B4 valleystar.com All SportsWednesday, March 30, 2016 Baylor women want to finish 2017 at Final Four in Dallas By STEPHEN HAWKINS Associated Press DALLAS Nina Davis still has one more chance to get to the Final Four with Baylor. So does Alexis Jones. They just want to finish this season at the site of next Final Four. All three of seasons at Baylor so far have ended with a loss in an NCAA Tournament regional final. after I leave college, one day, if I have kids, tell my kids about the times I got stopped three said Davis, a three-time All-Big 12 player and a second-team All- A merican this season.
not going to say that going to get to the Final Four next year, but not trying to be denied four times in a The 2017 Final Four will be played in Dallas, about 100 miles from their Waco campus and in the same NBA arena where the top-seeded Lady Bears (36-2) made their latest Elite Eight exit. They lost 60-57 to No. 2 seed Oregon State on Monday night. just gotta keep pushing and take this loss as said Jones, the former Duke transfer who averaged 15 points and 4.2 rebounds in her Baylor debut as a junior. While national assists leader Niya Johnson has played her last game for Baylor and experience a Final Four, the Lady Bears will return seven of their top eight scorers and add two more All-Americans to the roster next season.
first thing is, when you think about the three seniors in the locker room you hurt for the coach Kim Mulkey said. you work your way down to all the returning players and make sure that they remember this moment, remember what they did good and bad in this game and get back to work and get better every year. I thought that the new players made us a better basketball Those new players were Jones and freshman posts Beatrice Mompremier (7.2 points, 6.1 rebounds per game) and Kalani Brown (9.3 points, 4.3 rebounds) the two All-Americans who made their Baylor debuts this season. The incoming prep All-Americans are 6-foot-4 forward Lauren Cox, who is considered by many as the top-ranked player, and 6-1 guard Natalie Chou. have some good incoming freshmen, plus all the players Davis said.
going to come back strong next The last of three Final Fours all in 16 seasons was during the 40-0 national championship in 2012. The Lady Bears were upset by Louisville in the Sweet 16 in 2013 before consecutive regional final losses to Notre Dame. Oregon State (32-4) was in its first regional final. Baylor overcame a nine- point halftime deficit against the Beavers, but led only twice. The Lady Bears scored the first four points and their other lead was 51-50 on layup with just under 7 minutes left.
The only four ties came after that, but Jones and Johnson had turnovers on consecutive possessions in the final 1:28 when Baylor could have regained the lead. Jones had a turnaround jumper with 11 seconds left that rolled around the rim without going in before Oregon State added two free throws. Jones get open for another shot before Johnson missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. hurts. Not many teams are blessed to get this far.
I have three more years to get a chance at it and keep working at Brown said. now it hurts. tell you one thing, I will never forget this feeling. Next year we will try Eight will not be enough. SCOREBOARD AUTO RACING Sprint Cup schedule Through March 20 Feb.
13 x-Sprint Unlimited (Denny Hamlin) Feb. 18 x-Can-Am Duel 1 (Dale Earnhardt Jr.) Feb. 18 x-Can-Am Duel 2 (Kyle Busch) Feb. 21 Daytona 500 (Denny Hamlin) Feb. 28 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (Jimmie Johnson) March 6 Kobalt 400 (Brad Keselowski) March 13 Good Sam 500 (Kevin Harvick) March 20 Auto Club 400 (Jimmie Johnson) April 3 STP 500, Ridgeway, Va.
April 9 Duck Commander 500, Fort Worth, Texas April 17 Food City 500, Bristol, Tenn. April 24 Toyota Owners 400, Richmond, Va. May 1 GEICO 500, Talladega, Ala. May 7 GoBowling.com 400, Kansas City, Kan. May 15 AAA 400 Drive for Autism, Dover, Del.
May 20 x-Sprint Showdown, Concord, N.C. May 21 x-NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Concord, N.C. May 29 Coca-Cola 600, Concord, N.C. June 5 Axalta We Paint Winners 400, Long Pond, Pa. June 12 FireKeepers Casino 400, Brooklyn, Mich.
June 26 Mart 350, Sonoma, Calif. July 2 co*ke Zero 400, Daytona Beach, Fla. July 9 Quaker State 400, Sparta, Ky. July 17 New Hampshire 301, Loudon, N.H. July 24 Crown Royal Presents The Your Name Here 400 at The Brickyard, Indianapolis July 31 Pennsylvania 400, Long Pond, Pa.
