Jackson Downs Glades Central

    The Miami-Jackson Generals won their third consecutive road playoff game as they upset the Glades Central Raiders 33-24 in a Class 5A regional final on Friday night at Belle Glade. The Raiders were eliminated for the second straight year at home in the third round. Last year they lost to the eventual Class 5A state champion Norland Vikings.
    For the first time since 2002, there will be no FHSAA state football champion from Palm Beach County. In addition, there will be no Palm Beach County high school squad that will appear in a state final game since 1991.
    Glades Central(8-5) had their eight-game win streak snapped after they began the regular season with a four-game losing streak. The Raiders jumped on the Generals for an early lead in the first quarter. Javonte Terry made an interception and returned it to the Generals eight-yard line. Four plays later, Will Likely ran the ball in from three yards out at 3:50 for a 7-0 lead. Giovanni Lugo connected with a 37-yard field goal on the Raiders next possession with ten seconds to go.
    Jackson(8-4) closed the margin to 10-6 at the 3:07 mark of the second quarter as Quinton Flowers found Devondre Powell for an 11-yard touchdown reception. The Generals blocked a punt for a touchdown with 1:22 left in the first half and their first lead in the game at 12-10. Raiders starting quarterback T.J. Abrams was replaced by Lugo as he exited the game before halftime because of an injury and never returned.
    Terrence Rutherford caught an 80-yard touchdown strike from Flowers to extend the Generals gap to 19-10 with 31 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Both teams combined with 28 points in the final quarter.
    The Raiders struck quickly in the fourth quarter as Lugo fired a 13-yard pass to Ronquavion Tarver to close the deficit down to 19-17 with 10:36 left. Chris Williams-Hall returned a fumble for a Jackson score from 41 yards out at 8:47. Glades Central pulled off a three-play drive on their next possession as Aaren Baker ran in a 24-yard touchdown with 7:45 remaining and the Raiders were down 26-24. Powell made a leaping 23-yard touchdown catch, his second score in the contest, to put the game out of reach 33-24 with 3:57 to go. Jackson will play in a state semifinal game next week for the first time since 2000.
   
   

Boyd Anderson-St. Thomas Aquinas Preview

    St. Thomas Aquinas are in the same position that they find themselves every two years as the Raiders will host a third-round game. They will play against the Boyd Anderson Cobras in a Class 7A regional final at Brian Piccolo Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Friday night. The Raiders have make it to the FHSAA regional finals every year since 2004.
    Boyd Anderson(9-2) has lived on the fourth quarter in both of their road playoff wins. They took Atlantic 13-7 at Delray Beach in the first round and beat Dwyer 6-3 in the second round at Palm Beach Gardens. They have responded well since last year after being stripped of the District 14-4A title during the final week of the regular season for using ineligible players.
    The Cobras lost to the Raiders 47-7 in the Class 5A regional final two years ago on the same field. Eddie Jackson and Richard Lopez have been clutch with receptions down the stretch for their team while Gregory Hankerson is a duel threat as a runner and a passer.
    St. Thomas Aquinas(10-2) have been dominant in the first two rounds of the playoffs with home victories over Miami Beach 42-7 and Plantation 38-7. The Raiders currently have a seven-game winning streak after beginning the regular season with a 3-2 record. They have outscored their opponents 178-14 in their last four games and 313-47 in their last seven.
    Ohio State University commit Joey Bosa has led his team on defense as a nose tackle with continuous pressure on the opposing backfield. Fred Coppet will get the bulk of the carries on offense and Deltron Sands has recently been given a more significant role in the backfield. The Raiders have a slew of receivers that includes Mark Barr, Franklyn Richardson, Chandler Dorrell, Jonathan Boozer and Corey Holmes who John O'Korn can throw the ball to. 
   
   

Jackson-Glades Central Preview

    The Glades Central Raiders will receive a gift on Friday night as they host a Class 5A regional final against the Miami-Jackson Generals in Belle Glade. It was expected that if the Raiders made it to the regional final game they would play in Broward or Dade County because the tournament bracket is skewed to the south this year.
    Jackson(7-4) finished as a runner-up in District 16-5A and had to win two playoff road games at Norland in Miami and American Heritage in Plantation to get to this point. The Generals won five of their first six games then lost the final three games of the regular season. They upset the American Heritage Patriots 39-23 and followed it with a 30-21 victory over the defending Class 5A champion Norland Vikings in the playoffs.
    The Generals will play in their first regional final since 2006 and with a win would appear in the state semifinals for the first time since 2000. Quinton Flowers can be deceptive at quarterback as he can run and throw the ball at anytime. He will look for Vincent Hall as his favorite target along with Timothy Bellinger.
    Glades Central(8-4) enter the game on a eight-game winning streak following a four-game losing streak to begin the regular season which was the one of the worst starts in school history. The Raiders will play in the regional final for the fourth consecutive year and were eliminated at home last year against eventual Class 5A champion Norland. The Muck Bowl team last won a state title at Class 3A in 2006.
    The Raiders got home wins in the first two rounds of the playoffs over Rockledge 34-12 and  Merritt Island 26-10. Will Likely will line up both as a running back and wide receiver and is dangerous when he gets the ball. David Bailey, Ranquavion Tarver, Jonathan Istache and Yener Ferdinard are expected to get receptions dowfield from T.J. Abrams.

Heat Beat Depleted Spurs

    The Miami Heat played for the first time since Saturday in an unusual storyline as they got by the San Antonio Spurs 105-100 on Thursday night at American Airlines Arena. Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich had regular starters Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green return home to Texas following their game on Wednesday night in Orlando and rest for an upcoming game on Saturday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
    Miami(11-3) began the game on a 16-6 spurt in the first six minutes. San Antonio(13-4) finished strong at the end of the first with a 13-2 run to lead 27-22 after one quarter. The Heat capped the second quarter on a 11-3 rally to get ahead 47-44 at halftime.
    Neither team led by more than four points in the third quarter as the Spurs pulled ahead 76-73 at the end of the period. San Antonio had an 11-2 spurt midway in the fourth quarter to make it 92-85 with 4:48 left. Miami responded with a 15-6 run to retake the lead 100-98 on a Ray Allen three-point shot with 22 seconds to go. They ended the game on a 20-8 rally.
    The Heat improved their home record to 7-0 which is the best start in franchise history. The Spurs came into this game with the best away record in the NBA and fell to 9-2 on the road. The Miami Heat honored former point guard Sherman Douglas during a halftime ceremony.
    LeBron James came through with 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in 39 minutes and Dwyane Wade scored 19 points in 32 minutes. Chris Bosh added a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds while Allen poured in 20 points. Gary Neal led the Spurs with 20 points.

Conference USA Adds FAU

    Florida Atlantic University will leave the Sun Belt Conference and join Conference USA at the start of the 2014-15 academic year. FAU will play one final season in the Sun Belt Conference starting next August.
    The Owls entered the Sun Belt in 2005 as a football member only and added all their sports programs the following year. They were a Division 1-AA athletic program in the Trans Atlantic Athletic Conference/Atlantic Sun Conference from 1993 until 2006.
    FAU will reunite with their local rival Florida International University who will make the switch in the summer of 2013. The two schools will reunite and compete in the Shula Bowl in 2014 as the game will be on hiatus next year because they will play in different conferences. They played each other back on November 16 in Boca Raton in what everyone thought at the time would be the last Shula Bowl.

Miami/Fort Lauderdale Arbitron Ratings November

    For the third consecutive month, Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM was the top sports format radio station in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale region during the month of November. Other competitors 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM and 940 The Sports Animal WINZ-AM were able to narrow the margin.
    WQAM had their ratings drop from a 1.1 to a 0.9 based on several factors. Steve Goldstein was let go by the station as early afternoon co-host with Adam Kuperstein after only nine months and replaced by Channing Crowder. It had an effect on their audience who have been used to listening to Goldstein on that station during his two stints from 1994-2004 and 2009-2012. In addition, the University of Miami Hurricanes football team was lackluster at the time and the Florida Panthers were in an NHL lockout.
    WAXY regained second place and went up from a 0.6 to a 0.7 in November. It was strange that the station did not get a higher bump in the ratings with the start of the regular season for the Miami Heat and that there were no Miami Marlins games. It also increased as Eric Reed replaced Jason Jackson, who departed after eight months, as the early afternoon host and Mia Harris began her second stint at the station as a morning/midday sports anchor.
    WINZ returned back to their regular spot in the region at third place as they slightly fell from a 0.7 to a 0.6 during the month. The Miami Dolphins have played better than what was anticipated for the team. The one-hour loss of their daytime signal in early November did have an effect.
   
