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B2 SPORTS East Oregonian Friday, December 14, 2018 Rockets: Rockets overcome Vikings Rivers leads Bolts to last-second win Continued from Page B1 KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Philip Rivers and the Char- gers fi nally beat the Kansas City Chiefs. All it took was feverish fourth-quarter comeback, a questionable pass-inter- ference call, a tense video review of the fi nal touch- down and the gutsy decision to try a 2-point conversion. The result: Chargers 29, Chiefs 28. Justin Jackson’s touch- down run with a couple min- utes left gave the Chargers a chance. They quickly got the ball back from Patrick Mahomes and the NFL’s highest-scoring offense, and Rivers led a tense fi nal drive that included a fourth-down dart to Travis Benjamin and that crucial penalty on Ken- dall Fuller in the back of the end zone. The fl ag gave the Char- gers the ball at the 1, and Rivers found Mike Wil- liams along the sideline on the very next play. And when his TD catch with 8 seconds left was confi rmed, coach Anthony Lynn sent his offense back onto the fi eld to end fi ve years’ worth of frustration. Williams found him- self alone in the end zone to secure the 2-point conversion. Not only did the Chargers (11-3) clinch a playoff berth, they forged a fi rst-place tie with the Chiefs (11-3) in the AFC West while ending a nine-game losing streak to their longtime division rivals. Rivers threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns, though he also tossed a pair of interceptions, and Wil- liams had seven catches for 76 yards and two scores while adding another on the ground. way to end the game — we drove some great plays and everything ran through.” Vikings post Alexan- drea Ford shot 4-4 at the line. But Austin and for- ward Kaitelyn Evans scored a fi eld goal each to put the game away for the Rockets. “We worked really well together tonight,” Balez- tena said. “It was a relief, and pretty cool to come back.” Baleztena led the Rock- ets with 13 points. Austin had nine, and Evans posted seven. “Those three have played basketball together since the third grade,” Deist said of his team’s leading trio. “They’re a three-man team on their own.” Ford led with nine points for the Vikings, fol- lowed by Alvarez with seven. “Umatilla is a rough team,” Austin said. “But I knew we could come back. When we were down by fi ve (in the fourth quarter), I knew it was possible.” Pilot Rock (3-2) hosts the Rocket Invite, tipping off on Friday. Umatilla (2-6) hosts Heppner on Monday. Boys Andrew Earl posted 15 points and hauled in 12 rebounds to drive Uma- tilla to a 53-37 win at Pilot Rock on Thursday. The Vikings led by just three points in the fi rst quarter, but broadened the lead to 39-24 at the half. “It was a great game of basketball,” said Umatilla coach Scott Bow. “Both teams were hitting good shots.” Shane Hartung fol- lowed Earl with nine points for the night, and Sebastian Garcia had eight. “We got into some foul trouble, but the bench really stepped up,” Bow said. “We got a lot of big points from them.” The Rockets were pro- pelled by Christian Haskell with 10 points, and Austin Drake with seven. Umatilla (7-1) hosts Heppner on Monday. Pilot Rock (0-5) plays Elgin at the Rocket Invite on Friday. Hoops: Teams enter new conference Continued from Page B1 have the talent that we did last year, but I think we will be able to compete.” Smidt says Heppner will be a team to beat — the Mustangs (3-4) return all but four players from last year’s roster. “With 11 seniors and two juniors, there will be a little growing pain,” Hep- pner coach Jeremy Rosen- balm said. “But we’re fi nally starting to fi gure