Kobe Bryant's last game in Portland

For Kobe Bryant, his last game against the Portland Trail Blazers won't be all that memorable.
This game marks the last time Bryant will ever play in a basketball game in Moda Center, as the legendary shooting guard plans to retire come the end of the 2015-2016 season.

For Bryant it wasn't his best performance in Portland, as he went 5-9 from the field for 10 points along with five turnovers in the 121-103 loss to the Blazers. Although the fans were encouraged it was Bryant's "night" knowing it was his last, Damian Lillard of the Trail Blazers had other plans. The point-guard out of Weber State was scorching hot from the field, shooting 14-19 for 36 points including five three-pointers on the night.

Noting the loss in tonight's game for the Los Angeles Lakers, Bryant finishes his career 6-26 overall in Portland. The young and talented Trail Blazers were to much for Bryant and his Lakers.

Bryant was quoted after the game saying "I have so many great memories here, most of the time I ended up on the losing side of things during the regular season.. The fans, the playoff battles... great memories. I just tried to take it all in tonight."

Although Bryant has lost many games including tonight's loss against the Blazers, he has hurt the Blazers in the past when it mattered the most. Dating back to the 1999-2000 season, when the dynamic duo of Kobe Bryant and powerhouse center Shaquille O'neal were in full effect the Lakers were almost untouchable. Knocking off the Blazers in the 2000 western conference finals, Blazer fans will never forget that in game 7 Bryant led his Lakers down by 15 in the fourth quarter to come back and win.

Bryant will retire after this year and will have a memorable career to look back on. He has the record for second most points scored in a single game with 81 points. Bryant also was able to claim 5 NBA Championships over the course of his career.

In tonight's game, Bryant had the fans on their feet most of the game, and it seemed like anytime he had the ball in his hands the Blazer fans were ready to "boo."

Bryant was quoted after the game, "The boos every time I touch it, I absolutely love it." Bryant has built his career off of fans reactions, and fueled off fans that interacted with him.

As Bryant made his final exit off the floor Saturday night, a Blazer fan was quoted saying something to Bryant from the court-side seats "Man, I am going to miss hating you." Bryant wisely responded "I am going to miss loving the fact that you hate me."

At a glance:
When: 7:00 p.m, January 23 2016

Where: Moda Center, Portland, OR

Why: Kobe Bryant's last game ever in Portland

Funny Quotes: "The boos"/ Fans

Week 3 Forum

Topic 1: Out of the 4 topics I think holding yourself accountable on mistakes and being transparent is very important as a reporter/journalist. Having the awareness and accountability to respond to questions quickly and fairly is also very important. Acting independently I thought was also very important to keep in mind making sure you keep your composure and deny any additional favors or treatments. "Exposing unethical conduct, in journalism, including within their organizations," this guideline really stood out to me because It's something a first-year journalist like myself might miss or forget about when conducting an interview

Topic 2: My 2nd story will be conducted in Portland, OR at the Moda Center when the Portland Trail Blazers square off against the Los Angeles Lakers. This is a good opportunity for a story because it is the future hall-of-famer Kobe Bryant's last time playing there ever. Kobe Bryant is set to retire after this year so Jan. 23rd in the Moda Center should be pretty special. The nut graf of the story will basically be the story of the game as you would find in sports page but with a little bit of Kobe's memories in the Rose quarter over the years. Sources will be hard for this story but hopefully I can conduct an interview but if not I will be the main source watching the game and recording important moments. Some questions I will be asking if I can get an interview with maybe some of the players is something like:


"So what has it been like getting to play alongside Kobe Bryant?"

(Fan) "Over the years, how has Kobe made an impact on the NBA?"

(Fan) "What does it take for Portland to make the playoffs at this point in the season?"

(Fan) "What are your thoughts about Lamarcus Aldridge leaving for the San Antonio Spurs?"

(Fan) "Will you be missing Kobe Bryant after he retires at the end of the year?"

