Monday, January 31, 2011
Bubba Watson Edges Phil Mickelson to Win at Torrey Pines
SAN DIEGO -- With a 5-under final-round 67 Sunday at Torrey Pines, Bubba Watson won the Farmers Insurance Open -- his second PGA Tour title -- by one shot over Phil Mickelson and put the PGA Tour on notice.
He's serious.
"It just shows that I can do it," Watson said. "I did it twice now. I'm only like 50 behind Phil and 80 behind Tiger, so they better watch out."
Watson, no malice intended, is seen by many as something of a golf goof ball. The 32-year-old self-taught player from the little Florida Panhandle town of Bagdad, likes to post Internet videos featuring trick shots and comedy. One of his favorites is a wedge shot from out of a tiny loving cup, over a swimming pool and into a sand pail.
He also has posted a "Happy Birthday" tribute to Ellen DeGeneres, and, last December at the Shark Shootout, dressed as Santa Claus to sign autographs after finishing play.
"Well, I think I'm funny. But I still have fun with the game, I still have fun with my life," he says. "But for me to just go through the motions or for me to be good at what I do, I needed to take stuff serious.
"So on the golf course, my 30 seconds before I hit and 30 seconds while I'm hitting, I've got to be serious. The rest, who cares. So, you know, it's growing on me. This is my sixth year on Tour, so I'm getting used to all the attention, all the ropes, all the media, all the people. Just getting used to it, so it's becoming more natural now for me."
The odd thing about that is despite Watson's lighter side, most of his public exposure has come with tears.
Last year, after making the Travelers his first PGA Tour victory, Watson broke down, acknowledging his father, Gerry, who was home in Pensacola, Fla., losing a battle to cancer. In September, while Bubba was in Wales playing his first Ryder Cup, he was calling home ever day during Gerry's final weeks.
"More than likely, I am never going to be in the military," Watson said of playing for the U.S.. "So this is a chance to be like my dad."
"I did it twice now. I'm only like 50 behind Phil and 80 behind Tiger, so they better watch out."
-- Bubba Watson Finally, the former Green Beret, who served in Vietnam, and later taught his son to play the game, died in October.
Sunday's 16-under finish and victory, Watson's first since his dad's death, again brought emotion.
"It means a lot," Watson said of the victory. "You know, everyone is special. We do not know if we are going to have them or not. So I'm probably going to cry all day, just like I did last time."
The long-hitting left-hander was 13 under on the par-5s for the week, birdieing all four on Sunday. He led the field in greens in regulation -- 59 of 72. He also led the field in driving distance, averaging 308 yards.
And he made clutch putts on the last two holes, a 10-footer to save par at No. 17 and a 12-footer for birdie at 18 that secured the victory over a charging Mickelson.
"Well, what I believe in life as a Christian, I believe that, yes, he's up there he's watching and he's cheering me on," Watson said of his father. "It's my sister's birthday today, so it was nice for our family that I won on my sister's birthday. So, yeah, I thought about him a little bit.
"I thought about him after I made the putt on 18. I looked up to the sky, but at the same time I knew that Phil Mickelson's a great wedge player, so I can't get too emotional yet."
Mickelson, a hometown favorite who has won the event three times, was one shot behind as he went to the par-5 finishing hole, just before Watson sank what would be the winning putt.
Watson's birdie left Mickelson needing to hole a 72-yard wedge shot for eagle to tie.
Mickelson had his caddie, Jim "Bones" Mackay, tend the flag. His shot landed about four feet behind the hole, but stopped well short of spinning back and into the hole. Mickelson closed with a 69.
"Bubba played some terrific golf," Mickelson said. "I really felt like starting out with the wind and the difficult conditions that if I shot something in the 60s, I thought that would be enough. I did what I thought would be enough, and it just wasn't.
"Bubba played too good. Made some great shots after great shots. I saw and made putt after putt. It was a wonderful round for him."
Seriously, folks.
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He's serious.
