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| Author: | khm1997 [ Wed Oct 31, 2018 10:07 am ] |
| Post subject: | championship game |
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Connecticut and Kentucky couldnt have met in last years championship game and few people gave them a chance to be in this years. Seventh-seeded Connecticut and eighth-seeded Kentucky meet Monday night in one of the unlikeliest NCAA championship games ever. Watch the game live on TSN at 8:30pm et/5:30pm pt. Neither was around in last years post-season -- Connecticut because of a tournament ban over academic issues; Kentucky because it didnt make the field. And neither looked like national title contenders at times this season. Kentucky (29-10) and its outstanding freshmen went from preseason No. 1 to out of the rankings after some bad losses. And Connecticut (31-8) was not a popular post-season pick after finishing tied for third in the American Athletic Conference with multiple losses to Louisville and SMU. In the tournament, the Huskies have stopped some of the countrys top guards and put themselves in position for their fourth national championship, the previous three under Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun. "Hopefully we have an opportunity to fall back on our defence," second-year coach Kevin Ollie said. "We have been doing that the whole year." If Kentucky has a chance to win in the final minute, that defence better pay attention to guard Aaron Harrison, one of five freshmen starters. He has hit huge 3-pointers in the Wildcats last three games. Harrison rattled in a 26-footer with 5.7 seconds to go in the 74-73 win over Wisconsin in the semifinals. He made almost the exact same shot with 2.3 seconds left against Michigan for a 75-72 win that sent the Wildcats to the Final Four. Against Louisville, he hit a 3 with 39 seconds left to give Kentucky the lead for good in a 74-69. "The biggest thing is hes not afraid to miss," Kentucky coach John Calipari said. "Hes OK with it. Hes comfortable in his own skin. ... If youre going to make those kind of shots, you absolutely cannot be afraid to miss them." These two programs have combined to win six of the last 18 NCAA titles. "Playing against Connecticut, I mean, Im just happy were still playing," Calipari said. Neither program could say that last year. Connecticut was banned from the post-season after failing to meet NCAA academic standard. It had practice limitations and lost a scholarship. The players could have transferred but didnt. The Huskies finished 20-10 in Ollies first year. They took the hit and made it back to the biggest stage. "Its actually very impressive," NCAA president Mark Emmert said Sunday. "To see that team hold together. I think its a commitment to those young men on that team that hung together." The leader of the group is All-American Shabazz Napier who leads the team in almost every statistical category. Hes the guy who makes the big shot or big pass. Fellow guard Ryan Boatright has taken some of the spotlight recently for his defensive performances against the likes of Keith Appling of Michigan State and Scottie Wilbekin of Florida. "Defence is the biggest thing for me. The points will come," Boatright said. "I want to make him uncomfortable, dont let him get in a rhythm or flow. Their guards, God blessed them with height and they will try to take advantage of smaller guys like us but Ive been the smaller guy my whole life and Ive never backed down." Kentucky is playing its best basketball lately, led by big man Julius Randle and the Harrison twins. "We just had too much talent and we saw in spurts how good we could be," Randle said, "so it just felt like it was a matter of time before it clicked." This is Caliparis fourth Final Four, but the first two -- Massachusetts in 1996 and Memphis in 2008 -- were vacated over NCAA rules violations. Now the Wildcats are on an 11-game winning streak in the NCAA tournament and they are one win from a ninth national championship for Kentucky. "We all play the game of basketball to compete against the best," Napier said. "This is one of them games. ... They worked hard to get to this point and we did too. Were going to do our best to get this W." . The White Sox said Wednesday they acquired left-handed pitching prospect Sean Bierman and infielder Ben Kline, who both played at Class A this season. The White Sox dealt Crain to Tampa Bay on July 29. . The star receiver certainly isnt celebrating it with the Texans mired in a franchise-record 13-game skid. http://www.cheapsaintsjerseysonline.com ... sey-online. The 41-year-old Northern Irishman has proved a perfect fit at Liverpool since taking over from Kenny Dalglish in the summer of 2012 and steered the team to an unexpected title challenge in the Premier League last season. . Pekovic had an MRI test Tuesday on his right ankle that revealed bursitis, which is inflammation of the fluid-filled pad that cushions the