The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: MVP

  • NBA MVP

    NBA MVP

    By Danny Dunn

    The 2016-2017 NBA regular season has been full of interesting storylines. Everything from players getting more and more rest time to the “Shaqtin A Fool” beef between Shaquille O’Neal and JaVale McGee. Currently, one story stands above all the rest and that is who will be named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player?

    Last season the MVP race was not nearly as exciting due to the fact that Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry was the first ever unanimous MVP, collecting all 130 votes. Consider also that it was also his second consecutive MVP award.

    When Kevin Durant, who is one of the best players in the league, signed with the Golden State Warriors last summer, it essentially eliminated all Warriors from the MVP discussion, including Curry. So that leaves the award up for grabs this season and it seems that four players all have a legit claim to the MVP award. These players are Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook. Check out how I rank their chances.

    Ranking and Description of each MVP candidate:

    1. Kawhi Leonard. Small forward, San Antonio Spurs.

    Leonard is averaging over 25 points per game while adding just under six rebounds and three assists per game. On top of this, Leonard is a lock for first team all defense once again and has taken his offensive game to another level. If there is one thing working against him it is that the Spurs are only about a one-point difference when he is not on the court, and they have a winning record even when he does not play. But that speaks more to coaching than it does to Leonard, and Leonard has been the best player on 60-win teams back-to-back years.

    1. LeBron James. Small forward, Cleveland Cavaliers.

    LBJ is the man, the myth, the legend. What else is there to say about how great he is? After bringing home a championship to Cleveland for the first time ever, he is having one of the best offensive seasons of his career. James is averaging 26 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists per game. The only issue is his team has completely underachieved this season. The Cavaliers have not played a lick of defense since the start of the calendar year. They should have wrapped up the number one seed in the Eastern Conference a month ago. Yes, a month ago, but in their last 40 games they are hovering around .500 which is awful for this squad. Without LeBron, this team would be competing with the Brooklyn Nets for the worst record in the league.

    1. James Harden. Point guard, Houston Rockets.

    “Fear the Beard,” is a slogan I never associated with Harden because I always linked it to former San Francisco Giants closing pitcher, Brian Wilson. But this season Harden has earned the right to it by averaging 29 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds. If not for Russell Westbrook’s dominating play, Harden would be the closest to averaging a triple double in some time. Under new coach Mike D’Antoni, Harden has moved from shooting guard to point guard and man, has it paid dividends? Harden leads the league in assists and has the Rockets third in the Western Conference behind the Spurs and Warriors. He is still a bit of a liability on the court, but he has noticeably improved this season. A downside is that he is one of the leaders in turnovers, but that is bound to happen since he has the ball in his hands most of the time.

    1. Russell Westbrook. Point guard, Oklahoma City Thunder.

    Double doubles are a dime-a-dozen, but triple doubles are somewhat rare in the NBA. For instance, Westbrook has more triple doubles this season than the rest of the NBA combined. He now has the single season record for triple doubles in a season (42), and joins Oscar Robertson as the only two players to ever average a triple double. Westbrook is averaging over 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists per game, and is leading the Thunder to the sixth seed in the Western Conference with a subpar supporting cast after losing Durant last summer. His triple doubles are not empty, as his squad’s record is far better when Westbrook has a triple double than when he does not. He plays as hard as he can night-in and night-out with historic results and so I think Westbrook will win the 2016-17 NBA MVP award.

     

  • Jacks Pass

    Jacks Pass

    By Keaundrey Clark

    Jacks Pass

    Men’s Basketball

    Malik Morgan his 1,000th point as a Lumberjack  as Humboldt State men’s basketball lost to Cal State Dominguez Hills, 66-64 Saturday in Lumberjack Arena.

    Morgan accounted for nine of the Jacks’ last 11 points, including a bucket that tied the game at 64-64. He had a team-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting to go with three assists.

    Toros Senior Justin Sadler shot over the outstretched arms of Calvin Young II with two seconds left in regulation to seal the Toros victory. Sadler led all scorers with 24 points.

