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5523. alistairconnor - 5/7/2007 2:17:51 PM Vital day in the Americas Cup challenger series. The Spanish boat have seen off two rivals for the fourth semi-final place, beating the South Africans and the Latin Rascals. The only rivals now are the Swedes of Victory Challenge. The Swedish team needs to win its three remaining races, and needs the Spanish to lose its three races, to get the fourth spot.
This is not as unlikely as it sounds. The Spaniards' last two races are against two of the Big Three, and the Swedes have two opponents that they logically should beat. And then there is the head-to-head race, which is now under way... 5524. alistairconnor - 5/7/2007 2:37:01 PM The Swedes are out in front... halfway through a closely fought race.
The other close match of the day is Team NZ against Luna Rossa. The three major teams are fighting for first place in the round-robin phase, which gives them the privilege of choosing their opponent for the semi-finals. Team NZ in front so far... 5525. alistairconnor - 5/7/2007 2:41:45 PM Oh the Swedes panicked at the downwind mark and dumped their spinnaker in the sea. This happens, if it touches the water during the drop it can be impossible to haul it back aboard in race conditions. But the Spaniards have raised a protest flag, claiming they did it on purpose, to ensnare the pursuing boat in a 490 square metre high tech jellyfish... 5526. alistairConnor - 5/8/2007 1:32:26 PM So the Swedes beat the Spanish boat and stay alive. The Spaniards have to face Oracle, today, and Luna Rossa, tomorrow, and will probably lose both.
But I got one thing wrong : the Swedes have not only to beat the Latin Rascals tomorrow, but Team NZ today. Which is a bit of a long shot. TNZ beat Luna Rossa yesterday.
5527. alistairConnor - 5/8/2007 1:33:49 PM But goddam! the Swedes won the start! Not sure what happened there... they have a 50 metre lead. They are capable of avoiding mistakes to cover the Kiwis, but have they got the boat speed to stay in front? 5528. alistairConnor - 5/8/2007 1:45:09 PM So far, the Swedes are impeccable in the tacking duel with the Kiwis. When two boats come together on opposing tacks, the leading boat will tack right on the nose of the other. This is the sailing equivalent of farting in their face -- it fouls their air, they are obliged to tack away to clear it.
The Kiwis have crept back a bit, they are only a dozen metres behind... 5529. alistairConnor - 5/8/2007 2:11:21 PM Tactical error from the Swedes on the run! Gybed too early, opened up a passing lane and the Kiwis storm through... it's going to be very close rounding the top mark! 5530. wonkers2 - 5/8/2007 3:37:36 PM AC, thanks for the report. The Vuitton Cup races aren't available on my cable service. Here's a link to today's NYT report on the racing yesterday. Vuitton Cup Report 5531. jexster - 5/8/2007 8:16:42 PM I haven't followed NWord Ball for some time for reasons that to Wonkers at least should be obvious. I didn't even know that the NBA removed the ban on zone defense fer crissakes!
So I must admit to pleasant surprise when I tuned into the Warriors Jazz game last night...
Who says white men can't jump!
Only one nappy hair in sight Wonk!!!
And THAT is beautiful 5532. alistairconnor - 5/9/2007 2:25:21 PM Last day of the round-robin phase of the Louis Vuitton cup. We already know the four semi-finalists, the other esven teams will be going home.
The substantial match of the day is Team NZ vs Oracle, for the first place. The winner gets to pick their semi-final opponent. Presumably that will be the Desafio Espanyol, clearly the weakest of the four, currently getting hammered by Luna Rossa, the fourth semi-finalist.
And the big surprise of the NZ/Oracle match up is that it looks completely one-sided : NZ correctly picked a big wind shift on the first beat, and they are now defending an advantage of more than a minute, which is rare at this level. 5533. wonkers2 - 5/9/2007 8:43:33 PM Full ThrottleFrance's Francois Brenac is tied for first with Italian, Nicola Celon in the Melges 24 Worlds in Santa Cruz. 5534. alistairConnor - 5/9/2007 10:01:30 PM Cool!
That would be more my size of boat, to tell the truth... I could do that...
Only one French entry, and they are tied for first place!
I didn't know the class -- I see it's rather in the spirit of the Americas Cup boats.
