ASTROS SEEK TO WASH AWAY PESKY SCENT OF RED SOX

DESPITE an active Friday of high school football and volleyball that will determine playoff hopes in each sport, the focus of the local sports scene lies on the Astros, who host the Red Sox for Games Four and Five of the ALCS with the chance of having to head back to Boston for a Game Six on Saturday evening. The Rockets begin their regular season with a visit to Los Angeles and LeBron James that will get national TV love on Saturday night. WEDNESDAY: The sounds of dribbling means the start of girls basketball practice across the state. For now, every school in the state has a chance at the state championship, yet it will be workouts (and talent) that will determine who makes the trip to San Antonio for the state final four in early March. The regular season will get underway on November 5. Game Four of the American League Championship Series starts at 6:39 pm as the Astros host the Red Sox. The teams split the first two games in Boston before the series moved to Houston on Tuesday night. While the Red Sox had not made a firm commitment to a starter, the Astros will go with Charlie Morton (15-3, 3.13 ERA), who will make his first appearance in this postseason. TBS will have the game live. The regular season begins for the Rockets, who host Anthony Davis and the Pelicans at 7:00 pm. After falling a game short of the NBA Finals, Houston added veteran Carmelo Anthony while re-signing mainstays Clint Capela and Chris Paul to a franchise that won a team-record 65 games last season. AT&T Sportsnet Southwest gets underway at 6:30 pm with the pregame show. THURSDAY: There will be a Game Five of the ALCS, which will start at 7:09pm on TBS. It’s expected the Astros will go with Justin Verlander, who is 2-0 with 3.18 ERA in this postseason, with the Red Sox likely to go with Chris Sale (1-0, 3.48 ERA in the postseason). FRIDAY: Week Eight of the high school football season starts with Clear Falls at Alvin, Clear Creek at Clear Lake, Clear Springs at Dickinson, Shadow Creek at Friendswood, Fort Bend Hightower at Galveston Ball, Crosby at Santa Fe, La Marque at Scarborough and Rosenberg Terry at Texas City each starting at 7:00pm. Hempstead visits Hitchcock at 7:30pm. In high school volleyball, Baytown Lee at Friendswood, Goose Creek Memorial at Galveston Ball and Galena Park at Texas City each start at 4:30pm, followed by Danbury at Hitchcock at 5:00pm. Clear Brook at Alvin, Clear Creek at Clear Falls and Clear Lake at Clear Springs are each 6:00pm starts while Crosby at Santa Fe get underway at 6:30pm. SATURDAY: If necessary, Game Six of the ALCS will be at Fenway Park. The start time will be based on the NLCS between the Dodgers and Brewers, although Astros fans are hoping the team will have a second straight ALCS title locked up by then. The Rockets get their first look at the King in his new threads when they visit Staples Center to meet the Lakers at 9:30pm. The King in question is obviously LeBron James, who signed with the Lakers over the summer in a bid to bring the moribund franchise back to being a factor in the Western Conference. Both AT&T Sportsnet Southwest and ESPN will have the game live, with the former hosting their pregame show at 9:00pm. The local college football schedule starts with Southern at Texas Southern at 2:00pm, followed by Houston at Navy at 2:30pm (CBS Sports Network will have the broadcast). Sam Houston State at Lamar is at 3:00pm, with Stephen F. Austin at Houston Baptist kicking off at 6:00pm and Rice at Florida International at 6:30pm.