"It just shows that I can do it," Watson said. "I did it twice now. I'm only like 50 behind Phil and 80 behind Tiger, so they better watch out."
Watson, no malice intended, is seen by many as something of a golf goof ball. The 32-year-old self-taught player from the little Florida Panhandle town of Bagdad, likes to post Internet videos featuring trick shots and comedy. One of his favorites is a wedge shot from out of a tiny loving cup, over a swimming pool and into a sand pail.
He also has posted a "Happy Birthday" tribute to Ellen DeGeneres, and, last December at the Shark Shootout, dressed as Santa Claus to sign autographs after finishing play.
"Well, I think I'm funny. But I still have fun with the game, I still have fun with my life," he says. "But for me to just go through the motions or for me to be good at what I do, I needed to take stuff serious.
"So on the golf course, my 30 seconds before I hit and 30 seconds while I'm hitting, I've got to be serious. The rest, who cares. So, you know, it's growing on me. This is my sixth year on Tour, so I'm getting used to all the attention, all the ropes, all the media, all the people. Just getting used to it, so it's becoming more natural now for me."
The odd thing about that is despite Watson's lighter side, most of his public exposure has come with tears.
Last year, after making the Travelers his first PGA Tour victory, Watson broke down, acknowledging his father, Gerry, who was home in Pensacola, Fla., losing a battle to cancer. In September, while Bubba was in Wales playing his first Ryder Cup, he was calling home ever day during Gerry's final weeks.
"More than likely, I am never going to be in the military," Watson said of playing for the U.S.. "So this is a chance to be like my dad."
"I did it twice now. I'm only like 50 behind Phil and 80 behind Tiger, so they better watch out."
-- Bubba Watson Finally, the former Green Beret, who served in Vietnam, and later taught his son to play the game, died in October.
Sunday's 16-under finish and victory, Watson's first since his dad's death, again brought emotion.
"It means a lot," Watson said of the victory. "You know, everyone is special. We do not know if we are going to have them or not. So I'm probably going to cry all day, just like I did last time."
The long-hitting left-hander was 13 under on the par-5s for the week, birdieing all four on Sunday. He led the field in greens in regulation -- 59 of 72. He also led the field in driving distance, averaging 308 yards.
And he made clutch putts on the last two holes, a 10-footer to save par at No. 17 and a 12-footer for birdie at 18 that secured the victory over a charging Mickelson.
"Well, what I believe in life as a Christian, I believe that, yes, he's up there he's watching and he's cheering me on," Watson said of his father. "It's my sister's birthday today, so it was nice for our family that I won on my sister's birthday. So, yeah, I thought about him a little bit.
"I thought about him after I made the putt on 18. I looked up to the sky, but at the same time I knew that Phil Mickelson's a great wedge player, so I can't get too emotional yet."
Mickelson, a hometown favorite who has won the event three times, was one shot behind as he went to the par-5 finishing hole, just before Watson sank what would be the winning putt.
Watson's birdie left Mickelson needing to hole a 72-yard wedge shot for eagle to tie.
Mickelson had his caddie, Jim "Bones" Mackay, tend the flag. His shot landed about four feet behind the hole, but stopped well short of spinning back and into the hole. Mickelson closed with a 69.
"Bubba played some terrific golf," Mickelson said. "I really felt like starting out with the wind and the difficult conditions that if I shot something in the 60s, I thought that would be enough. I did what I thought would be enough, and it just wasn't.
"Bubba played too good. Made some great shots after great shots. I saw and made putt after putt. It was a wonderful round for him."
Seriously, folks.
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DeAngelo Hall Paces NFC to 55-41 Pro Bowl Romp
HONOLULU -- MVP DeAngelo Hall had one of his team's five interceptions and returned a fumble 34 yards for a touchdown to help the NFC match a Pro Bowl scoring record in a 55-41 victory over turnover-prone AFC in a game that was not nearly as interesting as the final would indicate.
AFC quarterbacks Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning and Matt Cassel each threw first-half interceptions to help the NFC blow open a 42-0 lead in a performance ugly even by the historically low standards of this game.
