Kansas City Command Lose Second In A Row, Fall to Spokane 70-46

Kansas City Command quarterback, Brian Jones and wide receiver Bret Smith connected for five touchdowns Saturday night (tying a franchise record), but Spokane lite up the scoreboard and KC dropped their second game in a row, losing (70-46) in front of 8,628 fans at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena.  Shock QB Kyle Rowley spread the ball around to five different receivers, passing for 272 yards and eight touchdowns.
“It’s the same old same old,” said Command Coach Danton Barto.  “Our starting quarterback is out and we don’t know if Zack’s ready to play. Brian is giving us everything he can but we’re just out of sync at times. We’ll go back to the drawing board and see what we can do.”
Jones got his second start for KC stepping in for the injured Matt Gutierrez, but never found a consistent rhythm.  The Command defense, led by JC Neal’s eight tackles, helped keep the Shock in check during the first half; that allowed Jones to find his favorite target of the night, Bret Smith who had three touchdowns by the halfway point.  KC and Spokane traded scores and went into halftime tied at 28 points apiece.
On connecting with Jones for eight touchdowns in just two games, Command wide receiver Bret Smith said, “I wish we could put together some wins with it, but Brian and I have that chemistry dating back to our Arkansas days (they played together at Arkansas in 2010 under Coach Barto).  “We’ve just gotta keep working hard and hopefully it will turn into wins.  We’re not pointing any fingers; we’ve just got to improve as a team.”
Spokane came out firing on all cylinders in the third quarter, quickly going up 35-28 with a six yard touchdown catch by Steven Black at the 12:28 mark and never relinquished their lead.  The Shock receiving core of Black, Rod Harper, Jefferey Soloman, and Adron Tennell kept KC’s defense on their heels all night and five different Shock receivers combined for 26 catches and 272 yards.  Spokane’s defense gave KC a taste of their own medicine compiling four sacks, two interceptions, and three fumble recoveries; scoring 21 points off turnovers alone.
“We keep turning the ball over, and we keep losing,” said Barto. “It’s not some secret formula and we do it at crucial points and it hurts us, and we’re just not good enough to recover right now.”

Command Try To Get Back On Winning Track In Spokane

This week, the Kansas City Command (2-9) travel to Spokane to take on the Shock (6-5) at Spokane Arena with a 7:00pm PST kickoff on Saturday, June 9th, 2012.
Last week the Command came up just short against the league’s top-passing offense as Utah Blaze QB Tommy Grady finished with 436 yards, passing for seven touchdowns, one rushing TD and walked away with the National Guard MVP of the game. Command defense held Utah to under 60 points for just the fourth time this season, but the Blaze (7-5) scored on their first 6 possessions of the game, and went on to win 55-45 over the Command (2-9) in front of 4,618 at Sprint Center.
With Matt Gutierrez placed on IR late Friday, Brian Jones (6’2, 205 Toledo) stepped in at quarterback. Jones had been out of the league since 2008 but played for Command Coach Danton Barto on three different teams, winning the af2 championship in 2005 with the Memphis Xplorers. In his first game back Jones completed 68.2 % of his passes for 268 yards and 4 TDs.
The Shock are coming off a loss to Chicago which ended their three-game winning streak. Having three turnovers in the game, the Shock were unable to match the hot hand of Rush QB Russ Michna who threw for over 400 yards and 9 TDs last week. Kyle Rowley threw for a season high of 402 yards with 8 TDs, but two costly interceptions allowed Chicago to maintain their lead and hold on to an 11-point victory with a final score of 73-62.
Kansas City’s offense (ranked 16th in Passing and 11th in Rushing) will arrive in Spokane lead by their trio of receivers WR Syvelle Newton has recorded 42 receptions for 413 yards and 9 TDs, Bret Smith with 37 receptions for 485 yards and 8 TDs and Arman Robinson with 32 receptions for 342 yards and 7 TDs. Defensively (ranked 5th in Opp Passing and 1st in Opp Rushing), Kansas City has given up 2,890 yards in the air and 62 TDs this season.
Spokane’s offense (ranked 12th in Passing and 14th in Rushing) have posted no less than 62 points in each of their last five games led by QB Kyle Rowley who has thrown for 2,193 yards, 46 TDs and 12 INTs. WR Adron Tennell leads the team through ten games with 85 receptions, 1,029 yards and 20 TDs while being accompanied by Brandon Thompkins with 74 receptions, 884 yards, and 26 TDs. Defense (ranked 16th in Opp Passing and 11th in Opp Rushing) will enter this week’s match-up with a healthy secondary led by DB and KR Specialist Terrance Sanders who not only leads the league in Tackles (76 solo, 13 assisted ) but has recorded seven INTs, four KR TDs, and one missed FG attempt that he returned for a TD as well.
Returning to Spokane to begin a two-game home stint, Coach Andy Olson recognizes the need to perform strongly against Kansas City. “We are never going to look beyond a team or count a team like Kansas City out, they have as much as we do to prove each week and are hungry for a win. We need to use this game as an opportunity to get better and do everything we can to get a win before we compete against our West Division rivals in the weeks to come.”
The Command is (1-1) vs. Shock having split the season series last year.  Kansas City lost on the road but won the rematch at the Sprint Center.
The game will be broadcast on SportsRadio 810 WHB AM, KSMO-TV 62 and Ustream.tv/kansascitycommand.

