SPORTS
Friday, March 23, 2018
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NCAA Men’s Tournament
Loyola upsets Nevada, keeps run going to Elite Eight
Gonzaga, Kentucky
upset in Sweet 16
Associated Press
ATLANTA — With Loyola-Chi-
cago clinging to a one-point lead
and only 6.3 seconds remaining,
Marques Townes sank a 3-pointer
from in front of the Ramblers'
bench to continue their improbable
NCAA Tournament run.
Townes scored 18 points,
including the key 3-pointer, to lead
Loyola to a 69-68 win over Nevada
in Thursday night's NCAA South
Regional semifinal.
"I think Marcus Townes is the
best player on the court tonight,"
said Loyola guard Clayton Custer.
"I don't even think it was close,
either. I am so happy for him. He
is such a good basketball player
and such a good person, I am just
so happy he dominated the game
tonight and he led us.
"This is unbelievable. Feels like
a dream."
The win leaves the No.
11th-seeded Ramblers one victory
from a Final Four appearance.
Not bad for a program that hadn't
been in the Sweet 16 in 33 years.
Townes charged down the court,
pumping his fist, as Nevada called
a timeout following the crucial
3-pointer. Caleb Martin answered
with a 3 for Nevada, but this time
the Wolf Pack couldn't extend their
string of second-half comebacks in
the tournament.
Loyola (31-5) awaits the winner
of the Kansas State-Kentucky game
in Saturday's regional final.
Martin led Nevada (29-8) with
21 points. Twin brother Cody Martin
had 16. Jordan Carolina had 19.The
Wolf Pack finally faced a deficit too
big to overcome.
Loyola trailed by 12 points, at
20-8, midway through the first half
but stormed back to lead 28-24 at
halftime. Loyola closed the half with
a 20-4 run as Nevada didn't score in
the final 7:55 before the break.
After leading a combined 4
minutes, 24 seconds of their first
two NCAA Tournament wins, the
Wolf Pack didn't trail in the opening
18 minutes of the first half. Even
after leading 20-8 and appearing to
AP Photo/David Goldman
Loyola-Chicago guard Marques Townes celebrates victory after a regional semifinal NCAA college
basketball game against Nevada, Thursday, March 22, 2018, in Atlanta. Loyola-Chicago won 69-68.
have established command, Nevada
found a way to trail at halftime for
the sixth straight game.
Following a 4-4 tie, Nevada
took the lead with an 8-0 run that
included a layup and two free throws
by Jordan Caroline.
Loyola pushed the ball in the
paint on almost every possession.
The Ramblers' first 10 points came
on layups.
Freshman Cameron Krutwig,
who at 6-foot-9, 260 pounds stood
out as the biggest player for either
team, had eight of Loyola's first 19
points but went to the bench with
two fouls with 6:26 remaining in
the half. He picked up his third foul
midway through the second half.
Loyola's relentless attack on
the basket continued as it stretched
its lead, one layup at a time, in the
second half.
Following a steal by Townes,
Ben Richardson's layup gave the
Ramblers their first double-digit lead
at 36-26 and took their biggest lead
at 40-28.
Nevada's experience in second-
half comebacks paid off. After
Loyola's layup by Clayton Custer
gave the Ramblers their last 10-point
lead at 57-47, the Wolf Pack charged
back.
Cody Martin's basket started a
12-2 run, and his layup tied the game
at 59-all with 4:06 remaining.
FLORIDA STATE
75,
GONZAGA 60
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Florida
State's upset run in the NCAA Tour-
nament has stretched all the way to
the brink of the Final Four.
Terance Mann scored 18 points
and the ninth-seeded Seminoles
advanced to the Elite Eight for just
the third time in school history with
a 75-60 victory over fourth-seeded
Gonzaga on Thursday night in the
West Region semifinal.
C.J. Walker and Braian Angola
added nine points for the Seminoles
(23-11), who knocked out a third
straight higher-seeded opponent in
a surprising run out West for a team
Minor league baseball
players who make as little
as $5,500 a season would be
stripped of the protection of
federal minimum wage laws
under a provision in govern-
ment spending legislation
expected to be approved by
Congress this week.
The “Save America’s
Pastime Act” is included on
page 1,967 of the $1.3 trillion
spending bill and appears to
pre-empt a lawsuit filed four
years ago in U.S. District Court
in San Francisco by three
players alleging Major League
Baseball and its teams violate
the Fair Labor Standards Act
and state minimum wage and
overtime requirements for a
work week they estimated at
50-to-60 hours.
