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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 24, 2001)
6_________ WcdNEsdAy, J anurary 24, 2001 Sports Tin e CI ac I camas P rim The Portland Trail Blazers are jelling, but will they come unglued in the playoffs? one that could contain Kobe. So when the Lakers waltzed into the Rose Garden and pounded the Blazers by 10 points on opening night, I wasn’t surprised. In fact, I was ready to give the trophy to LA. It is roughly halfway through the season and the Portland Trail Blaz ers are on top in the West. Most people would have predicted that the Lakers would be where the Blazers are now. When the Lakers acquired power for ward Horace Grant and shooting guard J.R. Rider last sum mer, they had im proved their front line and their bench. With these addi tions, the champion ship Lakers filled in their weak spots and Well, I was wrong! Who could have predicted the mess that the Lakers have on their hands this year? Shaq and Kobe bickered pub licly about who is the looked stronger best player on than they were last DARREL HOBSON the team. season. At least Sports Columnist Rider and they looked better Grant have yet on paper. to make a dif Then the Blazers traded' the heart and soul of the ference, and coach Phil Jackson is teain,' Brian Grant, and got an over sitting there looking in his empty weight, out of shape and aging bag of Zen Master tricks for some Shawn Kemp. I remember thinking this could be a good thingif Kemp gets his act together and losses some weight. He could help the Blazers. Yeah, right! Then we traded more of our talented youth for age and experience. We shipped Jermaine O’Neil for Dale Davis. Now this was a trade I liked. Davis is a lot like Grant. He is a blue collar, hard working type of player. He is taller and a better rebounder than Grant, but he is older. So I looked at the new rosters of both the Lakers and the Blazers to see who had the best chance of winning the title. The Blazers still didn’t have anyone that could guard Shaq, nor did they have any thing that will get this team to play together. The Lakers are losing to the worst teams in the NBA and squeaking by the good ones. In Portland, the Blazers are hot. Kemp and Davis are almost non factors because Rasheed Wallace, Damon Stodamire and Bonzi Wells have turned their game up another level from last year. But can they keep it going through the playoffs and make it to the finals? Halfway through the season, some of the Blazers are playing better than expected, while others are struggling. The following is a report card of how I think the Blaz ers are doing at this point in the season. Steve Smith - C+ Smitty is doing better now that he is coming off the bench. It’s good because I was getting tired of the “Oh he’s just fatigued from playing in the Olympics,” excuse. The fact is, Smith is a streaky player. When he’s on, he can’t miss. But when he’s off, he can be cold for a while. Hopefully Steve will get his shot back before the playoffs. We need him to win. improved and he is arguably the best power forward in the NBA. Dale Davis-B- Stacey Augmon - B Augmon is a proven starter o other teams. Known mostly for h suffocating defense, he has show Double D does what he is sup posed to do - rebound and defend. I was hoping he would have more Greg Anthony-B of an impact on the team. He has to work on free throws and find a bet- ter way to defend Shaq. is called on. Despite coming bac from ankle surgery in the off se< he can also score this year. Greg is performing well when h son, he is playing great defensi He has been working hard on r< covering and is back to 100%. Shawn Kemp - F- When he tries to take the ball t the hoop, he looks like a ffeigl Scottie Pippen A Wow, Damon is finally living up to his nickname, “Mighty Pippen’s stats may be down and he has been out with an injury, but he does all the things necessary to win that don’t show up on the stat sheet During games, you’ll see him working the referees, communicat ing with players as well as diving for loose balls, playing tough,“D” Mouse.” All of his numbers are up from last year. He is the second leading scorer on the team and manages to average 3.8 rebound and 5.8 assists per game, and remember, he is less than six feet tall. and calling plays. Scottie is the coach on the floor, the glue that Wells is a much-improved playe this year. He’s doing everythin) better than last year. The reason holds this team together. Without him, the Blazers would be strug gave him a minus is because I wisl he would play with more emotion gling. If Sheed was an all-star last year, then he must be a super-star this year. He’s accepted his role as the “go-to” guy down the stretch, a role he seemed to struggle with last year. All facets of his game have train that just derailed! TheBla2 ers need- to do him like they di Derrick Coleman in Charlotte - pi him on the injured reserve until h loses 50 lbs. I have always liked Sabonis. The occasional Blazer fan might not rec ognize what an asset he is to the team. He causes team problems with his size; he rebounds and passes like a point guard and has a great outside shot However, this year, age and injury are catching up with him. He hasn’t made a three-pointer all year and I’ve noticed more turnovers than usual. We need him to stay ■ mmg up... ■ .' Thursday Jan 25,5 p.m. Blazers vs. Pacers OnNBC Saturday Jan27 2:30 p.m. Blazers vs, Timberwolves OnNBC healthy when we face big front lines in the playoffs. Women go one and one at home ELENA BORYSKA Staff Writer THINKING ABOUT COMPLETING YOUR DEGREE? COME TO MARYLHURST UNIVERSITY'S UNDERGRADUATE OPEN HOUSE. • Meet our department chairs. • Learn about our bachelor's degree programs. • Discover how to earn up to 45 credits through a Prior Learning Assessment. • Flexible course scheduling: days, evenings, weekends, and online. • Scholarships, grants, and loans available. Join us in B.P. John Admin. Bldg., Room 200, on the Marylhurst Campus for our Undergraduate Open House. November 30, Thursday, 6:30-8:30 p.m. 17600 PACIFIC HIGHWAY (HWY. 43) on Wednesday; was against Umpqua Community College. The game was close until the middle of the fourth quar ter. That’s when Umpqua pulled away. “We played pretty well for 35-36 minutes,’ ’ commented Head Coach Jun Martineau. “We just let it slip away ” The final score of the game was?8- 87. Mercedes Juarez scored Th ’of Clackamas’ 78 points. Amanda Lee 503.699.6268 OR 800.634.9982, EXTENSION 6268 If you need a Winter 2001 Schedule of Courses or more information, call 503.699.6268. game.” After the tough loss on Wednes day, the Cougars came back on Satur day to play South West Oregon Com munity College (SWOCC). From the way both teams were playing, it looked like SWOCC was going to go home with an easy win. But Clackamas never gave up. Even when they were down by 16 with 8 1/2 minutes to go in the game, the Cougars still played hard. With the help of some steals and big plays down the stretch, the Cougars were able to turn the game around. Cougar Soccer “We didn’t play exceptionally well the majority of the game,” Coach Martineau said. “But the girls picked it up and made a game of it” Down by one with only a few sec onds left in the game, Kathryn Kettles made a jumper to put Clackamas ahead for good. “This was a big win for us,” Martineau said. Mercedes Juarez had another good offensive game with 24 points. Kayla Steen contributed with 17 points and nine assists. Kathryn Kettles finished with 14points, including the game-win ning jump shot With that win, the Cou gars are now 3-1 in league play and 14- 5 overall. Skate or Die ; v.; * # 3 F " MARYIHURST, OREGON - JUST 10 MINUTES SOUTH OF PORTLAND WWWJWUtYtHURST.EDU “Umpqua is a good team,” said Martineau. “ In the end we made a couple of mistakes which cost us the The Clackamas women’s basketball team got a split out of the two home games they played last week. Their first game, which was played For more information or to reserve a place, call 503.699.6306 or 800.634.9982, extension 6306. MARYLHURST UNIVERSITY scored 13. 4^ ’ Come join the team. Practices are held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Do you skateboard or in-line skate? Do you like to rip it up at skate parks? The Print is looking for students to go on a tour of local parks. If interested contact Jason Lingel at 503-657-6958 x2309.
