SPORTS
Saturday, April 15, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NBA
HERMISTON
Will he or won’t he? Nurkic’s
return still uncertain
By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Prep rodeo returns to region
In this 2016 file photo, Pendleton’s Calgary Smith
runs down his calf on his way to a 12.71-second time
in tie down roping at the Intermountain High School
Rodeo in Hermiston. The Intermountain team hosts
its annual doubleheader rodeos this weekend with
action beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m.
on Sunday at Farm-City Arena. Three members of
the Intermountain boys team are within nine points
of each other atop the all-around standings with
Heppner’s Kolby Currin in first, Smith in second, and
Pendleton’s Phoenix Everano in third.
Boston Marathon
Ben Beach eyeing
record 50th
straight finish
By KYLE HIGHTOWER
Associated Press
BOSTON — Ben Beach
was a scrawny 18-year-old
who had never run more
than 5 miles before he started
training for his first Boston
Marathon in 1968.
A half-century later, at age
67, the Bethesda, Maryland,
resident has a chance to set a
standard by becoming the first
person to complete
50 consecutive trips
down the city’s
hallowed course.
The current Cal
Ripken of the Boston
race is one of just 81
people who have
current streaks of at
least 25 consecutive
trips down the 26.2-
mile Boston route. Beach
Only nine have a
streak of at least 40.
But Beach’s love affair
with the event actually began
on a whim. He was a high
school senior flipping through
radio stations in his bedroom
at a Massachusetts boarding
school when he came across
a broadcast of the 1967
marathon. The race was run
in low 30-degree weather and
sleet. Set to attend Harvard the
following year, he perked up.
“The whole idea of running
26 miles in that kind of weather
just kind of appealed to my
senses — the bizarre,” he said.
“I just said to myself that day
... I’m gonna run that.”
He signed up in 1968.
He walked inside the
staging area “that reeked of
Bengay.” The field of 1,014
that year was mostly men,
plus a handful of women who
had signed up a year after
Katherine Switzer became the
first woman to officially enter.
Beach, who had consumed
a steak the night before and
run 20 miles only two days
prior, said he was naive about
marathon prep back then.
“You got in line for the doctor
and when you got up to the front
... the doctor puts a stethoscope
to try to determine if you
could make it to the Prudential
Building (finish line),” Beach
said. “I don’t know if anybody
got turned down or what.”
He did finish, in 3 hours, 23
minutes, and after waiting in
line to use the only available
shower went up to the cafe-
teria for a bowl of beef stew.
He didn’t finish that, but did
get down four glasses of milk.
“I was lucky that I didn’t
collapse in a heap,” he said.
He wasn’t sure he’d ever
do it again.
“In fact, my initial feeling
was ‘I’ve done it, that’s it,’” he
said. “But at some point over the
next few weeks or months I think
I decided I ought to go back...
It went better than anything I
could have imagined.”
James Fallows, a friend of
Beach’s at Harvard, ran the
race with him the following
year and again in 1970.
“I had no idea that I was
witnessing the beginnings of
something historic,” Fallows
said. “It was like having been
on hand to see the planting of
the seed that became a giant
sequoia.”
It was around Year 10 that
Beach said it really started to
become a streak. It was also
around the time — in 1977 —
that he met Carol, his future
wife, at a road race.
She said his drive to run
was an instant attraction.
“He makes it easy,” Carol
Beach said. “You’d think I
was dating a professional foot-
ball player back then. I was so
psyched to date a guy that’s
run the Boston Marathon.”
Now 37 years of marriage
later, he counts her as the
streak’s sustainer.
“She’s always
understood
how
important it is to
me,” Beach said.
“She understands
something
about
the mind of a mara-
thoner ... I’m sort of
a creature of habit.”
There have been
both early and recent
challenges to the
streak continuing.
The first time was on just
his fourth race in 1971. He
had a knee injury and was just
passing the third mile when it
started to give him trouble.
But he was able to push
through it and finish.
