CS&T/AllsportsAmerica Monday Sports News Update, 06/24/2013.

Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica

 

Sports Quote of the Day:

"The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur." ~ Vince Lombardi, NFL Football Coach

How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Blackhawks-Bruins Preview. One to go, let's get this done.

By JIMMY GOLEN (AP Sports Writer)

Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane (88) celebrates with center Jonathan Toews (19) and defenseman Duncan Keith (2) after scoring a goal against the Boston Bruins.

Jonathan Toews watched the end of the fifth game of the Stanley Cup Final from the Blackhawks bench, unable to play after a hit to his head.

Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron was in a Chicago hospital after leaving the United Center by ambulance.

As the Stanley Cup Final approaches a sixth and potential clinching game on Monday night, the attention shifted from the players on the ice to the ones who might not make it there, including two of the top forwards and biggest stars in the series.

''It's not the best situation for either team,'' Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask said Sunday after both teams flew back to Boston. ''But it's a tough sport, and injuries happen.

When you leave it all out there to help your team win, that's all part of the game.''

Bergeron was injured in the second period of Game 5 on Saturday night, which the Blackhawks won 3-1 to take a 3-2 lead in the series. He made two brief appearances on the ice in the third period but something was obviously wrong and he was unable to complete either shift.

Toews, who won the Selke Award as the NHL's top defensive forward - Bergeron was a finalist - missed the entire third period after a shot to the head from Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk.

''They're both great players,'' Chicago winger Patrick Sharp said. ''I think any coach in the league, any player in the league would like to have those guys on their team. They take pride in taking faceoffs, playing well away from the puck, making their linemates better, (they're) both big parts of the locker room.

''I can't speak for what Boston is dealing with, with Bergeron. I know I don't need to say much about Jonathan. I think everyone knows what we think of him in our locker room. Hopefully we can have him back for (Monday).''

Bergeron, who was taken to the hospital for observation, was released later Saturday night and rejoined his teammates for a team meal.

''He was crushing some food,'' Bruins forward Brad Marchand said Sunday.

Bergeron was on the team flight back from Chicago. After the Bruins' bus arrived at the TD Garden in the afternoon, he walked without crutches or assistance to a car and was driven away.

''He's good. He came back with us and everything so hopefully he can play,'' Marchand said. ''He looked really good today. He had a nice suit on, very dashing.
 
Obviously, he's a big part of the team and hopefully he can play.''

The Blackhawks lost Toews after Boychuk knocked him down in the slot, making contact with his head. Boychuk wasn't penalized, and NHL spokesman John Dellapina said on Sunday that the league reviewed the hit and there will be no supplemental discipline.

''I think they said it was clean, wasn't it? Then I agree with them,'' Bruins coach Claude Julien said. ''I'm not going to hide from that. If it wasn't a clean hit - I've been a guy that supported those kind of things that we need to get out of the game. But it was a clean hit.''

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville alluded to the contact with the head but then said, ''I'm not going to go there.''

Toews was tied with Patrick Kane for the Blackhawks' team lead with 23 goals during the regular season. Since being reunited with Kane on Chicago's top line in Game 4, Chicago has rallied to take the lead in the best-of-seven series. Before he was knocked out of the Game 5, Toews assisted on both of Kane's goals.
 

''He's our leader,'' Chicago defenseman Johnny Oduya said. ''You know, he's one of those guys, and when he's full-speed he gives everything he's got every game. That's something that is tough to replace.''
 

Quenneville said Toews was doing much better and the team is optimistic he will be able to play in Game 6.

''We'll see how he is. I think the progress today, he's doing real good,'' Quenneville said. ''We'll visit in the morning, and he seemed fine. So nothing has changed.

Nothing is different. We'll keep an eye on him, and we'll go from there.''

With or without Toews and Bergeron, the Blackhawks have a chance to clinch their second Stanley Cup title in four seasons on Monday night in Boston. If they lose, the series returns to Chicago for a decisive seventh game on Wednesday.

