Elis returns for rivalry match
5 kicks from Houston Dynamo's 1-1 draw with Sporting KC
Jun 3, 2019, 10:40 am
Credit: Houston Dynamo
The Houston Dynamo were held to a 1-1 draw by rivals Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night at BBVA Compass Stadium. On a night where Booker T's Reality of Wrestling hosted a show outside the stadium prior to the match, Alberth Elis came up with his best "scissors kick" to secure a point at home.
Here are five observations from the draw:
1) Elis continues to show his worth
MLS All-Star candidate Alberth Elis missed the previous match due to a concussion sustained two weeks ago in a home win against D.C. United. It took him a little while to get into this game but, once he did, he ended up salvaging what could've been a worse result.
The 23-year-old Honduran has been the engine behind the Dynamo's 21 goals this season. He appears on the stat sheet with five goals and six assists but has been influential on 15 occasions that the team has found the back of the net.
Fans continue to worry about the uncertainty of his future with the team with the expectation that a European team may pry him away this summer. Whether the future sees him depart or stay, the Dynamo would not as good as the have been, so far, without him.
2) Attacking trio shows rust
The Dynamo featured forwards Alberth Elis, Mauro Manotas and Romell Quioto in the starting lineup for only the third time this year in regular season play, sixth across all competitions. Their previous start was short lived after Elis left the match with a concussion 10 minutes into the match.
On Saturday night, there was evidence of how dangerous the Dynamo can be with their three best attacking players on the field. They were rusty, however, and could never deliver the final result.
This attacking trio can be one of the most fearful in the league again, if and when they finally are able to garner some consistency. Elis and Quioto now head to international duty with Honduras and what happens upon their return is a wild guess.
3) Midfield maestro MIA
Tomas Martinez arrived with plenty of pomp and circumstance in the summer of 2017. Dynamo fan was enthusiastic to finally get the number 10 that they clammored so much for and even more so in one that was a product of one of Argentina's top clubs.
The former River Plate youngster had his best season for the Dynamo last year with a team-high 13 assists. This year, is a different story.
Martinez's one assist is unacceptable 13 games into the season and a solid indicator that the man responsible for creating chances is having a rough go at it. The wins prior were able to mask his absence but, with games getting more challenging as the season rolls on, the Dynamo are going to need more effectiveness out of their midfield - whether that comes from Martinez or elsewhere.
4) Defense getting shaky
The defense has to be looking as Satuday's draw as a loss. Kansas City only generated five shots, only one on target, but that's all they needed to take a point.
A main point of emphasis in the offseason, the defense has improved from their counterparts last season. The bad news is they are still a sure bet for giving up at least a goal per game.
The Dynamo will lose three of their defenders on the international break: Kiki Stuna, Maynor Figueroa and A.J. DeLaGarza. Frankly, it may be tough times ahead with a stacked summer schedule.
5) Halfway through the home schedule
The Dynamo have played half of their home schedule as of Saturday. They hold an undefeated home record of 6-0-3 and have picked up 21 of their 24 points inside the friendly confines of BBVA Compass Stadium.
Now comes the challenging part of the schedule with three straight road games awaiting the Dynamo at the end of this month. They'll have a bit more balanced schedule in July but their depth will be tested by the international call ups.
Dynamo player of the game: Alberth Elis
Next up:
Tuesday, June 11 vs. Austin Bold (7:00 p.m. CT, ESPN+)
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Road teams made a stand on Monday, and a pair of series are suddenly knotted up.
Day 3 of the NBA playoffs was about the visitors. Kawhi Leonard scored 39 points — his most in any game since December 2023, his most in a playoff game since 2021 — to lift the Los Angeles Clippers past Denver 105-102. And in New York, Cade Cunningham scored 33 points, Dennis Schröder had a big 3-pointer with 55.7 seconds left and Detroit beat the Knicks 100-94 for its first playoff win in 17 years.
Those series are now tied at a game apiece, heading back to L.A. and Detroit.
