SPORTS
Thursday, November 19, 2015
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NBA
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Houston
Rockets’
James
Harden
(13) shoots
between
Portland
Trail Blaz-
ers Allen
Crabbe, C.J.
McCollum
(3) in the
second half
of an NBA
basket-
ball game,
Wednes-
day, Nov.
18, 2015, in
Houston.
The Rockets
won 108-103
in overtime.
By JORDAN GODWIN
Associated Press
HOUSTON
—
James
Harden knew something had to
change, and he didn’t mean the
coach.
Hours after the unexpected
¿ring of Kevin McHale, Harden
shrugged off his slow start
following his MVP runner-up
season with 45 points, including
all nine for Houston in overtime
of a 108-103 victory over
the Portland Trail Blazers on
Wednesday night.
“Making shots or missing
shots, I’ve got to get my game
where it needs to be to get this team
where it wants to go,” Harden said.
“Picking my energy up - tonight
was the beginning of it.”
Corey Brewer made an off-bal-
ance 3-pointer to force overtime
and Harden took over from there,
¿nishing with 11 assists, eight
rebounds and ¿ve steals as the
Rockets capped off an emotional
day at the Toyota Center.
It nearly ended with a ¿fth
straight loss before Brewer
made his shot with 0.9 seconds
remaining to tie it at 99.
“When somebody makes a
shot like that, it can wake up
everybody,” Brewer said. “If
that shot changes the season
around, I’m happy to make
it, but now it’s time to start
winning.”
AP Photo/Pat
Sullivan
Portland
Houston
103
108
The Rockets played much of
the game with sloppy mistakes
and dreadful shooting. Interim
coach J.B. Bickerstaff, son of
longtime NBA coach Bernie
Bickerstaff, served in his ¿rst
game as head coach.
“The way it happened is
the way it needed to happen,”
Bickerstaff said of the dramatic
win. “Our guys were down, but
for us to show perseverance,
show ¿ght, show the grit, tough-
ness and togetherness speaks
volumes.”
The Blazers dropped their
seventh straight, their worst
losing streak since closing
2012-13 on a 13-game skid.
“In the NBA, strange things
can happen,” Portland coach
Terry Stotts said. “We weren’t
able to close it out, and Corey
Brewer hits a one-legged runner
from the logo, and that’s the
way it goes.”
Damian Lillard led Portland
with 23 points, C.J. McCollum
had 19 and Al-Farouq Aminu
added 16.
Houston snapped its longest
skid since the 2012-13 season in
its ¿rst game without McHale.
“We’re going to miss him
being around,” Dwight Howard
said. “But we’ve got to still
¿ght for him and try to win this
championship. Things started
out a little rocky, but we’re
going to turn this thing around.”
Howard hauled in 19
rebounds, Trevor Ariza had 18
points, and Brewer scored 16
off the bench.
Rockets
owner
Leslie
Alexander watched from the
¿rst row at midcourt as his
seemingly uninspired team
entered halftime in a 46-35 hole.
The struggles continued and the
Rockets ended the third with a
15-point de¿cit after Marcus
Thornton’s jump shot wedged
awkwardly between the rim and
the backboard.
Rockets 38-year-old point
guard Jason Terry got his ¿rst
start of the season, replacing
struggling guard Ty Lawson,
who was acquired from Denver
in the offseason. Lawson
¿nished the game with two
points on 1-of-8 shooting.
TIP-INS
Blazers: PF Meyers Leonard
missed his ¿fth consecutive
game with a shoulder injury
but participated in pregame
workouts. ... Allen Crabbe
scored 15 points off the bench.
... The Blazers have lost four
straight games that are within
one-possession in the ¿nal three
minutes.
T-WOLVES: Blue Mountain opens with back-to-back home games
Continued from 1B
points on the board. As
good as the defense is in this
league, if you can’t put points
on the board you’re going to
struggle.”
The Timberwolves ranked
dead last in the NWAC East
with 71.7 points per game
last season, and also ¿nished
last in the standings with a
2-12 East record.
Only two starters return
from that squad, and guard
Jared Schultz and forward
Luke Meyers are taking on
leadership roles as sopho-
mores.