And that, Julien said, is why he wasn't worried about whether Toews will play or not.

''I think I should be looking in my backyard and make sure I've got my guys playing tomorrow before I start worrying about the game plan with them,'' he said. ''Right now we know it's up to us to ... bring our 'A' game if we want a chance to win. That part of it should be more important than who they have and don't have in their lineup.''

NBA-Miami beats San Antonio to repeat as NBA champions.

Reuters; By Simon Evans

* LeBron James named most valuable player of Finals.

 

* Spurs' Tim Duncan scores team-high 24 points in loss.

The Miami Heat won their second straight National Basketball Association (NBA) title on Thursday with a 95-88 win over the San Antonio Spurs in the decisive seventh game of an epic series.

Miami's LeBron James, the sport's biggest star playing at the peak of his powers, had a game-high 37 points and pulled in 12 rebounds in a dominant performance while Dwyane Wade had 23 points.

"To be able to come on to our floor and do it, it's the ultimate," James, who delivered the perfect answer to those who doubted his killer instinct in the big games, said during an on-court interview.

"I can't worry about what everybody says about me. I am LeBron James from Akron, Ohio, from the inner city, I'm not even supposed to be here. I'm blessed."

James, named most valuable player of the Finals, shot 12-of-23 from the floor, including 5-of-10 three-pointers to lead Miami to their third NBA title and his second just two nights after the Heat's championship defence almost ended abruptly.

San Antonio, chasing a fifth NBA title, were just seconds away from clinching the championship on Tuesday before Miami staged an extraordinary comeback to win in overtime and force a decisive seventh game.

James, a four-times league MVP, sealed the victory with a jump shot with 27.9 seconds left, pumping his fist as the home crowd hailed their hero.

NBA Commissioner David Stern described the series as a "championship for the ages" which had "captivated a global audience" and there were generous words from the Heat for a Spurs team who pushed Miami all the way.

"It's no fun to lose, but we lost to a better team," said Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich. "And you can live with that as long as you've given your best. And I think we have."

FRENZY OF EXCITEMENT

The visitors made a great start, opening up a seven-point cushion in the first quarter and by three points late in the third quarter but came up just short.

Tim Duncan had 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Spurs while Kawhi Leonard had 19 points in the winner-take-all clash that had whipped basketball fans into a frenzy of excitement during a wildly fluctuating series full of escalating drama.

Courtside tickets for Thursday's game were selling on the secondary market for up to $30,000 and the game lived up to the hype with both teams fiercely contesting every possession.

Miami made yet another slow start and trailed by seven points less than five minutes into the game, a sloppy pass from James allowing Duncan an easy dunk.

A trademark turnaround jumper from Wade indicated the veteran from the Heat's 2006 title-winning team was in an aggressive mood and the introduction of Chris Andersen into the game injected some more energy into the Heat.

A pair of three pointers from Shane Battier brought roars from the crowd as Miami built an 18-16 lead by the end of the opening quarter.

James sat for the opening three minutes of the second quarter and the Spurs kept close. With just under seven minutes left in the half, the teams were tied at 27-27.

SPURS KEPT CLOSE

The brief rest paid off as James quickly gave Miami a six-point lead - he was fouled while scoring, putting away the free throw and then followed up with a three-pointer from deep.

But while the Heat were moving the ball well, typically, San Antonio kept close, helped by a huge three pointer from Gary Neal before a Duncan lay-up leveled the game at 40-40 with 1:55 left in the half.

Wade ended a fine first half performance with a fall-away jump shot to give the Heat a 46-44 lead at the break after scoring 14 points on 7-12 shooting and grabbing six rebounds.

James drained his third three-pointer early in the third quarter but two jumpers from the an impressive Kawhi Leonard, who had grabbed 10 first-half rebounds, ensured the Spurs kept with the pace.

