SPORTS SECTION E
BASEBALL
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2016
ALCS, Page 8
David Nesbitt making moves in the pro ranks
DAVID NESBITT
By RENALDO DORSETT Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net NATIONAL basketball team stalwart David Nesbitt is on the move again at the professional level. The 25-year-old forward has been a key component for his new club in Uruguay’s Liga Uruguaya de Básquetbo (LUB), Goes Montevideo. Despite the team’s 1-2 start, Nesbitt has averaged 12 points and six rebounds per game in his new surroundings. In the season opener, he finished with nine points, three rebounds and two blocks in a 67-52 loss to Aguada. He reached dou-
ble figures scoring in game two with 13 points and four rebounds in a 64-62 loss to Universitario. He added 14 points and six rebounds - both season highs - in an 86-49 win over Olimpia. The Uruguayan Basketball League began to compete in 2003. Before that date, the basketball championships were only metropolitan and no competitions brought together all the clubs in the country. Until the LUB was created, the capital clubs participated in the Uruguayan Federal Tournament, while the clubs of the rest of the country competed in regional tournaments. The Uruguayan Federal Tournament was founded in 1915,
making it amongst the oldest on the continent. Nesbitt spent the last two seasons in the Iraqi Superleague with Al Mina. He helped them to win the regular season and make it to the final. He was also voted to Asia-Basket.com’s Iraqi League All-Imports Team and second Team. Nesbitt has also played professionally in Kazakhstan (Kaspiy Aktau). A graduate of St Thomas University, he played locally at the high school level with the Catholic High Crusaders before heading to Grayson Junior College. Nesbitt has been a member of several editions of the Bahamas
national team at both the senior and junior levels. Most recently, he was a member of the 2016 Centrobasket team which finished 7th in Panama. Nesbitt averaged 12.4 points and seven rebounds per game in the tournament. At the 2015 CBC Championships in Tortola British Virgin Islands, Nesbitt averaged nine points and 7.2 rebounds per game as the team finished with the silver medal. As a junior, he was a member of the FIBA Americas U-18 Championship team that finished eighth in 2008. At that tournament Nesbitt averaged 6.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
‘Buddy Buckets’ gets first preseason start By RENALDO DORSETT Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net
T
he learning curve for Buddy Hield continues as the New Orleans Pelicans prepare to conclude their preseason schedule this week. In his first preseason start last night, Hield finished with 13 points, three rebounds and two assists in the Pelicans’ 96-89 loss to the Atlanta Hawks at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. It was a bounce back performance for Hield who went scoreless last Wednesday in the Pelicans’ final game of the NBA Global Game series in Beijing, China. The 6’4”, 215-pound guard opened the preseason with 19 points in his debut, followed by games scoring 18 and 14 respectively. Through three games he shot 6-15 from three-point range and 20-38 from the field. In the two games since he has shot 0-8 from three-point range and 5-19 from the field. “It’s been okay. Even if I’m going good, I still feel like I can get better. Never get too high or too low – always stay in between,” Hield said Monday at training camp. “I always keep that mindset. It’s about getting a feel for the game and confidence. Getting confident more in myself, that’s the biggest thing and what’s important in these next two preseason games.” New Orleans (1-4) concludes its six-game preseason schedule tomorrow on the road against the Orlando Magic. “I’ve been solid,” he said. “I’ve been good defensively. I still can get better, and that’s just watching more tape. It’s knowing player personnel – which (opposing) player does this and does that.” Pelicans All-Star forward Anthony Davis sat out his first game since suffering a Grade 2 sprain last week in China. He is projected by the team to be out for 10 to 14 days and could miss the October 26 opener against Denver.
PELICANS guard Buddy Hield in action against the Pacers during a preseason game in New Orleans on October 4. (AP Photo/Max Becherer)
JONQUEL JONES TO CONTINUE OFFSEASON IN KOREA By RENALDO DORSETT Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net FOLLOWING a productive rookie season, Jonquel Jones looks to continue her offseason development in Korea as her season tips off in just under two weeks. Jones will prepare to continue her pro career as she ventures into the Korean Basketball League after being drafted No.5 by Woori Bank Hansae Chuncheon for the 2016-2017 on July 10 in Seoul, South Korea. They will open their season on October 29 against the Samsung Life Blue Minx. Jones finished her rookie campaign for the Connecticut Sun averaging 6.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocked shot in just over 14 minutes per game. She shot 53 per cent from the field and 33 per cent from threepoint range. She received one vote in the 2016 WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year tally to finish in a five-way tie for fifth behind winner Jantel Lavender. She ended the season with one of her most productive games - a season high 21 points with seven rebounds - in the Suns’ 8778 win over the Washington Mystics. “I would say it’s been a learning experience,” admitted Jones to the Minnesota Spokesman Recorder. “The transition has been a challenging one. But it also has been one I wouldn’t trade — a lot of people would like to be in our places to play professional basketball as a profession.” She remains optimistic about her growth this offseason in Korea, in an effort to prepare for her pro sophomore season.
