Nneka Ogwumike on a drive finished 26 points. Photo by Jevone Moore
Los Angeles, Ca- Live at the Staples Center The LA Sparks put on a clinic with this 84 – 57 victory over the visiting Tulsa Shock. The team was all smiles and meet at half court at the completion of the game for a final huddle.
The Sparks and Shock have already had two meet ups this season. In their first meeting the Sparks guard Kristi Toliver help lead the Sparks To a 98-95 victory, setting a new franchise mark and career high of 43 points.
The Sparks step out on the court ready to get this party started nice and early by sinking the first basket. That basket really set the tone for the complete game. The Sparks made the Shock play their game at their pace and with that they just couldn’t find their rhythm. By the end of the of the first quarter the Sparks had a 8 point lead over the Shock … 18-10.
Sparks Alana Beard dropped 13 points. Photo by Jevone Moore
In addition to the Sparks superb defense which littoral gave the Shock a clinic on ball movement and handling. The Sparks stayed looking for solid openings and insisting on not rushing shots. Keeping them in the lead throughout the game. And to be honest the Shock didn’t help their cause with their lack of offensive rebounding.
By The time the game got into the 2nd quarter the Shock were absolutely frazzled. The Shock’s head coach Fred Williams earned himself a technical foul which looked to be born out of sheer frustration. Towards the end of the 2nd quarter Temeka Johnson got hit with a flagrant foul on Riquna Williams.
With the score at the end of the 3rd 64-43 Sparks Amanda Zahui B. still had some warrior spirit still burning in her. And Nneka Ogwumike sought to help her with that problem by giving the basketball goddes two And1’s. Needless to say by the 4th quarter the Shock’s pilot light was officially out.
Candace Parker with quick first step. 10 Points, 12 Rebounds Photo by Jevone Moore
The Sparks attribute this win to operating as one unit. This game gives the Sparks their 4th straight win coming out of the All Star break. Can they maintain this momentum when they meet up with the Lynx on Sunday? We’ll just have to tune in.
Candace Parker driving to the basket against Minnesota Lynx. (Photo by Jevone Moore / Full Image 360) File photo 2015
Alana Beard on tight defense of Maya Moore with Kristi Tolver there for help. Photo by Jevone Moore
Los Angeles, Ca – The WNBA All Star break has been a second coming for these Los Angeles Sparks who just beat the 1st place Minnesota Lynx 83-61. Sparks Coach Brian Agler has to be ecstatic with the starting five he can put on court now. Candace Parker back from her rest leading the team with a double- double 18 points, 13 rebounds in only her four game of action. Alana Beard back off injured list from an ankle sprain poured in 10 points and 7 assists.
Parker being back on the court the Sparks now have 3-1 record, with tonight’s home win. The team wore their Pink uniforms for Breast Care Awareness night. The crowd was full with fans showing their awareness. In these pink uniforms the ball movement was flowing smoothly with the players in right positions and bench players now being able to give short relief verse having the pressure to score in double digits.
On a quiet night for the Lynx Maya Moore only mustard up 13 points, that were all from first half. The Lynx offense just didn’t catch fire finishing with 40% shooting as team from the field. The five team three pointers kept them close until 4th quarter when the Sparks outscored them 23-10. Lynx Guard Lindsay Whalen hung tough with good defense on the ball and 13 points of her own. As the game went on you could see their coach was not happy with their play tonight. Seimone Augustus was out and didn’t travel with the team with a sore right knee.
Kristi Tolver with 18 footer jumper. Photo by Jevone Moore
So now the question will be, how good can this team be? Jantel Lavendar C, Nneka Ogwemike F, Candace Parker F, Alana Beard G, & Kristi Toliver G, this is what Agler signed up for. This combo of five with help off the bench has the ability to run the table. The team shot 48% from the field with only 2 three pointers on the night. They made their home in the paint with this big lineup, 54 points in the paint. Then the Sparks topped that off with additional 14 2nd chance points. Now time to see this team continue to gel and build its character.
The Sparks will have a day off tomorrow to rest before coming back to Staples Center to host Tulsa Shock at 7:30 pm PST on August 6th.
