SPORTS
Thursday, November 30, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NFL
Seahawks’ Wagner having perhaps best season of his career
By TIM BOOTH
Associated Press
RENTON, Wash. — When
Seattle linebacker Bobby Wagner
was younger in his career and still
lacking some recognition, it was
teammate Richard Sherman that
was regularly touting Wagner’s
talent.
With Sherman out for the
season, maybe he’ll be able to find
time to lead Wagner’s campaign as
his name is getting mentioned as
a potential defensive player of the
year candidate.
“(Sherman) needs to be in the
building pumping us up,” joked
fellow Seahawks linebacker K.J.
Wright.
Now in his sixth season, Wagner
might be playing better now than
at any point of his career. That’s
notable since Wagner has already
been an All-Pro, a multiple-time
Pro Bowl selection, and is gener-
ally considered one of the best
middle linebackers in the NFL.
But Wagner has crept into a
different conversation as a possible
defensive player of the year
candidate. It’s always been a goal
for Wagner, yet seemed unlikely
with the award usually going to the
most disruptive defensive lineman
or a player in the secondary having
a standout season. Luke Kuechly
Seattle
lineback-
er Bobby
Wagner
(54) cel-
ebrates
after
inter-
cepting
a pass
with
team-
mate
Byron
Maxwell
(41)
during
Sunday’s
game
against
the San
Fran-
cisco
Sunday
in Santa
Clara,
Calif.
AP Photo/
John Hefti
and Brian Urlacher are the only
middle linebackers since 2003 to
be honored with the award.
Yet, whether his season is
being looked at from an analytical
perspective or simply watching
him play, Wagner has rightfully
found his way into the discussion.
And he’ll have another prime stage
this week when the Seahawks host
the 10-1 Philadelphia Eagles on
Sunday night.
He’s more than just a middle
linebacker that makes tackles.
Wagner understands that’s what it
takes to be noticed.
“I feel like they don’t necessarily
appreciate tackles as much though.
You can’t just get it off tackles. You
got to do more,” Wagner said.
“You got to do interceptions,
you got to do sacks. A guy can have
10 sacks and he can win it. You
definitely have to do more and I
feel like the inside linebackers that
have won it in the past understand
that and have done more. And you
know, I can do more, so I’ll be
fine.”
The loss of Sherman and Kam
Chancellor for the season has
allowed Wagner to be viewed more
in the spotlight and he’s helping to
make up for Seattle losing two of
its defensive stars. Wagner is third
in the NFL in tackles with 100
through 11 games.
He’s fourth on the team in
passes defensed and he’s tied for
the team lead with Sherman with
two interceptions, including a
remarkable pick last week where
he knocked the ball free from a San
Francisco receiver and caught it
against his body for an interception
while he was on the ground.
“I told him I’ve never seen a play
like that. It’s like a fumble/inter-
ception. Just really impressive,”
Wright said. “That’s showing how
much he’s paying attention getting
after the ball. We talk about it every
week.”
Pass coverage is one area where
Wagner has focused on improving.
He’s always been stout against the
run and has benefited this season
from the addition of defensive
tackle Sheldon Richardson eating
up offensive linemen and keeping
Wagner clear to make tackles.
It was a conscious decision by
Wagner that started with watching
film in the offseason and going
from there.
“I think you just go and watch
film and kind of look at all the
opportunities that you had that
you might have missed out on and
that’s kind of what I did,” Wagner
said.
“I looked back and I felt like
there were some opportunities in
coverage for me to make either a
quarterback hold onto the ball a
little bit longer to get the rush there
or create a play myself so I just
kind of looked at that and picked
that as the thing to improve.”
NOTES: DE Cliff Avril under-
went neck surgery on Tuesday and
all indications were the surgery was
successful. “As far as we’ve heard,
everything went really well. So
we are just waiting for him to get
back,” Seattle coach Pete Carroll
said. ... RB Mike Davis (groin)
and CB Shaquill Griffin were both
limited in practice on Wednesday
after both missed Sunday’s game.
