Sports – Page 506 – North Platte Post Archive

Three With Storm Ties Selected In NHL Draft

Posted on June 28, 2014

PHILADELPHIA – The Tri-City Storm had a total of three players with ties to the organization selected on the second day of the 2014 NHL DraftSaturday.

The selections included forwards Austin Poganski and Sam Lafferty, as well as goaltender Alec Dillon.

Poganski was the first Storm player chosen, going to the St. Louis Blues in the 4th round, 110th overall.

The St. Cloud, Minn. native played 55 games for Tri-City during the 2013-14 season, scoring 19 goals and 12 assists.

“I think when you watch today’s NHL, it’s the big power forwards that help you win games, especially at your depth positions,” said Storm Head Coach Jim Hulton. “When I look at St. Louis and the current head coach Ken Hitchcock, he believes in big bodies and playing down low. That fits right in to the bill of what Austin is right now and he’s only going to continue to develop into that type of a player.”

15 of Poganski’s points came on the power play last season, including 11 goals, which was fourth-best in the league. The forward’s three short-handed goals were also tied for fourth in the USHL. Before he makes the jump to professional hockey, Poganski is committed to play at the University of North Dakota.

The Blues are the only NHL team with a Storm alum currently on their roster, in 2010 first round pick Jaden Schwartz.

Just three picks later, the Pittsburgh Penguins selected forward Sam Lafferty, of Hollidaysburg, Penn., 113th overall. Lafferty was an undrafted main camp invite who is expected to play in Kearney for Tri-City during the 2014-15 season.

“Some of our scouts stepped up and had a lot of positive things to say about him,” Hulton said. “We were really impressed with his play and his poise. The one thing that stuck out for me was that I thought he was the smartest player on the ice at our camp last week with his patience and positioning, and obviously Pittsburgh saw that as well.”

Last season the forward played at Deerfield Academy Prep School in Massachusetts. He is also committed to play collegiately at Brown University.

Dillon, who the Storm drafted in the second round of last month’s USHL Phase II Draft, was selected by the Los Angeles Kings with the final pick of the 5th round, 150th overall.

Dillon spent the 2013-14 season with his hometown team, the Victoria Grizzlies of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). He is committed to play college hockey at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).

“We knew that Dillon was going to go at some point in the draft and being a goaltender, you never know when the run’s going to start,” Hulton said. “We knew prior to the draft that Los Angeles had some interest and privately we were hoping they would take him.”

The Storm plan on announcing their 30-man roster to begin the 2014-15 season at the beginning of July.

Royals Sign First-Round Pick Finnegan

Posted on June 28, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals signed first-round draft pick Brandon Finnegan, a left-handed pitcher who helped lead TCU to the College World Series, on Saturday.

Finnegan signed for $2,200,600, the slotted money for the 17th overall pick. With Finnegan agreeing to terms, the Royals have signed all 12 of their picks in the first 10 rounds.

Finnegan, who went 9-3 with a 2.04 ERA while striking out 134 in 105 2-3 innings as a junior, will report Monday to the Royals’ High-A Wilmington (Del.) affiliate.

He pitched for Team USA last summer and beat Cuba 1-0, allowing three hits, striking out seven and walking one in seven innings.

Finnegan was a 2011 45th round pick of the Texas Rangers out of Fort Worth Southwest High, but did not sign, opting to go to TCU.

Seven Big Ten Student-Athletes Selected in Annual NBA Draft

Posted on June 28, 2014

ROSEMONT, Ill. – Seven former Big Ten standouts were selected in the 2014 NBA Draft on Thursday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, including five first-round choices for the first time since 1990. The five Big Ten student-athletes were selected among the first 21 picks, the most of any conference, and it marked the second straight year that multiple players were picked among the top 10. The seven total selections were the most since eight Big Ten standouts were drafted in 2000.

Michigan’s Nik Stauskas was the first conference student-athlete chosen, going to the Sacramento Kings at No. 8. Indiana’s Noah Vonleh was selected ninth overall by the Charlotte Hornets, joining former Hoosier Cody Zeller, a first-round selection by the team last year. Stauskas was the 2014 Big Ten Player of the Year, while Vonleh collected Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors.