Danny Green, who had been struggling with his shooting, sank a three-pointer to put San Antonio briefly a point ahead with 5:27 left in the third but James responded with two long rangers of his own, his five three-pointers a personal best in an NBA Finals game.

The Spurs led by two but Mario Chalmers beat the buzzer at the end of the third with a 30-footer to take Miami into the final quarter of the season with a 72-71 lead.

A Battier three gave the Heat an early four-point cushion and a Wade basket extended the lead to six with 7:14 remaining.

But San Antonio again responded and when Leonard drained a three-pointer it was a two-point game with two minutes left.

Chalmers missed two free throws but with 27 seconds left James delivered the killer blow with a vital jump shot and then made sure of victory when he snatched a Manu Ginobili pass, was fouled and put away both his free throws.

Wade added another from the free throw line before the home crowd erupted in celebration.

 NFL to honor Jones with sack award.

The Sports Xchange

The NFL is naming an award after Hall of Fame defensive end David "Deacon" Jones.

The Deacon Jones Award will be given annually in his honor to the player who leads the NFL in sacks. Jones died earlier this month at age 74. 

The new award, which will presented for the first time in 2013, was announced Saturday during a memorial service for Jones in Los Angeles.

The former defensive lineman, who played a majority of his 14-year NFL career with the Los Angeles Rams as part of the "Fearsome Foursome," was known as a prolific pass rusher. Although sacks weren't an official stats when he played, the eight-time Pro Bowler is credited with coining the term and is believed to have had at least 20 in four different seasons. 

The award will be part of the nationally televised NFL Honors award show preceding next season's Super Bowl.

Lateral Hazard: Bubba Watson's ball-dunking, caddy-blistering blowup opens door for Ken Duke.

By Brian Murphy

They're not booing at TPC River Highlands, where 44-year-old Ken Duke won his first-ever PGA Tour event. They're saying "Duuuuuuke." That is, when they're not saying "Bubba: You mad, bro?"

Post-major Tour stops are generally snoozers; the equivalent of a hangover that requires a nap on the couch while the Sunday final round plays on your TV at a barely audible level, so that Verne Lundquist's voice actually enters your subconscious and lulls you into blissful REM, purring phrases like "My gracious!" – which he did when Chris Stroud forced a playoff with a 72nd hole chip-in.

But the Travelers Championship in Connecticut kept you out of the Nap Zone. It was pyrotechnics and emotion. It was Ken Duke, the pride of Henderson State University in Arkansas, pumping his fist and hitting an absolute whopper of a game-winner for birdie, a sand wedge from 117 yards to inside a yard on the second playoff hole.

 

It was Stroud, removing his cap and whipping it over his head in the playoff, firing up a crowd that was into the proceedings.

And it was Bubba Watson, who hasn't won since last year's Masters, blowing his lead on the 70th hole with a triple bogey – and a triple whammy of invectives directed at his caddie, Ted Scott. CBS caught it all, and Watson came off looking like a heel. In the golf world, this counts as four-star gossip.

Ken Duke won the Travelers Championship on the second playoff hole. (AP)

That's why it's good we had a feel-good ending. Duke is one of those guys who reminds you of the PGA Tour back in the 1970s and 1980s, when the words "Fitness Trailer" didn't exist, unless it meant showing one's drinking fitness when spending Saturday night knocking back beers in a trailer.

Duke isn't fit. He sweats a lot. He has played on Tours in Asia, Canada and South America. He doesn't have Rory McIlroy's Nike contract, or Rickie Fowler's flat-billed Puma cap. He's got a handsy, old-school swing and drives it straight as a string, No. 1 on Tour in driving accuracy. And yet he appeared destined to be one of those journeymen who play golf for a living, make some good dough and never win, never get famous.

But sometimes, things happen for guys like Ken Duke. An approach on the 10th hole is headed for big trouble – then hits a tree branch and plops five feet from the cup.

