The Warriors couldn’t keep pace with the Kings on Sunday night and lost their fourth consecutive game to Luke Walton’s team.
The Sacramento Kings may not be world-beaters, but you couldn’t tell based on how they handled the Warriors on Sunday night.
Luke Walton’s team handed Golden State an emphatic beating to the tune of a 100-79 decision. Sacramento had four players score in double-figures, led by 25 points off the bench from Bogdan Bogdanovic. The sixth-man shot 9-for-11 from the field and was one of six Kings players to shoot at least 50% for the game. Buddy Hield also chipped in 19 points.
For the Warriors, the game began with some promise, as the club began the contest trading baskets (and the lead) with Sacramento. However, Golden State simply wasn’t able to recover from a 12-2 run that the Kings used to close the first quarter. The halftime deficit was nine points before the game completely got away from Steve Kerr’s team in the third quarter where they fell behind by 21.
As has become somewhat commonplace this season, the Warriors allowed the Kings to shoot 60% from the field for the game but managed to connect on just 39% of their own looks. The brilliant shooting display from the Kings helped them to overcome 27 turnovers — a staggering number by any stretch.
With the loss, the Warriors fall to 5-23 on the season and remain in sole possession of the worst record in the league. The team will next take the floor on Wednesday night when they travel to Portland to do battle with Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers before beginning a five-game homestand when they welcome the Pelicans to Chase Center on Friday.
The Sixers left TD Garden with a 2-0 record against the Celtics on the season, as they defeated Boston on Thursday night, 115-109.
Joel Embiid entered Thursday night’s contest wanting to send a message. It’s safe to say he succeeded, as he valiantly led the Sixers to a tough road win over the Celtics, 115-109.
As many would have predicted, the clubs engaged in a back-and-forth battle, but in the end, the Sixers got too much from Embiid down the stretch. The young big man ended the night with 38 points on 12-for-21 shooting from the field. He also added 13 rebounds, six assists and a game-sealing block against Daniel Theis to preserve the victory for Philadelphia.
Heading into the contest, fans in Boston looked forward to welcoming Al Horford back to the building where he spent the last three years of his career wearing Boston green, but he was held out of the contest due to a sore left knee and tightness in his left hamstring. Even without him, though, Philadelphia was able to emerge with the impressive road win.
The teams battled fairly evenly in the game’s first half, as the Celtics carried a 59-56 lead into the half behind 53 percent shooting. Kemba Walker also scored 21 of his 29 in the game’s first 24 minutes before fading down the stretch. Unfortunately for Boston, he was held scoreless for the first 10 minutes of the game’s fourth period, during which the Sixers were able to capitalize.
Philadelphia managed to open up a nine-point lead with about 2:30 remaining before Walker sparked a 7-0 Boston run to trim the Sixers’ lead to just two points with 1:01 remaining in the game, but it was too little, too late.
The Celtics managed to cut the deficit to a single point on a late Jayson Tatum 3-pointer, but a pair of clutch free throws by Ben Simmons on the preceding possessions left Boston with a deficit. A critical no-call on what appeared to be a foul from Josh Richardson and a late block by Joel Embiid on Daniel Theis helped the Sixers clinch the victory. The final score of the contest doesn’t actually reflect how tightly it was contested.
Tobias Harris added 23 points for the Sixers while Enes Kanter (10-for-13 shooting) scored 20 points off the bench for the Celtics.
With the loss, the Celtics fall to 17-7 on the season while the Sixers improve to 19-7 and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
Evan Fournier was too much for the Warriors, as the Golden State falls short against the Orlando Magic.
The Warriors 100-96 loss to the Orlando Magic was the perfect display of a continuing theme for the 2019 club— close, but no cigar. The Warriors traded blows back and forth with the Magic all night, but in the end, the Dubs limited rotation couldn’t close out down the stretch.
The Warriors had a chance to steal the game with the final shot, but Alec Burks couldn’t knock down a three-pointer on a beautifully drawn up inbound play from Steve Kerr. Burks had an open look, but the ball was rimmed out on the attempt sealing the Magic’s win.
There’s no doubt Golden State plays a tough and gritty brand of basketball, but the talent gap between the eight-win Magic is just too much over 48-minutes for the understaffed Warriors.
Struggles from Deep
Unlike the standard “Splash Brothers,” long-range basketball, the Warriors could not knock down a three-point shot in Orlando. The team shot a lowly 26.1 percent (6-of-23) from the distance while the Magic poured in 11-threes for the evening. Four different Warriors didn’t register a made three on 13 combined attempts, including rookie Jordan Poole, who dropped in five three against the Heat, but put a zero versus Orlando.
