Basketball – Page 23 – North Platte Post Archive

Smith-Rivera leads No. 21 Hoyas past Cold Creighton 67-40

Posted on January 31, 2015

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera scored 24 points and No. 21 Georgetown held Creighton without a field goal for more than 17 minutes in a 67-40 victory Saturday.

The Hoyas (15-6, 7-3 Big East) bounced back from a 13-point home loss against Xavier with a dominating performance against the conference’s last-place team.

Smith-Rivera had 12 points during a 31-3 run spanning the halves, with Jabril Trawick’s 3-pointer giving Georgetown a 43-18 lead with 13 minutes left. Creighton missed 24 shots in a row before Avery Dingman’s 3-pointer from the corner drew a roar from the CenturyLink Center sellout crowd of 17,499.

Trawick added 15 points for the Hoyas. Dingman finished with eight points to lead Creighton (10-13, 1-9).

Georgetown, which beat Creighton 76-61 in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 3, dropped out of first place in the Big East with its loss to Xavier on Tuesday.

NPCC Knights Defeat Central

Posted on January 31, 2015

The North Platte Community College Knights entertained the “Mentoring Night” crowd defeating the Central Community College Raiders 100-56 at McDonald – Belton Gymnasium on Friday night.

Mentors and Mentees were in attendance representing Community Connections and Teammates.

The Knights started out slow, but soon opened the game up. With the Knights leading 13-10 with just under 14 minutes to play, the Knights went on a 27-9 run to lead at halftime 40-19.

In the second half it was all Knights, leading by as much as 49 points, 100-51.

Late in the game, Knights Head Coach cleared his bench and rested the starters. The bench players put on a show for the packed gym attendees.

The Knights, who are now 19-4 on the season, had four players in double figures led by Cameron Williams with 25 points. Michael Mitchel came off the bench and scored 14 points, Matt Thomas scored 12 and Marco Pascolo scored 11 points. In the game 12 of the 13 players that got into the game scored.

The Raiders drop to 5-19 on the season. They were led in scoring by Thomas Johnson with 21 points, followed closely by Ojuock Thok with 20 points.

The Knights are in action next week when they play the Lamar Community College Lopers at McDonald – Belton Gymnasium on Friday, February 6. The game will be live streamed on www.coachesaid.com .

Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CST.

NPCC Lady Knights Defeat Central in Key Region IX Game

Posted on January 31, 2015

The North Platte Community College Lady Knights defeated the Central Community College Lady Raiders in a key National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Division II contest 81-68 at McDonald – Belton Gymnasium.

The game was designated as “Mentoring Night.”

The Lady Knights jumped out to an early lead, 6-0 with field goals by Ester Micheva and April Stull and free throws by Sarah Mahr.

The Lady Raiders rallied to tie the score at 13 with 16:25 to go in the first half on a field goal by Adrianna Beck. It was the last tie of the game as the Lady Knights led for the remainder of the game. The score at half time was 40-26.

The Lady Knights held the Lady Raiders to 14 points below their season average of 82.1 points per game.

In the second half the Lady Knights continued to dominate the game leading by as much as 18, 44-26. The Lady Raiders rallied to cut the Lady Knights lead to four, 68-64. The Lady Knights put it away down the stretch by making 11 of 14 free throws.

The Lady Knights improve to 11-10 on the season and 2-1 in the region, which puts them currently in second place. Southeast Community College is currently atop the region.

The Lady Knights had four players score in double figures, led by T’Keyah Stapleton with 18 points off the bench. Aliyah Brown contributed 16 points, Stull added 14, and Mahr scored 11 points. Brown also had eight rebounds and four steals to lead the Lady Knights in those categories.

The Lady Raiders drop to 12-9 on the season and 0-3 in the region. McKenna Rossmeier led the Lady Raiders with a game high 20 points. Beck and Montrese Weller each contributed 13 points.

The Lady Knights take to the road on Sunday and travel to Crete to play the Doane College JV Lady Tigers. Tip-off for the game is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CST.

