though, signing a contract extension in August 2010 that will keep him here through the 2016 season.

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though, signing a contract extension in August 2010 that will keep him here through the 2016 season.
Tweet Topic Started: Nov 7 2014, 09:57 AM (107 Views)
liamin	Nov 7 2014, 09:57 AM Post #1
Newbie Posts: 46 Group: Members Member #1,243 Joined: October 31, 2014	ATLANTA -- The Hawks are discovering that strong defence makes winning possible, even against quality opponents, after Al Horfords season-ending injury. NHL Jerseys Cyber Monday . Kyle Korver scored 20 points, including four free throws in the final 16 seconds, and Atlanta fought off Houstons late comeback to beat the Rockets 83-80 on Friday night. Paul Millsap also had 20 points for Atlanta, which earned its second straight impressive home win following a victory over Indiana on Wednesday night. The two victories were important following a three-game losing streak and Horfords torn right pectoral muscle in late December. "Its a real good win for us because it really shows we played some good teams and we actually played some good defence," Millsap said. "It started with the defence and if we continue to keep that up, well be fine." James Harden led the Rockets with 25 points. Dwight Howard had 15 points and 11 rebounds. Houston coach Kevin McHale said his players "were just stuck in the mud offensively." Aaron Brooks had 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, and Jeremy Lin added 11 for Houston. "I think they took the game in the second half with how hard they played on defence," Lin said. The Hawks overcame Houstons 11-0 run to start the game. The Rockets then battled back from an eight-point deficit with another 11-0 run to regain the lead at 76-73. Korvers 3-pointer tied the game. Following a basket by Harden, DeMarre Carrolls 3-pointer gave Atlanta a 79-78 lead. The Hawks didnt trail again. "I think the group is really starting to trust each other defensively," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "The competitiveness that theyre putting out there, it starts on the defensive end of the court. ... Its just good to see that trust being built up." The strong defensive effort came against one of the highest-scoring teams in the NBA. Entering the game, the Rockets ranked third in the league with their average of 105.8 points. Harden, who had seven assists and five turnovers, was unable to extend his streak of three straight games with at least 37 points. "Guys just couldnt get into a rhythm," he said. "Guys were just sluggish tonight, including myself." It was a disappointing start to Houstons four-game road trip. "We talked about it before the game," Harden said. "We just came out flat." With Atlanta leading 79-78, Korver made two free throws to push Atlantas lead to three points. Following a timeout, Harden drove toward the basket and passed to Lin, whose foot was on the 3-point line as he sank a jumper with 6.5 seconds left, cutting the Hawks lead to 81-80. The Rockets quickly fouled Korver, who made both free throws. Houston couldnt get off an attempt at a last-second 3. The Hawks matched their season low for first-half points but trailed only 41-39 at the break. Official reviews confirmed Atlantas first basket and last shot from the field in the half came after the clock expired. Millsaps layup, which initially was approved for a 2-all tie, was disallowed when the review showed it came after the 24-second clock expired. Jeff Teagues layup at the end of the half, which would have tied the game, came after time expired. Korver made 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions midway through the third period for the first tie at 57-all. Millsaps driving basket gave Atlanta its first lead at 61-59, and the Hawks stretched the lead to 73-65 with 8:32 remaining. Mistakes by the Hawks, including a 24-second violation, a missed layup by Pero Antic and a turnover by Millsap, helped the Rockets close the gap. Brooks 3-pointer cut Atlantas lead to 73-72. Harden made two of three free throws with 3:50 remaining to give Houston its first lead of the period at 74-73. Rockets forward Chandler Parsons missed his second straight game with a sore right knee. Ronnie Brewer was the fill-in starter. Korver extended his NBA record of consecutive games with at least one 3-pointer to 106 when he made his first of four 3s with 9:03 left in the first half. NOTES: NBA great Julius Erving had a front-row seat. ... Howard, an Atlanta native, purchased 35 tickets for the game. ... The Hawks 10 first-quarter points set a season low for any quarter and was the low allowed by the Rockets in any quarter. ... Houston C Omer Asik (right thigh, knee) missed his 18th straight game. ... F Greg Smith (sprained right knee) returned and had four points after missing the Rockets previous game. Cheap Jerseys From China . The German international rounded Florian Fromlowitz for his 11th goal of the season in the 60th minute and set up Milivoje Novakovic for a simple tap in. Petit opened the scoring against the run of play with a free kick in the 36th, and Novakovic scored his second in the final minute. cheap nfl jerseys . -- The Canadian Womens Open golf tournament has secured a new sponsor. http://www.cheapjerseysfox.com/ . Alvarez had blanked the Detroit Tigers for nine innings -- and briefly, mistakenly thought he had pitched a no-hitter. But the Marlins needed a run for him to achieve the feat. "I was nervous and anxious," he said through a translator. Cheap San Diego Padres Jerseys . Mark Cueto scored a hat trick in his first World Cup appearance since the 2007 final and fellow wing Chris Ashton also crossed three times to take