But the last 10 years have
become particularly chal-
lenging following his diag-
nosis for a movement disorder
called Dystonia in 2002. The
ailment causes involuntary
and uncontrollable muscle
contractions and cramping.
At first it wasn’t too debil-
itating because of the large
mileage base he had built up
over the years. But 10 years
ago as he aged and his training
began to tail off, it finally
caught up with him.
In 2002, he finished the
course in 3:07:50. By 2012, his
time had ballooned to 5:55:22.
That was twice his best time ever
in Boston of 2:27:26 in 1981.
The 2012 finish was also
the start of five straight years
of finishing above five hours.
That included 2013, the year
he passed former record-
holder Neil Weygandt’s streak
of 45. He crossed the finish
line on Boylston Street in
5:31:21 last year.
Those flirtations with the
six-hour mark are more rele-
vant after race officials notified
runners in 2015 of a change in
streak recognition. Beginning
with the 2016 race, only
participants who completed
the course before the official
clock cutoff at six hours would
have the continuation of their
streaks recognized by the
Boston Athletic Association.
That policy was relaxed for
2016, but it’s back in effect for
this year.
“Last year went better and
I’m hoping this year will as
well. But you never know,”
Beach said. “A lot can happen
between Hopkinton and the
Hancock building.”
Though his health will
certainly play a role in where the
streak goes from here, he said
Johnny Kelley’s record of 58
total Boston finishes has always
been in the back of his head.
“As long as I’m physically
able I’d go back the next
year because again it’s in
my blood,” he said. “I’m not
on a suicide mission here,
though. If it really looks like
I’m putting myself in serious
risk, then I think I’ll have the
common sense to say it’s been
great, but all good things must
come to an end.”
PORTLAND — Portland
center Jusuf Nurkic’s avail-
ability for the opening game
of the Trail Blazers’ playoff
series against the Golden
State Warriors remains
uncertain.
Nurkic has missed seven
games with a non-displaced
right leg fracture.
There had been specu-
lation the 7-footer known
as the Bosnian Beast could
return for the playoffs. He
was seen shooting during
warmups for the past two
regular-season
games,
and he’s walking with no
apparent limp.
But Portland coach Terry
Stotts said Friday that his
status for the first-round
opener in Oakland on Sunday
was “undetermined.” He
said it would likely be a
game-day decision.
“I feel better and I’ve
made good progress, but we
still haven’t decided if I’m
going to play,” Nurkic said.
Nurkic, traded to Portland
on Feb. 12 from the Denver
Nuggets, was averaging
15.2 points, 10.4 rebounds
and 1.9 blocks in 20 games
with the Blazers.
“Completely
different
team with him in there. So
it changes everything. Obvi-
ously if he plays I’m sure I’ll
be on him some. I foresee
the game probably being a
smaller game if he doesn’t
play, whereas if he plays it
turns into a bigger game,”
Golden State’s Draymond
Green said following practice
on Friday. “It changes every-
thing whether he’s in or out.”
Since his arrival in
Portland, Nurkic has been
embraced by Portland fans.
He’s credited with boosting
the team as it made a final
push for the playoffs: The
Blazers finished in the
AP Photo/Steve Dykes, File
In this March 30, 2017, file photo, Portland Trail Blaz-
ers center Jusuf Nurkic dunks the ball during the
fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game against
the Houston Rockets, in Portland.
eighth and final playoff spot
in the Western Conference,
clinching a spot ahead of the
Nuggets with two games left
in the regular season.
Before the All-Star break,
the Blazers were 23-33 and
it looked as if they were
headed to the draft lottery in
the offseason.
Enter Nurkic.
Portland went 18-8
following the break and
finished at .500. In a short
time he seemed to develop
chemistry with Portland’s
starting backcourt duo of
Damian Lillard and CJ
McCollum, and with Nurkic
in the starting lineup, Port-
land was 14-5.
When Nurkic scored 28
points with 20 rebounds at
home this season against
Philadelphia, Stotts spoke
about how fans had taken
to the newcomer: “Nurkic
fever? Why not?”
