12-07-2019, 02:35 AM
CHAPEL HILL, N. Cameron Reynolds Jersey .C. -- Marcus Paige and his North Carolina teammates have endured so many wild swings -- big wins, surprising losses, NCAA drama -- that no one can blame their Hall of Fame coach for wondering whats next. And yet, a month after sitting at 0-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Tar Heels are surging after a rousing comeback against their fiercest rival that had their fans rushing to midcourt to celebrate when it was over. Paige scored all 13 of his points in the second half, including two big baskets in the final 2 1/2 minutes, to help UNC beat No. 5 Duke 74-66 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Senior Leslie McDonald added a season-high 21 points for the Tar Heels (19-7, 9-4 ACC), who rallied from 11 points down in the second half to beat the Blue Devils (21-6, 10-4) in a rivalry game postponed more than a week by a winter storm. It was by far North Carolinas most impressive win during its run. Before Thursday, most had come against teams standing sixth or lower in the ACC standings. "Im not going to say were a finished product because weve got games left," Paige said, "but man, were playing really well right now and were winning games in a lot of different ways." It marked UNCs third win against a top-five team this season, along then-No. 1 Michigan State and then-No. 3 Louisville. Throw in then-No. 11 Kentucky in December, and the Tar Heels have beaten the top four teams from The Associated Press preseason Top 25. Not bad for a team that never had top player P.J. Hairston due to NCAA violations for improper benefits. "It was a bunch of guys that fought really hard," coach Roy Williams said, "and I couldnt be prouder of my team than I am right now." After filling the entire court after the horn, thousands of fans mobbed Franklin Street on the north end of campus to continue a celebration that came eight days later than they had hoped due to last weeks winter storm. The storm brought enough snow and ice to paralyze area roads and kept Dukes bus from even making it to Durham to pick up the team for the 11-mile drive to the Smith Center in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels made it worth the wait for their fans by being tough enough to wrestle control from the Blue Devils. They shot 50 per cent from the field after halftime and even made their last 10 free throws after a disastrous start at the line. Jabari Parker and Quinn Cook both scored 17 points for Duke, which led 51-40 with about 15 minutes left before going ice cold from the field. The Blue Devils missed 13 straight shots and went scoreless for 6 minutes at one point, helping the Tar Heels climb back in it by mixing a 1-3-1 zone with man defence. "They would just keep switching," Cook said. "Wed come down, and we wouldnt know what theyd be in. They kept us on our toes with their defence." Duke shot 36 per cent (11 for 31) after halftime and made 5 of 22 3-pointers for the game, Coach Mike Krzyzewski said he thought his team "played young" in the second half. "We looked tired or we didnt have life," Krzyzewski said. "And no matter what we did in a timeout, we just didnt have that spark -- the anger, the emotion, the thing you have to have to match what their crowd, their team is doing. You have to try to counter that. And I just felt we were, we didnt have the life that you needed to have." Paige provided plenty of that fight for the Tar Heels. After being hounded by Duke defenders Cook and Rasheed Sulaimon through his scoreless first half, he scored nine points in the final 5 1/2 minutes starting with his only 3-pointer of the night. McDonald hit the go-ahead jumper to make it 62-60 with 3:54 left, capping his own strong performance after two straight 1-for-8 shooting performances. Paige followed with a stepback jumper over Rodney Hood with 2:11 left, then answered Parkers free throws by driving for a scooping layup through the heart of Dukes defence. After Sulaimon missed a 3 on the ensuing possession, freshman Nate Britt followed with two free throws that pushed the lead to 68-62 with 46.2 seconds left and soon had the rowdy home crowd inching closer to the court. It marked the 11th time Paige has scored in double figures in the second half this season after scoring four or fewer in the first. The postponement created a four-games-in-eight-days stretch for both teams, though its particularly challenging for Duke with No. 1 Syracuse visiting Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday night in a rematch of the overtime classic won by the Orange earlier this month. UNC hosts Wake Forest on Saturday afternoon. Mirza Teletovic Jersey . Sami Salo scored two goals as the Canucks overcame a hat-trick from Edmonton Oiler rookie sensation Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to win 4-3 in NHL action Saturday. Fake Bucks Jerseys ." Bach is in Rome for the European Olympic Committees general assembly and meetings with Pope Francis. He also visited with Italian Premier Enrico Letta. "The prime minister appeared to be interested in a bid from Italy for 24, because he has realized that the games can serve as a catalyst for development for a city and a country," Bach told The Associated Press on Saturday. https://www.cheapbucksonline.com/326t-br...bucks.html . Scott scored a career-high 30 points, Jeff Teague added 28 and the Hawks rallied to beat the New York Knicks 107-98 on Saturday night. "We were down Paul, down so many bodies," Scott said.Nashville, TN (SportsNetwork.com) - After suffering four straight losses to end the regular season, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish will meet the 22nd- ranked LSU Tigers in the 17th annual Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl at LP Field. Notre Dame finished up