Birdie. Or, a 45-foot, cross-country triple-break putt drops in the side door on the 13th hole. Birdie. Or, the leader dumps a ball in the water, gets mad at his caddie and leaves you an opening. And then, just when you think you've reached the mountaintop with a super solid par save on 18, able to make "4" after a poor, nervous drive for a one-shot lead, the kid Stroud chips in for birdie to force a playoff.

Ken Duke could be forgiven for wondering if it wasn't meant to be, that his automatic invite back to Augusta National (he played in the 2009 Masters) would remain out of reach. But then he fully committed to that sand wedge, had the right club and right yardage, and gave himself a kick-in birdie for victory.

He got a little choked up talking to David Feherty, but snapped right back into happy Duke mode by getting a bottle of Coca-Cola (no Diet Coke for an old-school guy like Duke) and shaking it up, flashing the CBS camera with the bottle and saying: "Yeaaaaahhhh … that's what I'm talking about!"

Just what he was talking about, we don't know. A frizzy, shaken-up Coke, to punctuate his first win? Cool by us, Ken. You made for a likeable winner, so keep talkin' about whatever you want.

SCORECARD OF THE WEEK

63-69-69-69 – 18-under 270, Ernie Els, winner, European Tour BMW International Open, Golfclub Munchen Eichenried, Munich, Germany.

Ernie Els was a big hit on the course and in his lederhosen in Munich. (Getty Images)

Pretty hard not to enjoy Ernie Els, like Duke a fortysomething winner at age 43. The Big Easy not only got on the board with his first victory since Adam Scott gift-wrapped him the 2012 British Open (complete with greeting card, a cheese plate and iTunes gift card), he did so in true Ernie style.

By that, I mean he wore lederhosen at one point, and after his win spoke of the quality of Munich beer.

"I used to drink a lot of beer in this town. The beer here is so good," he said in his post-victory news conference, "you don't get those hangovers that you get with the other stuff."

A winner who shoots 63 to open a wire-to-wire job, and praises the local lagers as hangover-free nectar? That's a gracious guest.

And yes, lederhosen. To celebrate 25 years of the European Tour coming to Munich, players dressed in traditional German garb for a cow-milking contest party, while wives and girlfriends were encouraged to dress as comely fräuleins, too. The sight of Ernie in the 'hosen, big grin on his South African mug, on the stool crushing those udders en route to victory in the cow-milking contest, too, was one of the richer images of the year.

Dustin Johnson enjoyed the BMW International Open with girlfriend Paulina Gretzky. (Getty Images)

By the way, American Dustin Johnson was at the event, and tweeted out a picture of his lovely lady, Paulina Gretzky, in the traditional gear. He captioned it, "The Original St. Pauli Girl," and when I viewed the size of the stein from which Johnson was quaffing, and the head-turning Gretzky as his favorite fräulein, it suddenly made a lot more sense why Johnson has been chilling well away from the winner's circle since his Maui victory to open the year.

A keen statistician would note that Johnson's bid to win in Munich was undone by a Saturday 73, the day after he tweeted out the Paulina-as-fräulein photo. Young love. What are you gonna do, golf fans?

Back to Els. He says he will take the next three weeks off, skipping the Scottish Open, to rest up for a return to Muirfield, where he won the British Open in 2002. He did say he may attend a party in Monte Carlo to honor a friend, but said he only had a day or two of partying in him, "not three weeks." Laughs all around. Ernie is playing winning golf, and the golf world is better for it.

BROADCAST MOMENT OF THE WEEK

"Hey, you hit it, bud." – David Feherty, CBS, to Bubba Watson after Bubba Watson undressed his caddie for a bad yardage on the 16th hole.

Look at Feherty, man of the people. He was not only sticking up for Watson's caddie, Ted Scott, but also saying what all of us were thinking: Hey, bud. You hit the golf ball over the green, not the caddie.