out who we are as a team. The boys are ready to work and get better.” The Mustangws have a few key players to drive the team this year, led by guard Hunter Nichols, for- ward Cason Mitchell, who played JV last year, and 6-foot-10 center Justin McAninch. “He’s got some skills, and shows a lot of poten- tial,” Rosenbalm said of McAninch. “I’m able to go deep into my bench every night. We’re pretty big — that’s unusual at the 2A level. Hopefully, it’ll help us to districts.” M e a n w h i l e , Weston-McEwen (0-6) and Stanfi eld (2-6) are hop- ing to fi nd traction before league play begins. “We’re a young team with four freshmen and two other kids with no var- sity experience,” Tiger- Scots coach Brian Pickard said. “It’ll be a process.” We s t o n - M c E w e n ’s league play begins Dec. 22 at Enterprise. Pickard says he expects his team to rise to the new challenge. “Enterprise is very ath- letic and can bring the pressure. We need to break their traps and move the ball,” he said. Stanfi eld head coach Devin Bailey said his team has high hopes for the new conference, but there’s a tough road ahead. “Even though we’re older, we’re playing like we’re young,” Bailey said. “I’m not too excited about where we’re at, but it’s still early. It’ll be challenging to play each team twice — that’s a lot of games to re-strategize for. It’ll be a competitive league.” Dawgs: Hermiston wins wrestling duals Continued from Page B1 The Bulldogs jumped out to an 18-3 lead with pins by Isaac Lambert (120) and Hunter Dyer (126) and Franklin. Kennewick made things interesting as Jacoby Weiber pinned Lomeli in the sec- ond round, and Brody Ray pinned Avant Ortiz at 3:18. Hermiston won the next two matches to make it 30-15, but the Lions refused to back down. Dylan Holt pinned Betz at 182, and Caleb Gragg did the same to Stanley Scott at 195 to make it 30-27 with four matches remaining. “We are freshman and sophomore heavy, but they are stepping it up,” said Kennewick coach AJ Vogt- man, whose team opened the night with a 63-18 win over Richland. “We are a lot more aggressive and they are putting it together.” The Bulldogs won the fi nal four matches by pin — Jon Lee (220), Dus- tyn Coughlin (285), Zayne Helfer (106) and Adrian Delgado (113) — to secure the win and improve to 2-2 in the MCC standings. “We want to put a prod- uct on the mat that peo- ple want to see,” Larson said. “We like them old or young. We just want to fi ll the stands.” The Bulldogs will wres- tle at the 39th annual Tri-State Tournament at North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene Friday and Saturday. “It’s one of the tough- est tournaments in the Northwest,” Larson said. “I expect them to fi ght regardless of who they wrestle.” MATCH SCORES Team score: Hermiston 69, Richland 8. 106 — Zayne Helfer (H) won by forfeit. *113 — Adrian Delgado (H) won by for- feit. 120 — Isaac Lambert (H) won by for- feit. 126 — Hunter Dyer (H) won by forfeit. 132 — Gage Shipley (H) p. Tyler Birchen- ough, 3:40. 138 — Jordan Franklin (H) tf. Taylor Coleman, 21-5. 145 — Chris Lomeli (H) p. Tristan Allgaier, 2:35. 152 — Avant Ortiz (H) md. Sam Lemieux, 13-5. 160 — Patrick Workman, (R) tf. Trevor Wagner, 18-3. 170 — Connor Gibbon (R) d. Ethan Teel, 11-9. 182 — Blake Betz (H) p. Tyler Bonser, 2:38. 195 — Stanley Scott (H) won by forfeit. 220 — Jon Lee (H) won by for- feit. 285 — Dustyn Coughlin (H) won by forfeit. Team score: Hermiston 54, Kennewick 27. 106 — Zayne Helfer (H) p. Eduardo San- chez-Gutierrez, 3:13. 113 — Adrian Del- gado (H) pin Ler Htoo, 4:41. *120 — Isaac Lambert (H) p. Porter Brower, 1:01. 126 — Hunter Dyer (H) p. Chris Tiscerano, 4:34. 132 — Antonio Ramos (K) d. Gage Ship- ley, 4-3. 