95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports @wsjmsports wsjmsports.com Thursday, March 02, 2017
NCAAMBB – Men’s College Basketball
Last Night
Northwestern 67, Michigan 65
(19) Notre Dame 82, Boston College 66
Illinois 73, Michigan State 70
Northwestern 67, Michigan 65 – Pardon’s layup at buzzer lifts Northwestern over Michigan
Dererk Pardon scored on a layup at the buzzer off a long inbound pass from Nathan Taphorn to give Northwestern a 67-65 victory over Michigan on Wednesday night. The Wolverines’ Zak Irvin had just missed a 3-pointer in the closing seconds. The ball got knocked out of bounds and, after timeout, Taphorn threw a baseball style pass the length of the court, hitting Pardon in stride for the winning shot. As the buzzer sounded, fans packing Welsh-Ryan Arena poured onto the court. The win was just what the Wildcats (21-9, 10-7 Big Ten) _ trying to make their first NCAA Tournament _ needed after dropping five of seven. Derrick Walton Jr. shook off a slow start to score 15 for Michigan (19-11, 9-8). He hit 4 of 8 3-pointers. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman finished with 13 points. Irvin scored 12 and Moritz Wagner grabbed 10 rebounds. But the Wolverines took the loss after winning five of six.
#19 Notre Dame 82, Boston College 66 – Beachem leads No. 19 Notre Dame past Boston College
V.J. Beachem scored 22 points Wednesday night to lead No. 19 Notre Dame to its sixth straight win, 82-66 over Boston College. Bonzie Colson added 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Irish (23-7, 12-5 Atlantic Coast Conference), who have all but locked up a top-four finish in the ACC and a double-bye for next week’s conference tournament. Colson’s double-double was his ACC-best 18th of the season. Ky Bowman scored 19 points and Mo Jeffers had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Boston College (9-21, 2-15 ACC), which has lost 13 in a row and 15 of 16, including a Feb. 14 home game against Notre Dame in which the Eagles let a 10-point lead slip away in the second half.
Illinois 73, Michigan State 70 – Illinois outlasts Michigan State 73-70
Malcolm Hill scored 22 points to lead Illinois to a 73-70 win over Michigan State on Wednesday night. Michigan State had a chance to win the game in the last 10 second, but Miles Bridges missed a layup when Illinois’ Te’Jon Lucas stripped the ball away. Kipper Nichols made one of two free throws to give Illinois a 73-70 lead with three seconds left. Lourawls Nairn Jr. attempted a 3-pointer with the game clock expiring, but the shot caromed off the backboard, securing the Illini win. Illinois (18-12, 8-9 Big Ten) shot 45 percent from the field and 11-26 from 3-point range. Leron Black added 15 points and seven rebounds. Bridges led the way for Michigan State (18-12, 10-7 Big Ten) with 21 points.
NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Chicago Blackhawks 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 1
Blackhawks 4, Penguins 1 – Patrick Kane has hat trick, Blackhawks beat Penguins 4-1
Patrick Kane had his second hat trick in three games, Scott Darling made 36 saves and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-1 on Wednesday night for their fifth straight victory and 10th in 11 games. Richard Panik also scored to help Chicago pull within three points of first-place Minnesota in the Central Division and Western Conference. Kane, last season’s MVP, has a team-leading 27 goals _ scoring 12 times and adding seven assists in his last 11 games. Scott Wilson scored for Pittsburgh as the Penguins fell short again after a 3-2 loss at Dallas on Tuesday night. It was the first meeting this season between the last two Stanley Cup winners.
NCAAWBB – Women’s College Basketball
Last Night
Ball State 64, Eastern Michigan 54
Central Michigan 94, Western Michigan 73
Tonight
Big Ten Tournament – Banker’s Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis (tournament seeds in parenthesis)
(6) Michigan State vs. (11) Wisconsin, 9:00 p.m.
NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
New Orleans Pelicans 109, Detroit Pistons 86
San Antonio Spurs 100, Indiana Pacers 99
Pelicans 109, Pistons 86 – Davis scores 33, Pelicans beat Pistons 109-86
Anthony Davis had 33 points and 14 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans snapped a three-game skid with a 109-86 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. Pistons 6-foot-11 center Andre Drummond was ejected for swatting at the back of 6-1 Pelicans guard Tim Frazier’s head after Frazier had ripped away a rebound late in the third quarter. Drummond had 13 points and 17 rebounds to that point, but also missed nine of 10 free throws. Jrue Holiday had 22 points for the Pelicans, who were without newly acquired All-Star DeMarcus Cousins because of Cousins’ one-game suspension that was triggered when he received his 18th technical foul of this season on Sunday night. Dante Cunningham added 16 for New Orleans, hitting four 3-pointers. Jon Leuer scored 22 points for Detroit.
Spurs 100, Pacers 99 – Leonard’s 31 points lead Spurs to 100-99 win over Pacers
Kawhi Leonard had 31 points and 10 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs returned from an eight-game road trip to beat the Indiana Pacers 100-99 on Wednesday night. Leonard hit a turnaround, fade-away jumper from 16 feet against Paul George with 2.4 seconds left to win it. Indiana’s Monta Ellis missed a pair of free throws with nine seconds remaining and George missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. George finished with 22 points, C.J. Miles added 19 and Myles Turner had 16. San Antonio extended its winning streak to five games, including four straight to close its annual rodeo road trip in February. Pau Gasol and David Lee had 18 points each off the bench for the Spurs. The battle between All-Star forwards was a stalemate until the final five minutes. Leonard scored San Antonio’s final nine points during that stretch, including the game-winning shot, while George was limited to a pair of free throws.
Tonight
Golden State Warriors at Chicago Bulls, 8:00 p.m.