Aug. 7 Cheez-It 355 at The Glen, Watkins Glen, N.Y. Aug. 20 Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Bristol, Tenn. Aug.
28 Pure Michigan 400, Brooklyn, Mich. Sep. 4 Southern 500, Darlington, S.C. Sep. 10 Federated Auto Parts 400, Richmond, Va.
Sep. 18 Chicagoland 400, Joliet, Ill. Sep. 25 New England 300, Loudon, N.H. Oct.
2 Dover 400, Dover, Del. Oct. 8 Bank of America 500, Concord, N.C. Oct. 16 Hollywood Casino 400, Kansas City, Kan.
Oct. 23 Alabama 500, Talladega, Ala. Oct. 30 Fast Relief 500, Ridgeway, Va. Nov.
6 AAA Texas 500, Fort Worth, Texas Nov. 13 Can-Am 500, Avondale, Ariz. Nov. 20 Ford EcoBoost 400, Homestead, Fla. x-non-points race BASEBALL Valley scores scores District 32-6A Harlingen 6, Brownsville Lopez 0 Brownsville Veterans 3, Los Fresnos 2 San Benito 4, Harlingen South 3 Brownsville Hanna 12, Brownsville Rivera 2 MLB spring training glance By The Associated Press All Times CDT AMERICAN LEAGUE Pct Toronto 17 5 .773 Houston 17 9 .654 Los Angeles 15 8 .652 Minnesota 17 10 .630 Detroit 15 11 .577 Chicago 15 12 .556 Seattle 15 12 .556 Texas 16 13 .552 Cleveland 13 12 .520 Tampa Bay 11 11 .500 New York 12 13 .480 Oakland 11 14 .440 Boston 12 16 .429 Kansas City 13 18 .419 Baltimore 10 14 .417 NATIONAL LEAGUE Pct Washington 17 4 .810 Arizona 21 7 .750 Colorado 14 10 .583 Philadelphia 14 10 .583 Los Angeles 13 13 .500 Cincinnati 14 15 .483 Milwaukee 12 13 .480 Miami 10 12 .455 St.
Louis 9 13 .409 San Francisco 11 18 .379 Chicago 9 17 .346 San Diego 9 19 .321 New York 7 15 .318 Pittsburgh 7 20 .259 Atlanta 6 18 .250 NOTE: Split-squad games count in the standings; games against non-major league teams do not. Games Baltimore 5, Boston 3 Miami vs. Washington at Viera, Rain Minnesota 6, Pittsburgh 4 St. Louis 3, N.Y. Mets 1 Toronto 2, Philadelphia 1 Cleveland 6, Oakland 4 Kansas City (ss) 11, San Diego 3 Chicago White Sox 11, Colorado 7 L.A.
Angels 8, Chicago Cubs 8, tie Seattle 6, Kansas City (ss) 4 Houston 12, Atlanta 9 N.Y. Yankees 3, Detroit 2 Cincinnati 9, Milwaukee 8 Arizona 7, San Francisco 3 L.A. Dodgers 5, Texas 4 Games N.Y. Yankees (ss) 5, Pittsburgh 4, 5 innings N.Y. Yankees (ss) vs.
Philadelphia at Clearwater, Rain Toronto (ss) vs. Detroit at Lakeland, Rain Washington vs. St. Louis at Jupiter, Rain Minnesota 6, Boston 2, 7 innings Tampa Bay vs. Toronto (ss) at Dunedin, Rain Miami 1, N.Y.
Mets 0 L.A. Angels 1, Cleveland (ss) 1, tie Chicago Cubs 9, Oakland 5 Chicago White Sox 6, Texas 2 Cincinnati 9, Milwaukee 2 Colorado 6, Arizona 1 San Diego 11, L.A. Dodgers 9 Atlanta vs. Baltimore at Sarasota, late Seattle vs. Cleveland (ss) at Goodyear, late San Francisco vs.
Kansas City at Surprise, late Games Washington vs. N.Y. Mets at Port St. Lucie, 11:10 a.m. St.
Louis vs. Miami at Jupiter, 12:05 p.m. Boston (ss) vs. Tampa Bay at Port Charlotte, 12:05 p.m. N.Y.
Yankees vs. Atlanta at Kissimmee, 12:05 p.m. Toronto vs. Minnesota at Fort Myers, 12:05 p.m. Houston vs.
