Filed under:
Jamerion Wales, 15, was outside about 9:10 a.m. in the 5800 block of South Paulina Street when a black Chevrolet drove by and someone inside opened fire, Chicago police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.
By
Feb 18, 2022, 4:36am CST
15-year-old boy killed, 16-year-old boy among six wounded by gunfire in Chicago Thursday Read More »
A strong performance by Arvid Soderblom on Thursday could’ve given the Blackhawks an exciting glimpse of their possible future goalie.
Instead, the Hawks only found more gloom and doom, opening their homestand with a 7-4 loss to the Blue Jackets. Soderblom, the 22-year-old Swedish rookie, struggled mightily in his second career NHL start, allowing six goals on 36 shots.
“He’s going to be a really good goalie for us,” interim coach Derek King said. “But still, it’s nerves. [It’s at] home; his parents are in town. And then what do we do? We don’t start the game on time for him and gave up way too many chances.
“We just had too many passengers at the start. Guys were not ready to play and easing their way into it. And you can’t do that when you have a young goalie in there. … The poor kid was left hanging out to dry. That’s not very nice.”
The Hawks wasted a rare night of effective depth scoring. Ryan Carpenter, MacKenzie Entwistle and Philipp Kurashev, who entered Thursday with seven combined goals this season, all found the back of the net.
“It’s nice when you score — you relax a little bit,” Carpenter said. “[My line] made some plays and had some chances and contributed. But this time of year, we just need a win — it doesn’t matter who’s doing it. So it wasn’t good enough.”
Entwistle’s goal pulled the Hawks within 4-3 at the second intermission, and Alex DeBrincat scored his 29th of the year to make it 5-4 with 11 minutes to go, but the Hawks could never break out of catch-up mode.
Soderblom, meanwhile, could never find a handle on the puck. He was beaten several times by well-placed but unscreened shots, lost track of a fluky bounce nine seconds in the second period and surrendered multiple rebounds before the rally-killing goal with eight minutes left.
The Hawks also struggled with neutral-zone turnovers, leading to 67 shot attempts for the Jackets, but the Hawks’ rare 30-23 advantage in scoring chances indicated they easily could’ve come out on top.
“You’re coming into a six-game homestand, against a team you feel you should beat, and [this loss] stings a little bit right now,” said Patrick Kane, who tallied his 719th career assist to move into second in Hawks history in that category.
“You say you want to play the same way, but in the back of your mind, you know you’re down in the game. Maybe we pushed a little bit too much and give up too many chances when we’re actually down. That’s something we can learn from.”
Arvid Soderblom struggles as Blackhawks fall to Blue Jackets Read More »
A man accused of stalking Mayor Lori Lightfoot and firing a gun in the alley near her Logan Square home was allegedly angry at the mayor over a number of parking citations he had received.
Joseph Igartua, 37, waved his finger, shook his head, shrugged and rolled his eyes when he appeared remotely for the hearing via a live-streaming feed into the courtroom.
At times he walked away from the computer to shake his head and pace around the room at the courthouse where he was being held.
A woman who said she was his mother declined to comment after the hearing.
Igartua is accused of driving past Lightfoot’s home on 15 occasions between Jan. 17 and Monday afternoon in a black Nissan truck, which was allegedly recorded by a Chicago police license plate reader.
On Saturday, Igartua tried to deliver a “rambling” letter to Lightfoot’s home, according to a police source, but was stopped by officers.
Prosecutors said he was found with a loaded gun, which police took apart to make it safe, but it was later returned to Igartua because he had a valid FOID and license to carry a concealed weapon.
A police report indicated Igartua’s FOID had been revoked previously, but prosecutors did not mention any suspension in court Thursday.
Joseph IgartuaChicago police
Igartua was told not to return, but allegedly came back again the following day.
This time, Igartua drove into an alley behind Lightfoot’s home and parked next to her garage, prosecutors said. Officers saw him and tried to make contact with Igartua, but he drove away, dropping a packet of papers in the street that contained a signed letter, a traffic ticket he had been issued and photos of his truck, prosecutors said.
The letter allegedly accused police officers of taking five of his bullets the previous day.
On Monday, Igartua returned to the mayor’s block and drove down the same alley and parked next to her garage again, prosecutors said.
Officers followed his car and stopped him for a traffic violation.
Igartua, allegedly armed again, was issued a ticket for speeding and he drove away, prosecutors said, but was seen driving by again later that afternoon.
On Wednesday, Igartua was allegedly seen driving into the alley and shortly afterwards officers heard five gunshots, which were also recorded in a Shotspotter alert.
Seconds later, Igartua was seen driving out of the alley in his truck, prosecutors said.
