SPORTS SECTION A
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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2018
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Higgs diagnosed with torn ACL in left knee By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net t was one of those scary moments that no player would like to go through. But when Texas Longhorns’ senior guard Lashann Higgs went down with her injury, she knew it was bad. The Harbour Island native suffered what was diagnosed as a torn ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) in her left knee. On a drive to the basket with six minutes and 55 seconds left in the first half of their first game of the Gulf Coast Showcase on Friday against Quinnipiac, Higgs
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A VIEW of Lashann Higgs’ left knee in a brace. The Harbour Island native suffered what was diagnosed as a torn ACL.
collapsed to the floor, grimacing in excruciating pain. “When I went down, I knew it was bad,” Higgs told The Tribune in an exclusive interview. “I’ve seen what happened to other players and it just flashed across my mind.” In nine minutes in her starting role, Higgs was shooting 2-for-4 from the field and 1-for-1 from both the three-point and free throw lines for six points. She also had three rebounds and four turnovers. Despite losing Higgs, the Longhorns, ranked at No.10, went on to win the game 56-55 and eventually
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Well comin’ home, winless By B RENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas Baseball Association, in its return to international play without any of its top players, will come home on Thursday from the Pan American Baseball Confederation championships in Panama winless. But BBA vice president Marvin ‘Tougie’ Wood said it isn’t so much about the team’s 0-4 record as it is the experience that the players from New Providence and Grand Bahama gained playing overseas. “The tournament was excellent. It was a good experience for the young guys,” said Wood, who served as head of the delegation. “We haven’t been to a tournament in about 4-5 years, so it was a good experience for the under18 guys.” The Bahamas, playing out of Group B, lost its games to Cuba, Canada, Venezuela and Colombia. The tournament served as a qualifier for the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s 29th World Cup, scheduled for 2019 in the Gijang-Hyundai Dream Ballpark in Gijang, South Korea. Team Bahamas was managed by Ken Adderley and coached by Marcian Curry, Keel Pinder (Grand Bahama) and Lionel Ferguson. The players on the team were: Walter Forbes, Darron Taylor, Monryan Saunders, Jahsiah Gilbert, Franklyn Henfield,
GOOD EFFORT: The Bahamas’ under-18 national baseball team with Bahamas Baseball Association president Sam Rodgers. Derrinyj Russell, McKell Bethel, Camrone Meadows and Rex Missick (Grand Bahama) and Keffron Wright (Abaco). New Providence - Austin Knowles, Avard Hart, Ferron Moss, James Rolle, Steffan McKenzie, Devyn Munroe, Tyler Kemp, Treen Dorsette, Dylan
Cartwright and Darron Taylor. Wood, a former perennial national team player, said the record didn’t paint a true picture of how well the team played. “We were in most of the games from the beginning to about the fifth or sixth inning and then the
team started to lose focus,” he said. “They started to make the simple mistakes and errors to give the next teams more runs than they were supposed to get. “The bottom line is the guys are not playing enough baseball and we need to be playing baseball. We need to have the
baseball stadium to play in.” While the team was made up of nine players from Grand Bahama, one from Abaco and 10 from New Providence, Wood admitted that the only thing they can do in the
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NPBA: EAGLES NEST AND ROCKETS IN THE WIN COLUMN THE Leno Eagles Nest and the Discount Distributors Rockets emerged victorious in the two New Providence Basketball Association games at the AF Adderley Gymnasium on Monday night. In the men’s division II opener, the Eagles Nest had to go to overtime before they pulled off a 104-100 win over the Caro Contractors Resistance, while the Rockets blasted the Pros 106-82 in the men’s division one feature contest. • Here’s a summary of the games played: Eagles Nest 104, Pros 100 After playing to an 87-87 tie at the end of regulation, Leno outscored Caro Contractors 17-13 in the extra five minutes to seal the deal. Tyrell Butler came off the bench and in 33 minutes, netted a game high 24 points on 8-for-19 shooting from the field, 3-for-6 from behind the three-point arc and 5-for-10 from the free throw line. He also had four rebounds and four assists. Bradley Altidor had 13 points, six rebounds and five steals, Alfred Smith had 12 points, 18 rebounds, five steals, three assists and a pair of blocked shots and both Justin Ferguson and Jonaldo Joseph added 10 points apiece. In a losing effort for the Resistance, Jayson McHardy led with 18 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals off the bench. Two others came off the bench and made their presence felt as Tyreke Colebrooke had 17 points and Shaquille Outten added 16 points and four rebounds. Marcian Higgins was the only starter in double figures with 10 points, nine rebounds and three steals. Rockets 106, Pros 82 Livingstone Munnings had another sensational game with 29 points on 12-for-18 from the field and 5-for-9 from the foul line to
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Anfernee Seymour going back to his roots at Freedom Farm By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net USING the opportunity to never give up on your dreams,
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Anfernee Seymour is going Heritage in Delray Beach, back to his roots this weekFlorida. end to share his experience Seymour, now in the as a professional baseball Miami Marlins organisaplayer at Freedom Farm. tion, said there are some And while he will be big plans in store for the hosting sessions on Saturfuture. “I’m also opening day and Sunday for boys, up the Anfernee Seymour he’s providing an avenue Foundation, which will for girls to improve in SEYMOUR provide kids to get seen by softball with American college and professional Olympian Natasha Watley coming scouts for those players who are to town to share her expertise. less fortunate, but still have the “I decided to put this one to ability to play the game.” give back to the kids at Freedom During the camp, which starts Farm,” said Seymour, who got at 10am on Saturday and continstarted in the organisation there ues at 12:30pm Sunday, Seymour and went on to play for St Augus- said the campers will be taught tine’s College before he left to the basic fundamentals of the complete high school at American game.
