SPORTS
Weekend, February 24-25, 2018
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NASCAR
Kyle Busch wins Atlanta pole, but Wallace still in spotlight
By CHARLES ODUM
Associated Press
HAMPTON, Ga. —
Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr.
was the hot topic even as Kyle
Busch won the pole Friday at
Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Busch will start in front
Sunday in the second race of
the NASCAR Monster Energy
Cup season after edging Ryan
Newman in a close battle.
Busch overcame handling
problems in the first two
rounds of qualifying to win
the pole with a lap of 184.652
mph in the third round. Busch
won his 28th career pole, and
his first at Atlanta.
Busch beat Newman’s
184.419 mph.
Wallace will start 19th,
in the middle of the 36-car
field. Much of the talk Friday
remained on his second-place
finish last week at Daytona .
Wallace was the first black
driver in the Daytona 500 field
since 1969 . The second-place
finish was the highest for a
black driver and any rookie.
“It was just crazy,
awesome,” Wallace said
Friday.
On Sunday, he’ll be the
first black Cup racer in an
Atlanta race since Bill Lester
finished 38th in 2006.
Ryan Blaney, who will
start 26th, revealed Friday that
last week Dale Earnhardt Jr .
was so worried about Wallace
that he arranged for Blaney to
provide counsel for the rookie.
“He was like ‘Hey, I need
you to go call Bubba and calm
him down because I think he
was getting overwhelmed
with all the media and the
pressure that was kind of
being thrown upon him and
we haven’t even gotten started
yet,’” Blaney said.
Blaney, who is friends with
both Earnhardt and Wallace,
said he encouraged Wallace
to enjoy the “well-deserved
opportunity.”
Blaney said the second-
place finish proved Wallace
“dealt with it really well.”
Kevin Harvick qualified
third, followed by Daniel
Suarez. Defending champion
Brad Keselowski qualified
fifth. Austin Dillon, coming
off the win at Daytona, will
pass inspection. As a penalty,
car chief Blake Harris was
suspended for the weekend
and a 30-minute practice hold
will be enforced on Saturday.
Wallace finished sixth in
Atlanta’s Xfinity race last
year.
“This will be my first time
in Atlanta in a Cup car,” he
said. “I know how this place
is in an Xfinity car and it’s
not any fun, well it’s a lot
of fun, don’t get me wrong,
but hanging onto that thing
is a challenge. I’m looking
forward to it.”
Wallace’s boss, team
owner Richard Petty, said the
rookie is adjusting just fine.
“No, he don’t feel like
he’s a rookie,” Petty said. “...
I think he fell in really good
with the guys who have been
there for a long time because
so far he hasn’t done anything
really stupid. As long as we
keep him straight, he’ll be
OK.”
The strong showing at
Daytona solidified the status
of Wallace, 24, as a rising star
in NASCAR.
Atlanta Motor Speedway
AP Photo/John Bazemore
NASCAR driver Darrell Wallace Jr. prepares to make a
practice run for Sunday’s NASCAR auto race Friday at
Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga.
start 25th.
Defending NASCAR Cup
champion Martin Truex will
start 35th after his car did not
president Ed Clark said calls
to his ticket office this week
were dominated by fans
expressing interest in Wallace.
“He’s going to be great,”
Clark said.
Blaney and Wallace
have been friends since the
two 10-year-old boys raced
Bandolero cars together.
Blaney said he believes
Wallace “can have a huge
impact” on the 43 Chevrolet
and “grow it to places it hasn’t
been in recent years.”
The only distraction for
Wallace is a feud with Denny
Hamlin. Wallace said Friday
he has been excluded from
Hamlin’s informal golf league,
which includes a few other
NASCAR drivers. Wallace
added “I removed myself”
from Hamlin’s basketball
league.
The problems between the
two began last week when
Wallace objected to what
Hamlin said was intended to
be a joke when he claimed 70
percent of NASCAR drivers
take the prescription drug
Adderall to help with concen-
tration.
NCAA: Investigation names former Pac-12 players Markelle Fultz, Kyle Kuzma
Continued from 1B
said Sexton, who was held
out of the season opener
for violating NCAA rules,
will play Saturday against
Arkansas.
