The San Miguel Beermen beat the tiresome Ginebra San Miguel in their game 7 finals game tonight at the Araneta Astrodome in Cubao, Quezon City.
July 17, 2009
Formula 1: Bourdais fired by Toro Rosso, threatens Toro Rosso
French driver Sebastien Bourdais was shocked at being fired by Toro Rosso on Thursday, then the four-time Champ Car series winner threatened legal action against the Formula One team.
Toro Rosso said it would announce a replacement for Bourdais ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, ending a disappointing brief stint in the series for the 30-year-old at just over the halfway point of his second season.
"I am very disappointed and shocked by the decision," Bourdais said in a statement. "I consider that, in doing so, Scuderia Toro Rosso has breached its contractual duties toward me."
Toro Rosso principal Franz Tost said that "the partnership has not met our expectations and therefore we have decided to replace him as from the next round of the world championship."
But Bourdais said his behavior had been professional and the Italian team had violated their contract.
"I have instructed my lawyers to review the situation including the possibility of issuing legal proceedings," Bourdais said.
The team's reserve driver, 19-year-old Spaniard Jaime Alguersuari, was among the leading contenders to get the drive. If he does, he will be the youngest driver to start an F1 race.
In 2008, Bourdais was outshone by teammate Sebastian Vettel, with the talented German winning the Italian Grand Prix and earning a move this season to Red Bull, where he has emerged as a title contender.
This year, Bourdais was expected to be the senior driver alongside rookie Sebastien Buemi, but the young Swiss earned three points over the opening nine races of the season against two points for Bourdais. Buemi out-qualified Bourdais in seven of nine races.
"I am even more frustrated by the team's decision considering that the latter has been taken immediately before the Hungarian Grand Prix, where a new highly competitive racing package will be introduced," Bourdais said. "I am convinced that if I was given the chance to race with such new package I would have had the opportunity to achieve satisfactory results."
In all, Bourdais totaled six points from four points finishes across 27 races. He never bettered the effort of his debut in the 2008 Australian GP when he was running in fourth place and looked like making a podium finish but suffered an engine failure and was classified in seventh.
He suffered bad luck at the 2008 Italian GP, which Vettel went on to win. Having qualified fourth after a rain-soaked qualifying session, Bourdais had a strong chance for a career-best finish, but his car stalled on the grid and by the time he started, he was already a lap down.
Bourdais' removal was the first driver change in the 2009 season.
Toro Rosso said it would announce a replacement for Bourdais ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, ending a disappointing brief stint in the series for the 30-year-old at just over the halfway point of his second season.
"I am very disappointed and shocked by the decision," Bourdais said in a statement. "I consider that, in doing so, Scuderia Toro Rosso has breached its contractual duties toward me."
Toro Rosso principal Franz Tost said that "the partnership has not met our expectations and therefore we have decided to replace him as from the next round of the world championship."
But Bourdais said his behavior had been professional and the Italian team had violated their contract.
"I have instructed my lawyers to review the situation including the possibility of issuing legal proceedings," Bourdais said.
The team's reserve driver, 19-year-old Spaniard Jaime Alguersuari, was among the leading contenders to get the drive. If he does, he will be the youngest driver to start an F1 race.
In 2008, Bourdais was outshone by teammate Sebastian Vettel, with the talented German winning the Italian Grand Prix and earning a move this season to Red Bull, where he has emerged as a title contender.
This year, Bourdais was expected to be the senior driver alongside rookie Sebastien Buemi, but the young Swiss earned three points over the opening nine races of the season against two points for Bourdais. Buemi out-qualified Bourdais in seven of nine races.
"I am even more frustrated by the team's decision considering that the latter has been taken immediately before the Hungarian Grand Prix, where a new highly competitive racing package will be introduced," Bourdais said. "I am convinced that if I was given the chance to race with such new package I would have had the opportunity to achieve satisfactory results."
In all, Bourdais totaled six points from four points finishes across 27 races. He never bettered the effort of his debut in the 2008 Australian GP when he was running in fourth place and looked like making a podium finish but suffered an engine failure and was classified in seventh.
He suffered bad luck at the 2008 Italian GP, which Vettel went on to win. Having qualified fourth after a rain-soaked qualifying session, Bourdais had a strong chance for a career-best finish, but his car stalled on the grid and by the time he started, he was already a lap down.
Bourdais' removal was the first driver change in the 2009 season.
NBA: Yao is not retiring
Yao Ming says his purchase of his former team, the financially troubled Shanghai Sharks, was motivated by a desire to help the club that jump-started his career rather than by early retirement plans.
The 7-foot-6 Houston Rockets center, currently sidelined with a foot injury, signed an agreement this week to purchase all of the shares of the Sharks team for an undisclosed amount of money.
"Two generations of my family have fought for this team and some of the best memories of growing up in Shanghai are inseparable from the team," Yao said in an interview Friday with the official Xinhua Nn sponsor earlier this year, the team faced financial problems which led the Chinese Basketball Association to announce that the team may be unable to meet the league's entry requirements next year, Xinhua said.
Yao said he was worried after watching the team flounder due to the lack of sponsorship and decided to seize the opportunity to buy the team this week.
"The fans in Shanghai have always supported me, so it's a pleasure to do something for the fans in return," Yao said.
Yao deflected suggestions the purchase brought him one step closer to preparing for early retirement since he broke his left foot in early May. He is still consulting with doctors about the hairline fracture that may sideline him indefinitely, Xinhua reported.
"I do not have any plans to retire and my doctors and I are very confident that I can fully recover and return to the stadium; the team and the acquisition has nothing to do with my injury," Yao said.
Yao, 28, played with the Shanghai Sharks from 1997 to 2002 and took them to the league championship title in the 2001-2002 season, after being runner-up in the playoffs the previous two years. The team has struggled to make the playoffs since his departure for the NBA.
Yao said the purchase was not an investment risk, as he intends to create a team that will win championships and attract fans.
"I am prepared to invest money into this team in the long run and I believe that in China's most cosmopolitan and dynamic city, there is potential for the development of such a team," he said.
Yao said he will not take part in the team's day-to-day operations and management, but will contribute to its general direction and operations.
The 7-foot-6 Houston Rockets center, currently sidelined with a foot injury, signed an agreement this week to purchase all of the shares of the Sharks team for an undisclosed amount of money.
"Two generations of my family have fought for this team and some of the best memories of growing up in Shanghai are inseparable from the team," Yao said in an interview Friday with the official Xinhua Nn sponsor earlier this year, the team faced financial problems which led the Chinese Basketball Association to announce that the team may be unable to meet the league's entry requirements next year, Xinhua said.
Yao said he was worried after watching the team flounder due to the lack of sponsorship and decided to seize the opportunity to buy the team this week.
"The fans in Shanghai have always supported me, so it's a pleasure to do something for the fans in return," Yao said.
Yao deflected suggestions the purchase brought him one step closer to preparing for early retirement since he broke his left foot in early May. He is still consulting with doctors about the hairline fracture that may sideline him indefinitely, Xinhua reported.
"I do not have any plans to retire and my doctors and I are very confident that I can fully recover and return to the stadium; the team and the acquisition has nothing to do with my injury," Yao said.
Yao, 28, played with the Shanghai Sharks from 1997 to 2002 and took them to the league championship title in the 2001-2002 season, after being runner-up in the playoffs the previous two years. The team has struggled to make the playoffs since his departure for the NBA.
Yao said the purchase was not an investment risk, as he intends to create a team that will win championships and attract fans.
"I am prepared to invest money into this team in the long run and I believe that in China's most cosmopolitan and dynamic city, there is potential for the development of such a team," he said.
Yao said he will not take part in the team's day-to-day operations and management, but will contribute to its general direction and operations.
Golf: Tiger opens 1-over-71 in Turnberry
TURNBERRY, Scotland (AP)—For a course that was easy as it can be, Tiger Woods sure made it hard on himself.
Woods produced a pedestrian round Thursday in surprisingly calm conditions at Turnberry, making only three birdies and far more mistakes. He wound up with a 1-over 71, the first time since 2003 that he failed to break par in the opening round of the British Open.
“Realistically, I probably should have shot about 1- or 2-under par today,” Woods said. “But I made a few mistakes.”
It was reminiscent of the opening round at Bethpage Black in the U.S. Open, when Woods battled to get back to even par until dropping four shots on the last four holes, and never quite recovering.
There were a few exceptions.
The first round at Bethpage took two days to complete because of rain. This took just under five hours in a mixture of sun and clouds, a fine summer day along the Ayrshire coast.And unlike the U.S. Open, Woods was never too far from the leaders until it got away from him at the end.