SEE PAGE 2
As beach soccer events draw near, Sealey talks development By RENALDO DORSETT Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net IN a relatively short time span, the Bahamas has become a major regional player in beach soccer and now the Bahamas Football Association seeks to join the rest of the Caribbean in making the development of this mode of the sport a major initiative. In 2017, the Bahamas will host two major beach soccer events, the CONCACAF Beach Soccer World Championships in February and the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in May. BFA president Anton Sealey said the Bahamas will look to continue its development of the sport on the sand. “We in the Bahamas are very excited to host both of these events
as these competitions will have a major impact in the Bahamas and the Caribbean. We are very excited about the opportunities from a social and economic standpoint as well as growing the game. Since 2013, the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships, we have concentrated our efforts in building a foundation for the sport by investing in programmes and infrastructure. It is evident how bright the future is for our nation and for the confederation,” Sealey said during Monday’s draw for the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships in Miami, Florida. He underscored the impact the events will have on the development of the local game and called beach soccer “the great equaliser” for smaller countries like the Bahamas to compete with traditional
THE BAHAMAS was drawn in Group A on Monday for the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships in Miami, Florida.
powerhouses. “We have the potential to excel in this form of football and I encourage all participating CONCACAF teams to keep building on this momentum for beach soccer within our region and to continue to impress upon the administration of your MA’s the importance of this modality of football to the development not only of the beach game but also how it impacts the grass game as well. It is actually a complement to the grass game and not in competition. This is something I know, as presidents we feel as if our success is defined buy our national teams on the grass but we understand that this is just as an important part of football and it enhances the grass game. It should be
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PAGE 2, Wednesday, October 19, 2016
As beach soccer events draw near, Sealey talks development
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FROM PAGE 1 looked at with equal importance and enthusiasm,” Sealey said. “The sand is a great equaliser. Those countries such as ourselves, very small, when we come to competing against the likes of the US, Mexico, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica on the grass it is a bit of a challenge, but the sand equalises all of that. It is time we take this modality more serious than we have been. Hosting the FIFA World Cup is both an honour and a privilege but it is also an extraordinary opportunity to develop talent and encourage competition among our youth. Furthermore, these major events provide a platform to continue building a stronger and more passionate fan base.” CONCACAF Secretary General Phillippe Maggio said the region and the international soccer community at large anticipates the continued growth of the sport. “Beach soccer has experienced some tremendous growth since the first FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup
JONQUEL JONES TO CONTINUE OFFSEASON IN KOREA FROM PAGE 1
THE BAHAMAS was drawn in Group A on Monday for the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships in Miami, Florida. was held 11 years ago. According to Beach Soccer Worldwide the sport is now played in over 100 countries over the six confederations of FIFA and its future is very bright as demonstrated by federations like the Bahamas Football Association, adding the discipline
to their national team programmes,” he said. “Next years tournament will certainly increase the competitive, further develop the game and stimulate tourism while adding economic benefit to the host country Bahamas.” The Bahamas last hosted
the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships in 2013 where they finished sixth following a loss to Guatemala in the tournament finale. The champion and the runner-up of the competition will join host Bahamas as the three CON-
CACAF representatives in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017. In case the Bahamas (host of the World Cup) and/or Guadeloupe (Non-FIFA Member) reach the final match, the World Cup spot(s) will be allocated to the next best placed team(s).
“It’s a great league for player development,” she said. “I see that [Korea play] as an opportunity to make money but also get better, so when I come back next WNBA season I will be able to do more stuff that I wasn’t able to do this year.” Sun head coach and general manager, Curt Miller, shared Jones’ optimism on the development of her game and looks forward to the player he will get when she returns to the Sun next season. “Jonquel is so talented. She’s a presence defensively around the rim. She alters shots. She is going to be a real talented defender.” She gets overpowered by the [Brittney] Griners and the [Sylvia] Fowles of the world who bother her with their length,” he said. “She’s got to dedicate herself to being a pro - the nutrition, strength and training, the conditioning aspect,” continued Miller. “She’s got to get stronger. It depends also on how much she puts into it.”
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Wednesday, October 19, 2016, PAGE 3
CHRIS BROWN IN GRENADA FOR TRACK MEET MEDIA LAUNCH FOUR-time Olympian Chris Brown arrived in Grenada Monday night ahead of the media launch of the Grenada Invitational Track and Field Meet scheduled for next April. The media launch is all set to be held at the national athletic stadium 10am Thursday and will be attended by government and athletic officials. Mr Brown, who has staged the successful Chris Brown Bahamas Invitational Meet, will be working with the Local Organising Committee to ensure the success of their inaugural event.
NBA GMs pick Warriors over Cavs in Finals By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer THE NBA’s general managers are expecting a third straight Golden StateCleveland matchup in this season’s NBA Finals, with the Warriors the pick to reclaim the title. Such was the consensus from the annual poll of general managers by NBA.com . The Warriors and Cavaliers each got 97 per cent of the votes cast by GMs when asked to pick the Western and Eastern conference champions — meaning, if each team got one ballot, 29 of the 30 teams voted for a rematch. And here’s why it wouldn’t have been unanimous: General managers were not allowed to vote for their own clubs. Boston got the other conference-title vote in the East, San Antonio got the other one in the West. The Warriors got 69 per cent of votes cast to emerge as champions for the second time in three years this season, with the defending titlist Cavaliers getting the other 31 per cent.