Officers followed him to a gas station, where he was placed into custody.
Two shell casings found inside Igartua’s truck matched the same gun as additional casings that were found in Lightfoot’s alley, prosecutors said. The gun — a Glock 19 — was also allegedly missing five rounds from its magazine, authorities said.
Igartua has been arrested three times since 2005 for minor offenses such as reckless conduct and marijuana possession, Cook County court records show. In 2011, he pleaded guilty to a pot possession charge and was placed on court supervision for a year.
Cook County Judge Maryam Ahmad ordered Igartua held without bond Thursday on felony counts of stalking and aggravated discharge of a weapon.
An assistant public defender for Igartua said has two kids and was employed full-time until recently. The attorney said he would file a motion for a review of the judge’s ruling at his next court date on Feb. 25.
To say that DeMar DeRozan’s first season with the Chicago Bulls has been spectacular, might be an understatement.
The 32-year old forward has been stacking up incredible performances against all odds with a depleted roster around him, and it was no different in Wednesday night’s 125-118 victory over the Sacramento Kings. DeRozan became the first player in NBA history to score at least 35 points while shooting at least 50 percent from the field in seven consecutive games. The previous record was held by basketball legend Wilt Chamberlain who did it in six consecutive games not only once, but twice — during the 1960-61 and 1962-63 seasons.
Talking to reporters after the game, DeRozan said he was “speechless” knowing that his name stood above all the legends that have played the game:
“As a kid, as a fan of the history of the game, being in the league as long as I’ve been in this league — things like that continue to make me even more humble. Being an NBA player and being able to have the privilege to be able to play this long and have these opportunities, man, it’s something I never take for granted. And the crazy thing is I felt like I missed eight easy shots I normally would have made.”
DeRozan’s streak comes at a time where he is averaging a career high 28.1 points per game on 51.7% shooting. The craziest part? Despite the scoring streak, his points per game is the only major statistical category he is currently setting a career high in — and that includes field goal percentage.
With the victory Wednesday night, DeRozan and the Bulls sit half a game ahead of the Miami Heat for the top spot in the Eastern Conference with 23 games to play. This weekend’s All-Star Break will feature DeRozan starting for Team LeBron, meanwhile Zach LaVine is a reserve player on Team Durant. This season marks the first time since the 2015-16 season that the Bulls will have multiple All-Star game representatives. The previous pair? Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol.
Can’t get enough talk about the Bulls? Head to the ChiCitySports forum and join the conversation today!
Bulls’ DeMar DeRozan Surpasses Wilt, Sets Dominant Scoring Record Read More »
A man accused of stalking Mayor Lori Lightfoot and firing a gun in the alley near her Logan Square home was allegedly angry at the mayor over a number of parking citations he had received.
Joseph Igartua, 37, waved his finger, shook his head, shrugged and rolled his eyes when he appeared remotely for the hearing via a live-streaming feed into the courtroom.
At times he walked away from the computer to shake his head and pace around the room at the courthouse where he was being held.
A woman who said she was his mother declined to comment after the hearing.
Igartua is accused of driving past Lightfoot’s home on 15 occasions between Jan. 17 and Monday afternoon in a black Nissan truck, which was allegedly recorded by a Chicago police license plate reader.
On Saturday, Igartua tried to deliver a “rambling” letter to Lightfoot’s home, according to a police source, but was stopped by officers.
Prosecutors said he was found with a loaded gun, which police took apart to make it safe, but it was later returned to Igartua because he had a valid FOID and license to carry a concealed weapon.
A police report indicated Igartua’s FOID had been revoked previously, but prosecutors did not mention any suspension in court Thursday.
Joseph IgartuaChicago police
Igartua was told not to return, but allegedly came back again the following day.
This time, Igartua drove into an alley behind Lightfoot’s home and parked next to her garage, prosecutors said. Officers saw him and tried to make contact with Igartua, but he drove away, dropping a packet of papers in the street that contained a signed letter, a traffic ticket he had been issued and photos of his truck, prosecutors said.
The letter allegedly accused police officers of taking five of his bullets the previous day.
On Monday, Igartua returned to the mayor’s block and drove down the same alley and parked next to her garage again, prosecutors said.
Officers followed his car and stopped him for a traffic violation.
Igartua, allegedly armed again, was issued a ticket for speeding and he drove away, prosecutors said, but was seen driving by again later that afternoon.
On Wednesday, Igartua was allegedly seen driving into the alley and shortly afterwards officers heard five gunshots, which were also recorded in a Shotspotter alert.
Seconds later, Igartua was seen driving out of the alley in his truck, prosecutors said.