     

Jason Pugh Leaves West Palm Beach

    West Palm Beach sportscaster Jason Pugh will leave the local airwaves next week for a job outside of South Florida. He is currently an evening co-host on ESPN Radio 760 WEFL-AM along with being a sports anchor/sports reporter for WPTV-TV Channel 5 and WFLX-TV Channel 29. He will become a sports reporter at WRC-TV Channel 4 in Washington D.C. in early December and will join former WPTV-TV sports anchor Dan Hellie on staff.
    Pugh played college football with the Florida Atlantic University Owls for four years as a linebacker. He interned at ESPN 760 in 2003 when the station flipped to a sports talk format. He permanently joined the organization as a producer in 2006 and became an on-air contributor in 2007. Pugh was promoted to evening co-host with Jerermy Marks-Peltz in 2010 when the Evan Cohen Show was cut by one hour. He also was a game analyst on Palm Beach County high school football games with Ken LaVicka and Marks-Peltz through the 2011 season.
    WPTV-TV made an agreement with ESPN 760 to use some of their staff as on-air personnel with Cohen and Pugh added as sportscasters on their newscasts. Pugh also held the football game analyst post on the Florida Atlantic University Radio Network for several years and will announce his final game on Saturday against Louisiana-Lafayette.

Marc Eisenberg Now WMEN PD

    Marc Eisenberg has been elevated to program director at 640 Sports WMEN-AM and will continue as the executive producer at that station.  He joined 640 Sports in early May as a weekend host and was promoted to the interim morning co-host role with Chris Perkins in early June when Armando Salguero left. It was expected to be a short-term situation until early August as Sid Rosenberg completed his non-compete clause enforced by Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM.
    When Rosenberg became the morning show host on August 13, Eisenberg remained on the morning show as the executive producer. Eisenberg picked up additional duties as morning sports anchor and midday sports anchor at 640 Sports along with a morning sports anchor spot at 850 WFTL-AM. He also hosts a one-hour NFL show on Sunday morning.
    Eisenberg was the afternoon producer, weekend host and fill-in host at WQAM until May. It was his second stint at that station where he mainly produced the Sid Rosenberg Show. Rosenberg was let go by WQAM in early April.
    Eisenberg worked at WQAM from 1999 to 2004. He started as a producer for the afternoon show with Hank Goldberg. It led him to co-host an overnight show with Joe Castello from 2003 to 2004. He joined 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM as a producer and later became a midday co-host with O.J. McDuffie on What's Popping which lasted for over one year. Eisenberg was also a football sideline reporter for Florida Atlantic University on radio. 

Jim Grieshaber In Phoenix

    Former local sports announcer Jim Grieshaber has been given a mixed martial arts Saturday show on Arizona Sports 620 KTAR-AM in Phoenix as of December 1. He has been hosting a weekly high school sports show on Saturdays called Arizona Sports Preps 365 at that same station. He currently works for aia365.com as a studio host.
    Grieshaber had numerous stops while he was employed in South Florida before moving to Phoenix. He began at 850 WFTL-AM and 640 WJNA-AM as a producer, sports anchor and sports director. He then co-hosted a nationally syndicated afternoon show on Sports Byline USA with Marc Benarzyk in 2006.
    Grieshaber held a Sunday night show on 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM for a short time followed by hosting an evening talk show on 1470 WWNN-AM in Boca Raton. He also was on television for several years as a reporter for the University of Miami Hurricanes weekly show on Comcast Sportsnet South.

Heat Late Comeback On Cavs

    The Miami Heat came from behind late in the game on Saturday night as they scored the final nine points for a 110-108 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers at American Airlines Arena. The Cavs held a seven-point lead with 1:58 to go, but they were unable to sustain it. The Heat remained unbeaten at home this season at 6-0 and do not play again until Thursday as they host the San Antonio Spurs.
    Former Cavalier player LeBron James scored 30 points in 40 minutes to spearhead the Heat. Chris Bosh had 23 points and seven rebounds in 37 minutes while Dwyane Wade added 18 points in 34 minutes. Ray Allen came off the bench and added 17 points.
    Cleveland(3-10) had eight players with double-figure scoring in the loss. Alonzo Gee, a William T. Dwyer grad, nailed 12 points in 29 minutes while Jeremy Pargo and Dion Waiters had 16 points each. Anderson Varejao got a double-double with ten points and 15 rebounds.
    The Cavaliers led 29-26 after one quarter and had a double-digit lead at halftime 59-48. Miami(10-3) picked up a 23-10 run at the end of the third quarter as they were down 79-77.
    The Heat took the lead for the first time since the second quarter when Allen popped in a three-point shot with 18 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to make it 109-108. He capped the 9-0 spurt with a free throw with two seconds left.

St. Thomas Aquinas Wrecks Plantation

    For the second time this season, the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders were victorious over the Plantation Colonels with a 38-7 win in a Class 7A regional semifinal at Brian Piccolo Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Friday night. The Raiders had beaten them on October 26 on the same field by the score of 24-20 for the eventual District 15-7A title. Aquinas will host Boyd Anderson in a regional final next week.
    St. Thomas Aquinas(10-2) led the entire game and their dominance showed up early with 16 first-quarter points. On the first possession for Plantation, James Crawford returned a Chris Lammons fumble 13 yards down to the Colonels one-yard line. Fred Coppet ripped through with a one-yard touchdown run on the Raiders first play from scrimmage for a 7-0 lead.
    The Raiders scored on their second possession as John O'Korn found Mark Barr on a 48-yard touchdown pass during the second play of the drive. Aquinas extended the margin to 16-0 on a safety as a bad snap on a Plantation punt went beyond their own end zone.
    Coppet busted through with a seven-yard touchdown run on their following possession just five seconds into the second quarter for a Raiders 23-0 lead. Joey Bosa would give St. Thomas Aquinas another safety as he sacked Lammons in the end zone. Alex Knight kicked a 40-yard field goal later in the quarter to punctuate their 28 unanswered points.
    The only bright spot in the game for Plantation(8-4) was when Sojourn Shelton scored on a 55-yard punt return in the final moments of the first half and the Colonels cut the deficit to 28-7.
    The Raiders struck again on their first possession of the third quarter as O'Korn barreled in from one yard away at 8:10. Franklyn Richardson had a 35-yard reception during that drive to set up the score. Knight added on to the Aquinas rout with a 30-yard field goal with 4:59 to go in the third.
   
   

Boyd Anderson Beats Dwyer

    It turned out to be a defensive battle in this Class 7A regional semifinal on Friday night as the Boyd Anderson Cobras slipped by the Dwyer Panthers 6-3 at Blum Stadium in Palm Beach Gardens. The Cobras advanced to the regional finals and will play their third straight road playoff game next week at St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale.
    Dwyer(9-3) accounted for their only points of the game on a 32-yard field goal by Peyton Shapiro late in the first quarter. It was set up by a 33-yard pass by Daniel Parr to Ezra Saffold. Johnnie Dixon picked off an interception which led to the Panthers scoring possession.
    There was no more scoring in the game until the fourth quarter when Boyd Anderson(9-2) took the lead. Gregory Hankerson connected with Richard Lopez down the left sideline on a 26-yard pass for a 6-3 lead with 5:40 left. The Panthers had one more chance to score in the last three minutes of the game, however Lopez intercepted a Parr pass at the Cobras eight-yard line with no time remaining.
   

Boyd Anderson-Dwyer Preview

    Two teams that finished the regular season as district runner-ups won last week on the road in the first round and will face each other in a Class 7A regional semifinal on Friday night. The Boyd Anderson Cobras will play the Dwyer Panthers at Blum Stadium in Palm Beach Gardens.
    Dwyer(9-2) started off slow in a first-round game last week against Northeast in Oakland Park, but they came through with 22 second-half points for a 25-3 victory. The Panthers have won three of their last four games. After one month of not having a permanent quarterback in place, Daniel Parr has taken over the spot. Alonso Smith, Cortney Lowery and Antonio Knowles will take carries from the backfield. Johnnie Dixon, Ezra Saffold and Clint Stephens will look to get open downfield for receptions.
    During the first round, Boyd Anderson(8-2) upended Atlantic in Delray Beach 13-7 last week on a fourth-quarter touchdown to break a tie game. The Cobras enter the game victorious in six of their last seven games. Gregory Hankerson will lead their offense as he can run or throw the ball anywhere on the field. They have a strong wide receiver crew led by Eddie Jackson along with Richard Lopez, Braylin Sigler, Darren Williams and Raynard Warren. Tevin Hyatt will get an occasional carry for the team.

Plantation-St. Thomas Aquinas Preview

    It will be a rematch between two District 15-7A teams as the Plantation Colonels challenge the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders on Friday night in a Class 7A regional semifinal at Brian Piccolo Stadium. The Raiders barely edged out the Colonels 24-20 for first place back on October 26 in Fort Lauderdale. The winner of this game will host a regional final next week against either Dwyer or Boyd Anderson.
    Plantation(8-3) got a road victory in the first round last week as they beat American 29-8 at Traz Powell Stadium in Miami. Following their loss to the Raiders, the Colonels have won two of their last three games. Jovante Ham and Antonio Williams look to gain yardage from the backfield. Jewison Dawkins and Solomon Loud will try to get open on passes from Chris Lammons.
    St. Thomas Aquinas(9-2) are currently on a six-game winning streak and had no problem last week with a 42-7 home playoff win over Miami Beach. Fred Coppet will lead the running attack for the Raiders along with Deltron Sands and Marquis Magwood. John O'Korn has many receivers to connect with which includes Mark Barr, Corey Holmes, Chandler Dorrell, Jonathan Boozer and Franklyn Richardson.