• Other balloting led to the following predictions: — Cleveland’s LeBron James will win his fifth MVP award. James got 47 per cent of the vote, easily outpacing Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook (23 per cent), Golden State’s twotime reigning MVP Stephen Curry and Houston’s James Harden (10 per cent each), new Warriors forward Kevin Durant (7 per cent) and Indiana’s Paul George (3 per cent). — James remains a nightmare for opponents. Asked which player forces coaches to make the most adjustments, James got 75 per cent of the vote, far more than Curry (21 per cent) and Golden State’s Draymond Green (4 per cent). — Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns would be the player most GMs, if starting a franchise today and could sign any player, would take in such a scenario. Towns was picked on 48 per cent of ballots, followed by Durant (21 per cent) and James (17 per cent). — Phoenix’s Devin Booker is the player most likely to have a breakout
season, listed on 31 per cent of the ballots. He was ahead of Towns (14 per cent) and Indiana’s Myles Turner (10 per cent), with 11 other players also getting mentions. — Curry remains the NBA’s best point guard, getting 63 per cent of the votes in that category. Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers (20 per cent) was second, followed by Westbrook (10 per cent) and Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving (7 per cent). — Other top positional rankings went to shooting guard James Harden of Houston, James at small forward, New Orleans’ Anthony Davis at power forward and the Los Angeles Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan at centre. Interestingly, not only was James the overwhelming pick at small forward, he also placed a close second in power forward balloting. — Golden State, which landed Durant this summer, was the easy pick as the team that made the best overall moves this offseason. Not coincidentally, 80 per cent of the GMs also
Barkley says Warriors still a flawed team even with Durant By BRIAN MAHONEY AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Charles Barkley didn’t want Kevin Durant to join the Golden State Warriors and isn’t sure Durant changes things now that he’s there. In Barkley’s mind, the Warriors are still a flawed team. “Let me say this: I still think they got some of the same issues this year with that team,” Barkley said yesterday. “Can they rebound the ball? They’re going to still be shooting jumpers. They’re not going to get any low-post scoring. Can that type of play hold up through the rigors of the NBA playoffs? I’m still going to say the same thing I’ve always said: No.” The Warriors won a record 73 games in the regular season but blew a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals and lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Golden State then signed Durant, the former NBA MVP, in the offseason. That’s made the Warriors the favourites to regain the title they won in 2015, though Barkley said they were “lucky” then because their road was filled with teams weakened by injuries. Cleveland was already without Kevin Love in those Finals and lost Kyrie Irving near the end of Game 1. The Cavs were healthy last year, and Barkley picked them to beat the Warriors. “When I told you they couldn’t play that little small ball and win a championship if everybody they played was healthy, that they’d wear down, and they did. “I told you Cleveland was going to beat them and they did,” Barkley said during a lunch before TNT’s “Inside the NBA” studio team was elected to the Broadcasting
WARRIORS’ Kevin Durant warms up for a preseason game against the Sacramento Kings. (AP) Hall of Fame. Barkley and the team hosted their show last night in Cleveland outside Quicken Loans Arena, where the Cavaliers received their rings before facing New York in their season opener. The Warriors played San Antonio in the nightcap of TNT’s doubleheader. Barkley, a Hall of Fame player who never won a championship, was disappointed that Durant left Oklahoma City for an easier chance at a title with the star-studded Warriors, who have two-time MVP Stephen Curry and fellow AllStars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. If they win, Barkley
said, the title won’t mean as much to Durant as it would have in Oklahoma City, where he had played since the Thunder franchise moved from Seattle in 2008 after his rookie season. Durant has been booed in rival arenas since his decision and has angered some of his former fans with what appeared to be criticisms of Russell Westbrook and his former team. “He’s made himself a villain by taking all these shots at Oklahoma City for no reason. There’s no reason for that,” Barkley said. “He left, he’s happy, shut up. When you’re taking shots at Russell and those guys, that’s not necessary.”
said Durant is the player move that will make the most impact, far ahead of the 13 per cent who think Boston getting Al Horford will. — Durant’s move to Golden State narrowly edged Dwyane Wade signing with Chicago as the most surprising move of the offseason. — Minnesota was the pick by GMs to be the league’s most improved team this season, and the Wolves’ Kris Dunn is the overwhelming choice to be the rookie of the year. — San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard was overwhelmingly selected as the best defensive player and best perimeter defender in the league, part of the reason why the Spurs got 50 per cent of the GM votes as the NBA’s top defensive team. Jordan was the easy winner in balloting for best interior defender. — The Spurs’ Gregg Popovich was the pick again as both the best head coach and best coach in terms of managing and motivating players. — James was picked as
WARRIORS’ Stephen Curry shoots in front of Lakers’ D’Angelo Russell during a preseason game on Saturday. (AP) the NBA’s best leader, most versatile player and as the player with the best basketball IQ. But if GMs could
pick one player to take a shot with the game on the line, he was the second choice — far behind Curry.
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Moscow results to decide final WTA Finals spot By JAMES ELLINGWORTH AP Sports Writer MOSCOW (AP) — With Serena Williams’ decision to withdraw from next week’s WTA Finals, the final spot in the year-end tournament will be decided in Moscow. Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia and Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain each know that winning the Kremlin Cup will guarantee a place at the eight-player finals in Singapore. If neither Kuznetsova nor Suarez Navarro wins, the final spot stays with Britain’s Johanna Konta, who isn’t playing this week as she tries to shake off an abdominal strain. Suarez Navarro is happy to have her destiny in her own hands as she aims for her first career finals appearance in singles. “Sometimes at the end of the season, people are looking at other people, at other results, but it’s not my case,” she said Tuesday. “Now it all depends on me. I think it’s much better.” Kuznetsova is already assured of her best year-end ranking since 2009 and is aiming to defend her Moscow title in front of a home crowd. “If I can win the tournament it would be wonderful, great, and everything I’m wishing for, but I don’t want to look that far ahead,” she said. Both Kuznetsova and Suarez Navarro have firstround byes in Moscow. The Russian will start today against either France’s Alize Cornet, while Suarez Navarro faces a tricky match against Russianborn Australian Daria Gavrilova.
Williams, a 22-time Grand Slam singles champion, announced her withdrawal from the WTA Finals on Monday, citing a right shoulder injury. It’s the second year in a row she will miss the finals.