Officers followed him to a gas station, where he was placed into custody.
Two shell casings found inside Igartua’s truck matched the same gun as additional casings that were found in Lightfoot’s alley, prosecutors said. The gun — a Glock 19 — was also allegedly missing five rounds from its magazine, authorities said.
Igartua has been arrested three times since 2005 for minor offenses such as reckless conduct and marijuana possession, Cook County court records show. In 2011, he pleaded guilty to a pot possession charge and was placed on court supervision for a year.
Cook County Judge Maryam Ahmad ordered Igartua held without bond Thursday on felony counts of stalking and aggravated discharge of a weapon.
An assistant public defender for Igartua said has two kids and was employed full-time until recently. The attorney said he would file a motion for a review of the judge’s ruling at his next court date on Feb. 25.
Please send scores and corrections to [email protected].
BIG NORTHERN
North Boone at Stillman Valley, 7:00
FOX VALLEY
Prairie Ridge at Hampshire, 7:00
KISHWAUKEE RIVER
Woodstock North at Marengo, 7:00
SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – BLUE
Lincoln-Way East at Sandburg, 6:00
NON CONFERENCE
Agricultural Science at Jones, 6:30
Bremen at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 6:00
Byron at Mendota, 7:00
EPIC at Harlan, 5:00
Francis Parker at Amundsen, 6:00
Harvest Christian at Johnsburg, 7:00
Henry-Senachwine at Peoria Heights, 7:30
Intrinsic-Belmont at Chicago Academy, 5:00
Intrinsic-Downtown at Kennedy, 6:30
Jones at Agricultural Science, 7:00
LaMoille at Marquette, 7:00
Maine South at Rich, 6:00
Mansueto at Goode, 5:00
Morgan Park at King, 5:00
Newark at Mooseheart, 7:00
Noble Street at Northside, 7:00
North Shore at Niles West, 5:00
Northtown at Northridge, 6:00
Peotone at Grace Christian, 7:00
Perspectives-MSA at Catalyst-Maria, 5:00
Romeoville at Lincoln-Way Central, 6:15
Schaumburg Christian at Elgin Academy, 6:00
Westlake Christian vs. Trinity (Kankakee), 4:30
Wheaton Academy at Lake Forest Acad-Org, CNL
METRO PREP TOURNAMENT
CPSA at Universal, 5:30
Thursday’s high school basketball scores Read More »
BEIJING — Canada’s Captain Clutch, Marie-Philip Poulin, delivered at the Olympics again.
Poulin scored twice, including her third gold-medal clinching goal, and Canada reclaimed its place atop the women’s hockey world by capping its run through the Beijing Games with a 3-2 win over the defending champion United States on Thursday.
Ann-Renee Desbiens stopped 38 shots and Sarah Nurse had a goal and assist in a game where the Canadians built a 3-0 lead and hung on for the win. Nurse set the single tournament record with 18 points.
The Canadians finished 7-0 and spent their time in Beijing showcasing a dynamic, deep and relentless offensive attack to capture their fifth Olympic title in seven tournaments, with four coming against the Americans in what’s been one of sports’ fiercest and longest-running rivalries.
Just as important, Canada bounced back from a shocking 3-2 shootout gold-medal loss to the U.S. at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.
Canada can now boast holding both the Olympic and world championship titles at the same time, and for the first time since 2012. The win at Beijing comes nearly six months after Poulin’s overtime goal sealed Canada’s 3-2 victory over the U.S. at worlds, which ended the Americans’ run of winning five consecutive tournament titles.
Hilary Knight, the Americans’ only consistent threat in the tournament, scored her team-leading sixth goal on a shorthanded rush to cut the deficit to 3-1. Amanda Kessel scored with 14 seconds remaining during a mad scramble in front for a power-play goal and with the U.S. net empty for an extra attacker.
Alex Cavallini stopped 18 shots in her fourth tournament start.
The Americans, who have two Olympic golds, settled for their fourth silver medal, with all losses coming against Canada.
Poulin continued playing up to the nickname she earned for scoring decisive goals in big games and especially against the Americans. She scored both goals to seal Canada’s 2-0 gold-medal win over the U.S. at the 2010 Vancouver Games. Four years later at Sochi, Poulin scored in overtime to seal the gold-medal win over the Americans again.
Poulin staked the Canadians to a 2-0 lead with 4:34 left in the first period, and then made it 3-0 off an odd-man rush 9:08 into the second period. Nurse drove up the right wing and fed Brianne Jenner, whose slapper was stopped by Cavallini. The rebound caromed to Poulin, who immediately fired a shot from the left of the net and banked it in off Cavallini’s skate.