He missed the 13th green, the ball stopped a yard in front of gorse bush, leaving Woods just enough room to pitch up the slope to 4 feet to save par and stay 1 under. His 2-iron on the 14th sailed right into rough so deep that he did well to hammer a sand wedge out to the fairway, advancing it some 80 yards. From there, his high wedge checked a few feet from the hole for another timely save.
With everyone around him making birdies, Woods was celebrating par.
But not for long.
He came up short on the par-5 15th, leaving himself an awkward angle over a slope. His chip was too strong, and he missed a 12-foot par putt. From the fairway on the 16th, he was aiming 10 feet left of the flag and hit it 10 feet to the right. It bounded down the shaved mound and into the burn, and he did well to make only a bogey.
Then came the par-5 17th, another tee shot to the right. Even with a good break—his ball sat up nicely only trampled grass—he popped up a 3-wood and cursed himself twice for the mistake. Again, the world’s No. 1 player had to rely on all his muscle to get out of the rough onto the green, some 70 feet away, to make par.
By the end of the day, he was the only player in his group who failed to break par.
Lee Westwood opened with three straight birdies, reached 4 under, and shot 68. Ryo Ishikawa, the 17-year-old from Japan, hit driver on just about every hole and finished strong for a 68.
Everywhere he looked, there was a leaderboard showing several morning scores under par, including Tom Watson at 65.
He was long gone when Miguel Angel Jimenez took the lead at 64. The seven-shot deficit is the largest Woods has ever faced in the first round of the British Open.
“This golf course, certainly you could shoot a good round today,” Woods said. “You saw a lot of guys at basically 3-, 4-, 5-under par. And that’s what you could do out there today.”
Just not him.
The last time he failed to break par in the first round of the British Open was a 73 at Royal St. George’s in 2003, a tough and breezy English links where Woods eventually tied for fourth.
Not many saw this coming, except perhaps for Woods.
“The misses I had were the same shots I was hitting on the range,” he said. “So I need to go work on that and get it squared away.”
Woods rarely hit driver, and didn’t find the fairway the three times he did. He stuck to his plan of laying back to avoid the bunkers. That didn’t sound as though it would change.
“We’re playing to certain spots, how we think the golf course should be attacked and played,” he said.
Woods produced a pedestrian round Thursday in surprisingly calm conditions at Turnberry, making only three birdies and far more mistakes. He wound up with a 1-over 71, the first time since 2003 that he failed to break par in the opening round of the British Open.
“Realistically, I probably should have shot about 1- or 2-under par today,” Woods said. “But I made a few mistakes.”
It was reminiscent of the opening round at Bethpage Black in the U.S. Open, when Woods battled to get back to even par until dropping four shots on the last four holes, and never quite recovering.
There were a few exceptions.
The first round at Bethpage took two days to complete because of rain. This took just under five hours in a mixture of sun and clouds, a fine summer day along the Ayrshire coast.And unlike the U.S. Open, Woods was never too far from the leaders until it got away from him at the end.
He missed the 13th green, the ball stopped a yard in front of gorse bush, leaving Woods just enough room to pitch up the slope to 4 feet to save par and stay 1 under. His 2-iron on the 14th sailed right into rough so deep that he did well to hammer a sand wedge out to the fairway, advancing it some 80 yards. From there, his high wedge checked a few feet from the hole for another timely save.
With everyone around him making birdies, Woods was celebrating par.
But not for long.
He came up short on the par-5 15th, leaving himself an awkward angle over a slope. His chip was too strong, and he missed a 12-foot par putt. From the fairway on the 16th, he was aiming 10 feet left of the flag and hit it 10 feet to the right. It bounded down the shaved mound and into the burn, and he did well to make only a bogey.
Then came the par-5 17th, another tee shot to the right. Even with a good break—his ball sat up nicely only trampled grass—he popped up a 3-wood and cursed himself twice for the mistake. Again, the world’s No. 1 player had to rely on all his muscle to get out of the rough onto the green, some 70 feet away, to make par.
By the end of the day, he was the only player in his group who failed to break par.
Lee Westwood opened with three straight birdies, reached 4 under, and shot 68. Ryo Ishikawa, the 17-year-old from Japan, hit driver on just about every hole and finished strong for a 68.
Everywhere he looked, there was a leaderboard showing several morning scores under par, including Tom Watson at 65.
He was long gone when Miguel Angel Jimenez took the lead at 64. The seven-shot deficit is the largest Woods has ever faced in the first round of the British Open.
“This golf course, certainly you could shoot a good round today,” Woods said. “You saw a lot of guys at basically 3-, 4-, 5-under par. And that’s what you could do out there today.”
Just not him.
The last time he failed to break par in the first round of the British Open was a 73 at Royal St. George’s in 2003, a tough and breezy English links where Woods eventually tied for fourth.
Not many saw this coming, except perhaps for Woods.
“The misses I had were the same shots I was hitting on the range,” he said. “So I need to go work on that and get it squared away.”
Woods rarely hit driver, and didn’t find the fairway the three times he did. He stuck to his plan of laying back to avoid the bunkers. That didn’t sound as though it would change.
“We’re playing to certain spots, how we think the golf course should be attacked and played,” he said.
Soccer: Beckham back as Galaxy beat Red Bulls 3-1
Playing in a stadium nearly three-quarters empty, the star midfielder was slow and had little role in the Los Angeles Galaxy’s 3-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Thursday night.
“The most important thing is for us to get three points, and tonight we did that in style,” Beckham said.
In his first club match since the Italian League’s season finale on May 31, Beckham was often behind the play and seemed winded. He had no free-kick chances near the goal, didn’t make any crosses that created threats and didn’t even take all the Galaxy corner kicks while he was in the match.
Fans scurried down the aisles to get better pictures when he did take corner kicks, but he was booed at times.
“A few tonight, but it’s to be expected,” he said. “It’s sometimes nice to get the boos. It gives you some inspiration,”Los Angeles drew 66,237 for its 5-4 loss at the Red Bulls two years ago, the largest soccer crowd at Giants Stadium for a U.S. league game in 27 years. Attendance dropped to 46,754 for last year’s 2-2 tie and fell by 50 percent to 23,238 Thursday. Eleven of 36 sections in lower deck were covered with navy tarp, and there were only a handful of people in the second deck and none at all in the third.
“Obviously the first year was impressive,” Beckham said. “We’re in a recession so, you know, maybe that’s part of it.”
Alecko Eskandarian scored on a left-footed volley that beat goalkeeper Danny Cepero from about 28 yards in the third minute, Landon Donovan on a right-footed shot from about the same distance in the 31st and Eddie Lewis from 15 yards in the 45th.
Los Angeles (6-3-9) has won four straight MLS games for the first time since September-October 2007 and is fighting for a playoff berth. The Galaxy had not won at New York since 2000.
“I became a better coach with the addition of David Beckham,” the Galaxy’s Bruce Arena said.
Juan Pablo Angel had an 87th-minute penalty kick and failed to convert one in the 90th for the Red Bulls (2-14-4), who would be a lock for relegation if the MLS had relegation. They dropped to 0-9-2 in the league and 0-10-2 overall since beating San Jose on May 8.
Coach Juan Carlos Osorio apologized for his team’s performance.
“I feel sorry and I want to apologize to the fans,” he said.
Beckham appeared to go out of his way to be friendly with Donovan, who in a book out this week criticized his teammate as unprofessional for allegedly quitting on the Galaxy in the late stages of a disappointing 2008 season.
Beckham and Donovan, who regained his captain’s job from the Englishman, shook hands and embraced ahead of the opening whistle. Beckham draped his arm around Donovan after the American scored, and the two hugged after Donovan assisted on the third goal.
“There was never a doubt in our minds that these guys would work together,” Arena said. “It was certainly a great moment with all the buildup of the so-called questionable relationship.”
Donovan had come to New York on a red-eye after attending the ESPY awards in Los Angeles.
“It’s not often that soccer is on the front of people’s minds in this country, and right now it seems to be,” Donovan said, “not necessarily for the right reasons the last couple of weeks, but people are talking about it, and that’s good.”
Beckham, twice runner-up in FIFA player of the year voting and former star with Manchester United and Real Madrid, joined the Galaxy with great fanfare two years ago. He bolted for a half-season loan to AC Milan in January, saying he needed to face top competition to keep a spot on England’s national team, and he likely will return to Europe at the start of 2010 to stay sharp ahead of the World Cup.
For now, though, he’s trying to make the MLS postseason for the first time.
“We’re playing with players that have got a lot of confidence,” Beckham said. “They’re not scared to just, you know, do stuff on their own. You know, they don’t feel as if they have to give the ball to certain players in attacking positions because they can do it themselves.”
