Evening State Sports Briefs: Bucks part of NBA trade rumors

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MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly among several teams interested in dealing for Atlanta forward Josh Smith, as the NBA’s trade deadline looms tomorrow afternoon.

Smith has played his entire eight-and-a-half seasons with the Hawks. And he would give Milwaukee another strong defensive presence up-front to go with the league’s leading shot-blocker, Bucks’ center Larry Sanders. Media reports say Atlanta is interested in getting Bucks’ shooting guard Monta Ellis. But a report on ESPN said that Smith would like to like to have both Ellis and Bucks’ point guard Brandon Jennings on the floor with him. Both Ellis and Jennings have been the subjects of trade rumors. Smith, who’s 6-9, would become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. But it’s not a given that he would move on from Milwaukee if he plays there. Several solid back-ups will have their contracts expire at the end of this season. That includes center Samuel Dalembert and guard Beno Udrih, who now carry $14.5 million dollars of the Bucks’ salary cap load. The Bucks are making a playoff run, with a three-and-a-half game lead for the eighth-and-final Eastern Conference spot.

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The UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team will wrap up its home schedule tonight against Illinois-Chicago. The Panthers are 2-12 in the Horizon League and 6-22 overall, after losing a pair of road games at Youngstown State and Cleveland State last weekend. UWM gave up an average of 91 points in those outings, while letting the opposition shoot almost 55-percent from the floor. Meanwhile, the Panthers are shooting a bit better themselves. They shot 51-percent in losing at Cleveland State last Sunday. A win tonight would give Milwaukee a 7-7 home record. Illinois-Chicago comes in with a 6-7 Horizon League mark. The Flames are 15-11 overall, with four players scoring in double figures.

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The University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team has beaten Northwestern five straight times – and they’ll go for victory No. 6 tonight in Evanston Illinois. The No. 17 Badgers are coming off a 22-point home rout of then-13th-ranked Ohio State last Sunday. Bo Ryan’s team has won four of its last five, and is 9-4 in Big Ten play with an overall record of 18-8. Northwestern comes in with a 4-9 conference mark, and they’re at .500 overall at 13-up and 13-down. They’re coming off a 21-point home loss to Illinois last Sunday, in which the Wildcats were held to a season-low 25-percent from the floor. Reggie Hearn led Northwestern with 11 points in that contest. Both teams do a great job of taking care of the ball. The Badgers have the third-lowest turnovers per game in Division-One with nine-and-a-half. Northwestern is ninth in the country with 10-point-seven giveaways per game. Wisconsin senior center Jared Berggren needs two blocked shots to tie the UW record of 124 career blocks. He’s the Badgers’ leading scorer with almost 12 points a game, while pulling down an average of seven rebounds per night.

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The Marquette University women will try to return to .500 tonight when they play in New York against Saint John’s. The Golden Eagles dropped to 12-13 overall, and 4-8 in the Big East, when they got crushed at second-ranked Notre Dame 87-49 last Sunday. Saint John’s puts a three-game winning streak on the line against Marquette. The Red Storm is 7-4 in conference play, and 13-10 overall. They’re coming off a 75-46 pounding of Cincinnati last Sunday. Shenneika Smith leads Saint John’s in scoring with almost 17 points a game. The Red Storm also has the Big East freshman-of-the-week in Aliyyah Handford. She averaged 15 points and seven-and-a-half point rebounds in a pair of wins last week against South Florida and Cincinnati. Marquette senior Sarina Simmons needs 14 points to reach a-thousand for her career.

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The WIAC women’s basketball tournament opens tonight with a pair of opening round games. UW-Stevens Point, which has the Number-three seed, will host sixth-seeded Eau Claire. And Superior, the Number-four seed, is at home against fifth-seeded River Falls. The top two seeds have first-round byes – Number-One Whitewater and Number-two Oshkosh. Tonight’s winners will advance to the semi-finals on Friday night. The tournament title game is set for Sunday afternoon. Meanwhile, the WIAC men’s tourney resumes tomorrow night with the semi-final round.