Knight’s goal with 3:21 left in the second period provided the Americans life, but they were unable to cash in on their chances in the third period. Alex Carpenter had two chances five minutes in, only to have her one-timer from the left circle hit the crossbar, and then getting by Desbiens on a partial breakaway.
It’s been a long and bumpy road back for the Canadians, who were forced to reinvent themselves in three years under coach Troy Ryan. The low point followed Canada settling for bronze at the 2019 world championships, which marked the first time in tournament history the country failed to reach the title game.
At Beijing, the Canadians out-classed the field by outscoring opponents by a combined margin of 57-10, including a 4-2 win over the U.S. in group play last week.
The U.S. didn’t have enough defense to contain the Canadians’ aggressive forechecking attack, nor the offense to match them, especially without top center Brianna Decker, who broke her left leg in the tournament opener.
The Americans spent the two weeks having difficulty finishing chances, and they entered the game ranking fifth of 10 teams in scoring efficiency with just 28 goals on a tournament-leading 334 shots.
The troubles were most apparent a minute before Poulin scored to put Canada up 2-0. A Canadian turnover in the neutral zone led to Abby Roque — Decker’s replacement — driving up the left wing. Rather than waiting for her teammates to gain the zone, Roque instead fired a weak shot at the net, which Desbiens easily smothered.
A minute later, two U.S. forwards lazily misplayed Megan Keller’s clearing attempt. Poulin beat Americans to the puck, turned toward the net and knuckled in a shot that appeared to glance off defender Savannah Harmon.
Canada actually scored three times in the opening period only to have their first goal, scored by Natalie Spooner, disallowed following an offside challenge video review. Replays clearly showed Nurse being offside.
It didn’t seem to matter. Nurse scored 54 seconds later off a faceoff to the left of the U.S. net. Poulin won the faceoff and drew it back to Claire Thompson, who fired a low hard pass through the middle, which Nurse redirected inside the right post.
U.S. women’s hockey team settles for silver after 3-2 loss to Canada Read More »
Tristan Thompson has a new home in the NBA and he’s landing with a contender in the Eastern Conference per a report.
According to Shams Charania, the Indiana Pacers are waiving Thompson on Wednesday night and he’s expected to clear waivers and sign with the Chicago Bulls. The move gives the Bulls some depth in the post, something they have needed this season.
The Indiana Pacers will waive center Tristan Thompson, coach Rick Carlisle says. Thompson will sign a new deal with the Chicago Bulls after he clears waivers.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 17, 2022
The 30-year-old Thompson was acquired by Indiana from Sacramento ahead of the trade deadline last week in a deal that featured Domantas Sabonis. With Thompson landing in Indiana, the Pacers were looking to buy him out right away.
Thompson is averaging 6.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game this season. Bulls players appear to be getting the news already:
DeMar DeRozan on Tristan Thompson: “Known Tristan for years. Great dude. Championship experience. Good friend of mine. Got the utmost respect for him off the court. Obviously, we all know what he brings on the court. Think it will be great addition for us. Veteran leadership.”
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) February 17, 2022
For more on the Bulls and Thompson, check back with ChiCitySports.com.
The post Report: Chicago Bulls likely to add Tristan Thompson first appeared on CHICITYSPORTS.
Report: Chicago Bulls likely to add Tristan Thompson Read More »
The left knee needed some lubricant.
More importantly, Zach LaVine’s mind just needed to be eased.
Both were accomplished in his visit to Los Angeles to meet with a specialist, and now it’s back to the business of basketball for the All-Star.
“It went very well,” coach Billy Donovan said on Wednesday of LaVine’s second opinion. “He did have some swelling that was taken out of the knee, [they] gave him a lubricant to help him. I think right now the doctors feel totally fine with him resuming playing. I think Zach felt very, very good about the meeting. He felt like it went very well just based on the interventions and some of the things that they did during his visit with the doctor.
“He’s probably going to be 48 hours before he can do any activity really, but he should be able to resume activity after that.”
And he’ll be welcomed back with open arms.
Yes, in beating the Sacramento Kings 125-118, the Bulls will go into the All-Star Break 38-21, and temporarily atop the Eastern Conference. They will also do so winners of five straight, and not the only impressive streak.
In scoring 38 points on 16-for-27 shooting, veteran DeMar DeRozan made NBA history, becoming the first player to ever have seven-straight games of 35 plus-points and over 50% shooting from the field. He was tied with the great Wilt Chamberlain entering the Kings game.
No longer.
“As a kid, as a fan of the history of the game, things like that make me even more humble,” DeRozan said of the record. “It’s something I never take for granted. I feel like I had a bad shooting night. That’s the crazy thing.