Philadelphia at Clearwater, 12:05 p.m. Boston (ss) vs. Pittsburgh at Bradenton, 12:05 p.m. Kansas City vs. Texas at Surprise, 2:05 p.m.
Arizona vs. Oakland at Mesa, 2:05 p.m. San Diego vs. Seattle at Peoria, 2:10 p.m. Chicago White Sox vs.
Cincinnati at Goodyear, 3:05 p.m. Colorado (ss) vs. Chicago Cubs at Mesa, 3:05 p.m. Cleveland vs. L.A.
Dodgers at Glendale, 3:05 p.m. Milwaukee vs. Colorado (ss) at Scottsdale, 3:10 p.m. Detroit vs. Baltimore at Sarasota, 5:05 p.m.
Games Boston vs. Minnesota at Fort Myers, 12:05 p.m. N.Y. Yankees (ss) vs. Detroit at Lakeland, 12:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh vs. Tampa Bay at Port Charlotte, 12:05 p.m. St. Louis vs. N.Y.
Yankees (ss) at Tampa, 12:05 p.m. Cincinnati vs. Cleveland at Goodyear, 2:05 p.m. Atlanta vs. Baltimore at Sarasota, 2:05 p.m.
Arizona vs. Colorado at Scottsdale, 2:10 p.m. N.Y. Mets vs. Chicago Cubs at Las Vegas, 7:05 p.m.
Milwaukee at Houston, 7:10 p.m. L.A. Angels at L.A. Dodgers, 9:10 p.m. Oakland at San Francisco, 9:15 p.m.
BASKETBALL NBA glance By The Associated Press All Times CDT EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division Pct GB x-Toronto 49 24 .671 Boston 43 31 .581 New York 30 45 .400 20 Brooklyn 21 53 .284 Philadelphia 9 66 .120 41 Southeast Division Pct GB Atlanta 45 30 .600 Miami 43 30 .589 1 Charlotte 43 31 .581 Washington 36 37 .493 8 Orlando 31 43 .419 Central Division Pct GB y-Cleveland 52 22 .703 Detroit 40 35 .533 Indiana 39 35 .527 13 Chicago 37 37 .500 15 Milwaukee 30 44 .405 22 WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest Division Pct GB y-San Antonio 62 12 .838 Memphis 41 33 .554 21 Houston 37 38 .493 Dallas 36 38 .486 26 New Orleans 27 46 .370 Northwest Division Pct GB y-Oklahoma City 52 23 .693 Portland 39 36 .520 13 Utah 37 37 .500 Denver 31 44 .413 21 Minnesota 25 49 .338 Pacific Division Pct GB y-Golden State 66 7 .904 Clippers 46 27 .630 20 Sacramento 29 45 .392 Phoenix 20 54 .270 L.A. Lakers 15 59 .203 x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division Games Oklahoma City 119, Toronto 100 Miami 110, Brooklyn 99 Atlanta 102, Chicago 100 Minnesota 121, Phoenix 116 New Orleans 99, New York 91 San Antonio 101, Memphis 87 Dallas 97, Denver 88 Utah 123, L.A. Lakers 75 Portland 105, Sacramento 93 L.A. Clippers 114, Boston 90 Games Chicago 98, Indiana 96 Charlotte 100, Philadelphia 85 Orlando 139, Brooklyn 105 Detroit 88, Oklahoma City 82 Houston 106, Cleveland 100 Washington at Golden State, late Games Atlanta at Toronto, 6:30 p.m. L.A.
Clippers at Minnesota, 7 p.m. Phoenix at Milwaukee, 7 p.m. Denver at Memphis, 7 p.m. New Orleans at San Antonio, 7:30 p.m. New York at Dallas, 7:30 p.m.
Golden State at Utah, 8 p.m. Washington at Sacramento, 9 p.m. Miami at L.A. Lakers, 9:30 p.m. Games Chicago at Houston, 6 p.m.
Brooklyn at Cleveland, 6 p.m. Orlando at Indiana, 6 p.m. Denver at New Orleans, 7 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Oklahoma City, 8:30 p.m.
Boston at Portland, 9 p.m. BOXING Fight schedule By The Associated Press April 1 At DC Armory, Washington, D.C. (Spike), Adrien Broner vs. Ashley Theophane, 12, for WBA Super World junior welterweight title; Robert Easter vs. Algenis Mendez, 10, lightweights.