NATASHA WATLEY Watley is in the same MVP Sports Group as Seymour. Having celebrated her 37th birthday yesterday, Watley can be remembered as a former softball player for the UCLA Bruins, USA Softball Women’s National team and the USSSA Pride.
She helped the Bruins win a national college championship title and Team USA to the gold medal in softball at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. At 5-feet, 10-inches, Watley was the first African-American female to play on the USA team in the Olympics and she is the career batting average leader in the National Pro Fast pitch where she played with the New York Juggernauts, Philadelphia Force and USSSA Pride from 2005-2015. She was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame on October 11, 2014 and officially
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PAGE 14, Wednesday, November 28, 2018
SPARKS BOYS, GIRLS WIN THE CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOLS BASKETBALL TITLE THE Catholic Diocesan Primary Schools completed its basketball championship games yesterday at Loyola Hall on Gladstone Road with the St Thomas More Sparks carting off both the boys’ and girls’ titles as they won over the St Francis/ Joseph Shockers. The four-time champions Sparks won their fourth boys’ title as they completed a perfect season. Davon Davis was named the most valuable player. He is the son of former national team guard Varel Davis, the president of the
Government Secondary Schools Sports Association. The Sparks won the girls’ title for the second time. The MVP in their series was J’Kaiyah Rolle. St Thomas More was coached by Como Ferguson. Pictured top left and at right are members of the St Thomas More teams. Boys’ and girls’ MVP winners Davon Davis and J’Kaiyah Rolle (top right). Coach Como Ferguson accepts the team trophy from tournament director Vanta Culmer (top right).
THE TRIBUNE
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, November 28, 2018, PAGE 15
Column: Tiger’s Tour Championship victory changes the conversation By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — The first stop is Sam Snead and his 82 career PGA Tour victories. The ultimate stop is Jack Nicklaus and his 18 majors, the gold standard in golf. Both milestones are now in play for Tiger Woods, which is not to suggest they are within reach. That they are at least a topic of conversation is a victory in itself considering it took four back surgeries — the last one to fuse his lower spine — for Woods to even compete again. And then he took hopes to another level by winning the Tour Championship for his 80th career tour victory. “I know I can win tournaments again,” Woods said yesterday. His next chance is at the Hero World Challenge this week, an unofficial event that counts only in the world ranking, his bank account and his confidence. More curious is what Woods will do in 2019 and for how much longer. He turns 43 at the end of the year, and with age comes a dose of practical thinking. His expectations are high by his standards. Given the level of attention he draws, the expectations of everyone around him are sure to be much higher. He was asked if he was close to having the same expectations he did 15 years ago. “It’s not the same. It never will be. I’ll never feel that again,” he said. “To be what, 28 years old? Physically, I’ll never be like that. So expectations are different than they used to be, for sure. Now, can I still win? Can I still compete? Yes. Can I do it for the next 20 years? No. Because that’s not realistic.”
TIGER Woods celebrates on the 18th green after winning the Tour Championship golf tournament on September 23. (AP) Indeed, his expectations at the peak of his career were far different. “Just win. Win everything,” he said. “Because I felt like I could.” And now he knows he can win again, a process that took two weeks short of a full year. It began in early October a year ago when he posted a short video of a slow, full swing that was the first sign he could return. He was No. 1,199 in the world ranking when he played his holiday event in the Bahamas last year. He twice had a chance to win on the back nine in Florida. He had the lead on Sunday in a major at Carnoustie, and he challenged Brooks Koepka to the finish at Bellerive in the PGA Championship. He went from being a vice captain to a captain’s pick in the Ryder Cup. Woods returns to the Bahamas at No. 13 in the world, which on paper
sounds more amazing than it really is because he was so low in the ranking from having played so little that he essentially was starting from scratch. There was no way to go but up. Woods can’t call this his best year because he had 11 years of at least five victories and nine years with at least one major through 2008, when he won his 14th major at Torrey Pines on a left leg that required season-ending surgery after the US Open. But it was special, measured beyond victories. “Probably the most rewarding, because there was a point ... I just didn’t know if I would ever do this again,” he said. “You always hear me say, ‘It’s a process.’ But if you look at this entire year, it literally was a process. You saw me have flashes, and then I would rework a few things here and there. Toward the end of the year, I just
became more and more consistent as a tournament player again.” It culminated at East Lake, when he beat Justin Rose and then Rory McIlroy in the final group over the last two days to win the Tour Championship. That was the moment that mattered. And then the moment was gone. Never has a victory this big had a shelf life so short. Woods was in Paris the next day as all the attention shifted to the Ryder Cup, which ended with a European victory and Woods failing to win a match. He says he was exhausted from a long summer. Woods qualified for the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone at the last minute, meaning he played seven big tournaments in a span of nine weeks, all of them in stifling heat except for Paris. Winning didn’t really sink in until he returned
home to Florida and was given a surprise celebration party at his restaurant. He said it has become “our Jupiter tradition,” celebrating victories for PGA Tour players when they win. “Finally, they get to celebrate one of my wins,” he said. The next one? The first step is figuring out where to play. Woods is eligible for the winnersonly start to the year at Kapalua, which is a possibility. He might end up dropping a tournament or two in the spring because of the crowded calendar. Three of the majors are on courses where he has won before — Augusta National, Bethpage Black (PGA Championship) and Pebble Beach (US Open). There will be talk of catching Snead and resuming the chase of Nicklaus, all because of one win that a year ago didn’t seem likely.
