SPORTS SECTION E
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2017
Lunn upsets Rolle By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
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ith the players jockeying for their positions going into the main draw play, Justin Lunn pulled off one of the biggest upsets on day two of the Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals. On Tuesday in the National Tennis Tournament in their final match in the round robin, Lunn stunned his Davis Cup captain Marvin Rolle 3-6, 6-3, 10-8 to advance out of Pool C with the number one spot. Also advancing to the main draw undefeated on the men’s side were defending champion and top seed Baker Newman and his brother, No.2 seed Spencer Newman, No.4 seed Kevin Major Jr and No.5 seed Philip Major Jr. On the ladies’ side, top seeds Kerrie Cartwright, Simone Pratt, Danielle Thompson and junior sensation Sydney Clarke all earned their berths undefeated at 2-0 in their respective pools. Unseeded Lunn’s victory came after he blanked both Calum Moodie and Michael Butler to go undefeated at 3-0. It was No.3 seed Rolle’s only loss after he won 6-0, 6-0 over Butler and 6-1, 6-0 over Moodie. “I started off really tight. I was kind of nervous. This was actually my first time beating Marvin and he was coaching me and everything, so it was a challenge for me to see where my game was,” Lunn said. “Throughout the whole match, I was just a little nervous, but I’m so happy to have pulled it off.” In the first set, Rolle broke Lunn at 2-2 to go on to win the first set. But Lunn returned the favor with a break at 2-1 to level the score and force the tiebreaker. “My confidence just jumped really high.
He’s in the main draw as well, but it’s always so good to win. I’m just excited. Hopefully I can keep this momentum going and I can bring my game back and relax in the rest of the tournament. Hopefully I can do very well.” Although he came out on the short end of the deal, Rolle had nothing but praise for his opponent. “Justin is a tough player. He returned a lot of balls and he served very well,” Rolle said. “He just pulled it out in the third set. He came up with some big points in the tiebreaker.” As he now prepares for the main draw, Rolle said he intends to be ready because he knows that the competition won’t get any easier. “I just have to see who I get and go from there,” he said. Baker Newman continues to prove why he’s the defending champion and top seed. He concluded Pool A with a 6-0, 6-1 win over fellow collegian Joshua Turnquest. “I was real happy with the way I played. It was a real solid match,” said Newman, who is coming off an injury in his season year at Vanderbilt University. At 5-0 in the second set, Turnquest managed to hold serve for his only point in the match. But Newman closed it by holding serve as well. “I played alright today, but he was just better than me,” said Turnquest, a 6-2 freshman at Asbury University. “He was just getting a lot of balls back. That’s why he’s the defending champion. “This was my first real test so far, but I still made it through the main draw, so hopefully I can turn things around.” Spencer Newman, a graduate of the University of Florida, said his goal is to get into the final to face his brother in the rematch from last year.
all,” he insisted. “Just like everyday, I have to come out here and play as if I’m playing (Roger) Federer and just keep leaving on the line with everything I got. I feel my legs are still fresh, so I’m ready to go.”