April 8 At Moscow, Grigory Drozd vs. Ilunga Makabu, 12, for WBC World cruiserweight title; Eduard Troyanovsky vs. Cesar Rene Cuenca, 12, for IBF and IBO World super lightweight title. April 9 At O2 Arena, London, Charles Martin vs. Anthony Joshua, 12, for IBF heavyweight title; Matthew Macklin vs.
Brian Rose, 12, super welterweights. At MGM Grand, Las Vegas (PPV), Timothy Bradley Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao, 12, for WBO welterweight title; Arthur Abraham vs. Gilberto Ramirez, 12, for WBO super middleweight title; Oscar Valdez vs.
Evgeny Gradovich, 10, featherweights; Jose Ramirez vs. Manny Perez, 10, junior welterweights; Oleksandr Gvozdyk vs. Nadjib Mohammedi, 10, light heavyweights. April 16 At Manila, Philippines, McJoe Arroyo vs. Jerwin Ancajas, 12, for IBF junior bantamweight title.
At Barclays Center, Brooklyn, N.Y. (NBC), Errol Spence Jr. vs. Chris Algieri, 12, welterweights; Krzysztof Glowacki vs. Steve Cunningham, 12, for the WBO World Cruiserweight title; Marcus Browne vs.
Radivoje Kalajdzic, 10, light heavyweights. April 23 At the Forum, Inglewood, Calif. (HBO), Gennady Golovkin vs. Dominc Wade, 12, for WBA Super World-IBF-interim WBC middleweight titles; Roman Gonzalez vs. McWilliams Arroyo, 12, for WBC flyweight title.
April 30 At TBA, Russia, Denis Ledebev vs. Victor Emilio Ramirez, 12, for IBF and WBA Super World cruiserweights title. TELEVISION Sports on TV The Associated Press All Times CDT Wednesday, March 30 COLLEGE BASKETBALL 8 p.m. ESPNU College Basketball Invitational, finals, Game 2, Morehead St. at Nevada 9 p.m.
CBSSN Vegas 16, championship, Old Dominion-UC Santa Barbara winner vs. Oakland-ETSU winner, at Las Vegas FIGURE SKATING 11 a.m. NBCSN ISU World Championships, Ice Dance Short Dance, at Boston 11 p.m. NBCSN ISU World Championships, Short Program, at Boston (same-day tape) HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL 8 p.m. ESPN All-American Game, Boys, East vs.
West, at Chicago MLB BASEBALL 5 a.m. MLB Spring training, Cincinnati vs. Milwaukee, at Phoenix (tape-delayed) 8 a.m. MLB Spring training, Miami vs. N.Y.
Mets, at Port St. Lucie, Fla. (tape-delayed) Noon MLB Spring training, Boston (ss) vs. Pittsburgh, at Bradenton, Fla. 3 p.m.
MLB Spring training, Chicago White Sox vs. Cincinnati, at Goodyear, Ariz. 8 p.m. MLB Spring training, Detroit vs. Baltimore, at Sarasota, Fla.
(same-day tape) 11 p.m. MLB Spring training, San Diego vs. Seattle, at Peoria, Ariz. (same-day tape) 3 a.m. (Thursday) MLB Spring training, St.
Louis vs. Miami, at Jupiter, Fla. (same-day tape) NBA BASKETBALL 6:30 p.m. NBA Atlanta at Toronto 9:30 p.m. NBA Miami at L.A.
Lakers NHL HOCKEY 7 p.m. NBCSN Washington at Philadelphia TENNIS Noon ESPN2 ATP World Tour-WTA Tour, Miami Open, quarterfinals, at Key Biscayne, Fla. 6 p.m. ESPN2 ATP World Tour-WTA Tour, Miami Open, quarterfinals, at Key Biscayne, Fla. SOFTBALL Valley scores scores District 32-5A Mercedes 9, Brownsville Pace 0 District 32-3A Santa Rosa 6, Monte Alto 1 Lyford 12, Falfurrias 2, 5 innings TRANSACTIONS action BASEBALL OFFICE Suspended Chicago White Sox RHP Kameron Loe (Charlotte-IL) 80 games and Arizona OF Stephen Dezzi (Hillsboro- NWL) 50 games for a violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
American League BALTIMORE ORIOLES Optioned OF Dariel Alvarez to Norfolk (IL). CHICAGO WHITE SOX Optioned RHP Tommy Kahnle and INFs Matt Davidson, Leury Garcia and Carlos Sanchez to Charlotte (IL). Reassigned OF Jason Coats to minor league camp. DETROIT TIGERS Optioned OF Wynton Bernard to Toledo (IL). LOS ANGELES ANGELS Optioned RHPs Nick Tropeano and Al Alburquerque to Salt Lake (PCL).
