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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

MONDAY, JAN. 17, 2011

GU moving up, Gaels No. 21

Saint Mary's (16-2, 4-0 WCC) broke into the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 at No. 21 while Gonzaga (13-5, 3-0) climbed higher in the others receiving votes category. GU is 30th after receiving 39 points. Here's the poll. UPDATE: Gaels are 22nd, Zags 29th in A.P.…

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WSU heats up over weekend 

COUGARS It is so strange to look out my window this morning and not see snow on the ground. It is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, isn't it? Though we were in the Bay Area for the basketball games, we understand it was around 50…

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SUNDAY, JAN. 16, 2011


Day after Loyola Marymount 

Typing away while keeping an eye on the Seahawks game (down 21-0 at half). I'm guessing there won't be an EWU-style comeback in the second half. Earlier I watched the replay of Gonzaga's 79-59 win over LMU and it's amazing how much you miss when…

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Spectators settle in for second period of the first ever Outdoor Classic, a Spokane Chiefs game held on an outdoor rink at Avista stadium Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)

Fresh air and hockey

Wrapping up theSpokane Chiefs outdoor hockey game ... it seemed everyone enjoyed the Rockstar Outdoor Hockey Classic, according to columnist John Blanchette, and the Chiefs made it better with an 11-2 thrashing of the Kootenay Ice at Avista Stadium ... with Jesse Tinsley providing the…

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WSU's win at Stanford is a first 25 

COUGARS Believe it or not, that's the first time I've ever covered a team that won a game in Stanford's Maples Pavilion. When UC Irvine played there in the early 1980s, the Anteaters lost. And Washington State? The Cougars hadn't won there in five years.…

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Vandals win thriller at Bakersfield

Idaho's Jeff Ledbetter was already having a pretty good week, after nabbing three steals in a 30-second span against Nevada on Wednesday. But then came Saturday night and his buzzer-beating 3-pointer in overtime to lift the Idaho men to a 78-77 win at Cal State…

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SATURDAY, JAN. 15, 2011

WSU rallies past Stanford, 61-58 

COUGARS It was a night that even coach Ken Bone admitted his team could have packed it in. And he wasn't referring to Reggie Moore not playing. No, he was talking about how poorly the Cougars played offensively in the first half. It was the…

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Kootenay Ice's Steele Boomer, left, and Spokane Chiefs' Brenden Kichton scramble along the boards for the puck in the second period of the Rockstar Outdoor Hockey Classic, a Spokane Chiefs game on a one-time rink set up at Avista Stadium Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)

Chiefs rock in outdoor game

The Rockstar Outdoor Classic was a wild success off and on the ice for the Spokane Chiefs. Not so much for the Kooteany Ice. The first-ever Western Hockey League game to be played outdoors, before a standing room only crowd of 7,075 at Avista Stadium,…

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WSU trails 32-23 at half 

COUGARS Washington State has scored less than 23 points in a first half twice this year, but it doesn't bode well for the Cougars when they do. The two times they scored 22 came against Kansas State and USC. We all know what happened in…

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Pre-game update

A couple of notes before tipoff: LMU will be without freshman forward Godwin Okonji (5.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg). He was hit in the nose during Thursday's loss at Portland and won't play tonight. Also, guard Vernon Teel (14.1 ppg, 7.5 rpg) isn't starting. Starters for…

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Cougar women defeat Cal 

There was only one women's basketball game for the area Division I schools on Friday and it was impressive. On FSN, the Washington State Cougars won their second consecutive Pac-10 game, the first time they've done that in a decade, with a solid thumping of…

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Eagles, NFL make Jones decision easier

Running back Taiwan Jones got good news from the NFL and the blessings of his teammates, which made it easier for him to leave Eastern Washington with a year of eligibility remaining. Jones was in California Saturday morning with his agent, but it wasn't the…

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WSU set to play the Cardinal 

COUGARS As the weekend begins (and by that we don't mean the basketball weekend, but the real one), it's not a bad time to step back and look at where we are in the Pac-10 basketball race. It's early, but it will get late quick.…

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FRIDAY, JAN. 14, 2011


Former Vandal remains in coma

The first time I encountered Brandon Brown, the guard from Philadelphia was getting lectured by new Idaho coach Don Verlin during a scrimmage at Memorial Gym. That was before the start of the 2008-09 season, during which Brown played sparingly for the Vandals before quietly…

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As the final seconds tick off the clock and the celebration begins, injured running back Taiwan Jones,right, goes to the bench to hug and comfort Renard WIlliams, left. The Eagles won the FCS National Championship with a come from behind 20-19 win over Delaware in Frisco Texas. (Christopher Anderson / The Spokesman-Review)

EWU star headed to NFL

Star running back Taiwan Jones (above) was a cheerleader as Eastern Washington won the FCS championship last weekend. That may have also played a role in his decision to leave school and submit his papers to be eligible for the NFL draft. He was expected…

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GU’s Robert Sacre powers to the hoop against Pepperdine's Gus Clardy in the first half. (Dan Pelle)

Zags await Lions

Back with a preview of Saturday's Gonzaga-Loyola Marymount game. Here's the link.. Quick note on Robert Sacre's perfect shooting night (8 of 8 FG, 8 of 8 FT) against Pepperdine on Thursday. Find out where that ranks in the last 10 years of college basketball…

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WSU assistant Niekamp has new job 

COUGARS Linebackers coach Travis Niekamp is changing jobs. He's leaving his on-field position to take over a newly created spot within the athletic department, coordinator of football development. With the opening, football coach Paul Wulff will be looking for his third new assistant in two…

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Trufant: From EWU to af2 to NFL Jets

Former EWU and Spokane Shock defensive back Isaiah Trufant has made a steady climb up the pro football ladder. He played in the af2 on Spokane's 2006 championship team, then moved on to the AFL and UFL. He joined the NFL New York Jets during…

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