5535. wonkers2 - 5/9/2007 10:32:35 PM The Melges 24 is the most popular small one design keelboat in the U.S. 5536. wonkers2 - 5/10/2007 3:08:08 PM The Morning Line on Tony Soprano from Jersey 5537. jexster - 5/13/2007 10:51:16 PM Hattiesberg/Baton Rouge Rookie NWord
Hits for Cycle in Colorado
Fred Lewis CF 6 3 5 4 1 1 1 0 1 .500
Now with 6 hits
 5538. wabbit - 5/14/2007 2:39:06 PM  The Utah Jazz sure knew how to close a great show. When the Golden State Warriors wanted to run their pell-mell offense Sunday night, the Jazz patiently slowed the tempo. When Baron Davis attempted his usual magic tricks, Utah pulled back the curtain with dogged defense. And when a tight game came down to the final minutes, Derek Fisher upstaged the Warriors with a shooting show of his own that put the businesslike Jazz on the edge of an unlikely stage: the Western Conference finals. Carlos Boozer had 34 points and 12 rebounds and the Jazz handed the eighth-seeded Warriors their first home loss of the postseason, 115-101 on Sunday to put Utah up 3-1 in their second-round playoff series. Fisher scored 14 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter for the surprising Jazz, who hadn't been to the playoffs since the Stockton-to-Malone era ended in 2003. Utah won the Northwest Division title this season, but is learning the playoff game on the fly.
The Chicago Bulls built another big lead, and the Detroit Pistons were rallying. Sound familiar? This time, there was no collapse. Luol Deng scored 25 points, Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon added 19 apiece, and the Bulls hung on to beat Detroit 102-87 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday afternoon and avoid a sweep. Unlike Game 3, when the Bulls saw a 19-point lead dissolve into a seven-point loss, Chicago withstood a late push by Detroit. The Bulls outscored the Pistons 27-13 in the third quarter to turn a seven-point halftime lead into a 77-56 advantage going into the fourth.
The physical style of play returned in Game 3, and it seemed to bring out the best in the San Antonio Spurs again. Manu Ginobili got a bloodied and bruised eye Saturday, and 24 points, as the Spurs took a 108-101 victory for a 2-1 lead in their second-round series with the Phoenix Suns. Phoenix's Steve Nash got a gash to the nose that required six stitches during Game 1 after a collision with Tony Parker. The Spurs won that game 111-106 and had a 101-81 loss in Game 2.
NBA scores
5539. wabbit - 5/14/2007 2:39:26 PM  The moral of the story: you can never have too many Niedermayers. They might not get as much publicity in Southern California as Jessica and Ashlee Simpson or Owen and Luke Wilson; but as siblings go, Scott and Rob Niedermayer do all right. The Ducks won 4-3, at 14:17 of overtime Sunday night, courtesy of the firm of Niedermayer & Niedermayer. For the second time in three games, the brothers combined on an overtime playoff goal. The two conspired to close out Vancouver in Game 5 of the second round and now evened the Western Conference final against Detroit after two compelling road games that have established Anaheim's physical superiority. Scott, the heralded defenseman, notched the winner, again, and Rob helped create it, again -- this time by making a sweet backhand pass off the right-wing boards to his slick-skating big brother, who crept in unmarked from the blue line and lasered a shot past Red Wings goalie Dominik Hasek.
Joseph Corvo never scored a bigger goal, and the Ottawa Senators have never been in such an advantageous position in the playoffs. Believe it, these Senators are for real. Corvo's bouncing shot skipped in at 4:58 of the second overtime, giving Ottawa a 4-3 win over the stunned and suddenly silenced Buffalo Sabres in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals on Saturday night. The goal gave Ottawa a 2-0 series lead heading home for Games 3 and 4 on Monday and Wednesday, and marks the first time the Senators have won the first two games of a series.
Canada used a different formula to achieve familiar results at the world hockey championships. Relying on youngsters and journeymen instead of stars, the Canadians defeated Finland 4-2 Sunday to win their third world title in five years and their 24th overall. Earlier, Russia won the bronze medal by beating Sweden 3-1. Canada has won 24 senior and 13 junior world titles, as well as seven Olympic golds and five Canada Cup and World Cup titles. Its previous world title was in 2004.
NHL scores
5540. wabbit - 5/14/2007 2:39:42 PM  In his third week with a new coach, Phil Mickelson suddenly looks as good as ever. Mickelson added a mini-major to his collection Sunday by winning The Players Championship with control that had been lacking the last three months, closing with a 3-under 69 for a two-shot victory that returned him to No. 2 in the world and pointed him in the right direction with the U.S. Open approaching. Sergio Garcia birdied four of his last five holes for a 66, but he was a ceremonial runner-up. The real victim was Sean O'Hair, and the familiar culprit was that island green on the par-3 17th at the TPC Sawgrass. O'Hair was two shots behind until his 9-iron flew the green into the water. He went to the drop area and watched another shot bounce over the green, and finally walked away with a quadruple-bogey 7. O'Hair bogeyed the final hole for a 76 and went from second place to 11th, the difference of $747,000. Mickelson finished at 11-under 277 for his second victory this year, and the 31st of his career. He earned $1.62 million from the $9 million purse, the richest in golf.
