Month: January 2016

Powerball jackpot now at $800 million

The Powerball jackpot for Saturday has risen to an unprecedented $800 million, according to the Kansas Lottery.

The cash option for the grand prize winner would be $496 million.

Odds show that winning the jackpot is close to impossible – a 1 in 292 million chance, and Kansas Lottery officials have encouraged the public to play responsibly.

As of 1 p.m. today, Powerball sales in Kansas had already reached $1.4 million since Wednesday’s drawing, with the busiest sales day anticipated tomorrow, a spokesman said. Sales for Wednesday’s drawing were $2.8 million in Kansas, roughly 10 times what would be typical for a Wednesday Powerball drawing with a much smaller jackpot.

Kansas Lottery officials also announced today that starting Feb. 7, they would offer two Pick 3 drawings a day, one drawing at midday and one in the evening. A Kansas-only game, the Pick 3 drawings will be at 1:10 p.m., with a 12:59 p.m. deadline for purchasing tickets, and at 9:10 p.m., with an 8:59 p.m. deadline for purchasing tickets.

All Pick 3 tickets will be $1. The 50-cent wager will no longer be available, according to a lottery spokesman. The prize structure for Pick 3 also will remain the same, and the top prize for matching three numbers in order is $500. Players who pick any order option and match the three numbers drawn will win $80, or $160 is two of the three digits are identical.

KCKCC wins 4th in row heading into Jayhawk Conference play

Kansas City Kansas Community College forward Armoni Shorter is nearly rim high as he releases a shot over a quintet of Wentworth Military Academy defenders in the Blue Devils’ 85-72 win Thursday. Maneuvering for a possible rebound is KCKCC’s Dehaven Talley (0). (KCKCC photo by Alan Hoskins)
Kansas City Kansas Community College forward Armoni Shorter is nearly rim high as he releases a shot over a quintet of Wentworth Military Academy defenders in the Blue Devils’ 85-72 win Thursday. Maneuvering for a possible rebound is KCKCC’s Dehaven Talley (0). (KCKCC photo by Alan Hoskins)

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC

With an 85-72 win over Wentworth Military Academy safely tucked away, coach Kelley Newton’s focus turned to the week that lays ahead for his Kansas City Kansas Community College men’s basketball team.

“We’ve got our hands full,” said Newton, whose Blue Devils open Jayhawk Conference play at Highland Wednesday night and entertain No. 2 ranked Johnson County Saturday afternoon. “Two really tough games against two of the top three teams statistically and record-wise that we play. Highland is big, athletic and really pushes the ball up the floor and easily could be ranked while Johnson is clearly the conference favorite. But we’ll keep our approach the same, one game at a time.”

Shooting 53.1 percent from the field, the Blue Devils raced to a 45-29 halftime lead against Wentworth. Their fourth straight win, they boosted their overall mark to 11-6.

Five Blue Devils scored in double figures with sophomores Joe Lendway and Dehaven Talley leading the way. Hitting 9-of-11 shots, Lendway had a game high 20 points, six rebounds and three assists in just 17 minutes while Talley had 17 points and three assists.

“It was good to see Joe really aggressive early and often and Dehaven had a good bounce back from the Penn Valley game,” Newton said.

Freshmen Kellan Turner and Xavier Gaona each added 13 points and Johnathan Murray 10 for the Blue Devils while Lashawn Lewis led the rebounding with seven in just 14 minutes. Turner led in assists with six while Trevor Young, Talley and Lendway had three apiece.

“We’re still learning and showing signs of being a good team but still have a long ways to go,” Newton said. “But it’s definitely a step in the right direction.”

Alan Hoskins is the sports information director at KCKCC.

Sporting KC announces 2016 MLS schedule

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Sporting Kansas City released the club’s full 34-game regular season schedule on Thursday for the 2016 Major League Soccer season.

Sporting KC will kick off its 21st season at 6 p.m. Sunday, March 6, at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, against the Seattle Sounders. The nationally televised match between Sporting KC and Seattle will highlight a day in which all 20 MLS clubs will begin action.

Sporting KC’s first home match at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan., is set for 7:30 p.m. on March 12 against Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Single-game tickets for Sporting KC’s first nine home matches at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan., will go on sale to the public on Feb. 1 at 10 a.m., while current season ticket members will have access to an exclusive pre-sale beginning Jan. 28.

Individuals who place deposits for season tickets or group tickets for the 2016 season will receive priority consideration for obtaining single-game tickets to Sporting KC home matches. For more ticket information, call 888-4KC-GOAL.

The 2016 opener in Seattle is one of 15 nationally televised matches on Sporting KC’s regular season slate. The ESPN, FOX Sports and Univision networks – entering the second year of an eight-year partnership with MLS – will collectively broadcast 11 of those games live from Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan., home to a 70-match MLS sellout streak dating back to April 2012.

ESPN and FOX Sports will again simulcast MLS matches on their Spanish-language networks (ESPN Deportes and FOX Deportes) and their authenticated digital platforms (WatchESPN and FOX Sports GO). UniMas broadcasts will be available in English and Spanish both on television and live streamed on the Univision Deportes app.

Every Sporting KC game during the 2016 regular season will be televised live. KMCI-TV, a member of the SKCTV Network, will serve as the club’s local broadcast partner for the third straight year and show all games not nationally televised on ESPN or FOX Sports. Owned by Scripps Media, Inc., KMCI plans to broadcast a half-hour of pre-game and post-game coverage as part of each telecast.