On the court afterward,
Nurkic smiled when he
was told about the coach’s
comments. The crowd
roared and a catchphrase
was born.
“I love being here,” he
said. “I appreciate what the
city is doing for me. I just
want to give them back
something.”
Even while he was rehab-
bing from the injury, Nurkic
endeared himself to fans by
pouring cups of water over
the heads of teammates
when they appeared in post-
game TV interviews.
Nurkic’s arrival in Port-
land wasn’t just good for the
Blazers, it was good for the
big man, too.
Taken with the 16th
overall pick by the Chicago
Bulls in 2014 but sent to
Denver in a draft-night deal,
he was hampered last season
by a knee injury.
At the start of this
season, Denver looked to
use both Nikola Jokic and
Nurkic at the same time in
a big starting lineup. But
the experiment never jelled,
and Jokic got the bulk of the
minutes while 22-year-old
Nurkic averaged fewer than
18 minutes with eight points
per game.
Energized in Portland, he
became the first Trail Blazer
to average 15-plus points
and 10-plus rebounds in his
first 20 games with the team
since Mychal Thompson in
1978.
After his injury was
announced, Nurkic vowed
he would do what he could
to return as quickly as
possible.
“If it doesn’t hurt I’m
going to be back. It’s not
a question,” he said. “I’m
going to do my part, work
every day like I do, and try
to be back.”
On Friday he hadn’t
changed his tune.
“If it was up to me, I’d
play right now,” he said.
———
AP Sports Writer Janie
McCauley contributed to
this report.
Ten things to watch in NBA playoffs
By TIM REYNOLDS
Associated Press
With the NBA playoffs starting
Saturday, here’s 10 things to know
before the second season begins:
———
LEBRON IN FIRST ROUNDS
Good luck, Indiana.
LeBron James not only never loses
in a first-round series, but the man
rarely loses first-round playoff games,
period.
He’s played in 51 first-round games.
His teams went 2-2 in his first four, and
are 42-5 since — including 17-0 since
May 6, 2012. James hasn’t played in
a Game 6 in a first-round series since
2008.
James has been part of 131 wins so
far in his playoff career, tied with San
Antonio’s Tony Parker for the most
among active players.
More milestones await James in
these playoffs, too.
If Cleveland makes a deep run, he
may take over the No. 1 spot on the
all-time career playoff scoring list. He
enters this postseason No. 4 at 5,572
points — behind only No. 3 Kobe
Bryant (5,640), No. 2 Kareem Abdul-
Jabbar (5,762) and No. 1 Michael
Jordan (5,987).
Another landmark for James comes
Saturday in Game 1 against Indiana,
when he makes his 200th playoff
appearance.
———
MVP CANDIDATES COLLIDE
Mr. Westbrook, meet Mr. Harden.
No, the Maurice Podoloff Trophy
— otherwise known as the MVP
trophy — won’t automatically go to the
winner. But this will be the rage of the
Oklahoma City-Houston first-round
series, with presumptive MVP front-
runners Russell Westbrook and James
Harden set to lead their teams into the
postseason.
Westbrook averaged a triple-double
this season, 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds
and 10.4 assists for the Thunder. Harden
averaged 29.1 points, 11.2 assists and
8.1 rebounds for the Rockets.
Including playoffs, Harden and
Westbrook have faced off 16 times,
each player walking away a winner in
eight of those. Westbrook has posted
five triple-doubles in those games,
including two this season.
———
THE
SPURS
REMAIN
FANTASTIC
San Antonio is in the postseason for
the 20th consecutive year. That’s now
tied for the third-longest such streak in
NBA history.
Philadelphia went 22 consecutive
times from 1950 through 1971. Port-
land made 21 straight trips from 1983
through 2003, and Utah got 20 appear-
ances in a row from 1984 through
2003.
But that doesn’t tell anywhere near
the whole story of the Spurs’ consistent
excellence.