WOODS SIGNS DEAL FOR EXCLUSIVE CONTENT ON GLOBAL GOLFTV NEW YORK (AP) — Tiger Woods has signed a deal with Discovery, Inc., that will offer behind-thescenes access on GOLFTV, the PGA Tour’s new global streaming partner. Terms of the deal were not announced. GOLFTV is the brand name for Discovery’s ondemand video streaming service that starts next year. It plans to collaborate with Woods on wide range of programming designed to give viewers a closer look into Woods’ practice routines, life on the tour and some instruction. “I want to talk to golf fans and golfers everywhere, directly, and straight from me,” Woods said. “That’s important to me, talking about what we care about. What’s happening on the course, how to play better, how can I shoot lower scores tomorrow, how can I beat my friends?” The content will be owned exclusively by GOLFTV globally, including in the United States, where Discovery can still develop a distribution strategy. GOLFTV will be available in January except in the United States, South Korea and China, offering content such as featured holes and feature groups. Full PGA Tour coverage will be available around the world at different times through 2024. Discovery, which has networks including Discovery and Animal Planet, agreed to a $2 billion deal with the PGA Tour in June to deliver golf content directly to consumers in 220 markets outside the United States over the next 12 years.
TOP GOLFERS GET READY FOR BATTLE THE 2018 Hero World Challenge, the exclusive golf event of the world’s top-ranked golfers, November 29 to December 2, is on par to take place at Albany for the fourth consecutive year. The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism coordinates and plays a major part in its success. • Shown at yesterday’s press conference are Tiger Woods (bottom left) and Pawan Munjal, chairman, managing director and chief executive officer of Hero MotoCorp (top right). Photos: Kemuel Stubbs/ BIS
THE TEE TIMES • Here’s a look at the tee times for the 2018 Hero World Challenge Pro-Am today at the Albany Club for the pros only: Time (ET) Hole #1 Hole #10 8:20 AM Tiger Woods Justin Rose 8:32 AM Rickie Fowler Bubba Watson 8:44 AM Dustin Johnson Gary Woodland 8:56 AM Justin Thomas Patrick Reed 9:08 AM Keegan Bradley Jason Day 9:20 AM Jon Rahm Xander Schauffele
9:32 AM Alex Noren Patrick Cantlay 9:44 AM Hideki Matsuyama Bill Haas 9:56 AM Bryson DeChambeau Tony Finau 10:08 AM Henrik Stenson • Here’s a look at the tee times for round one of the 2018 Hero World Challenge on Thursday at the Albany Club: 11:10 AM Tony Finau - Lehi, UT Gary Woodland - Topeka, KS 11:21 AM Keegan Bradley – Woodstock, VT Hideki Matsuyama – Sendai, Japan 11:32 AM Patrick Cantlay – North Palm Beach, FL Xander Schauffele – San Diego, CA
TIGER Woods answers questions from the media during yesterday’s press conference for the Hero World Challenge. 11:43 AM Justin Rose – London, England Henrik Stenson – Gothenburg, Sweden 11:54 AM Jon Rahm – Barrika, Spain Alex Noren – Stockholm, Sweden
12:05 PM Justin Thomas – Louisville, KY Tiger Woods – Jupiter, FL 12:16 PM Rickie Fowler – Murrieta, CA Dustin Johnson – Jupiter, FL 12:27 PM Patrick Reed – Houston, TX
Bubba Watson – Bagdad, FL 12:38 PM Jason Day – Brisbane, Australia Bryson DeChambeau – Clovis, CA Approximate Tee Times: Friday: 11:10 AM – 12:38 PM Saturday: 11:40 AM – 1:00 PM Sunday: 10:40 AM – 12:00 PM
PAGE 16, Wednesday, November 28, 2018
THE TRIBUNE
GREEN ARROW TRACK CLUB CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS IN ABACO By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net VETERAN track and field coach Vogal Williams continues to work in the trenches, providing the youngsters in Abaco a chance to compete in their own cross country championships. Through his Green Arrow Track and Field Club, the championships will take place on Saturday, starting at 10am in Marsh Harbour, Abaco. The registration fee is priced at $5 per
person. Registration will be conducted up until race day. “I am just trying to do something in Abaco because track and field in Abaco is not at the high level that it should be at,” Williams said. “Coaching track and field is all I know. I’ve been coaching all my life. “Before, I used to do a marathon relay, but after I came out of the school system, it died. I still have my club, so I decided to have Abaco seen, so that is why I’m doing the cross country.”
Competitors in the boys’ and girls’ division will get a chance to compete in the under-9, under-11, under-13, under-15, under-17 and under-20 categories. “We don’t have that many adult runners around in Abaco, who can come out there and run, so I decided to go with the high school age groups,” Williams said. The under-9s will run a half mile, under-11s will do a mile, under-13s will do a mile and a half, under-15s will have two miles and under-17s and under-20s will cover 5 kilometres or 3.5 miles.