MLS PLAYOFFS
Altidore scores, Toronto beats Crew to reach MLS Cup final
Associated Press
TORONTO — Jozy
Altidore scored in the 60th
minute and Toronto FC
advanced to the MLS Cup
final for the second straight
year with a 1-0 victory over
the Columbus Crew on
Wednesday night in Game
2 of the Eastern Conference
final.
Toronto will host the
Seattle Sounders or Houston
Dynamo in the Dec. 9 MLS
Cup final. The Sounders, who
took the title from Toronto in
a penalty shootout last year,
lead the Western Conference
final 2-0 going into Game 2
in Seattle on Thursday night.
After a scoreless tie in
Game 1 last week in Ohio,
Columbus needed a win or
Eastern Conf. Final
Columbus
Toronto
0
1
draw with goals to advance.
But Altidore, limping on a
bum ankle, came through
for Toronto before a sellout
crowd of 30,392 on a crisp
night at BMO Field.
“I couldn’t really move,
I was hobbling around,”
Altidore said. “It’s tough too
in these conditions too when
you get a knock like that, it’s
so cold, it’s a little bit worse.
I wanted to give a little bit
of time for whoever was up
next, and if a chance came
down to it, I wanted it to fall
to me. And it did.”
Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP
Toronto FC forward Jozy Altidore (17) scores on Co-
lumbus Crew goalkeeper Zack Steffen (23) as Crew
defender Lalas Abubakar (17) looks on during Wednes-
day’s Eastern Conference final playoff game in Toronto.
The goal started with
Alex Bono’s goal kick that
found Sebastian Giovinco
deep in Columbus territory.
The diminutive Italian
held off several defenders
SCOREBOARD
Local slate
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL
Thursday
Irrigon at Stanfield, 7:30 p.m.
Touchet (WA) at Helix, 7:30 p.m.
Friday
Stanfield vs. TBD (at Sherman), TBD
Umatilla vs. TBD (at Vernonia), 1:30 p.m.
Riverdale vs. Umatilla (at Vernonia), 4:30
p.m.
Grant Union vs. Culver (at Sherman),
4:30 p.m.
Heppner vs. Chemawa (at Western
Mennonite), 4:30 p.m.
Pilot Rock at Echo, 4:30 p.m.
Irrigon at Weston-McEwen, 4:30 p.m.
Riverside vs. College Place (WA) (at Mac-
Hi), 5:00 p.m.
Hermiston vs. Mountain View (at Wilson-
ville), 5:30 p.m.
Pendleton vs. Eagle Point (at Wilsonville),
7 p.m.
Enterprise at Ione, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
Pendleton vs. TBD (at Wilsonville), TBD
Hermiston vs. TBD (at Wilsonville), TBD
Riverside vs. TBD (at Mac-Hi), TBD
Heppner vs. TBD (at Western Mennonite),
TBD
Irrigon vs. TBD (at Ione), 1 p.m.
Ione vs. TBD, 2:30 p.m.
Echo at Condon/Wheeler, 3:30 p.m.
Umatilla vs. TBD (at Vernonia), 5:30 p.m.
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
Thursday
Irrigon at Stanfield, 6:00 p.m.
Touchet (WA) at Helix, 6:00 p.m.
Friday
Sherman at Stanfield, TBD
Helix vs. TBD (at Mac-Hi), TBD
Weston-McEwen at Irrigon, 3:00 p.m.
Umatilla at Riverdal, 3:00 p.m.
Pilot Rock at Echo, 3:00 p.m.
Riverside vs. College Place (WA) (at Mac-
Hi), 3:30 p.m.
Heppner at Chemawa, 4:30 p.m.
Enterprise at Ione, 6:00 p.m.
Griswold at McLoughlin, 6:30 p.m.
Helix vs. at Mac-Hi, 6:30 p.m.
Wilsonville at Hermiston, 7:00 p.m.