Udonis Haslem Breaks Record In Heat Win

    Udonis Haslem passed Alonzo Mourning as the all-time leader for rebounds with the Miami Heat as they won 113-106 in overtime over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night at American Airlines Arena. Haslem, in his tenth season with the Heat, became the first undrafted player to lead an NBA franchise in career rebounds. He joined the team at the start of the 2003-04 season along with Dwyane Wade and won two NBA titles with the organization.
    Miami(9-3) returned home after two weeks following a six-game road trip where they went 4-2. The Heat ended the first quarter on a 17-2 spurt to go ahead 29-15. Haslem picked up his second rebound in the game and his 4,808th rebound in his career at 2:36 to get the new franchise record.
    The Heat continued on a 25-6 run during the first half to lead by 18 points 37-19 three minutes into the second quarter. Milwaukee(8-4) center Larry Sanders, a Port St. Lucie High School grad, was ejected from the game during the second quarter after playing for six minutes. His team was able to outscore the Heat 16-2 to end the first half down only two points.
    Neither team had more than a six-point lead in the third as the Bucks led 73-71 after three quarters. Milwaukee was unable to hold a seven-point lead at 91-84 with 4:50 left in regulation as the game went into overtime.
    In their first overtime game this season, the Heat got the first six points in the extra session on the way to an 11-2 run. Miami improved their unbeaten record at home to 5-0 this season.
    LeBron James had his ninth double-double of the season with 28 points and ten rebounds along with eight assists in 42 minutes of play. Dwyane Wade returned back to the court for the Heat after missing the last two games as he contributed 28 points in 32 minutes. Chris Bosh powered inside with 24 points and 18 rebounds in a team-high 43 minutes.

Hurricanes Impose Bowl Ban

    The University of Miami Hurricanes will impose a bowl ban on themselves for the second consecutive season. This will also include not being eligible for the ACC title game in Charlotte on December 1. Administrators at The U thought the actions of being self-imposed would have a good bearing on the upcoming sanctions to be decided by the NCAA.
    The Canes are currently in second place with a 4-3 conference record in the Coastal Division. They are 1/2 game behind Georgia Tech in the standings with a conference game at Duke on Saturday. If Miami would win that game they would tie the Yellow Jackets for first place and win the division due to a head-to-head victory over Georgia Tech earlier this season at Sun Life Stadium.

Keselowski Wins NASCAR Title

    In his third year on the top circuit of auto racing, Brad Keselowski captured the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday. He finished 15th in the race, the spot he needed to at least end up to clinch the title. Keselowski won the second-tier Nationwide Series in 2010.
    Jeff Gordon won the final race of the NASCAR season at Homestead. It was his first career win at that specific track. Five-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson entered the race in second place overall in the chase for the Sprint Cup. His vehicle did not have a good showing and he finished the season in third place one point behind Clint Bowyer.
    Penske Racing, headed by longtime auto racing owner Roger Penske, won its first crown at the highest level of NASCAR. They won the lower Nationwide Series with Keselowski as a driver back in 2010. The organization previously won numerous titles on the Indy Car open-wheel league which included 15 Indianapolis 500 victories.

Heat Edge Suns

    The Miami Heat finished a six-game road string on Saturday night with a 97-88 victory over the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center. The Heat finished the trip with a 4-2 record. They return home, where they unbeaten this season, on Wednesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks.
    Chris Bosh led Miami(8-3) with 24 points and nine rebounds in 37 minutes played while LeBron James added 21 points and seven rebounds in 41 minutes. Shane Battier contributed 12 points and Mario Chalmers had 11 points.
    Several former Heat players had an impact in the game for Phoenix(4-7) as Michael Beasley popped in 14 points and Jermaine O'Neal got ten points. Shannon Brown poured in 14 points and Goran Dragic added 12 points in the loss.
    The Heat scored the first nine points of the game, but the Suns came back to tie the game on a 18-9 spurt during the first quarter. Both teams were tied at 23-23 after one quarter and 52-52 at halftime.
    Miami had a 15-point lead during the third quarter, however Phoenix was able to chop the deficit down to two points 90-88 with 2:12 left in the quarter. The Heat finished up strong as they scored the final seven points of the game.

Dwyer Dominates Northeast

    The Dwyer Panthers put up 22 second-half points as they blew away the Northeast Hurricanes 25-3 in a Class 7A regional quarterfinal at The Black Hole in Oakland Park on Friday night. The Panthers played a first-round game on the road for the first time since 2002. They will host Boyd Anderson in a regional semifinal next week. The Hurricanes had their eight-game winning streak snapped along with an unbeaten record at home.
    Northeast(9-2) recovered the opening kickoff at the Panthers seven-yard line just four seconds in. Luis Rivera would kick a 25-yard field goal at 8:56 to give the Canes their only lead in the game 3-0. 
    Dwyer(9-2) linebacker Anthony Romano intercepted a Brion Sanchious pass with 2:57 left at his own 45-yard line and returned it 15 yards. Peyton Shapiro had his 45-yard field goal blocked by the Canes with 20 seconds to go in the first quarter.
    A controversial call happened with under three minutes to go in the second quarter when Dwyer wide receiver Johnnie Dixon caught a 15-yard pass on the left side of the zone for a touchdown, but the side judge ruled him out of bounds on the play. On the Panthers final possession of the first half, Shapiro blasted a 30-yard field goal with no time remaining to tie the game at 3-3.
    On the third play of the third quarter, Dwyer cornerback Deandre Bozeman intercepted a ball and returned it to the Hurricanes 30-yard line at 10:57. Quarterback Daniel Parr finished the ten-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run on a fourth-and-goal at 5:55.
    Running back Jamal Wallace was stripped of the ball by Bozeman at the Hurricanes 25-yard line with 2:17 to go. Four plays later,  Ezra Saffold caught a 23-yard catch for a score with 28 seconds left in the quarter to extend the Panthers lead to 16-3.
    The Panthers got a safety on a bad punt snap into the back of the Northeast end zone to make it 18-3 at 10:15 of the fourth quarter. Jerrad Ward recovered a fumble by Sanchious in the end zone with 2:40 remaining in the game for a 25-3 lead.

   

D.A. Show Goes National

    Former Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM sports host Damon Amendolara, known as D.A., has been named the overnight host for the CBS Sports Radio Network and will begin there in January. He has worked as the evening host at 98.5 The Sports Hub WBZ-FM in Boston since they changed to a sports talk format in August 2009.
    Amendolara, a 2001 Syracuse University grad, hosted the D.A. Show and held the late night spot at WQAM from 2008 until early August 2009 along with working as a weekend host. He replaced Ed Kaplan who hosted late nights at the station for over ten years. Kevin Rogers took over the slot when Amendolara left.
    Amendolara began his career at as an afternoon host at Sports Radio 770 WWCN-AM in Fort Myers. He moved to Kansas City in 2003 and became an evening host at 610 Sports KCSP-AM. Amendolara was promoted in 2004 to morning host at that station before coming to Miami.

Heat Ends Denver Drought

    Dwyane Wade did not play due to a sprained left foot as the Miami Heat picked up a 98-93 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night at Pepsi Center. The Heat, who entered the game with ten consecutive losses in Denver, last won there on January 29, 2002. Denver trailed throughout the entire game and only tied it up once at 8-8.
    Miami(7-3) jumped on the Nuggets with the first six points and an 8-2 start in the opening three minutes. They would have an eight-point margin after one quarter 28-20. Denver(4-5) fell behind by 12 points halfway through the second quarter and were down 54-42 at halftime.
    The Heat expanded to a 19-point lead 70-51 at 6:16 of the third quarter. They held a 79-66 margin after three quarters. The Nuggets cut the deficit down to one point 85-84 six minutes into the fourth quarter on a 18-6 spurt. It was a 33-15 run through the second half.
    LeBron James nailed another double-double with 27 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds in 42 minutes of play for Miami. Shane Battier added 18 points while Chris Bosh had 14 points. Mike Miller filled in for Wade and got 12 points. 
    Andre Miller contributed 19 points and JaVale McGee made 18 points coming off the Denver bench. Andre Iguodala popped in ten points and Kenneth Faried completed a double-double with 16 points and 20 rebounds.
   