138 — Jordan Franklin (H) p. Blake Brooks, 4:17. 145 — Jacoby Weiber (K) p. Chris Lomeli, 3:55. 152 — Brody Ray (K) p. Avant Ortiz, 3:18. 160 — Trevor Wagner (H) p. Sunnie Gomez, 2:33. 170 — Ethan Teel (H) p. Hser Htoo, 1:06. 182 — Dylan Holt (K) p. Blake Betz, 4:33. 195 — Caleb Gragg (K) p. Stanley Scott, 2:38. 220 — Jon Lee (H) p. Chayc Ottum, 5:05. 285 — Dus- tyn Coughlin (H) p. Mason Epperly, :53. By DAVE SKRETTA Associated Press AP Photo/Charlie Riedel Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams (81) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Geremy Davis (11) during the second half of an NFL football game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Kansas City, Mo., on Thursday. NFL Chargers Chiefs 29 28 Jackson ran for 58 yards and a touchdown in place of the injured Melvin Gordon. Mahomes was held to just 243 yards and two touch- downs for Kansas City, and his inability to pick up a fi rst down in the closing minutes proved costly. The Chiefs forced the Chargers to burn two timeouts on their last drive, but Mahomes was sacked by Isaac Rochell and Kansas City had to punt. The Chiefs never got the ball back on offense. Hyped by the return of star safety Eric Berry, it looked for a while as if the Chiefs would simply resume their vexation of Rivers at Arrowhead Stadium. Ste- ven Nelson leaped to snag a jump ball for an intercep- tion on the second play of the game, and Rivers tossed another just before halftime. Mahomes and Co. took advantage of their early momentum. Kansas City breezed downfi eld after Nelson’s interception, and the young MVP candidate threw a dart to Demarcus Robinson — while in the grasp of Char- gers safety Adrian Phillips — for a 7-0 lead. Then after a punt, Dar- rel Williams took a screen pass for his fi rst career touchdown. The Chargers fi nally reached the end zone in the second quarter, when Mike Williams caught a short TD pass. But it came moments after wide receiver Keenan Allen hurt his hip while try- ing to make a leaping grab in the corner of the end zone — he briefl y returned before sitting out the rest of the game. Mike Williams continued to pick up the slack the rest of the game. After the Chiefs pushed their lead to 21-7 on Damien Williams’ touchdown run, the Chargers’ big, rangy wide receiver answered with a 19-yard end-around for a score. And when then Chiefs went on another methodical scoring drive to take a 28-14 lead with just over 8 minutes left in the game, Williams helped the Chargers head the other way for another answering touchdown to stay in the game. Up next Chargers: Return home for a primetime game against the Ravens on Dec. 22. Chiefs: Visit the Sea- hawks for another prime- time game Dec. 23. Timberwolves fall to South Puget Sound Dylan Grogan scored 21 points and shot 4-7 at the line for the Timberwolves, but it wasn’t enough to sal- vage a road game against South Puget Sound on Thursday night. The Clippers jumped out to a 4-point lead before Gro- gan and Dante Clayton com- bined for fi ve points to gain control. Grogan hit another fi eld goal a minute later to extend the lead to 7-4. LOCAL SLATE Friday, Dec. 14 Boys Basketball Riverside at Stanfi eld, 6 p.m. Blue Mountain vs. Edmonds (at S. Puget Sound), 6 p.m. Putnam at Pendleton, 6:30 p.m. Elgin at Pilot Rock, 7 p.m. Irrigon at Mac-Hi, 7:30 p.m. Arlington at Echo, 7:30 p.m. College Place (WA) at Helix, 7:30 p.m. Heppner at Imbler, 7:30 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Crane, 7:30 p.m. Pasco at Hermiston, 7:30 p.m. Girls Basketball Weston-McEwen vs. Wallowa (at Pilot Rock), 1 p.m. Elgin at Pilot Rock, 5:30 p.m. Pasco at Hermiston, 5:45 p.m. Arlington at Echo, 6 p.m. College Place (WA) at Helix, 6 p.m. Heppner