Meyers, who averaged
8.0 ppg and 3.2 rebounds
per game as a freshman,
said the faster pace is more
demanding but the results
from their scrimmages have
been positive.
“We’re doing it pretty well
so far,” said the Boise, Idaho
native. “It means some more
conditioning, it means we
might have to run with some
smaller guys. If we have the
effort there and everyone
does what they’re supposed
to do, we’ll be OK.”
At 6-foot-4, Meyers is
an undersized post, but Ellis
expects him to be one of
the team’s key scorers this
season.
“He’s kind of your just
get down and get to work
kind of guy,” he said. “He’s
really crafty. He can score it
outside and he’s really good
around the rim. I don’t think
I’ve ever seen anybody who
¿nishes as well as he does
around the rim.
“He’s kind of a converted
post. The reason we play
him at the post is he’s just so
strong and he creates a lot of
mismatches because he has
guard skills but his ability
to be physical allows him to
kind of bang down there a
little bit.”
Schultz averaged 10.2
points and 4.5 rebounds last
season, and is another player
Ellis sees taking big steps
forward this season.
“He’s probably the most
steady guy that we have with
consistent effort every day,”
he said. “He just doesn’t
make a lot of mistakes.”
But with sophomore
Quincy George missing time
early with a freshly fractured
wrist, guard Justin Rivas (7.9
ppg, 2.3 steals per game)
is the only other returning
player that saw signi¿cant
minutes for BMCC last
season.
“It’s mainly freshmen
heavy. Our sophomores are
huge impact guys but our
freshmen coming in will take
a lot of minutes,” Ellis said.
“Right now I think we’re
really comfortable with
where guys are about eight,
nine deep. I think we’ve got
a pretty dominant three or
four guys that we know are
going to be pretty consistent
in the starting lineup. There’s
a couple of guys that might
rotate out depending on
match-ups.”
Ellis said freshman guard
Gunnar Blankenship has one
of the best jump shots on the
team, and point guard La’Quan
Hawkins creates points with
his passing and defense.
But it’s freshman D’Quan
Crockett, a 6-foot-3 guard
out of Las Vegas, that will
soon be a fan favorite.
“He can pretty much
score in a variety of ways.
He’s got a really nice jumper
and he can hit the three, but
he’s also really long and he
can attack the rim as well,”
he said. “He’ll be the one that
will probably get a lot of the
showtime stuff, he’s really
athletic.”
The Timberwolves open
with back-to-back home
games and will host Edmonds
on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
BMCC’s Tyler Thurman shoots a fadeaway jump shot
over teammate LaQuan Hawkins during practice
Wednesday in Pendleton.
Hawkins said the team is
looking to make a statement
to its fans early.
“We just want to come out
and we want to play hard on
defense, and just let every-
body know that we are not the
team from last year,” he said.
“We’re going to come out
and we’re going to play hard,
we’re going to play fast, and
we just want to let everybody
know that we’re here and we
ain’t going nowhere.”
Here are few more things
to consider as the T-Wolves
prepare for the start of the
season:
STEPPING UP THE
D: The T-Wolves were
just fourth in defensive
points allowed in the East
last season, but said the 80
allowed on average is not
going to cut it this season.
“I think our main goal is
de¿nitely to pick up the defen-
sive intensity from last year,”
said Schultz. “We just gave up
too many points last year that
it just didn’t give us a chance
to win many games.”
“It’s going to be huge,
seeing as how we’re doing
more fast break stuff and
not running a set offense it
might be harder to the get
those high percentage shots,”
Meyers said. “So if we’re not
hitting our defense is going
to have to buckle down to get
those stops.”
Meyers said the team’s
goal is to hold every oppo-
nent below 65 points this
season.
NEW BLOOD, NEW
VIBES: Sometimes a change
in mindset can do wonders
for a team, and the T-Wolves
said that’s hopefully the case
with all the fresh faces in the
locker room this season.
“I’d say our biggest
strength is our heart,”
Meyers said. “Last year
sometimes we felt like we
just didn’t deserve to be in
games. But no matter where
we’re at, every player on this
team wants to win and knows
we’re going to do whatever it
takes to do that.
“Staying together as a
team is going to be really
important, because when you
get down into crunch time
and things are getting hard,
you can’t be blaming other
people.”