There are three games on Tuesday, with Indiana playing host to Milwaukee, Oklahoma City hosting Memphis and the Los Angeles Lakers hosting Minnesota. The Pacers and Thunder are seeking 2-0 leads; the Lakers will try to make it 1-1 before the series shifts to Minnesota.
Tuesday's national TV schedule
All times Eastern
7 p.m. — Milwaukee at Indiana (NBA TV)
7:30 p.m. — Memphis at Oklahoma City (TNT/truTV)
10 p.m. — Minnesota at L.A. Lakers (TNT/truTV)
Wednesday's national TV schedule
All times Eastern
7 p.m. — Orlando at Boston (TNT/truTV)
7:30 p.m. — Miami at Cleveland (NBA TV)
9:30 p.m. — Golden State at Houston (TNT/truTV)
Thursday's national TV schedule
All times Eastern
7 p.m. — New York at Detroit (TNT)
9:30 p.m. — Oklahoma City at Memphis (TNT)
10 p.m. — Denver at L.A. Clippers (NBA TV)
Betting odds
Oklahoma City (+175) is favored to win the NBA title, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, followed closely by Boston (+200). After that, it's Cleveland (+600), Golden State (+1400), the Los Angeles Lakers (+1600), the Los Angeles Clippers (+2000), New York (+4000), Minnesota (+4000) and Denver (+5000).
Denver's odds took a big hit after the Nuggets lost Game 2 at home to the Clippers — whose odds, in turn, improved greatly.
From there, it's Indiana (+8000), Houston (+10000), Milwaukee (+15000), Detroit (+35000), then Miami, Memphis and Orlando (all +100000).
Golden State, the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference, is favored (-375) to win its series against No. 2 seed Houston. The Warriors entered that matchup favored, and Sunday's win moved those odds even more.
Other underdogs now favored to advance: Minnesota and the Clippers.
Award season
The first of the major NBA awards comes out on Tuesday, when the league announces the sixth man of the year — either Detroit's Malik Beasley, Cleveland's Ty Jerome or Boston's Payton Pritchard.
It’ll be revealed at 7 p.m. Eastern on TNT.
The other awards this week: clutch player (Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Eastern on TNT), defensive player of the year (Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Eastern on TNT), and the hustle awards (Friday at 2 p.m.).
Key upcoming events
April 26 — NBA early entry deadline.
May 3 — Earliest possible start date for Round 2 of the playoffs. Series could also start on May 4, May 5 or May 6.
May 12 — Draft lottery, Chicago.
May 18 or 20 — Game 1, Western Conference finals.
May 19 or 21 — Game 1, Eastern Conference finals.
June 5 — Game 1, NBA Finals. (Other games: June 8, June 11, June 13, June 16, June 19 and Game 7, if necessary, will be June 22.)
June 25 — NBA draft, first round.
June 26 — NBA draft, second round.
Stories of note
— Preview of Tuesday's games: Pacers-Bucks, Thunder-Grizzlies, Lakers-Timberwolves.
— Tom Thibodeau isn't happy with how Game 2 was officiated.
— Mavs GM Nico Harrison didn't know how beloved Luka Doncic was in Dallas.
— The NBA finalists for seven awards are released.
— The playoffs could be wide-open. Again.
— A look inside the numbers of this season, headed into the playoffs.
— Cleveland's Kenny Atkinson wins NBCA coach of the year award.
Stats of the day
— The Pistons snapped a 15-game playoff losing streak. Another loss would have tied the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (1975-79) for the second-longest in U.S. pro sports at 16. The playoff-futility record is held by baseball's Minnesota Twins, who once dropped 18 straight.
— The last time Detroit won a playoff game before Monday, LeBron James was 249th on the all-time scoring list and Gregg Popovich was 19th on the all-time coaching wins list. They're both No. 1 now by wide margins.
— Strange but true: The last three playoff triple-doubles have come in losing efforts. Nikola Jokic had one Monday night in Denver's loss to the Clippers and Luka Doncic's final two playoff ones for Dallas last season — one against Minnesota in the West finals, the other against Boston in the NBA Finals — both were in losses.