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KONJUH UPSETS STRYCOVA IN 3 SETS AT KREMLIN CUP MOSCOW (AP) — Croatian teenager Ana Konjuh ousted sixthseeded Barbora Strycova in the first round of the Kremlin Cup yesterday, winning 6-4, 1-6, 6-2. The 18-year-old Konjuh will now meet Russian qualifier Anna Blinkova in the second round after she upset Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (10) after a tense deciding tiebreak. Seventh-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a former champion in Moscow, is also in the second round after winning 7-6 (2), 5-7, 7-5 against Czech qualifier Katerina Siniakova. Pavlyuchenkova’s reward is a second-round match again former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic of Serbia, who beat Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-3 in a match featuring 15 breaks of serve. “It was very difficult for me to hold my serve because my opponent was returning very well and she was at times making so many great winners,” Jankovic said. Australia’s Daria Gavrilova reached the second round with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Lucie Safarova, and goes on to meet third-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain in the second round. In the men’s event, sixth-seeded Pablo Carrena Busta of Spain came back from a set down to reach round two with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (2) victory over Austrian veteran Jurgen Melzer. There was also a win for seventhseeded Paolo Lorenzi, who saw off fellow Italian Federico Gaio 6-4, 6-4.
MIKAEL YMER UPSETS VERDASCO AT SWEDISH OPEN STOCKHOLM (AP) — Eighteen-year-old Mikael Ymer of Sweden stunned Fernando Verdasco in the first round of the Swedish Open on Tuesday, dropping just three games to the Spaniard in an emphatic 6-2, 6-1 win. Verdasco lost both his serve and temper against the 549th-ranked Swede, who earned his first win on the ATP Tour. But his older brother Elias Ymer didn’t make it to the second round after losing to Germany’s Tobias Kamke in straight sets. Nicolas Almagro struggled against Yuichi Sugita but won 3-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3, while Dustin Brown rallied to beat the hard-serving Gilles Muller 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Portugal’s Gastao Elias also advanced after beating Ivan Dodig of Croatia.
CARLA SUAREZ NAVARRO, of Spain, reacts after winning the 2nd set against Caroline Wozniacki, of Denmark, during the women’s singles match at the Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament in Tokyo last month. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A ‘VULNERABLE’ STEELE WINS PGA TOUR SEASON OPENER By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer NAPA, Calif. (AP) — By the end of the opening week of a new PGA Tour season, no one felt more vulnerable than Brendan Steele. Winless since his rookie season five years ago, Steele was confronted with some bad memories of Silverado when he threeputted the 12th hole on Sunday in Safeway Open. It was the same hole where last year he began a sloppy stretch of five bogeys in six holes that sent him to a 76 and cost him a chance to win. He was trying not to make mistakes last year. Now he had to try to make birdies. And he would have to make them with a conventional putter, having never won with anything but the long putter. Steele switched to a short putter when the rule that outlawed the anchored stroke for long putters first was proposed in 2014. He had done fine with it, though he still had doubts he could make putts when they mattered. He made birdie with a great lag on the par-5 16th. He rolled in an 18-footer for birdie on the 17th. And he made a 7-footer on the 18th, his third straight birdie that carried him to a 7-under 65 and — finally — another PGA Tour victory when Patton Kizzire faltered and couldn’t catch him. “That’s really a sweet feeling to know that I can do it under those circumstances,” he said. Before long, he was headed to Malaysia, the next stop on a long PGA Tour season that began in Napa Valley just three weeks after it ended in Atlanta. The season-opening tournament that began with promise ended in the rain. This was supposed to be the week where Tiger Woods returned to the PGA Tour for the first time in 14 months. Instead, he mysteriously withdrew just three days after he committed to play, saying his game was “vulnerable” and not where it needed to be. The opener still had Phil Mickelson, playing a domestic event in the fall for the first time in a decade, and Mickelson still managed to have an influence with a surprisingly large gallery for the dour weather over the last three days. Mickelson ended a third straight year without a victory, though he tried to make it interesting on the back nine with a pitch shot from the mud to 4 feet that offered the promise of a late charge, only to miss the putt and too many other chances. He still tied for eighth, raising his career total over 25 years on the PGA Tour to finishing in the top 10 in one-third of his events. And he had an influence on Steele. Mickelson took Steele and another rookie, Keegan Bradley, under his wing in 2011 and played one of his fabled money games
BRENDAN STEELE poses with his trophy on the 18th green of the Silverado Resort North Course after winning the Safeway Open PGA golf tournament on Sunday. (AP) with them at The Players Championship. The stakes weren’t high — they were only rookies, so Mickelson set the wager at a mere $50 — but the idea was to teach them to play to win. Steele already had won a month earlier at the Texas Open, and he shared the 54-hole lead at the PGA Championship later that year in Atlanta, which Bradley wound up winning in a playoff. Steele thinks now early success might have been too much, too soon. So he sought out Mickelson over the last year and asked him for tips on how to play down the stretch. Mickelson’s answer was to play to win, and it worked for Steele. He needed some help, typical of most tournaments. Starting the final round four shots behind, he got in the mix and still was two shots behind Kizzire, who looked like a winner when he stuffed his tee shot on the 11th hole to 2 feet for a birdie. Kizzire started missing fairways. The only putts he made were for par. He had birdie chances on the last three holes and missed out with a poor tee shot (No. 16), a poor wedge (No. 17) and a 9-iron that missed the green on No. 18. Kizzire wasn’t the only player who left Silverado feeling as though he had let one slip away. Paul Casey, Scott Piercy and Johnson Wagner all had their chances. Wagner finished with eight straight pars. Casey and Piercy dropped shots at the wrong time. Casey had his fourth straight finish in the top 4 dating to the FedEx Cup playoffs. “So close, isn’t it?” Casey said. “I mean, I played great. I had another wonderful week.” Steele now gets to go back to Augusta National, where he hasn’t been since 2012 and started to wonder if he would ever play again. The question leaving wine country was when anyone would see Woods at a golf tournament. Woods said his next target was the Hero World Challenge the first week of December here in the Bahamas, an 18man field of low expectations and even less stress.