Bonne Nuit
The Warriors defense didn’t have an answer for French guard, Evan Fournier, as he poured in a season-high 32-points against the struggling defense. Fournier knocked down six three-pointers on 10-attempts. Fournier tied the entire Warriors team for made three-pointers in Sunday night’s tilt.
Evan Fournier had a season high in points scored tonight
Kentucky product Willie Cauley-Stein turned in one of his most complete games of the season, registering hid first double-double performance as a Warrior. Cauley-Stein grabbed 12 boards while adding 11 points, three assists, one steal and one block. Cauley-Stein’s double-double was an encouraging sign for a player that’s had an underwhelming start to the 2019-20 season.
Luckily for Golden State, the team got some positive news regarding a trio of injured players before things tipped off in Orlando, staring with Kevon Looney, who is scheduled to return in the team’s upcoming matchup in Atlanta.
The good news doesn’t stop there as the team could be getting back D’Angelo Russell and Jacob Evans III before the five-game road trip closes out. They’ll need all the help they can get when they face off against second-year Atlanta superstar, Trae Young.
The talent of the Miami Heat was too much for the young Golden State Warriors, but rookie Jordan Poole was able to put together one of his best performances of his young career.
The wins haven’t been there, but over the past handful of games, the Golden State Warriors have looked like a competent team. They’ve battled wire-to-wire against teams with far better talent, but against the Miami Heat, it was a different story.
The Heat showed why they’re one of the league’s best-looking teams to start the 2019-20 season. Jimmy Butler and rookie standout, Tyler Herro, whacked the Warriors from start to finish ending in a 122-105 post-Thanksgiving beatdown.
First Quarter
This game started and virtually ended in the first quarter for the Warriors. The Heat jumped out to a 20-point lead in the opening period on 16-for-21 shooting from the floor and 6-of-8 beyond the arc.
Michigan product, Duncan Robinson, splashed four three-pointers good for 12 points in the first quarter. While Alec Burks added 10 for Golden State, the rest of the Warriors only combined for only 11 total points. Ontop of hot shooting to start the game, the Heat outrebounded Golden State 14-5 in the first quarter alone.
The Warriors played Miami fairly even in the second and third quarters. However, they could never overcome the opening punch before the Heat dropped the knockout blow in the fourth and final quarter.
Jordan Poole
The Warriors 2019 first-round draft pick, Jordan Poole, has had his early struggles widely documented, but the rookie took his step in the right direction after having one of his best shooting nights in South Beach.
Poole knocked down five three-pointers on six attempts— his best night beyond the arc in his career. Poole tied his NBA career-high with 20 points against Miami, but it wasn’t what was in the box score that was encouraging about Poole’s night.
For one of the first times in weeks, Poole looked confident on the court; he looked like he was having fun. Poole wasn’t forcing anything, using his ability to put the ball on the floor when needed, and even started throwing around a nice shot-fake. Most of Poole’s shots came in rhythm, which is something he’s struggled to find as a rookie.
The Warriors are coming off one of their best defensive performances of the season against the Chicago Bulls, only allowing 90 total points, but in Miami, the defensive unit was a problem.
Over Golden State’s recent stretch with Draymond Green back, and the arrival of Ky Bowman, the Warriors defense has improved, but their issues containing the pick-and-roll crept back up in South Beach.
Goran Dragic came off the bench and was unstoppable, running the pick-and-roll against the Warriors limited defense. Dragic scored 20-points off the bench and dropped five dimes.
The Heat didn’t do Golden State’s hobbled defense any favors, shooting over 50 percent from the field and three-point range.
Dragic stops on a dime and sets up the Tyler Herro corner trey! #HEATTwitter
Even after a 17-point loss, there’s still a positive feeling surrounding the Warriors as they could be getting back Kevon Looney, D’Angelo Russell and Jacob Evans III at some point during the team’s current road trip.
The Sixers got all they could handle from the young Knicks, but behind Joel Embiid’s efforts, Philadelphia was able to escape with the victory.
It wasn’t pretty, but in the end, it was still a win.
Friday night, on the day after Thanksgiving, the Sixers took their talents North to Madison Square Garden where they had their hands full with David Fizdale’s young team. In the end, though, Philadelphia was able to emerge victorious to the tune of a 101-95 win. Joel Embiid, who shot just 7-for-19 from the field, led all scorers with 27 points. He also hauled in 17 rebounds to go along with two assists and three blocks.
In the first half of the contest, however, things weren’t looking so promising for Philadelphia. The team appeared lethargic and were sorely outhustled by the young Knicks, who led 31-18 after the first quarter and 51-39 at the half.