The first place finisher in each category will get a trophy and medals will be distributed to the second and third places. Fourth through sixth places will get ribbons. “We hope to have some competitors come in from Grand Bahama,” Williams said. “We wanted to get some of the competitors from New Providence. “But it’s so difficult to travel in our country. It’s too expensive. Just to bring one child in from New Providence cost about $150 round trip. So if the schools want
to bring in about 10 athletes, that’s over a thousand dollars they have to spend.” Williams, who was in town over the weekend for the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations election of officers on Saturday, said they are still hoping that some athletes from New Providence will still make the trek to Abaco. Even if they just come in Saturday morning, compete and head out that evening, which he said is more economical, but more taxing on the body with the jetlag.
Lashann Higgs diagnosed with torn ACL in left knee FROM PAGE 13 the Gulf Coast Showcase title with victories over Michigan and Fordham. “I really wanted to be there for the team, but I guess I now have to do whatever I can to help them out from the sidelines,” she said. Higgs was averaging 13.8 points and 4.5 rebounds through the Longhorns’ first four games. In her second game, she poured in a game high 20 points to become the 44th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points. She now has compiled a 1,004 career points following Texas’ 64-54 win over North Texas at The Super Pit in Denton, Texas. It was her sixth career 20-point performance and her second in two games this season. “You don’t go out there to get the records, you just play the game and try to help your team win,” said a modest Higgs. “My teammates fed me the ball and I just took advantage of it. “I was very thrilled when I found out that I achieved the mark. But it wasn’t something that I really went out to do. I just wanted to do whatever it took to help my team win. As the Longhorns went on to win the Gulf Coast Showcase title on Sunday with a 72-54 triumph as Higgs walked on crutches with a knee brace, Texas remained undefeated at 6-0. Higgs, who moved from the Bahamas in grade seven at the age of 14 to complete high school, lost her mother Romilly in September, 2013. She was adopted into the home of George (an assistant coach at Texas) and Jackie (former professional player), who welcomed her with open arms to her new siblings (George Jr, Jackson and Jayden). Today, Higgs said she’s grateful to all of the support she has received in her quest to become the next Bahamian to play in the Women’s National Basketball Association after Grand Bahamian Jonquel Jones and Waltiea Rolle. Coming off an All-Big 12 Conference Second-Team selection and member of the Big 12 All-Defensive Team in her junior year last year, Higgs was anticipating stellar season this year.
ARIZONA State forward Kianna Ibis (42) tries to work the ball past Texas guard Lashann Higgs (10) during a second-round game in the NCAA women’s college basketball tournament on March 19 in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) She started all 35 games for the Longhorns, averaging 25.0 minutes per game with 12.8 points, the third ranked on the team, 3.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. During the season, Higgs scored in double figures on 21 occasions, including 20-plus point performances. She also had two or more steals in 17 games. She also scored a game high 20 points with a season-high seven rebounds snd three assists in 33 minutes of play as
they lost to No. 2/3 Baylor in the championship game of the Big 12 Conference Tournament on March 5. This year was to the culmination of a great career for Higgs, who is majoring in youth and community studies and was on the Big 12 Commission’s Honor Roll last year. “I was really looking forward to this year,” said Higgs, who had aspirations of entering the WNBA draft next year. “I know it’s going to be tough. “But I have to endure it and get ready for rehab
and hopefully my comeback next year. It’s hard not to be playing anymore this season.” Higgs, who is still having some tests done to determine whether or not she will be required to have surgery, left some encouraging words to the Bahamian public who might have been concerned about her condition. “There are things that happen that we will never understand why,” she stated. “Just know that God has a plan and you
have to trust his plan no matter what or how hard it is. “There are times when it’s going to be rocky and there are times when you are going to fall, but you have to trust him to lift you up so that you can come back stronger and better.” As she looks forward to making a comeback, Higgs said she believes “it’s not over until God says it’s over.” She hopes to return for her fifth year at Texas next year to complete the job that she didn’t this year.
BASEBALL TEAM WINLESS from page 13
future is find a way to get the players to come together and gel as a cohesive unit well in advance of travelling to compete. “It’s hard to get the players to come in on Thursday and we travel on Monday. That’s not enough time,” he started. “The team need to be playing together for at least 2-3 weeks getting to know each other. However, he said if the Bahamas is going to improve its level of play, the BBA will have to work on getting more of the professional players who are eligible to make the team. “We are going to be a force to reckon with,” Wood insisted. “I sat down here for the first time and I was amazed with the level and the talent that we have in our young guys. “If we can more playing time and some fields up and running, we’re going to be good. I believe that if we come back to this tournament next year, we will make the playoffs. I’m not going to say we will win, but I’m sure we will make the playoffs.” He noted that three quarters of the team are players, who are 16 years or younger. “We didn’t have any pros that went with us and the teams had about 6-7 pros playing for them and we were still playing with these guys,” he pointed out. “It’s hard for a federation to communicate with the pros at that level because they have to get their release for their organisations, but our main goal is to build the relationship with the pros so that they can understand that we are all in one boat, representing the country.” Next year, Wood said the BBA, under the presidency of Sam Rodgers, intends to hold a series of showcases to display the talent of the local players as there were some of the pro teams who expressed an interest in coming to the Bahamas to view the players here. “We need to be playing senior level baseball because it allows the 16 and 17 and 18 year olds to play against older guys,” Wood said. “We have to get away from the seven-inning games and play nine innings and the 10-game series and play much more ball. I believe that this team here in Panama surprised me. They made some mistakes, but they are good. In the future, they will only get better.”
