Pirate Galaxy » 20.3 points per game, has paced the W

The National Womens Hockey League is slashing its player salaries in half in a drastic cost-cutting measure thats regarded as one of the second-year leagues only chances to continue operating this season.The players have been informed in the interest of keeping the league financially viable that we have to enact salary cuts effective immediately, NWHL Commissioner Dani Rylan said during a conference call with reporters Friday.We fell short on some projections and we had to pivot and make a business decision at the end of the day, she said. And the decision was, if we want to exist and we want to save the season, we have to make the appropriate decisions to do so.Without specifying the amount of the cuts, Rylan went public with her announcement a day after she informed team executives and players.A person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press that player salaries were cut by 50 percent, which represents as much as $540,000 in savings. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because Rylan declined to disclose any figures.Rylan did say the cuts do not apply to league employees and team employees who are not players.She said team executives will have added responsibilities in an effort to increase ticket sales and attract sponsors. The four-team league has franchises in Boston; New York; Stamford, Connecticut; and Buffalo, New York.Rylan also announced Dunkin Donuts, the NWHLs largest corporate sponsor, is committing an additional $50,000 investment in money that will go directly to paying players.She blamed part of the cash-flow crunch on declining attendance a month into the season.Last year, the NWHL became North Americas first womens hockey league to pay player salaries, which range from $10,000 to $26,000.The cuts represent a major setback for an upstart league Rylan established in what was essentially a startup venture supported by investors and corporate sponsors.Midway through last season, Rylan was so confident the NWHL model would be a success that she entertained questions of expansion.Now, there are questions as to whether the league will be around for a third season.I think we can agree after yesterdays news it would be pretty foolish of me to guarantee anything, Rylan said. But we have every hope and expectation that the league will be around for many years to come.New York Riveters defenseman Ashley Johnston said players were shocked upon being informed of the need for pay cuts.When I first heard the news, I think probably gut-wrenching is the best way to describe it, Johnston said. Its kind of going through the different stages of mourning. Youre sad, youre frustrated, all the things that youd expect.Though a setback, she doesnt foresee players choosing to opt out of their contracts.The easy thing right now would be for everyone to pack up their bags and go home, Johnston said. But Im never one to really think that the easy thing is the right thing to do. Its just going to be figuring out our next steps and where we go as a team, as a league and as a family from here.NWHL players options are also very limited when it comes to continuing to play after college.The Canadian Womens Hockey League is a month into its 10th season and the rosters of its five teams -- including one in Boston -- are mostly set.CWHL players also arent paid salaries but instead earn prize money for winning the regular season and playoff titles. The league has announced plans to begin paying players some sort of a stipend as early as next season.Though many in hockey circles -- including Calgary Flames President Brian Burke -- have lobbied for the two leagues to merge, Rylan has been cool to the proposal in part because the two operate on different business models.On Thursday, Rylan said she has had amicable talks with CWHL officials, but added she has nothing new to report on any merger plans.Rylan said she did not reach her decision to cut salaries lightly.It came after trying everything we could from a business perspective to avoid it, Rylan said. Yes, this is a setback. But sometimes you have to take a step back to move forward. And thats what were learning here.---This story has been corrected following a new estimate from a person with direct knowledge of the decision to reflect that the savings are expected to be $540,000, not $440,000, and corrects the spelling of Riveters defensemans name to Johnston, not Johnson. 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It will be a classic confrontation between No. 23 Texas youthful balance and Northwesterns experience when the two teams square off Monday in the semifinals of the 10th annual Legends Classic at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.The contest follows the first semifinal game between Notre Dame and Colorado. The losers of Mondays games square off at 2:30 p.m. CST Tuesday while the winners meet at 5 p.m.The Longhorns are off to a 3-0 start, most recently defeating Eastern Washington 89-52 on Thursday. Sophomore swingman Tevin Mack paced five Texas players in double figures with 19 points off the bench.No Texas player saw more than 28 minutes of action during the contest (28 by freshman center Jarrett Allen and senior guard Kendal Yancy). Eight UT players saw at least 19 minutes of action.At this point last season we had played better competition than weve played this year so everythings relative, Texas coach Shaka Smart said after Thursdays win. Now the question is: Can we go on the road? The competition level will go up in New York. We will see better athletes. We will see more size. We will see better teams. How do we respond to that?In his two games, Mack paces Texas with an average of 16.5 points per contest. He leads six different Texas players who are averaging double figures in scoring through their first three games. Five Longhorns are averaging at least 5.0 rebounds per game.Texas has excellent on the defensive end as well, especially at running shooters off the 3-point line. Opponents are shooting just 33.5 percent from the field against the Longhorns. Texas has limited its first three opponents to 21.8 percent (17-of- 78) shooting from 3-point range and held Eastern Washington to 14.3 percent (3-21) from beyond the arc in Thursdays victory.Through the Longhorns first three contests, Yancy ranks second on the squad in scoring (13.7 ppg), leads the team in steals (5) and is tied for the team lead in minutes (29.3 mpg). He has converted 54.2 percent (13-24) from the floor and 84.6 percent (11-13) free throws this season.Were pretty confident right now and we are in a good place, Yancy said. We just have to keep improving. We have a lot of young guys who aare willing to give it their all, willing to improve and grow every day.dddddddddddd Just the energy they bring is good for the team in general.Northwestern (2-1) heads to the Big Apple off a buzzer-beating 70-68 loss at Butler on Wednesday.We went into that game expecting to win, so it hurt, Northwestern coach Chris Collins said. In the past, maybe it was okay to go to Butler and play them to the last shot of the game. To us, thats not what we were looking for. I sensed an anger in the team last night, which I liked. They know it was a game we very well could have got. We just didnt close the deal.Sophomore forward Vic Law led four Wildcats in double figures with 17 points, including hitting 5 of 6 3-point attempts. The contest featured 17 ties and 16 lead changes.Im confident in how our teams going to be, Law said. But Im angry that we let it slip away. We have to win games like (the loss to Butler). Its as simple as that.Law has enjoyed a solid return to the Northwestern attack after missing all of the 2015-16 campaign due to shoulder injury. Hes the teams leading scorer at 20.3 points per game, has paced the Wildcats in scoring in all three games and tallied at least 17 points in each contest, including a career-high 26 vs. Eastern Washington on Nov. 14. Through three games he is shooting 64.5 percent from the field (20-of-31).Northwestern returns 61.4 percent of its scoring and 71.4 percent of its rebounding from a year ago. The Wildcats welcome back three starters and 10 letter winners overall from a team that won 20 regular-season games for the first time in school history.Its been 42 years since Texas and Northwestern have played on the basketball court, and the teams have split two previous meetings. The Wildcats won 73-71 on Dec. 21, 1965 in Memphis, Tenn., while the Longhorns won 63-59 on Dec. 23, 1974 in Austin.The Wildcats and Longhorns already have one common opponent this season: Eastern Washington. Northwestern beat the Eagles 86-72 on Nov. 14 in Evanston while Texas rumbled past EWU 85-52 three nights later in Austin. ' ' '