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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2019
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Gary Henley | Sports Reporter
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PREP HOOPS
Astoria scores
road win at
Tillamook
The Daily Astorian
In the battle to stay out of the
Cowapa League cellar, the Asto-
ria boys basketball team snapped
a three-game losing skid with
a 42-38 win Thursday night at
Tillamook.
The Fishermen improve to 2-5
in league play, with an outside
chance of moving into third place
in the league standings with a win
next week at Valley Catholic. The
Valiants (2-3) host Banks tonight.
Astoria held a slim 23-22 lead
at halftime, before outscoring the
Cheesemakers 12-8 in the third
quarter.
“We did some good things
tonight,” said Astoria coach
Kevin Goin. “We had a good lead
in the second quarter, then they
went triangle-and-two (defense)
on us, and cut it to one at halftime.
“But we had a good second
half,” he said. “We ran the clock
and did some good things, and
made enough free throws down
the stretch.”
Ian Hunt scored 15 points and
Isaac Brockman added 10 for
Astoria.
The Cheesemakers drop to
0-6, last place in the league stand-
ings. Tillamook will likely play
a league playoff game at Banks,
while the Fishermen will likely
play (or host) Valley Catholic.
Astoria tops
Tillamook,
takes fi rst place
The Daily Astorian
The Astoria Lady Fishermen
have taken over fi rst place in the
Cowapa League girls basketball
standings, at least for the time
being.
With the No. 2-ranked Banks
Braves (5-1 in league) not play-
ing until Friday at Valley Cath-
olic, Astoria’s 68-35 win Thurs-
day night at Tillamook puts the
Lady Fish (6-1) into fi rst place
by a half-game.
Astoria led 15-4 after one
quarter, and had the game
locked up by halftime, leading
29-11 against the winless (0-6)
Cheesemakers, who have now
lost 20 straight league games.
For the Lady Fishermen,
Thursday’s win was their 14th
straight over Tillamook going
back to 2012-13.
Halle Helmersen led Astoria
in scoring for the second time in
three nights, scoring 13 points
to top three players in dou-
ble fi gures. Brooklynn Hank-
witz added 11 and Elle Espe-
lien scored 10, all in the fourth
quarter.
Only three players scored for
the Lady Mooks, who were led
by Laci Lourenzo’s 13 points.
Banks closes out the league
season next Thursday against
Seaside, while Astoria plays its
league fi nale Tuesday at Valley
Catholic, a team the Fishermen
defeated 60-31 last month.
SCOREBOARD
PREP SPORTS SCHEDULE
TODAY
Girls basketball — Knappa at Seaside, 6
p.m.; Rainier at Warrenton, 7:30 p.m.; Jewell
at C.S. Lewis, 5:30 p.m.
Boys basketball — Knappa at Seaside, 7:30
p.m.; Rainier at Warrenton, 6 p.m.; Jewell at
C.S. Lewis, 7 p.m.
Swimming — District 1 meet, at Newport,
TBA
Wrestling — District 1/4A Regionals, at Til-
lamook, TBA
SATURDAY
Swimming — District 1 meet, at Newport,
TBA
Wrestling — District 1/4A Regionals, at Til-
lamook, TBA
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Astoria 68, Tillamook 35
AST (68): Halle Helmersen 13, Hankwitz 11,
Espelien 10, Fausett 7, Jackson 7, Long 5,
Lyngstad 4, Cole 4, Norris 3, Matthews 2,
O’Brien 2.
TIL (35): Laci Lourenzo 13, Reeves 12, Crab-
tree 10.
Astoria 15 14 16 23—68
Tillamook 4 7 7 17—35
BOYS BASKETBALL
Astoria 42, Tillamook 38
AST (42): Ian Hunt 15, Brockman 10, Olson 6,
Stenblom 4, Marincovich 4, Long 3, Ploghoft,
Johnson.
TIL (38): Kellen Shelley 12, Jenck 11, Werner 7,
Miller 4, Wilkes 2, Kunert 2, Boomer, Weber.
Astoria 8 15 12 7—42
Tillamook 7 15 8 8—38
Portland Trail Blazers
They were the fi rst — the 1970-71 Portland Trail Blazers. Front row, left to right: Leo Marty, Geoff Petrie, Walt Gilmore, Ed Manning, Dale
Schlueter, LeRoy Ellis, Ron Knight, Gary Gregor, Shaler Halimon, Rolland Todd. Second row: Dr. Frank Smith, Dr. Larry Mudrick, Stu Inman,
Rick Adelman, Stan McKenzie, Jim Barnett, Claude English, Dan Trutanich, Bill Schonely, Harry Glickman.
BLAZERS READY FOR
50TH
BIRTHDAY BASH
Team will turn
50 on Feb. 6, 2020
By DAVE NELSON
For The Daily Astorian
I
t was on Feb. 6, 1970, when
one of Oregon’s most loved —
if not the most loved — sports
franchises came into existence.
The Portland Trail Blazers and
Rip City.
It all started with Harry
Glickman, an entrepreneur of professional
sports, having a dream of top-level sports
for his hometown of Portland.
A group of local investors and the NBA
expansion committee met in Philadelphia,
and the expansion committee raised the
franchise price tag to $3.7 million, causing
the group of investors — who were pre-
pared to give $2 million — to back out,
leaving no fi nancial support to make it
happen.