Plantation Upsets American

    The Plantation Colonels pulled a mild surprise on the road as they defeated the American Patriots 29-8 on Thursday night at Traz Powell Stadium in a Class 7A regional quarterfinal. Next week the Colonels will visit the winner of the game between St. Thomas Aquinas and Miami Beach in a regional semifinal.
    Plantation(8-3) entered the contest having lost two of their last three games against the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders 24-20 and last week to the South Plantation Paladins 10-0 while American(7-4) lost last week 26-7 to the Carol City Chiefs.
    Neither team scored in the first quarter, but the Colonels placed 16 points in the second quarter. Running back Jovante Ham scored on a four-yard run seven minutes into the stanza and they made the two-point conversion for an 8-0 lead. Wide receiver Jewison Dawkins caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Chris Lammons with 20 seconds left in the first half. The Colonels followed with another two-point conversion for a 16-0 halftime lead.
    Plantation extended their lead to 23-0 at 7:30 of the third quarter as Antwuan Haynes raced in from 11 yards out. The Patriots and the Colonels scored one touchdown each for the rest of the game.

Dwyer-Northeast Preview

    For the first time since 2002, the Dwyer Panthers will open up the playoffs on the road as they challenge the Northeast Hurricanes in Oakland Park on Friday night in a Class 7A regional quarterfinal. This is a rematch from last year when the Panthers defeated the Hurricanes 45-14 in a regional semifinal in Palm Beach Gardens.
    Dwyer(8-2) started their season with six consecutive wins which included an opening-game victory over Glades Central 30-9. It was the Panthers first win over the Raiders after six previous defeats in their heated Palm Beach County rivalry. Dwyer has lost two of their past four games which included a district home loss 28-12 to Atlantic and a non-district road defeat in Delray last week to American Heritage 13-7.
    Panthers coach Jack Daniels will decide who will start at quarterback for his team between Clay Meister, Rob Nittolo and Daniel Parr. Alonso Smith will get the bulk of the handoffs along with Cortney Lowery. They have a strong wide receiver group with Clint Stephens, Johnnie Dixon and Ezra Saffold.
    Northeast(9-1) currently has an eight-game winning streak after a 23-12 road loss at Hallandale during the second week of the season. They have beaten Miramar along with Boyd Anderson this season and defeated Fort Lauderdale 62-24 last week. The Canes are undefeated at home in 2012.  
    Former NFL player Donnell Bennett is the head coach of the team. The Hurricanes bring a powerful backfield with Jamal Wallace and Timonte King as running backs. Wide receiver Stacey Coley has blazing speed and will get open for receptions from quarterback Brion Sanchious.

Jackson-American Heritage Preview

    The Jackson Generals will travel from Miami to Plantation and take on the American Heritage Patriots on Friday night at Heritage Field in a Class 5A regional quarterfinal. The winner of this game will face the Norland-Dillard winner in the next round.
    Jackson(5-4) have played quality opponents throughout their season. The Generals won four of their first five games in the regular season which included victories over Dr. Krop, American and Miami Beach. They are currently on a three-game losing streak with defeats to playoff-bound teams Booker T. Washington, Norland and Northwestern. Jackson lost the Soul Bowl to the Bulls last week 21-13. Quarterback Quinton Flowers can run or pass the ball at anytime on offense for the Generals.
    American Heritage(9-1) has been unstoppable this season as they carry an eight-game winning streak into this game. They beat the other four teams in their own District 15-5A by a combined 221-28 margin. The only loss in the Pats schedule was at defending Class 4A state champion Jacksonville-Bolles in the second week 30-27.
    The Patriots will be led by quarterback Tyler Cogswell, who is a University of Arkansas commit. He is able to throw a pass anywhere on the field and will connect with Isaiah McKenzie as his primary target. Running back Sony Michel can break open on any carry or screen pass when needed.

Clippers Coast By Heat

    The Miami Heat were on the west coast on Wednesday night as they lost to the Los Angeles Clippers 107-100 at Staples Center. The Heat fell to 2-10 in their last 12 tries on the Clippers home court and have not won there in the last five seasons.
    Los Angeles(6-2) made their first four shots of the game and led 8-2 at 10:20 of the first quarter. There were seven ties and seven lead chances in the opening quarter as the Heat were down 25-24 going into the second quarter. Neither team was able to lead by more than five points as Miami(6-3) led 54-52 at halftime.
    The Clippers put the lead up to 67-60 with 7:50 left in the third quarter as they began the second half on a 15-6 spurt. Los Angeles rolled with ten straight points alongside a 13-2 run all by Chris Paul at the end of the quarter for a double-digit margin of 85-74. Things did not get any better for the Heat as they were outscored 10-2 at the start of the fourth quarter and the Clippers increased the deficit to 19 points 95-76. Miami scored the last seven points of the game to cut the lead down from double-digits.
    LeBron James played 41 minutes for the Heat and scored 30 points with seven assists. Chris Bosh and Rashard Lewis added 11 points each while Dwyane Wade had six points.
    Blake Griffin knocked in 20 points for L.A. along with 14 rebounds in 30 minutes and Paul contributed 16 points and 10 assists. Former Heat player Caron Butler pounded in 15 points and Jamal Crawford had 22 points as a non-starter.

Ducis Rodgers In Philly

    Former WSVN-TV sports anchor Ducis Rodgers is now working as a sports anchor at WPVI-TV Channel 6 in Philadelphia. He joined from ESPN in Connecticut where he was a sports anchor from 2009 until August 2012.
    Rodgers came to Miami in 1995 as he replaced Jason Jackson and worked at WSVN-TV Channel 7 as a sports anchor until 2003. He then relocated to New York City and became a sports reporter/sports anchor at WCBS-TV Channel 2. Rodgers later was promoted to sports director at that station and remained there until 2009. He began his career as a sportscaster at WDEF-TV in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Marlins Make Blockbuster Trade

    The Miami Marlins made a major trade with the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday. The Marlins sent Josh Johnson, Mark Buerhle, Jose Reyes, John Buck and Emilio Bonifacio to the Blue Jays for Yunel Escobar, Jeff Mathis, Henderson Alvarez, Adeiny Hechavarria, Jake Marisnick, Justin Nicolino and Anthony DeSclarfani. It was the largest trade the Marlins had made since December 2007 when they sent eventual Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Detroit Tigers for five players.
    Four of the five players Miami traded were in the opening day starting lineup on April 4 when the team played their first regular season game at the new Marlins Park. Reyes from the New York Mets and Buerhle from the Chicago White Sox were signed as premium free agents during the off-season last year to improve the Marlins record, content for a playoff spot and bring attendance up in the new stadium. Johnson, Buck and Bonifacio have all been consistent starters for the team since the final season of the Florida Marlins on opening day in 2011 at Sun Life Stadium.   
    Escobar has been a starter in Toronto for almost two seasons while Mathis, Hechavarria and Alvarez got more playing time this season due to numerous injuries to that club. The other three are mainly minor league prospects that new Marlins manager Mike Redmond has looked at while he was a minor league manager in the Blue Jays system for the past two seasons.

   

Guy Rawlings Out At WGCL-TV

    Former Miami sportscaster Guy Rawlings has exited his news anchor post at WGCL-TV Channel 46 in Atlanta. He has been at that station since early January. He was a sports anchor at WESH-TV Channel 2 in Orlando from 2007 until November 2011.
    Rawlings, a University of Florida grad, was known in South Florida as a sports anchor at WTVJ-TV Channel 6 from 1997 until 2007 and replaced Karie Ross in that position. He had previous stops as a sportscaster in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Charleston and Baltimore.

Pavel Bure Hall Of Famer

    Pavel Bure, known as the Russian Rocket, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday night in Toronto. He played for three different teams while in the National Hockey League and led the league in goals three times. Joe Sakic, Adam Oates and Mats Sundin were also inducted.
    Bure started with the Vancouver Canucks in 1991-92 and scored 60 goals in a season twice in 1992-93 and 1993-94. He led his team to the Western Conference title in 1994 before they lost to the New York Rangers in the Stanley Cup Finals four games to three.
    He was traded to the Florida Panthers in January 1999 with Bret Hedican for Ed Jovanovski and Kevin Weekes in a transaction that involved nine players. Bure won the Maurice Richard Trophy as he led the NHL with 58 goals. He led the Cats to their third postseason appearance in franchise history. They were swept in the first round by the New Jersey Devils, who eventually won the Stanley Cup. Bure was the league leader for the second consecutive season with 59 goals in 2000-01.
    He was sent to the New York Rangers in March 2002 and suffered a career-ending knee injury that December. Bure finished his NHL career with 437 goals and 779 points in 702 games.

