KCMB Kansas City News

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Dangerous Winter Storm Approaching Kansas City

A dangerous winter storm is making its way to the Kansas City area. Meteorologists say that this storm could be the biggest the region has faced in years. The storm is expected to hit the Kansas City area late Wednesday night and continue through Thursday.

The Thursday morning commute could be extremely problematic for drivers. Areas to the north of Kansas City are expected to get up to six inches of snow, while the Kansas City metro will likely get a dangerous mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain. Areas to the south of Kansas City will likely see a mixture of rain and freezing rain.

The largest amount of snow is expected to fall between Leavenworth and Richmond, MO, while St. Joseph will receive a heavy amount of snow as well. The largest amount of ice accumulation will likely take place in a line from Paola, KS to Warrensburg, MO. Areas south of US 50 highway, including southern Kansas City, are expected to receive the most ice from the storm.

A winter storm watch has been issued to the entire Kansas City region, including the counties of Atchison, Miami, Linn, Leavenworth, Wyandotte and Johnson in Kansas and Buchanan, Clinton, Caldwell, Platte, Clay, Ray, Jackson, Lafayette, Cass, Johnson, Bates and Henry in Missouri. This includes the cities of Leavenworth, Overland Park, Olathe, Parkville, Kansas City, Harrisonville and St. Joseph.

Due to the approaching storm, grocery stores across the metro were packed yesterday with people prepared to be stuck in their homes for a few days. Kansas City residents have also taken interest in the storm due to the Weather Channel’s recent announcement that they will start naming winter storms this year.

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Monday, February 18, 2013

Kansas Blows Out Texas

The Kansas Jayhawks may have turned a corner after a disastrous three-game stretch in which they lost to lowly TCU and appeared to be out of the Big 12 title race. After blowing out Kansas State on Monday, KU turned in another impressive performance on Saturday, embarrassing Texas 73-47.

Due to the NBA All-Star break, many former Kansas greats were on hand to see Mario Chalmers get his jersey retired. The current KU squad didn’t disappoint, stifling Texas from the opening jump ball with a great defensive effort led by center Jeff Withey. Withey’s two blocks gave him 265 for his career, breaking Texas’ Chris Mihm’s Big 12 record. Withey also chipped in 15 points, 11 rebounds and four steals. Travis Releford added 15 points in a hot shooting night from beyond the arc, while Ben McLemore added 13 points.

Texas isn’t a good team, but the Longhorns looked downright terrible at times against Kansas nation-leading defense. Texas shot 22 percent from the field and two of 21 from three, while turning the ball over several times in the second half for easy transition baskets for Kansas. McLemore turned one into a 360-degree dunk that wound up being the top play on ESPN’s SportsCenter Saturday night.

Kansas fans have to feel good about how the Jayhawks responded to their three-game losing streak. KU has regained its focus on defense, and the offense finally looks alive. Senior point guard Elijah Johnson has started to playbetter as well, and sophomore Naadir Tharpe has looked impressive in the past couple of games. If the Jayhawks get good production from the point guard position, the team could be primed to make another deep run in the NCAA tournament.

Kansas’ biggest game of the season is coming up, as the Jayhawks travel to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State on Wednesday in a battle for first-place in the Big 12. The Cowboys also won on Saturday, defeating Oklahoma in overtime.

Friday, February 15, 2013

A Closer Look At Kansas' Upcoming Schedule

After once again embarrassing K-State in Allen Fieldhouse, the Jayhawks have grabbed a share of first place in the Big 12 and positioned themselves to make a run at a ninth consecutive Big 12 championship. While blowing out the Wildcats will help the Jayhawks erase the memories of its recent three-game losing streak, KU still has a very tough remaining schedule.

Kansas’ home games are not very daunting, as they face Texas, TCU, West Virginia and Texas Tech in the comfortable confines of Allen Fieldhouse. Texas could present the most problems, as the Longhorns recently got star point guard Myck Kabongo back from suspension. The Longhorns just knocked off a tough Iowa State team in double overtime, and gave Kansas all sorts of problems earlier in the season. Still, Kansas will be the favorite Saturday and a heavy favorite in its other remaining home games.