No. 15 Huskers Close Tough Home Stand with Wolverines

Posted on January 30, 2015

The No. 15 Nebraska women’s basketball team shoots for a sweep of its two-game Big Ten home stand when the Huskers clash with Michigan Sunday afternoon at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Tip-off between the Big Red (16-4, 6-3 Big Ten) and the Wolverines (13-7, 5-4 Big Ten) is set for 2 p.m., with tickets available now at Huskers.com. Tickets can be purchased on game day at the Pinnacle Arena Box Office beginning two hours prior to tip-off.

Live radio coverage will be provided by the Husker Sports Network, with Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch on the call on stations across the network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln, 93.3 FM in Omaha and 880 AM in Lexington. The game will be televised live statewide by Nebraska Educational Television (NET) with Larry Punteney and former Husker Meghin Williams calling the action. Live premium video of the NET production will be available to subscribers of BTN Plus.

Nebraska is coming off a thrilling, come-from-behind win over Illinois on Thursday. Natalie Romeo’s three from the right corner with 1:11 left gave the Huskers their only lead of the night. The freshman from Martinez, Calif., hit NU’s first and last field goals to finish with six points and three assists.

Fellow Californian Tear’a Laudermill led the Huskers with 16 points. The 5-9 senior guard has led Nebraska in scoring for three straight games to increase her season averages to 13.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Rachel Theriot, who finished with 11 points, six rebounds and eight assists against Illinois, became Nebraska’s 30th 1,000-point scorer on Thursday. She leads the Huskers and ranks among Big Ten leaders with 16.7 points and 5.2 assists per game.
Allie Havers, a 6-5 sophomore from Paw Paw, Mich., put three Huskers in double figures against the Illini with 10 points in 11 minutes off the bench. Havers own three double-digit efforts in Big Ten play.

Michigan, which opened the week with a 70-57 win over Illinois on Monday night, closed a two-game home stand with a 91-65 loss to No. 5 Maryland Thursday, falling a game behind Nebraska in the Big Ten standings. The Wolverines are one of the Big Ten’s best shooting teams, hitting 38.3 percent of their three-point attempts while making 6.4 threes per game.

#15 Nebraska Cornhuskers (16-4, 6-3 Big Ten)
3 – Hailie Sample – 6-1 – Sr. – F – 7.4 ppg, 6.7 rpg
23 – Emily Cady – 6-2 – Sr. – F – 12.9 ppg, 10.3 rpg
1 – Tear’a Laudermill – 5-9 – Sr. – G – 13.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg
13 – Brandi Jeffery – 5-7 – Sr. – G – 7.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg
33 – Rachel Theriot – 6-0 – Jr. – G – 16.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg
Off the Bench
5 – Natalie Romeo – 5-7 – Fr. – G – 5.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg
31 – Anya Kalenta – 6-3 – Jr. – F – 5.1 ppg, 2.1 rpg
22 – Allie Havers – 6-5 – So. – C – 4.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg
34 – Jasmine Cincore – 5-8 – Fr. – G – 2.1 ppg, 0.3 rpg
30 – Chandler Smith – 6-0 – Fr. – G – 1.7 ppg, 0.8 rpg
12 – Emily Wood – 5-5 – Fr. – G – 0.3 ppg, 0.6 rpg
11 – Esther Ramacieri – 5-8 – So. – G – 0.1 ppg, 0.6 rpg
50 – Darrien Washington – 6-2 – Fr. – F – Redshirting
Head Coach: Connie Yori (Creighton, 1986)
13th Season at NU (257-146); 25th Season Overall (452-286)