KC Command Recognizes TOP COPS Award Winner

Kansas City Command executive Eddie Kennison joined representatives from the Johnson County Sheriff’s office, and friends and family of Master Deputy Perry Williams last Friday when he was recognized for receiving a TOP COPS Award from the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO).  Master Deputy Williams received the award on May 12, 2012 at an awards dinner and reception.  He was nominated for this prestigious event by U.S. Attorney for the State of Kansas, Barry R. Grissom.
Kennison extended Master Deputy Williams recognition to Saturday night’s Command game at Sprint Center where friends and family joined him for a special behind the scenes tour and in-game recognition.  The Johnson County Sheriff’s Department Honor Guard was also featured as part of the pre-game lineup.  
Master Deputy Williams’ award was the result of a multi-jurisdictional, multi-state case that began in April 2010 and concluded in September 2011.  The culmination of Deputy Williams’ hard work was a coordinated take down of multiple drug targets that resulted in the seizure of significant drugs, firearms, assets and drug forfeiture judgments of $3,226,000.  Deputy Williams partnered with the Kansas Highway Patrol, Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, The United States Marshall Service, and the Internal Revenue Service to coordinate the successful investigation of 23 defendants.  U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said “Deputy Williams went the extra mile in providing extraordinary help during the investigation and trial preparation in this matter.  Deputy Williams acted as a true professional.”
Sheriff Frank Denning said “I am extremely proud of Master Deputy Williams’ professionalism in this investigation.  His hard work and dedication is a shining example of the quality of service the men and women of the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office provide to our community.”
The TOP COPS Award educates the American public about the nation’s heroes and to pays tribute to law enforcement officers from federal, state, county and local agencies across the nation for outstanding service to their communities.
Another local business, Prairie Life Fitness was also on hand Friday and awarded a one-year free family membership to Master Deputy Williams for his achievement.
The Command travel to Spokane Shock Saturday, June 9th at 9 p.m. (CT).  The game will air live on SportsRadio 810 WHB, KSMO TV-62 and Ustream.tv/kansascitycommand.

