"The Sunday Section" - Selected Stories From Around The Bay
/Andre Ward on the Oracle Arena canvas Saturday night (photo by Ezra Shaw)
Andre Ward on the Oracle Arena canvas Saturday night (photo by Ezra Shaw)
Former CAL basketball player/coach and Section925 Hoop Insider Jon Wheeler joins Tripper to dissect the controversy surrounding the Bears' basketball program. The two also touch on St. Mary's season and spend time "getting to know the Insider."
For the sixth edition of “The Battery,” Brett Thomas welcomes back battery partner Alex Jensen (The voice of the St. Mary's Gaels) as well as spot starter Scott Tully. The trio discuss a wild first weekend of the NCAA's, CAL basketball's sudden collapse, the Warriors' run at the Bulls' record, and much more.
(photo by Darren Abate via NYTimes)
For the fifth edition of “The Battery,” Brett Thomas hosts spot starter Scott Tully of Alameda’s Neptune Beach baseball club. The tandem talks NCAA tourney, as well as local NFL, MLB and NBA.
Evan Raskin joins Connor to talk all things College Hoops on the eve of the NCAA tourney.
(photo by Josie Lepe)
Former CAL basketball player and coach Jon Wheeler sits down with Tripper to hash out the madness of March. Bubbles, bracket busters, and Final Four sleepers are all discussed.
Mr. Raskin catches up with Connor to discuss, among other things, "who's in and who's out?" in college basketball along with the stretch run of Golden State's historic NBA season.
Over the weekend, the Miramonte women's basketball team won their third straight NCS title. Led by 25 points from McDonald's All-American Sabrina Ionescu, the Mats beat Bishop O'Dowd 82-67 at McKeon Pavilion. The undefeated (29-0) ladies from Miramonte will compete in the CIF State Tournament beginning on Friday when they host Brookside Christian of Stockton at 7pm. The #2 seed Mats will likely have to get through #1 seeded St. Mary's of Stockton in order to make the state final.
The San Jose Earthquakes during Sunday's season opening win versus Colorado. (photo by Nhat V. Meyer)
A couple of Bay Area athletic powers went head-to-head inside the House Steve Nash Built to decide the Central Coast Section open division basketball championship. The Lancers came away victorious…
For the fourth edition of “The Battery,” Brett Thomas hosts a ménage à pod with St. Mary’s basketball radio broadcaster Alex Jensen and Scott Tully of Alameda’s Neptune Beach baseball club. The three riff on the beautiful basketball being played in the East Bay, dissecting the Warriors, Gaels and Bears as they move into March.
(Zach chats with CAL beat writer Ryan Gorcey during a high school appearance at the Oakland Coliseum)
By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com
If we learned anything from watching Zach Kline play the quarterback position as a high school star in Danville, it’s that the kid is a gamer. Kline had all the tools to light up East Bay scoreboards while at San Ramon Valley, attracting the attention of QB guru Jeff Tedford enough to garner a PAC-12 scholarship in 2012. He played the game at the prep level with the type of competitiveness and excitement that players and fans alike want to be a part of. Zach Kline passed the QB1 eye test, if you will.
Today, Kline is 22-years old and has spent four years in college, on three different campuses. He redshirted his first year in Berkeley, taking time to learn Tedford’s system. The following year, Kline found himself in a heated battle for the starting quarterback job with true frosh Jared Goff. Well, despite Section925’s fearless endorsement, Goff would win that position battle and, well, Goff turned out to be pretty darn good at throwing touchdown passes in Sonny Dykes’ Air Raid operation.
So Kline did what gritty gamers do, he found a place to play starting quarterback. That quest took him up to Butte Community College in Chico, California. A campus best known for Sierra Nevada suds and a man named Aaron Rogers.
Kline used a successful season at Butte as a stepping stone back into the NCAA (FCS 1-AA) ranks where last year he suited up for the Indiana State Sycamores of the Missouri Valley Conference. Kline’s pit stop in Indiana did not exactly go as planned, as he wasn’t able to secure the starting job and only appeared in three games.
Naturally, Kline has boomeranged back to Berkeley where he hopes to find his way into a graduate school program while simultaneously suiting up for his hometown D1 team. Yes, what a long strange trip it’s been.
In order for Kline to get time as the Bears’ signal caller, all he has to do now is beat out four other capable QB’s including Chase Forrest, Luke Rubenzer, Ross Bowers, and Max Gilliam. That being said, Kline still has a shot. After all, he was highly touted across the board out of high school and went neck and neck with Goff for an entire spring. Kline also has game experience for the Bears, as he completed 43 passes with three TD’s as Goff’s backup in 2013.
No one knows what’s in store for Zach Kline over the next year in Berkeley, hell, he probably has no idea either. But we can all agree he’ll keep the journey interesting for us followers. Someway, somehow, perhaps the final destination will be the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
BREAKING: @zachklineQB returns to @CalFootball: https://t.co/3bM6IpttSD #Cal #CalFootball
— Ryan Gorcey (@RGBearTerritory) March 1, 2016
Shoutout @zachklineQB coming back and killing the workout his first time back.
— Darius Allensworth (@_MoneyDA) February 27, 2016
Three things: 1. @zachklineQB has a cannon. 2. My route running is on point. 3. My hands need work. pic.twitter.com/4aajrT4f9X
— Will Hewlett (@WillHewlett) January 29, 2016
Below you will find all dozen of Steph Curry’s record-tying three pointers. Can you find one that wasn’t contested?
(photo by Joe Murphy)
“Goff looked good. He was the standout,” said Bill Polian, an ESPN analyst who entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame last year for his front-office expertise. Polian didn’t hold back in praising Goff.
“He rose to the occasion,” Polian added. “Everything he does is athletic. The ball came out on time. He throws a nice ball. His feet are really good. His balance is good.”
(photo by Thearon W. Henderson)
By Connor Buestad | Connor@Section925.com
Steph Curry has been playing out of his mind as of late, captivating an NBA audience that can't help but be enthralled by his every move. The Baby Faced Assassin is coming off a 51-point masterpiece in Orlando, which included a dumfounding half-court bank shot. He finished the night with ten 3-pointers, adding to what is already being considered a legendary NBA season. Saturday night in Oklahoma City, Steph and the Dubs will lock horns with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in what figures to be a 2016 Western Conference Finals preview. Below you’ll find highlights from the teams’ last meeting in Oakland. Enjoy...