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Four players from UW-Eau Claire have been named to the WIAC All-Conference men’s hockey team. They are defenseman Jack Callahan, forwards Andrew McCabe and Jordan Singer, and goal-tender Brandon Stephenson. Eau Claire won both the WIAC and the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association’s regular season titles – and they’ll begin the NCHA playoff run this weekend after getting a first-round bye. Stephenson was also named the NCHA’s player-of-the-year. Eau Claire coach Matt Loen was named the WIAC’s coach-of-the-year, after leading the Blugolds to a school record 19 victories in the regular season. Loen won the honor for the third time in the last four seasons. Also named to the WIAC all-league team are Adam Cardwell, Scott Lewan, and George Malliaras of River Falls – Pat Dalbec and Jeff Forsythe of Superior – Kyle Heck and Alex Brooks of Stevens Point – and Kevin O’Donnell of Stout. Singer was named to his third all-conference team. Lewan, Malliaras, Heck, Dalbec, and Forsythe were also repeat selections from a year ago.

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Packer fans already know the routine – and now, all fans going to Milwaukee Bucks’ games will be screened as they enter the arena. Until now, the NBA required teams to perform random screenings and wands of people entering league stadiums. Now, the NBA has ordered all fans to be screened – and the Bucks will begin that policy tonight when they play the Brooklyn Nets at the Bradley Center. The Bucks want fans to know it’s a league mandate, and it’s not the result of any incident in Milwaukee. The Bucks advise fans to leave unnecessary items in their vehicles, and arrive early to avoid long lines. When they get to the security guards, the Bucks ask fans to hold their keys and other metallic objects in their hands. Pro football has had the same policy for a couple of years – and all Packer fans get screened with wands each time they enter Lambeau Field on game-days.

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Mike Fiers will start the Milwaukee Brewers’ exhibition opener against Oakland on Saturday in Arizona. Fiers is one of at least four pitchers competing for the final three spots in the Brewers’ regular season rotation. Manager Ron Roenicke says his top two starters, Yovani Gallardo and Marco Estrada, will throw against each other on Friday in the Brewers’ annual inter-squad game which comes right before the pre-season opener. Rain postponed field work at Spring Training today, but Roenicke said about a dozen pitchers were still expected to throw at least some batting practice.