Fittingly for this strange contest, center Alex Mack of Cleveland scored the final touchdown on a 67-yard pass play that featured two laterals with 16 seconds left.
Carolina's Jon Beason returned the fifth interception thrown by the AFC, and second by Matt Cassel, 59 yards for the NFC's final touchdown to match the single-team scoring record set in the NFC's 55-52 victory in 2004.
New England coach Bill Belichick, after his Super Bowl favorite Patriots lost to the New York Jets in the divisional playoffs, had to watch his AFC squad muddle through the one-sided first half.
Pro Bowls are, by their nature, laid-back affairs, seemingly played at half speed by players whose biggest concern is to get on the plane home without injury.
The AFC, though, took that attitude to an uncomfortable extreme early on before coming back to outscore the NFC 41-13.
The NFC led 42-0 after Steven Jackson waltzed through the AFC defense for a 21-yard touchdown-and there still was 4 1/2 minutes left in the second quarter.
Rivers, starting in place of injured Tom Brady, was picked off twice in the first quarter, the second by Hall.
Manning, in his 11th Pro Bowl, came on briefly in relief and his second pass was picked off. Then Cassel got his chance and quickly joined in the spirit of things, throwing his second pass of the game directly into the hands of Minnesota cornerback Antoine Winfield.
But just when it appeared it would be the most one-sided game in Pro Bowl history, eclipsing the Joe Theismann-led 45-3 NFC rout of the AFC in 1984, the AFC scored three touchdowns in a row. The last came on the game's seventh turnover, when Devin Hester tried to hand the kickoff return to Hall, but the ball fell to the turf. Montell Owens of Jacksonville scooped it up and ran it in 10 yards for the score to make it 42-21 with 10 minutes left in the third quarter.
With his seven extra points, tying a Pro Bowl record, along with two field goals David Akers moved ahead of Morten Andersen (45) for most Pro Bowl points with 52. The Philadelphia kicker would have had more but his 36-yard field goal try in the fourth quarter bounced off the right upright.
A tropical downpour preceded the game but subsided just before kickoff as the game returned to its traditional home in Hawaii after a one-year detour to Miami .
Eagles quarterback Michael Vick started but played only the first quarter, completing 5 of 10 passes for 59 yards.
Adrian Peterson rushed for 80 yards in 14 carries for the NFC, including a 14-yarder to set a Pro Bowl record with four career rushing touchdowns. Atlanta got good performances from Matt Ryan (9 of 13 for 118 yards and two touchdowns with an interception), Michael Turner (eight carries for 53 yards) and Roddy White (five catches for 69 yards).
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AFC quarterbacks Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning and Matt Cassel each threw first-half interceptions to help the NFC blow open a 42-0 lead in a performance ugly even by the historically low standards of this game.
Fittingly for this strange contest, center Alex Mack of Cleveland scored the final touchdown on a 67-yard pass play that featured two laterals with 16 seconds left.
Carolina's Jon Beason returned the fifth interception thrown by the AFC, and second by Matt Cassel, 59 yards for the NFC's final touchdown to match the single-team scoring record set in the NFC's 55-52 victory in 2004.
New England coach Bill Belichick, after his Super Bowl favorite Patriots lost to the New York Jets in the divisional playoffs, had to watch his AFC squad muddle through the one-sided first half.
Pro Bowls are, by their nature, laid-back affairs, seemingly played at half speed by players whose biggest concern is to get on the plane home without injury.
The AFC, though, took that attitude to an uncomfortable extreme early on before coming back to outscore the NFC 41-13.
The NFC led 42-0 after Steven Jackson waltzed through the AFC defense for a 21-yard touchdown-and there still was 4 1/2 minutes left in the second quarter.
Rivers, starting in place of injured Tom Brady, was picked off twice in the first quarter, the second by Hall.
Manning, in his 11th Pro Bowl, came on briefly in relief and his second pass was picked off. Then Cassel got his chance and quickly joined in the spirit of things, throwing his second pass of the game directly into the hands of Minnesota cornerback Antoine Winfield.
