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Tuesday, March 8, 2022
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Prep Scores Monday, March 7 Boys Basketball MHSAA Div. 2, District 33 Kingsford 79, Houghton 29 Escanaba 57, Negaunee 31 MHSAA Div. 3 District 66 Bark River-Harris 45, Gladstone 40 Manistique 67, West Iron 37 MHSAA Div. 4 District 99 Carney-Nadeau 59, North Dickinson 43 Norway 44, Forest Park 26 Stephenson 60, Hannahville Nah Tah 42 WIAA Div. 5 Regional Final Three Lakes 59, Florence 49
MLB owners, players closing gap on new deal
In Brief Howard returns, meets players ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Juwan Howard has resumed his role as Michigan’s basketball coach after serving a five-game suspension for hitting a Wisconsin assistant in the head. Howard met individually with each player Monday, when the team did not have a practice. The Wolverines are on the NCAA Tournament bubble with a 17-13 overall record and 11-9 mark in the Big Ten. With coach Phil Martelli filling in for Howard, Michigan closed the regular season with a win over then-No. 23 Ohio State on the road Sunday. Howard will be back on the sideline Thursday in Indianapolis, leading the eighth-seeded Wolverines against ninth-seeded Indiana in the conference tournament quarterfinals.
Bucks’ Lopez ready for contact CHICAGO (AP) — Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez is ready to participate in contact drills and five-on-five scrimmages after being sidelined since the season opener because of a back injury that required surgery. “It’s another good, positive step for him on his return to play,” coach Mike Budenholzer said before the Bucks’ game Friday night in Chicago. The 33-year-old Lopez played 28 minutes and had eight points, five rebounds and three blocks in a season-opening victory over the Brooklyn Nets. The 7footer averaged 12.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks last season while helping the Bucks win the NBA title. Budenholzer also said Milwaukee hopes to get guard George Hill (sore neck) back in the next week. He has been sidelined since Jan. 28. Guard Pat Connaughton, meanwhile, “still has a ways to go” in his recovery from surgery on his right finger, Budenholzer said. Connaughton was hurt fouling Chris Paul on a drive to the basket in a 131107 loss at Phoenix on Feb. 10. Connaughton was expected to miss four weeks.
HOF inductions changing times CANTON, Ohio (AP) — The Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are moving from prime time to Saturday afternoon in August. The enshrinement on Saturday, Aug. 6 will begin at noon EDT at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. Those ceremonies have been held at night since 2007. Being inducted this year are modern-era players Tony Boselli, Sam Mills, LeRoy Butler, Richard Seymour and Bryant Young, coach Dick Vermiel, contributor Art McNally and senior candidate Cliff Branch.
Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo
KINGSFORD SENIOR HOOPSTERS Brody Kopp (12) and Michael Meneguzzo (2), sitting with teammates Cale Harris (24) and Isaac Olson (40), enjoyed the final minutes of their home basketball careers on Monday at Kingsford High School. Kopp and Meneguzzo combined for 29 points and helped lead the Flivvers to a 79-29 rout of Houghton in a Division 2 district semifinal boys basketball contest.
