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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 2020)
Sports 8A Tuesday, October 6, 2020 Th e Observer Butler’s triple-double helps Heat get within 2-1 in fi nals By Tim Reynolds AP basketball writer LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Biggest moment of his career. Best game of his life. Jimmy Butler is clearly not ready to go home quite yet. With a triple-double, he joined NBA Finals lore — and the short-handed Miami Heat might have made this title matchup a series after all. Butler fi nished with 40 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists, and the Heat beat the Los Angeles Lakers 115-104 on Sunday night to get within 2-1 — doing so with starters Bam Ade- bayo and Goran Dragic still unable to play because of injury. “I tell Coach all the time, ‘’I’m ready for this,’” Butler said. “The biggest stage, whatever you ask me to do, I can do.” His coach, Erik Spoel- stra, has clearly listened. 2020 NBA FINALS L.A. LAKERS LEAD SERIES 2-1 Game 1: L.A. Lakers 116, Miami Heat 98 Game 2: L.A. Lakers 124, Miami Heat 114 Game 3: Miami Heat 115, L.A. Lakers 104 Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 6, 6 p.m. Game 5: Friday, Oct. 9, 6 p.m. *Game 6: Sunday, Oct. 11, 4:30 p.m. *Game 7: Tuesday, Oct. 13, 6 p.m. *-if necessary Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler (22) passes the ball against Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James (23) during Game 3 of the NBA Finals Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020, in Florida. “This is what he wanted, this is what we wanted,” Spoelstra said. “It’s really hard to analyze or describe Jimmy until you actually feel him between the four lines. He’s a supreme, elite competitor and we needed it.” It was the third 40-point triple-double in fi nals his- tory. Butler was 14 for 20 from the fi eld and, after the Heat surrendered a dou- ble-digit lead early in the fourth, he made sure this one wouldn’t get away. “He’s one of the best competitors we have in our game,” the Lakers’ LeBron James said. “Love that opportunity. For me, per- sonally, I don’t know how many more opportunities I’m going to have so to be able to go against a fi erce competitor like that is something I’ll look back on when I’m done playing. I’ll miss those moments.” James had 25 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Lakers, while Kyle Kuzma and Markieff Morris each had 19 points off the bench. Anthony Davis had 15 for the Lakers. Game 4 is Tuesday night. Tyler Herro and Kelly Olynyk each had 17 points for Miami, which got 13 from Duncan Robinson and 12 from Jae Crowder. “We had players step up this whole playoffs, and it’s no different now for us,” Crowder said. Whenever the Heat looked ready to pull away and grab control of Game 3, the Lakers always found a way to fi nd their best gear. A 13-point Heat lead in the early going? The Lakers had the lead back in less than fi ve minutes. A 14-point Heat lead after a 10-0 run to start the second half? The Lakers scored the next eight. A 12-point Heat lead late in the third? It took the Lakers less than fi ve min- utes to put together a 20-6 run, taking the lead back at 91-89 with 8:55 left. “We were almost fi ghting back the entire game,” Morris said. The last punch went to Miami, Butler unwilling to let his team go down 3-0. Hawks 4-0 for the fi rst time since 2013 Associated Press Ronald Bond/The Observer, File The EOU women’s cross-country team, shown last season at its home meet, was just out- side the NAIA top 25 coaches poll which came out last week. The men’s team was ranked 21st. Both teams were selected to place fi fth in the Cascade Collegiate Conference. EOU men’s cross-country ranked 21st, women just outside poll The Observer LA GRANDE — The Eastern Oregon University men’s cross-country team was ranked 21st in the NAIA preseason top 25 coaches poll, which was released Thursday, Oct. 1, while the women’s team was rated two spots outside of the rankings in a tie for 27th. The men are just shy of where they wrapped up last season, when they fi nished 19th at the NAIA National Championship meet, while the women are two spots ahead of their 29th place fi nish from nationals a year ago. The women are 25 points out of the rank- ings, while the men are nine points away from being in the top 20. Both teams were selected to place fi fth in the loaded Cascade Collegiate Con- ference’s coaches poll, and there were several other CCC squads in both polls. For the men, CCC newcomer Lewis-Clark State College was the highest rated school in the conference at third, and was joined in the top 10 by seventh-ranked Col- lege of Idaho and No. 10 Southern Oregon University. Oregon Tech broke into the top 20 at 16th. For the women, College of Idaho led the way as the nation’s top-ranked team. Lewis-Clark State College came in 13th, and Oregon Tech, like on the men’s side, was 16th. Southern Oregon, which was ranked one spot ahead of EOU in the CCC preseason poll, was not in the national rankings. Bank of Eastern Oregon. WHERE WE MEET All Your Financial Needs in one place. Ag and Commercial Real Estate Loans Term Loans • Lines of Credit Checking • Savings • On-line Banking • Mobile App La Grande 2514 Cove Avenue (541) 624-5040 Hours: 9 AM-5 PM MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The unbeaten Seattle Seahawks revived their blueprint from years past, winning with repeated defensive stops and one pivotal pass. Russell Wilson’s record production pace slack- ened slightly, but his long completion in the fi nal seconds of the fi rst half helped the Seahawks begin to pull away, and they beat the Miami Dol- phins 31-23 Sunday. Wilson threw for 360 yards and two touch- downs, and Seattle improved to 4-0. “For us to be 4-0 is a huge thing,” Wilson said. The Seahawks swept their fi rst four games only one other time in fran- chise history — in 2013, when they won their only Super Bowl. They’ve scored 30 or more points in four consecutive games for the fi rst time since 2015. But it was defense that made the difference against the Dolphins (1-3), who fell behind as they settled for Jason Sanders fi eld goals on their fi rst fi ve scoring drives. “We kept them in front of us all day long and made them earn their way,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. Wilson connected with David Moore for 57 yards in the fi nal seconds of the fi rst half to set up a touch- down that gave Seattle a 17-9 halftime lead. First-round draft pick Noah Igbinoghene blew the coverage on the play. TREASURE VALLEY STEEL, INC. Manufacturing Zee & Cee Purlins In-HouseCustom Cut Exact Lengths • 24 Colors • Custom Trim • 2 1/2” Corrugated • Delivery Available • Full Soffitt Line • 3 ft. Gulf Coast Panel • 3 ft. PBR Panel • 3 ft. Mesa Panel • 3 ft. Tuff Rib Panel • Standing Seam DELIVERY • 2 ft. Delta Rib AVAILABLE • 3 ft. 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