Michigan Wolverines (13-7, 5-4 Big Ten)
14 – Nicole Elmblad – 5-11 – Jr. – F/G – 6.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg
22 – Cyesha Goree – 6-3 – Sr. – F – 15.5 ppg, 10.3 rpg
2 – Siera Thompson – 5-7 – So. – G – 11.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg
5 – Shannon Smith – 5-7 – Sr. – G – 13.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg
20 – Danielle Williams – 5-9 – So. – G – 1.4 ppg, 1.9 rpg
Off the Bench
3 – Katelynn Flaherty – 5-7 – Fr. – G – 14.8 ppg, 1.2 rpg
1 – Madison Ristovski – 5-10 – Jr. – G – 4.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg
11 – Jillian Dunston – 5-11 – Fr. – G/F – 2.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg
32 – Kelsey Mitchell – 6-0 – Fr. – F – 0.9 ppg, 1.3 rpg
23 – Maria Backman – 6-1 – Fr. – G – 0.8 ppg, 1.2 rpg
12 – Terra Stapleton – 6-4 – Fr. – C – 1.2 ppg, 0.1 rpg
15 – Paige Rakers – 5-11 – So. – G – 0.0 ppg, 0.3 rpg
Head Coach: Kim Barnes Arico (Montclair State, 1993)
Third Season at Michigan (55-32); 19th Season Overall (325-238)

Huskers Look to Bounce Back vs. Minnesota on Saturday

Posted on January 30, 2015

The Nebraska men’s basketball team looks for a bounce back performance Saturday afternoon, as the Huskers travel to Minneapolis to take on the Golden Gophers.
Tipoff is set for 5:01 p.m. (central) from Williams Arena, and the contest will be televised nationally on BTN with Cory Provus and Shon Morris on the call. Saturday’s game is also available online and on mobile devices on BTN2Go.

The game will be broadcast across the state of Nebraska on the 37-station 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 Ben McLaughlin adding color commentary. The game can be heard for free on Huskers.com and is available on the Huskers’ app on iOS or android devices, as well as on TuneIn Radio and on SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

The Huskers (12-8, 4-4 Big Ten) struggled in their last outing, a 58-44 loss at Michigan Tuesday evening. Nebraska was held to season lows in points (44) and field goal percentage (30.6), as Michigan took control with an 18-2 spurt and never relinquished. Shavon Shields was the only Husker in double figures with 14 points, while Terran Petteway was held to a season-low seven points on 1-of-11 shooting. Petteway saw his streak of 30 consecutive games in double figures that dated back to last season come to an end. Petteway still is second in the Big Ten in scoring, as the junior guard averages 19.0 points per game.

One of the positives the Huskers could take from the loss was the performance of freshman Tarin Smith, as he set season highs in points (eight), rebounds (seven), steals (two) and minutes (30) against the Wolverines. Smith has emerged as a solid role player in Big Ten play, averaging 4.8 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.

Minnesota (13-9, 2-7 Big Ten) is also looking to rebound after falling at Penn State, 63-58, on Wednesday night. The Golden Gophers were led by Andre Hollins, who finished with 17 points, including 4-of-8 from 3-point range, but Minnesota was held to 39 percent shooting and committed 15 turnovers. Six of Minnesota’s seven Big Ten losses have been by five points or less.

Saturday’s matchup is the second between the two schools in less than two weeks, as Nebraska won 52-49 in Lincoln on Jan. 20. In that game, Shavon Shields led NU to victory by scoring 13 of his 15 points in the second half, and Minnesota had three chances to send the game to overtime in the final seconds, but was unable to convert.

Randolph’s Double-Double leads Grizzlies over Nuggets, 99-69

Posted on January 29, 2015

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The Memphis Grizzlies are winning by bigger margins lately because they have returned to locking down on defense.

“I just think we’ve got our rhythm back, and we’re going back to our true identity, which is on the defensive end,” guard Courtney Lee said after Memphis’ 99-69 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night.

“We’re playing through our bigs, and they are making the right reads.”

Zach Randolph, one of those bigs, had 15 points and 17 rebounds. Jeff Green finished with 13 points as Memphis built an early lead and won its fifth straight, holding the Nuggets to 11 points in the first quarter and never getting threatened the rest of the way.

Lee, Nick Calathes and Beno Udrih, starting in place of the injured Mike Conley, scored 11 apiece, while Marc Gasol had 10 points.

