Tuesday, April 7, 2015 | The Topeka Capital-Journal

SPORTS

Naismith Hall calls White

Former Kansas basketball star Jo Jo White is set

for induction into the Naismith Hall of Fame.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL | PAGE 2B

5K: Krzyzewski wins fifth NCAA title

Duke rallies from nine-point deficit to down Wisconsin, 68-63
ONLINE

The Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS Call them
freshmen. Please, do not call
them kids.
Led by Tyus Jones and Jahlil
Okafor, Dukes talented group of
youngsters outscored Wisconsin by 14 points over the final 13
minutes Monday night to grit out
a 68-63 victory for the programs
fifth national title.
Okafor, the likely first pick
in the NBA draft if he decides
to leave, got outplayed by Badgers center Frank Kaminsky but
came through when the pressure was highest. He made two

Go online to read the full

game story from Mondays
national championship.
CJOnline.com
straight buckets over Kaminsky,
sandwiched between a pair of
3-pointers from Jones to help the
Blue Devils (35-4) turn a onetime nine-point deficit into an
eight-point lead with 1:22 left.
A Wisconsin rally ensued, but
it came up short, and then it was
Okafor on the bottom of a rowdy,
raucous dog pile a scene very
reminiscent of the last time the
Final Four was in Indianapolis,

back in 2010 when Duke won that

one, too.
Coach Mike Krzyzewski is taking his fifth title to Durham, putting him alone in second place
behind John Wooden.
They showed such grit tonight, Krzyzewski said in the
postgame ceremony. Our bench
was spectacular, and like we
said about two months ago, eight
(players) is enough.
Grayson Allen, the most unheralded of Krzyzewskis firstyear players, scored 16 points and
kept Duke in it when Wisconsin
(36-4) looked like it was about to
run away.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Dukes Matt Jones, left, and Justise Winslow, right, celebrate moments after defeating Wisconsin 68-63 in Mondays NCAA title game.

OPENING A CAN
ROYALS 10, WHITE SOX 1

Sports

KEVIN HASKIN

kevin.haskin@cjonline.com

Moose
boosts
Royals
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
The lineup card looked as
if Ned Yost was back in
regular-season form.
Mike Moustakas batting
second? Come on, Skip.
Your third baseman barely
deserves to be hitting
anywhere in a big-league
order.
Opponents shift faster
than Mario Andretti when
Moose comes to the plate.
They load the right side.
Batting left-handed, Moustakas hits into the wall of
gloves. An out is recorded.
The Kansas City Royals
suffer.
Ned being a bit the
crotchety Ned can
overlook previous failings. Those five home runs
Moustakas blasted last
postseason to set a franchise record was evidence
that this kid the Royals
believe in wholeheartedly
could be a changed, and
charged, hitter.
One game is in. The
sample size is as small as it
will be all season. Overreaction is rampant.
Yet Moose made a sellout of 40,085 at Kauffman
Stadium believe in him
Monday. He went 2 for 3,
walked once, scored twice
and drove in a run as the
Royals ended a six-game
skid in season openers
by trouncing the Chicago
White Sox 10-1.
You know what I think
clicked, honestly, was the
playoffs were a huge influence on him, Yost said.
When we started the playoffs last year he had fought
his average, he had fought
his home runs and RBI,
and just felt all year long he
was underperforming and
underachieving.
Once the playoffs
started, he forgot all about
it and his only intent was

HASKIN continues on 3B

PHOTOGRAPHS BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Kansas City Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas, left photo, finished 2 for 3 with a solo home run in Mondays season-opening victory over the
Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium. Alex Rios and Eric Hosmer, top right photo, also contributed RBIs in the game, with Rios hitting a three-run
blast in his Royals debut. Royals mascot Sluggerrr, bottom right photo, helped the 40,085 fans who attended celebrate after the win.

KC throttles Chicago in first season home opener since 2011

By Jeff Deters

jeff.deters@cjonline.com

KANSAS CITY, Mo.

When it comes to opening
day,
there
hasnt been a
lot for Kansas
City fans to
cheer for in
recent years.
For starters, prior to
Mondays
Ventura

season opener against the

Chicago White Sox, the
Royals hadnt been at home
to start the season since
2011. To make matters
worse, they hadnt won on
opening day at home since
2007 when they beat the
Red Sox.
But Monday was different sort of. Yordano
Ventura and Mike Moustakas made sure of that. The
KC right-hander pitched

RELATED

Ned Yost plans on wearing his AL

championship ring for quite a while.
Page 3B
well in his first openingday start, throwing into
the seventh before leaving
with a scary right-thumb
cramp. Moustakas, batting
in the two-hole, homered
to the opposite field in
the Royals 10-1 victory at
Kauffman Stadium.

Ventura, who had the

same problem arise last
season, will be evaluated
as the week goes on, but
the Royals dont believe
the injury is serious.
It was something in the
thumb that I felt it lock
up on me, Ventura said
through translator Jeremy Guthrie. I thought at
first it was something really bad, but Im just really
happy that its not, and Im

not concerned at all about

missing a start. It was just
a cramp, and it surprised
me. I feel confident going
forward.
For the most part, Ventura looked like the ace the
Royals will need him to be
if they are going to defend
their American League
crown, right up until he
fell to the ground in the

OPENING continues on 3B

Compton wears heart on sleeve

The Associated Press

2014 FILE PHOTOGRAPH/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Erik Compton, who had his first heart transplant at 12,

then a second in 2008 after a major heart attack, will
compete in his first Masters this week.

AUGUSTA, Ga. Were

suckers for athletes who
play with a lot of heart. In
Erik Comptons case, make
that plural: hearts.
Hell tee off this week at
the Masters on his third.
The 35-year-old veteran
would rather be known for
his golf than what hes had
to overcome to earn a spot
in the field. But Compton
isnt shy about sharing his
story, either.

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Follow The Capital-Journals Brent Maycock on Twitter for

live updates from Augusta, including news on Topeka native
Gary Woodland and Kansas State graduate Robert Streb.
@CockyHawk91
A first heart transplant
at 12, then a second in
2008 after a major heart
attack what doctors call
a widow-maker while
driving home from a lesson
with longtime coach and
close pal Charlie DeLucca.
Hes been trying make up
for lost time ever since.

Its hard, but its also a

great thing, Compton said
Monday after a practice
round at Augusta National.
Theres two sides to me.
Im a competitor and a
sports person, and Im also
the recipient of two trans-

COMPTON continues on 2B