Mavericks Re-Sign Dickson, Pszenyczny and Simoes

The Missouri Mavericks announced Monday the Central Hockey League (CHL) team has re-signed three players for the 2012-13 season.  Forward John-Scott Dickson and defensemen Dave Pszenyczny and David Simoes all will play their second seasons with Missouri in 2012-13.  The Mavericks have now signed four players for the upcoming season.
“We are excited to be able to bring back some of our key contributors in Dickson, Pszenyczny and Simoes,” said Mavericks’ President and General Manager Brent Thiessen.  “They all played a huge part in our success last season and we know that they are ready to compete again to try and accomplish our goals.”
Dickson, 28 (4/10/84), heads into his third season and second with the Mavericks.  The North York, Ontario native finished tied for second on the Mavericks with 27 goals and he was one of just three players to play in all 66 games last season.  Dickson finished with 57 points (27-30=57) and 12 penalty minutes in the regular season, and he added 10 points (7-3=10) in 11 playoff games.  In his rookie season in 2010-11, the 6-foot-3, 212-pound forward played in 54 games in the ECHL and had 26 points (8-18=26) split between Idaho and Gwinnett.  Prior to turning pro, he played five seasons for the University of New Brunswick and won two CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) National Championships.  He finished his collegiate career with 50 goals and 78 assists for 128 points in 111 games played.
Pszenyczny (pshuh-NITCH-nee), 27 (2/18/85), is coming off his best season as a pro in which he had career highs in goals (14), assists (22) and points (36), all in his first season with the Mavericks.  The 6-foot, 191-pound defenseman was also one of three players to play in all 66 games with the Mavericks last season.  Prior to coming to Missouri, Pszenyczny played three seasons with the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs and accounted for 20 goals, 34 assists and 359 penalty minutes in 170 games played.  He won the 2011 Presidents’ Cup Championship with the Mudbugs.  From Sterling Heights, Michigan, Pszenyczny played his first two seasons in the ECHL with Phoenix, Alaska and Reading.  He also played four games for the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Toronto Marlies during his rookie season.  In total, Pszenyczny has 133 points (45-88=133) and 708 penalty minutes in 346 games played as a pro.
Simoes, 27 (3/9/85), joined the Mavericks in December of last season and played in the final 41 games for Missouri.   The Vanderhoof, British Columbia native finished with 14 points (4-10=14) and 81 penalty minutes for Missouri after starting the season with the Louisiana IceGators of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL).  In 17 games with the IceGators, the 5-foot-10, 205-pound defenseman accounted for 10 points (2-8=10) and 38 penalty minutes.  Prior to playing in Louisiana, Simoes played the previous four seasons in the CHL with five different teams.  He has played in a total of 260 CHL contests with 61 points (14-47=61) and he has added 753 penalty minutes.  He played five seasons of junior hockey in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) before turning pro.

AMC Mainstreet gets new operator: Alamo Drafthouse

The AMC Mainstreet 6 in Downtown Kansas City is switching operators.
Alamo Drafthouse, a movie theater operator based in Austin, Texas, announced this weekend that it was taking over the theater, which AMC Entertainment Inc. opened in the Kansas City Power & Light District in 2009.
The announcement didn’t say when the takeover will happen and provided few details of planned changes to the theater, which also includes screens with full food and drink options.
“For the time being, the Mainstreet will continue to operate business-as-usual on its own while signature Alamo touches are implemented — touches like our ad-free custom preshows, ironclad no-talking/no-texting policy, and the elimination of the traditional front row for a better viewing experience,” the company said on its website.
AMC officials said they were not legally able to discuss the change yet.
The Alamo website did say it planned to keep the theater’s interior bar, which it will rename The Chesterfield Club and emphasize Kansas City’s jazz history, with dancing and live entertainment.
The Mainstreet is jointly operated by AMC and The Cordish Co. Last year, AMC CEO Gerry Lopez said his company and Cordish were in arbitration proceedings because the two differed on the theater’s future.
Two weeks ago, Lopez said the joint venture was coming to an end but provided few details. Neither side has said what will happen to the Midland by AMC, a downtown theater and concert location that’s also part of the joint venture.
Alamo is known for its unusual programming, including nights devoted to cult hits of the 1980s and 1990s, action movies where the audience gets free cap guns, movies paired with wine tastings, and events where the audience is encouraged to yell out favorite movie lines or make fun of the film.
The company has 18 locations opened or under construction in Texas, Virginia, California, Colorado and New York. It also has a mobile unit that holds screenings on a portable projection system throughout the country and overseas.
It has set up a Facebook page to update plans for Mainstreet.

