Dein erstes Forum » cCaskey family, Phil Emery and Ted Phillips for gi

NEW ORLEANS -- Greivis Vasquez drew a round of applause when he first checked in against the team for which he played the past two seasons. Later, he all but silenced the New Orleans crowd with five straight points that gave his new team the lead for good inside the final two minutes. DeMar DeRozan scored 31 points, Vasquez finished with 14, and the Toronto Raptors snapped a two-game skid with a resilient 107-100 victory over the Pelicans on Wednesday night. "I was blessed enough to be out there at the end of the game," said Vasquez, who was traded by New Orleans after last season in a deal that brought Tyreke Evans to the Pelicans. "I had a really rough first half and then the second half I was just on a mission," Vasquez said. "I like close games, man. Im not afraid. I would never be afraid. Im the type of player that would risk everything. Thats how I got (the starting point guard) job here in New Orleans." Kyle Lowry scored 23, Amir Johnson added 17 and Vasquez finished with 14 to help Toronto overcome a 14-point first-half deficit and snap a two-game skid. Tyler Hansbrough, playing additional minutes with starting centre Jonas Valanciunas sidelined by a sore back, grabbed 13 rebounds, seven on the offensive end. "Thats psycho-T at his finest," DeRozan said of Hansbrough. "He went out there, played extremely hard, got rebounds and came up with some big rebounds late in the game. Thats just him." The game was tied at 94 when Vasquez scored five straight points in a 36-second span on a running floater and a driving layup as he was fouled -- the latter coming after Vasquez rebounded his missed jumper for one of Torontos 22 offensive rebounds. "Its cool to have a teammate like that because you see how much he wanted it," DeRozan said of Vasquez. "Thats why we call him Spicy. You never know what youre going to get until you eat it." Al-Farouq Aminu had 19 points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which was without All-Star Anthony Davis because of an illness. The Pelicans could not deny that Davis absence, one game after his career-high 40 points and 21 rebounds in Sundays overtime win over Boston, was a factor. "Obviously, with a guy that can rebound like Anthony, its hard to make up for that," rookie centre Jeff Withey said. Evans had 18 points for the Pelicans. Eric Gordon added 15, but was shut out in the second half, when his playing time was limited after he was called for his fourth foul in the middle of the third quarter. "Once he got in foul trouble ... I think that probably broke his rhythm," Pelicans coach Monty Williams said. Brian Roberts scored 11 points, while Alexis Ajinca and Austin Rivers each had 10 to keep New Orleans in front for most of the game. New Orleans led 94-90 on Witheys free throw with 4:26 left. But during the next 50 seconds, Johnson slammed home a putback dunk and followed that with a driving layup as the shot clock expired to tie it at 94. Next came Vasquezs five straight points, followed by Lowrys free throw and Johnsons tip shot to cap a 12-1 run from which New Orleans never recovered. "We played decent defence, forced them to miss and they got rebound after rebound," Williams said. "We missed a lot of shots, layups in the paint, but the rebounding tonight was not good at all." Gordon, Aminu (12 points) and Evans (10 points) all reached double figures in the first half, much of which was controlled by New Orleans. The Pelicans seemed to surprise the Atlantic Division-leading Raptors by racing to an early double-digit lead. Rivers driving layup gave New Orleans a 31-18 lead late in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the lead reached 14 points several times, the last on Aminus layup that made it 50-36. At that point, there was 5:20 left in the second quarter, which was about all the time Toronto needed to nearly pull even. The Raptors outscored the Pelicans 20-7 to close the half. DeRozan scored nine during the stint, including a three-point play on a driving layup and a 12-foot fade at the halftime horn that made it 57-56. NOTES: The Pelicans went 3-3 on their six-game home stand. New Orleans next plays at Atlanta on Friday, then hosts Miami on Saturday to open a four-game home stand. ... The Raptors have not lost three straight since making a seven-player trade with Sacramento on Dec. 9. Ji-man Choi Jersey . There were no real chances until Augsburg broke the deadlock through Raul Bobadilla in the 33rd minute. Frankfurt failed to clear a cross and Bobadilla slotted home from close range at the far post. Anthony Banda Jersey . - PGA Tour rookie Tony Finau shot a 9-under 63 at Del Monte and had a two-stroke lead over Billy Andrade and Lee Janzen of the Champions Tour after Thursdays opening round of the Callaway Pebble Beach Invitational. https://www.cheapraysonline.com/ . The (35-35-10) Jets have 80 points and are also playing .500 hockey on home ice this season with a 17-17-6 record. Michael Hutchinson will start his second straight game in goal. Tampa Bay Rays Gear . Berdych and Stepanek played all five matches when the Czechs beat Spain 3-2 in the final last November in Prague to win the countrys first title as an independent nation. Cole Sulser Rays Jersey . Nwaneri, who was born in Dallas and attended Naaman Forest High School in nearby Garland, Texas, tweeted, "Its official! Im coming home, Im coming home.