Heat Blasts Rockets

    The Miami Heat played the second of back-to-back road games on Monday night and got by the Houston Rockets 113-110 at Toyota Center. LeBron James, who tied a franchise record with 32 second-half points, made a driving lay-up down the right baseline with 18 seconds left to give the Heat their only lead of the fourth quarter.
    James accounted with his seventh double-double of the season with 38 points, ten rebounds and six assists in 40 minutes. Chris Bosh also had a double-double with 24 points and ten rebounds while Dwyane Wade added 19 points.
    Chandler Parsons was the Rockets leading scorer with 25 points in 40 minutes. New incoming teammate James Harden popped in 22 points in 40 minutes and Jeremy Lin contributed nine points.
    The Heat scored the first nine points on their way to a 16-2 run to begin the game. Miami(6-2) did not commit any turnovers in the first seven minutes as they extended their lead to 22-5. The Rockets followed with 11 consecutive points and were down 25-19 after one quarter. Houston closed the gap to two points 39-37 at 5:41 and were behind 56-52 at halftime.
    Houston(3-4) outscored the Heat 33-27 in the third quarter and took their first lead of the game 70-69 with 5:03 remaining. Entering the fourth quarter up 85-82, the Rockets increased their lead to 101-93 with 6:13 left. Miami pulled off a comeback with a 20-9 run to end of the game.
   

Kyle Cassandra At WDBO-AM

    Boynton Beach native Kyle Cassandra is now part of the new ESPN radio station at 580 WDBO-AM in Orlando. He began Monday as the afternoon sports anchor and afternoon sports producer of the Scott Anez Show. The radio station flipped their format from news/talk to become the fourth sports radio station in the Orlando area. It has been the flagship station of the Orlando Magic since their inception in 1989.
    Cassandra was an intern at ESPN Radio 760 WEFL-AM in West Palm Beach back in the mid-2000's. He also once worked in the media relations department at Roger Dean Stadium for the Jupiter Hammerheads and the Palm Beach Cardinals.
    Cassandra joined 580 WDBO as an overnight traffic anchor in 2007. He would be promoted to a news reporter position at that station. He later added duties as a sports anchor and an afternoon producer for the Mel Robbins Show.
    
   

Heat Loss In Memphis

    The Miami Heat had their four-game winning streak snapped as they fell to the Memphis Grizzlies 104-86 on Sunday night at FedEx Forum. Miami dropped to 1-2 on the road this season. Dwyane Wade made his return after a one-game absence due to a cold.
    Miami(5-2) trailed the game the entire time, but they tied it up at 12-12 and 14-14 midway through the first quarter. Memphis(5-1) began the contest with a 10-2 spurt until the Heat responded with their own 10-2 edge. The Grizzlies were ahead 22-21 after one quarter.
    Memphis led 42-40 with 2:30 left in the second quarter. They then finished off on a 14-1 run to end the first half and led by 15 points 56-41 at halftime. The Heat were outscored 34-20 in the quarter.
    The margin was cut to five points with 6:45 to go in the third quarter at 63-58. The Grizzlies still held the lead by double-digits 76-66 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, Miami pulled to within seven points at 82-75 with 8:33 remaining. However, Memphis powered on with a 22-2 run in the later part of the period to put the game away.
    Chris Bosh put up 23 points and eight rebounds in 33 minutes while LeBron James had a double-double with 20 points and ten rebounds in 36 minutes. Wade was Miami's third-leading scorer with eight points and eight rebounds in 33 minutes.
    Rudy Gay poured in 21 points in his 37 minutes for Memphis and Wayne Ellington came off the bench as he scored 25 points. Both Zach Randolph and Mike Conley Jr. contributed 18 points each in the winning cause.
   

Dillard Wins Soul Bowl

    The Dillard Panthers snapped a three-game losing streak as they won the Soul Bowl with a 22-6 win over the Blanche Ely Tigers at Lockhart Stadium on Saturday night. It was the first regular season game played at Lockhart this year. The Panthers, who won their first Soul Bowl since 2008, will travel to Miami and face the defending Class 5A state champion Norland Vikings in a first-round playoff game next week. The Tigers regular season came to an end as they lost for the fourth time in their last five games.
    Dillard(5-5, 2-2) recovered a fumble on the Tigers first offensive play of the game just two minutes in. Dre'sean Nelson finished the ten-play, 38-yard drive as he scored on a fourth-and-three run through the left side from the five-yard line for a Panthers 7-0 lead at 5:19. Early in the second quarter, Nelson had a 74-yard run negated due to a holding penalty at the 10:30 mark.
    The Panthers put up 15 more points in the final four minutes of the first half. They had good field position with 5:04 to go at the Tigers 48-yard line. Nelson squeezed around the right end from one-yard out four plays later with 3:11 remaining in the second quarter.
    They got the ball back at their own 28-yard line following a punt for their final possession of the half at 1:34. LaDarion McBride caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Lee Martin on a slant pattern and capped a six-play, 72-yard drive with 20 seconds left. Nelson ran in the two-point conversion and Dillard had a commanding 22-0 lead at halftime.
    On the Panthers first possession of the second half, Eddie Roberts IV fumbled the ball away on a carry during the fourth play of the drive at their 49-yard line. The ball was recovered by Blanche Ely(5-5, 3-2) at the Panthers 38-yard line at 6:10. The Tigers were able to capitalize on the mistake and they moved down the field offensively. Terrance Blands completed the 12-play, 35-yard drive as he barely crossed over the goal line on a one-yard burst with 1:33 left. The extra point by John Bellfour was no good and the Tigers trailed 22-6.
    Neither team was able to score in the fourth quarter, but Blanche Ely came very close to narrow the margin. Tyquon Fields intercepted a pass at the Panthers 31-yard line at 7:51. The Tigers ended the eight-play drive at the one-yard line as Devonte Peete fell short of the end zone from a reception on a fourth-down play with 5:35 left.

Soul Bowl Preview

    The Dillard Panthers and the Blanche Ely Tigers will meet in the annual Soul Bowl at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Laudredale on Saturday night. The Panthers, currently on a three-game losing streak, got the District 15-5A runner-up spot on Monday after 6-0 wins over the Hallandale Chargers and Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs in a three-way tiebreaker.
    Dillard(4-5, 2-2), who will make their first FHSAA playoff appearance since 2008 next week at defending Class 5A state champion Norland, will be led by running back Dre'sean Nelson who can gain yardage on any run or pass. Eddie Roberts IV will have added impact in the backfield with him. Dennis Turner and LaDarion McBride will look for sharp passes from quarterback Lee Martin.
    For the first time since 2008, Blanche Ely(5-4, 3-2) will not be a participant in the postseason as they finished third in District 14-7A behind Northeast and Boyd Anderson. They come off a 54-6 victory over Coral Glades last week. Nelson Ervin will dictate things for the Tigers offensive attack as quarterback. He will have numerous options to throw the ball downfield against the Dillard defense.

South Plantation Beats Plantation

    It was a low-scoring game on their home field, but the South Plantation Paladins got by their local rivals the Plantation Colonels 10-0 at Sandra Darr Athletic Field on Friday night. Both schools played in the same district for a long time until realignment after the 2010 season. Paladins running back Alex Collins did not play due to an injury.
    South Plantation(9-1, 4-1), who won their first eight games this season, attacked during their first possession. Quarterback John Franklin, a Florida State University commit, scored on a four-yard run at 9:54 in the first quarter for a Paladins 7-0 lead. Neither team was able to score for the rest of the first half.
    Zac Leatherman kicked a 42-yard field goal with 7:27 remaining in the third quarter. Later in the quarter, defensive back Taj Thomas intercepted a pass from Chris Lammons and returned it to the Colonels 30-yard line. Leatherman would fall short on a 53-yard field goal with 1:44 to go.
    Plantation(7-3, 4-1) faked a punt on the first play of the fourth quarter, but the run was stopped by the Paladins defense at the Colonels 25-yard line. Later in the Paladins next possession, Leatherman's 22-yard field goal was wide left.
    The Colonels final two drives of the game were the closest they would come to break the shutout. The first one ended with a loss on downs at the South Plantation 23-yard line with 5:30 remaining. The last one ended as Lammons fumbled the ball with 2:18 left at the Paladins 37-yard line.
    The District 11-8A champion Paladins, who won a three-way tiebreaker for the title on Monday, will host the Miramar Patriots in the first round of the FHSAA playoffs next week. The District 15-7A runner-up Colonels will have to visit American in Miami.
   

