Is the local Black Press getting its due respect? All the local sports teams know about the MSR,but I often wonder if they really understand our presence in the Twin Cities sports scene. Do the local Black athletes know our history? Are they aware of the Black Press’ historical role for Black inclusion in American […]
Sports
Local and national sports reporting and commentary by the state’s leading African American sportswriters, including award-winning columnists Charles Hallman and Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald, with a special emphasis on the local prep scene and disparities in sports administration and media coverage.
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DeLaSalle, Hopkins, make for memorable 2011
The year 2011, in the prep sports world, will be remembered for many outstanding accomplishments. Of those accomplishments, two stand out: The Hopkins girls basketball team, led by coach BRIAN COSGRIFF, capturing the Class 4A title, and DeLaSalle, coached by former Marshall-University High School and University of Wisconsin standout FAITH PATTERSON-JOHNSON, winning the Class 3A […]
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View’s top stories, overused words of 2011
The Associated Press (AP) last week released its list of 2011’s top 10 sports stories. “Another View” has our own top 10, or what should have been the top local sports stories of this year: The Minnesota Lynx: The only local major league team to participate in their respective league post-season. However, the Lynx went […]
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2011 top sports stories: mostly a year to forget
2011 will be best remembered from the sports scene locally as a year to forget, and indifferent at best. The Twins were just awful to watch, finishing 63-99 — dead last — in the American League. Mega-stars Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau both were far from normal previous MVP form. Health, injuries and uncertainty were […]
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2012 NCAA changes for women’s and men’s basketball
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Among the items to be discussed at the NCAA Convention in January is a proposal to help grow women’s college basketball. The Division I Women’s Basketball Committee has been gathering information from conferences and others as to whether to move the Women’s Final Four a week after the men’s. The […]
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More Black leaders on playing fields may mean more Black coaches
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Texas A&M Assistant Sports Management Professor Akilah Carter-Francique facilitates Sista To Sista, a monthly leadership program for Black female athletes. University of New Mexico doctorial student Sonja Robinson is studying how certain on-court positions in basketball essentially are used as training ground for future leaders. Both women believe, however, that […]
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Ex-Lynx All-Star one of few Black female head coaches
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Not counting HBCUs, there might be 20 Black women head coaches today in collegiate basketball among over 300 NCAA schools. “It’s tough,” admits Tonya Edwards. “I think as African American coaches have more success, it will open [doors] for a lot more.” She easily lists such Black females as Penn […]
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Too many games to choose from
The only bad thing about high school basketball in the metro area is that there are so many games to choose from and I am unable to make them all. This week I saw three games featuring some of the state’s top players in girls’ and boys’ basketball. Tuesday, December 13, 2011 I looked on […]
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The lockout is over — and the robber barons win again
The NBA’s new 10-year collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is now in place. Among its key provisions is a near-even split of the oft-mentioned and hotly contested Basketball Related Income (BRI). The owners got a 10 percent raise from the last CBA, up from 43 percent to now between 49-51 percent. Meanwhile the players, who once […]
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Nobody’s perfect in the NFL
PHOENIX — After 19 straight wins over 364 days, the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers’ bid for a perfect season ends in Kansas City. The Chiefs pulled off the shocker of the weekend, beating the Packers 19-14. Romeo Crennel, the interim head coach of Kansas City, replaced Todd Haley, who was fired during the […]
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NFL race to the playoffs takes shape
PHOENIX — It’s the haves and the have nots, those that are going or at worst are in the hunt with three weeks left for the 2012 NFL Super Bowl Tournament. The defending Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers have set the standard at 13-0, winning every game this year. The NFC North Champ Packers […]
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Mpls high school athletics now stepsisters to suburbs
Degree of affluence, open enrollment are factors in league’s decline Is the Minneapolis City Conference today a non-factor locally, especially in the higher profile sports such as football and basketball? The city’s daily newspaper named just two Washburn players (second team) on their all-metro selections. No city females in volleyball. Only Washburn (boys) was listed […]
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Highland Park defeats South
I was on my way to watch JOSEPH DOBY and DWIGHT ANDERSON help Minneapolis Washburn, coached by former St. Cloud State University player REGGIE PERKINS, to a 74-46 boys’ basketball nonconference victory over Hill Murray, led by former St. Agnes coach DICK GHIZONI. A little voice, however, told me to check out another nonconference matchup […]
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Candice listens to her body
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer While most of her Minnesota Lynx teammates are now spending their wintertime off-season on foreign soil, Candice Wiggins opted instead for sunny California. “My body’s resting,” the fourth-year pro recently told the MSR during a phone interview. Most WNBA players regularly play abroad between regular seasons, but Wiggins says she’s […]
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Sims-Griner combo makes Baylor stand tall
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Although her taller teammate 6-8 junior center Brittney Griner typically draws most of the attention, Baylor sophomore guard Odyssey Sims stands tall in her own right. Brittney Griner Odyssey Sims Baylor came to town and left Sunday as the […]
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Indy Big Ten windfall bypasses Blacks
INDIANAPOLIS —Reportedly, $18 million was generated from last Saturday’s inaugural Big Ten football championship game. Whenever I hear or read such numbers on large-scale sporting events, I ask myself how much if any of that amount reaches the host city’s Black community. I put this question to local residents as well during my visit. “I […]
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Pops would have been proud
My father KWAME MCDONALD never let an opportunity slip by when it came to supporting the youth of St. Paul. This past month I did a little traveling to support some former prep stars as they embark on their college careers. Here is a short summary of my travels: Saturday, November 5: Traveled with former […]
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Abuse cover-ups jeopardize public’s trust
PHOENIX — So much is going on in sports, and it’s happening so fast, and it’s both good and bad. This column will focus on the bad. Leading the bad is the revolting shock waves upon learning of Penn State and the massive sex abuse scandal of Jerry Sandusky, former defensive coordinator for ex-Penn State […]
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Three-point review of Gophers men’s and women’s basketball
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer A seven-game review of Minnesota women’s basketball at this point of the season yields the following three points: First point: Billed before the season as the missing piece, Rachel Banham thus far seemingly has made a smoother transition as freshman starting point guard than her male counterpart Andre Hollins (more […]
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The toughest game of a career – Gophers college football seniors exit the field for junior student-athletes
By Kenneth Foxworth Contributing Writer The hardest time of the year for senior student-athletes is the last game of their college career. This, after the five years of investing their hearts, souls, minds and countless hours into the University of Minnesota through its football program. Yesterday, when these matriculating seniors ran out onto the field amid […]