Week 2 Forum

Topic 1: BIGGEST CHALLENGE

Organizing when I wanted to conduct my interviews was probably my biggest challenge. I waited a little too long and tried to squeeze all three of my interviews in on one day, thankfully it was able to work out just fine, but moving forward I need to give my self more time to write my story. Developing more thorough questions could be something I can work on for my next story, I don't want to be asking simple questions with one-line answers, I want to be able to get in-depth responses moving forward. Overall I felt very confident during my interviews, it was something new to me and I still have a lot to learn. It's hard to write everything down the person is saying so writing key words helped me out a ton. One thing that I will do differently next time when interviewing is developing more thoughtful questions.

Topic 2: EDNA

I thought this book was very interesting, and particularly what stood out me was that she goes into major detail and depth when dealing with the corpses of the victim. "Good homicide detectives go first to the victim's family, friends, and  neighbors to learn who he was, who his associates were, and why somebody wanted him dead." This quote from the book really stood out for me because you learn about what happens during the crime scene and she how she goes about her business is very impressive.

One tip that I learned from Edna so far is that she presents great interviews because she shows compassion. I visualize Edna having strong body posture during the course of her interview and that she makes eye contact with the person she is asking questions to. Overall she has respect for every person involved with the crime and as a journalist I think that is something to have in your arsenal when conducting interviews

LBCC Men's Baseball Prepares for The Season

As the upcoming baseball season gets closer and closer, the LBCC baseball team looks to accomplish big things.

Coming off a strong season last year, second-year head coach and manager Ryan Gipson looks to lead his baseball club to a league title and an appearance in the playoffs. 

“We have a lot of guys on this team that are willing to push each other and compete, whether it’s on the field, in the weight room, or in the classroom” said Gipson. The Roadrunners have some shoes to fill from last season, but Gipson feels strong about what he is seeing out of his freshman players. “We have some guys that have worked really hard in the fall that have a good chance at earning a spot in the lineup” said Gipson. 


Incoming freshmen Spencer Desbiens, Logan Hatley, and David Wallum are some of the names to keep watch for as the season approaches. “The sophomores set good examples, the leadership is great, which is why we have such good team chemistry” says outfielder Desbiens. “The coaching staff is great, I really like coach Gip, he’s done a great job so far turning around a brand new program and he really cares for all of us individually” said returning red shirt freshman Caleb Smith. 


The young Roadrunners look to make an impact on the the upcoming season, and want nothing more than to start off strong. "We need to compete on every pitch, our goal as a club is to win every series and make the playoffs" says Gipson. With the season just around the corner, Linn-Benton baseball looks to be in full-swing with high hopes and expectations on the upcoming year. 

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Week 1 Forum

Topic 1: About You

- I decided to take this class to see if it interested me, I love reading sports articles and I felt like maybe I could be good at righting about the news! I think just the overall experience will help me in deciding what I want to do with my future career. I am currently a communications major, my dream job is to be a sports commentator for ESPN or some other fashion of sports commentating. Outside of school I really enjoy playing basketball, dancing, singing, and playing my guitar. 

Topic 2: 

Things that I am looking to accomplish in this class are a new set of writing skills and listening skills. I also think this class will help me stay on top of things and keeping my priorities straight. I've never done anything like this before so it will be interesting to see if I really enjoy this style of writing. 

I will be looking to get into the Commuter as much as I can with my stories that is definitely something I want to achieve. Having 6 or more stories in the paper would be a good long-term goal for me. For a short-term goal I need to just get familiar with the writing style and approach that I will take when interviewing students/faculty. My last goal is to end with nothing but an A or higher in this class!

Topic 3:

My first story I am seeking to deliver is how the upcoming Linn-Benton Baseball season is shaping out. I want to uncover who the prospects are for the upcoming season. 

I want to interview some of the returning sophomores, they have the experience from last year under the newly found coach Ryan Gipson.
I also plan to interview the 2nd year coach Gipson and see what he has in store for the season ahead. For an outside source I might look into last year's statistics and provide stats from last year to backup returning sophomores. 

1. So Coach, what have you seen out of your players so far in the off-season?

2. What is the expectation this year, especially from the sophomores?

3. What challenges will your team look to overcome this year?

4. What do you think of the coaching staff? (players)

5. Who will be filling in big shoes from last year? (Gipson)