Sports – Page 310 – North Platte Post Archive

Unbeaten Kentucky, Virginia Stay 1-2 Atop AP Top 25 Poll

Posted on January 19, 2015

The nation’s two unbeatens retain their spots atop the AP Top 25.

For the second straight week, Kentucky was No. 1 in 63 of 65 votes cast Monday, while Virginia stayed at No. 2.

The Wildcats (17-0) have been No. 1 in every poll and were the unanimous choice for five straight weeks before two voters switched to the Cavaliers (17-0) last week.

Both teams had a pair of double-digit conference wins last week.

Gonzaga remained in third, while Villanova swapped places with Duke. The Blue Devils fell from fourth to fifth after a loss to Miami that ended a 41-game home winning streak followed by a win at Louisville.

No. 22 Dayton, No. 23 Indiana and No. 25 Iowa entered the poll for the first time this season.

The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Jan. 18, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last week’s ranking:

	Record	Pts	Prv
1. Kentucky (63)	17-0	1,623	1
2. Virginia (2)	17-0	1,562	2
3. Gonzaga	18-1	1,467	3
4. Villanova	17-1	1,429	5
5. Duke	15-2	1,345	4
6. Wisconsin	16-2	1,282	7
7. Arizona	16-2	1,228	10
8. Notre Dame	17-2	1,055	12
9. Iowa St.	13-3	1,004	11
10. Louisville	15-3	1,003	6
11. Kansas	14-3	943	9
12. Utah	14-3	940	8
13. Maryland	17-2	937	14
14. Wichita St.	16-2	857	13
15. North Carolina	14-4	803	15
16. VCU	15-3	670	17
17. Texas	13-4	554	20
18. West Virginia	15-3	501	16
19. Oklahoma	12-5	445	18
20. N. Iowa	16-2	387	23
21. Baylor	13-4	260	22
22. Dayton	15-2	241	—
23. Indiana	14-4	93	—
24. Seton Hall	13-4	91	21
25. Iowa	13-5	85	—

Others receiving votes: Oklahoma St. 47, Miami 41, San Diego St. 34, Georgetown 33, Stanford 31, Saint Mary’s (Cal) 18, Providence 17, Colorado St. 16, Arkansas 15, Georgia 13, Butler 11, SMU 11, Michigan St. 8, LSU 6, Old Dominion 5, Wyoming 4, Ohio St. 3, Louisiana Tech 2, Tennessee 2, George Washington 1, St. John’s 1, Washington 1.

Gary Kubiak Signs 4-Year Contract as Broncos’ Coach

Posted on January 19, 2015

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Gary Kubiak has signed a four-year contract to coach the Denver Broncos.

He replaces John Fox, who was ousted a week ago following Denver’s 24-13 playoff loss to Indianapolis.

Kubiak’s relationship with general manager John Elway goes back 32 years, when they entered the NFL together in 1983. Kubiak spent nine seasons as Elway’s backup quarterback and 11 more as Denver’s offensive coordinator, including the final four years of Elway’s Hall of Fame career.

Elway said in a statement: “Having coached on three Super Bowl teams and 11 playoff teams, Gary knows what it will take to deliver another world championship” to Denver.

Kubiak went 63-66 as coach of the Texans from 2006-13.

Huskers Return Home to Take on Gophers

Posted on January 19, 2015

The Nebraska men’s basketball team returns home to begin a two-game homestand, as the Huskers welcome the Minnesota Golden Gophers to town. A limited number of 300 Level tickets are available for $10 by visiting Huskers.com, calling 800-8-BIGRED or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena box office Tuesday evening beginning at 6 p.m.