“I can’t describe [this streak]. I’m just completely locked in when I come to work. No matter how I feel, when I come to work the only thing that matters is getting the victory.”
Which Donovan has completely appreciated about his veteran.
“[Wednesday’s] performance was incredible just because of the length [the Kings] had on the perimeter,” Donovan said of DeRozan’s latest MVP statement. “Everything about him is just trying to win. It’s not only the scoring but the decision making.”
But there’s a reason DeRozan will be thrilled to see LaVine back on the floor with him, besides the obvious. While LaVine’s been dealing with the knee, even when he’s played this month, DeRozan’s been averaging just under 39 minutes per game, willing the Bulls to wins.
It’s time for LaVine to reclaim some lost turf.
That could start this weekend, with all signs pointing towards LaVine participating in the All-Star Weekend, not only in the Saturday Three-Point Contest, but playing for Team Durant in Sunday’s All-Star Game.
LaVine will consult with both Bulls doctors and his Los Angeles doctors on a definitive plan for the festivities, but Donovan expected that he would be on a minutes watch in the game, which shouldn’t be much of an issue.
“I don’t think Zach has any expectation to go to an All-Star Game and play 30 minutes,” Donovan said. “I don’t think that. But certainly it’s a great honor for him to be able to do that for a second year. He is healthy to play.”
The good news didn’t stop there for the Bulls, either. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said after his game Wednesday that veteran big man Tristian Thompson was being waived by Indiana, and would be signing with the Bulls.
DeRozan loved that idea, insisting he’s had a long friendship with the big man.
“He’ll be a great addition for us,” DeRozan said.
Veteran DeMar DeRozan makes history as Bulls win fifth straight Read More »
Billy Donovan couldn’t provide an updated timetable for Alex Caruso to return from his broken right wrist, but the Bulls coach could at least identify the next important step.
Since Caruso was all but tackled by Milwaukee’s Grayson Allen in a Jan. 21 loss and suffered the injury, he was able to start his conditioning up pretty quickly after surgery.
Now it’s time for a little basketball activity, according to Donovan.
“I know it was a break,” Donovan said on Wednesday, when first asked if he knew the details of what Caruso had repaired. “He’s doing well. He’s on the floor doing total conditioning and running. He’s not able to lift. There will be a point where I think in maybe a week to 10 days he can start dribbling and shooting. He’s not at that level yet, but he’s at the level where he can do a lot of physical training running-wise, so I don’t know the extent of what the whole procedure was other than he broke it and they went in there and repaired it.”
The original diagnosis for Caruso was six-to-eight weeks before he would be re-evaluated. He’s over three weeks into that timeframe, so that puts him on track to get the wrist looked at once again during that second week of March.
The fact that he’s able to start shooting soon, however, was a good sign that the best defender on the team was on the mend.
As long as there are no setbacks in the evaluation, the hope is that Caruso could have a mid-March return, giving him possibly 12-15 regular-season games to find his rhythm and get re-acclimated to his significant role he carries for the team.
What could really be interesting is if Caruso can get back by Mar. 22, when the Bulls travel up to Milwaukee for their third meeting of the season. The Bulls and Bucks then close the season series Apr. 5, with the Bulls hosting the division rivals at the United Center.
Connection
There’s a reason why rookie Ayo Dosunmu and veteran Nikola Vucevic have worked so well together since Dosunmu took over the starting point guard duties.
Both are high-IQ players, but it’s more than that. Dosunmu is one of the more decisive guards on the team, and that works well with Vucevic.
“When [the guards] are decisive it helps Vooch make a decision whether to short roll, long roll to the rim, or to pop based on how he’s being covered,” Donovan said. “Ayo is aggressive. He’s a downhill player, he’s an attacker. So when he’s attacking I think Vooch can find spots. Now I think one of the things that our guards have to do a good job of is when they are decisive and they are going downhill, they have to recognize is their man pursuing in pick-and-roll? Is Vooch’s man playing it? Do I have two on the ball? Does the ball need to be thrown back?”
Cheat code
A big reason why DeMar DeRozan seems to be playing with so much confidence this season? Donovan has provided a very free environment for the veteran to utilize his strengths.
“It’s not just points,” DeRozan said. “I think it’s for me the comfort of being the player that I am in my 13th year. The confidence. The feel. The teammates that I have. The organization. Just taking heed to that. That’s one thing that sits with me well. Not just the scoring. I’ve been a scorer. It’s being able to be free and play at a high level still.”
Bulls’ Alex Caruso could start basketball activity in a week to 10 days Read More »