But just when it appeared it would be the most one-sided game in Pro Bowl history, eclipsing the Joe Theismann-led 45-3 NFC rout of the AFC in 1984, the AFC scored three touchdowns in a row. The last came on the game's seventh turnover, when Devin Hester tried to hand the kickoff return to Hall, but the ball fell to the turf. Montell Owens of Jacksonville scooped it up and ran it in 10 yards for the score to make it 42-21 with 10 minutes left in the third quarter.
With his seven extra points, tying a Pro Bowl record, along with two field goals David Akers moved ahead of Morten Andersen (45) for most Pro Bowl points with 52. The Philadelphia kicker would have had more but his 36-yard field goal try in the fourth quarter bounced off the right upright.
A tropical downpour preceded the game but subsided just before kickoff as the game returned to its traditional home in Hawaii after a one-year detour to Miami .
Eagles quarterback Michael Vick started but played only the first quarter, completing 5 of 10 passes for 59 yards.
Adrian Peterson rushed for 80 yards in 14 carries for the NFC, including a 14-yarder to set a Pro Bowl record with four career rushing touchdowns. Atlanta got good performances from Matt Ryan (9 of 13 for 118 yards and two touchdowns with an interception), Michael Turner (eight carries for 53 yards) and Roddy White (five catches for 69 yards).
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St. John's stuns No. 3 Duke, 93-78
NEW YORK - Teams that beat Duke have reason to celebrate. Teams that blow Duke out of the building should be able to party all night.
So, how long will the St. John's players be allowed to celebrate Sunday's 93-78 victory over No. 3 Duke - a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicated?
"Coach Lav said we had two hours to celebrate and then we have to get ready for Rutgers," senior forward Justin Burrell said, referring to first-year coach Steve Lavin and the Red Storm's next opponent on Wednesday.
Two hours? It will take longer than that just to go over the highlight plays of a game that St. John's had won by halftime. Those last 20 minutes were just a formality.
"I felt like we were ready. The guys wanted to play this game," Duke guard Nolan Smith said. "We wanted to be here but they came out from the jump ball and kicked our butts."
It wasn't that St. John's (12-8) beat the Blue Devils (19-2), it was the way it happened.
St. John's was finishing a stretch of eight straight games against ranked teams. This win gave them three wins in that span. It was enough to have Lavin waving his arms to the crowd at a media timeout in the second half.
"You're caught up in the moment of the game and I wanted St. John's fans to come to the party in terms of supporting the players on the court," Lavin said. "We had this arduous stretch of games and having lost five of six, at that moment it was just wanting to jumper cable the crowd and bring energy for our players because they deserved a pat on the back and some appreciation for the yeoman's effort and the cohesive brand of basketball they had been playing against the defending national champion."
The Red Storm, who had lost three straight and five of six, took control early and had a 46-25 lead at halftime. Duke, which came into the game shooting 40 percent from 3-point range, missed its first 10 shots from behind the arc and made one of 13 in the half.
The Blue Devils' overall shooting wasn't a whole lot better as they shot 29.6 percent (8 of 27) in the half - they entered the game shooting 48.1 percent from the field - and they were careless with the ball as well, committing 11 turnovers, one off their season average for a game.
St. John's had a lot to do with how poorly Duke played, using a three-quarter court trap to force the Blue Devils into low percentage passes that almost all seemed to either be stolen by St. John's or just thrown away.
"It's not an Xs and Os thing today," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "I felt we were not ready to compete, we had blank expressions on our faces and guys weren't talking and that's my responsibility. Our program didn't do well today and that is all our responsibilities."
There was plenty of praise to go around for the Red Storm, who gave the Big East a 6-1 record against teams ranked in the top 10 this season. They were 16 of 28 from the field (57.1 percent) in the first half, well above the 45.2 percent the Red Storm were shooting coming into the game.