Tipoff between the Huskers and Golden Gophers at Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 7:36 p.m. (central) and the game will be nationally televised on BTN with Dave Revsine and Jim Jackson on the call. The game is also available online and on mobile devices on BTN and BTN2Go.
The game will be broadcast across the state of Nebraska on the IMG Husker Sports Radio Network, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, 1110 KFAB in Omaha and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington with Kent Pavelka calling the action and Matt Davison adding color commentary. The game can be heard for free on Huskers.com and available on the Huskers’ app on iOS or android devices, as well as on TuneIn Radio and on SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

The Huskers (10-7, 2-3 Big Ten) ran into hot-shooting Wisconsin team in their last outing, as the seventh-ranked Badgers shot 52 percent (11-of-21) from 3-point range in a 70-55 win on Thursday night. That performance had been an anomaly against the Huskers this year, as Nebraska had held its first 16 opponents to just 27.6 percent from 3-point range.
The loss, which snapped NU’s two-game win streak, offset a strong performance from junior guard Terran Petteway, who scored a season-high 27 points, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range.

Petteway, who is second in the Big Ten in scoring at 19.4 points per game, needs only three points on Tuesday to reach 1,000 career points. He has scored 909 of his points over the last year and a half for the Huskers, as Tuesday’s matchup with the Gophers will be his 50th career appearance at Nebraska.

Minnesota heads to Lincoln with a 12-7 record and a 1-5 Big Ten mark after topping Rutgers, 89-80, on Saturday to break a five-game losing streak. In that game, Andre Hollins scored 31 points, including 7-of-10 from 3-point range, to place three Gophers in double figures. Minnesota averages 78.9 points per game and have four players averaging double figures, led by Hollins’ 13.4 points per game.

Tuesday’s matchup will be the first of two meetings with the Gophers in a 12-day stretch, as the Huskers travel to Minneapolis on Jan. 31.

This Week in Nebraska Athletics

Posted on January 19, 2015

Monday, Jan. 19 Women’s Basketball Purdue (BTN) Pinnacle Bank Arena 6 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 20 Men’s Basketball Minnesota (BTN) Pinnacle Bank Arena 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, Jan. 22 Women’s Basketball at Wisconsin (BTN Plus) Madison, Wis. 7 p.m.

Friday, Jan. 23 Track & Field Nebraska Wesleyan Invitational Devaney Indoor Track Noon

Friday, Jan. 23 Wrestling at Illinois (BTN Plus) Champaign, Ill. 7 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Women’s Tennis Air Force Lincoln Racquet Club 10 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Swimming & Diving Illinois Champaign, Ill. 11 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Track & Field Mark Colligan Memorial Devaney Indoor Track 11:30 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Women’s Gymnastics at Rutgers with Brockport & Southern Connecticut New Brunswick, N.J. 1 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Women’s Tennis Army Lincoln Racquet Club 2:30 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Men’s Basketball Michigan State (ESPN) Pinnacle Bank Arena 3 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 24 Men’s Gymnastics at Stanford with California & Oklahoma Palo Alto, Calif. 6 p.m.

Sunday, Jan. 25 Women’s Tennis Air Force vs. Army Nebraska Tennis Center 9 a.m.

Sunday, Jan. 25 Wrestling Rutgers (BTN) Devaney Center Noon

Monday, Jan. 26 Women’s Basketball at Iowa (BTN) Iowa City, Iowa 8 p.m.

Pheasants Forever Group to Meet in Kearney in February

Posted on January 19, 2015

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s largest conference focused on protecting wildlife habitat will be held in Kearney next month.

Supporters of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever will meet on Feb. 7 at the Younes Conference Center.

The group’s president and CEO, Howard Vincent, will address the conference, and experts from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and University of Nebraska-Lincoln will also speak.

Kelsi Wehrman, who coordinates the group’s efforts in Nebraska, says Pheasants Forever has focused on partnerships and programs that succeed in protecting habitat.

Super Matchup: Seahawks face Patriots for NFL Championship

Posted on January 18, 2015

For Russell Wilson’s Seattle Seahawks to become the first team in a decade to win consecutive Super Bowls, they’ll have to beat the most recent group to do it, Tom Brady’s New England Patriots.

In an enticing matchup pitting the defending champions against the dominant NFL franchise of the 2000s, the NFC’s Seahawks (14-4) will face the AFC’s Patriots (14-4) in the title game at Glendale, Arizona, in two weeks.

New England reached its eighth Super Bowl, equaling Dallas and Pittsburgh for most in league history. It’s the sixth time Brady and coach Bill Belichick made it in the past 14 years; they won trophies after the 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons.