Watson has admitted in the past that he has let his emotions run too hot, and taken things out on his caddie. But he said an intervention of sorts from his wife and caddie years ago cured that, made him a better player and is partially why he broke through at the Travelers Championship for his first win in 2010, the first of four wins, including last year's Masters.

It was a three-part drama Watson laid on Scott. First, there was the tee shot into the water, where cameras caught him saying, "That club," to Scott, disgustedly. Second, was the shot from the drop zone that flew the green, and cameras caught Watson saying: "So you're telling me that's the right yardage?" – dripping with sarcasm.

This is where Feherty stepped in and offered that thought.

Finally, Watson missed his putt for double bogey, and was seen to say, "There's no reason for you to even show up," to his caddie, chewing off the words.

Had there been a bus that drove by on a nearby road, Watson may have suggested a caddie-toss underneath.

It was bad form by the lefty, and he'll have to wear this one for a day or two, until we get distracted by more pictures of Ernie Els in lederhosen, or Paulina Gretzky as a St. Pauli Girl.

MULLIGAN OF THE WEEK

In fact, let's stay on this point for our Mully o' the Week.

Bubba Watson had kinder words for fans after the final round than he did his caddie. (USA Today Sports)

Watson was at the 16th tee with a one-shot lead, and all he had to do was par out for victory, in all likelihood. But that tee ball into the water sunk him, and then his three outbursts at Scott sunk his reputation on social media, where armchair etiquette officials like yours truly gave him the old tsk-tsk.

I'm not even talking about giving Watson a mulligan on the tee shot. In fact, I'm happy Ken Duke won, so I don't care about the tee ball into the water. What I do think deserves a mulligan, however, is Watson's reaction.

What we need to do is go back out to that 16th tee, let Bubba dump that ball into the drink and then have him say loud enough for the cameras to hear: "I picked the wrong club … that's on me." Right? So let's go back out there and … give that man a post-shot reaction mulligan!

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

If Tiger Woods throws a golf tournament, and Tiger Woods doesn't play in it, did the tournament happen? These are deep philosophical questions and pertinent ones since Tiger is throwing a golf tournament – this week's AT&T National at Congressional – and Tiger isn't playing, to rest an elbow strain he suffered at the Players Championship (where he won) and aggravated at Merion's U.S. Open (where he didn't win).

Justin Rose and Adam Scott will play, however, so at least there will be someone who can win a major in Tiger's tournament. Hey, now! I kid. Sort of.

This is also one of those rare weeks where the women's game trumps the men's. I love the U.S. Women's Open, and the ladies' national championship takes place at Sebonack in Southampton, N.Y.

In the last eight years, Cristie Kerr (2007) and Paula Creamer (2010) are the only Americans to win America's national championship. Given that the Fourth of July is around the corner, maybe it'll be a lucky week for the red, white and blue. Or, the tournament can be like any other women's tournament these days and be won by Inbee Park, who wins 'em all. Either way, a fun week. The only thing more fun would be hanging with Ken Duke and Ernie Els, although we can keep Duke out of the lederhosen, for everyone's sake.

Martin Truex Jr. snaps 218-race losing streak.

By JENNA FRYER (AP Auto Racing Writer)

The post-race party was a blur after Martin Truex Jr.'s first win in 2007. The celebratory cool-down lap, the burnouts, the drive to Victory Lane all happened so fast.

So he planned to savor every minute of his next win.

He just didn't think it would take six years.

Truex snapped a 218-race winless streak Sunday with an easy victory on the road course at Sonoma Raceway. It was only the second win of Truex's career, but it put Michael Waltrip Racing in Victory Lane for the second year in a row after Clint Bowyer won here last season.

Overwhelmed with emotion as he crossed the finish line, Truex made the celebration count.
 