Wilson Chandler and Kenneth Faried each scored 10 points for Denver, which lost for the eighth time in the last nine.

“I didn’t feel like we came and competed from the very beginning of the game,” Denver coach Brian Shaw said. “In these kinds of situations, I’d have more respect if guys just told me that they didn’t feel like playing from the start. I’m just sick and tired.”

With Memphis comfortably ahead at the end of the third quarter, both teams relied on their reserves to finish out the fourth.

The game was a bit of a revenge for Memphis, which lost at Denver 114-85 on Jan. 3. Although the players didn’t acknowledge the loss before the game, they were less bashful afterwards.

“It was big for us to come out here and get some redemption against a team that kind of smacked us in the face in Denver,” guard Tony Allen said.

The Nuggets managed to shoot only 33 percent for the night and were 2 of 26 from outside the arc — less than 8 percent.

“Defensively, I thought we have taken another notch, and that is our strength,” Gasol said, later adding: “That’s always been our strength, and that’s always going to be our strength.”

After leading by as many as 19, Memphis held a 50-35 advantage at the break.

Nothing Denver did in the third made any difference as Memphis continued to pour it on behind Randolph, who controlled the boards with eight rebounds in the frame.

Memphis continued to stretch the lead in the period, eventually reaching 27 before the Grizzlies took a 74-49 lead into the final period.

The fourth-quarter lead swelled to 33 points.

“There are days like that,” Denver forward Darrell Arthur said. “Unfortunately, that day was today.”

___

TIP-INS:

NUGGETS:.The Nuggets’ 11 first-quarter points matched a season low in a quarter for a Memphis opponent. . Denver, which had a season-low eight turnovers in Tuesday’s victory over New Orleans, had 17 against Memphis.

Grizzlies: Gasol celebrated his 30th birthday Thursday. . Conley did not dress, missing his second game with a sprained left wrist. Allen, who missed the two previous games with left ankle sprain, returned. . Green missed a free throw in the first quarter, ending a streak of 45 straight makes dating to his days in Boston before the Jan. 12 trade. . Reserve G/F Vince Carter left the game in the second quarter with a left foot injury and did not return. The injury will be re-evaluated Friday.

JaVALE RETURNS

JaVale McGee, who missed 23 games due to a lower left leg strain, played in only the second game since Nov. 23. He finished with two points and five rebounds. “It was cool,” he said. “It felt fine. Just trying to get back in tip-top shape.”

UP NEXT:

Nuggets: Host Charlotte on Saturday.

Grizzlies: Host Oklahoma City on Saturday.

No. 15 Nebraska Women hold off Illinois, 59-57

Posted on January 29, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Tear’a Laudermill scored 16 points and Natalie Romeo hit a late 3-pointer to help No. 15 Nebraska women hold off Illinois for a 59-57 win on Thursday night.

Hailie Sample made a layup with 1:57 left, giving Nebraska (16-4, 6-3, Big 10) its first lead of the game, 57-56. After Illinois’ Chatrice White was called for an offensive foul, Sample found Romeo for the eventual winning 3.

Illinois missed two potential tying shots in the final 37 seconds.

The Illini (11-10, 2-7) led by as many as 11 in the first half and 51-42 with 9:40 left.

Emily Cady scored four and Laudermill added five during a 9-0 run which tied it fewer than two minutes later.

Kyley Simmons’ layup with 7:25 left gave the Illini a 53-51 lead, but they would miss seven of their last eight shots.

White tied a career-high with 23 points for Illinois.

3 Hawks, Durant and Westbrook are NBA All-Star Reserves

Posted on January 29, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) — Al Horford, Paul Millsap and Jeff Teague have been picked as reserves for the Eastern Conference All-Star team, giving the sizzling Atlanta Hawks three selections.

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook were selected in the West, despite early season injuries for the Oklahoma City stars. The Miami Heat also had two reserves selected in Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.