The provision in the legis-
lation would exempt “any
employee employed to play
baseball who is compensated
pursuant to a contract that
provides for a weekly salary
for services performed during
the league’s championship
season (but not spring training
or the offseason) at a rate that
is not less than a weekly salary
equal to the minimum wage ...
for a workweek of 40 hours,
irrespective of the number of
hours the employee devotes to
baseball related activities.”
The House approved the
spending bill Thursday and it
appears likely to be approved
by the Senate and signed by
President Donald Trump.
Only major league players
are unionized, which sets
minimum salaries for players
on 40-man rosters: $545,000
for those in the major leagues
this season, $88,900 for 40-man
roster players in the minors
signing at least their second big
league contract and $44,500 for
40-man roster players in the
KANSAS
STATE
61,
KENTUCKY 58
ATLANTA (AP) — Kentucky's
latest group of fabulous freshman is
all done.
MICHIGAN 99, TEXAS A&M
72
LOS ANGELES (AP) — This
one was easy.
After reaching the NCAA
Tournament's round of 16 with an
improbable buzzer-beater, Michigan
shot 62 percent from the floor and
routed Texas A&M 99-72 in the
West Region semifinals on Thursday
night to reach the Elite Eight for the
third time in six years.
The Wolverines (31-7) domi-
nated from start to finish, hitting 14
3-pointers — 10 in the first half —
and extending their winning streak
to 12 games.
Muhammad-Ali
Abdur-Rah-
kman scored 24 points, Moe
Wagner added 21 points and Charles
Matthews had 18 points as third-
seeded Michigan had five players in
double figures.
The Aggies (22-13) never made a
run, going long stretches without a
basket in the first half while Mich-
igan was scoring on nearly every trip
down the floor.
Tyler Davis led the seventh-
seeded Aggies with 24 points.
BIG RIVER: Hermiston boys put
together a third place finish
Minor league baseball players to lose
minimum wage protection
Associated Press
that went 9-9 in ACC play and lost
its conference tournament opener.
Coolly maintaining a lead down
the stretch at Staples Center, Florida
State ended Gonzaga's 16-game
winning streak and halted the pursuit
of a second straight Final Four berth
for last year's tournament finalist.
Rui Hachimura scored 16 points
and Zach Norvell Jr. added 14 for the
Zags (32-5), who hadn't lost since
Jan. 18. Already playing without
injured forward Killian Tillie, the
Zags struggled when forwards
Johnathan Williams and Hachimura
got into early foul trouble.
After a season of running away
from West Coast Conference oppo-
nents, Gonzaga played from behind
for much of the night at Staples
Center, even trailing at halftime for
only the sixth time all season.
Gritty Kansas State made sure of
that Thursday night.
Demeaned by many pundits
as the worst team still alive in the
NCAA Tournament, ninth-seeded
K-State got 22 points from Xavier
Sneed and gave the South Regional
one more upset with a 61-58 semi-
final victory over Kentucky.
Sneed wasn't around at the end
— he was among three Kansas State
players who fouled out — but Barry
Brown Jr. came through with the
shot of the game to seat it for the Big
12 school.
Brown darted into the lane with
the shot clock running down, seem-
ingly blowing by every Kentucky
player to get to the basket, and
banked one in with 18 seconds
remaining to put K-State up 60-58.
Kentucky's Quade Green put up
an airball from beyond the arc and
Kansas State rebounded, drawing
a foul that sent Amaad Wainright
to the line for two free throws that
could've sealed it. He made only
one, giving Kentucky one more
chance to force overtime.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got a
decent look at the basket, but his shot
rimmed out as the horn sounded.
minors signing their first big
league contract.
While early selections in the
annual draft of players residing
in the United States, Canada and
Puerto Rico, and top amateurs
from the rest of the world can
command signing bonuses as
high as about $8 million under
the current rules, monthly
salaries for most players on
minor league rosters are low:
$1,100 at rookie ball and Class
A, $1,500 at Double-A and
$2,150 at Triple-A. Players also
receive a $25 per diem on the
road and dinner at the ballpark
following games.
The lawsuit has been
certified as a class action for
minor leaguers who played in a
California league, instructional
league or extended spring
training since February 2011,
but MLB has asked the 9th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
to overturn that decision, which
has delayed the case.
Continued from 1B
she teed off to when she entered the club-
house, her heart was racing.
“I’m not going to lie. My nerves were
going,” George said. “I’m just happy I got
the dub.”
Behind George was Rylee Harris and
McKenzie McCleod, who both finished
with a 92 for a two-way tie for third place.