''I was a freaking mess. It was terrible,'' he said. ''I had to stop and start doing donuts because I couldn't think about what I was doing. I tried to key the radio once and I couldn't even talk. So I thought, 'OK, I'm going to do some donuts and wave to the fans.' But after I stopped the first time and did that, I calmed down a little bit and I just wanted to make sure I took my time coming back, because I remember at Dover it all happens way too fast. You never know when you're going to get that opportunity again.''

Truex blew out his rear tires, tried to wave to every single fan he saw, and took a slow drive around the picturesque road course on his way to Victory Lane, where the MWR crew was waiting to drink from the winner's enormous wine glass.

''I told them on the radio, if they're waiting on me, too bad. I'm taking my time,'' he said. ''You can't explain the feeling. When it's been that long and you worked so hard and you've been so close ... when you think at times, 'Man, is this ever going to happen again?' You can't explain the feeling. It's pretty surreal.''

Truex worked his way to the front and used strategy to stay with the leaders. He then pulled away after the final restart and built a healthy lead of more than six seconds over Juan Pablo Montoya, who was running second until he ran out of gas on the final lap.

''I'm ecstatic. But I'm not exactly sure how that happened,'' said Truex, who admitted he wasn't pleased with his car following Friday's practices. ''The car was just phenomenal all day long and once I was near the front and didn't have to run the car 110 percent, it just would stay with me on the long runs and I was able to drive away from everyone.''

Montoya, who came into the weekend knowing if he didn't win he would at least have a huge points day, dropped all the way to 34th after having to coast to the finish. He took a shortcut to skip the final turn, drifted to the finish line and parked. He then walked back to the garage, annoyed his Chip Ganassi Racing team never told him to save fuel.

''We've got tools to prevent things like that from happening,'' Montoya said.

''I don't know if all the fuel didn't go,'' Montoya said. ''This is what we've been doing all year. We all work together and we're all trying to do the best we can. Half the reason we're 20-something in points - we're not 20-something in points because we're not running fast. We're 20-something in points because we had a lot of mechanical problems and days like this we throw them away.''

Crew chief Chris Heroy was perplexed about the shortage.

''We don't know what happened - we were on the same strategy as (Truex),'' Heroy said through a team spokeswoman. ''We're going to go back to the shop and figure it out.''

Montoya got little sympathy from Kyle Busch, who was spun by Montoya early in the race when Montoya drove too deep into a corner and wheel-hopped over a curb.

''Awww. My heart melts for (at)jpmontoya who ran out of gas,'' Busch tweeted moments after the race.

Jeff Gordon finished second a week after he was wrecked six laps into the race at Michigan, but felt like he might have had a chance to win if he had not already committed to pit seconds before a caution came out early in the race.

''I mean, I really do think we had a shot winning this race. We had a tremendous car,'' Gordon said. ''I knew we were screwed. There was nothing I could do; I was hard on the brakes, fully committed. I couldn't turn away from it, I just knew we had to eat it and go on, and that's what we did.''

Carl Edwards was third, followed by Kurt Busch, who climbed back from a pair of speeding penalties.

''Yeah, we were fast, even on pit road. Twice,'' Busch laughed. ''I messed-up, flat-out. I didn't hit my tachometer right and I was speeding both times. It was one of those where I'm like, how does that happen? I just put myself in a position that was poor trying to get too much on pit road.''

Bowyer wound up fifth in a strong day for the MWR Toyotas.

Kasey Kahne was sixth and followed by Marcos Ambrose, who was extremely disappointed he didn't win a race in which he was heavily favored.

''It's OK. We got a top-10 out of it,'' Ambrose said. ''I wanted to win. Of course I wanted to win, but that's the way it goes.''

Greg Biffle was eighth and followed by Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick in the top 10.

The race got off to an inauspicious start before it even began with a pit road accident, a mechanical issue for Jacques Villeneuve and an oil line failure for Bobby Labonte.

