chance to secure qualification in its playoff agai | Forum

SACRAMENTO, Calif. http:///...rd-women-s-shoe.html . -- Al Horford was stellar on the offensive end Tuesday night. His defence on DeMarcus Cousins made the difference, though. Horford had 27 points and 10 rebounds, Paul Millsap had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and the Hawks held off the Sacramento Kings for a 105-100 victory. Horford was largely responsible for Cousins mediocre game. The Kings centre was limited to 11 points and six rebounds. Cousins made his first three shots in the games opening minutes, but didnt score again until getting a three-point play at the 11:21 mark of the fourth quarter. He was then called for three quick fouls early in the fourth, and he went to the bench for good at the midway point of the period. "My teammates did a great job of disrupting him and were digging real well and keeping him off balance," Horford said. "Any given night he can be the best big man in the league. Mentally, I feel hes stronger this season." When asked about Horford, Cousins only reply was, "Next question." Horford received plenty of help from Millsap, a key off-season addition for the Hawks. The two combine to give the Hawks a strong inside presence. That was evident in the fourth quarter when Horford scored 10 points and Millsap had eight, combining for 18 of Atlantas 23 points. "Paul has a knack for scoring late (in the game)," Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. "I think both Paul and Al stepped up for us. They are working well off each other." The Hawks (2-2) led by 17 points going into the fourth quarter, but the Kings cut it to three with 32 seconds left. Isaiah Thomas had a chance to tie it with 3 second left but missed a 3-pointer and the Hawks beat the Kings for the 11th straight time, including six straight in Sacramento. Atlanta shared the ball effectively throughout and were getting open looks for much of the game until the final six minutes. The Hawks shot 48 per cent, made eight 3-pointers, and had only six turnovers going into the fourth quarter when they committed eight more in helping to fuel the Kings comeback. "The defence isnt where it should be obviously right now, and we continue to dig ourselves in big holes," Kings coach Mike Malone said. "Every time you do that you have to fight out of it and that takes a lot when youre 19 points down." Jeff Teague, who left the game in the first quarter with an ankle problem, returned in the second and played well, finishing with 18 points and 10 assists for Atlanta. Both Kyle Korver and Cartier Martin had nine apiece. Thomas had 18 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter for the Kings (1-3), who have dropped three straight. Marcus Thornton and Ben McLemore had 15 points and John Salmons added 13. Thomas has made a habit of coming off the bench this season and providing the energy that has the Kings in up-tempo mode on offence and hustling defensively. However, there was no helping the Kings in the second and third quarters when they were outscored 57-33. "We just cant keep doing this to ourselves like we are some great team," Thomas said. "It takes a toll on your whole team. We keep coming back, but its not going to happen every night." Using a suddenly energized defence in the fourth, the Kings scored 11 straight points, cutting the Hawks lead to 96-95 at the 2:45 mark on a fast-break layup by Thomas. When the lead had been reduced to three points at the 3:04 mark, Millsap brought the Hawks together for a little inspirational talk. "It was one of those moments when everything was unraveling," said Millsap, who played the previous seven seasons with Utah. "I told everyone, Lets finish this game. Thats my personality, to lead." Millsap was inspirational with his play as well. With the clock running down and Atlantas lead reduced to one point, he made an 8-footer and added a free throw for a 99-95 lead. After dominating the second quarter, the Hawks controlled the third. Getting numerous open looks against the Kings lacklustredefence, Atlanta went on a 19-6 run for a 75-56 lead at the 4:47 mark. Korver connected on his first 3-point attempt early in third quarter, extending his streak to 77 straight games, the fourth longest in NBA history and one less than third place Dennis Scott. Dana Barros holds the NBA record with 89. Teague scored 14 points and Millsap had 13 in the opening half. The Hawks trailed the entire half until the midway point of the second quarter. They ended up outscoring the Kings 29-13 in the second to take a 54-45 lead into halftime. McLemore had 12 first-half points for the Kings, who had 12 turnovers. The Kings are in the midst of a seven-game stretch in which they play six home games. Their only away game is Friday at Portland. The two teams play again Saturday night in Sacramento. NOTES: Boxing champion Floyd Mayweather was sitting in a courtside seat. ... Kings rookie point guard Ray McCallum dressed for the first time this season, replacing centre Hamady Ndiaye on the active roster. ... Salmons had seven points in the first quarter and the Kings shot 12 of 22 in leading 32-25. ... Atlanta concludes a three-game road trip Thursday night in Denver. http:///...lack-819960-001.html . Deulofeu injured a muscle in his right leg in Evertons 4-1 win over Fulham in the English Premier League on Saturday. Barcelona says that its team doctors will "co-ordinate" with Evertons medical staff as Deulofeu recovers. http:///...r-men-s-women-s.html .ca! Hi Kerry, Its another day and here we are looking at another dubious hit to the head. In this case Blue Jackets forward Brandon Dubinsky elbowed Saku Koivu in the head about a second after he dished off the puck to a teammate, knocking him unconscious. http:///...-s-casual-shoes.html . The Dane followed up his first European Tour title last weekend with eight birdies and just a single dropped shot on Thursday for a one-stroke advantage over South Africas Allan Versfeld and Portugals Ricardo Santos.FUESSEN, Germany -- The United States qualified for the mens curling tournament at the Sochi Olympics with an 8-5 playoff victory over the Czech Republic on Sunday. The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. The Americans, coached by Tim Muller with Craig Brown at alternate, had kept their qualification hopes alive with a 7-5 win over South Korea in Saturdays tiebreaker. "We always seem to pick it up and bring it up the next step and find a way to play better in a game," Landsteiner said. The U.S. won its final five games at the World Curling Federations qualification event in the Bavarian town of Fuessen, and the Shuster rink will now be nominatedd to the U. http:///...s-running-shoes.html. . Olympic team pending approval by the United States Olympic Committee. "The butterflies of winning for an opportunity like this, they never get old. Thats why we play this game," said Shuster, who won Olympic bronze in 2006 in the lead position. "These guys work their tails off and theyre some of the best in the business. Im extremely proud of how well our team has played the entire season and especially here when we had our backs against the wall," the 31-year-old Shuster said. Jiri Snitils Czech rink was playing its second playoff in as many days after losing to Germany for the first Olympic berth on Saturday. China qualified for the womens tournament in Sochi next year by beating Japan 7-6 in the playoff between the first and second-ranked teams. 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