Fellow Buckaroo Jared Geier beat out
the rest of the boys field to stand atop the
leader board with a 75, and led the boys
team to a victory.
Geier opened his round with a double
bogey on the par-3 second hole and a
bogey on the par-5 fifth hole, but recov-
ered well by making par in the following
holes leading up to the turn. On the back
nine, Geier continued his solid round and
behind seven pars beat The Dalles No. 1
golfer by one stroke.
“Jared was very consistent around the
greens and did a great job putting today
with only 27 putts on 18 holes,” head
coach Steve Utter said. “With the wind
blowing a lot it was pretty challenging
conditions.”
The Bucks edged out La Grande by
just four strokes. Trevor Reyes and Seth
Wood both shot an 92 for Pendleton and
Sawyer Powell finished with the fourth
lowest score, a 94.
Kaden Murphy rounded out Pendle-
ton’s squad with a 99.
The Hermiston boys team finished
third with Kaleb Crafton scoring the
lowest round (89). A triple bogey stained
Crafton’s card on the front nine, but he
finished strong with three pars on the final
six holes.
Blue Blackhurst followed with a
92 and then Conner Scott (94), Garret
McClannahan (95) and Cody Thacker
(99).
UP NEXT
Both the Pendleton and Hermiston
boys teams will have a quick turnaround
and travel to The Dalles tomorrow, and
both girls teams will play again on April
2 when they face each other in Pendleton.
———
Contact Alexis at amansanarez@
eastoregonian.com or 541-564-4542.
Follow her on Twitter @almansanarez.
SCOREBOARD
Local slate
PREP BASEBALL
Friday
Umatilla vs. Bonanza (at John Day), Noon
Union at Heppner (DH), 1 p.m.
Lakeridge at Hermiston, 3 p.m.
Pendleton at Walla Walla (WA), 3 p.m.
Irrigon at Tri Cities Prep (WA), 3 p.m.
Riverside at White Salmon (WA), 4 p.m.
Saturday
Stanfield at Weston-McEwen (DH), 11 a.m.
Umatilla vs. Lost River (at John Day), 11 a.m.
Kennewick (WA) at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
PREP SOFTBALL
Friday
Tri Cities Prep (WA) at Irrigon, 3 p.m.
Vernonia at Pilot Rock, 3 p.m.
Pasco (WA) at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
Riverside at Stevenson (WA), 4 p.m.
Saturday
Lost River at Pilot Rock, 11 a.m.
Chiawana (WA) at Pendleton, Noon
Mac-Hi at Banks (DH), 1 p.m.
Enterprise at Pilot Rock, 3 p.m.
PREP TRACK AND FIELD
Saturday
Mac-Hi at Colfax (WA), 11 a.m.
PREP TENNIS
Friday
Pasco (WA) at Hermiston, 3:30 p.m.
Helix at Riverside, 3:30 p.m.
Umatilla at Stanfield, 3:30 p.m.
Saturday
Hermiston (boys) at Kamiakin (WA), Noon
Kamiakin (WA) at Hermiston (girls), Noon
PREP LACROSSE
Saturday
Hermiston at Wenatchee (WA), 1 p.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Saturday
Clark College at BMCC (DH), 11 a.m.
Sunday
SW Oregon at BMCC (DH), 11 a.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Friday
BMCC at Walla Walla CC (DH), 2 p.m.
Saturday
BMCC at Big Bend CC (DH), 12 p.m.
College of Idaho at EOU (DH), 2 p.m.
Sunday
College of Idaho at EOU (DH), 11 a.m.
COLLEGE TRACK & FIELD
Saturday
EOU at Northwest Nazarene (ID), all day
Basketball
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W
L Pct
x-Toronto
53 19 .736
x-Boston
48 23 .676
Philadelphia
41 30 .577
New York
26 46 .361
Brooklyn
23 49 .319
Southeast Division
W
L Pct
Washington
40 31 .563
Miami
39 33 .542
Charlotte
32 41 .438
Orlando
21 51 .292
Atlanta
21 51 .292
Central Division
W
L Pct
Cleveland
42 29 .592
Indiana
41 31 .569
Milwaukee
37 34 .521
Detroit
32 40 .444
Chicago
24 47 .338
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Division
W
L Pct
y-Houston
58 14 .806
New Orleans
43 30 .589
San Antonio
42 30 .583
Dallas
22 50 .306
Memphis
19 53 .264
Northwest Division
W
L Pct
Portland
44 27 .620
Oklahoma City
43 30 .589
Minnesota
41 31 .569
Utah
41 31 .569
Denver
39 33 .542
Pacific Division
W
L Pct
y-Golden State
53 18 .746
L.A. Clippers
38 33 .535
L.A. Lakers
31 40 .437
Sacramento
24 49 .329
Phoenix
19 53 .264
x-clinched playoff spot
y-clinched division
———
Thursday’s Games
Charlotte 140, Memphis 79
Philadelphia 118, Orlando 98
GB
—
4½
11½
27
30
GB
—
1½
9
19½
19½
GB
—
1½
5
10½
18
GB
—
15½
16
36
39
GB
—
2
3½
3½
5½
GB
—
15
22
30
34½
Houston 100, Detroit 96, OT
New Orleans 128, L.A. Lakers 125
Utah 119, Dallas 112
Sacramento 105, Atlanta 90
Friday’s Games
Denver at Washington, 4 p.m.