Saturday
Mac-Hi vs. TBD, TBD
Riverside vs. TBD (at Mac-Hi), TBD
Helix vs. TBD (at Mac-Hi), TBD
Umatilla vs. TBD (at Vernonia), TBD
Heppner vs. TBD (at Beau Classic), TBD
Stanfield vs. TBD (at Sherman), TBD
Irrigon vs. TBD (at Ione), 1 p.m.
Summit at Pendleton, 2:30 p.m.
Lewiston (ID) at Hermiston, 5:45 p.m.
Weston-McEwen vs. TBD (at Ione), 7 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Thursday
NAIA
National Championships in
Sioux City, Iowa, 3 p.m.
EOU vs. Viterbo (Wis.),
COLLEGE WRESTLING
Friday
EOU at Battle of the Rockies (Grant Falls,
Mont.), TBD
Saturday
EOU at Battle of the Rockies (Grant Falls,
Mont.), TBD
COLLEGE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday
BMCC at the Walla Walla Classic, TBD
Saturday
BMCC at the Walla Walla Classic, TBD
EOU at Southern Oregon, 6 p.m.
Sunday
BMCC at Clackamas CC, 1 p.m.
COLLEGE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday
BMCC at Linn-Benton CC, 6 p.m.
Saturday
BMCC at Portland CC, 2 p.m.
EOU at Southern Oregon, 4 p.m.
Prep Scores
Wednesday
BOYS PREP BASKETBALL
Blanchet Catholic 72, Riverdale 35
Burns 72, Crane 39
Central 54, North Eugene 45
Century 70, Dallas 49
Columbia (White Salmon), Wash. 68,
Riverside 65, OT
Columbia Christian 91, Molalla 48
Coquille 64, Bandon 34
Crescent Valley 70, Marist 60
Creswell 52, Siuslaw 41
Douglas 67, Myrtle Point 34
Eddyville 54, C.S. Lewis 44
Enterprise 54, Wallowa 40
Faith Bible 67, Southwest Christian 62
Gaston 58, Yamhill-Carlton 55
Harrisburg 55, Monroe 40
Hood River 65, Sandy 57
Illinois Valley 68, Hidden Valley 64, OT
Jordan Valley 72, McDermitt, Nev. 37
Kennedy 77, Amity 72
Lebanon 53, Redmond 45
Lowell 49, East Linn Christian 47
Newport 70, Elmira 55
North Douglas 66, Siletz Valley 47
Nyssa 57, Cole Valley, Idaho 47
Oregon Episcopal 56, Sheridan 47
Pendleton 55, Baker 47
Portland Christian 45, Colton 37
Reedsport 58, Elkton 36
Regis 60, Chemawa 49
Roseburg 61, Ashland 58
Santiam 56, Pleasant Hill 52
Scio 50, St. Paul 34
Sherwood 66, Forest Grove 50
South Salem 79, South Eugene 64
Stevenson, Wash. 91, Horizon Christian
Hood River 59
Sweet Home 59, South Albany 48
The Dalles 54, Reynolds 47
Triad School 67, Butte Valley, Calif. 58
Umpqua Valley Christian 54, Canyonville
Christian 52
Valley Catholic 50, Gladstone 35
Waldport 63, Jefferson 57
Willamette 74, North Salem 42
Willamina 61, Delphian High School 21
Yoncalla 60, Mohawk 46
Bill Spelgatti Memorial
St. Mary’s 58, Glide 53
Sutherlin 58, South Umpqua 21
GIRLS PREP BASKETBALL
Baker 56, Pendleton 47
Blanchet Catholic 44, Santiam Christian