The accident occurred as the cars were headed onto the track and David Reutimann stopped his car on pit road. Alex Kennedy stopped behind Reutimann, and Paulie Harraka slammed into the back of Kennedy.

The damage wasn't significant enough to prevent Harraka from making his Sprint Cup Series debut. But it was a short-lived race for the first driver to advance from NASCAR's diversity program into a Cup race - Harraka spun and crashed his car six laps later.

Meanwhile, a parts failure caused Labonte to dump oil all over pit road before the race and he was forced to take his car to the garage for a quick repair. Labonte made it onto the track for the green flag, but his engine failed on the first lap.

''It blew up, dude,'' Labonte said on his radio. ''Something in the bottom engine because it had no oil pressure.''

Villeneuve had an issue shifting his gears and had to stay on pit road for a quick repair before trying to catch up to the field at the start of the race. He made it, but the problem wasn't completely corrected and he was back on pit road after 19 laps for more repairs.

Busch had back-to-back speeding penalties in yet another race that slipped away. He led 15 laps, lost the lead to former teammate Brad Keselowski, then was flagged for speeding when he went in for a scheduled pit stop. He had to return to pit road for a stop-and-go penalty and was flagged for speeding again.

It dropped Busch to 38th in the running order, from where he had to climb back to steal his strong finish.

His brother also had his share of problems. Kyle Busch was spun early in the race by Montoya to lose a ton of track position, then gave up everything he made up when he was caught speeding on pit road. He also spun at least two more times during the race.
 

Danica Patrick, thought to be a contender based on her strong runs in Nationwide Series road races, struggled all weekend to find speed and was done in by a flat rear tire just past the halfway point. The tire issue caused her to spin into a barrier and make multiple pit stops for repairs.

 

''It was a long day, a long weekend,'' Patrick said. ''We just couldn't get the car to the point where I was comfortable with it. We just couldn't get much to go our way this weekend. Having the cut tire and going into the tire barrier was just sort of salt in the wound.''

 

Pole-sitter Jamie McMurray never even led a lap under green as he was passed at the start by Ambrose, and his race took a big hit when he later ran off course with a tire problem and lost a lap. 

 

Spain sets new world record of 28 competitive matches unbeaten.

 

By Max Bentley

 

Spain has broken the record for the highest number of competitive games without defeat following a 3-0 victory against Nigeria in its final group match of the Confederations Cup.

 

Vicente del Bosque's side has strung together a run of 28 consecutive matches without defeat in official FIFA competition, a run which goes back to its opening group match of the 2010 World Cup, a 1-0 loss to Switzerland.

Spain's run, which began with a 2-0 victory over Honduras in the second group game of the World Cup in South Africa, has seen it record 24 wins and four draws with an aggregate score of 69-11. Del Bosque's men have also managed 18 clean sheets in that time.

The previous record was held by France which, under the coaching of Aime Jacquet and later, Roger Lemerre, went unbeaten for five years between September 1994 and March 1999, although that run does include a 6-5 defeat on penalties to Czech Republic in Euro '96.

Spain's 3-0 victory against Nigeria also marks its 25th consecutive victory in all competitions, with its last defeat coming in a 1-0 friendly loss to England at Wembley in November 2011.
 

Clippers' hiring of Doc Rivers as coach impacts futures of Chris Paul, Kevin Garnett.

 

By Adrian Wojnarowski

 

Doc Rivers has agreed to terms on a three-year, $21 million contract with the Los Angeles Clippers, ending weeks of dysfunctional and muddled negotiations, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

 

After the Clippers re-started talks on Sunday with the offer of a first-round draft pick to the Celtics for compensation, talks rapidly progressed and Los Angeles agreed to send Boston its unprotected 2015 first-round selection.

Clippers free-agent guard Chris Paul kept lobbying franchise management to pursue Rivers throughout the past week. Paul hasn't formally committed to signing a five-year maximum contract in July, but Rivers is taking the job with full knowledge that he'll be coaching Paul, sources said. 