The Spurs haven’t just had an
NBA-record 20 straight winning
seasons — they’ve won at least 60
percent of their games in each of those
seasons. That streak is eight seasons
longer than any other NBA franchise
ever posted, and also the longest in any
North American major pro sport (the
Montreal Canadiens and San Francisco
49ers had winning percentages of .600
or better in 16 consecutive seasons).
———
BUSY IN BOSTON
Sports fans will be sufficiently busy
in Boston over the next few days.
Bulls at Celtics on Sunday. Ottawa
at Boston in the NHL playoffs on
Monday. Bulls at Celtics on Tuesday.
Senators at Bruins on Wednesday.
Oh, let’s not forget the Boston Mara-
thon on Monday — and of course, the
annual Patriots Day game coinciding
at Fenway Park that morning, with the
Red Sox playing host to the Tampa Bay
Rays.
———
FINALLY, THE POSTSEASON
Greg Monroe has played in 538
regular-season
games.
Markieff
Morris, 448 regular-season games.
Combined, they have zero playoff
appearances.
That will change this weekend.
Monroe and Milwaukee will play
Toronto, Morris and Washington will
play Atlanta.
No active player had more games
without a playoff appearance than
Monroe. Once he plays this weekend,
the active leaders in most-games-
but-no-playoffs become Omri Casspi
(499 after this season) and DeMarcus
Cousins (487).
There will also be playoff debuts
for two referees. Brent Barnaky and
Matthew Boland are the newcomers
in the pool of 37 refs selected to work
first-round games. Boland has more
than 800 regular-season games in 15
years on his resume, Barnaky more
than 400 in parts of eight seasons.
———
HELLO AGAIN
The first game of the playoffs will
look like the first game of the regular
season for some clubs.
Washington visited Atlanta in Game
1 for both teams back in October, and
Atlanta will visit Washington for Game
1 of their playoff series Sunday. And
Dwyane Wade’s first game with the
Chicago Bulls was against Boston, so it
seems fitting that his first playoff game
with his hometown team comes against
the Celtics as well.
———
FAREWELL, THE TRUTH
This postseason will mark the end
of Paul Pierce’s career.
He’s been used sparingly by the Los
Angeles Clippers this season, getting
into just 25 games. And he might not
have much of an on-court role — if
any — in the playoffs, though his
leadership and playoff experience will
surely be valued.
Pierce has played in 163 playoff
games, mostly with Boston, the fran-
chise with whom he got his first and so
far only ring in 2008.
———
ELDER STATESMEN
The oldest two playoff-bound
players this season are Vince Carter
and Manu Ginobili.
Odds are, they’ll be on the court
together in the Memphis-San Antonio
series. The 40-year-old Carter is still a
key part of what the Grizzlies do, and
the 39-year-old Ginobili — possibly
in his final season, though speculating
about his retirement has sort of become
an annual tradition in San Antonio —
plays about 19 minutes per game off
the Spurs’ bench.
———
UPSET WATCH
No. 1 seeds almost always beat No.
8 seeds in the opening round. Turner
Sports analyst and longtime NBA star
Reggie Miller seems to think there’s a
chance that might not hold up this year.
He indicated he wouldn’t be
shocked if Chicago gave Boston all it
wants in the first round.
“If you’re Chicago, you think, hey,
Dwyane Wade and (Rajon) Rondo have
won championships, Jimmy Butler has
gone deep in the playoffs before. We
have playoff savvy and we know how
to win,” Miller said. “I think this is a
great matchup for Chicago.”
———
VEGAS SAYS ...
The oddsmakers in Las Vegas
are showing Golden State as a huge
favorite to win the NBA title — 1-2
odds as of Thursday, far ahead of 7-2
second choice Cleveland.
San Antonio is the 9-1 third choice,
and Boston is showing up in the sports
books at 20-1 despite entering the play-
offs as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern
Conference.
The long shot? Obviously, that
would be Golden State’s first-round
opponent, Portland — 300-1 right now
to win it all.