Flivvers dominate, advance BY JERRY DeROCHE Sports Writer KINGSFORD — It’s not like the Kingsford Flivvers played poorly in the opening quarter of their MHSAA Division 2, District 33 opener against visiting Houghton on Monday night. After all, they scored 19 and held a seven-point lead heading into the second period. But the UPSSA Division 1-3 fourth-ranked Flivvers were heavily favored over the Gremlins and so an early separation was hoped for, maybe even expected. Not to fret, that separation arrived early in the second quarter when Kingsford went on a huge run to take a 30-point lead at halftime en route to a 79-29 rout of Houghton. With the win, the Flivvers (15-6) advance to face Escanaba (17-4) in the district final game on Wednesday at Escanaba. The Eskymos routed visiting Negaunee 57-31 in their semifinal Monday. The Flivvers just wore out the Gremlins (9-10) defensively. “We started the game in a press and it grew as the game went along, what our rotations should be, where we needed to be,” Kingsford varsity boys basketball coach Dan Olkkonen said. “We blitzed them in the second quarter and got a lot of turnovers. “If you let them get into their halfcourt offense, they dribble-drive and kick out to shooters who are 6-8 feet beyond the 3-point line. So we got them out of their dribble-drive look and I thought that was effective.” So was the Flivver offense. Leading 20-12, Kingsford senior Michael Meneguzzo buried two consecutive 3-pointers and junior Nic Nora hit another to lift the Flivvers to a 31-14 edge with 4:50 left before the break. Kingsford kept its roll going with
Terry Raiche photo
KINGSFORD JUNIOR GUARD Isaac Nash (4) splits two Houghton defenders as he drives down the lane during Monday’s district game at Kingsford. Nash scored a bucket down the stretch as the Flivvers advanced to the Division 2 District 33 title against Escanaba with a 79-29 blowout of the Gremlins. a 16-3 surge to go up 47-17 at intermission. “We had four 3s in that quarter and I think every layup we got was
off a pass,” Olkkonen said. “There was a lot of good in the way we played.” (Continued on 4-B)
By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — For all the vitriol, Major League Baseball owners and locked-out players have closed the gap in recent weeks and are negotiating on similar frameworks for a new collective bargaining agreement. With the lockout in its 96th day Monday, the sides remained apart to various degrees on three of the most significant items: the luxury tax, pre-arbitration bonus pool and minimum salary. Openers on March 31 were among 91 games already canceled, and Commissioner Rob Manfred appeared to be on the verge of calling off more. “This is a horrible, horrible situation. Everyone on the Yankees, everyone in Major League Baseball shares the blame, players, owners, executives for where we are. It’s a really bad look, especially (with) what’s going on in the world,” Yankees president Randy Levine said Monday on the team’s YES Network. “We all look pretty bad. ... It’s embarrassing to be where we are.” In an industry where payrolls project to total in the $4 billion range, the percentage differences on some items do not appear to be insurmountable. The sides appear to be about $15 million apart on the minimum salary for this year, $20 million for 2023 and $25 million for 2024, each less than 1% of payrolls. That assumes about half of players in the major leagues at any given time are impacted by the minimum. Differences are greater in the final two seasons, when the union is asking for cost-of-living increases. The gap in the new prearbitration bonus pool is $50 million this year, rising to $70 million by 2026. But, again, the percentage of overall payroll affected by this item is relatively small, under 2%. And then there is the most divisive issue, luxury tax thresholds. The sides are $18 million apart this year, a difference rising to $33 million by 2026. How much is each additional $1 million in threshold likely to produce in spending on players? There’s no exact formula. (Continued on 4-B)
Detroit shoots down Hawks 113-110 in OT By LARRY LAGE AP Sports Writer DETROIT (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 28 points and 10 assists, lifting the Detroit Pistons to a 113-110 overtime win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night. Jerami Grant scored 23 and reserve Marvin Bagley had 19 points for the Pistons, who have won a season-high three straight and six of their last eight games. Atlanta’s Bogdan Bogdanovic had 22 points before fouling out late in regulation and Trae Young had 14 points and 12 assists. The Hawks, likely competing for the last spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, had chances to win late in regulation and to extend the game to another overtime. But Young and John Hunter each missed a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the game, and Hunter split free throws with 1.6 seconds left in regulation. Young, who was 5 of 20, also missed a jump shot with 6 seconds to hurt his team’s chances of winning a third straight game. Pistons center Isaiah Stewart left the game midway through the second quarter after grabbing his right
DETROIT PISTONS GUARD Cade Cunningham (2) is defended by Atlanta Hawks forward De'Andre Hunter (12) and forward John Collins (20) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday in Detroit.
knee in pain, and didn’t return. TIP-INS: Cunningham played in his 50th game on Friday and ended it with 815 points, 289 rebounds and 255 assists. Magic Johnson and Luka Doncic are the two other players who were 20 or
younger in NBA history to have that many points, rebounds and assists in their first 50 games. ... G Hamidou Diallo did not play due to a non-COVID illness. Diallo’s absence gave rookie and former Michigan standout Isaiah Livers a
chance to play 25 minutes; he scored nine points, including a goahead 3-pointer with 5:27 left in the fourth quarter. UP NEXT: Detroit will play host to Chicago on Wednesday night.