The Oklahoma City Thunder received a huge boost from a returning Serge Ibaka in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs and will try to even the series Tuesday night in Game 4 at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Watch the game live on TSN and TSN GO at 9pm et/6pm pt. The Thunder earned their first win of the set with Sundays 106-97 victory and Ibaka played a big role. After suffering a left calf strain against the Los Angeles Clippers in the previous round, Ibaka was ruled out for the remainder of the postseason. He missed the first two games of the conference finals in San Antonio, but word changed on Friday that the big man had improved tremendously and was considered day-to-day. Ibaka started Game 3 and dominated early, going 4-for-4 from the floor in first quarter. He finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and four blocks in just under 30 grueling, limping minutes. "I was so emotional, but you couldnt really tell because I was on the court," Ibaka said. "I just want to thank my teammates, thank Russell, he tried to get me going early in the game. Kevin (Durant), (Kendrick) Perkins, Reggie (Jackson). I will never stop thanking them for tonight. I will never forget that. It was very special tonight." Without Ibaka, the Thunder allowed the Spurs to shoot at least 50 percent in the first two tilts and San Antonio won them by a combined 52 points. The Spurs shot just 39.6 percent (36-of-91) from the floor in Game 3. Westbrook finished 8-of-19 from the field after missing seven of his first eight shots, netting 26 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. Durant added 25 points and 10 boards for the Thunder, who held a commanding 52-36 advantage on the glass. Reggie Jackson, who was inserted into the starting lineup for Thabo Sefolosha, also had 15 in the win. Manu Ginobili nailed six 3-pointers and scored 23 points for San Antonio, which has dropped eight straight to the Thunder in OKC, including the postseason. Tim Duncan added 16 and Kawhi Leonard chipped in 10 in the loss. "I was very disappointed that we didnt come out with more of a foot in the neck sort of an attitude," admitted Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "They killed us on the board, they beat us on 50/50 balls, and thats very disappointing to me. Thats not the way you approach a game." Ibaka carried OKC in the first quarter, but San Antonio led by one after the first 12 minutes. Westbrook nailed a pair of pull-up triples in the final 30 seconds of the half, including one at the buzzer to give the Thunder a 57-53 cushion heading into the break. Two Perkins free throws at the 8:36 mark of the third capped a 10-2 burst and gave the Thunder a 67-57 cushion. His bonus shots provided OKC its first points not supplied by either Durant or Westbrook since a Jackson floater with 4:01 to play in the second. Ginobili nailed a left wing trey to pull San Antonio within 75-71 with 2:46 to go in the period, but the Thunder extended the margin to 83-76 at the conclusion of the third and then put the game away early in the fourth. Oklahoma Citys lead grew to as many as 20 and the Spurs couldnt get it into single digits. "I think the biggest thing that changed was the intensity on the defensive end," said Durant. "We still turned the ball over more than we should have, but I think we always had great intentions and we moved the ball from side to side tonight." In league history, 94 percent of teams to open a seven-game set 2-0 have gone on to advance. The Spurs sadly know all about the six percent. San Antonio held this exact margin in the 2012 Western Conference finals against Oklahoma City, only to lose the next four and watch the Thunder lose to the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. Game 5 will be Thursday night in San Antonio. . TSN was honoured with several awards, with Rod Smith and James Duthie sharing the win for Best Sports Host for SportsCentre and the NHL: Season On The Brink coverage, respectively. . Blatter also told reporters Saturday after meeting with Qatars emir that the decision to award the tournament to the desert nation is "not reversible." There have been calls to move the tournament because of Qatars intense heat.
https://www.cheapwarriors.com/1079o-woo ... tml.Martin Caceres marked his return from injury by scoring in the 3-1 win at Napoli and he believes Juventus sent out a warning to the rest of the league with that result.We go out on the pitch every game looking to give our all, Caceres said. .NYCFC confirmed to The Associated Press on Saturday that this week Lampard signed a contract to start in July — midway through the new teams first season in MLS. . -- San Francisco 49ers offensive co-ordinator Greg Roman is a finalist to replace Joe Paterno at Penn State, his agent said Monday.Everton and Tottenham blew an opportunity to go second in the Premier League by playing out a lacklustre 0-0 draw on Sunday, while Cardiff beat fierce rival Swansea 1-0 in the English top flights first-ever Welsh derby. Arsenal kept its five-point lead after 10 games following a stalemate at Goodison Park, which raised doubts about the top-four credentials of both Everton and Tottenham. The days other game -- played amid a heavy police presence in south Wales -- was also heading for a goalless draw when Steven Caulker met Craig Bellamys corner with a downward header in the 62nd minute, lifting Cardiff above Swansea in the bottom half of the standings. Swansea was reduced to 10 men in second-half stoppage time when goalkeeper Michel Vorm was given a red card for a professional foul on Fraizer Campbell. With the visitors having used all their substitutes, right back Angel Rangel donned the gloves for the final minutes and was forced into action from the resulting free kick, tipping over Peter Whittinghams effort. Police were on a high alert for a fixture that has been blighted by fan violence in recent years. In 1993, Swansea fans ripped up seats and threw them at Cardiff supporters in violent scenes that led to the game being referred to as the "Battle of Ninian Park." Visiting fans were banned for the next four years. Swansea fans had to travel to the match from their home city on special buses that had a police escort -- a tactic the police call a "bubble trip." The supporters did not receive their match tickets until they were on board one of the buses. The contest appeared to pass off without serious trouble -- and bragging rights will reside in Cardiff until the return match between the rivals on Feb.dddddddddddd 8, thanks to Caulkers meaty header. Caulker spent a year on loan at Swansea in the 2011-12 season, and didnt celebrate his goal. "Ive always respected the teams Ive played for," said Caulker, who joined from Tottenham over the summer. "Im a Bluebird now and thankful to get the win for us." Swansea dominated the early exchanges, with Spain forward Michu having two shots saved, but barely threatened after the break. "It is always easy to brag when you are winning, but there is always a next time," Swansea manager Michael Laudrup said. "You have to remember that -- there is always a next time." With second place up for grabs after defeats on Saturday for Chelsea and Liverpool, the Everton-Tottenham match failed to live up to expectations. Neither goalkeeper was seriously tested, although Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris was involved in the biggest incident of the match when he was knocked unconscious after his head collided with the knee of Romelu Lukaku in the 77th minute. After a lengthy spell of treatment, it looked like Lloris was about to be substituted but the France captain chose to play on despite medics advising him to leave the pitch. "Hugo still doesnt remember the incident with Lukaku so he lost consciousness there but he seemed assertive and determined to continue and showed great character and personality. We decided to keep him on based on that," Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas said. Tottenham jumped two places to fourth and Everton stayed seventh. ' ' '