Anfernee Seymour going back to his roots at Freedom Farm
NPBA: EAGLES NEST AND ROCKETS IN THE WIN COLUMN
FROM PAGE 13
FROM PAGE 13
retired in 2017. Seymour, 23, said he’s delighted to be able to host Watley in a co baseball/softball camp this weekend. She will be introduced to the public at a press conference today at Baha Mar. “Honestly, it’s something special and hopefully not only the media take note of her being here, but also the powers that be,” he said. “It’s an honour to bring someone with all of her accolades here is special.” Next year, Seymour said he intends to travel to North and Central Andros, Bimini and Abaco to assist in the opening of leagues on those islands.
Additionally, Seymour said his agency is looking to improve on this year’s clinic. Seymour, a 5-11, 165-pound right fielder, was signed by the Marlins as free agent to a minor league contract on May 10, four days after he was released by the Florida Fire Frogs. On June 2, he was assigned to the Double A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp and spent time with that team and the Jupiter Hummerheads as he completed his fifth sting in the minor league in September. “The only way up for me is Triple A or the Major League,” Seymour projected. “I am hoping that I will get that opportunity next year. “I think I had a pretty good run so far in the
league. Last year, I started off pretty slow I ended up getting released by the Braves, but after I got picked up by the Marlins, I decided that I had to pick it up and do the things that I have been doing all along.” Since he completed his season, Seymour has been at home enjoying a relaxing atmosphere with family and friends. “It’s always good to be back home,” he insisted. “It’s good to be around people who just light up my life, especially coming off the rough year that I had at the beginning of the season. “I ended it strong, so it’s good to be around family and friends.” This weekend will indeed be one of those special moments.
go along with 21 rebounds, seven blocked shots, six steals and five assists to lead Discount Distributors. David Taylor came off the bench with 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and as many steals, Cordero Pinder had 15 points and four rebounds, Tomeko Moxey also got off the bench with 11 points and and Lerecus Armbrister
chipped in with 10 points, five assists, two rebounds, two blocks and a steal. In a losing effort for the Pros, Colton Albury had 20 points and 19 rebounds; Chico Francis had 17 points and 15 rebounds, Stephan Burrows had 13 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals and Derrick Ferguson helped out with 12 points. TONIGHT 7pm - Sun Oil Rockets vs Breezes High Flyers 8:30pm - JD’s Seafood Shockers vs University of the Bahamas Mingoes.
THE TRIBUNE
Wednesday, November 28, 2018, PAGE 17
SHAH’S 14 WICKETS LEAD PAKISTAN TO INNINGS WIN OVER NEW ZEALAND DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Legspinner Yasir Shah’s rich match haul of 14 wickets earned Pakistan victory against New Zealand by an innings and 16 runs in the second test yesterday. After a career-best 8-41 to help dismiss New Zealand for 90, Shah grabbed 6-143 as the Black Caps followed on and were all out for 312 after tea on the fourth day. Shah equalled the Pakistan record for wickets in a test with fast bowler Imran Khan, who achieved his feat in 1982 against Sri Lanka in Lahore. “I haven’t bowled as well as this, especially with the pitch offering turn and bounce like it did,” Shah said. “The attempt was to put the disappointment of the first test behind and compete better. We just needed to keep getting wickets, and thanks God that happened.” Centuries by Haris Sohail and Babar Azam put Pakistan in command after making 418-5 declared. Shah then went to work. He has 22 wickets in the series, and needs five more to reach 200 in his career. They should come in Abu Dhabi, where the teams return for the third test and series decider from Monday.
New Zealand won the first test there by four runs. “Yasir’s spell was the best that I have ever seen in my years of test cricket,” Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed said. “The responsibility was first with the batsmen to make some runs, and they delivered.” Ross Taylor (82), Henry Nicholls (77) and Tom Latham (50) led New Zealand’s resistance, but the damage was wrought in the first innings. “We batted better in the second innings, but that session yesterday when Yasir put us under tremendous pressure and put the ball in the right areas (did us in),” New Zealand captain Kane Williamson said. “He is an exceptional bowler, and it’s important we learn some lessons quickly because we will face all the bowlers again (in the third test).” Forced to follow on, New Zealand resumed on 131-2 and Taylor and Latham were out in the first session. Latham was contentiously adjudged caught behind off Hasan Ali soon after completing his half-century. Umpire Paul Reiffel referred to third umpire Ian Gould to confirm. Latham played a defensive shot close to his front pad, and as the ball passed the bat the replay technology spiked.