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UB MINGOES EARN 67-60 VICTORY OVER COUGARS TO SPLIT SERIES
Kevin Major Jr also earned a 6-0, 6-0 win over William ‘JJ’ Fountain to win Pool D with a 3-0 record. He feels he’s getting into a groove right
By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net AFTER letting game one slip out of their grasp, the University of the Bahamas Mingoes held on in game two to split their two-game series against the visiting Spring Arbor University Cougars. Coming off a 84-76 loss on Monday at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium, the Mingoes rallied on Tuesday to snatch a 29-25 halftime lead and they held on to secure a 67-60 win over the Cougars, who only played five players off their bench in the entire game. “Today was more a confidence booster than anything,” said UB’s head coach Bacchus Rolle. “We needed to get a win. We needed to string together a few wins. “We’ve been getting a win, getting a few losses, then string another win together. So it was a real confident booster for the team as we go into some workouts to prepare us to travel to Jacksonville in January to play.” After being held to just four points in the first half, Kemsy Sylvestre picked it up in the second half and ended up leading the Mingoes with 13 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. Ramon Dames helped out with nine points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists, Justin Munroe had eight points, three rebounds, two assists and as many steals, Donovan Dean had eight points and Christoph McKenzie chipped in with seven points. Down the stretch, Sylvestre canned a big three-pointer with one minute and four seconds on the clock to give UB a 63-58 lead and he sealed
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CENTRE COURT: Justin Lunn pulled off one of the biggest upsets on day two of the Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals. Yesterday, he stunned his Davis Cup captain, Marvin Rolle, to advance out of Pool C with the No.1 spot. Photo: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff He moved on to the main draw with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Michael Cooper. “The focus was there. Maybe I didn’t have to play that many games, but everyday you have to come out and give it your
KOBE
Buddy scores 24, helps Kings beat slumping 76ers 101-95 By AARON BRACY Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Zach Randolph and Vince Carter have been playing for so long that some of their teammates were toddlers when they broke into the NBA. That double dose of experience worked out quite well for Sacramento last night. Randolph scored 27 points and Carter had two key plays late in the game, helping the Kings to a 101-95 victory over the slumping Philadelphia 76ers. Buddy Hield had 24 points and Frank Mason III finished with 16 for Sacramento, which came back from a 16-point second-half deficit. “Zach started us out and really carried us for a while,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “He was really, really terrific.” The 36-year-old Randolph was rejuvenated after he rested during Sunday’s 108-93 loss at Toronto. He made 12 of 19 shots and grabbed five rebounds. “He’s an amazing low-post threat, for a long period of time,”
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Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said. Besides putting up solid numbers — Randolph entered leading the team in scoring and rebounding at 15.2 points and 7 boards per game — he is enjoying his role as veteran leader. “We get along well,” he said. “These kids are working, they’re playing hard, and it’s showing on the court. We believe in them.” Ben Simmons had 13 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists for Philadelphia, which lost for the seventh time in eight games while playing without centre Joel Embiid for the second straight night due to a back injury. Robert Covington led the 76ers with 17 points. Philadelphia looked out of sync without Embiid and Sacramento took advantage. Hield gave the Kings a 79-78 lead with a 3-pointer with 9:48 remaining. Carter made a fullcourt outlet pass to Garrett Temple for a layup that made it 92-86 Sacramento with 4:18 left. The 40-year-old Carter made another crucial play down the stretch, hustling for an offensive rebound that led to Randolph’s jumper with 1:59 to play. “Coach trusts me to be solid and consistent, not make mistakes and help our guys when I can,” Carter said. “I’ve been in big situations so I enjoy being on the court.” Simmons answered with a driving basket that made it 96-92, but he couldn’t convert the free throw after being fouled and the rally fizzled from there. “I don’t think we’ve been focusing down the stretch — missing shots, not calling the right plays,” Simmons said.
SACRAMENTO Kings’ Buddy Hield, of the Bahamas, in action last night against the Philadelphia 76ers in Philadelphia. Hield scored 24 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out two assists in 28 minutes on the court. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) “It’s just little things like that. It comes down to us focusing, and making sure we’re committed to defence and offence at the same time.” EMBIID’S ABSENCE Embiid did not travel with the team to Chicago for Monday’s 117-115 loss to the Bulls. He was expected to play against the Kings on the second night of backto-back games, but Brown said the team’s medical staff advised him to keep the 7-foot centre on
the sideline. The injury has kept Embiid out for four of the last six games. Brown said Embiid’s back “is still a little bit sore.” BROWN ON OKAFOR Jahlil Okafor, whom Philadelphia traded to Brooklyn earlier this month, made headlines in New York on Tuesday for saying he was glad to be with an organisation that had “an actual NBA coaching staff.” “Jahlil knows what we did here,” Brown said before the loss.
“It’s a young person who gave a quote. ... I think everybody understands how we treat people here and the attention he received while he was here.” UP NEXT Kings: Finish four-game road trip at Brooklyn tonight. Sixers: Host Toronto Thursday night in the first game of a homeand-home series. Philadelphia will play at the Raptors on Saturday night.