NOTES: Eskandarian, acquired by Chivas USA on July 1, was an All-America at Bergen Catholic High School and is a son of former Cosmos star Andranik Eskandarian. … Red Bulls D Carlos Mendes had season-ending surgery to repair a torn hip labrum. … New York signed 25-year-old Ernst Oebster from sister club Red Bull Salzburg. He had two goals in five league matches, three Austrian Cup and four UEFA Cup qualification matches last season, scoring three goals.
“The most important thing is for us to get three points, and tonight we did that in style,” Beckham said.
In his first club match since the Italian League’s season finale on May 31, Beckham was often behind the play and seemed winded. He had no free-kick chances near the goal, didn’t make any crosses that created threats and didn’t even take all the Galaxy corner kicks while he was in the match.
Fans scurried down the aisles to get better pictures when he did take corner kicks, but he was booed at times.
“A few tonight, but it’s to be expected,” he said. “It’s sometimes nice to get the boos. It gives you some inspiration,”Los Angeles drew 66,237 for its 5-4 loss at the Red Bulls two years ago, the largest soccer crowd at Giants Stadium for a U.S. league game in 27 years. Attendance dropped to 46,754 for last year’s 2-2 tie and fell by 50 percent to 23,238 Thursday. Eleven of 36 sections in lower deck were covered with navy tarp, and there were only a handful of people in the second deck and none at all in the third.
“Obviously the first year was impressive,” Beckham said. “We’re in a recession so, you know, maybe that’s part of it.”
Alecko Eskandarian scored on a left-footed volley that beat goalkeeper Danny Cepero from about 28 yards in the third minute, Landon Donovan on a right-footed shot from about the same distance in the 31st and Eddie Lewis from 15 yards in the 45th.
Los Angeles (6-3-9) has won four straight MLS games for the first time since September-October 2007 and is fighting for a playoff berth. The Galaxy had not won at New York since 2000.
“I became a better coach with the addition of David Beckham,” the Galaxy’s Bruce Arena said.
Juan Pablo Angel had an 87th-minute penalty kick and failed to convert one in the 90th for the Red Bulls (2-14-4), who would be a lock for relegation if the MLS had relegation. They dropped to 0-9-2 in the league and 0-10-2 overall since beating San Jose on May 8.
Coach Juan Carlos Osorio apologized for his team’s performance.
“I feel sorry and I want to apologize to the fans,” he said.
Beckham appeared to go out of his way to be friendly with Donovan, who in a book out this week criticized his teammate as unprofessional for allegedly quitting on the Galaxy in the late stages of a disappointing 2008 season.
Beckham and Donovan, who regained his captain’s job from the Englishman, shook hands and embraced ahead of the opening whistle. Beckham draped his arm around Donovan after the American scored, and the two hugged after Donovan assisted on the third goal.
“There was never a doubt in our minds that these guys would work together,” Arena said. “It was certainly a great moment with all the buildup of the so-called questionable relationship.”
Donovan had come to New York on a red-eye after attending the ESPY awards in Los Angeles.
“It’s not often that soccer is on the front of people’s minds in this country, and right now it seems to be,” Donovan said, “not necessarily for the right reasons the last couple of weeks, but people are talking about it, and that’s good.”
Beckham, twice runner-up in FIFA player of the year voting and former star with Manchester United and Real Madrid, joined the Galaxy with great fanfare two years ago. He bolted for a half-season loan to AC Milan in January, saying he needed to face top competition to keep a spot on England’s national team, and he likely will return to Europe at the start of 2010 to stay sharp ahead of the World Cup.
For now, though, he’s trying to make the MLS postseason for the first time.
“We’re playing with players that have got a lot of confidence,” Beckham said. “They’re not scared to just, you know, do stuff on their own. You know, they don’t feel as if they have to give the ball to certain players in attacking positions because they can do it themselves.”
NOTES: Eskandarian, acquired by Chivas USA on July 1, was an All-America at Bergen Catholic High School and is a son of former Cosmos star Andranik Eskandarian. … Red Bulls D Carlos Mendes had season-ending surgery to repair a torn hip labrum. … New York signed 25-year-old Ernst Oebster from sister club Red Bull Salzburg. He had two goals in five league matches, three Austrian Cup and four UEFA Cup qualification matches last season, scoring three goals.
Wade leaves Converse, joins Nike
NBA scoring champion Dwyane Wade is changing shoes, making the switch from Converse to Nike’s Jordan Brand.
Nike announced Friday that the star Miami Heat guard will now be representing the Jumpman label, joining the likes of Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and Derek Jeter.
Wade had three years remaining on his deal with Converse, which had him as the centerpiece of its attempt to reinvigorate the company’s once-thriving basketball business. That relationship seemed rocky when the 2006 NBA finals MVP rarely wore his most recently released signature shoe, the “Wade 4,” last season, favoring an older model instead.
The Jordan Brand is a 12-year-old division of Nike, which also owns Converse.
“I grew up on the south side of Chicago idolizing Michael Jordan and have worked hard to achieve the same success that he’s had on the court,” Wade said. “I have enormous respect for this brand.”
Wade told The Associated Press that he inquired about switching allegiances from Converse to Jordan’s brand before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, doing so, he said, out of concern over Converse’s long-term viability in the basketball marketplace.
The 2008 request was declined, but earlier this month, Wade said he was “almost positive” a switch would happen.
“I didn’t want to be in the Converse brand anymore because it seemed like they didn’t know what to do with me,” Wade told The AP.
Coming off a year where the Heat went from 15 to 43 wins and Wade won his first scoring title, Nike apparently agreed that the switch now made sense.
“I’m thrilled to have Dwyane Wade join the Team Jordan family,” Michael Jordan said.
The deal was finalized Thursday afternoon. Complete terms were not released, although it was believed that the new deal, at minimum, matches the remaining three years on the Converse contract.
It’s a significant add to Wade’s endorsement resume, which already includes deals with T-Mobile and Gatorade.
“I want to go global,” said Wade, who is planning a trip to China later this summer for a series of business meetings and appearances. “It’s something I feel like I have to do. I want to continue to build my brand.”
Wade made a cryptic reference to the move on his Twitter feed late Thursday night, saying he had “good news coming…..stay tuned.” Dozens of people quickly starting pleading for more information, even Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick, who inquired via Twitter if that was Wade’s way of saying he had agreed to a contract extension with the Heat.
The move wasn’t totally unexpected: As recently as last week, Wade was at a charity event with children in Miami wearing apparel featuring the Jumpman logo, prompting one of the kids he was meeting with to ask if he still was aligned with Converse.
Wade donned a blue pair of Converse sneakers at the Zo’s Summer Groove game he co-hosted Sunday with Alonzo Mourning(notes).
That’ll likely be his last appearance in that brand. A “Wade 5” shoe was to be released by Converse in the coming weeks, although it now seems likely that orders from retailers for that model will be canceled.
Nike announced Friday that the star Miami Heat guard will now be representing the Jumpman label, joining the likes of Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and Derek Jeter.
Wade had three years remaining on his deal with Converse, which had him as the centerpiece of its attempt to reinvigorate the company’s once-thriving basketball business. That relationship seemed rocky when the 2006 NBA finals MVP rarely wore his most recently released signature shoe, the “Wade 4,” last season, favoring an older model instead.
The Jordan Brand is a 12-year-old division of Nike, which also owns Converse.
“I grew up on the south side of Chicago idolizing Michael Jordan and have worked hard to achieve the same success that he’s had on the court,” Wade said. “I have enormous respect for this brand.”
Wade told The Associated Press that he inquired about switching allegiances from Converse to Jordan’s brand before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, doing so, he said, out of concern over Converse’s long-term viability in the basketball marketplace.
The 2008 request was declined, but earlier this month, Wade said he was “almost positive” a switch would happen.
“I didn’t want to be in the Converse brand anymore because it seemed like they didn’t know what to do with me,” Wade told The AP.
Coming off a year where the Heat went from 15 to 43 wins and Wade won his first scoring title, Nike apparently agreed that the switch now made sense.
“I’m thrilled to have Dwyane Wade join the Team Jordan family,” Michael Jordan said.
The deal was finalized Thursday afternoon. Complete terms were not released, although it was believed that the new deal, at minimum, matches the remaining three years on the Converse contract.
It’s a significant add to Wade’s endorsement resume, which already includes deals with T-Mobile and Gatorade.
“I want to go global,” said Wade, who is planning a trip to China later this summer for a series of business meetings and appearances. “It’s something I feel like I have to do. I want to continue to build my brand.”