L.A. Clippers at Indiana, 4 p.m.
Brooklyn at Toronto, 4:30 p.m.
Minnesota at New York, 4:30 p.m.
Phoenix at Cleveland, 4:30 p.m.
Miami at Oklahoma City, 5 p.m.
Milwaukee at Chicago, 5 p.m.
Utah at San Antonio, 5:30 p.m.
Boston at Portland, 7 p.m.
Atlanta at Golden State, 7:30 p.m.
NCAA Men’s Tournament
EAST REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
At TD Garden, Boston
Friday
#1 Villanova (32-4) vs. #5 West Virginia
(26-10), 4:27 p.m. (TBS)
#2 Purdue (30-6) vs. #3 Texas Tech (26-9),
6:57 p.m. (TBS)
SOUTH REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
At Philips Arena, Atlanta
Thursday
#11 Loyola-Chicago 69, #7 Nevada 68
#9 Kansas State 61, #5 Kentucky 58
Regional Championship
Saturday
Loyola of Chicago (31-5) vs. Kansas State
(25-11), 3 p.m. (TBS)
MIDWEST REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
At CenturyLink Center, Omaha, Neb.
Friday
#1 Kansas (29-7) vs.#5 Clemson (25-9),
4:07 p.m. (CBS)
#2 Duke (28-7) vs. #11 Syracuse (23-13),
6:37 p.m. (CBS)
WEST REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
At STAPLES Center, Los Angeles
Thursday
#3 Michigan 99, #7 Texas A&M 72
#9 Florida State 75, #4 Gonzaga 60
Regional Championship
Saturday
Michigan (31-7) vs. Florida State (23-11),
5:49 p.m. (TBS)
NCAA Women’s Tournament
ALBANY REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
Saturday
At Albany, N.Y.
#2 South Carolina (28-6) vs. #11 Buffalo
(29-5), 8:30 a.m. (ESPN)
#1 UConn (34-0) vs. #5 Duke (24-8), 10:30
a.m. (ESPN)
SPOKANE REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
Saturday
At Spokane, Wash.
#1 Notre Dame (31-3) vs. #4 Texas A&M
(26-9), 1 p.m. (ESPN)
#2 Oregon (32-4) vs. #11 Central Michigan
(30-4), 3 p.m. (ESPN)
KANSAS CITY REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
Friday
At Kansas City, Mo.
#4 N.C. State (26-8) vs. #1 Mississippi
State (34-1), 4 p.m. (ESPN2)
#3 UCLA (26-7) vs. #2 Texas (28-6), 6 p.m.
(ESPN2)
LEXINGTON REGIONAL
Regional Semifinals
Friday
At Lexington, Ky.
#6 Oregon State (25-7) vs. #2 Baylor (33-
1), 4 p.m. (ESPN)
#1 Louisville (34-2) vs. #4 Stanford (24-
10), 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Hockey
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
GP W
L OT Pts
x-Tampa Bay 74 51 19
4 106
x-Boston
72 45 17 10 100
Toronto
74 44 23
7 95
Florida
72 37 28
7 81
Detroit
74 27 36 11 65
Montreal
74 26 36 12 64
Ottawa
73 26 36 11 63
Buffalo
73 23 38 12 58
Metropolitan Division
GP W
L OT Pts
Washington 74 43 24
7 93
Pittsburgh 74 42 27
5 89
Columbus 75 42 28
5 89
Philadelphia 75 38 25 12 88
New Jersey 73 37 28
8 82
Carolina
74 32 31 11 75
N.Y. Rangers 74 32 34
8 72
N.Y. Islanders 74 31 33 10 72
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
GP W
L OT Pts
x-Nashville 73 48 15 10 106
Winnipeg 73 44 19 10 98
GF GA
271 211
240 186
251 210
219 222
189 229
185 237
201 257
173 240
GF GA
230 217
243 225
214 206
226 223
219 221
203 237
214 240
241 270
GF GA
238 183
242 190
Minnesota 73 41 24
8 90 227 210
Colorado
74 40 26
8 88 237 217
St. Louis
73 40 28
5 85 203 194
Dallas
74 38 28
8 84 212 201
Chicago
75 30 36
9 69 211 233
Pacific Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Vegas
74 47 21
6 100 249 202
San Jose
74 42 23
9 93 227 202
Los Angeles 75 41 27
7 89 219 187
Anaheim
74 38 24 12 88 210 197
Calgary
75 35 30 10 80 204 226
Edmonton 74 33 36
5 71 214 236
Vancouver 74 26 39
9 61 192 242
Arizona
74 25 38 11 61 184 237
NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for
overtime loss.
