Meister der Farbe » would go further in the tournament. I

Sundays championship game of the Tires Pro Invitational features two early breakout stars in No. 11 Xaviers J.P. Macura and Northern Iowas Klint Carlson.Macura, a junior sharpshooter, poured in a career-high 28 points in the Musketeers win over Clemson on Friday. It was an impressive performance highlighted by six 3-pointers, some from way beyond the arc.Clemson coach Brad Brownell called Macura unbelievable. He just kept backing up on us, Brownell said.Xavier coach Chris Mack credited Macuras teammates for getting him the ball. The Musketeers (4-0) had 17 assists.His teammates really wanted to find him, Mack told reporters. If youre hot the way he was, its nice to know that people are looking for him in transition. And we ran a few plays for him to get him open.Carlson was equally spectacular in Northern Iowas comeback win over Oklahoma on Friday. He scored 22 points and led the Panthers back from an 18-point deficit in the second half with a barrage of 3-pointers and some slick moves to the basket. Eighteen of Carlsons points came in the last six minutes of regulation and overtime.I guess I was feeling it, Carlson told reporters after the overtime win over the Sooners. I dont even remember how many shots I took, but at that point, I was just glad they were going in.Xavier and Northern Iowa each suffered heartbreaking losses in the NCAA Tournament last season. The Musketeers surrendered two 3-pointers to Wisconsin in the final 12 seconds of a second-round loss to the Badgers.Four of the Musketeers top six scorers returned from last years NCAA Tournament team, including junior guard Trevon Bluiett, who had 21 points against Clemson.Bluiett, who needs just eight points to reach 1,000 for his career, combines with Macura to give Xavier one of the top backcourts in the nation.Macura was the Big Easts sixth man of the year last season and looks like hell contend for player of the year this season. Hes averaging 19.5 points during the Musketeers 4-0 start. Xavier is expected to contend with defending national champion Villanova in the Big East.Last season for Northern Iowa ended in gut-wrenching fashion. The Panthers squandered a 12-point lead in the final 44 seconds against Texas A&M and ended up losing in overtime to the Aggies in the second round of tournament.Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson has a relatively young roster, featuring seven freshmen, but the Panthers played beyond their years in the comeback win against Oklahoma.We kept playing defense and rebounding when our offense was not very good and I like that, Jacobson said after the win over the Sooners. And the other thing I like was that a relatively new group believed we could get all the way back.The Musketeers and Panthers will tip off at approximately 7:30 p.m. Sunday at HP Field House in Orlando, Fla.Xavier has won three regular-season tournament titles in the last 10 seasons. Rangers Jerseys China . A big centre with all the tools to be an elite player, Johansen paced the Blue Jackets with a standout game Saturday night. He had a goal and two assists for a career-high three points as Columbus beat the New York Islanders 5-2 to snap a five-game losing streak. Custom Rangers Jerseys . -- If Henry Burris has his way, he will be the starting quarterback to lead the Hamilton Tiger-Cats back to the Grey Cup next year. http://www.custommlbrangersjersey.com/ . Thats about all he can do right now, so hes trying not to think about when he might be able to play again for the Los Angeles Lakers. Custom Rangers T-shirts . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Custom Ivan Rodriguez Jersey . After slipping from the summit during the week, the Gunners overcame struggling Crystal Palace 2-0 on Sunday thanks to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlains second-half brace. When Delhi were battling for a win against Saurashtra in Baroda to stay alive in the knockout race, some 1500 km away an anxious Odisha side was keeping close tabs on the match. With Odisha only one point ahead of Delhis 21, the latters victory would leave Odisha needing to win outright against Jharkhand in their last league game beginning on December 15.However, unlike his team-mates, Odisha captain Govinda Poddar wasnt sweating over the outcome. He was attending a family function in his hometown Rourkela, and had decided to take his mind off the game. His team-mates, though, wouldnt let him be.I wasnt following the scores because I didnt want to be nervous about something I couldnt control. But, every once in a while, someone or the other would ring me up to tell me the score, he told ESPNcricinfo. I would tell them: Yaar, please put the phone down. Tell me at the end if they have lost or not.Not long after, Saurashtra snuffed out Delhis chances by four runs after last man Navdeep Saini was adjudged lbw. As a result, Odisha were into the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophy for the first time since 2001-02. This time, Poddar didnt mind the phone calls.I have two phones and both started ringing at the same time. Our wicketkeeper Saurabh Rawat, and Ranjit Singh, the opening batsman, were the first guys to call, he said. When I picked up the phones, I heard their excited voices: Dada, we have qualified, congrats. Then, I called our coach Debasis Mohanty and we congratulated each other.Allrounder Biplab Samantray was one of the players who bombarded Poddar with score updates. He was at his home in Cuttack, discussing the match online with his team-mates. We were all sharing updates on our teams Whatsapp group, and whenever my internet slowed down, I would anxiously ask the others what the score was, he said.Its been 15 years since we have qualified for the knockouts, so obviously there is bound to be excitement. It was a dream of mine, personally, to play in the quarter-finals. We have been doing well this season and God has given us another chance to prove ourselves. We had our teams practice session this afternoon and everyone was excited about performing in a big match. Such things dont come easily.Odisha leave for Thiruvananthapuram on Monday for what would now effectively be a practice match against Jharkhand ahead of the quarter-finals scheduled to begin on December 24. Had Delhi won, the trip would have been a lot more tense, especially with what Odisha have gone through in the last week or so.dddddddddddd They were grounded in Dindigul for a week after their last league fixture against Jharkhand was a non-starter following the death of Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa. Poddar called the hotel arrest a new experience that transcended cricket.From December 2 to 8, we were in Dindigul, he said. We went for practice only on the first two days, and a few hours before she passed away on December 5, there were rumours about her passing away. Our local manager feared there could be acts of violence and said we had to return to the hotel, which was about 35 km away from the ground [in Natham]. After we reached the hotel, we couldnt step out until December 8.It was frustrating, but it was a new experience in the sense we got to know a lot of new things. The passing away of a leader of such stature is sad news, and we could see what it meant to the people there.There was some anxiety over Odishas travel plans, and for a brief period, they didnt know the fate of their match against Jharkhand. There was a bit of apprehension over whether we could get out of town or not, and what would happen to the match, he said.So there was a lot of chaos, but all the boys got together and reassured one another that we couldnt afford to worry about the game. Whenever it took place, we had to be ready - there was nothing more we could do. For those five-six days, all we did was wake up, gather in somebodys room and order room-service. That we have bonded well all season has helped.After the team eventually got back to Odisha, they have had well-deserved downtime. Poddar hoped Odisha, rejuvenated by the break, would go further in the tournament. I was very desperate because some of our players have been performing well over the last few years, but still they are not getting to play at a certain level, he said. To come into the limelight, you need to play quarter-finals and semi-finals. Your matches are broadcast live and people know there is a team that is trying hard to come up the ladder.For now, though, Odisha have earned the right to celebrate their biggest achievement in a while. We havent planned a party yet, Samantray said, but we will have something for sure before we start for Trivandrum. ' ' '