Back in Portland, Glickman got a call
from then-Seattle Sonics general manager
Dick Vertlieb, who, according to the team,
said he “knew a guy” who might be inter-
ested in staking an NBA franchise, but
made it clear he was not interested in being
part of the ownership.
That guy was Herman Sarkowsky, a
home builder in Seattle, and the possible
interest of two developer friends, Larry
Weinberg (who would become owner of
the team) and Robert Schmertz.
The league had set a deadline to select
its new teams, and when the deadline
rolled around, Glickman still hadn’t heard
from Sarkowsky.
Glickman went to Los Angeles with
only a scheme to try and persuade the
NBA’s Board of Governors to accept Port-
land. He had hoped a good faith offer
would work.
Once inside the hotel room of the chair-
man of the expansion committee and Bal-
timore Bullets owner Abe Pollin, the mood
changed. A few members of the committee,
led by the owner of the New York Knicks,
Blazers.com
Former Portland Trail Blazers radio/televi-
sion announcer Bill Schonely, who coined
the term ‘Rip City.’
did not want Portland in the league.
So Glickman left the room dejected.
When he reached the lobby of the hotel,
with the feeling that his dream had failed,
he remembered he had left his raincoat
back in the room.
“When I got there,” Glickman said,
“Pollin was on the phone: ‘Harry it’s for
you … some guy named Sarkowsky is on
the phone.’ He had reached Weinberg, who
was eager to buy into an NBA franchise
and fi nally got in touch with Schmertz,
who was in. And Portland was granted an
NBA franchise.
“When we got this franchise, we didn’t
have any support, any political groups …
we had very little from the media,” Glick-
man said Wednesday at a press conference.
“I hope that changes now, because of the
very day we got this franchise, we held a
press conference the very next day saying,
‘we hope we (as in Oregon) have another
major league team.’ And my biggest disap-
pointment is, we haven’t had another one
to join us. I hope we don’t have to wait
another 48 years to get one.”
Now 50 years later, it’s time to celebrate
50 years and the 50th anniversary of the
beloved franchise. And plans are underway
to do so.
The Blazers announced Wednesday
that a preseason game will be played Oct.
7 against the Denver Nuggets inside their
original home, Veterans Memorial Coli-
seum, next door to their current home, the
Moda Center, to honor the historic venue
that served as the home of the Trail Blaz-
ers the fi rst 25 years.
Other events include specially-de-
signed “Decades Nights” that will cel-
ebrate the players, coaches, uniforms,
branding, music and other Trail Blazer
memories from the 1970s, ‘80s, ‘90s,
2000s and 2010s.
A special 50-year logo has been
designed for next year, with plans of play-
ing on a special commemorative court,
and wearing very special uniforms.
“We are committed to honor this anni-
versary, and we are working very hard to
put together an anniversary celebration
we know our fans are going to be excited
about,” said Trail Blazers President and
CEO Chris McGowan.
Happy anniversary to a team that
brought its fans a championship, three
trips to the NBA Finals, a streak of 21
straight playoff appearances, and six Hall
of Famers.
How ‘Rip City’ was born
In case you were wondering, legendary
Blazer announcer Bill Schonely said that
“Rip City” itself came about by Schonely
trying to come up with a phrase that would
“help my broadcast, as well as be synony-
mous with the team. I couldn’t fi gure it out.
“Later on in 1970, the Lakers came to
town, Wilt Chamberlin, Jerry West … the
place (Memorial Coliseum) was packed.
The Blazers were down by 25-26 points.
All of a sudden as the game went on, the
scene changed and the next basket by Port-
land would tie the mighty Lakers.
“Jim Barnett stopped in front of me,
turned and gave me a wink, spun around
and took a shot for no reason, and the
crowd went wild. He took the ball as it
went through the hoop, and for whatever
reason, I said ‘Rip City, all right!’
“The Lakers immediately called time-
out. I gave my commercial cue, I sat back
in my chair and the guys on the side of me
said, ‘Rip City?’ I said ‘yeah!’ They said,
‘leave that in!’ That was the birth of Rip
City!”
Blazers likely to be sold, creating angst at City Hall
By JOHN CANZANO
The Oregonian
The NBA’s trade deadline
ticked down on Thursday.
But the hand-wringing is just
beginning at City Hall.
Portland City Commissioner
Nick Fish said on Thursday that
he expects the city’s NBA team
to be sold in the wake of owner
Paul Allen’s death last year.
Fish is concerned that new Trail
Blazers ownership might seek to
relocate the team.
“The clear sense I’ve
received from Blazers manage-
ment is that this team will be
put on the block at some point,”
Fish said. “I’ve been told the
estate will take about fi ve to six
years to be settled.
“We expect the team will be
put on the market.”
The Trail Blazers’ lease with
the city of Portland runs through
2025. It includes ironclad lan-
guage that would ensure the
team stays through at least 2023.
But it’s the uncertainty that Fish
and some others would like to
put to rest in front of a potential
sale. And I don’t blame him.
Be clear, the NBA is working
in Portland.
The Blazers will likely make
the playoffs and have a func-
tional home arena. Through 30
home dates, they’ve drawn more
than 582,000 fans. The fran-
chise is eighth in the league in
home attendance (19,400). Also,
Forbes released its valuations
of the league’s franchises this
week, putting the Blazers and
their home arena at $1.6 billion.
Allen bought the team in
1988 for $70 million.