St. Thomas Aquinas Defeats Deerfield Beach

    The St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders had no problems as they rolled in a 45-0 shutout over the Deerfield Beach Bucks at Brian Piccolo Memorial Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Friday night. The District 15-7A champion Raiders will host Miami Beach in the first round of the FHSAA playoffs next week. The Bucks, who came off a three-way tiebreaker on Monday as the District 11-8A runner-up,  will travel to Weston and face the Cypress Bay Lightning next week in the first round.
    Deerfield Beach(5-4, 4-1) had a chance to score midway through the first quarter when they recovered a fumble on a punt return at the Raiders 36-yard line at 5:33. The Bucks lost the ball on downs in four plays. It would be their best scoring chance in the game.
    St. Thomas Aquinas(8-2, 5-0) took over at their own 25-yard line. Quarterback John O'Korn finished the five-play, 75-yard drive with a 13-yard run through the right side of the line with 1:16 left in the quarter for a 7-0 lead.
    On the first play of the second quarter, Raiders defensive back Chris Washington intercepted a pass at the Bucks 33-yard line and returned it 25 yards for great field position. Fullback Jonathan Boozer scored on the first play of the drive on an eight-yard run up the middle at 11:43.
    The Raiders had a 66-yard touchdown run by Deltron Sands negated due to a holding penalty at 7:52 of the second. They punted the ball away later in the possession.
    With less than a minute in the first half, Deerfield were unable to get off a punt because of a bad snap from center. The Raiders had the ball at the Bucks 12-yard line with 34 seconds to go. They got the ball to the two-yard line for the first down with 19 seconds left. Alex Knight kicked a 20-yard field goal with one second left on the clock for a Raiders 17-0 halftime lead. The game was out of reach as the Raiders added 28 second-half points for a 45-0 margin.
   
   

Muck Bowl Preview

    The most famous rivalry in Palm Beach County will be played on Friday night as the Glades Central Raiders take on the Pahokee Blue Devils in the Muck Bowl at Anquan Boldin Stadium in Pahokee. The Blue Devils have not won the Muck Bowl since 2007 as the Raiders swept the last four matchups. Several players will end up playing Division 1 college football soon and it is possible that someone on that field may one day play in the NFL.
    Glades Central(5-4, 4-0) had their worst start in school history as they lost their first four games to eventual playoff teams that included Dwyer, Plantation, Park Vista and American Heritage. Since then the Raiders have won five straight games which included four district opponents.
    They clinched the District 14-5A title last week with a dominant 40-6 road win over Boynton Beach. Giovanni Lugo filled in the first half as quarterback because T.J. Abrams was serving a one-half suspension by the coaching staff. Lugo led them to a 27-6 halftime lead. Will Likely scored three touchdown which included a 64-yard interception return. David Bailey also caught three touchdown passes in the game.
    Abrams will throw passes downfield to Bailey, Raqoun Carver and Jonathan Istache. The Raiders have a powerful backfield with Likely and Aaren Baker to gain yardage.
    Pahokee(4-4, 2-2) will again not make the FHSAA playoffs as they finished in third place in District 7-3A behind American Heritage and Cardinal Newman. Jay Hopson will replace an injured James Johnson at quarterback and will lead the Blue Devils offense with MacArthur Burnett running the ball from the backfield. Kevine Miller and Gary Brown will attempt to get open for receptions.

Troy Stradford Joins WINZ

    Troy Stradford has joined 940 The Sports Animal WINZ-AM as a part-time sports host and will begin on Monday. He will co-host The Amigo and Dizz Show from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays. He has been a panelist and afternoon co-host on the Finsiders Show for the last two years. Larry Milian, a.k.a. The Amigo, and Phil Dominic, a.k.a Dizz, joined WINZ from WMEN in January 2012.
    Stradford was a late morning sports host on 640 Sports WMEN-AM from 2009 until October 2012. He joined that station back in 2008 when it flipped to a sports talk format. Stradford also did an NFL Sunday midday show for two seasons with Orlando Alzugaray.  He was let go last month when he complained over-the-air that the Sid Rosenberg Show had infringed into his two-hour time slot. This situation had been going on for two months when Rosenberg began his first show on August 13.
    The former Miami Dolphins running back still remains a high school football game analyst for Comcast Xfinity. Keith Sims replaced Stradford at 640 Sports as the late morning host last month.
  

American Heritage Edges Dwyer

    The Delray-American Heritage Stallions completed an undefeated regular season and proved they were the best team in Palm Beach County this year with a 13-7 win over the Dwyer Panthers on Thursday night at The Corral. The defending Class 3A state champion Stallions are the only unbeaten team based in Palm Beach County and host Chaminade-Madonna in the first round of the playoffs next Friday. The Panthers will play in Oakland Park against the Northeast Hurricanes next week.
    There was no scoring by either team in the first quarter. American Heritage(10-0, 4-0) started their third possession from its seven-yard line with 4:00 to go in the first. Greg Bryant sprinted through with a 43-yard run on the second play to the Stallions 45-yard line. He would also add a 21-yard run later in the drive. Tyler Provo made a 26-yard reception to the Stallions 10-yard line at the end of the quarter. Four plays later, Greg Joseph kicked a 28-yard field goal with 10:28 left in the first half for a Stallions 3-0 lead.
    Dwyer(8-2, 4-1) began their next possession on their own 20-yard line. Rob Nittolo found Johnnie Dixon down the right sideline for a 42-yard completion to the Stallions 18-yard line. The Panthers failed to score on a fourth-and-goal at the one-yard line as Alonso Smith lost one yard on a run through the right side with 5:13 remaining.
    On the third play of the second half, Nittolo fumbled the ball when he was sacked by Evan Harvey. Rondarian Bell picked the ball up and scored from three yards out 25 seconds into the third quarter to give the Stallions a ten-point lead. Harvey transferred from Dwyer to American Heritage during the summer.
    Daniel Parr replaced Nittolo as quarterback at the beginning of the Panthers next drive. He threw passes down the field to Clint Stephens for three first downs as they charged into Heritage territory. He found Ezra Saffold for a three-yard touchdown reception to complete a seven-play, 71-yard drive with 7:52 to go in the third quarter.
    Early in the fourth quarter on a third-down play, Bryant caught a pass up the middle and almost broke through the secondary for a 33-yard gain to the Panthers 20-yard line. With 9:27 remaining in the fourth quarter, Joseph blasted a line-drive 35-yard field goal for an American Heritage 13-7 lead.
     The Panthers had one final shot on their last possession of the game. On a fourth-and-23 at the Stallions 43-yard line, Xavier Swinton intercepted a pass in the zone with five seconds left.

     

Dwyer-American Heritage Preview

    The Dwyer Panthers visit The Corral on Thursday night and face the Delray-American Heritage Stallions. Both squads have been two of the top high school football programs in Palm Beach County throughout the entire season.
    Dwyer(8-1, 4-1) took the district runner-up spot in District 13-7A last week with a 21-16 road win at Royal Palm Beach. They will play a first-round playoff game in Oakland Park against the Northeast Hurricanes next week. The Panthers won their first six games of the season which included an opening game home win against Glades Central.
    American Heritage(9-0, 4-0) are the defending FHSAA Class 3A state champions and beat the Cardinal Newman Crusaders 49-0 several weeks ago to capture the District 7-3A title again. The Stallions won with a controversial forfeit by Calvary Christian last week 2-0. They will host Chaminade-Madonna next week in a first-round playoff matchup.
    The Panthers passing game will be carried out by Rob Nittolo, who recently replaced Clay Meister as their starting quarterback. Clint Stephens, Johnnie Dixon and Ezra Saffold will attempt to get open downfield. The running attack has several options including Alonso Smith, Cortney Lowery and Antonio Knowles.
    The Stallions have tremendous speed from their backfield and will run the ball on almost every play. Running back Greg Bryant can break into the open field at anytime and quarterback Marcus Davis is able to run out of the option. Desmond Cain will catch an occasional reception during the game. Fullback Tyler Provo will follow his older brother Nick and his father to attend Syracuse University next fall.

Walt Weiss Named Rockies Manager

    Former Florida Marlins shortstop Walt Weiss has been hired as the new manager of the Colorado Rockies. Weiss played one season with the Marlins in 1993, their first season in Major League Baseball. He was the starting shortstop in their first game as a franchise back in April 1993 at Joe Robbie Stadium. He hit .266 with one home run and 39 runs batted in.
    Weiss was the American League Rookie of the Year with the Oakland A's in 1988. He helped the team win three consecutive American League Championships from 1988 to 1990, which included their last World Series title in 1989 over the San Francisco Giants. He was traded by Oakland to the Marlins in November 1992.
    The Colorado Rockies signed him as a free agent in November 1993. The team finished as the National League wild card and made the playoffs in just their third season. He played for the Atlanta Braves from 1998 until 2000 and won three National League Eastern Division titles. Weiss was part of the 1999 National League Champions and lost to the New York Yankees in the World Series. He made the playoffs eight times in 14 seasons.

Heat Roll Over Brooklyn

    The Miami Heat welcomed the new-look Brooklyn Nets for the first time this season on Wednesday night and achieved a 103-73 victory at American Airlines Arena. The Nets moved their franchise to Brooklyn during the summer from New Jersey after 35 seasons in the Garden State.
    Neither team got up by more than four points as Miami led after one quarter 26-22. The Heat rolled with a 12-4 spurt during the second quarter and extended their lead to 42-31 with five minutes left in the first half. Dwyane Wade and LeBron James had 21 of the first 42 points for Miami at the time. The Nets were down 50-41 at halftime.
    Miami(4-1) upped their margin to 20 points on a 22-11 run to start the second half and made it 72-52 with 3:45 left in the third quarter. Brooklyn(1-2) looked up at a 23-point deficit 79-56 after three quarters. The Heat continued to hold the lead with an 11-2 run midway through the fourth quarter.
    James sat down in the final quarter as he had 20 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in 30 minutes. Wade scored 22 points in 32 minutes while Rashard Lewis added 13 points for the Heat. Deron Williams led the Nets with 14 points and Kris Humphries poured in 11 points.  