Michigan State’s Adreian Payne was the 15th overall selection by the Atlanta Hawks. Payne’s teammate Gary Harris was selected No. 19 overall by the Chicago Bulls, who were picking for the Denver Nuggets as part of an earlier trade. Michigan’s Mitch McGary was selected No. 21 by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Wolverines’ Glenn Robinson III was the first Big Ten player picked in the second round after being selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves at No. 40 overall. Iowa’s Roy Devyn Marble was picked by the Denver Nuggets at No. 56 overall before being traded to the Orlando Magic, which drafted former Indiana standout Victor Oladipo in the first round last year.

The Big Ten has had nine players taken in the first round in the last two years, while five different schools have seen student-athletes selected in either the first or second round – Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State. For the second straight year, two Big Ten teams – Michigan and Michigan State – had multiple players selected in the first round. Every starter from the Wolverines’ team that advanced to the 2013 national championship game has been drafted in the NBA.

Braun’s Single in 9th Sends Brewers by Rockies 3-2

Posted on June 27, 2014

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Ryan Braun was hit by a pitch in the seventh inning that scored a run and had an RBI single in the ninth, lifting the Milwaukee Brewers to a 3-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night.

Mark Reynolds led off the ninth with a single off reliever Matt Belisle (2-3) and advanced on a sacrifice by Jean Segura. Scooter Gennett pinch hit for Francisco Rodriguez (3-2) and was intentionally walked. The runners advanced on a passed ball by catcher Michael McKenry. After Rickie Weeks went down swinging, Braun drilled Belisle’s first pitch up the middle.

Josh Rutledge tied the game when he homered off Rodriguez with one out in the ninth. Rutledge hit a 3-2 pitch that just barely cleared the wall in left for his second homer this season.

Rodriguez was trying to help Kyle Lohse win his third straight start. Lohse has been victimized by five blown saves this season.

Infante’s Slam Sends Royals to 8-6 Win over Angels

Posted on June 27, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Omar Infante capped a seven-run inning with his first career grand slam, and the Kansas City Royals held on to beat the Los Angeles Angels 8-6 on a rough Friday night for starting pitchers.

Jason Vargas and Angels counterpart Matt Shoemaker (5-2) combined to give up 14 runs on 20 hits — four of them home runs. Neither got an out in the fifth inning.

Michael Mariot (1-0) picked up with his first career win with 1 1-3 innings of relief, and Greg Holland earned his 23rd save by tossing a perfect ninth.

Salvador Perez had three hits while Lorenzo Cain, Billy Butler and Alex Gordon each drove in a run for Kansas City, which ended the Angels’ six-game winning streak despite limping into the series having lost six of seven.

Record Overnight Rating for NBA Draft on ESPN

Posted on June 27, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA draft delivered its highest rating on ESPN, surpassing the mark set 11 years ago when LeBron James was the No. 1 pick.

The telecast Thursday had a 3.1 overnight rating, according to Nielsen, a 19 percent increase from last year’s 2.6 mark.

The previous record for the draft was 2.7 overnight in 2003, the first year the network televised it. James was the first pick that year in a top five that included Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

Weeks, Peralta Help Brewers Beat Rockies 7-4

Posted on June 26, 2014

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Rickie Weeks had three hits, including a leadoff home run, and Wily Peralta won his fifth consecutive start as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Colorado Rockies 7-4 Thursday night.

Weeks homered on the first pitch from Colorado starter Christian Friedrich (0-2). Aramis Ramirez followed later in the inning with a two-run shot.

Peralta (9-5) allowed three straight singles in the fourth. Ryan Wheeler then hit a grand slam, giving the Rockies a 4-3 lead.

In the fifth, Weeks doubled and scored on Jonathan Lucroy’s single. A sacrifice fly by Khris Davis put Milwaukee ahead 5-4.

The First Nationals Sweep Columbus at Bill Wood Field

Posted on June 26, 2014

The North Platte First Nationals swept Columbus in a Cornhusker League doubleheader Thursday, 6-4 and 10-4.