Wade made a cryptic reference to the move on his Twitter feed late Thursday night, saying he had “good news coming…..stay tuned.” Dozens of people quickly starting pleading for more information, even Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick, who inquired via Twitter if that was Wade’s way of saying he had agreed to a contract extension with the Heat.
The move wasn’t totally unexpected: As recently as last week, Wade was at a charity event with children in Miami wearing apparel featuring the Jumpman logo, prompting one of the kids he was meeting with to ask if he still was aligned with Converse.
Wade donned a blue pair of Converse sneakers at the Zo’s Summer Groove game he co-hosted Sunday with Alonzo Mourning(notes).
That’ll likely be his last appearance in that brand. A “Wade 5” shoe was to be released by Converse in the coming weeks, although it now seems likely that orders from retailers for that model will be canceled.
Boxing: Floyd to pay Marquez if he fights Pacquiao
Undefeated former pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr, in an interview with the Grand Rapids Press, informed that he is willing to pay Juan Manuel Marquez to step aside to pave the way for a showdown with Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao.
Mayweather returns after a self-imposed retirement when he takes on Marquez on September 19 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
If Pacquiao requests the fight, Mayweather indicated that he is willing to pay Marquez to step aside so the fight can be made. Pacquiao is set to face WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto on November 14.
“If Manny Pacquiao really wanted the fight with me, all he's got to do is say it,” Mayweather said. “We could pay Marquez some step-aside money. Pay him a million dollars, that's nothing. Step aside. Then, my man, me and you can make seven figures. Is you ready? Let me know.”
Mayweather, however, has remained firm on his stance not to give Pacquiao a 50-50 slice of the purse should the fight push through. He has sold more pay-per-view buys against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton than Pacquiao did with the same two fighters. Mayweather says Pacquiao would have to settle for less money.
“Everybody knows Pacquiao is not going to get 50-50 with Floyd Mayweather,” Mayweather added. “Look at what Pacquiao made his last two fights and look at what I made my last two fights. It's still a business, even though it's a sport.”
Pacquiao is currently in Cebu to visit friends and for a short rest and recreation while at the same time hosting a major cockfighting event in Mandaue City along with his adviser Rex “Wakee” Salud.
Mayweather returns after a self-imposed retirement when he takes on Marquez on September 19 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
If Pacquiao requests the fight, Mayweather indicated that he is willing to pay Marquez to step aside so the fight can be made. Pacquiao is set to face WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto on November 14.
“If Manny Pacquiao really wanted the fight with me, all he's got to do is say it,” Mayweather said. “We could pay Marquez some step-aside money. Pay him a million dollars, that's nothing. Step aside. Then, my man, me and you can make seven figures. Is you ready? Let me know.”
Mayweather, however, has remained firm on his stance not to give Pacquiao a 50-50 slice of the purse should the fight push through. He has sold more pay-per-view buys against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton than Pacquiao did with the same two fighters. Mayweather says Pacquiao would have to settle for less money.
“Everybody knows Pacquiao is not going to get 50-50 with Floyd Mayweather,” Mayweather added. “Look at what Pacquiao made his last two fights and look at what I made my last two fights. It's still a business, even though it's a sport.”
Pacquiao is currently in Cebu to visit friends and for a short rest and recreation while at the same time hosting a major cockfighting event in Mandaue City along with his adviser Rex “Wakee” Salud.
Mayweather to focus on Marquez, then Pacquaio
MANILA, Philippines – (UPDATE) Comebacking Floyd Mayweather Jr. said he wants to focus on his upcoming bout with Juan Manuel Marquez first before thinking about fighting Filipino pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao.
In an interview with CNN, Mayweather did not divulge what exactly got him injured causing his fight with Marquez to be rescheduled on September 19.
The bout, originally set this month, will take place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Asked whether Pacquiao impresses him as a fighter, Mayweather talked more about his Mexican opponent.
“Marquez impresses me. We are ready to rock and roll,” said the flamboyant Mayweather, who retired undefeated and was formerly the acknowledged pound-for-pound king.
“As a boxer, you try not to focus on getting hurt,” he added, saying his retirement helped him grow mentally and gave him a chance to know himself more and his family.
He also hinted of improved relationship with his dad, Floyd Mayweather Sr., and even defended the latter for Ricky Hatton’s devastating loss to Pacquiao.
“I never split with my dad. It’s just that I was training with my uncle Roger (Mayweather). Me and my dad are still working,” Mayweather said.
“He (Mayweather Sr.) got some slack for Ricky Hatton’s loss. But he had a game plan and Ricky just didn’t follow it.”
In an interview with CNN, Mayweather did not divulge what exactly got him injured causing his fight with Marquez to be rescheduled on September 19.
The bout, originally set this month, will take place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Asked whether Pacquiao impresses him as a fighter, Mayweather talked more about his Mexican opponent.
“Marquez impresses me. We are ready to rock and roll,” said the flamboyant Mayweather, who retired undefeated and was formerly the acknowledged pound-for-pound king.
“As a boxer, you try not to focus on getting hurt,” he added, saying his retirement helped him grow mentally and gave him a chance to know himself more and his family.
He also hinted of improved relationship with his dad, Floyd Mayweather Sr., and even defended the latter for Ricky Hatton’s devastating loss to Pacquiao.
“I never split with my dad. It’s just that I was training with my uncle Roger (Mayweather). Me and my dad are still working,” Mayweather said.
“He (Mayweather Sr.) got some slack for Ricky Hatton’s loss. But he had a game plan and Ricky just didn’t follow it.”
UAAP: Ateneo, UST share top spot
MANILA, Philippines - There's a script slowly becoming familiar for the Ateneo Blue Eagles two games into their title defense in the 72nd UAAP Season: They end up on the wrong end of a blistering first quarter, recover their bearings in the second before Rabeh Al-Hussaini flexes his muscles for the knockout blow in the second half.
Pushed to the wall by a hot-starting University of the East squad, the Eagles drew another brilliant effort from Al-Hussaini to stage a big comeback that ended in a 72-57 rout last night at the Araneta Coliseum.
Al-Hussaini, the reigning Most Valuable Player, threw his weight around for 27 points, 19 coming in the second half, as the Eagles clawed their way back from an early 17-point deficit to register their second victory and gain a share of the lead with University of Santo Tomas.
“Rabeh has been working hard,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “There were concerns about him during the summer. But I was very confident when he got back to the gym and started to do those big men moves.”
Another impressive individual effort also highlighted UST’s 104-89 dumping of National University as Dylan Ababou sizzled for 30 points to power the Tigers to their first 2-0 start in 10 years.
“We’re a very hungry team and it showed in this game,” said UST coach Pido Jarencio, whose squad was the first team to breach the century mark since National U nipped UP, 107-104, on Aug. 13, 2006.
The Eagles pinned a first loss on the Warriors, who routed the La Salle Archers, 65-46, last Saturday.
Ateneo also needed to claw its way back from an early deficit in a 63-59 victory over Far Eastern U last Sunday. .
The scores:
First Game:
UST 104—Ababou 30, Mirza 19, Teng 14, Fortuna 14, Maliksi 10, Green 7, Mariano 4, Afuang 4, Cam 2, Ungria 0, Camus 0, Rushdy 0, Felix 0, Camus 0, Bautista 0, Aytona 0.
NU 89—Singh 19, Baloran 19, Hermosisima 15, Terso 10, Manito 8, Malanday 7, Ponferrada 6, Batac 3, Luy 2, Roy 0, Magat 0, Fabula 0, Cabaluna 0.
Quarters: 32-24, 63-49, 88-68, 104-89
Second Game:
ATENEO 72—Al-Hussaini 27, Salamat 12, Baclao 10, Reyes 7, Salva 6, Monfort 3, Austria 3, Gonzaga 2, Chua 2, Tiongson 0, Long 0, Buenafe 0.
UE 57—Acuña 21, Lee 14, Reyes 7, Llagas 6, Espiritu 6, Zamar 3, Lingganay 0, Flores 0, Ayala 0, Alabanza 0.
Quarters: 23-11, 35-37, 54-48, 72-57
Pushed to the wall by a hot-starting University of the East squad, the Eagles drew another brilliant effort from Al-Hussaini to stage a big comeback that ended in a 72-57 rout last night at the Araneta Coliseum.
Al-Hussaini, the reigning Most Valuable Player, threw his weight around for 27 points, 19 coming in the second half, as the Eagles clawed their way back from an early 17-point deficit to register their second victory and gain a share of the lead with University of Santo Tomas.
“Rabeh has been working hard,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “There were concerns about him during the summer. But I was very confident when he got back to the gym and started to do those big men moves.”