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SCORES

WIAA state boys' high school basketball regionals

Division 1

Stevens Point Sectional

Oshkosh West 54, Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln 32

Wausau West 68, Chippewa Falls 42

Mequon Homestead Sectional

Green Bay Preble 67, Green Bay East 53

Waukesha South 71, Hartford Union 68

Sun Prairie Sectional

Janesville Parker 56, Kenosha Bradford 54

Oconomowoc 76, Verona 73

Racine William Horlick Sectional

Milwaukee Pulaski 67, Milwaukee Madison 56

Racine Washington Park 69, Greenfield 55

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Division 2

Marshfield Sectional

La Crosse Logan 62, Ashland 49

Menomonie 49, New Richmond 36

Merrill 41, Mosinee 40

Tomah 52, Sparta 45

Waupaca 45, Shawano 32

Fond du Lac Sectional

Cedarburg 80, Kewaskum 40

Menasha 82, Marinette 47

Green Bay Notre Dame 75, Green Bay West 62

Port Washington 54, West Bend West 41

Janesville Craig Sectional

McFarland 54, Sauk Prairie 49

Milton 60, Whitewater 39

Portage 63, Madison Edgewood 55

Reedsburg 49, Baraboo 39

Union Grove 58, Delavan-Darien 38

Westosha Central 65, Elkhorn 54

West Allis Central Sectional

Greendale 62, Cudahy 45

Milwaukee Messmer 78, Milwaukee Lutheran 73

Milwaukee Marshall/Juneau 74, Wauwatosa West 66

Milwaukee Bradley Tech 67, Shorewood 62

South Milwaukee 60, Kenosha Indian Trail 42

Waukesha North 54, New Berlin West 52

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Division 3

River Falls Sectional

Arcadia 63, Chetek-Weyerhaeuser 54

Baldwin-Woodville 60, St. Croix Central 35

Bloomer 52, Altoona 46

Neillsville 58, Black River Falls 41

Maple Northwestern 63, Cumberland 35

Osceola 55, St. Croix Falls 37

Spooner 45, Ladysmith 36

West Salem 67, Ellsworth 61

Ashwaubenon Sectional

Clintonville 74, Northland Pines 30

Fox Valley Lutheran 83, Lincoln Hills 49

Freedom 83, Oconto Falls 34

Tomahawk 42, Omro 39

Winneconne 54, Wittenberg-Birnamwood 32

Valders at Sturgeon Bay, postponed to tonight

New Holstein at Chilton, postponed to tonight

Kewaunee at Denmark, postponed to tonight

Southern Door at Luxemburg-Casco, postponed to tonight

Middleton Sectional

Dodgeville 77, Wautoma 48

Edgerton 76, Walworth Big Foot 68

Jefferson 46, Evansville 33

Lakeside Lutheran 76, Brodhead 27

Nekoosa 62, Westfield 41

Platteville 54, Westby 52

Poynette 55, Beloit Turner 42

Prairie du Chien 55, Viroqua 44

River Valley 60, Adams-Friendship 27

Hartland Arrowhead Sectional

Columbus 77, St. Lawrence Seminary 38

Kettle Moraine Lutheran 79, Milwaukee Tenor 25

Mayville 49, Campbellsport 46

Milwaukee North 64, Milwaukee School of Languages 52

Ripon 56, Lomira 48

Milwaukee Thomas More 55, Cedar Grove-Belgium 39

Delafield St. John's Northwestern 63, St. Francis 58

Watertown Luther Prep 55, Winnebago Lutheran 50

Kiel at North Fond du Lac, postponed to tonight

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Division 4

Durand Sectional

Athens 64, Chequamegon 44

Boyceville 51, Flambeau 33

Cadott 52, Stanley-Boyd 26

Cameron 73, Webster 20

Colby 65, Phillips 51

Pittsville 59, Spencer 28

Eau Claire Regis 61, Spring Valley 46

Stratford 70, Edgar 47

Appleton North Sectional

Crivitz 50, Gillett 43

Iola-Scandinavia 58, Rosholt 38

Manitowoc Lutheran 70, Mishicot 57

Oconto 76, Menominee Indian 61

Reedsville 75, Manawa 50

Menasha St. Mary's 56, Weyauwega-Fremont 47

Wabeno-Laona 57, Coleman 53

Wild Rose 67, Plainfield Tri-County 40

Random Lake at Bonduel, postponed to tonight

Wisconsin Dells Sectional

Bangor 67, Boscobel 50

Belleville 48, Orfordville Parkview 37

Deerfield 57, Waterloo 49

Fennimore 67, New Glarus 57

Iowa-Grant 68, Cambridge 62

Lancaster 57, Darlington 45

Mondovi 48, Riverdale 25

Necedah 72, Melrose-Mindoro 51

Wisconsin Heights 67, Osseo-Fairchild 41

Brookfield Sectional

Beaver Dam Wayland 64, Markesan 55

Milwaukee Hope Christian 76, Wisconsin College Prep 39

Kenosha Reuther 71, Milwaukee St. Anthony 60

Montello 67, Dodgeland 41

Ozaukee 52, Milwaukee Career & Tech 48

Palmyra-Eagle 76, Kenosha Christian Life 61

Pardeeville 58, Horicon 48

Milwaukee Young-Coggs Prep 61, Greendale Martin Luther 46

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Division 5

Spooner Sectional

Bruce 64, Gilman 59

Chippewa Falls McDonell 59, Glenwood City 37

Clayton 71, Lake Holcombe 22

Drummond 76, Lac Courte Oreilles 16

Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran 60, New Auburn 48

Frederic 58, South Shore 28

Luck 65, Mercer 30

Minong Northwood 73, Bayfield 54

Prentice 70, Owen-Withee 60

Rib Lake 46, Prairie Farm 45

Shell Lake 56, Birchwood 42

Siren 62, Mellen 33

Solon Springs 65, Winter 35

Thorp 43, Clear Lake 25

Turtle Lake 77, Cornell 36

Washburn 70, Butternut 43

Menasha Sectional

Almond-Bancroft 47, Tigerton 27

Gibraltar 73, Lake Country Lutheran 64

Goodman-Pembine 61, Elcho 51

Green Bay NEW Lutheran 76, Lena 19

Gresham 78, Marinette St. Thomas Aquinas 65

Kohler 55, Sheboygan County Christian 42

Living Word Lutheran 66, Stockbridge 56

Niagara 48, Phelps 21

Northland Lutheran 68, Marion 52

Sheboygan Lutheran. 73, Oneida Nation 35

Suring 59, Sevastopol 35

Three Lakes 59, Florence 47

Wausau Newman 63, Oshkosh Valley Christian 41

Wausaukee 73, White Lake 42

Wisconsin Valley Lutheran 55, Bowler 35

Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah at Hilbert, postponed to tonight