at Imbler, 6 p.m. Riverside at Stanfi eld, 7:30 p.m. Irrigon at Mac-Hi, 7:30 p.m. Boys Wrestling Hermiston at Tri-State Invite, 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 15 Boys Basketball Blue Mountain vs. Portland (at S. Puget Sound), noon Culver at Heppner, 4 p.m. Ione at Horizon Christian, 5 p.m. Condon/Wheeler at Nixyaawii, 5:30 p.m. Helix at Echo, 5:30 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Alycia Jenkins Memo- rial Tourney, 7 p.m. Wallowa at Pilot Rock, 7 p.m. Hermiston at Davis, 7:30 p.m. Girls Basketball Wallowa vs. Weston-McEwen at Pilot Rock Tourney, 1 p.m. Culver at Heppner, 2:30 p.m. Helix at Echo, 4 p.m. Condon/Wheeler at Nixyaawii, 4 p.m. Bonanza at Pilot Rock, 5:30 p.m. Hermiston at Davis, 5:45 p.m. Boys Wrestling Hermiston at Tri-State Invite Denver 6 7 0 .462 290 Oakland 3 10 0 .231 244 NATIONAL CONFERENCE East W L T Pct PF Dallas 8 5 0 .615 276 Philadelphia 6 7 0 .462 281 Washington 6 7 0 .462 249 N.Y. Giants 5 8 0 .385 307 South W L T Pct PF y-New Orleans 11 2 0 .846 447 Carolina 6 7 0 .462 324 Tampa Bay 5 8 0 .385 332 Atlanta 4 9 0 .308 316 North W L T Pct PF Chicago 9 4 0 .692 359 Minnesota 6 6 1 .500 282 Green Bay 5 7 1 .423 315 Detroit 5 8 0 .385 271 West W L T Pct PF y-L.A. Rams 11 2 0 .846 425 Seattle 8 5 0 .615 340 Arizona 3 10 0 .231 178 San Francisco 3 10 0 .231 275 x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division ——— Thursday’s Games L.A. Chargers 29, Kansas City 28 Saturday’s Games Houston at N.Y. Jets, 1:30 p.m. Cleveland at Denver, 5:20 p.m. Sunday’s Games Tennessee at N.Y. Giants, 10 a.m. Green Bay at Chicago, 10 a.m. Detroit at Buff alo, 10 a.m. Tampa Bay at Baltimore, 10 a.m. Arizona at Atlanta, 10 a.m. Oakland at Cincinnati, 10 a.m. Dallas at Indianapolis, 10 a.m. Miami at Minnesota, 10 a.m. Washington at Jacksonville, 10 a.m. Seattle at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m. New England at Pittsburgh, 1:25 p.m. Philadelphia at L.A. Rams, 5:20 p.m. Monday’s Games New Orleans at Carolina, 8:15 p.m. South Puget rallied back for a 44-38 lead at the half and never looked back. The Timberwolves would come within eight points with 12:53 left to play, but the Clippers held them off down the stretch for the 83-69 win. Blue Mountain (2-7) will continue forth in the South Puget Sound tourney with a Friday matchup against Edmonds. SCOREBOARD NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE AMERICAN CONFERENCE East W L T Pct PF New England 9 4 0 .692 364 Miami 7 6 0 .538 278 Buff alo 4 9 0 .308 201 N.Y. Jets 4 9 0 .308 270 South W L T Pct PF Houston 9 4 0 .692 323 Indianapolis 7 6 0 .538 349 Tennessee 7 6 0 .538 251 Jacksonville 4 9 0 .308 212 North W L T Pct PF Pittsburgh 7 5 1 .577 367 Baltimore 7 6 0 .538 321 Cleveland 5 7 1 .423 292 Cincinnati 5 8 0 .385 307 West W L T Pct PF x-Kansas City 11 3 0 .786 499 x-L.A. Chargers 11 3 0 .786 395 PA 293 333 320 330 PA 259 300 254 273 PA 306 241 332 397 PA 380 298 282 388 PA 246 295 297 331 PA 283 332 383 367 PA 247 291 307 319 PA 313 266 327 350 NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division W L Toronto 23 7 Philadelphia 19 10 Boston 17 10 Brooklyn 11 18 New York 8 21 Southeast Division W L Charlotte 14 13 Orlando 13 15 Miami 11 16 Washington 11 17 Atlanta 6 21 Central Division W L BMilwaukee 18 9 Indiana 18 10 Pct .767 .655 .630 .379 .276 Pct .519 .464 .407 .393 .222 Pct .667 .643 GB — 3½ 4½ 11½ 14½ GB — 1½ 3 3½ 8 GB — ½ Detroit Cleveland Chicago 13 7 6 13 21 23 .500 .250 .207 4½ 11½ 13 WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest Division W L Pct GB Memphis 16 11 .593 — Dallas 15 12 .556 1 San Antonio 15 14 .517 2 New Orleans 15 15 .500 2½ Houston 13 14 .481 3 Northwest Division W L Pct