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Wednesday, October 19, 2016, PAGE 5
Kaepernick looks to build on 1st start of season for 49ers By JOSH DUBOW AP Sports Writer SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — After going nearly a year between NFL starts, it would have been expected for Colin Kaepernick to come out a little rusty and then find his stride as the game progressed. Instead, Kaepernick’s 2016 starting debut went almost the opposite way. Kaepernick had a promising first half that included a long touchdown pass to Torrey Smith and two other scoring drives before he and the San Francisco 49ers fell flat after halftime in a 45-16 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. “We had good moments, we had some we need to correct,” Kaepernick said Tuesday. “I know personally there were throws I should have made and I want to make and I need to correct those this week. We have opportunities out there. We have to take advantage of those when they present themselves to us. That will allow us to put a lot more points on the board.” Kaepernick went 8-for-11 for 135 yards in the first half against the Bills, keeping the Niners (1-5) right in the game despite missing a potential early touchdown pass when he overthrew Smith in the end zone on the opening drive. But he was unable to carry that over to the second half as he completed just 5 of 18 passes for 52 yards and took three sacks. “It’s not just him,” offensive coordinator Curtis Modkins said. “You say it’s his numbers, but it’s
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
49ERS QB Colin Kaepernick (7) stands on the sideline during Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills. (AP) our numbers. Sometimes it’s a drop here or there in critical situations affect those numbers. A penalty here or there and all of a sudden we’re off the field and that affects the numbers. We’ve got to do better around him and that helps his numbers.” He was hurt by a pair of dropped passes, a defence that struggled to get off the field and an offensive line that was overmatched at times. But Kaepernick was far from sharp. His best moments in the second half came on a couple of scrambles, including a 29-yarder and another that turned a possible safety into a 10-yard run for a first down. “I thought using my
feet was something I did well,” he said. “There were a couple of times I wish I would have hung in a little bit more, but those are always split-second decisions.” Kaepernick figures to handle those better and to be sharper with a full game of experience in coach Chip Kelly’s system and a second week of practice with the first-team offense. Kaepernick’s practice time was severely limited in the offseason and training camp as he recovered from surgeries on his left shoulder, right thumb and left knee. He then was beaten out by Blaine Gabbert for the starting job and generated far more atten-
tion for his ongoing protest during the national anthem than his play on the field. Kaepernick got only a handful of practice plays each week and three late-game snaps for handoffs in Week 1. Now he is tasked with helping turn around a rough season as the Niners have lost five straight games for the first time since 2010. But Kaepernick has enough experience to know that forcing things will only make the situation worse. “You have to allow the plays to come to you,” he said. “When that opportunity is there to make one, you have to make it. But you can’t force yourself into making a play.”
Johnson, Cards roll past listless Jets 28-3 By BOB BAUM AP Sports Writer GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Stopping the run was one of the few things the New York Jets had done well this season. Until they faced David Johnson and the Arizona Cardinals. Johnson rushed for 111 yards and three touchdowns, and the Cardinals shut down the listless Jets 28-3 on Monday night. Johnson scored on runs of 58, 2 and 2 yards while becoming the first player to rush for three scores against the Jets since LeSean McCoy did it five years ago. “I say it each and every week. David’s special,” Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson said. “I mean very, very, very special. We got us one in (No.) 31.” The Cardinals (3-3) won their second in a row to climb back to .500. New York (1-5) lost its fourth straight in a rough return to Arizona for Todd Bowles, who was defensive coordinator for the Cardinals for two seasons before getting the Jets coaching job two years ago. “We’ve won two in a row,” Arizona coach Bruce Arians said. “We’re still just a .500 ballclub, but I like the way we look right now.” Arians took no great joy in beating Bowles. Their connection goes back to their days together at Temple three decades ago. “I’m glad it’s over,” Arians said. The Jets’ Ryan Fitzpatrick was 16 of 31 for 174 yards and was benched in favour of Geno Smith after New York’s longest drive of the night ended in an interception in the end zone late
JETS QB Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) throws against the Cardinals on Monday night. (AP) in the third quarter. “As an offence we are just not consistent right now and the offence goes as the quarterback goes,” Fitzpatrick said. “I have got to play better.” Smith’s lone series at quarterback ended when he was intercepted by Tyrann Mathieu with 4:20 to play. “The game was 28-3 with eight minutes left in the game,” Bowles said. “We weren’t doing anything else. I just wanted to give him some reps. Like a relief pitcher, a starting pitcher, on this day you put in the relief pitcher. Fitz will be (the starter) next week.” Arizona’s Carson Palmer, back after missing a 33-21 win at San Francisco with a concussion, completed 23 of 34 passes for 213 yards before leaving with a hamstring strain after
throwing a 9-yard TD pass to Michael Floyd with 8:20 remaining. Arizona scored in the first quarter for the first time this season on the second time Johnson touched the ball. “Our coach has been harping on us about that,” Johnson said. “It felt good to get in the end zone. I felt like that’s actually what started everyone getting hyped, everyone getting into the game.” The second-year running back dodged a pair of defenders near the line of scrimmage, and then raced to the end zone on his longest run of the season. Johnson also rushed for 157 yards in the win against the 49ers, winning NFC offensive player of the week honors. The Jets entered the game second in the NFL in rush-
ing defence at 68 yards per game. They were outgained on the ground 171-33. New York had 130 yards in the first half, 70 on three receptions by Brandon Marshall. Marshall’s 36yard catch over the middle set up New York’s only score, Nick Folk’s’ 39-yard field goal. Arizona scored on a pair of 14-play drives in the second half. Johnson got his second 2-yard TD run up the middle, and Palmer passed to Floyd for another TD. The Jets drove to the Cardinals 14 late in the third quarter but D.J. Swearinger intercepted Fitzpatrick’s pass in the end zone to end the threat. It was Fitzpatrick’s league-worst 11th interception of the season. But Marshall said the interception was his fault. “I read it wrong, Ryan read it right,” he said. “He threw a pick, but it’s my pick. I’ve said it all along this season, interceptions are on everyone.” THIRD DOWN WOES The Jets were 2 for 13 on third-down conversions. They were 0 for 8 before converting one during their long third-quarter drive. PENALTIES GALORE There were 19 penalties in the sloppy game — 10 against New York, nine against Arizona. UP NEXT Jets: New York returns home to play the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Cardinals: Arizona plays its third straight primetime game, this one a Sunday night matchup at home against NFC West leader Seattle.