According to the report,
players over the past several
years and family members
allegedly received cash,
entertainment and travel
expenses from former NBA
agent Andy Miller and
his agency ASM Sports.
Line items in four pages
of documents released by
Yahoo showed a wide range,
including some five-figure
payments and two dinners
for less than $40 each.
Don
Jackson,
an
Alabama-based
attorney
who has worked on
numerous college eligibility
cases, said the root of the
problem is that the NCAA’s
model
of
amateurism
doesn’t work.
“This
problem
can
be solved if players are
compensated,” Jackson said.
“The NCAA is not capable
of adequately policing tens
of thousands of athletes
around the country.”
A balance sheet from
December 2015 lists several
payments under “Loan to
Players,” including $43,500
to Dallas Mavericks guard
Dennis Smith, who played
one season at North Carolina
State in 2016-17. Another
document
says
Smith
received $73,500 in loans.
N.C.
State
athletic
director Debbie Yow said
the school disassociated
itself from Miller in 2012.
Documents also said
Brooklyn Nets guard Isaiah
Whitehead received $26,136
while a freshman at Seton
Hall, and Tim Quarterman,
now playing for the Agua
Caliente Clippers of the
NBA G League, received at
least $16,000 while a junior
at LSU.
The story said the mother
of Bridges received $400
in a cash advance. Current
Kentucky player Kevin
Knox, Carter and Sexton
are listed among players or
families meeting or having
meals with former ASM
Sports associate Christian
Dawkins.
Coaches and athletic
officials at several schools,
including Clemson, North
Carolina State, South Caro-
lina, Southern California,
Utah and Wichita State
said they did not know of
the alleged payments until
Yahoo’s report was released,
but pledged to cooperate in
any investigation. Several
SCOREBOARD
Local slate
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL
Saturday
No. 16 Stanfield at No. 1 Western Menno-
nite (2A First Round), 2:30 p.m.
No. 12 Umatilla at No. 5 Horizon Christian
(3A First Round), 4 p.m.
No. 12 Days Creek at No. 5 Nixyaawii (1A
Second Round), 4:30 p.m.
No. 10 Kennedy at No. 7 Pilot Rock, 4:30
p.m. (2A First Round), 4:30 p.m.
No. 9 Catlin Gabel at No. 8 Irrigon (3A
First Round), 6 p.m.
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
Saturday
No. 9 Central Linn at No. 8 Heppner (2A
First Round), 1 p.m.
No. 2 Nixyaawii vs. No. 15 Camas Valley
(1A First Round, at Sunridge MS), 3 p.m.
Prep Scores
OSAA Girls Playoffs
Class 3A
No. 1 Salem Academy 49, No. 16 Santiam
Christian 22
No. 2 Dayton 68, No. 15 De La Salle
North Catholic 47
No. 3 Rainier 60, No. 14 Jefferson 44
No. 11 Creswell 54, No. 6 Lakeview 46
No. 7 Coquille 69, No. 10 Warrenton 48
No. 8 Nyssa 45, No. 9 Amity 36
Class 2A
No. 1 Kennedy 53, No. 16 Vernonia 17
No. 2 Monroe 80, No. 15 City Christian 43
No. 3 Oakland 34, No. 14 Enterprise 23
No. 4 Grant Union 71, No. 13
Weston-McEwen 42
No. 5 Faith Bible 51, No. 12 Toledo 29
No. 6 St. Paul 66, No. 11 Bonanza 28
Class 1A
No. 1 Country Christian 70, No. 16
Lowell 41
No. 3 Powder Valley 52, No. 14 SW
Christian 25
No. 4 Days Creek 48, No. 13 Alsea 39