Another impressive individual effort also highlighted UST’s 104-89 dumping of National University as Dylan Ababou sizzled for 30 points to power the Tigers to their first 2-0 start in 10 years.
“We’re a very hungry team and it showed in this game,” said UST coach Pido Jarencio, whose squad was the first team to breach the century mark since National U nipped UP, 107-104, on Aug. 13, 2006.
The Eagles pinned a first loss on the Warriors, who routed the La Salle Archers, 65-46, last Saturday.
Ateneo also needed to claw its way back from an early deficit in a 63-59 victory over Far Eastern U last Sunday. .
The scores:
First Game:
UST 104—Ababou 30, Mirza 19, Teng 14, Fortuna 14, Maliksi 10, Green 7, Mariano 4, Afuang 4, Cam 2, Ungria 0, Camus 0, Rushdy 0, Felix 0, Camus 0, Bautista 0, Aytona 0.
NU 89—Singh 19, Baloran 19, Hermosisima 15, Terso 10, Manito 8, Malanday 7, Ponferrada 6, Batac 3, Luy 2, Roy 0, Magat 0, Fabula 0, Cabaluna 0.
Quarters: 32-24, 63-49, 88-68, 104-89
Second Game:
ATENEO 72—Al-Hussaini 27, Salamat 12, Baclao 10, Reyes 7, Salva 6, Monfort 3, Austria 3, Gonzaga 2, Chua 2, Tiongson 0, Long 0, Buenafe 0.
UE 57—Acuña 21, Lee 14, Reyes 7, Llagas 6, Espiritu 6, Zamar 3, Lingganay 0, Flores 0, Ayala 0, Alabanza 0.
Quarters: 23-11, 35-37, 54-48, 72-57
NBA: Kahn to discuss Rubio buyout
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Timberwolves cannot do much financially to help Ricky Rubio with a multimillion-dollar buyout of his contract with DKV Joventut in Spain.
So team president David Kahn is heading across the Atlantic to meet with the team personally in hopes of lowering the $6.6 million price tag that has threatened to keep the wunderkind point guard in Europe for at least next season.
Kahn confirmed his plans to travel to Spain in a text message to The Associated Press on Thursday but declined further comment, including when the trip will take place. It was first reported by YahooSports.com.
Rubio, who was drafted fifth overall by the Timberwolves in June, is still under contract with Joventut for the next two seasons. After helping Spain to a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics and playing in the Spanish ACB since the tender age of 14, the 18-year-old is ready to test his skills in the NBA.
The one thing holding him back appears to be money. Rubio made less than $100,000 playing for Joventut last season, so it is no surprise that the prospect of being on the hook for millions of dollars before he even plays a game in the United States would give him pause.
Further complicating the matter is a rule in the NBA's collective bargaining agreement that stipulates the Timberwolves can only pay $500,000 of that large sum to help offset the cost.
From the day Kahn drafted Rubio, to the delight of the Timberwolves fan base, the new president has taken a pragmatic approach to a sticky situation. He said the young and rebuilding team would be willing to wait a year, or even two, if Rubio could not reach an agreeable buyout agreement with Joventut.
Before joining the NBA, Kahn was an attorney at the law firm Proskauer Rose, the same firm that produced NBA commissioner David Stern. That experience could help him as the Timberwolves try to navigate what he has called "a thorny" legal issue.
"We will be totally supportive of Ricky and his family and [agent Dan] Fegan in any way, shape or form," Kahn said the day after Rubio was drafted. "If there's anything we can do to be of assistance or of help, as long as it is within the rules, we will."
So team president David Kahn is heading across the Atlantic to meet with the team personally in hopes of lowering the $6.6 million price tag that has threatened to keep the wunderkind point guard in Europe for at least next season.
Kahn confirmed his plans to travel to Spain in a text message to The Associated Press on Thursday but declined further comment, including when the trip will take place. It was first reported by YahooSports.com.
Rubio, who was drafted fifth overall by the Timberwolves in June, is still under contract with Joventut for the next two seasons. After helping Spain to a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics and playing in the Spanish ACB since the tender age of 14, the 18-year-old is ready to test his skills in the NBA.
The one thing holding him back appears to be money. Rubio made less than $100,000 playing for Joventut last season, so it is no surprise that the prospect of being on the hook for millions of dollars before he even plays a game in the United States would give him pause.
Further complicating the matter is a rule in the NBA's collective bargaining agreement that stipulates the Timberwolves can only pay $500,000 of that large sum to help offset the cost.
From the day Kahn drafted Rubio, to the delight of the Timberwolves fan base, the new president has taken a pragmatic approach to a sticky situation. He said the young and rebuilding team would be willing to wait a year, or even two, if Rubio could not reach an agreeable buyout agreement with Joventut.
Before joining the NBA, Kahn was an attorney at the law firm Proskauer Rose, the same firm that produced NBA commissioner David Stern. That experience could help him as the Timberwolves try to navigate what he has called "a thorny" legal issue.
"We will be totally supportive of Ricky and his family and [agent Dan] Fegan in any way, shape or form," Kahn said the day after Rubio was drafted. "If there's anything we can do to be of assistance or of help, as long as it is within the rules, we will."
Golf: Tiger Woods turns in rocky first round, then ducks TNT
By Jay Busbee
There are days when it's good to be Tiger Woods, and then there's today. Tiger turned in a weak opening round at the British Open, 1-over on a relatively easy day. At the time of his finish, he sat six strokes behind leader Tom Watson. Tiger could close that distance with his eyes closed, certainly, but the poor performance -- he was tied for 49th when he finished -- had to rankle him.
But then he compounded problems by giving perfunctory interviews and declining an opportunity to appear in a one-on-one interview with TNT's Jim Huber.
Weak move. It doesn't matter who you are or how badly you played, you need to step up and meet your post-round commitments. Shoot, Ryo Ishikawa did it, and the poor kid is still on training wheels when it comes to speaking English.
This has nothing to do with Tiger making the sports media's job easier; Tiger never says anything of substance in his interviews, and likely wouldn't have spilled his guts to TNT. That's not the issue. This has to do with the fans who want to see him -- Tiger is one of the two or three most popular athletes on the planet. It's also about the people who have invested millions in this tournament with the expectation that Tiger would hold up his end of the bargain by throwing a few minutes of cliche-ridden love their way. Would that have been so hard?
Now, let's take a moment to give him the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps he'd eaten some bad Scottish food. Perhaps the kids needed to be changed. But if he ducked the on-camera interview simply out of frustration with himself, well ... to put it in more British terms, that's simply not proper.
Tennis: Keys to success
By Chris Chase
With her powerful groundstrokes and rocket serves, Madison Keys looks like a seasoned veteran when she's on the tennis court. It's when she stops playing and you can get a look at her face that you realize she's the youngest woman out there.
The nearly-invisible braces, the remaining hint of a baby face; I guessed she was about to become a freshman when I saw her at the Washington Kastles-Philadelphia Freedoms World TeamTennis match last week.
Then I opened the media guide to check: Birthdate: 2/17/1995
I was sort of correct. Keys will be a freshman alright, albeit in high school, not college.
She's 14-years old and playing in a professional tennis league. Fourteen! The T-shirt I'm wearing right now is older than Madison Keys. "The Simpsons" had peaked by the time she was born. Yet, on Monday night, Keys bested Wimbledon champion Serena Williams in the singles event at their World TeamTennis match.
Now, before we make too big a deal about this, World Team Tennis singles matches are glorified exhibitions. The different scoring, fan interaction and coaches challenges make the five-game sets vastly different than a standard women's tennis match (although that's entirely the point). And, though Serena was surely trying to win, a loss doesn't carry nearly the same weight that it would in a WTA tournament.
But enough about that. Even though the match didn't mean much, for Keys to best Serena by a 5-1 margin is impressive. I don't care if she did it on Nintendo Wii, when you get the best of Serena Williams it's time to take notice.
Keys is the youngest player in World TeamTennis history (she was 17 days younger than Maria Sharapova when she made her debut). She's coached by John Evert (brother of Chris) and has moved with her family to train under him in Florida. Interestingly, she got her start in tennis at age 4 when she was watching Venus Williams on television and asked her dad for the same outfit. Her father told her that she could have it, but only if she got a racket too.
Keys won her debut WTA match in March and advanced to the Orange Bowl semis in the under-16 tournament as a 13-year old.
Because of WTA rules that limit the amount of tournements played by girls under the age of 18, Keys wouldn't be eligible to be a tour regular until 2013. Serena Williams, for one, might be happy to hear that.