27
Bonanza 47, North Lake 27
Burns 59, Crane 24
Central 85, North Eugene 20
Century 56, Reynolds 25
Chemawa 62, Regis 40
Colton 40, Portland Christian 33
Coquille 47, Bandon 13
Creswell 42, Siuslaw 30
Culver 51, La Pine 16
Dallas 40, North Salem 29
DeSales, Wash. 58, Weston-McEwen 49
Douglas 57, Myrtle Point 5
East Linn Christian 35, Lowell 23
Elkton 49, Reedsport 7
Elmira 58, Newport 48
Illinois Valley 42, Hidden Valley JV 41
Jefferson 59, Waldport 37
Kennedy 75, Amity 25
Lebanon 61, Redmond 34
McDermitt, Nev. 49, Jordan Valley 48
Mohawk 42, Yoncalla 31
Monroe 60, Harrisburg 34
New Hope Christian 25, Prospect 12
North Douglas 55, Siletz Valley 24
North Medford 60, Henley 34
Ontario 48, Nyssa 42
Oregon Episcopal 30, Sheridan 24
Pleasant Hill 68, Santiam 26
Portland Adventist 70, Westside Christian
46
Rainier 63, Toutle Lake, Wash. 19
Riverside 49, Columbia (White Salmon),
Wash. 16
Roseburg 50, Ashland 34
Sandy 36, Hood River 31
South Albany 77, Sweet Home 37
South Eugene 57, Thurston 37
St. Paul 47, Scio 22
Stevenson, Wash. 58, Horizon Christian
Hood River 43
The Dalles 43, Centennial 38
Triad School 55, Butte Valley, Calif. 30
Umpqua Valley Christian 40, Canyonville
Christian 16
Valley Catholic 45, Gladstone 25
Walla Walla, Wash. 40, Hermiston 29
Willamette 59, McKay 33
Yamhill-Carlton 52, Willamina 35
Bill Spelgatti Memorial Tournament
Sutherlin 51, South Umpqua 36
Soccer
MLS Playoffs
Conference Championships
Eastern Conference
Tuesday: Toronto 0, Columbus 0
Nov. 29: Toronto 1, Columbus 0 (Toronto
advances)
Western Conference
Tuesday: Seattle 2, Houston 0
Nov. 30: Houston at Seattle, 7:30 p.m.
MLS CUP
Dec. 9: Toronto vs. TBD, 1 p.m.
Football
NFL
Week 13 Schedule
Thursday
Washington at Dallas, 5:25 p.m.
Sunday
Tampa Bay at Green Bay, 10 a.m.
Minnesota at Atlanta, 10 a.m.
San Francisco at Chicago, 10 a.m.
Detroit at Baltimore, 10 a.m.
Denver at Miami, 10 a.m.
Indianapolis at Jacksonville, 10 a.m.
Houston at Tennessee, 10 a.m.
Kansas City at N.Y. Jets, 10 a.m.
New England at Buffalo, 10 a.m.
Cleveland at L.A. Chargers, 1:05 p.m.
Carolina at New Orleans, 1:25 p.m.
L.A. Rams at Arizona, 1:25 p.m.
N.Y. Giants at Oakland, 1:25 p.m.
Philadelphia at Seattle, 5:30 p.m.
Monday
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati, 5:30 p.m.
NCAA
Top 25 Schedule
Friday
No. 14 Stanford at No. 11 USC, 5 p.m.
(ESPN)
Saturday
No. 16 Memphis at No. 12 UCF, 9 a.m.
(ABC)
No. 10 TCU at No. 2 Oklahoma, 9:30 a.m.
(FOX)
No. 6 Georgia at No. 4 Auburn, 1 p.m. (CBS)
No. 7 Miami at No. 1 Clemson, 5 p.m.