HOME COOKING: The
T-Wolves open the 2015-16
season with three home games
sandwiched around a tourna-
ment in Portland and one in
nearby Walla Walla. It’s much
different from last season
when the team played four of
its ¿rst six games on the road.
“It’s de¿nitely much more
exciting than last year,” said
Schultz. “Last year was a
lot of beginning the year on
the road, which was tough
on us freshmen. Going from
playing high school basket-
ball to college basketball,
and then instantly going on
the road.
“We’re excited for it. It’s
de¿nitely a lot funner playing
here in front of our fans.”
LOOKING FOR PROG-
RESS: Ellis said more than
wins, he’s looking for prog-
ress out his young team in the
preseason schedule.
“I think steady improve-
ment is the biggest thing. I
think sometimes we’ll come
out of the gate (fast), like last
year. We looked really good in
Game 1, then we kind of went
downhill for quite a while. So
I think steady progression is
the thing for us.”
He expects a preseason
that includes two games
against Mt. Hood, one against
Clackamas and tournaments
in Portland, Eugene and
Miles City, Montana, should
provide plenty of tests.
“Preseason wise we’ve got
some really tough match-ups,
some match-ups we’re really
excited about, but it’s going
to be a lot of learning for a
lot of these guys,” he said. “I
think the biggest thing for us
is to make sure that game in
and game out we’re seeing
some sort of improvement.”
TOUGH EAST: Big
Bend, Columbia Basin,
Wenatchee Valley and Trea-
sure Valley were the playoff
teams from the East Region
last season, and Ellis said all
of them had strong recruiting
classes again this year.
He said Walla Walla also
has one of the best freshmen
classes in the league, and
Spokane should be a tough
with lots of returners.
“I think every team game
in and game out, league-wise,
is going to be a battle,” Ellis
said. “I think we’re capable. I
think this team that we put on
the Àoor is capable of doing
whatever they set their mind
to, it’s like I said before, just
continually progressing day
in and day out.
“This is a hungry group
and I think that they under-
stand the process, and I think
we’ll be OK.”
———
Contact Matt Entrup at
mentrup@eastoregonian.
com or (541) 966-0838
SCOREBOARD
Local Slate
PREP FOOTBALL
Saturday
(2A Semifinals)
Heppner vs. Regis (at Liberty HS), Noon
Stanfield vs. Kennedy (at Liberty HS), 5 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Today
(NWAC Championships Rd 1) Blue
Mountain vs. SW Oregon (at Tacoma,
Wash.), 9 a.m.
Friday-Sunday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD at NWAC Champi-
onships (at Tacoma, Wash.), TBD
COLLEGE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday
Eastern Oregon vs. Metropolitan St. (at
Caldwell, Idaho), 4 p.m.
Air Force Base at Blue Mountain, 7 p.m.
Saturday
Edmonds at Blue Mountain, 4 p.m.
Eastern Oregon vs. Montana Tech (at
Caldwell, Idaho), 4 p.m.
COLLEGE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD at Yakima Tip-Off, TBD
Saturday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD at Yakima Tip-Off, TBD
Eastern Oregon at Xavier (La.) 9 a.m.
Sunday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD at Yakima Tip-Off, TBD
COLLEGE WOMEN’S SOCCER
Saturday
Biola at Eastern Oregon, 1 p.m.
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Saturday
Eastern Oregon at NAIA National Champi-
onships, (Charlotte, N.C.), 7:30 a.m.
Football
Friday, Nov. 20
Class 6A
Quarterfinals
Beverton at Jesuit, 7 p.m.
Clackamas at Sheldon, 7 p.m.
Oregon City at West Linn, 7 p.m.
Lincoln at Sherwood, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 21
Class 5A
Semifinals
Summit vs. Crater (at Grants Pass HS),
Noon
Wilsonville vs. Ashland (at Grants Pass
HS), 5 p.m.
Class 4A
Semifinals
North Bend vs. Scappoose (at Cottage
Grove HS), 3 p.m.
Cascade vs. Banks (at Hillsboro Stadium),
3:30 p.m.
Class 3A
Semifinals
Vale vs. Scio (at Hermiston HS), 11 a.m.
Blanchet Catholic vs. Santiam Christian (at
Cottage Grove HS), 11 a.m.