With her powerful groundstrokes and rocket serves, Madison Keys looks like a seasoned veteran when she's on the tennis court. It's when she stops playing and you can get a look at her face that you realize she's the youngest woman out there.
The nearly-invisible braces, the remaining hint of a baby face; I guessed she was about to become a freshman when I saw her at the Washington Kastles-Philadelphia Freedoms World TeamTennis match last week.
Then I opened the media guide to check: Birthdate: 2/17/1995
I was sort of correct. Keys will be a freshman alright, albeit in high school, not college.
She's 14-years old and playing in a professional tennis league. Fourteen! The T-shirt I'm wearing right now is older than Madison Keys. "The Simpsons" had peaked by the time she was born. Yet, on Monday night, Keys bested Wimbledon champion Serena Williams in the singles event at their World TeamTennis match.
Now, before we make too big a deal about this, World Team Tennis singles matches are glorified exhibitions. The different scoring, fan interaction and coaches challenges make the five-game sets vastly different than a standard women's tennis match (although that's entirely the point). And, though Serena was surely trying to win, a loss doesn't carry nearly the same weight that it would in a WTA tournament.
But enough about that. Even though the match didn't mean much, for Keys to best Serena by a 5-1 margin is impressive. I don't care if she did it on Nintendo Wii, when you get the best of Serena Williams it's time to take notice.
Keys is the youngest player in World TeamTennis history (she was 17 days younger than Maria Sharapova when she made her debut). She's coached by John Evert (brother of Chris) and has moved with her family to train under him in Florida. Interestingly, she got her start in tennis at age 4 when she was watching Venus Williams on television and asked her dad for the same outfit. Her father told her that she could have it, but only if she got a racket too.
Keys won her debut WTA match in March and advanced to the Orange Bowl semis in the under-16 tournament as a 13-year old.
Because of WTA rules that limit the amount of tournements played by girls under the age of 18, Keys wouldn't be eligible to be a tour regular until 2013. Serena Williams, for one, might be happy to hear that.
NBA: Lakers retract offer to Odom
By SOLANGE REYNER, Associated Press Writer Jul 15, 4:12 pm EDT
LOS ANGELES (AP)—The Los Angeles Lakers have retracted an offer to Lamar Odom(notes), saying that talks to re-sign the free agent have stalled.
Lakers public relations director John Black said the team had taken the offer off the table in the past two days.
“There are specifics behind why we pulled it, but that’s not something we’re going to get into,” Black said.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Lakers owner Jerry Buss had offered Odom two deals. One was worth $36 million for four years and the other was for $10 million a season for three years.
Odom, who will turn 30 in November, made $14.1 million this past season.
Black said talks with Odom’s agent Jeff Schwartz have been on and off.
“We haven’t heard from him in the past few days and talks have not been consistent,” Black said.
Odom played a key role off the bench in the Lakers’ championship run. He averaged 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds during the playoffs.
LOS ANGELES (AP)—The Los Angeles Lakers have retracted an offer to Lamar Odom(notes), saying that talks to re-sign the free agent have stalled.
Lakers public relations director John Black said the team had taken the offer off the table in the past two days.
“There are specifics behind why we pulled it, but that’s not something we’re going to get into,” Black said.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Lakers owner Jerry Buss had offered Odom two deals. One was worth $36 million for four years and the other was for $10 million a season for three years.
Odom, who will turn 30 in November, made $14.1 million this past season.
Black said talks with Odom’s agent Jeff Schwartz have been on and off.
“We haven’t heard from him in the past few days and talks have not been consistent,” Black said.
Odom played a key role off the bench in the Lakers’ championship run. He averaged 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds during the playoffs.
July 16, 2009
Powerade-RP flies to Jones Cup
MANILA, Philippines - The all-pro Powerade Team Pilipinas departs for Taiwan
Thursday for its last workout in its quest to get back to the global cage
landscape by taking part in the Jones Cup championship starting Saturday.
The Filipinos, who tapped the services of Wynne Arboleda to take the place
of the injured Ryan Reyes, open up their campaign against Jordan at 7 p.m.
at the Hsingchuang gymnasium.
This team was assembled last November by the Philippine Basketball
Association in an effort to make the World Championship in Istanbul, Turkey,
next year, the qualifying tournament of which will be played Aug. 4 in
China.
That's why the Jones Cup is an integral part of everything for the
Philippines as it will give coach Yeng Guiao a gauge on how far he can
really go in Tianjin, China.
Aside from Jordan, other Fiba-Asia qualifying teams that are also in the
Jones Cup field are Lebanon, South Korea, Japan and Kazakhstan, as well as
two Chinese-Taipei teams that are also expected to contend heavily in China.
Of the Philippine team members, only Jayjay Helterbrand, Cyrus Baguio and
Mick Pennisi will be left behind and will arrive only on game day unless the
Fiesta Cup title series between San Miguel and Barangay Ginebra does not see
a deciding seventh game tomorrow.
Arboleda, meanwhile, was tapped by Guiao to man the point for the
Philippines with Reyes, a former PBA Rookie of the Year, likely to be out
for the Tianjin joust because of a hamstring pull sustained in the Southeast
Asian Basketball Association championship in Indonesia last month.
Japeth Aguilar will see action in the Jones Cup, his first stint with the
National squad.
Completing the RP team are skipper Asi Taulava, Sonny Thoss, Kerby Raymundo,
James Yap, Gabe Norwood, Ranidel de Ocampo, Jared Dillinger, Willie Miller
and Arwind Santos.
PBA: SAN MIGUEL FORCES GAME 7
San Miguel Beer is a proud ball club which won't just fade away in a battle.
The Beermen fought with great resolve with their one foot in the grave,
stalling the Barangay Ginebra Kings, 98-84, and forging a deciding Game
Seven in their Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference title showdown at the Araneta
Coliseum Wednesday night.
Gabe Freeman and his teammates frustrated the Kings and their huge throngs,
pulling off an emphatic win to bring the best-of-seven series to full
distance.
One goes home with the championship and the other the runner-up trophy as
the two teams clash in a do-or-die setto at 7 p.m. Friday in the same venue.
Ginebra has a perfect record in two Game Seven engagements. San Miguel, on
the other hand, is 2-4, losing their last three outings.
"We haven't done anything yet because we just tied the series. God put us in
the situation to test us. It's how we respond to adversity. That would
define us as an individual and as a team," said San Miguel coach Siot
Tanquingcen.
"It didn't happen tonight and we now have to do it Friday. It's a jump ball.
A 50-50 percent chance of winning isn't bad at all," said Ginebra coach Jong
Uichico.
The Beermen battled with a resolute defense and a massive offense as they
seized control in the second period and held on to the finish.
"Hindi sila maka-convert and we really had a hand in practically all their
shots. It boiled down to defense and rebounding tonight," said Tanquingcen.
"Plain and simple, we failed to convert our shots," said Uichico.
Freeman went 9-of-13 from the field and finished with 24 points and 12
rebounds for his 21st triple-double game -- the most by any player in the
tourney.
Making the job easier for the Beermen was Danny Ildefonso, Mike Cortez,
Dondon Hontiveros, Jonas Villanueva, Jay Washington, Marc Pingris and Mick
Pennisi all rising to the occasion.
The Beermen shot better from the field and dominated the boards as they got
back at the Kings for the third time, thus, preserving the yours-and-mind
trend in the series.
The Kings shot only 39.7 percent from the field with main man Jayjay
Helterbrand among those doing bad, going 0-of-5 from the three-point arc and
4-of-5 from the two-point zone.
The Beermen cut loose from a see-sawing contest towards the end of the first
half, racing to a 13-point lead before settling for a 44-34 spread at the
turn.
The two teams both came out playing with great determination, fighting
through nine lead changes before the Beermen established control.
Hontiveros sank two triples, highlighting a 16-2 salvo that opened a 44-31
advantage for the Beermen.
Sunday Salvacion made it a more manageable deficit for the Kings as he
rifled in a trey coming off the bench in the closing seconds of the first
half.
The Kings were ahead at 29-28 before going on a dry spell, making only five
points in the last five minutes of the opening half.
The Beermen broke away while shooting 47.4 percent in the second period. The
Kings, on the other hand, struggled with a 28.6-percent clip in that
stretch.
SMB closed the half with a spirited run despite Freeman on the bench with
three fouls.
Freeman, however, had his hand as the Beermen stretched their lead to 15 at
61-46 midway through the third. The fiery SMB import tossed in 12 points in
the period, including seven straight through a three-pointer and
back-to-back slams.