Columbus took the early lead in game one by scoring two runs in the first inning. North Platte (23-11) tied the game with two runs in the third inning then took a 4-2 lead by scoring two more runs in the fifth. Columbus tied the game once again in the sixth inning with two runs before the First Nationals sealed the win by scoring two runs in the top of the seventh inning to go up 6-4.

Darian Allberry pitched a complete game for North Platte and gave up four runs, one earned, on four hits while striking out five batters and walking none. Luke Volz led the way at the plate by going 2-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. Six different players drove in a run during the game for the First Nationals.

Columbus once again jumped out to an early lead in game two after scoring a run in the top of the first inning. Columbus added to its lead by scoring two runs in the top of the third inning to go up 3-0. The First Nationals responded by scoring three runs in the bottom half of the third to tie the game. North Platte then scored a run in the fourth, three in the fifth and three in the sixth before giving up one run in the seventh inning to earn the 10-4 win.

Five different players had a multi-hit game for North Platte and they also had seven extra-base hits. Jack Kenny led the way by going 2-4 with two doubles, two runs and two RBI. Alec Wesslund, Drew Callaghan, Alex Harms, Volz and Allberry all also hit doubles in the game. Callaghan earned the win on the mound. He came in, in relief for the final four and one-third innings and gave up one run on three hits and struck out three batters. Jayden Kruse started the game and pitched the first two and two-third innings, giving up three unearned runs on four hits and he walked three batters.

The two wins give North Platte a three-game winning streak going into the weekend. The First Nationals next game is Saturday as they host Janesville, Wis. Post 205 in a doubleheader at Bill Wood Field. The first game is scheduled for 12 noon with game two getting underway at 2:30 pm.

The North Platte Juniors (18-6) are also in action Saturday, but they go to Norfolk for a doubleheader that begins at 1:00 pm.

Nuggets Use 16th Pick from Chicago to Take Nurkic, Chicago’s 19th to Take Harris

Posted on June 26, 2014June 26, 2014

DENVER (AP) — The Denver Nuggets used the 16th pick they received from Chicago in a draft-day deal to select Bosnian center Jusuf Nurkic.

The Nuggets gave the draft rights to Doug McDermott, whom they selected at No. 11, to the Bulls for the right to select the 6-foot-11 Nurkic and the 19th pick.

Nurkic has been playing for Cedevita Zagreb in the Croatian League. He averaged 11.2 points and six rebounds. The 19-year-old didn’t start playing basketball until he was 14.

The Denver Nuggets used the 19th pick acquired from the Chicago Bulls in a draft-day deal to get Michigan State guard Gary Harris.

The 6-foot-4 Harris was high on the Nuggets’ list and rather surprisingly slipped to No. 19. He averaged 16.7 points and 2.7 assists last season for the Spartans.

Denver acquired shooting guard Arron Afflalo earlier in the day from Orlando for guard Evan Fournier and the No. 56 pick in the draft.

The Denver Nuggets have taken Serbian forward Nikola Jokic (Knee-coe-lah yo-kitch) with the 41st pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night.

It’s the second international player the Nuggets have selected.

The 6-foot-10 Jokic played for Mega Vizura Belgrade in Serbia in 2013-14, averaging 11.4 points and 6.4 rebounds.

He also helped the Serbians capture a silver medal at the 2013 under-19 world championships.

Denver has had a busy draft day, trading the draft rights to Doug McDermott — along with Anthony Randolph — to the Chicago Bulls for two first-rounds picks, which they used to select Nurkic and Michigan State guard Gary Harris at No. 19.

AP Source: Bulls Deal Picks for Doug McDermott

Posted on June 26, 2014

DENVER (AP) — A person with knowledge of the situation says the Chicago Bulls have traded the 16th and 19th picks to the Denver Nuggets for the draft rights to Creighton small forward Doug McDermott.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the deal has yet to be announced.

Denver selected McDermott with the 11th pick.

McDermott led the nation in scoring last season with a 26.7 average while shooting 52.6 percent from the field, including 44.9 percent from 3-point range. He finished his college career as basketball’s fifth-leading scorer.

Earlier in the day, the Nuggets were reunited with Arron Afflalo, picking up the veteran guard from Orlando for guard Evan Fournier and the No. 56 pick.