No. 9 Joseph 44, No. 8 Crane 30
No. 10 Damascus Christian 23, No. 7
Perrydale 21
No. 11 Hosanna Christian 37, No. 6 South
Wasco 24
No. 12 Jordan Valley 56, No. 5 Triad 42
OSAA Boys Playoffs
Class 2A
No. 3 Knappa 81, No. 14 Reedsport 35
Basketball
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W
L Pct
Toronto
41 17 .707
Boston
41 19 .683
Philadelphia
31 25 .554
New York
24 36 .400
Brooklyn
19 41 .317
Southeast Division
W
L Pct
Washington
34 25 .576
Miami
30 29 .508
Charlotte
26 33 .441
Orlando
18 40 .310
Atlanta
18 42 .300
Central Division
W
L Pct
Cleveland
35 23 .603
Indiana
34 25 .576
Milwaukee
33 25 .569
Detroit
28 30 .483
Chicago
20 38 .345
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Division
W
L Pct
Houston
45 13 .776
San Antonio
35 25 .583
New Orleans
32 26 .552
Memphis
18 39 .316
Dallas
18 41 .305
Northwest Division
W
L Pct
Minnesota
36 26 .581
Oklahoma City
34 26 .567
Denver
33 26 .559
Portland
33 26 .559
Utah
30 29 .508
Pacific Division
W
L Pct
Golden State
45 14 .763
L.A. Clippers
31 27 .534
L.A. Lakers
24 34 .414
Sacramento
18 40 .310
Phoenix
18 42 .300
———
Friday’s Games
Boston 110, Detroit 98
Charlotte 122, Washington 105
Indiana 116, Atlanta 93
GB
—
1
9
18
23
GB
—
4
8
15½
16½
GB
—
1½
2
7
15
GB
—
11
13
26½
27½
GB
—
1
1½
1½
4½
GB
—
13½
20½
26½
27½
Milwaukee 122, Toronto 119, OT
Cleveland 112, Memphis 89
Houston 120, Minnesota 102
New Orleans 124, Miami 123, OT
Denver 122, San Antonio 119
L.A. Clippers 128, Phoenix 117
Portland 100, Utah 81
L.A. Lakers 124, Dallas 102
Saturday’s Games
Orlando at Philadelphia, 2 p.m.
Boston at New York, 4:30 p.m.
Memphis at Miami, 4:30 p.m.
Oklahoma City at Golden State, 5:30 p.m.
Chicago at Minnesota, 6 p.m.
Dallas at Utah, 6 p.m.
Portland at Phoenix, 6 p.m.
L.A. Lakers at Sacramento, 7 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
Detroit at Charlotte, 10 a.m.
New Orleans at Milwaukee, 12 p.m.
San Antonio at Cleveland, 12:30 p.m.
Houston at Denver, 5 p.m.
Philadelphia at Washington, 5 p.m.
NCAA Men’s Basketball
Top 25 Schedule
Friday
No. 18 URI 81, Dayton 56
No. 16 Ohio State 80, Indiana 78
Saturday
No. 17 Michigan at Maryland, 9 a.m. (ESPN)
No. 19 Tennessee at Ole Miss, 10 a.m.
No. 13 Witchita St at SMU, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
No. 3 Villanova at Creighton, 11:30 a.m. (FOX)
Georgia Tech at No. 15 Clemson, 12 p.m.
No. 1 UVA at Pitt, 1 p.m. (ESPNU)
No. 8 Kansas at No. 6 Texas Tech, 1:15
p.m. (ESPN)
Santa Clara at No. 22 Saint Mary’s, 3 p.m.
Iowa State at No. 21 West Virginia, 3 p.m.
(ESPNU)
Syracuse at No. 5 Duke, 3:15 p.m. (ESPN)
UAB at No. 24 Mid Tennessee, 4 p.m.
No. 6 Gonzaga at BYU, 5 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 12 Auburn at Flordia, 5:30 p.m.
No. 14 Arizona at Oregon, 7:15 p.m. (ESPN)
Sunday
Tulsa at No. 11 Cincinnati, 9 a.m. (CBSSN)
No. 2 Michigan State at Wisconsin, 10
a.m. (CBS)
ECU at No. 23 Houston, 12 p.m. (ESPN3)
Minnesota at No. 9 Purdue, 1 p.m. (FS1)
Colorado State at No. 20 Nevada, 1 p.m.
No. 25 Flordia St at NC St, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Pac-12 Schedule
Friday
No games scheduled.