Some Las Vegas sports books had the Seahawks as 1-point favorites; others made the game a pick ’em.

AP Source: Broncos Finalizing 4-Year Deal with Gary Kubiak

Posted on January 18, 2015

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — A person with knowledge of the negotiations tells The Associated Press that Denver Broncos GM John Elway is hashing out a four-year contract with Gary Kubiak to become the team’s head coach.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement isn’t expected to be announced until Monday.

Kubiak replaces John Fox, who was ousted last Monday following Denver’s loss to Indianapolis in the playoffs.

Elway and team president Joe Ellis met with Kubiak in Houston for several hours Sunday.

Kubiak was Elway’s backup QB from 1983-91 and Denver’s offensive coordinator from 1995-2005 under Mike Shanahan.

Kubiak, who was the Ravens’ offensive coordinator last season, went 63-66, counting the playoffs, as head coach of the Texans from 2006-13.

Storm Get Six Goal Output To Sweep Thunder

Posted on January 18, 2015

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – The Tri-City Storm (18-10-5) got their highest offensive output of the season on Sunday afternoon to defeat the Bloomington Thunder (12-16-5) 6-2 at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum.

Nick Master led the way with two goals, while Tri-City also got tallies from Kevin Kerr, Mason Appleton, Jake Wahlin and Bobby Nardella.

Four goals in the opening period gave the Storm control of the game early on.

Kerr opened the scoring at 5:09 of the first, shooting the puck off a face-off win by Master. With traffic in front, the puck got behind Bloomington goaltender Logan Halladay to give Tri-City a 1-0 lead.

Less than a minute later, it was Appleton who got his own rebound and beat Halladay to make it 2-0. The Green Bay, Wis. native took a pass from forward Joel Herbert and went right to the net.

Herbert ended the game with two assists, and now has nine points on the season.

Only 11 seconds after Appleton’s tally, Wahlin forced Halladay from the game with the team’s third goal in the first 6:15 of the contest. Assists were credited to Conner Valesano and Wade Allison.

Later in the frame it was Nardella who found the back of the net to make it 4-0. The defenseman’s tally was his sixth on the season.

Master made it 5-0 in the second and struck again in the third for the team’s sixth goal of the night. The forward now has nine goals on the season which is second-best on the team.

Storm netminder Jared Rutledge made 23 saves in the win to pick up his fourth victory of the season.

Tri-City is now in third place in the Western Conference, moving ahead of Des Moines with the win.

The Storm return home for two contests in Kearney next weekend. On Friday night the Storm take on the Omaha Lancers at 7:30 p.m. before battling the Sioux Falls Stampede on Saturday at 7:05.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Nolan Aibel and Kyle Eastman along with defenseman Cameron Spicer…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period

Tri-City – Kevin Kerr (Nick Master) 5:09
Tri-City – Mason Appleton (Joel Herbert) 6:04
Tri-City – Jake Wahlin (Conner Valesano, Wade Allison) 6:15
Tri-City – Bobby Nardella (Mason Appleton, Joel Herbert) 11:17

2nd Period

Tri-City – Nick Master (Matthew Freytag) 10:45

3rd Period
Bloomington – Matt Mendelson (Butrus Ghafari, Alec Mehr) 2:06
Tri-City – Nick Master (Garrett Gamez, Dan Labosky) 6:49
Bloomington – Jack Jenkins (Jeremy Davies, Tarek Baker) 18:12

PENALTIES

1st Period
Bloomington – Alec Mehr – (Slashing), 2 min, 0:21
Tri-City – Jake Wahlin – (Tripping), 2 min, 14:57
Tri-City – Jake Wahlin – (Roughing), 2 min, 14:57
Tri-City – Jake Wahlin – (Fighting), 5 min, 14:57
Tri-City – Jake Wahlin – (Fighting) (Misconduct), 10 min, 14:57
Bloomington – Shane Bednard – (Fighting) (Instigator), 2 min, 14:57
Bloomington – Shane Bednard – (Fighting), 5 min, 14:57
Bloomington – Shane Bednard – (Fighting) (Game Misconduct), 10 min, 14:57
Tri-City – Daniel Labosky – (Hooking), 2 min, 18:35