Ucla Bruins Coach Mora, & LB Deon Hollins. Photo by Jevone Moore
Burbank, Ca – The Pac-12 the Conference of Champions will celebrate 100 years on its Birthday December 2nd, 2015. Commissioner Larry Scott said, “As much as it is a time to celebrate, anniversaries like this are a great time to hit the pause button and reflect, both on where we’ve been and on where we’re going.” For this special year the Pac 12 ascended on Warner Brothers Studio with the top NCAA Coaches and players. These two spectacular days will be filled info excitement and anticipation of a great season ahead.
The first day opened with Commissioner Scott addressing the media with opening statements. Followed by the first slate of coaches and players from Arizona State, Oregon State, Ucla, Washington, Stanford, and Colorado. Each coach had the opportunity to reward two deserving student athletes to embark on media day and have the privilege to represent their college for the world to see. The day was field with radio spots, hot seats on podium, putting contest, twitter photo blast, photo shoots just list some of the activities.
Pac-12 Commissioner Scott
Pac12 Trophy
Coach Mora
Ucla Head Coach Jim Mora knew the one dying question all of us wanted to know the answer to, ‘Who will be the starting QB for this season, savoy well loved Jerry Neuheisel or the rookie Josh Rosen….’ Mora’s respond was, “I think the thing that gives me some measure of comfort is knowing that we’ve got a pretty veteran group around that player, whomever it may be. We’ve got an experienced offensive line. We return the Pac‑12’s leading rusher in Paul Perkins as well as some other really good backs. We’ve got an experienced and pretty talented receiving core, though may not with the marquis name. So it’s very unlike Brett’s situation three years ago, where Brett had to step in and do a lot. Whoever has taken snaps from Jake can depend on those around him a little bit more than maybe Brett was able to do. So that gives me a little comfort.” We spoke to three year starting center Jake Brendel about how does feel being the real quarterback this year. He let us know that he just glad to have healthy offensive line along side himself. Brendel said, “We will be in great hands with either Jerry or Josh behind me.”.
Arizona State Head Coach Todd Graham was asked, what do you need to do to be competitive? Graham respond, “Number one thing that we’ve worked on is with our‑‑ obviously, we talk about being one of the most explosive teams in the country. Third in TFLs in the nation in three years. Second in quarterback sacks. Second in interceptions. It’s a big play. Obviously, we’re in attack defense, and minimizing risk and those type of things are things we’ve really researched and worked hard on.”
In his first year as head coach Oregon State Gary Anderson was all smiles for his first Pac 12 Media day. A big question for the program is when and how will OSU compete? Anderson said, “For us, we’re really a day‑by‑day working team right now. We are so youthful. We have to worry about today and then take on the fights for tomorrow and find a way to be consistent.”
Coach Anderson
Coach Graham
Coach Whittingham
Chris Petersen Washington Huskies (fi360 News)
Coach Shaw
Coach MacIntyre
Each player and coach during day one represented the Pac-12 as champions. Its always refreshing to see true student athletes living out the dreams and showing how great and special this conference really is. The rest of the country has been able to see more and more Pac-12 games due to TV deals, and Pac 12 Network lessening the east coast biases, just due to lack of see our great conference play. This year we have 6 teams ranked in the Top 25 preseason poll. Look out even more can been seen with new Directv acquisition to bring games to even more households in the future.
Kershaw Family & Mario Lopez Family – Photo by William Johnson
Los Angeles, Ca – The 3rd Annual PingPong4Purpose event is was a success! For the second year in a row, hosting this celebrity ping pong tournament on the field of Dodger Stadium. Celebrities and players went head to head in a fun and competitive tournament. They were so pumped to feature a silent auction that evening…and was open online leading up to the event.
Event proceeds benefit the efforts of Kershaw’s Challenge in Zambia and Los Angeles.
Blake Griffin with backhand and a smile. Photo by William Johnson
Mission Statement of Kershaw’s Challenge
Kershaw’s Challenge is a Christ-centered, others-focused organization. We exist to encourage people to use whatever God-given passion or talent they have to make a difference and give back to people in need. We want to empower people to use their spheres of influence to positively impact communities and to expand God’s Kingdom. We believe that God can transform at-risk children and neighborhoods through the benevolence and impact of others.