joint. .Y. - Through three quarters, the Brooklyn Nets could not shake the NBAs worst team.London, England - Top seed Novak Djokovic and reigning champion Andy Murray highlighted Mondays fourth-round winners at The Championships, Wimbledon. A rainy day saw the former champion Djokovic handle 14th-seeded Frenchman Jo- Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) under the roof on the famed Centre Court. The brisk match came to a close in 1 hour, 52 minutes when the return-of-serve artist Djokovic smacked a cross-court, two-handed backhand winner that just caught the line to seal the deal. Djokovic popped 14 aces and was not broken in the bout, while Tsonga struck 19 aces, but was broken twice by the Serbian stalwart. The 27-year-old Djokovic has now won his last 18 sets against Tsonga, who also lost to the Serbian star in the 2008 Australian Open final. The recent French Open runner-up Djokovic titled here in 2011 and was last years Wimbledon runner-up to Murray. The Serb has reached at least the quarterfinals here six years running. His quarterfinal opponent will be Croat Marin Cilic. The third-seeded Murray reached a seventh straight Wimbledon quarterfinal by getting past 20th-seeded 6-foot-8 South African Kevin Anderson 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) in 2 hours, 33 minutes, also under the roof on Centre Court, as wet weather forced the issue on Day 7 of the fortnight. The roof was open when the match started and closed during the second set. "When it was outdoors, I played very well and was in a good position. When we came back indoors, he started to strike the ball a bit better, he started serving better," Murray said. "Its a good win because he was playing well at the end and making it very tough for me. Its good to get through in straight sets." The match was watched by the likes of Virgin tycoon Richard Branson, pop singer Cliff Richard and two-time 1970s Wimbledon finalist Ilie Nastase in a striking Romanian army uniform. Murray has now won his last 17 matches at the AEC, where be captured an Olympic gold medal in 2012 and gave Britain its first male Wimbledon singles champion in 77 years a year ago. The 27-year-old Scot, who has yet to drop a set thus far, hasnt titled anywhere since capturing the Wimbledon title last July. His quarterfinal opponent on Wednesday will be rapidly rising 11th-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, who reached his fiirst-ever Wimbledon quarter by getting past unseeded Argentine Leonardo Mayer 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 in between rain drops on Monday.dddddddddddd The 23-year-old Dimitrov captured his first-ever grass-court title at The Queens Club in London a few weeks ago and is a perfect 8-0 on grass this year. Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka beat Uzbekistans Denis Istomin 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the fourth round. The fifth-seeded Swiss slugger tallied 12 aces among his 33 winners, broke Istomins serve four times and saved all three break points against him in a match that was postponed because of rain on Saturday. Wawrinka will face in-form Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in the round of 16. The 19th-seeded Lopez took out ninth-seeded John Isner, 6-7 (8-10), 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-3), 7-5. Isner was the last American standing in the mens draw. Lopez and the 6-foot-10 Isner combined for a whopping 86 aces, including 52 by the towering American. For the first time since 1911, there are no Americans, male of female, playing in the fourth round at Wimbledon. The left-handed Lopez has been on fire on grass, going 12-1 on the surface this year, including a title in Eastbourne two weeks ago and a runner-up finish at The Queens Club in London the week before that. The 26th-seeded Cilic became the first man to reach the quarterfinals on Monday by handling Frances Jeremy Chardy, 7-6 (10-8), 6-4, 6-4. Cilic will appear in his fourth career Grand Slam quarterfinal (1-2). Kei Nishikori reached the fourth round by completing a five-set victory over Italian Simone Bolelli. The 10th seed from Japan claimed a 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 victory to arrange a meeting with eighth-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic. Nishikori-Bolelli was suspended because of rain on Saturday with the two tied at 3-3 in the deciding set. In some more fourth-round action on Tuesday, second-seeded world No. 1 Rafael Nadal will face upstart Aussie Nick Kyrgios; fourth-seeded former No. 1 Roger Federer will take on 23rd-seeded Spaniard Tommy Robredo; Wawrinka will tangle with Lopez; and Raonic will lock horns with Nishikori. The 14-time Grand Slam winner Nadal is the reigning French and U.S. Open champ who is also a two-time Wimbledon titlist, while the 17-time major champion Federer is a seven-time Wimbledon champ. ' ' ' |
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