JETS’ DECKER, ON IR WITH SHOULDER INJURY, HAS HIP SURGERY By DENNIS WASZAK Jr AP Sports Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Eric Decker will be sidelined a bit longer than initially expected. The New York Jets wide receiver, already on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, underwent surgery yesterday on his hip. The Jets announced on their website that the hip surgery was deemed necessary after Decker had an evaluation when he was placed on IR last week with a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. The team said the an-
ROETHLISBERGER OFFICIALLY OUT FOR STEELERS VS. NEW ENGLAND
ticipated recovery time for Decker’s hip surgery is six months. When the wide receiver is able to get off crutches during that period — it’s uncertain how long that will take — he will then have the surgery on his shoulder, with recovery time expected to be eight months. So, if Decker hypothetically needs two months to get off crutches, the shoulder procedure requires about eight additional months of recovery time. He could miss time during the 2017 season, but Decker could also still be ready for Week 1, in a best-case sce-
nario. “It’s probably too early for that,” coach Todd Bowles said during a conference call of Decker possibly missing the start of next season. “It’ll probably be close, but I’ve got to see how he heals.” In a post on her Twitter page , Decker’s wife Jessie James said he has “quietly battling these injuries for years and fighting through them.” She added that her husband is “doin great!! Get ready 2017. He will be ready to rock!!!” Decker, who had nine catches for 194 yards and two touchdowns, injured
his shoulder at Buffalo on September 15 and it worsened the following week at Kansas City in Week 3. He was inactive for two games while the Jets waited to see if the shoulder would improve through rest and rehab. When it was determined last week that it hadn’t, the Jets decided to place Decker on injured reserve so he could have season-ending surgery. “He wasn’t recovering the way we hoped he would,” Bowles said last Wednesday. “He wasn’t getting any better. It was getting worse. At some point, he had to try to get surgery.”
PITTSBURGH (AP) — As a general rule, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin doesn’t get too caught up in the emotional toll of a loss or the carnage it can leave behind. Yes, going over Sunday’s lifeless, sloppy showing in Miami wasn’t pleasant. It’s not supposed to be when you get whipped by a last-place team. “We can’t spend any time lamenting that performance and who is available or who is not available,” Tomlin said yesterday. Going through the injury list would probably take too much time anyway, especially now that it includes quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The tweaked left knee Roethlisberger suffered in the second quarter against Miami while trying to avoid a sack resulted in surgery on Monday. While Roethlisberger prides himself on his toughness, he won’t be in the lineup when Tom Brady and the New England Patriots visit on Sunday. Tomlin officially ruled Roethlisberger out and Landry Jones the starter for a showdown with the AFC East leaders. Tomlin declined to give a timeline for Roethlisberger’s potential return. The Steelers (4-2) are off next week and travel to Baltimore on November 6. It’s possible Roethlisberger could be back by then, but Tomlin won’t speculate on that now.
THE STANDINGS
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, October 19, 2016, PAGE 7
Barcelona knows what to expect against Guardiola’s Man City By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Andres Iniesta can see it already. The Manchester City team coming to the Camp Nou for today’s Champions League match against Barcelona has quickly been infused with Pep Guardiola’s playing style. Iniesta identifies his former coach’s fingerprints at City, with the English club one of the toughest teams to beat in Europe. “Guardiola’s teams are a reflection of what he wants and, despite the short period in which he has been in command, City already carries his identity, his ball-possession style,” said Iniesta, who played under Guardiola for four years. “Manchester City is a top candidate to win this tournament. It’s part of a very small group of clubs that can win it.” It will be the second time Guardiola returns to the Camp Nou as a coach. The former Barcelona player was with Bayern Munich
in a loss in the Champions League semi-finals two seasons ago. “City has improved its game a lot,” said Barcelona defender Javier Mascherano, another player coached by Guardiola, who won 14 titles while in charge of the Catalan club from 20082012. “Never in my life am I going to change the way I play football,” Guardiola said. “I can make a lot of mistakes but my teams play the way they want.”