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The NFL is almost universally regarded as a copycat league and for the most part that sentiment is true. When it comes to Xs and Os, plagiarism is certainly an accepted part of professional football and imitation is truly the sincerest form of flattery in the coaching ranks. We are a copycat league, you bet, NFL head of football operations Troy Vincent recently told the Associated Press. If Peyton (Manning) and Philip (Rivers) and (Drew) Brees and (Tom) Brady are doing something thats good, then go out and try to do the same thing. That kind of piracy has never reached into the front office, however. No NFL team has had more success in the Super Bowl era than the Pittsburgh Steelers, who already possess a record six Lombardi Trophies as they prepare to embark on their quest for a seventh Saturday night against the Baltimore Ravens. And the Steelers are renowned for their stability, employing all of three coaches since Chuck Noll arrived in Western Pennsylvania in 1969. That continuity has helped spawn the record six Super Bowl crowns with each coach -- Noll, Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin -- contributing to the collection. Black Monday is the yearly reminder that few organizations plan to play copycat when it comes to Pittsburghs history of success, with impatience, anxiety and often ego trumping common sense. The first official domino fell Sunday night in Santa Clara when the messy Jim Harbaugh-Trent Baalke divorce finally became official. The 49ers and Harbaugh officially parted ways after Sundays 20-17 win over Arizona, a move weeks in the making and one the team called mutual if mutual means the politician (Baalke) winning a power struggle against the bull in a china shop (Harbaugh). The 49ers announced they have already begun a search for a new head coach and the team quickly asked for permission to talk with Denver offensive coordinator Adam Gase during his bye week. Jim and I have come to the conclusion that it is in our mutual best interest to move in different directions, 49ers CEO Jed York said. We thank Jim for bringing a tremendous competitive nature and a great passion for the game to the 49ers. Harbaugh led the 49ers to a 44-19-1 record in four seasons with three consecutive appearances in the NFC Championship game and one trip to the Super Bowl. He, however, didnt get along with a lot of people in the building and it was clear months ago that the first sign of things going off the rails would give Baalke the excuse to move on. Harbaugh is expected to land on his feet as the highest paid college coach at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, with multiple reports indicating he will be named the Wolverines new head coach by Tuesday. Its been the time of my life. Theres been a lot of memories, great moments, Harbaugh said. I feel like Im going to be friends for life with anybody who wants to be. Others wont have a golden parachute waiting for them. The Jets kicked things off on the actual Black Monday as team owner Woody Johnson cleaned house, firing both head coach Rex Ryan and general manager John Idzik after a 4-12 season. After extensive thought and reflection about the current state of our football team, this morning I informed Rex Ryan and John Idzik that they will not be returning for the 2015 season, Johnson said. Both Rex and John made significant contributions to the team, and they have my appreciation and gratitude for their efforts and commitment.dddddddddddd Over the years, Rex brought the Jets a bold confidence and a couple of great postseason runs, which all of us will remember. Johnsons decision probably wasnt all that fair to Idzik, who was on board for only two years and never got the opportunity to hire his own coach but thats a tough sell to long-suffering Jets fans, who blame Idzik tor two failed drafts. The lack of development from quarterback Geno Smith -- selected as part of Idziks first draft class -- was a major reason for the Jets struggles this season. He was benched after a Week 8 loss to Buffalo, then returned to the starters role a month later in a Dec. 1 loss to Miami, long after New York was no longer relevant to the playoff picture. Next up was Mike Smith in Atlanta, who was dismissed after seven seasons, one day after losing 34-3 at home to the Carolina Panthers in a winner-take-all game that determined the NFC South champion. The Falcons finished 6-10, their second straight losing season. Atlanta reached the playoffs four times and captured two division titles in Smiths seven seasons, but had just one postseason win, posting five straight winning seasons under Smith before going 4-12 last in 2013. Smittys contributions to our club, team and city over the last seven years are numerous, Falcons owner Arthur Blank said in a statement. His accomplishments on the field made him the most successful coach in the 49-year history of the Falcons, and we are grateful for the foundation he has laid for us for the future. The next domino was a housecleaning in Chicago as the Bears fired both head coach Marc Trestman and general manager Phil Emery on the heels of a 5-11 season. Emery spent three years at the helm and brought in Trestman from the CFL in January 2013 after inheriting coach Lovie Smith, who was fired despite a 10-6 season in 2012. The Bears floundered the past two years, posting an 8-8 mark in 2013 before this years disappointing finish. Chicago hadnt finished below .500 since a 7-9 mark in 2009 and suffered through its worst season since a 5-11 record in 2004. Considered a successful quarterbacks coach, Trestmans ultimate sin was the play of Jay Cutler. The veteran quarterback struggled in 2014 and was even benched for Week 16 against Detroit before playing in Sundays season-ending 13-9 loss to the Vikings after Jimmy Clausen suffered a concussion against the Lions. I want to thank Virginia, George and the McCaskey family, Phil Emery and Ted Phillips for giving me the opportunity to be the head coach of the Chicago Bears, Trestman said. I also want to thank all the coaches and players who gave us everything we asked over the past two years. I have tremendous respect for this organization. Chicago is a special city with great fans. Emery was tied to the Trestman hire and the McCaskeys believed giving him the leash to pick another coach would have been untenable to the Second City faithful. Whether any of the coaches removed Monday rebound to have greater success in a future stop remains to be seen but they all now understand hiccups wont be tolerated in most cities. Meanwhile in Pittsburgh, a legacy that morphed into mediocrity in 2012-13 with a 16-16 mark over that span was answered by staying the course. And the GPS arrived at its destination on Sunday with the organizations 21st division championship. You would think someone might want to copy that. ' ' '