PAKISTAN’s bowler Yasir Shah, left, reacts with Imam-ul-Haq (C) and Hasan Ali during their cricket test match against New Zealand yesterday. Pakistan won by an innings and 16 runs. (AP Photo/Martin Dokoupil) However, Latham walked off the field in disbelief. After lasting for 158 deliveries and hitting four boundaries, his dismissal ended
an 80-run, third-wicket stand with Taylor. Two balls later, Nicholls successfully reviewed an lbw decision
against him as video showed Hasan’s delivery would have missed the leg stump. Taylor completed his half-century off 54 balls when he drove Hasan through the point boundary off the first ball of the day. But Taylor went on the defence for a while before he played a reckless sweep, half an hour before lunch, and top-edged offspinner Bilal Asif to deep backward square leg. Taylor’s innings featured seven fours and a six and came off 128 balls. New Zealand reached 222-4 at lunch. Shah then trapped BJ Watling on 27 off the second new ball after lunch. Hasan returned to accept the wicket of Colin de Grandhomme for the third time in the series. De Grandhomme went for an unnecessary pull shot and played onto the fast bowler on 14. Ish Sodhi also gave his wicket away when he tried to sweep Shah, missed the line of the ball and was clean bowled for 4. Nicholls was undone four overs after tea by Hasan’s sharp delivery which nipped back into the left-hander to knock back the off stump. Shah wrapped up the innings soon after by claiming the wickets of Neil Wagner and Trent Boult. Hasan finished the innings with 3-46.
NEW Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) responds to the fans with a turkey drumstick as he runs off the field on Thanksgiving night after Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons in New Orleans. The Saints won 31-17. (AP Photo/Bill Feig)
Saints, Rams, Chiefs repeat as top 3 in AP Pro32 poll By SIMMI BUTTAR AP Sports Writer NEW YORK (AP) — For the past 2½ months, one thing has been clear in the NFL: Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints are hard to stop. The Saints’ winning streak reached 10 games with their 31-17 victory over Atlanta on Thanksgiving night. The Saints will play their second consecutive Thursday night game when they open Week 13 by facing the Dallas Cowboys. And it’s not the least bit surprising that the surging Saints kept the No. 1 spot in the latest AP Pro32 poll. They received all 12 firstplace votes and 384 points in balloting yesterday by media members who regularly cover the NFL. “Right here, right now, Drew Brees is this year’s MVP in a very crowded field of contenders,” Newsday’s Bob Glauber said. “At almost 40 years old, he’s playing perhaps his best football, with 29 touchdown passes and just two interceptions.” The league’s other 10-1 team, the Los Angeles Rams, stayed at No. 2 after its bye week. And the Kansas City Chiefs, who also were on a bye last week, remained No. 3. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are still No. 4 after disposing of the New York Jets 27-13. The only change in the top five was the Chicago Bears, who inched up a spot to No. 5 after topping the Lions 23-16 on Thanksgiving as backup quarterback Chase Daniel threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns in place of the injured Mitchell Trubisky. The Los Angeles Chargers jumped
two places to No. 6 after dominating Arizona 45-10 as Philip Rivers tied the NFL mark for consecutive completions at 25 and the broke record for the most to start a game. And the Houston Texans, who have won eight in a row after a 0-3 start, remained No. 7 after topping the Tennessee Titans 34-17 on Monday night. “The surging Texans honoured late owner Bob McNair with an eighth consecutive victory behind a powerful ground game and the usual stingy defence,” said Ira Kaufman of Fox 13 in Tampa, Florida. The Pittsburgh Steelers dropped three spots to No. 8 after their 24-17 loss at Denver. “Big Ben blows the game in Denver,” Fox Sports’ John Czarnecki said of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who threw for 462 yards but had two interceptions and now has 12 for the season. They will look to rebound Sunday night when they host the Chargers, who are expected to be without running back Melvin Gordon, who sprained the medial collateral ligament in his right knee during the rout of the Cardinals. The Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks, who are both in contention for wild-card spots in the NFC, each moved up a spot to Nos. 9 and 10. Among the teams making the biggest drop was the Cincinnati Bengals, who plummeted five spots to No. 24. They have lost five of six after a 4-1 start and will finish the season without quarterback Andy Dalton, who went on injured reserve with a thumb injury to his throwing hand.
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Nuggets win 117-85 in their biggest rout ever of Lakers DENVER (AP) — Paul Millsap, Jamal Murray and Malik Beasley scored 20 points apiece, and the Denver Nuggets rolled to their biggest victory ever over the Los Angeles Lakers, a 117-85 rout on Tuesday night. The 32-point margin surpassed a 29-point win in 1993. Nikola Jokic added 14 points and Juancho Hernangomez had 12 for the Nuggets, who won their fourth in a row. Kyle Kuzma scored 21 points for Los Angeles, while LeBron James and Brandon Ingram added 14 apiece. The Lakers, who handed the Nuggets their first loss of the season in late October in Los Angeles, struggled to find their shooting touch against Denver’s defensive pressure. RAPTORS 122, GRIZZLIES 114 MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Kyle Lowry had 24 points and six assists, Fred VanVleet added 18 points and Toronto used a 3-point shooting burst in the fourth quarter to beat Memphis. VanVleet made all six shots on the night, including three from outside the arc in the fourth, when Toronto was 7 of 12 from 3-point range. Lowry was 5 of 8 on 3-pointers. Kawhi Leonard finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Serge Ibaka scored 16 points as the Raptors won their sixth straight. PISTONS 115, KNICKS 108 DETROIT (AP) — Blake Griffin scored 30 points and Stanley Johnson added 21 to lift Detroit over New York. Reggie Jackson contributed 21 points for Detroit.