Class 2A
Semifinals
Heppner vs. Regis (at Liberty HS), Noon
Stanfield vs. Kennedy (at Liberty HS), 5 p.m.
Class 1A
Semifinals
Dufur vs. Perrydale (at Hillsboro Stadium),
Noon
Crane vs. Adrian (at Hermiston HS), 3 p.m.
NCAA
Saturday’s Games
No. 1 Clemson vs. Wake Forest, 12:30
p.m.
No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Michigan
State, 12:30 p.m.
No. 3 Alabama vs. Charleston Southern,
1 p.m.
No. 4 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 Baylor,
4:30 p.m.
No. 5 Notre Dame at Boston College,
4:30 p.m.
No. 6 Iowa vs. Purdue, 9 a.m.
No. 7 Oklahoma vs. No. 11 TCU, 5 p.m.
No. 8 Florida vs. FAU, 9 a.m.
No. 12 North Carolina at Virginia Tech,
9 a.m.
No. 13 Houston at UConn, 12:30 p.m.
No. 14 Michigan at Penn State, 9 a.m.
No. 15 Stanford vs. California, 7:30 p.m.
No. 16 Florida State vs. Chattanooga,
Noon
No. 17 LSU at No. 25 Mississippi, 12:30 p.m.
No. 18 Utah vs. UCLA, 12:30 p.m.
No. 19 Navy at Tulsa, 4 p.m.
No. 20 Northwestern at No. 21 Wiscon-
sin, 12:30 p.m.
No. 22 Southern Cal at No. 23 Oregon,
12:30 p.m.
No. 24 Washington State vs. Colorado,
7:45 p.m.
NFL
Thursday’s Game
Tennessee (+3) at Jacksonville, 5:25 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
N.Y. Jets (-2.5) at Houston, 10 a.m.
Denver (+1) at Chicago, 10 a.m.
Oakland (-2) at Detroit, 10 a.m.
Indianapolis (+6) at Atlanta, 10 a.m.
Tampa Bay (+5.5) at Philadelphia, 10 a.m.
St. Louis (+2.5) at Baltimore, 10 a.m.
Dallas (PK) at Miami, 10 a.m.
Washington (+7) at Carolina, 10 a.m.
Kansas City (-3) at San Diego, 1:05 p.m.
San Francisco (+12.5) at Seattle, 1:25
p.m.
Green Bay (+1) at Minnesota, 1:25 p.m.
Cincinnati (+5) at Arizona, 5:30 p.m.
Open: Cleveland, N.Y. Giants, New Orle-
ans, Pittsburgh
Monday’s Game
Buffalo (+7) at New England, 5:30 p.m.
Basketball
NCAA
How the Men’s Top 25 fared
Wednesday
1. North Carolina (3-0) beat Wofford 78-58.
Next: at Northern Iowa, Saturday.
2. Kentucky (3-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Wright State, Friday.
3. Maryland (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Rider, Friday.
4. Kansas (1-1) did not play. Next: at
Chaminade, Monday
5. Duke (2-1) did not play. Next: vs. VCU,
Friday.
6. Virginia (1-1) did not play. Next: vs.
Bradley, Thursday.
7. Iowa State (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Chattanooga, Monday.
8. Oklahoma (1-0) did not play. Next: vs.
McNeese State, Friday.
9. Wichita State (1-1) did not play. Next:
vs. Emporia State, Saturday.
10. Gonzaga (1-0) beat Northern Arizona
91-52. Next: vs. Mount St. Mary’s,
Saturday.
11. Villanova (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
ETSU, Friday.
12. Arizona (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Boise State, Thursday.
13. Michigan State (2-0) did not play.
Next: vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Friday.
14. Indiana (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Creighton, Thursday.
15. California (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
East Carolina, Friday.
16. Utah (2-0) did not play. Next: vs. Texas
Tech, Thursday.
17. Vanderbilt (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Stony Brook, Thursday.
18. Notre Dame (2-0) did not play. Next:
vs. UMass-Lowell, Saturday.
19. UConn (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Furman, Saturday.
20. Baylor (1-1) did not play. Next: vs.
Jackson State, Friday.
