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TOKYO - Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni announced his 23-man World Cup squad on Monday, picking AC Milans Keisuke Honda among 12 Europe-based players and adding a surprise with the selection of veteran striker Yoshito Okubo. As expected, Honda was named along with Manchester United midfielder Shinji Kagawa and Mainz forward Shinji Okazaki. Honda has scored just one goal since joining Milan from CSKA Moscow in January but played a key role in Japans qualifying campaign. Okubo was one of the few surprises in the squad Zaccheroni unveiled at a news conference Monday. The 31-year-old Okubo, last seasons top scorer in the J-League, made the squad despite having only been called up once by Zaccheroni since the Italian took over from 2010 World Cup coach Takeshi Okada. His eight goals this season for Kawasaki Frontale made it difficult for Zaccheroni to leave him off the squad. Forward Yoichiro Kakitani, who scored 21 goals in 34 games last season but has only one goal in 12 games for Cerezo Osaka this season, was among 11 J-League players included in the squad. Japan, which co-hosted the World Cup with South Korea in 2002, is preparing for its fifth consecutive World Cup campaign and faces Ivory Coast, Greece and Colombia in Group C. ___ Squad: Goalkeepeers: Eiji Kawashima (Standard Liege), Shusaku Nishikawa (Urawa Reds), Shuichi Gonda (FC Tokyo) Defenders: Masahiko Inoha (Jubilo Iwata), Yasuyuki Konno (Gamba Osaka), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter Milan), Masato Morishige (FC Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Schalke), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Hiroki Sakai (Hannover), Gotoku Sakai (Stuttgart) Midfielders: Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Makoto Hasebe (Nuremberg), Toshihiro Aoyama (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka) Forwards: Keisuke Honda (AC Milan), Yoshito Okubo (Kawasaki Frontale), Shinji Okazaki (Mainz), Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United), Hiroshi Kiyotake (Nuremberg), Yoichiro Kakitani (Cerezo Osaka), Manabu Saito (Yokohama F Marinos), Yuya Osako (1860 Munich) . Fielder ended 4-for-5 with a solo homer, while Avila was 4-for-4 with two runs scored for the Tigers, who put the brakes on a three-game skid and rebounded from a loss in Mondays opener. Victor Martinez and Austin Jackson both contributed two hits, an RBI and a run scored as Detroit maintained its healthy lead atop the AL Central. . The game had many controversial incidents that, upon closer inspection, were not as controversial as many believed. The Formations Toronto FC lined up in its usual 4-4-2 formation, with Nick Hagglund slotting in at right fullback and Bradley Orr at centreback in place of the injured Mark Bloom and Steven Caldwell, respectively. . Fans can also watch the game on the newly launched TSN GO (currently available to Bell TV and Rogers customers), which gives TSN subscribers the freedom to live stream the networks programming from their smartphones, tablets, and computers at no additional charge – just as they would watch Canadas Sports Leader on TV at home. The following week, MLS ON TSN is at BMO Field in Toronto to deliver live coverage of TFCs home opener vs. D.C. United on Saturday, March 22 at 4:30 p. . Catch the game on TSN starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. Tampa Bay currently holds the last of the Atlantics three automatic bids to the playoffs, but the Maple Leafs are just one point behind. . -- Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman is undergoing surgery to repair a broken bone above his left eye but has no other serious injuries after being hit in the face by a line drive in a spring training game.TORONTO -- Rudy Gay skipped shootaround Friday morning, choosing to stay in bed in hopes of beating the flu bug. But by the time the game started, the Toronto Raptors forward felt even worse. And, for three quarters, it showed as Gay shot a woeful three-for-13 from the field. However, he had 11 points in the final 12 minutes of play as Toronto used a dominant fourth quarter to defeat the Washington Wizards 96-88 to remain in first place in the Atlantic Division. Toronto trailed Washington 70-66 heading into the final quarter, but Gay hit all three field goal attempts in the fourth and added five free throws to lead the Raptors to victory. "There was no stopping me. I was going to play," said Gay. "I was out of breath and the sort of things that happen when youre sick but I had to push through it for my team. "In the fourth quarter, I just let it come to me and it got a lot easier." Gays 11-point fourth quarter gave him 17 for the night, tied for team high with DeMar DeRozan, as Toronto (6-7) won for the second straight time to stay atop the NBAs Atlantic Division. "He struggled a little bit early but when it was down the stretch, he came through for us," head coach Dwane Casey said of Gay, who was booed in the third quarter by the 18,671 in attendance for his poor shooting performance and a couple of turnovers. "He was a little weak from the flu but he gutted it out. "He could have easily mailed it in or checked out but he fought through it and gave us 17 big points." Toronto scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to wrest the lead back from Washington. The Raptors outscored the Wizards 21-9 over the opening 7:34 of the final period and 30-18 overall. It was a dramatic turnaround from the third quarter when the Wizards (4-8) outscored Toronto 32-15, turning a 13-point halftime deficit into a four-point lead going into the final quarter. Waashington point guard John Wall, who had a game-high 37 points, scored 18 in the quarter.dddddddddddd "Teams are going to go on runs," said Toronto forward Tyler Hansbrough, who had eight points and six rebounds off the bench. "As we continue to grow, we cant have lapses where it carries over and have a hangover until the fourth quarter. "Weve got to keep on moving and thats what happened." The Raptors, who shot 47 per cent from the field on the night, featured a balanced attack, with six players finishing with double figures in points. Jonas Valanciunas had 11 points and 13 rebounds. "Third quarter, we have to figure that out sooner or later," said guard Kyle Lowry, who had 12 points, nine assists and six rebounds on the night. "(But) that group that came in in the fourth did a great job getting us a 10-point lead. "They (Wizards) made a run at the end but we closed it out." Toronto returned to Air Canada Centre to open a four-game homestand -- their longest of the season -- leading the division for the first time since they won it in 2007. And the Raptors came out flying, shooting an eye-popping 67 per cent from the field in the first quarter to take a five-point lead, which they widened to a 13-point edge at halftime. It appeared the Raptors were on the way to an easy victory before Wall, the first overall draft pick in the 2010 NBA draft, who signed a five-year, US$80 million contract extension in July, went off. "You can see why he got paid all that money," De Rozan said. "Hes definitely a heck of a player. "He has the passion to win and he showed that in the third quarter to try and bring his team back. "We had to withstand that as much as we could and get the win." The Raptors return to action Tuesday hosting Brooklyn before closing out the homestand with games against Miami and Denver. ' ' '
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