2nd Period

Tri-City – Tory Dello – (Interference), 2 min, 11:54
Tri-City – Gordi Myer – (Boarding), 2 min, 16:24
Tri-City – Chris Wilkie – (Unsportsmanlike Conduct), 2 min, 19:13

3rd Period
Bloomington – Joshua Shellman – (Interference), 2 min, 11:45
Bloomington – Jeremy Davies – (Cross Checking), 2 min, 15:20

Power Play

Tri-City – 0/3

Bloomington – 0/5

Shots

Tri-City: 19, 6, 8 = Total: 33
Bloomington: 7, 7, 11 = Total: 25

Saves
Tri-City – Jared Rutledge – 23/25
Bloomington – Logan Halladay – 7/10, Hayden Lavigne – 20/23

NFL, CBS Extend Thursday Night Football

Posted on January 18, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL and CBS have extended their Thursday night football package for the 2015 season.

The agreement carries an additional year at the NFL’s option. It was announced Sunday by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell; Leslie Moonves, president and CEO of CBS; and Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports.

CBS will broadcast the first eight Thursday night games, which also will be simulcast on NFL Network. NFL Network also will exclusively show the final eight games. The games will include 14 on Thursday nights and two late-season games on Saturdays.

Goodell says the games in last season’s package “made Thursday night a night for NFL football.” Moonves lauds the benefits of the Thursday night package, saying the NFL “continues to be the best premium content in the business.”

Dillon’s Third Shutout Paces Storm To 1-0 Win

Posted on January 18, 2015

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – A third period goal from Matthew Freytag was all the Tri-City Storm (17-10-5) needed on Saturday night, defeating the Bloomington Thunder (12-15-5) 1-0 in the teams’ first ever meeting at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum.

Storm netminder Alec Dillon stopped all 25 shots that came his way, recording his third shutout of the season.

Neither team was able to score in the first 20 minutes, but Tri-City killed all three penalties they took in the opening frame.

It was more of the same in the second, and the teams headed to the final period without a goal. Through two, Bloomington led in shots on goal, 19-16.

Freytag finally broke the scoreless tie with his seventh goal of the season on the power play with just 11 minutes to go in the game.

Mason Appleton rushed the puck into the Bloomington zone on the right wall and hit Freytag in the slot for a redirection. The puck went up in the air over Lavigne and hit the crossbar before going down into the net. Defenseman Tory Dello picked up the second assist on the play.

Tri-City will finish their weekend series with the Thunder on Sunday afternoon. Start time is 3 p.m.

The Storm are now in fourth place in the Western Conference, and have a chance to gain ground in the standings as the only team in action on Sunday.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Nolan Aibel and Kyle Eastman along with defenseman Cameron Spicer…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period

(no scoring)

2nd Period

(no scoring)

3rd Period
Tri-City – Matthew Freytag (power play) (Mason Appleton, Tory Dello) 8:59

PENALTIES

1st Period
Tri-City – Alec Dillon – (Delay of Game), 2 min, 4:39
Tri-City – Mason Appleton – (High Sticking), 2 min, 10:21
Bloomington – Shane Bednard – (Slashing), 2 min, 11:37
Tri-City – Jason Krych – (Tripping), 2 min, 14:34

2nd Period

Bloomington – Jason Kalinowski – (Roughing), 2 min, 14:28
Tri-City – Matthew Freytag – (Roughing), 2 min, 14:28

3rd Period
Bloomington – Jacob Slaker – (Checking From Behind), 2 min, 7:20
Tri-City – Conner Valesano – (Roughing), 2 min, 7:20
Bloomington – Jacob Slaker – (Roughing), 2 min, 7:20
Tri-City – Dan Labosky – (Roughing), 2 min, 16:08

Power Play

Tri-City – 1/2

Bloomington – 0/4

Shots

Tri-City: 9, 7, 7 = Total: 23
Bloomington: 11, 8, 6 = Total: 25

Saves
Tri-City – Alec Dillon – 25/25
Bloomington – Hayden Lavigne – 23/24