ANDRES INIESTA (AP) ling, tactical discipline and astute passing against Basel — which has been consistently strong in midfield in recent years. If Motta fails a fitness test, then Grzegorz Krychowiak is likely to start, although the Poland midfielder looked sluggish and off the pace against Nancy. Arsenal, which leads the group with the same four points as PSG, hosts lastplaced Ludogorets Razgrad of Bulgaria.
• Here is a look at the groups playing today: GROUP A Given how poorly Paris Saint-Germain’s midfield played in the unimpressive 2-1 win against bottom-side Nancy in the French league on Saturday, coach Unai Emery will be desperate to have the experienced Thiago Motta back for the home game against Basel. But Motta is struggling to shake off a muscle injury, meaning that PSG could be missing his snappy tack-
GROUP C Man City got off to a great start under Guardiola, winning 10 straight, but it’s enduring a three-game winless streak that has added some pressure on the newly signed coach. “Of course the confidence and mood is much better when you win,” Guardiola said after the team’s 1-1 draw with Everton, when Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Aguero had spot kicks saved. City has four points, two less than Barcelona, which won both of its games and is on a 12-match winning streak at home in the Champions League. Luis Enrique’s Barcelona is unbeaten in 17 home games in the European competition. In the other group match, Celtic hosts Borussia Moenchengladbach to try to improve on its four-game unbeaten run at home in Europe.
team in Champions League history to advance from its group after just three matches — if Napoli beats visiting Besiktas, and Dynamo Kiev draws with Benfica. However, Napoli has lost consecutive Serie A matches for the first time under second-year coach Maurizio Sarri and has to overcome a lengthy injury layoff for Arkadiusz Milik, the Poland forward who scored seven goals in his first eight matches with the southern club. Manolo Gabbiadini, Milik’s replacement, did not impress in a 3-1 defeat to Roma at the weekend, which ended Napoli’s 22-match unbeaten streak at home. Early advancement would provide a measure of revenge for Napoli after the club became the first team with 12 points to be eliminated from the current group-stage format in 201314. While Napoli has a perfect six points and Besiktas two, Dynamo and Benfica have only one each.
GROUP B UEFA says Napoli has a chance to become the first
GROUP D After a three-match winless run, Carlo Ancelotti’s
THe WeaTHer repOrT
5-Day Forecast
TOday
OrlandO
High: 86° F/30° C low: 68° F/20° C
Tampa
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saTurday
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Partly sunny with a shower; breezy
Partly cloudy with a quick shower
Sun and some clouds with a shower
A mixture of clouds and sun
Partly sunny with a shower in spots
Mostly sunny and pleasant
High: 86°
Low: 73°
High: 84° Low: 73°
High: 84° Low: 73°
High: 85° Low: 72°
High: 83° Low: 71°
AccuWeather RealFeel
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91° F
77° F
93°-78° F
94°-77° F
95°-71° F
88°-70° F
The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.
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Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 84° F/29° C Low .................................................... 71° F/22° C Normal high ....................................... 85° F/29° C Normal low ........................................ 73° F/23° C Last year’s high ................................. 86° F/30° C Last year’s low ................................... 72° F/22° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date ............................................... 47.19” Normal year to date ................................... 32.58”
eleuTHera
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High: 86° F/30° C low: 73° F/23° C
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2016
High: 84° F/29° C low: 76° F/24° C
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3.7 -----
5:28 a.m. -0.1 6:20 p.m. 0.2
Friday
12:16 a.m. 12:49 p.m.
3.0 3.5
6:26 a.m. 7:21 p.m.
0.2 0.4
Saturday
1:20 a.m. 1:52 p.m.
2.8 3.3
7:30 a.m. 8:26 p.m.
0.5 0.5
Sunday
2:27 a.m. 2:57 p.m.
2.7 3.1
8:37 a.m. 9:30 p.m.
0.7 0.6
Monday
3:35 a.m. 4:00 p.m.
2.7 3.0
9:45 a.m. 0.7 10:29 p.m. 0.6
Tuesday
4:37 a.m. 4:58 p.m.
2.8 3.0
10:49 a.m. 0.7 11:22 p.m. 0.5
sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset
7:10 a.m. 6:39 p.m.
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High: 84° F/29° C low: 77° F/25° C
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Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
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methods are already being questioned. The new Bayern coach was praised at the start of the season for his relaxed approach, after Guardiola’s more rigid, detail-driven style. Now, the feeling is that players may be losing their drive and determination under Ancelotti. Club boss Karl-Heinz Rummenigge felt obliged to slam the team’s “unacceptable” performance in a 2-2 draw with 10-man Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga on Saturday. The media quickly suggested that some of Guardiola’s discipline might be in order. Bayern, which will be without Franck Ribery when it hosts PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, has won 13 consecutive home matches — a Champions League record. PSV, however, is undefeated in 22 away matches in all competitions. The German side has three points, three less than group leader Atletico Madrid, which plays at Rostov.
