
Neshannock		 20
0  Final
Mc Guffey
Riverside		 27
41  Final
                        WPIAL Class 1A 1st Round Play-offs      
Clairton
Cornell		 39
0   Final
West Greene
Sto-Rox		 07
24     Final

CCBC Players of the Game Friday November 8, 2019

Friday, Novemebr  8, 2019:

WBVP and 99.3 FM

New Brighton- Nya Greene
Avonworth-Jax Miller
WMBA

Derry- Paul Koontz
Central Valley- Ameer Dudley