Saturday
USC at Utah, 11:30 a.m. (PAC12)
Washington at Cal, 1:30 p.m. (PAC12)
Washington St at Stanford, 4 p.m. (PAC12)
Arizona St at Oregon St, 5 p.m. (ESPNU)
No. 14 Arizona at Oregon, 7:15 p.m. (ESPN)
Sunday
UCLA at Colorado, 1 p.m. (ESPNU)
NCAA Women’s Basketball
Top 25 Schedule
Friday
No. 8 Oregon 75, Arizona State 68
No. 22 Green Bay 78, Oakland 48
No. 12 Oregon State 65, Arizona 40
No. 16 Stanford 86, Washington 79
Saturday
No. 25 Oklahoma St at West Virginia, 10 a.m.
Tennessee State at No. 23 Belmont, 1 p.m.
Utah at No. 10 UCLA, 2 p.m.
Cincinnati at No. 18 USF, 2 p.m.
No. 3 Baylor at TCU, 3 p.m.
No. 6 Texas at Iowa State, 3 p.m.
No. 1 UConn at SMU, 3 p.m. (ESPN3)
Sunday
Flordia at No. 19 Georgia, 9 a.m.
No. 2 Miss St at Kentucky, 9 a.m. (ESPNU)
Nebraska at No. 13 Maryland, 9 a.m.
No. 14 Ohio St at Penn State, 9 a.m. (ESPN2)
Georgia Tech at No. 9 FSU, 10 a.m.
No. 8 Oregon at Arizona, 11 a.m.
UNC at No. 20 Duke, 11 a.m.
Pitt at No. 4 Louisville, 11 a.m.
No. 21 NC State at No. 5 Notre Dame, 11
a.m. (ESPN2)
Detroit Mercy at No. 22 Green Bay, 11
a.m. (ESPN3)
Alabama at No. 24 LSU, 12 p.m.
No. 11 Missouri at No. 17 Texas A&M, 1 p.m.
No. 7 South Carolina at No. 15 Tennessee,
1 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 16 Stanford at Washington St, 1 p.m.
No. 12 Oregon St at Arizona St, 1 p.m.
Pac-12 Schedule
Friday
No. 8 Oregon 75, Arizona State 68
Cal 67, Washington State 54
No. 12 Oregon State 65, Arizona 40
No. 16 Stanford 86, Washington 79
Saturday
Colorado at USC, 1 p.m.
Utah at No. 10 UCLA, 2 p.m.
Sunday
coaches distanced them-
selves from Miller.
“Personally, I welcome
the scrutiny on the sport of
men’s basketball because
the behavior of some agents,
along with reports of other
illegal recruiting activities,
is hurting the sport,” Utah
athletic director Chris Hill
said.
Tennessee coach Rick
Barnes said he isn’t surprised
by anything that happens in
college hoops.
“We can sit here and talk
about it for days on end if
we wanted to, all the things
that have gone on in college
basketball,” Barnes said.
“I’m not surprised by any
of it.”
Lawyers for two of the
10 defendants arrested in
the federal cases said it was
inappropriate for Yahoo to
have the documents.
“An effort was clearly
made to embarrass some
defendants and cast asper-
sions on some current student
athletes whose only ‘crime’
may be that their relatives
didn’t reimburse an agent
for a single steak dinner,”
said Jeffrey Lichtman, who
represents former Southern
California assistant basket-
ball coach Tony Bland, who
was fired last month after
his arrest. Bland is accused
of receiving a $13,000
bribe for steering the team’s
players to Dawkins and
a financial adviser when
they became professionals.
Bland pleaded not guilty in
November to charges related
to bribery and wire fraud.
Dawkins attorney Steven
Haney Sr. said the report
doesn’t mean Dawkins
broke the law.
“In the most simple of
legal terms; prove it,” Haney
said in an email.
Jackson said the NCAA
or the schools would need to
conduct their own investiga-
tions as opposed to making
any rulings based on the
documents from the FBI
probe.
“They can’t just automat-
ically accept the credibility
of this document,” the
Alabama-based
attorney
said.
Emmert said the NCAA
Board of Governors and
recently formed independent
Commission on College
Basketball are committed
to “making transforma-
tional changes” and will
cooperate with the federal
prosecutors to “identify and
punish the unscrupulous
parties seeking to exploit
the system through criminal
acts.”
SHOP ONLINE 24/7 FORDCOUNTRY.COM
No. 8 Oregon at Arizona, 11 a.m.
No. 16 Stanford at Washington St, 1 p.m.