CrOOKed Island / aCKlIns raGGed Island High: 86° F/30° C low: 78° F/26° C
GreaT InaGua High: 87° F/31° C low: 77° F/25° C
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marine Forecast aBaCO andrOs CaT Island CrOOKed Island eleuTHera FreepOrT GreaT eXuma GreaT InaGua lOnG Island mayaGuana nassau raGGed Island san salVadOr
Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday:
WINDS NE at 8-16 Knots N at 8-16 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots NNE at 6-12 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots WNW at 6-12 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots S at 4-8 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots NNW at 6-12 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots NNE at 8-16 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots NNW at 4-8 Knots E at 6-12 Knots SSE at 4-8 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots ENE at 4-8 Knots NNW at 6-12 Knots SSW at 6-12 Knots NE at 6-12 Knots N at 4-8 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots ENE at 4-8 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots NW at 6-12 Knots
WAVES 6-10 Feet 6-10 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 5-9 Feet 4-8 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-5 Feet 6-10 Feet 5-9 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 4-7 Feet 3-5 Feet 1-3 Feet 0-1 Feet 6-10 Feet 4-8 Feet 3-5 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-5 Feet
VISIBILITY 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles
WATER TEMPS. 80° F 80° F 84° F 84° F 80° F 79° F 83° F 84° F 79° F 79° F 80° F 80° F 82° F 82° F 87° F 88° F 82° F 81° F 86° F 86° F 84° F 83° F 80° F 80° F 79° F 78° F
PAGE 8, Wednesday, October 19, 2016
THE TRIBUNE
Blue Jays stave off ALCS elimination, top Indians 5-1 By NOAH TRISTER AP Baseball Writer TORONTO (AP) — Josh Donaldson homered to give Toronto a long-awaited lead, and the Blue Jays finally broke through with the bats, beating the Cleveland Indians 5-1 yesterday to avert a sweep in the AL Championship Series. The Indians still lead the matchup 3-1, but Donaldson and a poised Aaron Sanchez handed them their first loss of this postseason. Edwin Encarnacion later hit a two-run single, a welcome sight for a raucous Rogers Centre crowd that had fallen silent watching its team reach the brink of elimination because of a slumbering offence. Donaldson’s solo shot to leftcentre field off Corey Kluber in the third put the Blue Jays ahead for the first time all series. Two innings after that, the star third baseman made an outstanding diving stop to preserve a onerun edge. Sanchez, the American League ERA champion, allowed a run and two hits in six innings, and the bullpen finished with three perfect innings. Cleveland will try again today to win to earn its first World Series trip since 1997, but the big concern for the Indians coming into the series — an injury-riddled rotation — still lingers. Kluber was starting on three days’ rest for the first time in his career, and in Game 5 Cleveland will send lightly used rookie Ryan Merritt to the mound against Marco Estrada. Kluber hadn’t allowed a run in either of his first two starts this postseason. Donaldson, the reigning AL MVP and sporting a still freshly shaved face, opened the scoring with his first home run of these playoffs. The wild-card Blue Jays made it 2-0 in the fourth when Ezequiel Carrera’s blooper fell between three Cleveland fielders in left-centre for an RBI sin-
come the third team to sweep a Division Series and Championship Series in the same postseason. The 2007 Colorado Rockies and 2014 Kansas City Royals both did it. Cleveland had won nine in a row, including three straight over Boston in the ALDS. The Indians had a chance to take the lead in the third when Tyler Naquin hit a leadoff double and went to third on a sacrifice. Sanchez retired Santana on a soft grounder with the infield in, and then Jason Kipnis also grounded out. Kluber was pulled after 89 pitches. He allowed two runs and four hits in five innings. The Blue Jays added two more runs in the seventh after a throwing error by reliever Bryan Shaw. Encarnacion came up with the bases loaded and the crowd chanting “Eddie” — and his hard grounder skipped off the mound and into centre field to make it 4-1.
BLUE Jays’ Josh Donaldson watches his home run off Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Corey Kluber in Game 4 yesterday. (AP) gle. Roberto Perez hit an RBI double in the fifth off Sanchez. Carlos Santana’s two-out grounder to the left side might have had a chance to score him, but Donaldson made the play. The Indians didn’t have another baserunner after that.
Brett Cecil, Jason Grilli and Roberto Osuna pitched an inning each in relief for Toronto. Taking no chances, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons brought in Osuna, his closer, in a nonsave situation to finish off Cleveland. The Indians were trying to be-
TRAINER’S ROOM Trevor Bauer’s finger injury put more pressure on Kluber to come back for Game 4 and a possible Game 7 on short rest. Bauer cut his right pinkie on a drone and had to be pulled in the first inning Monday after he started bleeding. “I had to witness everything he had to go through to try and go out there and pitch last night,” pitching coach Mickey Callaway said before Tuesday’s game. “Not too many people would have done that. He’s been wonderful. He’s obviously grown over the years because he wanted to.” UP NEXT Indians: The 24-year-old Merritt has pitched 11 innings as a big leaguer. His only start came September 30, when the lefthander held Kansas City to a run and three hits in five innings. Blue Jays: Estrada allowed two runs in eight innings in Game 1 against Cleveland.
CLEVELAND Indians pitcher Corey Kluber pitches to the Toronto Blue Jays yesterday in the first inning during Game 4 of the ALC Series. (AP)
KLUBER CAN’T SEAL SWEEP FOR INDIANS IN GAME FOUR By IAN HARRISON Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — Corey Kluber’s first career start on short rest hardly went the way he hoped. Looking to finish off a Cleveland sweep in the AL Championship Series, the ace right-hander instead was touched up by the Toronto Blue Jays during a 5-1 defeat yesterday in Game 4. Pushed up to pitch on three days’ rest because of several injuries to Cleveland’s rotation, Kluber took the loss after allowing two runs and four hits in five innings. It was the first time the 2014 AL Cy Young Award winner permitted a playoff opponent to score. He had thrown 13 1/3 scoreless innings against the Red Sox and Blue Jays this October in his first postseason. “We talked to Kluber after every inning, and I thought he held his stuff really good. I thought his legs started to get a little tired,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. Still one win from their first trip to the World Series since 1997, the Indians take a 3-1 ALCS lead into Game 5 today. Rookie left-hander Ryan Merritt will start against Blue Jays right-hander Marco Estrada.