(ABC)
No. 8 Ohio State at No. 3 Wisconsin, 5
p.m. (FOX)
Hockey
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Tampa Bay 25 17
6
2 36 90 65
Toronto
26 16
9
1 33 92 78
Boston
23 11
8
4 26 63 68
Detroit
25 10 10
5 25 70 74
Montreal
26 11 12
3 25 62 82
Ottawa
23 8
9
6 22 68 76
Florida
24 10 12
2 22 72 83
Buffalo
25 6 15
4 16 55 85
Metropolitan Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Columbus 25 16
8
1 33 72 60
N.Y. Islanders 24 15
7
2 32 89 76
New Jersey 24 14
6
4 32 78 74
Washington 25 14 10
1 29 74 75
Pittsburgh 26 13 10
3 29 74 90
N.Y. Rangers 25 13 10
2 28 82 77
Carolina
23 10
8
5 25 68 70
Philadelphia 25 8 10
7 23 70 78
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
St. Louis
25 17
7
1 35 86 66
Winnipeg 25 15
6
4 34 82 67
Nashville
24 15
6
3 33 76 68
Dallas
24 13 10
1 27 70 69
Chicago
24 12
9
3 27 76 63
Colorado
23 12
9
2 26 76 73
Minnesota 24 11 10
3 25 72 74
Pacific Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Vegas
23 15
7
1 31 81 69
Los Angeles 25 14
8
3 31 73 57
San Jose
23 13
8
2 28 61 51
Calgary
24 13 10
1 27 70 76
Anaheim
25 11 10
4 26 68 75
Vancouver 25 11 10
4 26 68 73
Edmonton 25 10 13
2 22 67 81
Arizona
27 6 17
4 16 66 98
NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for
overtime loss.
————
Wednesday’s Games
Montreal 2, Ottawa 1
Boston 3, Tampa Bay 2
Anaheim 3, St. Louis 2
Colorado 3, Winnipeg 2, OT
Thursday’s Games
Los Angeles at Washington, 4 p.m.
Montreal at Detroit, 4:30 p.m.
Vancouver at Nashville, 5 p.m.
Vegas at Minnesota, 5 p.m.
Dallas at Chicago, 5:30 p.m.
Toronto at Edmonton, 6 p.m.
Arizona at Calgary, 6 p.m.
Basketball
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W
L Pct GB
Boston
18
4 .818 —
Toronto
13
7 .650
4
Philadelphia
12
8 .600
5
New York
11 10 .524 6½
Brooklyn
8 13 .381 9½
Southeast Division
W
L Pct GB
Washington
11 10 .524 —
Miami
10 11 .476
1
Orlando
9 13 .409 2½
Charlotte
8 12 .400 2½
Atlanta
4 16 .200 6½
Central Division
W
L Pct GB
Detroit
14
6 .700 —
Cleveland
14
7 .667
½
Indiana
12 10 .545
3
Milwaukee
10
9 .526 3½
Chicago
3 16 .158 10½
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Division
W
L Pct GB
Houston
17
4 .810 —
San Antonio
14
7 .667
3
New Orleans
11 10 .524
6
Memphis
7 13 .350 9½
Dallas
5 17 .227 12½
Northwest Division
W
L Pct GB
Portland
13
8 .619 —
Minnesota
13
9 .591
½
Denver
11
9 .550 1½
Utah
10 11 .476
3
Oklahoma City
8 12 .400 4½
Pacific Division
W
L Pct GB
Golden State
16
6 .727 —
L.A. Clippers
8 11 .421 6½
L.A. Lakers
8 13 .381 7½
Phoenix
8 15 .348 8½
Sacramento
6 15 .286 9½
———
Wednesday’s Games
Detroit 131, Phoenix 107
Orlando 121, Oklahoma City 108
Philadelphia 118, Washington 113
New York 115, Miami 86
Toronto 126, Charlotte 113
Houston 118, Indiana 97
Minnesota 120, New Orleans 102
Brooklyn 109, Dallas 104
San Antonio 104, Memphis 95
Golden State 127, L.A. Lakers 123, OT
Thursday’s Games
Cleveland at Atlanta, 4:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Boston, 4:30 p.m.
Chicago at Denver, 6 p.m.
Milwaukee at Portland, 7 p.m.
Utah at L.A. Clippers, 7:30 p.m.
and backheeled the ball to
Altidore, who stabbed it to
Victor Vazquez. The Spanish
midfielder paused and then
dinked a pass to Altidore for
a right-footed shot past Zack
Steffen.
“That’s heart,” goal-
keeper Alex Bono said
“That’s all that is. That’s
heart.”
It was Toronto’s first
goal in 258 minutes. The
last score came almost a
month ago — on Oct. 30, via
Giovinco’s free kick in the
72nd minute of a 2-1 victory
at Red Bull Arena.