No. 12 Oregon St at Arizona St, 1 p.m.
Cal at Washington 3 p.m.
Hockey
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Tampa Bay 61 41 17
3 85 219 164
Boston
58 37 13
8 82 191 142
Toronto
63 38 20
5 81 209 175
Florida
58 27 25
6 60 169 188
Detroit
60 24 26 10 58 159 180
Montreal
60 23 29
8 54 154 189
Ottawa
60 21 29 10 52 163 211
Buffalo
61 18 32 11 47 146 200
Metropolitan Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Pittsburgh 62 36 22
4 76 201 181
Washington 61 34 20
7 75 189 183
Philadelphia 61 32 19 10 74 183 175
New Jersey 61 31 22
8 70 183 187
Columbus 61 30 26
5 65 160 172
N.Y. Islanders 62 29 26
7 65 206 223
Carolina
61 27 24 10 64 163 186
N.Y. Rangers 62 27 30
5 59 175 198
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Nashville
60 37 14
9 83 192 155
Winnipeg 61 36 16
9 81 203 161
Minnesota 61 34 20
7 75 185 172
Dallas
61 35 22
4 74 181 159
St. Louis
62 34 24
4 72 173 160
Colorado
60 32 23
5 69 186 180
Chicago
62 27 27
8 62 176 176
Pacific Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Vegas
61 41 16
4 86 215 166
San Jose
62 33 21
8 74 180 173
Anaheim
62 31 20 11 73 171 170
Los Angeles 61 33 23
5 71 174 151
Calgary
62 31 22
9 71 177 184
Edmonton 60 25 31
4 54 167 196
Vancouver 61 23 31
7 53 164 200
Arizona
60 17 33 10 44 145 202
————
Friday’s Games
Minnesota 4, N.Y. Rangers 1
Pittsburgh 6, Carolina 1
Winnipeg 4, St. Louis 0
Chicago 3, San Jose 1
Vegas 6, Vancouver 3
Saturday’s Games
Philadelphia at Ottawa, 11 a.m.
Colorado at Calgary, 1 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Florida, 4 p.m.
N.Y. Islanders at New Jersey, 4 p.m.
Carolina at Detroit, 4 p.m.
Winnipeg at Dallas, 4 p.m.
Boston at Toronto, 4 p.m.
Chicago at Columbus, 4 p.m.
Buffalo at Washington, 4 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Montreal, 4 p.m.
Anaheim at Arizona, 5 p.m.
Edmonton at Los Angeles, 7 p.m.
Olympics
Pyeongchang Winter Olympics
Saturday TV Schedule
NBC
12 p.m. — Speed Skating: Men’s and
Women’s Mass Start Gold Medal Finals;
Cross-Country Skiing: Men’s 50km Classi-
cal Gold Medal Final
5 p.m. — Figure Skating Gala (LIVE); Four
Man Bobsled: Gold Medal Final Runs (LIVE)
NBCSN
4 a.m. — Men’s Hockey: Bronze Medal
Game, Czech Republic vs. Canada (LIVE)
6:30 a.m. — Men’s Curling: Gold Medal
Final: Sweden vs. United States (replay)
9:30 p.m. — Speed Skating: Men’s and
Women’s Mass Start Gold Medal Finals;
Women’s Curling: Bronze Medal Match,
Japan vs. Great Britain
1 p.m. — Men’s Hockey: Game of the
Day: Men’s Bronze Medal Game, Czech
Republic vs. Canada (replay); Olympic Ice
4 p.m. — Women’s Curling: Gold Medal
Final, South Korea vs. Sweden (LIVE)
7:30 p.m. — Men’s Hockey: Gold Medal
Game, Olympic Athletes from Russia vs.
Germany (LIVE)
11 p.m. — Cross Country: Women’s 30km
Gold Medal Final
Sunday TV Schedule
NBC
1 a.m. — Figure Skating Gala (replay)
12 p.m. — Cross Country: Women’s 30km
Gold Medal Final
4 p.m. — Olympic Gold (games recap)
5 p.m. — Closing Ceremony
NBCSN
3 a.m. — Men’s Hockey: Gold Medal
Game, Olympic Athletes from Russia vs.
Germany (replay)
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