Sports Journal December 29-31, 2018

12-29-18

I indifferently listened to the UTEP Miner Women playing the Tulsa Golden Hurricane this afternoon.  I didn’t have much else going on.  The Miners were late showing up for the game.  By the end of the first quarter, it was 25-4 Tulsa.  UTEP was 2 for 13 shooting.  They came into the game down a player from a practice injury, so they only had nine players on the roster.

In the second, Katarina Zec came in and hit a three.  “They’re within 19,” exclaimed an enthusiastic Duke Keith doing the play call.  Strangely, he didn’t have access to the stats either, like Adam Young yesterday.  Duke didn’t have anyone to help him though, so he was lost during halftime.

It was 35-16 Tulsa at the half.  I was on a phone call for a while during the third.  Kat made a couple of threes, but it didn’t really get close.  Tulsa won 66-45.  They broke a 15-game losing streak to UTEP.  Katarina Zec at least had a good game with 16 points to lead the Miners.   

12-30-18

Aggie Basketball double header today, unfortunately of the overlapping kind.  First up, the Men were in Fort Collins to play the Colorado State Rams.  The broadcast started a bit late due to technical difficulties, which would have some consequences for me later on.  The abbreviated pregame had Jack Nixon talking to the person in the NM State athletics department who makes the football schedule.  It was a short talk, but interesting.  Being independent, NMSU has actually picked up games by playing teams that had openings because contracted games fell through.  The home schedule is the hard part, since no one wants to come here.

Three Aggie players were coming into this game injured, Ivan Aurrecoechea, Johnny McCants, and AJ Harris.  They were wearing boots before game because of bad ankles, but were good to go at the tip.  Eli Chuha was away on undisclosed family business.  Still, the team didn’t seem too worried. 

First Half

It sounded like there was a good crowd there.  This was mostly because the Rams came out shooting well and took the lead and the crowd made themselves known.  Jack passed along a “Hello” to NM State from a former Aggie Cheerleader who was now working for CSU.  He suspected she’s changed allegiances.  Jack praised a Rams player going to the nail to shoot free throws, who prompted bricked both of them.  You could even hear the clanks.  “Broadcaster’s curse,” lamented Jack.    

The Aggies tied it at 20 on a CJ Bobbitt three.  Timeout CSU.  McCants was getting in on the scoring early and then blocked a shot coming out of the timeout.  It felt like that sparked the team.  The Aggies suddenly roared out front, 32-22, with five minutes left.  Timeout Rams again.  Terrell Brown hit a three right out of that, 35-22.  It was 39-26 Aggies at the half.  The game was on a blistering pace as the half only took about 45 minutes to play.

 

I had been listening to the Cowboys/Giants’ game before turning over to this game.  (Remember, I did exempt the Cowboys from my NFL ban.  Also, I was waiting on a call that never came and didn’t have anything better to do.)  I probably should have turned back to the football game when the basketball game didn’t come on on-time.  I flipped back over at one point and heard Brad and Babe call what they were saying was “The last play for the Cowboys.”  Cole Beasley made a nice catch, but out-of-bounds in the endzone.  Game presumably over, Cowboys lose. 

I turned back over a couple of times to try and catch some of the postgame and the second time, I found out that play had been reviewed.  It was called a touchdown and then Cowboys went for two, instead of one, and got the win, 36-35.  Crap, I really missed out on one there, especially since I’d heard the rest of the game. 

Meanwhile, the Aggie Women were still in California to play the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos.  Adam Young was broadcasting from the chilly “Thunderdome.”  In the pregame, he reminded us of the last time these teams played (12-29-17).  That was a 30-point loss.  I was there.  (Actually, rereading the post, I apparently had too much fun writing it.  You know, trying to make the crap sandwich palatable.)  UCSB didn’t have a great team last year and don’t have one this year either.  They lost to Coach Trakh and USC earlier in the season.  That’s about all I’m interested in.    

First Quarter

None of that losing by 30 today.  Gia Pack came out on fire.  She had 10 points and a handful of three’s early on.  The Aggies were subbing a lot.  Pam Wilmore came in for first time this year, recovered from an injury.  She’s a true point guard, so that freed up Gia to take some more shots.  It was 14-13 Aggies at the media timeout.  Aissatou Fall came in as UCSB has several really tall girls.  Wilmore got her first points off a finger roll.  Bayee Robinson, also in for her height, was in and blocked a shot.  Gia and Brooke Salas actually came out together for a couple of minutes.  It was 21-15 Aggies after a furious ten minutes of action.