Placed LHP Rob Rasmussen on the voluntary retired list. MINNESOTA TWINS Optioned LHP Ryan and RHP Tyler Duffey to Rochester (IL). Reassigned LHP Logan Darnell and RHP Brandon Kintzler to minor league camp. OAKLAND ATHLETICS Optioned RHP Jesse Hahn to Nashville (PCL). TEXAS RANGERS Optioned RHP Nick Martinez to Round Rock (PCL).
Released OF Drew Stubbs. TORONTO BLUE JAYS Optioned RHP Drew Hutchison to Buffalo (IL). Released RHP Steve Delabar and LHP Randy Choate. National League ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS Optioned RHP Zack Godley to Mobile (SL). Released LHP Wesley Wright and RHP Sam LeCure.
CHICAGO CUBS Released 2B Munenori Kawasaki, OF Shane Victorino and LHP Manny Parra. COLORADO ROCKIES Optioned Dustin Garneau to Albuquerque (PCL). Selected the contract of OF Ryan Raburn from Albuquerque. LOS ANGELES DODGERS Optioned LHP Adam Liberatore to Oklahoma City (PCL). MIAMI MARLINS Optioned RHPs Nefi Ogan- do and Jose Urena to New Orleans (PCL).
Released 3B Don Kelly and OF Justin Maxwell. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES Optioned 2B Darnell Sweeney, RHP Luis Garcia and LHPs Adam Morgan and Elvis Araujo to Lehigh Valley (IL). Released RHP Edward Mujica. Agreed to terms with OF Will Venable on a minor league contract. PITTSBURGH PIRATES Optioned INF Jake Goebbert and RHPs Trey Haley and Rob Scahill to Indianapolis (IL).
Reassigned OFs Danny Ortiz and Antoan Richardson, RHP Curtis Partch and LHP Robert Zarate to minor league camp. SAN DIEGO PADRES Released Skip Schumaker. RHP Philip Humber announced his retirement. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS Optioned Andrew Susac to Sacramento (PCL). WASHINGTON NATIONALS Released RHPs Bronson Arroyo and Burke Badenhop.
Selected the contract of RHP Matt Belisle from Syracuse (IL). BASKETBALL NBA Development League NBADL Suspended Rio Grande Valley Mon- trezl Harrell five games for pushing a game official to the floor during an altercation with Bakersfield Derek Cooke Jr. on March 26. Suspended Cooke Jr. one game for pushing Harrell during the incident.
FOOTBALL National Football League NEW YORK GIANTS Re-signed LB Jasper Brinkley. Arena Football League ORLANDO PREDATORS Signed DL Monte Lewis. PORTLAND STEEL Traded OL Sam Longo to Orlando for future considerations. HOCKEY National Hockey League CAROLINA HURRICANES Recalled Derek Ryan from Charlotte (AHL). COLORADO AVALANCHE Assigned Spencer Martin from San Antonio (AHL) to Fort Wayne (ECHL).
DETROIT RED WINGS Assigned Vili Saari- jarvi from Grand Rapids (AHL) to Toledo (ECHL). NEW YORK ISLANDERS Agreed to terms with Kyle Schempp on a two-year, entry-level contract. NEW YORK RANGERS Agreed to terms with Steven Fogarty on an entry-level contract. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS Reassigned Maxim Lamarche from Lehigh Valley (AHL) to Reading (ECHL). COLLEGE FAYETTEVILLE STATE Announced the school and basketball coach Alphonza Kee have mutually agreed to part ways.
KANSAS Announced junior basketball Wayne Selden Jr. will enter the NBA draft. NORTHWESTERN Named Tim Brandon, Mike Kafka and Steve Pursley graduate assistant football coaches. NYU Named John Trautmann and assistant track and field coach. RICE Named Frank Okam defensive line coach.