NFL – Bears opt not to apply franchise tag to Jeffery
The Chicago Bears have decided not to apply the franchise tag to receiver Alshon Jeffery. General manager Ryan Pace says the tag “really wasn’t an option for us” this time, though he’s not ruling out re-signing him once free agency begins on March 9. Pace says there are “certain instances where testing the market is a necessary part of the process” to determine a player’s value. He spoke at the NFL combine on Wednesday. Jeffery played last season on the franchise tag after he and the Bears were unable to agree to a multiyear deal. He also served a four-game suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
NCAA – Michigan State toughens policy after sexual assault scandal
Michigan State University is responding to sexual assault allegations against a sports doctor by requiring written consent for certain treatments. Michigan State says chaperones also can be present for any appointment. The policies are a result of widespread allegations that Dr. Larry Nassar molested women and girls when they were supposed to be treated for sports injuries. Separately, Nassar is charged with sexually assaulting nine young gymnasts in the Lansing area with ungloved hands. He’s also being sued, along with Michigan State, by dozens of former athletes, mostly gymnasts. Nassar has denied wrongdoing. The Michigan State policy says written consent is required for vaginal and rectal treatments. Nassar was the doctor for Michigan State’s gymnastics team. He also worked for USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians.
MLB – Major League Baseball – Spring Training
Yesterday
Washington 9, Detroit (ss) 1
Detroit (ss) 5, Toronto 4
Chicago White Sox 3, Arizona 2
Chicago Cubs 7, Kansas City 3
Today
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Detroit Tigers, 1:05 p.m. (Lakeland, FL)
Chicago Cubs (ss) vs. Cincinnati Reds, 3:05 p.m. (Goodyear, AZ)
Chicago White Sox vs. San Francisco Giants (ss), 3:05 p.m. (Scottsdale, AZ)
Chicago Cubs (ss) vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 9:10 p.m. (Scottsdale, AZ)
MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Girls Basketball – Districts
Class A at Portage Northern
Kalamazoo Central 61, Portage Central 57
St. Joseph 30, Mattawan 27
- Despite going scoreless in the second quarter St. Joe would retake the lead in the second half and hold off Mattawan 30-27 to advance to Friday’s District Championship Game. St. Joseph defeated Mattawan 53-22 just a week ago, but last night St. Joe was 10 of 44 from the floor, but were able to win the game at the free throw line. Anna Fischer had 12 points to lead St. Joe who will take on Kalamazoo Central for the third straight season for the district title, live on 95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports.
Class B at Berrien Springs
Buchanan 42, Coloma 34
Lakeshore 67, Benton Harbor 15
- Lakeshore got double digit performances from Taylor Wagner with and Bailey Groat with 13 in a 67-15 romp over the Benton Harbor Lady Tigers. The win puts Lakeshore in the District Championship Friday night facing Buchanan at Berrien Springs.
Class D at Lake Michigan Catholic
Michigan Lutheran 53, Lawrence 46
- Emily Witkowski scored 24 points, including going 12 of 12 from the free throw line as the Titans beat Lawrence 53-46 in the Class D District Semifinals. Daelynn Jackson Peek had 23 points for Lawrence. Lutheran will face River Valley in the finals on Friday.
River Valley 49, Watervliet Grace Christian 20
- River Valley coasted to a 49-20 win over Watervliet Grace Christian to make it to Friday’s District Championship game against Michigan Lutheran. Katherine Kersey, Emma Springer, and Nettie Donner each had 8 points in a balanced effort from River Valley. Rylie Hess had a game high 9 points to lead Grace Christian.
Class B at Edwardsburg
Three Rivers 46, Vicksburg 30
Edwardsburg 45, Dowagiac 34
Class B at Hopkins
Allegan 57, Hopkins 40
Otsego 63, Plainwell 44
Class C at Watervliet
Cassopolis 56, New Buffalo 43
Brandywine 52, Bridgman 33
Class C at Kalamazoo Christian
Bangor 37, Hartford 24
Kalamazoo Hackett 40, Gobles 22
Class C at Constantine
Lawton 50, Constantine 40
Schoolcraft 56, Centreville 31
Class D at Mendon
Colon 47, Howardsville Chr. 32
Mendon 46, Marcellus 32
Class A at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix
BC Lakeview 52, Gull Lake 41
Coldwater 63, Sturgis 43
Tonight
Boys Basketball
Wyoming at Benton Harbor, 7:00 p.m. WSJM Sports
Portage Northern at St. Joseph, 7:00 p.m.
Niles at Buchanan, 7:00 p.m.
Coldwater at Portage Central, 7:00 p.m.
Muskegon at Loy Norrix, 7:00 p.m.
G.R. Christian at Kalamazoo Central, 7:00 p.m.
Michigan Lutheran at Covert, 6:00 p.m.
Brandywine at Lake Michigan Catholic, 7:30 p.m.
White Pigeon at River Valley, 7:30 p.m.
Bangor at Coloma, 7:00 p.m.
Bloomingdale at Decatur, 7:00 p.m.
Watervliet at Delton-Kellogg, 7:00 p.m.
Lawrence at Eau Claire, 7:00 p.m.
Hartford at Gobles, 7:00 p.m.
Lawton at Kalamazoo Christian, 7:00 p.m.
Martin at Marcellus, 7:00 p.m.
Fennville at Saugatuck, 7:00 p.m.
Wolverine Conference Championship
South Haven at Three Rivers, 7:00 p.m. (1st place game) Superhits 103.7 Cosy-FM
Paw Paw at Sturgis, 7:00 p.m. (3rd place game)
Otsego at Vicksburg, 7:00 p.m. (5th place game)
Plainwell at Dowagiac, 7:00 p.m. (7th place game)
Allegan at Edwardsburg, 7:00 p.m. (9th place game)