Bo Mattingly Moves in Arkansas

    Former West Palm Beach sportscaster Bo Mattingly will move his sports show from KABZ-FM to afternoon drive at KKSP-FM in Little Rock, Arkansas. His program will continue to be syndicated statewide by four other radio stations. Mattingly was with News Radio 1290 WJNO-AM as their sports director and morning sports anchor during the early 2000's.
    He moved to Arkansas and became a sports anchor at KNWA-TV. He added duties at KFAY-AM in Fayetteville as an afternoon sports host. Mattingly would later shift to an early afternoon sports show on KABZ-FM in May 2008.

Heat Burns Suns

    The Miami Heat had the lead throughout the entire game as they beat the Phoenix Suns 124-99 at American Airlines Arena on Monday night. They remained undefeated at home after three games this season.
    Miami(4-0) scored the first four points of the game on their way to a 10-2 spurt three minutes in. They led 34-25 after one quarter and extended their margin to 17 points with 4:22 left in the second quarter. Phoenix(1-3) was down 65-53 at halftime.
    The Suns pulled to within eight points 67-59 three minutes into the second half. Miami then went on a 31-15 run and headed into the fourth quarter with a comfortable 98-74 lead. The Heat increased their lead to 30 points midway through the fourth quarter.
    All the Heat starters did not put in major minutes due to the blowout. LeBron James had 23 points and 11 rebounds in 30 minutes while Dwyane Wade played in 28 minutes and poured in 22 points with six assists.
    Chris Bosh contributed 18 points in 25 minutes, Ray Allen scored 15 points in 28 minutes and Udonis Haslem had a season-high 12 points as he came off the bench.
    Suns reserve Shannon Brown had 18 points and new teammate Luis Scola added 15 points in 33 minutes. Former Heat player Michael Beasley only put up seven points in 29 minutes of play.
   

Dillard Gets Runner-Up Spot

    The battle for the District 15-5A runner-up spot was captured by the Dillard Panthers Monday night at The Furnace in Fort Lauderdale. The Panthers picked up 6-0 victories over the Hallandale Chargers and the Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs. They will play a first-round FHSAA playoff game on the road in two weeks against the defending Class 5A state champion Norland Vikings.
    As the host school, Cardinal Gibbons(7-2, 2-2) had the initial bye because they had the best overall record among the participating squads. Dillard(4-5, 2-2) and Hallandale(4-4, 2-2) played in the first one-quarter game at Dr. Bud Tight Field.
    Dre'sean Nelson of the Panthers took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown 16 seconds into the game. He went up the middle until midfield then cut to the left side and went down the sideline for the score. The extra point by Rolbens Cierjuste was wide left and Dillard had a 6-0 lead.
    The Chargers began their only possession, which lasted over nine minutes, at their own 28-yard line and were able to move the ball deep into Dillard territory. They got a first down on a fourth-and-four from the Panthers eight-yard line when the defense was called for offsides. The 17-play, 67-yard drive ended with 2:31 remaining as Tyler Huntley threw an incomplete pass out of the end zone on a fourth-and-goal from the Dillard five-yard line.
    With a third-and-ten situation, Lee Martin wrapped the first game up as he ran through the middle 11 yards on a quarterback keeper for a first down. The ball came loose at the end of the play, but the officials ruled him down.
    The Panthers began the second one-quarter game against Cardinal Gibbons at their own 20. On a third-and-11 at the Panthers 19, Nelson got a screen pass and raced down the sideline 60 yards to the Chiefs 21-yard line. Nelson finished the eight-play, 80-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run around the right end for a 6-0 lead with 6:52 left. The extra point by Cierjuste was blocked by the Chiefs.
    Cardinal Gibbons started their possession at their own 12 with Ryan Giaratano in at quarterback. They got a first down on the second play, then went three-and-out before punting the ball away with five minutes to go.
    Dillard took over at their own 38-yard line. On third down, Martin threw a pass 20 yards downfield that was intercepted by Demetrious Amerson and he returned it to the Panthers 43-yard line at 3:21.
    Peyton Bender entered the game for Giaratano on the Chiefs next drive and completed passes of 18 yards and eight yards to Travon Lee on their first two plays. They got the ball to the Panthers seven-yard line and had a third-and-two. Following an incomplete pass to Lee, split receiver David Senior was called for a false start to bring the ball back five yards. On a fourth-and-seven from the Dillard 12-yard line, Bender's pass sailed over everyone out of the back of the end zone with 1:10 remaining.
    Dillard makes their first postseason appearance since 2008 in Class 5A. They beat McArthur in the first round 47-0 then lost at St. Thomas Aquinas in the second round 49-8. Cardinal Gibbons will miss the FHSAA playoffs for the first time since 2004.

District 15-5A Tiebreaker Preview

    Three teams will play for the District 15-5A runner-up position at The Furnace on the Cardinal Gibbons campus in Fort Lauderdale on Monday night. The Dillard Panthers, Hallandale Chargers and Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs will participate.
    Dillard(4-5, 2-2) and Hallandale(4-4, 2-2) will play in the first one-quarter game and the winner will face Cardinal Gibbons(7-2, 2-2) in the second one-quarter game. Dillard comes in on a three-game losing streak following a 56-0 home loss to the Plantation-American Heritage Patriots. Dre'sean Nelson along with Eddie Roberts IV are expected to gain yards on the ground. Lee Martin will try to connect with Dennis Turner and LaDarion McBride downfield.
    Hallandale, currently on a three-game winning streak, has a potent running attack that involves Taj McGowan, Tyler McGowan and Paul Anderson. The Chargers got their best case scenario last week with a Dillard loss and a home victory over Cardinal Gibbons 18-12.
    Cardinal Gibbons have lost their last two games, both which were district opponents. Two weeks ago, they lost several players to injury in a very physical road loss to American Heritage 70-19. The Chiefs were defeated last week in Hallandale. Ryan Giaratano will spread passes to Christian Blake and George Rushing while Michael Ferguson will take the handoffs from the backfield.

Heat Take Down Nuggets

    Chris Bosh had 40 points and seven rebounds in 39 minutes as he led the Miami Heat over the Denver Nuggets 119-116 on Saturday night at American Airlines Arena. The Heat organization raised a banner prior to the game that commemorated LeBron James participation in winning the gold medal at the 2012 London Summer Olympics.
    Ray Allen, who had 23 points in 29 minutes, was fouled when he hit a go-ahead three-point shot on a four-point play from the left corner with six seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. He followed through with a free throw shot. James fell short of a triple-double with 20 points. 11 rebounds and nine assists in 39 minutes while Dwyane Wade added 14 points.
    Nuggets coach George Karl only used eight players throughout in the game. Andre Iguodala, who was acquired during the summer from the Philadelphia 76ers, scored 22 points in 40 minutes and Kenneth Faried put in 22.
    Neither team led by more than eight points in the first half. Miami's biggest lead was 11-6 three minutes into the game and they led 35-34 after one quarter. Denver had an eight-point margin midway through the second quarter 53-45.
    The Nuggets held a 66-64 at the halftime break and were up 91-87 after three quarters. It was close through the entire fourth quarter as both were within six points of each other.

American Heritage Blanks Dillard

    The Plantation-American Heritage Patriots clinched the District 15-5A title as they smothered the Dillard Panthers 56-0 on Saturday night at Otis Gray Jr. Memorial Stadium. The Patriots, who won their seventh straight game, will host a first-round opponent in the FHSAA playoffs two weeks from now. It was the second consecutive week that the Pats wiped out a district foe. Last week at home they dominated the Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs 70-19 and broke their undefeated streak this season.
    Dillard(4-5, 2-2) finished in a three-way tie for second place in the district. They will play in a tiebreaker at Cardinal Gibbons against the Chiefs and Hallandale on Monday night. The Panthers will then face Blanche Ely in the annual Soul Bowl at Lockhart Stadium next Saturday night.
    American Heritage(8-1, 4-0) began the scoring midway through the first quarter as Michael Deeb picked off an interception thrown by Lee Martin 35 yards for a 7-0 lead. On their next possession, Tyler Cogswell ran a bootleg toward the left side and scored from one yard out with 1:01 left in the quarter. The Patriots get the only touchdown in the second quarter as Tyler Carmona caught a 17-yard pass in the back of the end zone at 2:54 and extended their lead to 21-0.
    The Panthers, who have lost three straight games, gave up 28 points to the Heritage offense in the third quarter. Eldred Oates fumbled the ball away on the first play of the second half for Dillard. Two plays later, Isaiah McKenzie finished the drive on a 34-yard touchdown reception from Cogswell 45 seconds into the quarter. McKenzie concluded their next possession on a 13-yard catch at 6:06. It was a seven-play, 67-yard drive for the team.
    Walter Tucker followed with a score on their next drive as he ran around the left end from 13 yards out at 4:10. Victor Ferrera capped the quarter with 26 seconds remaining on a six-play, 60-yard possession with a 14-yard catch. Dillard turned the ball over one play after the ensuing kickoff. The Patriots were up 49-0 after three quarters.
    There was a running clock in the final quarter of the game, but that did not stop American Heritage. Travis Jackson completed the two-play, ten-yard drive with a one-yard run for a score at 9:40 to make it 56-0.
   