SAINT LEO Announced the resignation of women SANTA CLARA Named Herb Sendek basketball coach. ST. Announced sophom*ore basketball Amar Alibegovic will transfer. VCU Signed basketball coach Will Wade to a contract extension through the 2023-24 season. while it would be more convenient for school officials to have the case in Knoxville, has not pointed to any evidence, aside from the distance between Knoxville and Nashville, to show that this inconvenience would be so significant as to tip the scales in favor of relocating this we believe this case would be more properly heard in the Eastern District of Tennessee in Knoxville given the location of events alleged and the residency of a majority of witnesses, said before that this was a decision for the judge to Bill Ramsey, the lawyer for the school, said in a statement.
has done so, and we will proceed in Nashville. The university is confident the truth will come out no matter where the case is and was a board member of both the Tobacco Institute and the Council for Tobacco Research, two entities that played a central role in misusing science to hide the risks of cigarettes. Also, the NFL and the tobacco industry shared lobbyists, lawyers and In its letter, signed by league attorney Brad Karp, the NFL said not only that the story did not establish any meaningful ties to the tobacco industry, but that the headline was false and incendiary, and that a graphic attached to the story was misleading. An NFL search of 14 million documents from the tobacco litigation archives found between the Times and the tobacco industry, the letter said, calling those connections more concrete than the phantom connections contrived by the Times purporting to tie the NFL to the tobacco The Times story its lead item on the front page revealed that some concussions that occurred in the NFL were omitted from the studies, despite NFL claims to the contrary. league has always maintained that the studies were based on a data set that included every concussion that was diagnosed by a team Stallman said.
fact, our reporting showed that more than 100 such concussions including some sustained by star players were not included in the data set, resulting in inaccurate findings. But the letter stresses that the fact the studies relied on data that were not a complete count of all concussions in the league was and expressly disclosed in the studies TITLE IX FROM B1 NFL FROM B1 By STEVE HERRICK Associated Press CLEVELAND James Harden scored 27 points and the Houston Rockets rallied from a 20-point deficit for a 106-100 victory Tuesday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who rested LeBron James. Harden scored 18 points in the fourth quarter and Houston outscored Cleveland 35-16 in the period. Dwight free throw with 2:13 left put Houston ahead 95-94. 3-pointer made it 98-94 before Kyrie Irving hit a 3-pointer with 1:30 left, making it a one-point game.
Both teams missed shots on their next possession, but Trevor 3-pointer from the corner with 17 seconds left gave Houston a 101-97 lead. Irving scored 31 points for Cleveland, which fell to 1-3 this season and 4-13 over the last two when James play. Cleveland (52-22) leads Toronto by 2 games for the top seed in the East. Houston (37-38) moved a half-game ahead of Dallas for the eighth spot in the West. Michael Beasley scored 17 points, while Ariza added 15 for Houston.
Howard had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson had 16 points and 10 rebounds in his 362nd consecutive game, the longest streak in franchise history. Kevin Love added 13 points and 11 rebounds. Houston won despite a dreadful night from the foul line, where the Rockets were 21 of 42. Howard was 7 of 22.
Cleveland led 91-83 on basket with 6:36 to go, but the Rockets used a 12-0 run to go ahead. The Cavaliers score again until Irving hit a free throw with 2:44 left. jumper with 2:17 to go tied the game at 94. Cleveland led 62-42 early in the third quarter before Houston rallied. Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue announced Monday that James would sit out the game as the Cavaliers try to rest their key players as much as possible over the final games of the regular season.
James, dressed in a sports jacket, jumped up from the bench several times to encourage his teammates and joined Lue near midcourt to bark out instructions late in the second quarter. Cleveland made six 3-pointers in the second and built a 59-40 halftime lead. TIP-INS: Rockets: Houston scored 14 points and made 5 of 18 shots in the second quarter. The Rockets snapped a four- game losing streak on the road. Cavaliers: James is four points away from passing Dominique Wilkins for 12th place on the career scoring list.
The four-time MVP has 26,665 career points. UP NEXT: Rockets: Host Chicago on Thursday; Cavaliers: Host Brooklyn on Thursday. South came out strong at the plate, opening up a 3-0 lead following a two- run homer from outfielder Alec Garza to deep left field in the top of the third inning. With two on and one out in the bottom of the third and South relief pitcher on the mound, San Alvaro Vargas got the on the board with a two RBI single, bringing in Jestin Cepeda and Tony Gonzalez. David Vargas brought in Alvaro Vargas moments later with an RBI single of his own to tie the game at three.
Later in the inning, a Joseph Partida RBI drove in David Vargas for what proved to be the winning run. Reasor took the loss, but rebounded from a tough third inning to toss three scoreless innings of his own while striking out three. HOUNDS FROM B1 Harden, Rockets rally to stuns LeBron-less Cavs, 106-100.