    HSU hosts Holy Names in a non-conference showdown Monday at 7 p.m.

    Women’s Basketball

    Double figures from from Ashlynn Cox and Tyra Turner  helped Humboldt State women’s basketball snap its three-game losing-streak  and top Cal State Dominguez Hills, 70-57, Saturday night in Lumberjack Arena.

    Back-to-back 3-pointers from Cox and Tyra Turner in the final two minutes  of the third quater helped HSU cling to a 46-45 advantage heading into the fourth quater.

    Turner was the game’s top scorer and finished with 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting. She went 7-for-7 at the free-throw line and dished out a team-high five assists. Cox added 18 points, including four 3-pointers and a game-high four steals, and Lynnzy  Troxell finished with 11 off the bench.

    The Green and Gold host Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 5:30 p.m. Fans are invited to wear pink in support of breast cancer awareness, and the game will also be Family Fun Night.

    Softball

    The Humboldt State softball team closed out the Desert Stinger Tournament with a 6-1 victory over Minot State en route to a Tournament title.

    The Jacks  scored a combined 55 runs in the tournament and ace Madison Williams was dominant with  a complete game, allowed just one run and had nine strikeouts. Williams finished the tournament 3-0 with 21 strikeouts.

    Williams and Illa Haley were both named to the All-Tournament Team, and Tiffany Hollingsworth was tabbed the Desert Stinger Tournament MVP. Hollingsworth finished with 9 runs batted in and 3 Homeruns. Haley had 10 RBIS.

    Senior Kalyn Paque went 2-0 with 11 strikeouts. Junior Winona Vigil had 2 home runs and 9 RBIS. Senior  Breonna Bejaran recorded 2 home runs and 7 RBIS in the desert.

    HSU returns to the North Coast and is scheduled to host Chico State in a four-game series beginning Friday. The first pitch for the home opener is scheduled for noon.

  • Freshman student, senior player: Tyra Turner

    Freshman student, senior player: Tyra Turner

    By | Curran Daly

    Twenty minutes before practice, freshman guard Tyra Turner dribbles alone. This is a common sight for her teammates who have seen her come in as a freshman and immediately become a major asset for the team.
    She was recruited by head women’s basketball coach Michelle Bento-Jackson.

    “This year she’s got a lot of weight on her shoulders, she’s a freshman, she’s playing 40 minutes a game, she never comes out, she runs her offense,” Bento-Jackson said. “I’ve told her from day one that I wouldn’t treat her like a freshman, and that I’d have expectations of her as if she was a senior.”
    Turner responded well to these expectations and leads the Lumberjacks with an average 12.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. She’s come a long way since late July when she got a call from first year coach Bento-Jackson.
    “My mom helped me send little films and highlights to the coach and that’s when she called me up the last week of July and was like ‘we really want you to come here,’” Turner said. “She talked to me over the phone about how nice the school was and everything and I just took the chance to come here.”
    Turner is a psychology major who hopes to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a probation officer, talking and working with kids while they’re young to turn around their lives. Turner had originally planned to attend a junior college until the call from Coach Bento-Jackson came.
    “It was very late from a recruiting standpoint, and at that point in time, all I had was some game film of her,” Bento-Jackson said. “She’s definitely exceeded my expectations and she brings so much more to the floor than I had ever even thought.”
    Her late decision to come to Humboldt left her in completely new surroundings not entirely sure what to expect. Turner said that she didn’t expect to lead the team in stats

    “I don’t really look at it as leading in this and this and that, I’m just looking forward to helping my team win and be successful out there,” Turner said.
    Turner has started every game except the first two of the season, and has taken control of the team’s offense. In the home game against Chico State, it was Turner’s passing and ball handling skills that kept the Lumberjacks in the game.
    “I know that coming from a high school program is definitely gonna be tough.”  Allison Zalin, a junior forward said. “On the court she brings toughness. She plays 40 minutes she doesn’t give up she’s pushing the ball she directs people on the court.”