The road games are where things get tricky for the Jayhawks. First, Kansas will travel to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State – the team that gave Kansas a rare home loss twelve days ago. Oklahoma State has been playing very well lately, and Kansas has a history of stumbling in Stillwater. Things don’t get any easier for KU in its next road game, as they travel to Ames to face Iowa State. The Jayhawks needed a Ben McLemore banked three to force overtime at home against the Cyclones, and lost in Ames last year. Kansas closes out the year visiting the talented – yet inconsistent – Baylor Bears. While KU easily dispatched the Bears earlier in the year, Baylor has NBA talent, and may be fighting for an NCAA tournament berth.

It appears that Kansas’ race for another league title may simply come down to two games: at Oklahoma State and at Iowa State. If KU wins both of these games, it may be impossible for the Jayhawks to not claim at least a share of the league title.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Royals Spring Training Begins, Competition At Pitcher Heats Up

Royals spring training is officially underway! The team has made several key offseason moves in hopes for contending for the playoffs, and several position battles are taking place that could have a big impact on the upcoming season.

Currently, all eyes are on the pitching rotation, as a battle for the fifth starter’s spot has developed. It appears that Luke Hochevar is an early favorite to land the position, but he will have stiff competition from Bruce Chen and Luis Mendoza. Hochevar has the most upside of the group, and manager Ned Yost is still high on the former top overall pick. However, Chen and Mendoza both had solid seasons in 2012, and while Hochevar occasionally flashes brilliance, he had an ERA north of five last year.

Kansas City has high hopes for its rotation, as the additions of James Shields, Wade Davis and Ervin Santana should provide a much-needed improvement. Royals starting pitchers went 47-69 last season with a 5.01 ERA – good for 26th in the majors. The three new additions will be paired with Jeremy Guthrie, who pitched incredibly well for Kansas City at the end of last season.

If Hochevar wins the fifth starter spot, Chen and Mendoza could be added to the bullpen, which already has several talented pitchers. Mendoza was recently named the MVP of the Caribbean Series while he pitched for Mexico, and Chen has been steady for the entirety of his career in Kansas City. If the Royals ever needed a spot-starter, or if a starter suffered an injury, Mendoza and Chen would both be worthy candidates.

Danny Duffy and Felipe Paulino are both recovering from elbow injuries, but the pair could be back sometime around the All-Star break. Duffy and Paulino were starters before getting hurt, and both have pitched well in that role for the Royals.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Domestic Terrorist Christopher Dorner Believed To Be Dead

Former Los Angeles police officer Christopher Dorner, who had gone on a killing rampage over the past couple of weeks before being surrounded by police in a cabin, is believed to be dead. The cabin in California Dorner was surrounded in erupted into a violent fire, and charred human remains have been found. Forensic tests are underway to confirm these remains are Dorner.

The LAPD has said it his highly likely Dorner is deceased, as authorities heard a single gunshot before the cabin was engulfed in flames. SWAT teams on the scene had fired tear gas inside the cabin and had begun tearing down the building’s walls. It is unclear if the SWAT team or Dorner started the fire.

Dorner was charged with killing Riverside police officer Michael Crain and is the main suspect in the killings of Monica Quan and Keith Lawrence. Quan is the daughter of a former L.A. cop that Dorner blamed for his firing after he reported abuse by another officer. The ensuing manhunt for Dorner became a huge national story, as he was labeled a domestic terrorist and a $1 million reward was placed on his head.

According to Police, Dorner had been hiding in cabins in the California wilderness until he was discovered by two cleaning women. Dorner tied the women up with plastic zip ties, stole their car, crashed it, and then stole a truck. The driver of the truck said Dorner used a gun in the robbery, but allowed him to take his dog out of the truck and didn’t cause him any harm.

Officers quickly closed in on Dorner, and gunshots erupted between the two parties. Dorner killed one sheriff’s deputy and wounded another before fleeing through the woods and breaking into a cabin. After a SWAT team surrounded the cabin, a single gunshot was heard – which could potentially have been a suicide shot by Dorner – before the cabin erupted into a violent fire.