La Crosse Logan Sectional 3

Granton at Elmwood postponed to tonight

Alma-Pepin 71, Blair-Taylor 66

Cassville 58, Highland 42

Cochrane-Fountain City 71, Lincoln 23

Eleva-Strum 49, New Lisbon 34

Gilmanton 72, Loyal 47

Greenwood 67, Independence 48

Hillsboro 45, Wonewoc-Center 30

Kickapoo 48, Brookwood 46

La Farge 59, Cashton 49

Marshfield Columbus 65, Plum City 33

North Crawford 82, Ithaca 47

River Ridge 48, Seneca 28

Royall 73, Weston 29

Wauzeka-Steuben 47, De Soto 29

Wisconsin Rapids Assumption 66, Port Edwards

Fort Atkinson Sectional

Burlington Catholic Central 70, Milwaukee Salam School 37

Cambria-Friesland 50, Rio 45

Milwaukee CEO Leadership Academy 67, Trinity Academy 47

Fall River 72, Argyle 26

Milwaukee Heritage Christian 55, Albany 49

Hustisford 78, Barneveld 63

Juda 61, Williams Bay 55

Milwaukee Academy of Science 87, Madison Abundant Life 41

Monticello 67, Hartland University Lake School 32

Potosi 51, Benton 35

Princeton-Green Lake 32, Shullsburg 29

Racine Lutheran 106, Eastbrook Academy 29

Randolph 66, Belmont 42

South Wayne Black Hawk 67, Oakfield 33

Waupun Central Wisconsin Christian 73, Pecatonica 31

Williams Bay Faith Christian 67, Johnson Creek 39

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Girls' high school regular season basketball

Bay Port 37, Green Bay Southwest 34

Belmont 39, Lancaster 35

Gilman 45, Granton 29

Johnson Creek 37, Williams Bay 31

Kettle Moraine 53, Fond du Lac 36

La Crosse Logan 55, Tomah 27

Oak Creek 53, Brookfield Central 39

Oshkosh North 48, Hortonville 44

Schofield D.C. Everest 59, Lakeland 31

Sheboygan Falls 55, Whitefish Bay Dominican 48

Stevens Point 41, Eau Claire North 35

Unity 56, Prairie Farm 45

Wisconsin School for the Deaf 72, Rock County Christian 54

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WIAA boys' high school hockey sectional semifinals

Menomonie Sectional

Superior 4, New Richmond 1

Hudson 3, Somerset 0

Chippewa Falls Sectional

Eau Claire Memorial 9, Chequamegon/Phillips 3

Eau Claire Regis/Chippewa Falls McDonell/Bloomer 6, Rice Lake 2

Stevens Point Sectional

Stevens Point 5, Northland Pines 1

Wausau West 3, Schofield D.C. Everest 1

Reedsburg/Wisconsin Dells Sectional

Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln 3, Sauk Prairie 0

West Salem 3, Onalaska 2

Green Bay Sectional

Green Bay Notre Dame 9, Waupaca 1

Appleton United 3, De Pere/West De Pere 2, 3 OT

Madison Sectional

Verona 5, Madison West 1

Madison Edgewood 3, Middleton 2, 2 OT

Kettle Moraine/Mukwonago Sectional

Waukesha 1, Milwaukee Marquette 0, OT

Whitefish Bay 3, Kettle Moraine-Mukwonago 2, OT

Hartland Arrowhead Sectional

Mequon Homestead 6, Hartland Arrowhead 1

Fond du Lac 4, Cedarburg 1

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WIAA Girls' high school hockey sectionals

Hayward/Spooner Sectional

Hayward/Spooner 4, Chippewa Falls co-op 1

St. Croix Valley 3, Burnett County 1

Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln/Stevens Point Sectional 2

Schofield D.C. Everest co-op 6, Rhinelander co-op 0

Northland Pines 4, Marshfield co-op 3

Onalaska Sectional

Middleton co-op 2, Stoughton co-op 1

Onalaska co-op 7, Sun Prairie co-op 5

Beaver Dam Sectional 4

Brookfield Central 4, Hartland Arrowhead 0

Milwaukee University School 4, Fond du Lac 1

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