his tally to 14 in 16 internationals. England never threatened to match the 134-0 win it racked up against the same opponent a decade ago, but avoided being pulled into an arm wrestle with the Romanian forwards and cut out most of the breakdown infringements that marred its wins over Argentina and Georgia. Cheap Oakland Raiders Jerseys . Until his 136-yard wedge shot on his final hole Thursday. "It was going right at it. (A 59) crossed my mind for a second, and it would be unbelievable if I buried this," Bradley said.HOUSTON - Andy Dalton and T.J. Yates werent around for any of the miserable seasons the Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans have had over the past two decades. And thats quite a few. The rookie quarterbacks now control which of the long-suffering franchises gets a milestone victory when the teams open the playoffs today. Theyll make some NFL history no matter who wins � its the first time two rookie starters will face off in a playoff game. You can watch the game live on CTV at 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. You can also follow the Game Day blog on TSN.ca, and listen to the action live on TSN Radio in Toronto, Winnipeg and Montreal. "It shows how much the game has changed in these days," said Yates, wholl make his sixth career start. "My situation is obviously a lot different than Andys. "He was drafted there to be the starter and unfortunate circumstances here in Houston led to me being the one playing. But youve just got to take advantage of every opportunity you get and its pretty cool to be a part of it." The Bengals (9-7) are back in the post-season for the third time in seven seasons, but they havent advanced in 20 years. The 10-year-old Texans (10-6) are making their post-season debut, and will end the longest playoff drought of any expansion team from its inception into the league. "This game cant come soon enough," Houston linebacker Brian Cushing said. "The atmosphere is going to be wild, so were just extremely thrilled about this opportunity." Cincinnatis last playoff victory came against Houston, albeit the Oilers, a 41-14 victory at Riverfront Stadium. The Bengals lost to the L.A. Raiders the following week, and theyve lost two playoff games at home since, after the 2005 and 09 seasons. The current players havent given a second thought to the past failures. "We dont really think about it," said left tackle Andrew Whitworth, finishing his sixth season. "We have some young guys on this team. "I promise you some of them have no clue about that." At least Cincinnati has some playoff history. The city of Houston has waited 18 years to even see the local team play in a post-season game. The Oilers last playoff appearance followed the 1993 season, a loss to Joe Montana and the Kansas City Chiefs. The land where Reliant Stadium now stands was just a parking lot back then, Houston coach Gary Kubiak was an assistant at Texas A&M and Yates was six years old. "Just to think of how far weve come and to be working this week," Kubiak said, "be putting in a game plan and goinng in those meetings and getting ready to line up, thats what we came here to do, so lets go do it. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys. Were looking forward to it." Andre Johnson may be as eager as anyone. The star receiver and face of the Houston franchise has languished through the litany of losses since the team drafted him third overall in 2003. He stayed loyal to the Texans, though, signing a contract extension in August 2010 that will keep him here through the 2016 season. Johnson has been hobbled by hamstring injuries most of this season, but hes healthy again just in time for the most important game of his pro career. "You know, I always said that I wanted to be a part to help this organization get to their first playoff appearance and hopefully win their first Super Bowl," he said. "I didnt think it would take this long, but were here now." And now its in the hands of two 20-somethings with no post-season experience to determine which team moves on. Will it be Dalton, the second-round draft pick who grew up in a Houston suburb? Or Yates, the one-time third-stringer pressed into action after season-ending injuries to Matt Schaub (right Lisfranc fracture) and backup Matt Leinart (broken left collarbone)? "I dont think either one of the young guys has really gone out there and acted like theyre rookies," Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis said. "So, I think that in the case of both players, theyre kind of a little bit ahead of their time. "The focus has got to be on how they prepare and how the rest of the guys play up to these guys ability." Dalton, who grew up in nearby Katy, has thrown five touchdown passes and only one interception in the last six games. He missed Wednesdays practice with flu-like symptoms, but said Thursday hes ready to go. Yates, meanwhile, played only one series in last weeks loss to Tennessee after bruising his left shoulder. Hes practised all week and both he and Kubiak have downplayed the severity of the injury. The fifth-round pick became an instant star around town after rallying the Texans to a 20-19 win over the Bengals on Dec. 11, with Johnson sidelined. Cincinnati blew a 13-point lead, after Houstons second-ranked defence allowed only 106 yards in the second half. "There were a lot of plays that, had we done it differently or had it turned out differently, you have an opportunity to win the football game," Lewis said. "We dont get to start back at that point and reverse time. "Were going to have to go back and put our heads down and go to work and chop wood just like we did last time." ' ' '


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