Command Win Streak Ends At Two, Fall To Utah 55-45

Kansas City Command’s top-ranked defense came up just short against the league’s top-passing offense as Utah Blaze QB Tommy Grady finished with 436 yards, passing for seven touchdowns, one rushing TD and walked away with the National Guard MVP of the game.  Command defense held Utah to under 60 points for just the fourth time this season, but the Blaze (7-5) scored on their first 6 possessions of the game, and went on to win 55-45 over the Command (2-9) in front of 4,618 at Sprint Center.
“I thought we played hard,” said Command Coach Danton Barto.  “It’s tough going in with a new quarterback, anytime.  You know bringing Brian in straight off the street, I thought he played well.  He’ll get more settled down, I thought he did some great things for us, obviously made a couple mistakes but he’ll clean those things up as he knocks the rust off.”
Blaze QB Grady started off hot, throwing a 38 yard touchdown pass on Utah’s second offense play of the game, Blaze WR Shaun Kauleinamoku had three touchdowns in the first half alone and Tysson Poots contributed another two TD’s extending Utah’s streak of scoring at least 50 points in 11 consecutive games.
Brian Jones started for the Command in place of Matt Gutierrez who was placed on IR late Friday.  Jones (6’2, 205 Toledo) has been out of the league since 2008 but has played for Command Coach Danton Barto on three different teams, winning the af2 championship in 2005 with the Memphis Xplorers.  Jones got off to a slow start turning the ball over twice in the first half, but settled in and took just one play in the Command’s second series to throw a 42 yard touchdown to Bret Smith with 6:33 left in first quarter putting the Command up 10-7.
Utah answered nine plays later with a two yard TD catch by Poots to go up 13-10 at the end of the first quarter.  Though KC special teams kept Utah starting from inside their own five yard line for the first four series, the Blaze drove down the field ending with 22 yard TD to Kauleinamoku to put Utah up 22-10.  Brian Jones turned the ball over for the second time with an interception by David Hyland at Utah’s one yard line and the Blaze capitalized with Kauleinamoku’s second TD of game to put the Blaze up 29-10 with 5:31 left in first half.
Brian Jones and Command started to get in a rhythm with a 15 yard touchdown pass to Jackie Chambers to keep the Command close 29-17 with 3:31 left in first half.  Utah’s quick scoring offense answered with a five yard touchdown to Poots second to go up 35-17 but left enough time on the clock for Jones to connect with Bret Smith for his second TD of the game to keep the Command close, 36-24 headed into halftime.
The Blaze start the second half right where they left off scoring when QB Grady rushed for a two yard touchdown to put the Blaze up 42-24 with 7:39 left in third quarter.   Command QB Jones and KC’s defense kept battling, cutting the lead to 48-45 when Bret Smith scored his second TD of the night with 5:26 left in the fourth quarter, but the Command could never get close enough to take the lead, eventually losing 55-45.
Coach Barto summed up the night, “Their offense put it to us pretty good and scored a lot of points, held the possession… when they do that you can’t make mistakes on your side of the ball offensively and they deserved to win tonight.”
The Command travel to Spokane next week to take on the Shock.

Big 12 will keep men's basketball tournament in Kansas City for two more years

The Big 12 Conference is extending its deal with the Sprint Center to host its men's basketball tournament.
The two-year agreement takes the deal through the 2016 season. It also provides the Big 12 with the first right to championship dates after 2016.
Incoming Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said the Big 12 has deep roots in Kansas City, which has hosted the men’s basketball tournament for 11 of the past 16 years.
“We are very excited about hosting and featuring this tournament in the Kansas City area. The Sprint Center is a great venue,” Bowlsby said. “The history of the tournament and the league in this area is rich, and we’re very excited about extending and enhancing our relationship with Kansas City.”
Kansas State University President Kirk Schulz said the proximity of the Sprint Center to the Power & Light District makes Kansas City a great venue for the tournament. He said the extension is a testament to that and a recognition of the support the tournment gets in Kansas City.
Bernadette Gray-Little, chancellor of the University of Kansas, agreed.
“I claim Kansas City as a Big 12 city,” she said. “It’s a great place to have a tournament, and the city has rolled out the red carpet for us.”
The deal, which formerly went through the 2014 season, has been a big economic boost to Kansas City.
In March, Kansas City hosted men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments for two conferences and crowned a national champion, making it one of the busiest college basketball cities in the nation. The economic benefit was estimated at about $18 million.
The men’s Big 12 basketball tournament has sold out every year of the current contract, which started three years ago, attracting 18,000 visitors a day to Kansas City during the tournament
“This means a lot to our city, our sports fans and our local businesses,” said Kathy Nelson, president of the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation. “We appreciate that the Big 12 recognizes Kansas city as a strong, vibrant and championship-level city with a long history of supporting major college sporting events, especially the Big 12 Conference.”
In November, the Big 12 announced that the women's basketball tournament would leave for Dallas after the 2013 season, though the men's would stay through 2014.
The future of Big 12 tournaments in Kansas City had been a topic of discussion after the University of Missouri announced that it would leave the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference in 2012.
“This has been a tumultuous time over the last 24 months for our conference, but I think the extension of this agreement, the settling of many of the issues that made things tumultuous, caused us to have a very bright outlook and an expectation that this will be one of our featured events on the annual schedule for many years to come,” Bowlsby said. “We are very excited to be making this extension, and we’re enthusiastic about remaining in Kansas City. We think this will once again be one of the premier sporting events in the country and one that will be greatly enhanced by its northern home in Kansas City.”
Kansas City Mayor Pro Tem Cindy Circo and Nelson both said the city has not discussed tournament hosting with the SEC or any other conference except the Big 12.