Dwight Hardy had 26 points for St. John's, while Justin Brownlee had 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists and Paris Horne added 15 points and six assists. St. John's shot 58.2 percent for the game (32 of 55) and was 26 of 33 from the free throw line.
"I thought our team from the outset executed with precision on offense and brought great intensity to the defensive end of the floor," Lavin said, "and we were able to maintain a high level of basketball for 40 minutes and that was the difference."
Duke's loss continued the weekend of misery for members of the Top 25. On Saturday, four teams in the top 10 and 11 ranked teams overall lost.
Smith led Duke with 32 points and Kyle Singler added 20. Duke finished 5 of 26 from 3-point range - they missed 21 of the first 22 attempts - and had 17 turnovers.
"To sum it up they got whatever they wanted and we just weren't able to bounce back and match them," Singler said.
The sellout crowd of 19,353 at Madison Square Garden - about 60 percent of whom were cheering for St. John's - seemed to be waiting for a run by the Blue Devils, who had won four straight since its loss at Florida State, that would make their nightmare half go away.
St. John's came out and scored the first two baskets of the second half - one on a dunk by D.J. Kennedy 10 seconds in, the other on a layup by Hardy off a nice pass from Dwayne Polee II - to take its biggest lead of the game, 50-25 1:04 into the second half.
St. John's had doubled Duke and the Red Storm managed to score enough the rest of the way to keep the Blue Devils at bay. The closest Duke would get would be 11 points after they hit four straights 3-pointers to pull to 87-76.
"I was really excited," said Burrell who had eight points and five rebounds. "I'm one of those guys who really enjoys college basketball and I was excited to be a part of this."
The Red Storm started their run against ranked teams with a 61-58 victory over then-No. 13 Georgetown. After losses to Notre Dame and Syracuse, they beat then-No. 9 Notre Dame 72-54 in a rematch. Losses to Louisville, Cincinnati and Georgetown preceded the win over Duke. All three wins were at Madison Square Garden.
"This was an interesting stretch as a coach," Lavin said. "I don't think it had ever happened. The mathematical probabilities have got to be one in a zillion. "We've had to temper things with them and be mindful of that frustration. The concern was that our players realize this conference is really tough and you can lose five of six and not be playing bad basketball."
Duke had been as comfortable at the Garden as St. John's. The Blue Devils had won their last five and 12 of 13 there and were 25-14 all-time.
The game got chippy for a while in the second half and double technicals were called twice before things settled down.
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So, how long will the St. John's players be allowed to celebrate Sunday's 93-78 victory over No. 3 Duke - a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicated?
"Coach Lav said we had two hours to celebrate and then we have to get ready for Rutgers," senior forward Justin Burrell said, referring to first-year coach Steve Lavin and the Red Storm's next opponent on Wednesday.
Two hours? It will take longer than that just to go over the highlight plays of a game that St. John's had won by halftime. Those last 20 minutes were just a formality.
"I felt like we were ready. The guys wanted to play this game," Duke guard Nolan Smith said. "We wanted to be here but they came out from the jump ball and kicked our butts."
It wasn't that St. John's (12-8) beat the Blue Devils (19-2), it was the way it happened.
St. John's was finishing a stretch of eight straight games against ranked teams. This win gave them three wins in that span. It was enough to have Lavin waving his arms to the crowd at a media timeout in the second half.
"You're caught up in the moment of the game and I wanted St. John's fans to come to the party in terms of supporting the players on the court," Lavin said. "We had this arduous stretch of games and having lost five of six, at that moment it was just wanting to jumper cable the crowd and bring energy for our players because they deserved a pat on the back and some appreciation for the yeoman's effort and the cohesive brand of basketball they had been playing against the defending national champion."
The Red Storm, who had lost three straight and five of six, took control early and had a 46-25 lead at halftime. Duke, which came into the game shooting 40 percent from 3-point range, missed its first 10 shots from behind the arc and made one of 13 in the half.
The Blue Devils' overall shooting wasn't a whole lot better as they shot 29.6 percent (8 of 27) in the half - they entered the game shooting 48.1 percent from the field - and they were careless with the ball as well, committing 11 turnovers, one off their season average for a game.