A member of the Western Conference since last season, Sporting KC will play each of the 10 Eastern Conference sides once over the course of the 2016 campaign. The remaining 24 regular season contests will be played within the West:

Two games versus: Houston Dynamo, Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders FC
Three games versus: Colorado Rapids, FC Dallas, LA Galaxy, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes, Vancouver Whitecaps FC

After the March 12 home opener, Sporting KC will play Canadian opponent Toronto on March 20.

Sporting KC is off the following weekend for the late-March FIFA date before hosting rivals Real Salt Lake on April 2. Other off-weekends for Sporting KC during the 2016 season include a pair of FIFA international windows on Sept. 3-4 and Oct. 8-9. In addition, MLS will observe a break between June-3-15 as the 2016 Centennial Copa America runs across the United States from June 3 to 26.

The first half of Sporting KC’s 2016 schedule features two games each against Vancouver, FC Dallas and the LA Galaxy-all of which qualified for last year’s playoffs and finished ahead of Sporting KC in the 2015 Western Conference standings. Sporting KC will travel to face reigning Supporters’ Shield champion New York Red Bulls on April 9, while Orlando City FC will make its inaugural trip to Children’s Mercy Park on May 15. A stretch from April 9 – May 1 will see the club play six league matches in 23 days, including four on the road.

2016 Home Opponents: Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew SC, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy (2), New York City FC, Orlando City SC, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake (2), San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders FC, Toronto FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC (2)

2016 Road Opponents: Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids (2), FC Dallas (2), Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy, Montreal Impact, New England Revolution, New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia Union, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake (2), San Jose Earthquakes (2), Seattle Sounders FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Sporting KC will be the host for four national TV games during the month of July. MLS Cup finalist Columbus Crew SC travels to Children’s Mercy Park on July 3 (FS1), New York City FC plays its inaugural match in Kansas City on July 10 (FS1), and Seattle visits on July 24 (ESPN). The defending MLS Cup champion Portland Timbers come to Children’s Mercy Park on July 31 in one of four MLS matches to be televised on FOX throughout the year.

On Aug. 7, Sporting KC will play the second of back-to-back games against Portland at Providence Park, site of the thrilling 2015 Western Conference Knockout Round match contested between the clubs last October. Three weeks later, Sporting KC faces the Philadelphia Union at PPL Park in a rematch of the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final.

In a new scheduling enhancement, Week 33 will see every MLS team in action on Oct. 16, with five Eastern Conference games set for 4 p.m. CT and five Western Conference clashes set for 6 p.m. CT, including Sporting KC at Real Salt Lake. The 2016 MLS regular season concludes with Decision Day on Oct. 23 as Sporting KC is the host of the San Jose Earthquakes in one of 10 matches that will kick off simultaneously at 3 p.m. CT.

Outside of the MLS regular season, Sporting KC will also compete in the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup – defending the 2015 title it won against Philadelphia – and enter the group stage of the 2016-17 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League. Opponents and match dates for both competitions will be determined at a later date. 2016 marks the third time in four years that Sporting KC has featured in the CONCACAF Champions League, which involves the top clubs from North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The tournament winner will qualify as CONCACAF’s representative at the 2017 FIFA Club World Cup.

Sporting KC will spend both phases of the 2016 preseason presented by Children’s Mercy in Tucson, Ariz., first reporting from Jan. 23 – Feb. 8 and then returning for the Desert Diamond Cup from Feb. 14 to 27.

Sporting KC 2016 Regular Season Schedule
Date Opponent Time (CT) TV
Sun., March 6 at Seattle Sounders FC 6:00 FS1
Sat., March 12 Vancouver Whitecaps 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., March 20 Toronto FC 6:00 FS1
Sat., April 2 Real Salt Lake 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sat., April 9 at New York Red Bulls 6:00 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Wed., April 13 Colorado Rapids 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., April 17 at FC Dallas 6:00 FS1
Sun., April 24 at San Jose Earthquakes 2:30 ESPN
Wed., April 27 at Vancouver Whitecaps TBD KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., May 1 LA Galaxy 7:00 FS1
Sat., May 7 at Houston Dynamo TBD KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Wed., May 11 at Colorado Rapids 8:00 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., May 15 Orlando City SC 2:30 ESPN
Sat., May 21 Real Salt Lake 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Fri., May 27 D.C. United 6:00 UniMas, KMCI-TV
Thur., June 2 at LA Galaxy 9:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., June 19 FC Dallas 4:00 ESPN
Sat., June 25 at Montreal Impact TBD KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., July 3 Columbus Crew SC 6:00 FS1
Sun., July 10 New York City FC 7:00 FS1
Wed., July 13 at Chicago Fire 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sat., July 16 at Colorado Rapids 8:00 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., July 24 Seattle Sounders FC 2:00 ESPN
Sun., July 31 Portland Timbers 1:00 FOX
Sun., Aug. 7 at Portland Timbers 3:00 ESPN
Sat., Aug. 13 at FC Dallas 8:00 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sat., Aug. 20 Vancouver Whitecaps 7:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sat., Aug. 27 at Philadelphia Union TBD KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Fri., Sept. 9 Houston Dynamo 7:00 UniMas, KMCI-TV
Sun., Sept. 18 LA Galaxy 12:00 ESPN
Sat., Sept. 24 at San Jose Earthquakes 9:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sat., Oct. 1 at New England 6:30 KMCI-TV, SKCTV
Sun., Oct. 16 at Real Salt Lake 6:00 TBD
Sun., Oct. 23 San Jose Earthquakes 3:00 TBD

– Story from Sporting KC