Columbus striker Ola
Kamara nearly tied it in the
87th minute, but couldn’t
get a boot to the ball on a
raking cross. Bono then
beat Kamara to a cross in
stoppage time.
“We were inches away
from scoring the tying goal,
we gave up one chance,
they score,” Columbus
coach Gregg Berhalter said.
“Zack makes a huge play
on the penalty. It’s a game
of inches. We play all year
for inches. Ball doesn’t
go under Ola’s foot, we
score. And we’re singing a
different tune now.”
Altidore had seemed
destined for an early night
after suffering an ankle
injury in the 50th minute
in a collision with Crew
wingback Harrison Afful.
The big man needed treat-
ment on and off the field and
Toronto prepared to send in
substitute Armando Cooper.
But Altidore stayed on,
finally limping off eight
minutes after the goal.
Warriors outlast Lakers
in overtime thriller
NBA
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — After
struggling from long range
all night, Stephen Curry hit
two quick 3-pointers to open
overtime and the Golden
State Warriors outlasted
the Los Angeles Lakers
127-123 on Wednesday.
The victory prevented
the Warriors from losing
two straight games for the
first time this season.
Kevin Durant led Golden
State with 29 points, while
Curry added 28 and Klay
Thompson 20. Curry had 13
points in overtime.
Brandon Ingram scored
a career-high 32 to lead
the Lakers. Kentavious
Caldwell-Pope and Jordan
Clarkson had 21 each, and
Julius Randle scored 20.
Curry was 1 for 7 on
3-point attempts in regula-
Golden State Los Angeles
127
123
tion.
Los Angeles had a
chance to win at the end
of regulation when Randle
rebounded Durant’s miss
with 5.3 seconds to play.
The Lakers set up a play
for Ingram, but he missed a
driving 8-footer.
The Lakers trailed by
10 at the end of the first
quarter, but charged back by
shooting 71 percent in the
second to take a 54-50 lead
at halftime.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Orlando
on Friday
Lakers: Travel to Denver
on Saturday.
ATHLETE
OF THE WEEK
Dayshawn Neal
Hermiston High School • Senior - Football
NCAA
Men’s Basketball
Top 25
Wednesday’s Games
No. 1 Duke 91, Indiana 81
No. 4 Villanova 90, Penn 62
No. 10 Miami 86, No. 12 Minnesota 81
No. 13 North Carolina 86, Michigan 71
No. 15 Gonzaga 105, Incarnate Word 68
No. 23 TCU 87, Belmont 76
No. 24 Alabama 77, Louisiana Tech 74
Thursday’s Games
No. 22 Texas Tech vs. Seton Hall, 3:30
p.m. (FS1)
NJIT at No. 19 West Virginia, 4 p.m.
No. 5 Notre Dame at No. 3 Michigan
State, 4 p.m.
UT Rio Grande Valley at No. 9 Texas A&M,
5 p.m.
Women’s Basketball
Top 25
Wednesday’s Games
No. 3 Notre Dame 83, Michigan 63
No. 6 Miss. State 94, Louisiana 37
No. 13 Florida State 94, Iowa 93
No. 15 Maryland 60, Virginia 59
No. 16 Stanford 86, San Francisco 66
No. 18 Texas A&M 82, Rice 76
No. 25 Villanova 62, Princeton 59
Thursday’s Games
Seattle at No. 24 Cal, 11:30 a.m.
Western Carolina at No. 5 South Carolina,
4 p.m.
No. 8 Ohio State at No. 14 Duke, 4 p.m.
(ESPN2)
Central Arkansas at No. 12 Tennessee, 4 p.m.
Louisiana Tech at No. 2 Texas, 5 p.m.
No. 4 Louisville at Indiana, 5 p.m.
No. 20 Kentucky at No. 9 Baylor, 5 p.m.
Kansas State at No. 19 Missouri, 6 p.m.
Neal caught five
passes for 80 yards
and two touchdowns,
including the game-
clinching score in
the fourth quarter
to help Hermiston
win the 5A state
championship.
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