St. John's had a lot to do with how poorly Duke played, using a three-quarter court trap to force the Blue Devils into low percentage passes that almost all seemed to either be stolen by St. John's or just thrown away.
"It's not an Xs and Os thing today," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "I felt we were not ready to compete, we had blank expressions on our faces and guys weren't talking and that's my responsibility. Our program didn't do well today and that is all our responsibilities."
There was plenty of praise to go around for the Red Storm, who gave the Big East a 6-1 record against teams ranked in the top 10 this season. They were 16 of 28 from the field (57.1 percent) in the first half, well above the 45.2 percent the Red Storm were shooting coming into the game.
Dwight Hardy had 26 points for St. John's, while Justin Brownlee had 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists and Paris Horne added 15 points and six assists. St. John's shot 58.2 percent for the game (32 of 55) and was 26 of 33 from the free throw line.
"I thought our team from the outset executed with precision on offense and brought great intensity to the defensive end of the floor," Lavin said, "and we were able to maintain a high level of basketball for 40 minutes and that was the difference."
Duke's loss continued the weekend of misery for members of the Top 25. On Saturday, four teams in the top 10 and 11 ranked teams overall lost.
Smith led Duke with 32 points and Kyle Singler added 20. Duke finished 5 of 26 from 3-point range - they missed 21 of the first 22 attempts - and had 17 turnovers.
"To sum it up they got whatever they wanted and we just weren't able to bounce back and match them," Singler said.
The sellout crowd of 19,353 at Madison Square Garden - about 60 percent of whom were cheering for St. John's - seemed to be waiting for a run by the Blue Devils, who had won four straight since its loss at Florida State, that would make their nightmare half go away.
St. John's came out and scored the first two baskets of the second half - one on a dunk by D.J. Kennedy 10 seconds in, the other on a layup by Hardy off a nice pass from Dwayne Polee II - to take its biggest lead of the game, 50-25 1:04 into the second half.
St. John's had doubled Duke and the Red Storm managed to score enough the rest of the way to keep the Blue Devils at bay. The closest Duke would get would be 11 points after they hit four straights 3-pointers to pull to 87-76.
"I was really excited," said Burrell who had eight points and five rebounds. "I'm one of those guys who really enjoys college basketball and I was excited to be a part of this."
The Red Storm started their run against ranked teams with a 61-58 victory over then-No. 13 Georgetown. After losses to Notre Dame and Syracuse, they beat then-No. 9 Notre Dame 72-54 in a rematch. Losses to Louisville, Cincinnati and Georgetown preceded the win over Duke. All three wins were at Madison Square Garden.
"This was an interesting stretch as a coach," Lavin said. "I don't think it had ever happened. The mathematical probabilities have got to be one in a zillion. "We've had to temper things with them and be mindful of that frustration. The concern was that our players realize this conference is really tough and you can lose five of six and not be playing bad basketball."
Duke had been as comfortable at the Garden as St. John's. The Blue Devils had won their last five and 12 of 13 there and were 25-14 all-time.
The game got chippy for a while in the second half and double technicals were called twice before things settled down.
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Sunday, January 30, 2011
Marquette Takes Down Reeling Syracuse
MILWAUKEE - Jae Crowder scored 13 of his 25 points in the second half and Marquette handed No. 10 Syracuse its fourth straight loss, 76-70 on Saturday.
C.J. Fair's layup tied the game at 64, but Crowder's layup put Marquette ahead by two. Kris Joseph's jumper tied it for the last time for Syracuse which never led in the game. Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer with 1:51 to go and then Darius Johnson-Odom made another 3 as Marquette withstood the charge.
Joseph led the Orange with 18 points, but it wasn't enough as Syracuse (18-4, 5-4 Big East) who have lost four in a row for the first time since Jan. 16-29, 2006.
Butler finished with 19 for Marquette (14-8, 5-4).