The scores:
San Miguel 98 - Freeman 24, Ildefonso 18, Cortez 12, Hontiveros 11,
Villanueva 9, Washington 8, Pingris 6, Pennisi 5, Pena 3, Racela 2, Custodio
0.
Ginebra 84 - Noel 16, Menk 15, Tubid 13, Pacana 9, Helterbrand 8, Wilson 7,
Salvacion 6, Reavis 6, Lanete 2, Baguio 2, Artadi 0, Mamaril 0.
PBA: SMB forces game 7
On to another pulse-stopping Game Seven.
The San Miguel Beermen sealed a dramatic Game Seven duel with Barangay Ginebra in the 34th PBA Fiesta Cup Finals after clobbering the Gin Kings, 98-84, in last night’s Game Six at the Araneta Coliseum.
San Miguel's crucial victory forged another championship series to go the distance. The last five PBA Finals were all decided in seven games.
In the 2006-07 Fiesta Cup Finals, Alaska edged Talk N Text, 4-3. Sta. Lucia also needed seven games before dispatching Purefoods in the 2007-2008 Finals. The Kings also went through a grueling seven games before bagging the 2007-08 Fiesta Cup title at the expense of the Air21 Express (now Burger King) and in the 2008-09 Philippine Cup Finals, Talk N Text also survived a winner-take-all Game Seven versus Alaska.
Down by 17-19 after the first period, San Miguel peeled away in the second quarter and sat on a 44-34 lead at the half. The Beermen mellowed down a bit in the third, allowing the Kings to move to within just points at one point. But San Miguel managed to weather the storm and took some breathing space entering the final period, 68-61.
Former league MVP Danny Ildefonso then took matters into his hands in the fourth where he dumped 10 of his 18 points and keyed a San Miguel run that all but settled the contest.
Ildefonso scored eight points in an 11-8 run as the Beermen never looked back after taking a 79-65 lead in the final 9:59.
Gabe Freeman led the Beermen with 24 points, while Mike Cortez and Dondon Hontiveros tallied 12 and 11 markers, respectively.
San Miguel could seal its 18th championship trophy on Sunday, the most in any professional league.
David Noel topped the Kings with 16 points, Erik Menk scattered 15 while Ronald Tubid added 13.
Hobbled by a hamstring injury, newly-crowned MVP Jay-Jay Helterbrand could only score eight points.
Ginebra is gunning for its ninth crown and is hoping to become the first team to defend a title since 2002.
BOX SCORES
SAN MIGUEL (98)- Freeman 24, Ildefonso 18, Cortez 12, Hontiveros 11, Villanueva 9, Washington 8, Pingris 6, Pennisi 5, Peña 3, Racela 2, Custodio 0.
GINEBRA (84)- Noel 16, Menk 15, Tubid 13, Pacana 9, Helterbrand 8, Wilson 7, Salvacion 6, Reavis 6, Lanete 2, Baguio 2, Artadi 0, Mamaril 0.QUARTERSCORES: 17-19, 44-34, 68-61, 98-84.
The San Miguel Beermen sealed a dramatic Game Seven duel with Barangay Ginebra in the 34th PBA Fiesta Cup Finals after clobbering the Gin Kings, 98-84, in last night’s Game Six at the Araneta Coliseum.
San Miguel's crucial victory forged another championship series to go the distance. The last five PBA Finals were all decided in seven games.
In the 2006-07 Fiesta Cup Finals, Alaska edged Talk N Text, 4-3. Sta. Lucia also needed seven games before dispatching Purefoods in the 2007-2008 Finals. The Kings also went through a grueling seven games before bagging the 2007-08 Fiesta Cup title at the expense of the Air21 Express (now Burger King) and in the 2008-09 Philippine Cup Finals, Talk N Text also survived a winner-take-all Game Seven versus Alaska.
Down by 17-19 after the first period, San Miguel peeled away in the second quarter and sat on a 44-34 lead at the half. The Beermen mellowed down a bit in the third, allowing the Kings to move to within just points at one point. But San Miguel managed to weather the storm and took some breathing space entering the final period, 68-61.
Former league MVP Danny Ildefonso then took matters into his hands in the fourth where he dumped 10 of his 18 points and keyed a San Miguel run that all but settled the contest.
Ildefonso scored eight points in an 11-8 run as the Beermen never looked back after taking a 79-65 lead in the final 9:59.
Gabe Freeman led the Beermen with 24 points, while Mike Cortez and Dondon Hontiveros tallied 12 and 11 markers, respectively.
San Miguel could seal its 18th championship trophy on Sunday, the most in any professional league.
David Noel topped the Kings with 16 points, Erik Menk scattered 15 while Ronald Tubid added 13.
Hobbled by a hamstring injury, newly-crowned MVP Jay-Jay Helterbrand could only score eight points.
Ginebra is gunning for its ninth crown and is hoping to become the first team to defend a title since 2002.
BOX SCORES
SAN MIGUEL (98)- Freeman 24, Ildefonso 18, Cortez 12, Hontiveros 11, Villanueva 9, Washington 8, Pingris 6, Pennisi 5, Peña 3, Racela 2, Custodio 0.
GINEBRA (84)- Noel 16, Menk 15, Tubid 13, Pacana 9, Helterbrand 8, Wilson 7, Salvacion 6, Reavis 6, Lanete 2, Baguio 2, Artadi 0, Mamaril 0.QUARTERSCORES: 17-19, 44-34, 68-61, 98-84.
July 15, 2009
Williams visit Obama at White House
Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- It was tennis before baseball for President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Before heading off to St. Louis to throw the first pitch at the All-Star Game, the president welcomed Wimbledon champion Serena Williams to the White House.
"It was amazing," Williams said before her World Team Tennis match with the Washington Kastles. "I love President Obama; he has such an unbelievable presence, and he seems to be so normal -- and he noticed my shoes. I think that was the highlight of the whole day, was he liked my shoes."
Williams said she was wearing five-inch heels for the presidential visit.
"He asked me, 'Should I be wearing high heels?' So I thought that was kind of funny because he may have been right," Williams said. "Because it is a job hazard for me, but I insist on wearing them."
Williams got to meet Michelle Obama and the rest of the first family.
"I didn't know she had such an amazing personality," Williams said. "She had me cracking up and laughing. I knew she was a great person, but now I really understand how important this first family is to the United States. And the kids were just so cute and sweet, and the dog was nice."
WASHINGTON -- It was tennis before baseball for President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Before heading off to St. Louis to throw the first pitch at the All-Star Game, the president welcomed Wimbledon champion Serena Williams to the White House.
"It was amazing," Williams said before her World Team Tennis match with the Washington Kastles. "I love President Obama; he has such an unbelievable presence, and he seems to be so normal -- and he noticed my shoes. I think that was the highlight of the whole day, was he liked my shoes."
Williams said she was wearing five-inch heels for the presidential visit.
"He asked me, 'Should I be wearing high heels?' So I thought that was kind of funny because he may have been right," Williams said. "Because it is a job hazard for me, but I insist on wearing them."
Williams got to meet Michelle Obama and the rest of the first family.
"I didn't know she had such an amazing personality," Williams said. "She had me cracking up and laughing. I knew she was a great person, but now I really understand how important this first family is to the United States. And the kids were just so cute and sweet, and the dog was nice."
Baseball: Crawford's glove runs AL's unbeaten streak to 13 All-Star Games
ST. LOUIS -- World Series champions change. Stadiums change. Stars of the game change.
Baseball's All-Star Game winner is always the same.
On a night to savor defense and relief pitching, Carl Crawford pulled back a home run with a leaping grab an inning before Curtis Granderson tripled and scored the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning. That boosted the American League to a 4-3 victory Tuesday night at new Busch Stadium, its seventh straight win since the All-Star Game has been used to determine home-field advantage for the World Series."We came here on a mission and the mission was accomplished," said Mariano Rivera, who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his record fourth All-Star save, breaking a tie with Dennis Eckersley.
The home-field advantage innovation began after 2002's 7-7, 11-inning tie at Milwaukee. The AL is 12-0-1 since its 1996 defeat at Philadelphia -- the longest unbeaten streak in All-Star history.
"It is so important to get home-field advantage in the World Series," said Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon, the AL manager. "So there was a lot on the line there today."
Not even President Barack Obama's ceremonial first pitch helped the NL, which had been 4-0 previously when sitting presidents threw out the first offering. The NL scored all its runs in the second inning, and 22 of its last 24 batters made an out.
Despite starting the World Series on the road last year, Philadelphia beat the Rays in five games for the title. Jayson Werth, who ran down Justin Morneau's drive to deep left-center off Francisco Rodriguez to end the ninth, took solace from that.