GB Denver 18 9 .667 — Oklahoma City 17 9 .654 ½ Portland 15 13 .536 3½ Utah 14 15 .483 5 Minnesota 13 15 .464 5½ Pacifi c Division W L Pct GB Golden State 19 10 .655 — L.A. Clippers 17 11 .607 1½ L.A. Lakers 17 11 .607 1½ Sacramento 15 12 .556 3 Phoenix 5 24 .172 14 ——— Thursday’s Games Houston 126, L.A. Lakers 111 San Antonio 125, L.A. Clippers 87 Orlando 97, Chicago 91 Phoenix 99, Dallas 89 Friday’s Games Atlanta at Boston, 4 p.m. New York at Charlotte, 4 p.m. Indiana at Philadelphia, 4:30 p.m. Milwaukee at Cleveland, 4:30 p.m. Washington at Brooklyn, 4:30 p.m. Miami at Memphis, 5 p.m. Golden State at Sacramento, 7 p.m. Oklahoma City at Denver, 10 p.m. Toronto at Portland, 7 p.m. Saturday’s Games Utah vs. Orlando at Mexico City, 2 p.m. Boston at Detroit, 4 p.m. L.A. Lakers at Charlotte, 4 p.m. Houston at Memphis, 5 p.m. Chicago at San Antonio, 5:30 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Oklahoma City, 6 p.m. Minnesota at Phoenix, 6 p.m. Sunday’s Games Atlanta at Brooklyn, 12 p.m. Philadelphia at Cleveland, 12:30 p.m. New York at Indiana, 2 p.m. L.A. Lakers at Washington, 3 p.m. Miami at New Orleans, 4 p.m. Sacramento at Dallas, 4 p.m. Toronto at Denver, 5 p.m. National Hockey League EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic GP W L OT Tampa Bay 33 25 7 1 Toronto 32 21 10 1 Buff alo 32 19 9 4 Boston 31 17 10 4 Montreal 32 16 11 5 Detroit 32 14 14 4 Ottawa 32 13 15 4 Florida 30 11 13 6 Metro GP W L OT Washington 30 18 9 3 Columbus 31 17 12 2 N.Y. Islanders 30 14 12 4 Pts 51 43 42 38 37 32 30 28 Pts 39 36 32 GF 134 114 98 85 103 93 106 97 GF 112 106 85 GA 92 89 92 79 105 107 125 110 GA 92 103 88 Pittsburgh N.Y. Rangers Carolina Philadelphia New Jersey 30 30 30 29 29 13 14 13 12 10 11 13 13 13 13 6 3 4 4 6 32 31 30 28 26 101 88 76 91 88 98 98 87 107 105 WESTERN CONFERENCE Central GP W L OT Pts GF GA Nashville 32 21 10 1 43 102 81 Winnipeg 31 20 9 2 42 112 87 Colorado 31 17 9 5 39 112 94 Minnesota 31 17 12 2 36 100 89 Dallas 31 16 13 3 35 86 87 St. Louis 29 11 14 4 26 82 97 Chicago 33 10 18 5 25 93 124 Pacifi c GP W L OT Pts GF GA Calgary 32 20 10 2 42 113 90 Anaheim 33 17 11 5 39 87 97 Edmonton 32 17 12 3 37 92 96 San Jose 32 17 11 5 37 102 100 Vegas 33 18 14 1 37 99 93 Vancouver 34 14 16 4 32 101 115 Arizona 30 13 15 2 28 77 83 Los Angeles 33 11 20 2 24 72 102 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. Top three teams in each division and two wild cards per confer- ence advance to playoff s. Wednesday’s Games Vegas 3, N.Y. Islanders 2 Chicago 6, Pittsburgh 3 Calgary 6, Philadelphia 5, OT Anaheim 6, Dallas 3 Thursday’s Games Buff alo 3, Arizona 1 Columbus 4, Los Angeles 1 Tampa Bay 4, Toronto 1 Montreal 6, Carolina 4 Nashville 4, Vancouver 3, OT Winnipeg 5, Edmonton 4, OT Minnesota 5, Florida 1 San Jose 3, Dallas 2 Friday’s Games Vegas at New Jersey, 4 p.m. Boston at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m. Arizona at N.Y. Rangers, 4 p.m. Ottawa at Detroit, 4:30 p.m. Washington at Carolina, 4:30 p.m. Colorado at St. Louis, 5 p.m. Winnipeg at Chicago, 5:30 p.m. Philadelphia at Edmonton, 6 p.m. Saturday’s Games Calgary at Minnesota, 10:30 a.m. Anaheim at Columbus, 4 p.m. Ottawa at Montreal, 4 p.m. Detroit vs. N.Y. Islanders at Nassau Veter- ans Memorial Coliseum, 4 p.m. Buff alo at Washington, 4 p.m. Los Angeles at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m. Toronto at Florida, 4 p.m. New Jersey at Nashville, 5 p.m. Dallas at Colorado, 6 p.m. Philadelphia at Vancouver, 7 p.m. Sunday’s Games Vegas at N.Y. Rangers, 9:30 a.m. Arizona at Carolina, 10 a.m. Calgary at St. Louis, 12 p.m. Buff alo at Boston, 2 p.m. Tampa Bay at Winnipeg, 4 p.m. San Jose at Chicago, 4 p.m. Edmonton at Vancouver, 7 p.m.