21. Purdue (3-0) beat Incarnate Word 96-
62. Next: vs. Old Dominion, Saturday.
22. Butler (1-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Missouri State, Thursday.
23. LSU (2-0) did not play. Next: vs. South
Alabama, Thursday.
24. Michigan (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Xavier, Friday.
25. Oregon (2-0) did not play. Next: vs.
Savannah State, Friday.
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division W
L
Boston
6
5
Toronto
7
6
New York
6
6
Pct
.545
.538
.500
GB
—
—
½
Brooklyn
2 10
.167 4½
Philadelphia
0 12
.000 6½
Southeast Div. W
L
Pct GB
Atlanta
9
5
.643
—
Miami
6
4
.600
1
Washington
5
4
.556 1½
Orlando
6
6
.500
2
Charlotte
6
6
.500
2
Central Division W
L
Pct GB
Chicago
8
3
.727
—
Cleveland
8
3
.727
—
Indiana
7
5
.583 1½
Detroit
6
5
.545
2
Milwaukee
5
6
.455
3
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Div. W
L
Pct GB
San Antonio
9
2
.818
—
Dallas
8
4
.667 1½
Memphis
6
6
.500 3½
Houston
5
7
.417 4½
New Orleans
1
11
.083 8½
Northwest Div. W
L
Pct GB
Oklahoma City
7
5
.583
—
Utah
6
5
.545
½
Denver
6
6
.500
1
Minnesota
5
7
.417
2
Portland
4
9
.308 3½
Pacific Division W
L
Pct GB
Golden State
12
0 1.000
—
L.A. Clippers
6
4
.600
5
Phoenix
6
5
.545 5½
Sacramento
4
8
.333
8
L.A. Lakers
2
9
.182 9½
———
Wednesday’s Games
Indiana 112, Philadelphia 85
Orlando 104, Minnesota 101, OT
Charlotte 116, Brooklyn 111
Dallas 106, Boston 102
Houston 108, Portland 103, OT
Oklahoma City 110, New Orleans 103
Atlanta 103, Sacramento 97
San Antonio 109, Denver 98
Utah 93, Toronto 89
Chicago 103, Phoenix 97
Today’s Games
Sacramento at Miami, 4:30 p.m.
Milwaukee at Cleveland, 5 p.m.
Golden State at L.A. Clippers, 7:30 p.m.
Hockey
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
GP W
L OT
Montreal
19 14
3
2
Ottawa
18 8
5
5
Detroit
19 9
8
2
Florida
18 8
7
3
Tampa Bay 20 8
9
3
Boston
17 8
8
1
Buffalo
18 8
9
1
Toronto
19 6
9
4
Metropolitan Division
GP W
L OT
N.Y. Rangers 18 14
2
2
Washington 17 12
4
1
N.Y. Islanders 19 10
6
3
Pittsburgh 18 11
7
0
New Jersey 18 10
7
1
Philadelphia 18 6
8
4
Carolina
18 6 10
2
Columbus 19 7 12
0
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
GP W
L OT
Dallas
19 15
4
0
Nashville
17 11
3
3
St. Louis
19 12
6
1
Minnesota 17 10
4
3
Chicago
19 11
7
1
Winnipeg 20 9
9
2
Colorado
18 7 10
1
Pacific Division
GP W
L OT
Los Angeles 18 12
6
0
San Jose
18 10
8
0
Vancouver 20 7
7
6
Arizona
18 9
8
1
Anaheim
19 6
9
4
Calgary
20 7 12
1
Edmonton 19 6 12
1
Pts
30
21
20
19
19
17
17
16
GF
67
54
42
49
46
56
41
46
GA
42
57
47
45
49
54
49
55
Pts
30
25
23
22
21
16
14
14
GF
57
52
54
40
46
35
35
48
GA
32
38
44
40
43
53
53
63
Pts
30
25
25
23
23
20
15
GF
68
53
51
51
53
54
50
GA
48
40
46
47
47
63
50
Pts
24
20
20
19
16
15
13
GF
46
50
56
50
35
48
50
GA
38
47
54
54
49
74
62
NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for
overtime loss.
———
Wednesday’s Games
Winnipeg 4, Vancouver 1
Washington 2, Detroit 1, OT
Chicago 4, Edmonton 3, OT