"Hopefully, we'll get a chance to overcome that obstacle again this year," he said.
Crawford entered with a pinch single in the fifth and jumped at the 8-foot left-field wall to snare Brad Hawpe's leadoff drive in the seventh off winner Jonathan Papelbon, which would have put the NL ahead 4-3.
For the NL, that was typical. Somehow, it finds a way to lose.
"I still don't think there's a good answer for it," Hawpe said.
Crawford became the first non-pitcher to win the MVP with no RBIs since Willie Mays in 1968."It's definitely probably my best catch I've ever made," Crawford said. "I didn't think it was going to carry that far. But it carried and I just tried to find the wall and was able to jump up and make a play on it."
Granderson then hit a one-out triple in the eighth against Heath Bell that landed off the bottom of the left-field wall. The drive went over Justin Upton, normally a right fielder, who took a bit of a circuitous route. Bell, the loser, intentionally walked Victor Martinez, and Jones followed with a fly to deep right.
Maddon credited "these stallions in the bullpen" after Papelbon, Joe Nathan and Rivera finished a five-hitter.
"I'm used to seeing it. I've been seeing it for 17 years now," Derek Jeter, Rivera's Yankee teammate, said. "Nothing he does surprises me."
Starting with Hanley Ramirez's groundout off starter Roy Halladay that ended the second, AL pitchers retired 18 consecutive batters before Adrian Gonzalez's two-out walk in the eighth against Nathan. Orlando Hudson singled and, with pinch-hitter Ryan Howard at the plate, stole second before Howard struck out on a pitch in the dirt.
"I got caught off-guard," said Howard, a St. Louis native. "He threw me a slider, and I couldn't hold up."
Given a 40-second ovation before the game by adoring red-clad Cardinals fans in the sellout crowd of 46,760, Albert Pujols went 0 for 3 in six innings, made an error at first base in a two-run first and made some nice defensive plays. He made diving stops on Jeter and Mark Teixeira in the fifth, throwing out Ichiro Suzuki at second from his knees after Jeter's grounder.
"It was great. You put it all together, hosting the All-Star Game here in the place that you play with the fans and everybody, and a special presence by the president," Pujols said. "It was almost getting to the point where I got a little bit emotional."
Wearing sneakers, jeans and a jacket of his home state White Sox, Obama shook hands with 88-year-old Hall of Famer Stan Musial and went to the mound for the first pitch. The lanky president stood on the pitching rubber and threw left-handed from a windup. Biting his lip, he was determined to reach the plate. And he did with the help of Pujols, who moved up and scooped up the ball as Obama responded with a left-handed fist pump.
With the All-Star Game back in St. Louis for the first time since the NL won 2-1 in 10 innings across the street at old Busch Stadium in 1966, the AL broke on top 2-0 in the first against Tim Lincecum with the help of an error by Pujols, who allowed Teixeira's one-out bouncer with two on to bounce away. Jeter came around from second on the error, and Josh Hamilton hit a two-out RBI grounder.
"To be honest with you, I was feeling a lot of nerves out there," said Lincecum, who missed last year's game at old Yankee Stadium when he was hospitalized with flulike symptoms.
The NL went ahead 3-2 in the second against Halladay with four straight two-out hits. The Cardinals' Yadier Molina had an RBI single, and another run scored when Hamilton's throw from center field to third bounced off the sliding Shane Victorino for an error that allowed Victorino to score. Prince Fielder, winner of Monday's Home Run Derby, batted for Halladay and lined an opposite-field double down the left-field line.
Joe Mauer tied it in the fifth with a two-out RBI double off Chad Billingsley.
The AL has come from behind in four straight games.
"I think it's just the guys that put on the uniform -- they want to win," Mauer said. "They don't give up. We always know we have a good chance of winning."
Baseball's All-Star Game winner is always the same.
On a night to savor defense and relief pitching, Carl Crawford pulled back a home run with a leaping grab an inning before Curtis Granderson tripled and scored the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning. That boosted the American League to a 4-3 victory Tuesday night at new Busch Stadium, its seventh straight win since the All-Star Game has been used to determine home-field advantage for the World Series."We came here on a mission and the mission was accomplished," said Mariano Rivera, who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his record fourth All-Star save, breaking a tie with Dennis Eckersley.
The home-field advantage innovation began after 2002's 7-7, 11-inning tie at Milwaukee. The AL is 12-0-1 since its 1996 defeat at Philadelphia -- the longest unbeaten streak in All-Star history.
"It is so important to get home-field advantage in the World Series," said Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon, the AL manager. "So there was a lot on the line there today."
Not even President Barack Obama's ceremonial first pitch helped the NL, which had been 4-0 previously when sitting presidents threw out the first offering. The NL scored all its runs in the second inning, and 22 of its last 24 batters made an out.
Despite starting the World Series on the road last year, Philadelphia beat the Rays in five games for the title. Jayson Werth, who ran down Justin Morneau's drive to deep left-center off Francisco Rodriguez to end the ninth, took solace from that.
"Hopefully, we'll get a chance to overcome that obstacle again this year," he said.
Crawford entered with a pinch single in the fifth and jumped at the 8-foot left-field wall to snare Brad Hawpe's leadoff drive in the seventh off winner Jonathan Papelbon, which would have put the NL ahead 4-3.
For the NL, that was typical. Somehow, it finds a way to lose.
"I still don't think there's a good answer for it," Hawpe said.
Crawford became the first non-pitcher to win the MVP with no RBIs since Willie Mays in 1968."It's definitely probably my best catch I've ever made," Crawford said. "I didn't think it was going to carry that far. But it carried and I just tried to find the wall and was able to jump up and make a play on it."
Granderson then hit a one-out triple in the eighth against Heath Bell that landed off the bottom of the left-field wall. The drive went over Justin Upton, normally a right fielder, who took a bit of a circuitous route. Bell, the loser, intentionally walked Victor Martinez, and Jones followed with a fly to deep right.
Maddon credited "these stallions in the bullpen" after Papelbon, Joe Nathan and Rivera finished a five-hitter.
"I'm used to seeing it. I've been seeing it for 17 years now," Derek Jeter, Rivera's Yankee teammate, said. "Nothing he does surprises me."
Starting with Hanley Ramirez's groundout off starter Roy Halladay that ended the second, AL pitchers retired 18 consecutive batters before Adrian Gonzalez's two-out walk in the eighth against Nathan. Orlando Hudson singled and, with pinch-hitter Ryan Howard at the plate, stole second before Howard struck out on a pitch in the dirt.
"I got caught off-guard," said Howard, a St. Louis native. "He threw me a slider, and I couldn't hold up."
Given a 40-second ovation before the game by adoring red-clad Cardinals fans in the sellout crowd of 46,760, Albert Pujols went 0 for 3 in six innings, made an error at first base in a two-run first and made some nice defensive plays. He made diving stops on Jeter and Mark Teixeira in the fifth, throwing out Ichiro Suzuki at second from his knees after Jeter's grounder.
"It was great. You put it all together, hosting the All-Star Game here in the place that you play with the fans and everybody, and a special presence by the president," Pujols said. "It was almost getting to the point where I got a little bit emotional."
Wearing sneakers, jeans and a jacket of his home state White Sox, Obama shook hands with 88-year-old Hall of Famer Stan Musial and went to the mound for the first pitch. The lanky president stood on the pitching rubber and threw left-handed from a windup. Biting his lip, he was determined to reach the plate. And he did with the help of Pujols, who moved up and scooped up the ball as Obama responded with a left-handed fist pump.
With the All-Star Game back in St. Louis for the first time since the NL won 2-1 in 10 innings across the street at old Busch Stadium in 1966, the AL broke on top 2-0 in the first against Tim Lincecum with the help of an error by Pujols, who allowed Teixeira's one-out bouncer with two on to bounce away. Jeter came around from second on the error, and Josh Hamilton hit a two-out RBI grounder.
"To be honest with you, I was feeling a lot of nerves out there," said Lincecum, who missed last year's game at old Yankee Stadium when he was hospitalized with flulike symptoms.
The NL went ahead 3-2 in the second against Halladay with four straight two-out hits. The Cardinals' Yadier Molina had an RBI single, and another run scored when Hamilton's throw from center field to third bounced off the sliding Shane Victorino for an error that allowed Victorino to score. Prince Fielder, winner of Monday's Home Run Derby, batted for Halladay and lined an opposite-field double down the left-field line.
Joe Mauer tied it in the fifth with a two-out RBI double off Chad Billingsley.
The AL has come from behind in four straight games.
"I think it's just the guys that put on the uniform -- they want to win," Mauer said. "They don't give up. We always know we have a good chance of winning."
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