PLAYING THE PONIES
Sam Houston Race Park selections for Friday, Feb. 28
Feb 28, 2020, 6:52 am
Coady photography
Here are my selections for Friday night at Sam Houston Race Park. These are not meant to be in exact order, but merely the four horses I think have the best chance to win. For beginners, I suggest exacta boxes with three horses, using two of mine and one of your own. And you can always pick up a copy of Acing Racing 2016 to learn everything you need to know. (These are the picks and format that are available on the free tip sheet at SHRP).
FIRST
3-1-7-6
FLYING J GIDEON showed improvement in last and should move forward
SECOND
5-2-1-7
EVIL WAYS has been in decent form and should be in the mix
THIRD
11-12-10-8
CYPRESS POINT has been on some tough circuits; fits well here
FOURTH
2-5-6-7
AMERICAN LEAGUE was a beaten favorite in last; should fare better here
FIFTH
2-10-7-12
CATCH THE DEVIL might have finally found the right spot
SIXTH
4-12-10-6
BO TEE should have an improved effort if he gets back on the turf
SEVENTH
1-11-6-9
MUCHO DINERO just missed in meet debut; could get it done here
EIGHTH
3-8-7-1
MAX PANDOWDY has been OK against solid foes
NINTH
8-7-1-4
BLUE HARBOR has been solid in both starts at SHRP
TENTH
2-6-7-9
HONG KONG HELEN just missed in last and should be right there again
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
How Texans are poised for most unpredictable draft in the Stroud era
Apr 21, 2025, 2:46 pm
Stephen Curry scored 31 points and the Golden State Warriors built a huge lead and held on to beat the Houston Rockets 95-85 on Sunday night in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series.
The seventh-seeded Warriors led by 23 in the third quarter, but second-seeded Houston cut it to 69-60 entering the fourth.
A basket by Amen Thompson with about 5 1/2 minutes remaining got the Rockets within four. Curry hit his fifth 3-pointer of the night a few seconds later to make it 82-75.
The Rockets cut it to four again with about 2 1/2 minutes left on a 3 by Fred VanVleet. This time Moses Moody hit a 3-pointer to start a 7-0 run that made it 91-80 and sent fans streaming for the exits.
Game 2 of the best-of seven series is Wednesday night in Houston.
It was the 100th career playoff coaching victory for Golden State’s Steve Kerr, who moved into a tie with Larry Brown for sixth-most playoff wins.
Curry was 12 of 19 from the field, hitting 5 of 9 3-pointers. Jimmy Butler added 25 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals in his playoff debut for the Warriors after joining them in a trade from Miami in February.
The Rockets, who returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2020, got 26 points from Alperen Sengun in his first career postseason game. But VanVleet and Jalen Green struggled, making just 7 of 34 shots.
VanVleet was 2 of 13 from 3-point range on a night Houston made just 6 of 29 3-pointers and was 11 of 20 on free throws.
The Warriors got a spot in the playoffs with a 121-116 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night in the Play-In Tournament.
They got yet another playoff victory over the Rockets after eliminating them four times from 2015-19.