All Photos by William Johnson
Orel Hershiser
Eric Olsen
Ken Jeong
Don Mattingly
Doc Rivers
George Lopez
Jimmy Kimmel
Blake Griffin
The Goal for 2015
As in years past, this year Kershaw’s Challenge has one goal and four amazing partnerships. Our goal is to provide a better quality of life and give opportunities to vulnerable, underprivileged children, from the skyscraping cities of Los Angeles & Dallas, to the dirt roads of Zambia and now, the Dominican Republic. We are partnering with four non-profits who share our passion and vision to make life-changing impacts.
The Olympians of Peru as they enter the Coliseum. Photo by Nyema Veron
Los Angels, Ca – Special Olympics 2015 is HERE! A few sights from the Opening Ceremony….
Special Olympics is a global movement that unleashes the human spirit through the transformative power and joy of sports, every day around the world. We empower people with intellectual disabilities to become accepted and valued members of their communities, which leads to a more respectful and inclusive society for all. Using sports as the catalyst and programming around health and education, Special Olympics is fighting inactivity, injustice and intolerance. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown to more than 4.5 million athletes in 170 countries. With the support of more than 1.4 million coaches and volunteers, Special Olympics delivers 32 Olympic-type sports and more than 94,000 games and competitions throughout the year. Special Olympics is supported by individuals, foundations and partners, including the Christmas Records Trust, the Law Enforcement Torch Run® for Special Olympics, The Coca-Cola Company, The Walt Disney Company and ESPN, Lions Clubs International, Mattel, Microsoft, P&G, Bank of America, Essilor Vision Foundation, the B. Thomas Golisano Foundation, Finish Line, The Safeway Foundation, and Safilo Group. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org.
Paula Abdul Showing Support With Israel Olympian. Photo by Nyema VernonOscar Del Hoya Declaring Mexico As The Champ! Photo by Nyema Vernon
Inglewood Ca,- Pro Mania~Cali 9, took place on July 25 at Hollywood Park Casino with a packed house to watch 6 Pro Fights that will not be soon forgotten.
WCK have been promoting Muay Thai at Hollywood Park Casino for 20 years and this was their 20th anniversary event.
Host Eric Dickerson & Marcus Allen after earlier round of golf. Photo by Jevone Moore
Los Angeles, CA – NFL Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson will host the 2nd Annual Hall Of Fame Golf Invitational presented by FLOTEK. The event will took place on Friday, July 24th, 2015 at the Angeles National Golf Club in Sunland, CA. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Young Warriors Foundation.
The Eric Dickerson Hall of Fame Golf Invitational is one of the premier golf events in the country, hosting a field of Hall-Of-Fame athletes from the NFL, NBA and NHL. This year was the 2nd annual event benefiting the Young Warriors Foundation which helps guide and inspire fatherless boys to become great men. Following a great day of golf the course will host all of the attendees with a VIP reception sponsored by Monster.
The Young Warriors Foundation focuses on the physical, emotional and social needs of boys and mothers in absent-father homes. Through a multi-year journey, Young Warriors teaches these boys necessary life skills needed to become a stable and balanced man and through our mandatory parent workshops, experts deliver a curriculum focused on raising children without a male in the home. FLOTEK served as the official presenting sponsor of the Young Warriors Foundation and their kind donation will help the Young Warriors mentoring programs continue to grow.
“We are delighted to be the presenting sponsor of Eric Dickerson’s Hall of Fame Golf Invitational to benefit the Young Warriors Foundation,” said John Chisholm, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Flotek. “Eric’s commitment to provide resources and support to boys without fathers continues to make a difference in the greater Los Angeles community. The Young Warriors success in having a positive impact on the lives of these families is an achievement Flotek is both proud and humbled to support. As our business of environmentally-focused energy development grows in Southern California we look forward to continuing to make a difference in the community.”
The Young Warriors Foundation is a mentoring program for boys who are growing up without fathers, living in poverty or have dealt with other traumatic experiences at a young age. For more information about the foundation please visit www.youngwarriors.org
Eric Dickerson & Jason Hill and bunch of Young Warriors. Photo by Jordon Kelly
