Page 15 - Florida Sentinel 12-25-18

Sports
Shareef O’Neal Looking Forward To Basketball Return After Successful Heart Surgery
SHAREEF O’NEAL
Shareef O’Neal took to Twitter on December 13 to in- form fans that he “made it” through a successful heart surgery and is now on the road to recovery.
“I made it, Thank you for all the love and support! I re- ally appreciate all your thoughts and prayers, that’s what helped me through this surgery. I’m on the road to re- covery, and I’ll be back soon...better than ever,” read a message on his official Twitter profile.
O’Neal, the son of Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, was diagnosed with a heart condition in September during a routine check-up. He will re- portedly miss his entire fresh- man season at UCLA, but he’s already talking about his re- turn to the court.
Chris Paul Expected To ‘Miss Some Time’ With Hamstring Injury
CHRIS PAUL
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Chris Paul is ex- pected to miss time with a hamstring injury.
CP3 left Thursday night’s Houston Rockets game against the Miami Heat in the second quarter due to his hamstring.
The Rockets lost the game 101-99, with Paul only playing 13 minutes before departing. CP has played 26 of the Rock- ets’ 31 games this season. He has been bothered by his left hamstring this season. Last season he dealt with a right hamstring injury, which caused him to be unavailable at the end of the Western Con- ference Finals against the Warriors.
Ravens Ride Their Dominant
BEAUTY UNLIMITED
MCKEN
This week’s Beauty Unlimited feature is ready for primetime, and is always open to new and exciting opportunities. With a unique name to lead her through the door, we are assured McKen will reach the top, and keep going. She can always be expected to bring out the best in herself, and make those around her feel in- spired. Congratulations to McKen as this week’s Beauty Unlimited feature.
Defense Past Chargers
To Doorstep Of Playoffs
On the most important drive of the Baltimore Ravens’ season, their defense was on the field, and for that they could be grateful. There has not been a defense as consis- tent or as constricting as Bal- timore’s all season. When the offense has struggled or the special teams have sagged, the Ravens had the ultimate fail- safe.
The unit could be dinged only for one thing: It could not, would not force turnovers. The Ravens en- tered Saturday night’s must- win game at the Los Angeles Chargers with the second- fewest takeaways in the NFL.
But this wild Ravens sea- son has been nothing if not one of continual reinvention. And when the moment called for it, there was overlooked in- side linebacker Patrick On- wuasor, punching the ball loose from Antonio Gates a split-second before the tight end was down. There was Tavon Young, the slot cor- nerback with a nose for loose balls, picking up the fumble and sprinting down the side- line. There went the Ravens, about to put away maybe the
Ravens tight end Mark An- drews stiff-arms Chargers safety Jahleel Addae en route to a touchdown.
AFC’s hottest team with a 62- yard defensive touchdown, just one win away from their first playoff appearance since 2014.
With a 22-10 win over the Chargers at StubHub Sta- dium, the Ravens (9-6) turned in another defensive master class — 198 yards allowed, three turnovers forced — and made their playoff path straightforward. If the Pitts- burgh Steelers lose Sunday to the New Orleans Saints, the Ravens need only win their regular season finale against the visiting Cleveland Browns to claim their first AFC North title since 2012. That would secure at least the No. 4 seed and a home game in the wild- card round.
LeBron James Still Wants To Play With Carmelo Anthony
CARMELO ANTHONY AND LEBRON JAMES
LeBron James is not putting pressure on his Los Angeles Lakers to acquire Carmelo Anthony, but he’d be happy if they did.
LeBron and Carmelo were seen dining together while the Lakers were in New York for their Tuesday night game against the Brooklyn Nets. That led to a question after the Lakers’ loss to the Nets about James’ desire to play with Anthony.
James and Anthony were in the same 2003 NBA Draft class and are part of the same friend group that also includes Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul. James’ people have made it known that they’d like Anthony on the Lakers, but nothing has happened on that front.
Anthony is currently on leave from the Houston Rockets after his brief stint with them turned into a bust.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 15