The Pistons held New York to 40 percent shooting from the field and led throughout the final three quarters. Allonzo Trier scored 24 points for the Knicks, who had won a season-high three in a row. The Pistons (11-7) are off to a solid start under new coach Dwane Casey, although nine of their victories have been against teams that currently have losing records. PACERS 109, SUNS 104 PHOENIX (AP) — Bojan Bogdanovic sank the go-ahead 3-pointer with 31 seconds to play and Indiana with a victory over Phoenix. The Pacers, coming off a 33-point victory at Utah the previous night, had their hands full in a tight fourth quarter. After Bogdanovic’s long-range basket, Devin Booker’s attempt at a gametying 3 barely rimmed out. Darren Collison’s two free throws wrapped up the scoring. Doug McDermott and Domantas Sabonis scored 21 points apiece for Indiana. Myles Turner added 16 and Bogdanovic 15. T.J. Warren scored 25 for the Suns. Booker was just 7-of-21 shooting but scored 20 points and had eight assists. Deandre Ayton had 18 points and 12 rebounds. HAWKS 115, HEAT 113 MIAMI (AP) — Taurean Prince scored 18 points, Trae Young finished with 17 points and 10 assists and the Atlanta Hawks held off the Miami Heat 115-113 on Tuesday night to snap a seven-game road slide. John Collins scored 16 points, Omari Spellman
NUGGETS guard Jamal Murray, right drives past Los Angeles Lakers guard Josh Hart during the second half last night in Denver. The Nuggets won 117-85. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) had 14 and Kent Bazemore finished with 12 for the Hawks, who are 2-0 against Miami this season and 3-16 against everyone else. Josh Richardson led Miami with 22 points, but his potential winning 3-pointer with 3 seconds left — a wide-open look — bounced off the rim. Dwyane Wade scored 18 and Wayne Ellington added 15 for the Heat, who have lost six straight at home. It’s only the 10th time in the 31 years of Heat basketball
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that Miami has lost so many consecutive games at home.
Bam Adebayo scored 12 for Miami, which got 11
apiece from Justise Winslow and Hassan Whiteside.
NO. 3 DUKE ROUTS INDIANA 90-69 DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Zion Williamson scored 25 points, RJ Barrett added 22 and No. 3 Duke routed Indiana 90-69 on Tuesday night in the ACC/ Big Ten Challenge. Tre Jones added 15 points and a fourth Duke freshman — Cameron Reddish — finished with 13 to help the Blue Devils (6-1) bounce back from their lone loss and win one of the made-for-TV event’s glamour matchups. This one featured a handful of potential NBA lottery picks — the Duke freshmen and Indiana’s Romeo Langford — on the floor at the same time. Duke looked nothing like the group that lost to Gonzaga last week in the Maui Invitational final . The Blue Devils never trailed, shot 52 percent and turned a season-worst 20 turnovers by Indiana into 24 points. Langford scored 13 points on 3-of-15 shooting to lead the Hoosiers (5-2). No. 5 NEVADA 79, LOYOLA-CHICAGO 65 CHICAGO (AP) — Caleb Martin had 21 points, twin brother Cody Martin scored 20 and Nevada beat LoyolaChicago in an NCAA Tournament rematch. Loyola beat Nevada by one point in the NCAA South Regional semifinals last season — the only other meeting between these programs. That victory came during a stunning Final Four run for the Ramblers. Caleb Martin scored 17 in the first half, helping the Wolf Pack (7-0) grab a 44-28 lead. The preseason All-American shot 8 of 13 in the game, including 3 for 6 on 3-pointers. Cody Martin was 9 of 14 with seven assists. Jordan Caroline had 15 points and six rebounds. Trey Porter added 14 points and 10 boards. Marques Townes — who hit the decisive 3 in the closing seconds of that NCAA game — led Loyola (4-3) with a season-high 24 points, but the Ramblers dropped their second straight game. LOUISVILLE 82, MICHIGAN STATE 78 LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Ryan McMahon made two free throws with 7.1 seconds remaining in overtime before Jordan Nwora made another from the line with 3.1 seconds
left to seal it as Louisville upset Michigan State. McMahon scored all seven of his points in the extra session from the line to finish with a careerhigh 24. Nwora’s clinching free throw followed his 3-pointer with 2:05 left that gave the Cardinals (4-2) the lead for good in an exciting matchup that ended a two-game slide and gave first-year coach Chris Mack his first significant win with the program. Louisville needed just about every point to hold off the Spartans (5-2), who had a chance to get close with Joshua Langford (15 points) at the line. But he missed the first of two free throws with 4.2 seconds left and failed to hit the rim on an intentional miss, a violation that gave Lou-
points over the next five minutes. Bolton hit his third 3-pointer of the game to give Penn State the lead for good, 61-58 lead with 3:57 to play. No. 14 IOWA 69, PITT 68 IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Freshman guard Joe Wieskamp had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Nicholas Baer scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half and Iowa held off Pittsburgh for its third win over a power program this season. Jordan Bohannon had 12 points and six steals for the Hawkeyes (6-0), who’ve also taken down Oregon and Connecticut this month. Pitt (6-1) put itself in
DUKE’s Zion Williamson dunks against Indiana during the first half yesterday. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) isville the ball and led to Nwora’s free throw. PENN STATE 63, No. 13 VIRGINIA TECH 62 STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Myreon Jones scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half to lead Penn State to an upset win over Virginia Tech. Lamar Stevens added 14 points and eight rebounds and Rasir Bolton chipped in 11 points for the Nittany Lions (4-2), who snapped Virginia Tech’s five-game winning streak. It was Penn State’s first win over a nonconference Top 25 team at home in 20 years. Justin Robinson led the Hokies (5-1) with 19 points while Ty Outlaw added 16. Kerry Blackshear Jr. and Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 14 and 13 points respectively for the Hokies who led 37-35 at halftime. The Hokies, playing for the first time on the road this season, used a 9-0 run midway through the second half that gave them a 50-44 lead. But Jones led the Nittany Lions back to a 56-55 advantage with 10
position for the upset — only to miss two shots in the final 10.4 seconds that would’ve given the Panthers the win. Xavier Johnson had 18 points to lead Pitt. No. 22 WISCONSIN 79, N.C. STATE 75 MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Ethan Happ had 19 points and 11 rebounds, D’Mitrik Trice hit a long jumper with 23.6 seconds left and Wisconsin withstood North Carolina State’s in-your-face defense to rally for a win. Wisconsin’s Brad Davison drew a charging call on Markell Johnson on the perimeter with 16 seconds left. The emotional Davison let out a furious yell and pumped his arms after forcing a critical turnover with the Wolfpack trailing by three. Davison hit two foul shots with 8 seconds left for a four-point lead for Wisconsin (6-1), and a last-gasp 3-point try for the Wolfpack sailed harmlessly off the backboard at the other end.