The possibility of Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett reuniting with Rivers in Los Angeles is a remote possibility, largely because of the NBA's unwillingness to approve a trade that suspiciously looks like an extension of the coaching transaction.
 
As the Celtics-Clippers discussions dragged on, Garnett – who had to waive his no-trade clause – had become increasingly less interested in making the move to the Clippers, sources said.

Garnett has two years, $24.4 million left on his Celtics deal, but there's a growing belief that he'll play one more season before retiring and joining his old coach, Flip Saunders, with a ceremonial role in Minnesota Timberwolves ownership, league sources told Y! Sports.

"The opportunity will be there for him," one source said, "but there's nothing decided yet."
 

The Celtics have to make a decision before June 30 if they want to buy out the remaining $15 million on Paul Pierce's contract for $5 million, but Boston is finding that scenario less and less likely, sources told Yahoo! Sports. There's been enough trade interest from contending teams who still see the 35-year-old Pierce as a plausible third offensive option, sources said.

The Denver Nuggets called the Celtics on Saturday – the second time in two weeks – to inquire about trying to hire Rivers as coach, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

The Nuggets had been willing to give the Celtics a first-round pick as compensation and were prepared to make Rivers a competitive offer with the $7 million per season he made in Boston, sources told Yahoo! Sports.

Before the Clippers reached out to the Celtics on Sunday morning, Rivers had informed Boston general manager Danny Ainge that he planned to return for the 2013-14 season as coach, a source told Y! Sports. Rivers had been balking at returning to the Celtics out of disillusionment over having to preside over a rebuilding process. In the end, though, Boston was glad to shed the $21 million owed to Rivers over the next three years, clearing the way for them to hire a less-expensive coach with the organization no longer in championship contention mode.

Without the Clippers' change of heart on offering a first-round pick, there had been a strong possibility that Rivers would've discussed the Nuggets job with Denver officials. The Clippers' offer of a 2015 first-round pick changed everything. Clearly, Rivers' telling the Clippers he no longer had interest in the job – and the Celtics setting a Friday deadline for a deal – were negotiating postures to leverage the Clippers back with a better offer.
 

Not only had Rivers told the Clippers on Friday that he was no longer interested in the job, he had told his defensive coordinator, Mike Longabardi, that he was completely done discussing the Clippers position and would not accept it, sources said. Soon, Longabardi finalized a deal to become the top assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns. He now won't be able to join Rivers' staff with the Clippers.

 

It is likely that Rivers will bring Boston assistant coaches Tyronn Lue and Kevin Eastman, sources said. Another assistant, Jay Larranaga, is well-regarded by Rivers and the front office, but he's under contract for one more year with Boston. It's unclear how Larranaga fits into Rivers' Clippers staff.
 

Former Clippers head coach Alvin Gentry had discussed joining Rivers' staff with the Celtics, and will be a candidate for his Los Angeles staff, sources said. Gentry also is candidate for the Memphis Grizzlies' head-coaching position and to join Mike D'Antoni's staff with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Baseball results, Sunday, June 23, 2013.

Reuters

Results from the MLB games on Sunday (home team in CAPS) 

Minnesota 5 CLEVELAND 3
TORONTO 13 Baltimore 5
DETROIT 7 Boston 5

NY Mets 8 PHILADELPHIA 0 

Colorado 7 WASHINGTON 6
Tampa Bay 3 NY YANKEES 1
KANSAS CITY 7 Chicago White Sox 6
Atlanta 7 MILWAUKEE 4
CHICAGO CUBS 14 Houston 6

Pittsburgh 10 LA ANGELS 9 (10 innings)

Miami 7 SAN FRANCISCO 2

SEATTLE 6 Oakland 3 (10 innings)

LA Dodgers 3 SAN DIEGO 1 

Cincinnati 4 ARIZONA 2
Texas 2 ST. LOUIS 1

 

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