Tobias Harris (15 points, 7-for-12 field goals) scored nine of his points in the third quarter and, along with Raul Neto (13 points) caught fire in the game’s third quarter and helped the Sixers erase the Knicks’ lead.
New York got a strong effort from Julius Randle (22 points), and some timely baskets from rookie RJ Barrett (18 points, three rebounds) down the stretch, but they ultimately couldn’t overcome shooting 19-for-33 from the free-throw line and losing the rebound battle 46 to 37.
The Warriors won their fourth game of the season on Wednesday night behind Draymond Green’s return and a solid defensive effort.
On Wednesday night, the Warriors ended their three-game losing streak and did so in rather convincing fashion. Fortunately for the club, Draymond Green returned to the lineup after missing the team’s last three games, and his presence helped to buoy the team on the defensive end of the floor.
Green would finish the night with seven points, five rebounds, eight assists, three steals and two blocks. The Dubs held the Bulls to just 90 points on 34-for-89 shooting from the field (38.2 percent).
Given the team’s struggled on the defensive end of the floor, the effort was noteworthy. Entering play on November 27, Golden State was yielding 113.9 points per-100 possessions which ranked 27th in the league. Similarly, the club’s 116.1 points allowed per game ranked 23rd across the NBA.
To put it mildly, defense hasn’t necessarily been the club’s strong suit this season. At least for one night, though, it was. The effort was just the third time this season that the Warriors held an opponent under 90 points.
With the win, the club improved to 4-15 on the season. Despite the fact that the team is in line to receive a high draft pick after what appears to be a season with no playoff berth, Steve Kerr has managed to keep his team engaged and competitive, and that starts on the defensive end.
The NBA will not compete on Thanksgiving Day, but the Dubs will be back in action on Friday night when they pay a visit to Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat.
EVANSTON, Ill. — There’s no trophy to distinguish the Northwestern-Minnesota series. If there was one, what would it be, a mitten? A mini-snowblower? An icicle?
In the absence of an official trophy, there was one that appeared to unofficially change hands between the two teams after the conclusion of Saturday’s game: the Big Ten West crown.
The Wildcats, coming off a nine-win season that took them to the Big Ten Championship Game, have taken a significant step backward this year, and have failed to win a single conference game this season. While Northwestern has been mired in the basement of the West, the Golden Gophers have stood atop it, soaring to unprecedented heights in P.J. Fleck’s third season at the helm of the program.
Undefeated for nine weeks, Minnesota fell at Iowa last week, a loss that has likely doomed their outside bid at a College Football Playoff berth. But their postseason ambitions aren’t completely dead in the water, as a two-loss Wisconsin team has made it increasingly likely that Minnesota will represent the West Division in the Big Ten title game.
Minnesota head coach PJ Fleck leads his team onto the field against the Northwestern Wildcats at Ryan Field. (Photo credit: David Banks — USA TODAY Sports)
Powered by an excellent performance from quarterback Tanner Morgan, and a near-perfect day from receivers Tyler Johnson and Rashod Bateman, the No. 11 ranked Gophers (9-1, 7-1 Big Ten) never trailed in a commanding 38-22 win over Northwestern (2-9, 0-8 Big Ten), and are one win closer to Indianapolis, a capstone to a once-in-a-generation season.
Morgan, whose status for Saturday’s game was in question heading into the week, was cleared to play in the days leading up to the contest after entering concussion protocol, assuaging concerns that Minnesota would have to start a redshirt-freshman quarterback in his place.
Morgan, who has been first-rate all season, threw for four touchdowns and 211 yards, tying his season-high in touchdown passes in a game. The sophomore led a torrid passing attack that evenly targeted Johnson and Bateman with seven receptions apiece.
The Gophers blitzed out to a quick 21-0 lead in the first half, and with Northwestern’s offense generating just 88 yards of total offense, it looked like the rout was on.
Bateman jump-started the Minnesota offense on their first drive, snagging a perfectly-placed throw over safety Travis Whillock on a post route for a 19-yard score. The redshirt-senior topped that impressive catch in the second quarter with an arguably even better play, beating Trae Williams on a double move before extending his arms to make a toe drag catch near the front left pylon.
Running back Shannon Brooks practically walked-in a nine-yard touchdown in the first quarter.
Minnesota is now 19-1 under Fleck when they lead after the first quarter.
To their credit, Northwestern finished the first half strong, denying the Gophers any more points. A 67-yard boot off the leg of punter Andrew David pinned Minnesota inside their five-yard line with nine minutes to play in the half. On the first play of the Minnesota drive, senior defensive lineman Joe Gaziano scored a safety by pressuring Morgan in the end zone, forcing a throw out-of-bounds that sailed short of the first-down marker. After it was ruled a sack, Gaziano became Northwestern’s all-time leader in the category with 28.5, a proud moment for the senior.