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PSG aims to avoid early elimination By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Paris SaintGermain’s hopes of breaking through in European soccer could end earlier than usual this season. A loss against Liverpool today in Paris, coupled with a home win by Napoli over Red Star, would keep PSG from making it out of the group stage in the Champions League. And that would be a significant setback for the big-spending French team desperately trying to assert itself as a world-class club. It would be the first time PSG failed to reach the tournament’s knockout round since 2011-12, after Qatar Sports Investments took over the club with the goal of turning it into a top contender. PSG was eliminated in the round of 16 last season, after reaching the quarterfinals four straight years before that. Failure this time would hurt PSG in its second season since signing Brazil star Neymar for 222 million euros from Barcelona in an attempt to increase its chances of succeeding in Europe. PSG enters the crucial match at Parc des Princes with five points in Group C, one behind leaders Liverpool and Napoli. A victory would put the French club back in position to advance depending on its own results. “It’s a decisive match in a very, very complicated group,” PSG coach Thomas Tuchel told French broadcaster TF1. The good news for Tuchel is that Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, who had been sidelined because of injuries, are expected to be available for the home match against Liverpool. • A look at the four Champions League groups today: GROUP A Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund lead the group and have a chance to secure places in the knockout round in advance. Dortmund needs a draw at Club Brugge, while Atletico needs a home win against Monaco. Atletico can also advance if Club Brugge loses points against Dortmund, which is coming off a blistering start to the season under new coach Lucien Favre.
LIVERPOOL’S TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD, left, celebrates scoring his side’s second goal of the game with a free kick during their English Premier League soccer match against Watford at Vicarage Road, Watford, England, on November 24. (Chris Radburn/PA via AP) The only setback for Favre so far was the 2-0 loss at Atletico in the team’s previous Champions League appearance. Paco Alcacer, signed on a permanent basis from Barcelona on Friday, scored again on Saturday in a win over Mainz, taking his league tally to nine goals in seven appearances. GROUP B Harry Kane kept Tottenham’s Champions League hopes alive with a late double to sink PSV Eindhoven in the last round of games. Now the striker has some back-up as his team tries to complete an unlikely recovery to qualify from Group B. Tottenham has struggled for attacking fluency this season, mainly because attacking midfielders Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli have been missing at times because of injury.
They appear to be fully fit now and were superb in Tottenham’s win over Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday, a 3-1 win that might have been its best display of the season. Spurs need to beat Inter Milan at Wembley Stadium today to keep alive ambitions of a top-two finish. That would leave the teams tied on seven points. Tottenham would still likely require a win at already-qualified Barcelona to advance, given that Inter closes group play at home to last-place PSV. Barcelona, without Rafinha, Luis Suarez and Arthur because of injuries, has a three-point advantage at the top and will clinch first place in the group with a win over PSV, or a draw if Inter does not beat Tottenham.
GROUP C Victories by Liverpool and Napoli would lock up the group which has proven to be the tightest of the Champions League. Napoli, the group’s only unbeaten team with three draws and one win, hosts a Red Star team which still has chances of advancing in its return to the tournament’s group stage after 26 years. The Serbian club has four points, one fewer than Paris SaintGermain and two fewer than Napoli and Liverpool. Red Star held Napoli to a 0-0 draw at home in the first round, but then conceded 10 goals in losses against PSG (6-1) and Liverpool (4-0). Liverpool, which beat PSG at home, lost 2-0 to Red Star in its previous Champions League match, but it is coming off two straight wins in the Premier
League. PSG, cruising in the French league, beat Liverpool 3-0 the only other time the teams met in Paris, nearly two decades ago. GROUP D Group leader Porto hosts second-place Schalke in a match in which a draw could be enough for both clubs to advance. They would clinch a spot in the knockout stage with a draw if Galatasaray fails to win its match at already eliminated Lokomotiv Moscow. A victory would secure first place for Porto, which has won eight straight entering the match at its Estadio do Dragao. Porto is trying to make it to the round of 16 for the third straight season. The Portuguese champion has 10 points, two more than Schalke and six more than Galatasaray.