———
Thursday’s Games
Philadelphia 4, N.Y. Rangers 3
Carolina 6, Arizona 5
Columbus 4, Florida 0
Tampa Bay 7, N.Y. Islanders 6
Washington 1, Detroit 0
Edmonton 6, Ottawa 2
Toronto 5, Nashville 2
Vancouver 5, Chicago 2
Los Angeles 7, Colorado 1
San Jose 2, Vegas 1, OT
Friday’s Games
Montreal at Buffalo, 4 p.m.
New Jersey at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m.
Anaheim at Winnipeg, 5 p.m.
Vancouver at St. Louis, 5 p.m.
Boston at Dallas, 5:30 p.m.
Soccer
MLS
EASTERN CONFERENCE
W L T Pts GF GA
NYC FC
3 0 0 9 6 1
Columbus
2 0 1 7 5 2
Atlanta United FC 2 1 0 6 7 6
Philadelphia
1 0 1 4 2 0
New York
1 1 0 3 4 1
Montreal
1 2 0 3 4 5
New England
1 1 0 3 2 3
D.C. United
0 1 2 2 4 6
Orlando City
0 2 1 1 2 5
Chicago
0 2 0 0 4 6
Toronto FC
0 2 0 0 0 3
WESTERN CONFERENCE
W L T Pts GF GA
Los Angeles FC
2 0 0 6 6 1
Minnesota United 2 1 0 6 6 5
Sporting K.C.
2 1 0 6 7 7
Vancouver
2 1 0 6 5 6
Houston
1 1 1 4 7 4
FC Dallas
1 0 1 4 4 1
Real Salt Lake
1 1 1 4 3 6
San Jose
1 1 0 3 5 5
LA Galaxy
1 1 0 3 3 3
Colorado
0 1 0 0 1 2
Seattle
0 2 0 0 0 4
Portland
0 2 0 0 1 6
NOTE: Three points for victory, one point
for tie.
———
Saturday’s Matches
New York City FC at New England, 10:30 a.m.
Portland at FC Dallas, 12:30 p.m.
D.C. United at Columbus, 3 p.m.
Minnesota United at New York, 4 p.m.
Sporting Kansas City at Colorado, 6 p.m.
LA Galaxy at Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Auto Racing
NASCAR Cup Series
Upcoming Schedule
Sunday — STP 500, at Martinsville
Speedway, 11 a.m. (TV: FS1)
April 8 — O-Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas
Motor Speedway, 11 a.m. (FS1)
Points Standings
Through Mar. 18
1. Martin Truex, 216. 2. Kyle Busch, 207. 3.
Joey Logano, 197. 4. Brad Keselowski, 183.
5. Ryan Blaney, 181. 6. Denny Hamlin, 176.
7. Kyle Larson, 174. 8. Kevin Harvick, 170. 9.
Clint Bowyer, 155. 10. Aric Almirola, 148. 11.
Kurt Busch, 144. 12. Austin Dillon, 141. 13.
Erik Jones, 132. 14. Ryan Newman, 117. 15.
Alex Bowman, 115. 16. Paul Menard, 115.
Golf
PGA TOUR
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play
Site: Austin, Texas.
Course: Austin CC. Yardage: 7,108. Par: 71.
Purse: $10 million. Winner’s share: $1.7
million.
Television: Wednesday-Friday, 2-8 p.m.
(Golf Channel); Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
(Golf Channel); 2-6 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 10
a.m.-2 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-7 p.m (NBC).
Defending champion: Dustin Johnson.
Last World Golf Championship: Phil Mick-
elson won the Mexico Championship.