Second Quarter

The Men were up 60-50 with 12 minutes left in the second half.  Gia poured in two three’s in a row, 35-22.  The UCSB head coach threw up her hands in frustration.  Brooke scored her tenth point and then got a finger roll and a foul shot for 13.  It was 44-30 Aggies at the half.  They were shooting 60% from the field.

Third Quarter

Back to Colorado during halftime, I rejoined the game with about two minutes to go.  The Aggie reserves were playing, so I assumed they were winning big.  And they did.  88-68 Aggies.  I shamefully admit my attention drifted during the postgame, so I can’t tell you which players did well.  I think several were in double digits.  Back to Santa Barbara, it was 48-41 Aggies, but the Gauchos were making a comeback.  Brooke was bombing though and scored her twenty-second point late.  61-55 Aggies after three quarters.

Fourth Quarter

Aaliyah Prince scored immediately at the start of the fourth.  She’d scored last four points for the Aggies.  She also took a foul and put in two free throws and got an assist to Kalei Atkinson.  The Gauchos were still shooting well and closed to 67-64.  They managed to get within two.  There was Prince again, this time with a steal and assist to Gia for a layup.  In the last two minutes, Gia got two free throws on an intentional foul.  She got fouled a bunch at the end.  Not that the Gauchos wanted to, since they knew she was a good foul shooter, but she kept getting the ball.  On the last play Brooke pulled down a rebound to finish the game with a double-double.

Aggies win 81-73.  That was a lot better than last year.  11 or 12 players (I heard both numbers) played for the Aggies today, who shot 58% as a team.  With Pam and Tayelin Grays helping on point, Gia Pack went nuts with 29 points.  Brooke Salas had 24 and 10 rebounds.  Aaliyah Prince came off the bench with 10 points.  This is a lot better-looking team going into WAC play this week.

12-31-18

47 degrees and a slight breeze, but clear blue skies over El Paso for this eighty-fifth Sun Bowl.  (Nobody pays me to mention the sponsor.)  This might be the only bowl game that CBS broadcasts (ESPN owns almost all of them).  For whatever reason, the network and the bowl like the arrangement.  I’m pleased for it, since my ABC affiliate disappeared three weeks ago.  Other than Aggie games, this is only college football game I usually watch for the season.  I would think the game was on the radio somewhere locally, but it wasn’t on either El Paso sports station. 

I always love the aerial view of the Sun Bowl.  It looks so dramatic set up in the Franklin Mountains with a commanding view of the city.  Verne Lundquist retired a couple of years ago from calling the game.  He always seemed to enjoy it.  The replacement guys seemed happy to be there, though the weather leading up to the game was not pleasant.  They brought in the usual beautiful sideline reporter that usually keeps me from changing channels too early.  The stadium looked a bit empty at the start, but filled in pretty well during the first quarter. 

The teams were the Stanford Cardinal and the Pitt Panthers.  The pregame said this would be Stanford’s air raid versus Pitt’s ground game.  Unfortunately, neither team did much of either in a scoreless first quarter.  Pitt finally busted out a big run to the Stanford 10 right before the end, but had a settle for a field goal to start the second.  It was a curve ball with late-breaking movement that just got inside the right upright. 

Okay, then my attention started to drift.  They showed a bumper scene of the El Paso downtown ice rink.  Surprisingly, there were a bunch of people there.  The announcers made fun of the size of the rink.  “I got more ice in my backyard at home.”  It was 10-7 Pitt at the half.  I hate to say, my favorite part of the broadcast was, unexpectedly, the studio halftime show.  One of coaches busted out a guitar and sang a folk song about the season, while his co-hosts freestyled along with him.  How fun was that?

It was 14-13 Stanford late when I came back to it.  That would be the final score.  I had been watching some of the “Party like it’s Space:1999” marathon, so I’d missed the two big plays of the game.  Stanford got their second touchdown when their quarterback fumbled the ball on the goal line into the arms of a receiver.  It must have been considered a shovel pass, since it didn’t hit ground and because I don’t think you can score on a fumble.  The other big play was a missed field goal by Pitt that was so bad, they didn’t even reshow it later.  Too bad for Pitt, they mostly dominated the game. 

Condoleezza Rice was on the sidelines celebrating with Stanford.  I guess she’s an alumnus.  I wonder if she’ll ever get that NFL job she wants.  Well, I got in my usual Sun Bowl watching before going to work for Year End processing again.  You never know if you’re going to get a good game or good weather for this event.  I still need to find a way to see one of these in person someday.  And this ends my 2018 sports reporting.  I’ll be at it again next year, which is tomorrow.