But Portland surprisingly only had one in LaMarcus Aldridge. Point guard Damian Lillard was not among the seven reserves selected.

Atlanta has won 17 in a row and has a 38-8 record, second-best in the NBA. The Hawks were hoping for four selections, but Kyle Korver was not chosen by East coaches.

Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving and first-timer Jimmy Butler of Chicago were the other players announced to the East roster on Thursday night.

The rest of the West reserves for the Feb. 15 game in New York: James Harden (Houston), Klay Thompson (Golden State), Tim Duncan (Spurs) and Chris Paul (Clippers).

NPCC to Host Mentoring Night

Posted on January 29, 2015

The North Platte Community College Knights and Lady Knights will be playing the Central Community College Raiders and Lady Raiders on Friday night at the McDonald – Belton Gymnasium on the South Campus of North Platte Community College.

The games have been designated as “Mentoring Night”. Those people who are involved in one of the mentoring agencies, whether they are a mentor or a mentee, will be admitted into the game free of charge. Those who are wearing mentoring t-shirts will receive a voucher for a free bag of popcorn at the concession stand. Information about mentoring will be available for anyone interested in becoming a mentor.

The women’s game is a National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Division II game. The Knights are 1-1 in the region having already recorded a win against the Lady Raiders. The Lady Raiders are 0-2 in the region. Southeast Community College is currently leading the region with a 2-0 record.

The Lady Knights are 10 – 10 on the season and are led in scoring by April Stull with 15.8 points per game. Stull is currently second in the region in scoring and 13^th on the Lady Knights All-Time Scoring list. Aliyah Brown is averaging 10.0 points per game and 3.6 steals per game.

The Lady Raiders are 12-9 and have three players averaging in double figures. They are led by Adrianna Beck, who also leads the region in scoring, with 16.0 points per game. Montrese Weller is second on the team with 15.3 points per game. The third Lady Raider to average in double digits is Paige Muhammad with 12.4 points per game

The men’s game does not count in Region IX standings but is a Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference game. The Knights are 3-0 in conference play while the Raiders are 0-3 in the conference.

The Knights are 18-4 overall and are led in scoring by Cameron Williams, with 22.6 points per game. Williams is leading all of Region IX, 9^th in NJCAA Division I in scoring, and 20^th on the Knights All-Time scoring list with 937 career points. Other Knights averaging in double-figures are Marco Pascolo with an 11.9 points per game average. Shyquinn Dix is the third Knight to average double figures with 11.3 points per game. Pascolo also leads the team in rebounding with 8.1 rebounds per game.

The Raiders are 5-18 on the season and have three players in double figures. Shawn Robinson, who leads Region IX Division II in scoring is averaging 14.2 points per game. Thomas Johnson is next with 13.2 points per game and Matthew McLeod is third with 10.3 points per game. McLeod also leads the Raiders in rebounding with 5.2 rebounds per game.

Both games may be seen at www.coachesaid.com if you cannot make it to the McDonald Belton Gymnasium.

Tip –off for the women’s game is at 5:30 p.m. CST and the men’s game is at 7:30 p.m. CST.

Nebraska-Iowa Tip Off Time on Feb. 22 Announced

Posted on January 29, 2015

Lincoln – The Big Ten Conference announced Thursday that the men’s basketball game between Nebraska and Iowa on Sunday, Feb. 22, from Pinnacle Bank Arena will tip off at 2 p.m. (central) and will be televised on BTN. The start time and television information for that game had been listed as TBA, as the game was part of a Big Ten Wildcard Weekend.

The Feb. 22 game is Iowa’s first trip to Pinnacle Bank Arena, as the previous three matchups dating back to the 2012-13 season have taken place in Iowa City. Iowa won the first matchup of the season, 70-59, on Jan. 5. The Feb. 22 game is already a sellout.

In addition, the Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office announce that tickets are still available for the Feb. 3 contest against Northwestern as well as the regular-season home finale against Maryland on March 8. They can be purchased by visiting Huskers.com or calling the Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office at 800-8-BIGRED.