Butler and Dwight Buycks each made one of two free throws and Johnson-Odom made two in the final minute to seal the victory.
A porous defense figured prominently in the Orange's previous three losses. Then-No. 5 Pittsburgh shredded the Syracuse zone for a 74-66 victory Jan. 17. Villanova, ranked eighth at the time, hit 11 3-pointers in an 83-72 victory last Saturday at the Carrier Dome. On Tuesday, Seton Hall made 10 of 17 3s in a 90-68 rout, the worst home loss since an 85-61 defeat on Feb. 7, 1998.
The Orange had won five straight over Marquette since it joined the conference in 2005 and held a 7-2 all-time record coming into the game. The Golden Eagles had beaten every Big East opponent except for Syracuse, but Crowder and Butler changed that.
Darius Johnson-Odom added 17 points for Marquette which had open Big East play with victories over West Virginia and Rutgers. Then, the Golden Eagles lost four of six to nationally ranked teams, including consecutive defeats to then 16th-ranked Notre Dame last Saturday and fifth-ranked Connecticut on Tuesday. The Golden Eagles, 2-7 overall against ranked teams this season, had frittered away second-half leads in each of their last three losses because of defensive breakdowns.
Scopp Jardine's reverse layup off a Marquette turnover capped a 25-14 run, erased Marquette's 11-point halftime lead and tied the game at 56 with 8:18 to go.
Syracuse started the second half with an 8-1 run while holding Marquette scoreless for almost four minutes to pull to 43-39 with 16:38 left. The Orange cut off Marquette's driving lanes which had been wide open in the first half and forced the Golden Eagles to shoot from the outside. Marquette missed three shots in the span and turned the ball over once as Syracuse finally made it a close game.
Crowder and Johnson-Odom each had 12 points to pace Marquette's attack that went over and through Syracuse's zone defense. The Orange contested Marquette's drives through the paint, but couldn't stop the scoring. The Golden Eagles made 13 of 15 free throws to Syracuse's 1 of 2.
Marquette led by 11 points three times in the first, the last on Jimmy Butler's close-in jumper that gave Marquette a 42-31 lead at the half.
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C.J. Fair's layup tied the game at 64, but Crowder's layup put Marquette ahead by two. Kris Joseph's jumper tied it for the last time for Syracuse which never led in the game. Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer with 1:51 to go and then Darius Johnson-Odom made another 3 as Marquette withstood the charge.
Joseph led the Orange with 18 points, but it wasn't enough as Syracuse (18-4, 5-4 Big East) who have lost four in a row for the first time since Jan. 16-29, 2006.
Butler finished with 19 for Marquette (14-8, 5-4).
Butler and Dwight Buycks each made one of two free throws and Johnson-Odom made two in the final minute to seal the victory.
A porous defense figured prominently in the Orange's previous three losses. Then-No. 5 Pittsburgh shredded the Syracuse zone for a 74-66 victory Jan. 17. Villanova, ranked eighth at the time, hit 11 3-pointers in an 83-72 victory last Saturday at the Carrier Dome. On Tuesday, Seton Hall made 10 of 17 3s in a 90-68 rout, the worst home loss since an 85-61 defeat on Feb. 7, 1998.
The Orange had won five straight over Marquette since it joined the conference in 2005 and held a 7-2 all-time record coming into the game. The Golden Eagles had beaten every Big East opponent except for Syracuse, but Crowder and Butler changed that.
Darius Johnson-Odom added 17 points for Marquette which had open Big East play with victories over West Virginia and Rutgers. Then, the Golden Eagles lost four of six to nationally ranked teams, including consecutive defeats to then 16th-ranked Notre Dame last Saturday and fifth-ranked Connecticut on Tuesday. The Golden Eagles, 2-7 overall against ranked teams this season, had frittered away second-half leads in each of their last three losses because of defensive breakdowns.
Scopp Jardine's reverse layup off a Marquette turnover capped a 25-14 run, erased Marquette's 11-point halftime lead and tied the game at 56 with 8:18 to go.
