SPORTS Saturday, June 22, 2019 East Oregonian B3 Portland selects Nassir Little with 25th pick By ERIK GARCÍA GUNDERSEN Associated Press AP Photo/Christophe Ena United States’ Kelley O Hara, left, and Sweden’s Fridolina Rolfo fi ght for the ball during the Group F soccer match Thursday. World’s top teams enter knockout stage on a roll By ANNE M. PETERSON Associated Press While it may be tempting to look ahead to the quarter- fi nals and a possible clash with France, the defending champion U.S. has thrived at the Women’s World Cup by keeping its focus on the present. The Americans will face Spain in the round of 16 on Monday in Reims as the tournament enters the win-or-go-home phase. Games begin Saturday with Germany facing Nige- ria in Grenoble followed by Norway’s match against Australia. The U.S. had emphatic wins in the group stage, routing Thailand 13-0 in the opener before more clini- cal victories over Chile and Sweden. The team had three shutouts while also collect- ing a World Cup group- stage record 18 goals. Coach Jill Ellis said the three-time World Cup champions accomplished their early-round goals. “When you come out of the group stage, a lot of what we talk about is mentality and being healthy,” she said. “I think they’re in a really good place.” The United States has performed largely as expected in France, though the team faced criticism after the game against Thai- land for celebrating every goal. The Americans set World Cup records for most goals and margin of victory in the game. The team toned it down ROUND OF 16 United States Spain (3-0) (1-1-1) Monday, 9 a.m., at Stade Auguste-Delaune, Reims, France TV: FOX GOLDEN BOOT American Alex Mor- gan and Australian Sam Kerr both have fi ve goals to lead the fi eld. Morgan matched a U.S. record by scoring fi ve goals in the team’s big win over Thailand. Kerr got four in Austra- lia’s fi nal group match, a 4-1 victory over Jamaica. It was the most goals for an Australian — male or female — in a World Cup game, and the fi nal goal ensured the Matildas fi nished second in their group to avoid France in the round of 16. TUALATIN — The Portland Trail Blazers selected North Carolina forward Nassir Little with the 25th pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night. Little prides himself on carving his own path and while he was admittedly anxious after falling out of the lottery, the moni- ker of Trail Blazer fi ts for a player who refused to play on the Nike AAU circuit and chose to go to boarding schools away from his fam- ily for his fi nal two years of high school. “I’ve always done things a little bit differently,” Lit- tle said. “I didn’t play on the Nike circuit. That was big. Boarding schools. I always carved my own path and paved my own way.” By having teams pass on him with the fi rst 24 picks of the draft, it was reminis- cent of his path to the NBA. “I mean, somebody told me the only way I could be successful in my life was if I was a top player on the Nike circuit,” Little said on WHOA, CANADA! AP Photo/ Julio Cortez NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, left, poses for photo- graphs with North Carolina’s Nassir Little after the Port- land Trail Blazers selected him with the 25th pick overall. a conference call Thursday. “But I wanted to show peo- ple I could be a top player no matter where I played at.” In Little, the Blazers added wing depth to their team with the 6-foot-7 wing. Little was one of the fi nal players left in the Green Room, but he even- tually found his way to a playoff team. Little believes he was fortunate, after the anxiety of not going in the lottery passed. “Man I think it’s a bless- ing in disguise,” Little said. “Slipping down to 25 ini- tially I was kind of con- fused. But when I looked at the roster and remember how they played in the play- offs, I thought it was a great fi t for me.” Little was also surprised that the Blazers targeted him, as he never came to Portland for a workout nor did he interview with the team at the NBA combine. “I was expecting to go in the lottery,” Little said. “I was surprised the Blazers drafted me because I didn’t really have a lot of conver- Six Canadians were drafted Thursday, setting the record for a country other than the U.S. A week after the Toronto Raptors won the nation’s fi rst NBA championship, Canadi- ans RJ Barrett, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Brandon Clarke, Mfi on- du Kabengele, Ignas Brazdeikis and Marial Shayok were drafted. France had fi ve players selected in 2016. sations with them. I didn’t work out with them. I didn’t know they had much inter- est in me. I didn’t work out with them even at the com- bine. I’m just happy they saw something in me that I didn’t see. “ Little averaged 9.8 points and 4.6 rebounds in his lone season at North Carolina. He also took home the MVP trophy at the 2018 McDon- ald’s All-American Game. He excited to team up with second-year Blazers guard Anfernee Simons, who also is from Orlando, Florida. Miami stops Bol Bol’s slide, trades him to Denver NEW YORK (AP) — Bol Bol started the night high-fi ving children as he walked across the stage as part of the festivities, being introduced with Zion Wil- liamson, Ja Morant, RJ Bar- rett and others expecting to hear their names called early in the NBA draft. The other players were long gone by the time Bol heard his name called. It was an uncomfortably long wait for the 7-foot-2 Oregon freshman as NBA Commissioner Adam Sil- ver rattled off the names of Bol’s peers and the green room emptied out. The fi rst round had come to an end and Bol — who was pro- jected as a possible lottery pick — was still undrafted. The agony ended when Miami ended picked him with the 44th overall pick. Not that Bol is heading to South Beach. Nope, the Heat traded his draft rights to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for a future sec- ond-round pick and fi nan- cial considerations. Bol averaged 21 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks while shooting 56% from the fi eld and 52% from 3-point range with a rangy game and an unusual skill- set, though there were con- cerns after he played just nine college games due to a foot injury. AP Photo/Julio Cortez Oregon’s Bol Bol before the NBA draft Thursday. “I just want to prove everyone wrong and just come out and be the best player I can be,” Bol said on ESPN’s draft broadcast. The wait was a big fall for the son of late NBA player Manute Bol. He found himself sit- ting in the green room as the last player there as the draft moved into the second round. While it probably wasn’t how Bol envisioned being drafted, his selection drew loud cheers from the fans who stuck around to watch the second round. They seemed to be happy for him that the awkwardness was ending. The reaction prompted Bol to say: “It feels pretty good, I didn’t know I had that many fans until right now.” against Chile. Ellis made seven lineup changes to keep her team fresh and Carli Lloyd — the hat trick hero of the World Cup fi nal four years ago in Canada — scored a pair of goals. Facing their toughest challenge of the group in ninth-ranked Sweden, the United States pounced early with Lindsey Horan’s goal within the fi rst three min- utes and emerged with a 2-0 victory on Thursday night. 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