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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Hasselbeck to start for Hawks

NFL: Matt Hasselbeck will be the starting quarterback Saturday when the Seattle Seahawks host the New Orleans Saints in the NFC playoffs.

Seattle coach Pete Carroll announced after practice Thursday that they were going with Hasselbeck. Carroll said he told Hasselbeck on Monday he would be the starter, but needed to see how the quarterback was in practice after missing most of last week with a hip injury.

Charlie Whitehurst started last Sunday against the Rams and helped the team to a 16-6 win that clinched the NFC West title.

Carroll is going with the more experienced Hasselbeck in the playoffs. He has nine career playoff starts and has led Seattle to wins in its last four home playoff games.

Saturday could be the last time Hasselbeck takes snaps for the Seahawks.

“As we saw this year with the amount of turnover we had, you never know when your last day could be and that goes for everybody,” Hasselbeck said.

“I’m excited. Anybody who has played here when the crowd is really into it, it’s always a lot of fun. Hopefully, we can keep that rolling.”

More on Seahawks, B2

Outdoor hockey game on SWX

Hockey: The Rockstar Outdoor Hockey Classic, the Western Hockey League’s first outdoor game that will match the Spokane Chiefs and Kootenay Ice at Avista Stadium on Jan. 15, will be shown live on SWX beginning at 1 p.m.

In addition, the broadcast will be carried live in Canada on Shaw TV and carried on tape delay on FSN in the U.S. at 10 p.m.

The broadcast team will include FSN play-by-play voice Ian Furness along with color analyst Kevin Sawyer and Shaw TV hockey host Joey Kenward.

You can watch the progress of the rink’s construction at www.websharelive. com/channel/rohc.

Thompson makes cut

College basketball: Washington State’s Klay Thompson and Washington’s Isaiah Thomas are on the Wooden Award Top 30 list, released on Thursday.

The award honors the nation’s top college basketball player.

Elias Harris and Steven Gray of Gonzaga, who were on the preseason list, did not make the cut down to 30.