Syracuse started the second half with an 8-1 run while holding Marquette scoreless for almost four minutes to pull to 43-39 with 16:38 left. The Orange cut off Marquette's driving lanes which had been wide open in the first half and forced the Golden Eagles to shoot from the outside. Marquette missed three shots in the span and turned the ball over once as Syracuse finally made it a close game.
Crowder and Johnson-Odom each had 12 points to pace Marquette's attack that went over and through Syracuse's zone defense. The Orange contested Marquette's drives through the paint, but couldn't stop the scoring. The Golden Eagles made 13 of 15 free throws to Syracuse's 1 of 2.
Marquette led by 11 points three times in the first, the last on Jimmy Butler's close-in jumper that gave Marquette a 42-31 lead at the half.
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Novak Djokovic Dominates Andy Murray to Win 2011 Australian Open Title
Novak Djokovic of Serbia thrashed Andy Murray 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 to win his second career Australian Open singles title on Sunday and second Grand Slam title overall.
The third-seeded Djokovic dominated the fifth-seeded Murray in every aspect of the final match. Djokovic won his first Australian Open title in 2008. The 23-year-old Murray finishes runner-up for the second consecutive year in Melbourne Park.
The aggressive Djokovic had better statistics throughout the board. Djokovic won 70 percent of his first-serve points, 60 percent of his second-serve points and was only broken three times. Murray, who was hesitant throughout the match, was broken seven times and committed 47 unforced errors. Additionally, the Brit only won 39 percent of his net approaches in the match.
The contest was only tight for the very beginning of the first set, when both players held serve for the opening nine games. Djokovic opened the match up by claiming the first break of serve in the tenth game. The Serb's serve was dominating, winning 16 of 17 first-serve points in the first set.
A focused Djokovic capitalized on the momentum from his first-set win and took the first five games to begin the second set. Djokovic suddenly rattled off seven straight games to go up 5-0 in the second. Even after breaking Djokovic for the first time in the match during the seventh game of the set, Murray was unable to garner any type of momentum. A focused Djokovic broke back in the next game to take a commanding two-set lead.
Djokovic continued his excellence into the third set where a frustrated Murray continued to be severely outplayed.
It has been quite the run for the 23-year-old Serbian. After finishing runner-up at the 2010 U.S. Open, Djokovic led the Serbian team to their first Davis Cup victory to end the 2010 season. The third-ranked Djokovic only lost one set throughout the tournament, sending yet another message to the tennis world.
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The third-seeded Djokovic dominated the fifth-seeded Murray in every aspect of the final match. Djokovic won his first Australian Open title in 2008. The 23-year-old Murray finishes runner-up for the second consecutive year in Melbourne Park.
The aggressive Djokovic had better statistics throughout the board. Djokovic won 70 percent of his first-serve points, 60 percent of his second-serve points and was only broken three times. Murray, who was hesitant throughout the match, was broken seven times and committed 47 unforced errors. Additionally, the Brit only won 39 percent of his net approaches in the match.
The contest was only tight for the very beginning of the first set, when both players held serve for the opening nine games. Djokovic opened the match up by claiming the first break of serve in the tenth game. The Serb's serve was dominating, winning 16 of 17 first-serve points in the first set.
A focused Djokovic capitalized on the momentum from his first-set win and took the first five games to begin the second set. Djokovic suddenly rattled off seven straight games to go up 5-0 in the second. Even after breaking Djokovic for the first time in the match during the seventh game of the set, Murray was unable to garner any type of momentum. A focused Djokovic broke back in the next game to take a commanding two-set lead.
Djokovic continued his excellence into the third set where a frustrated Murray continued to be severely outplayed.
It has been quite the run for the 23-year-old Serbian. After finishing runner-up at the 2010 U.S. Open, Djokovic led the Serbian team to their first Davis Cup victory to end the 2010 season. The third-ranked Djokovic only lost one set throughout the tournament, sending yet another message to the tennis world.
http://www.BestVirginiaBeachShop.com
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