Knicks Wallop Heat

    The New York Knicks played their home opener at Madison Square Garden on Friday night and stomped the Miami Heat 104-84. It was the first professional sporting event played in New York City since Hurricane Sandy passed through and did damage in the region earlier this week. Dwyane Wade donated his game check to help rebuilding efforts there.
    The Heat never held the lead once in the entire game and only tied it 2-2 just two minutes in. The Knicks came out strong as they started with a 30-12 run and outscored Miami 33-17 in the first quarter. New York held a double-digit throughout the second quarter and were ahead 55-44 at halftime.
    Miami were down by 20 points with five minutes remaining in the third quarter and behind 81-65 after the stanza. The gap was narrowed down to 13 points midway through the fourth quarter, but the Knicks had a comfortable lead as the Heat pulled their starters with four minutes to go. The Heat gave up more three-pointers in a game during their franchise's 25-year history.
    LeBron James had 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 37 minutes while Wade added 15 points in 35 minutes. Chris Bosh contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes and newcomer Rashard Lewis came off the bench and popped in 16 points.
    Jason Kidd made his Knicks debut after coming over from the Dallas Mavericks and scored 12 points in 23 minutes. Carmelo Anthony led New York with a game-high 30 points and ten rebounds in 39 minutes. Raymond Fenton also debuted for the Knickerbockers, his second stint on the team, with 14 points and nine assists in 33 minutes.
   

Glades Central Wraps District

    The Glades Central Raiders clinched the District 14-5A title Friday night with a 40-6 road win over the Boynton Beach Tigers. The Raiders, who won their fifth straight game, will host Rockledge in the first round of the FHSAA playoffs in two weeks. The Tigers were eliminated from playoff contention with the loss after they finished last year as the district runner-up.
    Giovanni Lugo started his first game as quarterback as regular starter T.J. Abrams served a first-half suspension by the Raiders coaching staff. On their first possession, Glades Central(5-4, 4-0) finished a nine-play, 45-yard drive on a six-yard reception by David Bailey from Lugo at 7:11 of the first quarter.
    Boynton Beach(4-4, 2-2) responded with a ten-play, 67-yard drive that was concluded with a ten-yard quarterback sneak up the middle by Jake Lutzen. They missed on a two-point conversion run and were down 7-6 at 2:31. The Tigers would not come any closer to take the lead as they gave up the next 33 points in the game.
    The Raiders continued to roll on offense as Yener Ferdinand caught a 40-yard pass from Lugo on the sideline at the Tigers seven-yard line to set up their next score. Bailey caught another touchdown on the left side of the end zone on the next play to cap a four-play, 63-yard drive with 36 seconds left in the quarter.
    William Likely would conclude the first quarter as he intercepted a pass and ran it back 64 yards for a touchdown to make it 20-6 with no time remaining.
    Likely ran in the ball from four yards out at 5:40 of the second quarter to extend the Raiders lead 27-6. It took the team from The Muck six plays to go 43 yards down the field.
    Abrams came into the game and replaced Lugo as the Raiders quarterback in the second half. Late in the third quarter, Likely finished a seven-play, 80-yard drive and scored on a one-yard run around the right end at 2:36. He had a 50-yard run on the first play of their next possession. Raquon Carver caught an 18-yard pass from Abrams on a 4th-and-16 from the Boynton Beach 36-yard line.
    On the Raiders first possession of the fourth quarter, Likely had a 30-yard run on the second play from their own 20 followed by a 35-yard reception by Bailey. Abrams found Bailey two plays later on a 20-yard touchdown completion at 8:46 for a 40-6 lead. Glades Central will face the Pahokee Blue Devils next Friday in the annual Muck Bowl.
   
  

Ameican Heritage-Dillard Preview

    You can call it a Saturday night special as the Plantation-American Heritage Patriots visit the Dillard Panthers at Otis Gray Jr. Memorial Stadium with first place on the line in District 15-5A. Both teams will have a clearer look at the playoff picture from the results of the Cardinal Gibbons game on Friday at Hallandale. The Chiefs have the head-to-head tiebreaker with a last-minute win over Dillard at The Furnace two weeks ago.
    Dillard(4-4, 2-1) needs to win the game on Saturday just to get into the postseason. The Panthers will have all their focus on this matchup even with the Soul Bowl against the Blanche Ely Tigers at Lockhart Stadium next Saturday night. They had a bye last week and are stuck on a two-game losing streak will defeats to Glades Central 31-19 and Cardinal Gibbons 27-26. Running back Dre'sean Nelson can be elusive and run by the secondary should he get into the open field. Eddie Roberts IV is a fine compliment piece that can get the short gains. Quarterback Lee Martin will pass to wide receivers Dennis Turner and LaDarion McBride in any place they are on the field.
    American Heritage(7-1, 3-0) showed off their offensive attack and made a statement last Saturday night with a 70-19 rout of Cardinal Gibbons at Heritage Field. Running back Sony Michel leads the Patriots and can score at any time on any specific play as he leaves the backfield. Tyler Cogswell, a University of Arkansas commit, will have wide receivers Isaiah McKenzie, Tyler Carmona and Alec Montes de Oca as primary targets. Two-way player Walter Tucker will have an impact as a safety on defense and as a running back on offense. Should there be a three-way tie for the district after Saturday, Cardinal Gibbons would host the tiebreaker on Monday night because they have the best overall record this season.

Dwyer-Royal Palm Beach Preview

    The Dwyer Panthers and the Royal Palm Beach Wildcats will have to battle it out for a playoff spot in District 13-7A on Saturday. They will fight for the district runner-up spot should the Atlantic Eagles clinch the district title with a victory at home against Lake Worth on Friday night.
    Dwyer(7-1, 4-1) come off a 37-0 shutout win over the Lake Worth Trojans last week. They rebounded from a 28-12 home loss to Atlantic in the previous week. Robert Nittolo looks like he has replaced Clay Meister as the starting quarterback of the team. He will a huge assortment of wide receivers to throw to which includes Johnnie Dixon, Clint Stephens and Ezra Saffold. The Panthers will split the handoffs to Alonso Smith, Courtney Lowery and Antonio Knowles.
    Royal Palm Beach(5-2, 4-1) fell on the road against Atlantic 35-20 with first place at stake this past Monday. Running back Demarcus Hollaway will get most of runs out of the backfield along with Jake Wehrle. De'Andre Simmons leads the Wildcats defense and will try to stop the Dwyer offense that has many options.

Glades Central-Boynton Beach Preview

    Two football squads will meet on Friday night to determine playoff teams from District 14-5A. The Glades Central Raiders travel to Boynton Beach and face the Tigers. Jensen Beach, currently tied with Boynton Beach for second place, has the tiebreaker with a head-to-head victory over the Tigers earlier this season and visits Suncoast.
    After dropping their first four games of the season in one of their worst starts in school history, Glades Central(4-4, 3-0) has bounced back with four straight wins and taken first place in the district. The Raiders have a balanced attack led by running back William Likely who has breakaway speed when he gets in the open field. Quarterback T.J. Abrams is a first-year starter with the team and he will throw downfield to a slew of receivers that include David Bailey, Raquon Carver and Jonathan Istache. They also have an additional weapon in Giovanni Lugo who can kick long field goals from far away.
    Boynton Beach(4-3, 2-1) have adjusted this season with the graduation of Jessamen Drunker last year, who is now at the University of Florida. Jake Lutzen will quarterback for the Tigers and look for his favorite target wide receiver Donte Sylenceux on deep patterns. Should there be a three-way tie for first place in the district after Friday, Boynton Beach would host the tiebreaker on Monday because they would have the best overall record this season.

Mike Redmond New Marlins Manager

    Mike Redmond has been named as the new manager of the Miami Marlins on Thursday. The team signed him to a three-year deal. He played for the Florida Marlins as a catcher from 1998 until 2004 and helped the franchise win their second World Series title in 2003. He takes over for Ozzie Guillen who lasted just one season.
    Redmond served as the manager of the Dunedin Blue Jays in the Florida State League this past season. Prior to that in 2011, he was the manager of the Lansing Lugnuts in the Midwest League. In his major league career, Redmond was with the Minnesota Twins from 2005 until 2009 and with the Cleveland Indians in 2010 before he retired.