SEOUL, South Korea -- The first ice sports event to be held at Pyeongchang -- host of the 2018 Winter Olympics -- started on Friday with the 33rd KSU Short Track Speed Skating Championships.Construction of Gangneung Ice Arena, which will also host figure-skating in February 2018, was finished in December. There will be a total of six new venues in place.The World Cup leg, which sees qualification on Friday with competition on Saturday and Saturday, doubles as a test event for the arena across 10 events, both individual and relay races.Organizers report that the 12,000 seater venue is over 90 percent sold-out.South Korea is a traditional power in speed-skating. Locals are cheering on Choi Min-jeong who hopes to widen her lead in the womens 1,000-meter standings. . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. .C. -- Manny Malhotra had two goals and an assist, leading the Carolina Hurricanes to a 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. . LOUIS -- St. . PAUL, Minn. . -- Eastern Kentucky thrives off creating havoc for others. MILWAUKEE -- Coach Steve Wojciechowski looks at his deep roster at Marquette and sees strength in numbers.Depth and up-tempo basketball will have to make up for a lack of height for the Golden Eagles this season.One-and-done forward Henry Ellenson is now in the NBA. The rebounding and defensive slack must be picked up by a rotation that could go 11 players deep.Were going to have to try to do some things defensively in terms of maybe extending the floor, being disruptive on the defensive end of the ball, Wojciechowski said. In order to do that ... we need to have fresh bodies out there to maintain a certain pace of play, a certain energy level from your group.The 6-foot-11 Ellenson averaged team-highs of 17.0 points and 9.7 rebounds a game. He was a focal point of the offense, and combined with 6-11 center Luke Fischer to give Marquette two rim-protectors.Ellenson is now with the Detroit Pistons, but Fischer is back for his senior season, ready to anchor the middle.After 6-10 sophomore Matt Heldt, a backup center, the roster is filled with guards and swingmen. Six-foot-7 freshman Sam Hauser is the next tallest player on the roster.Marquette finished 20-13 (8-10 Big East) last season but missed the NCAA Tournament. Theyll miss Ellenson, but can compensate in other areas.It goes both ways. Were going to miss him for his rebounding, senior guard Jajuan Johnson said. But now the ball is going to get moved a little bit more. He will be missed, surely.Marquette was picked to finish in the Big East in the preseason coaches poll. Other notes on the Golden Eagles, who open their season on Friday against Vanderbilt in the Veterans Classic in Annapolis, Maryland:BIG LUKEFischer (12.1 points, 6.2 rebounds) is getting ready to run more with all the guards on the roster. Hell need to play more than the 28.2 minutes a game that he averaged last season and stay out of foul trouble.Obviously, we have to be in good shape, running-wise, Fischer said.ddddddddddddWell be able to push the ball up really fast. I think that plays to our advantage, being smaller than most teams.LITTLE GUYSAfter Fischer, the rest of the starting lineup in the preseason game against Rockhurst last week featured Johnson, along with guards Markus Howard, Katin Reinhardt and Haanif Cheatham. Howard, 5-foot-11 freshman, played on the under-17 team for USA Basketball this summer.Six players off the bench played at least 16 minutes against Rockhurst.Were going to have a lot of lineups that mix four perimeter guys with one post guy, Wojciechowski said. In todays day and age in college basketball, when you can do that, it can work to your advantage.THE `NOVA WAYTheres a model in the Big East for winning with a small lineup after Villanova won the NCAA title. The Golden Eagles hope to be able to get to that level one day, though the Wildcats at least provide a blueprint.The great thing we will be able to do is pressure guard Traci Carter said. Were going to be able to pressure a lot. Fun.COUNTING ON CHEATHAMEllensons NBA potential overshadowed Cheathams solid freshman campaign last season. The 6-foot-5 guard (11.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists) started all 33 games, with turnovers being his biggest problem. Wojciechowski hopes Cheatham can continue to play aggressively while taking better care of the ball.STEADY REINHARDTThe 6-6 guard will provide experience and outside shooting after coming to Marquette as a graduate transfer. As a junior, Reinhardt averaged 11.4 points at Southern California last season. He is a career 36.9 percent shooter from the 3-point arc.---For more college basketball:
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