“It was a big momentum play, because our offense gets the ball back and we scored a nine-point swing in the game,” said Gaziano. “I was really excited for the guys to be able to grasp momentum like that.”
The safety ignited a 14-play, 69-yard drive that ended with an Andrew Marty connection with sophomore Jace James in the endzone to make it 21-9.
While Morgan was predictably reliable, Northwestern’s quarterback carousel continued to be unpredictable heading into Saturday’s game.
After sustaining an injury in last week’s game against UMass, Aidan Smith was listed as doubtful in Thursday’s injury report, leading many to make the assumption that Andrew Marty would make the start for the ‘Cats.
Except, he didn’t. ESPN’s Rece Davis revealed a couple hours before kickoff on College Gameday that Johnson would be the starter.
Oh, Pat Fitzgerald and his depth chart shenanigans.
Northwestern quarterback Hunter Johnson (15) being sacked during the first half at Ryan Field. Johnson (Photo credit: David Banks — USA TODAY Sports)
Johnson, who had not played since the team’s Nov. 2 loss at Indiana, has battled a myriad of injuries and off-the-field issues this season. To say the least, this year has not gone as planned for Johnson. Unfortunately, his misfortunes continued in Saturday’s game.
Johnson was rendered unable to complete a single pass and subject to relentless pressure thanks to poor offensive line play. The redshirt sophomore was sacked three times, the third of which knocked him out of the game with concussion-like symptoms as characterized by the ABC broadcast.
That meant the quarterbacking duties fell to Marty.
Despite the short notice, Marty played the most complete game by a Northwestern quarterback all season, throwing for 95 yards and one touchdown on 8-of-10 passing, while punching into two rushing touchdowns at the goal line.
“I was proud of Andrew for stepping up and getting his first real experience,” said Fitzgerald of Marty’s performance. “I’m just happy for him. He’s worked really hard and he’s a great young man. My hope is that he gains confidence through the experience and it’s great fuel and motivation for him as he moves forward in his career.”
Any momentum the ‘Cats had from the end of the first half failed to carry over in the second half, as Minnesota continued to keep pace with Northwestern, despite Marty’s best efforts.
Minnesota wide receiver Tyler Johnson (6) catches a pass as Northwestern Wildcats defensive back Trae Williams (3) defends him. (Photo credit: David Banks — USA TODAY Sports)
Rashod Bateman and Tyler Johnson each caught a touchdown pass, and Michael Lantz contributed a 37-yard field goal to end a clock-killing fourth-quarter drive.
Bateman’s three touchdown receptions were the most in one game in his career.
The Gophers’ endless depth on both sides of the ball choked a banged-up, inexperienced Northwestern team. The Gophers split 217 rushing yards on 39 carries among three running backs
Northwestern, on the other hand, was forced to rely on two freshmen running backs against a top-30 rushing defense.
To say Northwestern never had a chance to upset Minnesota would be an overstatement. But without a deluge of unforced errors, it’s hard to see how the Wildcats could have ever overcome such a severe talent disparity.
As the sun sets on Northwestern’s reign as Big Ten West champions, a new insurgent team stands in the wings, ready to assume the title.
“If you want to be a Big Ten West champ, you got to beat the Big Ten West champ,” said Fleck.
What’s Next:
Northwestern at Illinois (Saturday, Nov. 30 @ TBD)
Minnesota at #12 Wisconsin (Saturday, November 30 @ 2:30 p.m. on ABC)
The combination of Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris proved to be a bit too much for the lowly Kings to overcome, even without Kyrie Irving.
With Kyrie Irving on the shelf, Spencer Dinwiddie has gotten the opportunity to start at point guard for the Nets.
Apparently, it’s a role that seems to suit him quite well.
Dinwiddie led the Nets in what ended up being a wire-to-wire victory on Friday night, as Brooklyn outlasted Buddy Hield and the Sacramento Kings by a final score of 116-97.
The point guard scored a game-high 23 points on 8-for-15 shooting from the field. He also had seven assists.
Although he performed admirably, Dinwiddie got plenty of help from his teammates, including Joe Harris. The sharpshooter scored 22 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field, including 5-for-7 from 3-point territory.
Overall, the contest ended up being a relatively easy victory for Brooklyn, as they never trailed. Garrett Temple scored the first basket of the contest to give the Nets an early 3-0 lead, and they never looked back. They led 26-23 after the first quarter and eventually opened up a double-digit lead in the second quarter. The Kings never seriously threatened afterward, as they shot just 4-for-26 from the 3-point line—one of their many problems on the night.