the regular season with a 7-5 overall record, but that did include a 3-0 mark when playing on a neutral field. The Irish were highly ranked early in the season thanks to a 6-0 start, but the team fell toward the end of the campaign with five losses in its last six games. Its Notre Dames first trip to the Music City Bowl, though the team has appeared in bowl games in nine of its last 11 seasons. LSU, which ended the regular season at 8-4 with the No. 22 ranking in the nation, dropped two of its last three games played. But the Tigers are at least coming into this matchup on a high note after defeating Texas A&M, 23-17, to end the regular season. LSU is making its first trip to the Music City Bowl as well, but the Tigers are 23-21-1 all-time in bowl games, with 15 consecutive trips to the postseason under their belt. This clash between Notre Dame and LSU will be the 11th all-time in their program histories. The series is all knotted up at five games apiece, with the most recent meeting between them coming in the 2007 Sugar Bowl - a 41-14 LSU runaway victory. Notre Dames offense was highlighted in the regular season by quarterback Everett Golson, who took the reins as the starter from the get-go and performed exceptionally well, leading his team to a 33.0 ppg mark this season. Golson passed for 3,3355 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2014 against 14 interceptions, connecting for an average of 279.6 passing ypg. He added eight rushing touchdowns as well to his resume. Golson was the teams leader during the regular season in rushing scores, but tailback Tarean Folston handled the majority of the workload out of the backfield. The running back gained 816 yards on 154 carries, rushing to the end zone five times over the course of the year. Greg Bryant added 287 yards and three touchdowns rushing on the season. Will Fuller was unquestionably Golsons favorite target during the regular season, as the two hooked up through the air 71 times for 1,037 yards and 14 touchdowns. His 86.4 receiving ypg was the best on Notre Dame this season, which as a unit gained 444.6 total offensive ypg. Corey Robinson added five touchdown receptions this season for the Irish. Defensively, Notre Dame really fell apart toward the end of the campaign, especially in the teams final four losses. The Irish surrendered 29.2 ppg to opponents this season, including 401.5 offensive ypg. In the teams last four losses, Notre Dame gave up at least 43 points to three opponents, and at least 31 points to all four, including 55 in a defeat against Arizona State. Jaylon Smith led Notre Dame with 103 tackles on the year, adding in 8.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and six quarterback hurries. Both Matthias Farley and Cole Luke registered four interceptions during the regular season, which means theyll be in charge of shutting down an LSU passing game that threw nine combined interceptions. Bob Lanier Jersey. Up front, a Notre Dame defense that registered 70 tackles for loss and 24 sacks will need to be ready for a strong Tigers run game. Were thrilled with the opportunity to face LSU -- one of the preeminent programs in all of college football, said UND head coach Brian Kelly. When we worked with the ACC to fashion our agreement, part of the attraction for Notre Dame was the ability to provide our program with this type of matchup. In that vein were excited to come to Nashville, to play in a bowl in which the university never before has participated and to play in a top-notch NFL venue. Even after the loss of Jeremy Hill to the NFL in the offseason, LSU has continued to pride itself offensively in the run game. Averaging 219.5 rushing ypg with 23 rushing scores this season, the Tigers are led on the ground by Leonard Fournette and his 891 yards and eight touchdowns. Fournette was an all-purpose monster for the Tigers, as was Terrence Magee, who rushed for 545 yards and three touchdowns this season. Anthony Jennings saw the majority of reps under center at the head of the LSU offense, Jennings passed for 1,460 yards and 10 touchdowns to lead the team, but also tossed seven interceptions. He was the main signal caller to lead the LSU offense to 27.6 ppg. Whether it was Jennings or Brandon Harris (452 passing yards, six touchdowns) under center, Travin Dural was still the main target through the air for the Tigers. Dural caught 37 passes this season for 758 yards and seven touchdowns to lead the team in each category. Malachi Dupre hauled in five receiving scores to finish second on the squad. But it was LSUs defense that did the majority of the damage this season, limiting opponents to just 16.4 ppg and 305.8 total offensive ypg. The Tigers were especially strong in defending the pass, holding opponent aerial attacks to 162.3 passing ypg and just nine touchdowns all season long. That doesnt appear to be a good thing for Golson and the Irish, who rely heavily on taking down opponents through the air. Only two players recorded more than one interceptions this season for the Tigers, who as a unit notched 10 interceptions during the campaign. But turnovers were secondary compared to LSUs 56 pass breakups. Kwon Alexander finished the regular season atop the teams tackles chart, tallying 79 stops to pace the team. Danielle Hunter led the team with 12 tackles for loss, and Jermauria Rasco registered four sacks during the season to top the Tigers, who will have to be careful against a potentially potent Notre Dame offense. We are very excited to bring our football program and the great LSU fan base to Nashville to play Notre Dame in the Music City Bowl, LSU coach Les Miles said. Notre Dame is a traditional football power and we are looking forward to renewing what has been a tremendous rivalry between the two programs through the years. ' ' '