Sacramento was led by 18 points from Harrison Barnes. Buddy Hield managed just 16 points on 6-for-15 shooting from the field.
For Brooklyn, center Jarrett Allen was in the starting lineup after being considered questionable for the contest due to some ankle woes, but he managed an 11-point, nine-rebound effort in just 25 minutes.
With the win, the Nets improve to 3-1 in the four contests they’ve played without Irving, who’s missed each of the team’s contests since the Nov. 16 win over the Chicago Bulls.
The Nets will next suit up on Sunday when they travel to Madison Square Garden to lock horns with the New York Knicks.
The Dallas Cowboys have earned their sixth victory of the season, and they did it once again on the throwing arm of quarterback Dak Prescott. Dallas’ coaching staff came under fire for their run-first, run-often game plan against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10, and they finally turned the page in their Week 11 matchup with the Detroit Lions.
Detroit fields one of the league’s worst secondaries and Prescott took full advantage, loading up for 444 passing yards on the day using both short, intermediate and deep passing to launch haymakers at the Lions defense. In the end, Dallas escaped a competitive effort led by backup QB Jeff Driskel and outpaced the Lions, final score 35-27.
It was Prescott’s third, 400-yard passing game of the season, leading the league. He also now has four games where he’s thrown for at least 375 yards with 2+ touchdowns, the second-most in league history.
Peyton Manning’s six in 2013 is the record.
For the second-consecutive game, Dallas had two receivers going over 100 receiving yards. Michael Gallup hauled in a career-high 9 receptions for 148 yards, while Randall Cobb had his second-straight 100-yard day, catching four for 115 and a score. Running backs Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard both caught touchdown passes while Elliott also punched one in on the ground.
Prescott was the story of the game, as he continues to assault the record books. He came into the game third, but now sits second in passing yards per game with 322.1. He also sits atop several advanced passing categories, making his case as one of the NFL’s tops at the position.
Dallas did not escape unscathed though, as their defense was not very impressive, allowing the Lions to march up and down the field on the strength of Driskel’s scrambling ability. Dallas fell behind early, but surged ahead after waking up earlier than they had in many of their previous slow starts.
Still though, the defense was not good in their tackling efforts, and then matters got worse with injuries popping up. On back-to-back plays, Dallas lost DeMarcus Ware, Xavier Woods and Anthony Brown to injuries, though Woods returned the next series. Before that happened though, Prescott and right tackle La’el Collins collided, with Collins having to be helped off the field with a left knee injury.
Punt returner Tavon Austin also left the game with an arm injury after breaking up a would-be interception, and WR Amari Cooper was in and out of the game after not practicing much throughout the week. Jeff Heath missed the contest at strong safety with shoulder injuries.
With the New England Patriots on the horizon, this would be bad timing for the injury front.
All in all though, Dallas has to be ecstatic to earn the victory and move on to the back stretch of the season.
Today’s loss to ISU drops Texas to 6-4 and out of the Big 12 title race. While the defense played well, the offense was not good enough.
With four seconds left in the game, Iowa State’s Connor Assalley hit a game-winning field goal, handing the Longhorns their fourth loss of the season. The Cyclones used Brock Purdy’s 354 yards to win 23-21.
The story of the game was Texas’ inability to move the ball on offense, especially in the first half. The Longhorns punted the ball nine different times, including eight three-and-outs. Only four of Texas’ drives lasted longer than three plays, three of which ended in touchdowns.
Sam Ehlinger completed 55% of his passes, going 22/40 with 273 yards and a touchdown. Wide receiver Devin Duvernay was clutch down the stretch, picking up first downs to keep Texas drives alive. He ended with a game-high nine catches and 107 yards.
Iowa State made a huge stop with three minutes left in the game, making Texas punt the ball back and giving them a chance to win. Lining up for a field goal with two minutes and 16 seconds left, Joseph Ossai jumped offsides, giving Iowa State a first down.
That penalty is ultimately what lost the game for Texas, giving Iowa State the ability to drain the clock out and hit the game-winning kick as the clock expired. The Cyclones move to 6-4 and above Texas in the Big 12 standings.
While the Longhorns are not eliminated from the Big 12 championship race, it is highly unlikely. The Longhorns would need to win out, have Iowa State to lose one more time to either Kansas or Kansas State, and have Baylor lose their final three games.
Texas closes the season out on the road to Baylor and at home against Texas Tech and is playing for a better bowl game at this point. It has been a rough season for the Longhorns and today’s game against Iowa State was their final chance to prove themselves.