Suzann Pettersen became the first Norwegian winner in LPGA Tour history, making a 1 1/2-foot par putt after Jee Young Lee missed one from about 2 feet on the third extra hole Sunday in the Michelob Ultra Open. Both players parred the par-4 18th on the first two extra holes, and Lee seemed to have the upper hand the third time around when she hit her approach to about 12 feet while Pettersen's ball rested against the high grass at the edge of the fringe. Pettersen's putt rolled just past the cup on the right side, leaving 1 1/2 feet, and Lee's attempt at the victory missed to the right, leaving a short putt for the tie. Lee quickly went to knock her ball in, seemed to rush and it skated by on the right as the crowd gasped and she looked up, astonished. Pettersen, making her 82nd career LPGA Tour start, then stepped up, made hers for the victory and pumped her right fist as the ball disappeared in the hole, then doubled over in apparent disbelief.
South African teen golf star Ashleigh Simon turned professional Saturday and signed a management deal with IMG. Simon, the three-time South African Open winner who turned 18 on Friday, also announced an endorsement deal with Nike and received an invitation to the HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship on July 19-22 at Wykagyl in New Rochelle, N.Y. "I can't wait to get out on the tour," Simon said. "I have thoroughly enjoyed my amateur career and feel I am absolutely ready for the next stage."
PGA news
5541. wabbit - 5/14/2007 2:39:58 PM  A day after setting a record for most victories on one surface, Rafael Nadal became the only player to win the Rome Masters three consecutive times. Then consider this: He hasn't been feeling all that well. Nadal beat Fernando Gonzalez of Chile 6-2, 6-2 in the title match Sunday. But before reaching the final, the No. 2-ranked Spaniard had to overcome a dizzy spell and an apparent stomach problem that forced him to go to the hospital. He also spent nearly four hours on the court against Nikolay Davydenko in the semifinals. This was Nadal's fourth ATP title of the year. He also won in Indian Wells, Calif.; Monte Carlo, Monaco; and Barcelona, Spain. He has a 21-3 career record in finals. Rome is a key clay-court warmup for the French Open, which begins May 27. Thomas Muster and Jaroslav Drobny -- a Czech player in the 1950s -- also won in Rome three times, but not in succession. The last time Nadal lost on clay was to Igor Andreev in the quarterfinals in Valencia, Spain, in April 2005. Sunday's victory extended his winning streak on clay to 77 matches. By reaching the final, the 20-year-old Spaniard broke John McEnroe's record for most victories on one surface.
Mired in his worst slump in more than three years, Roger Federer is splitting from coach Tony Roche. The top-ranked Federer announced the change on his Web site Saturday, saying he and Roche mutually decided to end their arrangement. The move leaves Federer without a coach two weeks before the May 27 start of the French Open, the only Grand Slam tournament he hasn't won. Roche has worked with Federer part time for the past 2½ years. The Swiss star won six of his 10 major championships in that span.
Ana Ivanovic's right foot hurt so much she tried to hit winners and end the rallies quickly. After the match, she was still hobbling. Ivanovic, however, preferred to think of more pleasant things than her pain: The 19-year-old Serbian was the German Open champion after beating Svetlana Kuznetsova 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) Sunday and was headed for a top-10 ranking. Ivanovic's foot was taped during the second set against Kuznetsova, the 2004 U.S. Open champion, at this key French Open warmup. Ivanovic, who expects to play in Rome next week, didn't feel herself get injured.
SI Tennis
5542. wabbit - 5/14/2007 2:40:38 PM  Josh Beckett was forced to come out of the game. Jeremy Guthrie probably should have stayed in. Guthrie took a three-hit shutout into the ninth inning and came within two outs of his first complete game before Baltimore manager Sam Perlozzo pulled him, only to watch the Boston Red Sox score six runs and beat the Orioles 6-5 on Sunday. Guthrie was cruising, having retired eight straight, when catcher Ramon Hernandez dropped Coco Crisp's popup near the third-base line for an error. Boston then got four hits, three walks and a hit batter against Danys Baez and Ray (3-3). J.C. Romero (1-0) struck out two in 1 1-3 scoreless innings for the win.
Perhaps it was the pink bats - or a shuffled lineup, or the rookie on the mound for the other team. Torii Hunter and the Minnesota Twins weren't worried about the analysis. They were just happy to have some fun at the end of a rough week. Hunter homered twice and drove in a career-high seven runs, and the Twins ended a four-game losing streak with a 16-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Sunday night. Ruining Tigers emergency starter Virgil Vasquez 's major league debut and racking up season highs in runs, hits (22) and homers (four), Minnesota salvaged the last game of this series and finished 3-6 on its homestand. The Twins won for only the fourth time in their last 13 games.
Four days after being called up from Triple-A Fresno, Fred Lewis became the 22nd player in franchise history to hit for the cycle. He went 5-for-6 and drove in four runs, three on his first major league home run. He's just the fourth major leaguer in history to hit his first home run as part of a cycle, and the game was his 16th major league game and just his fourth start. He doubled in the first, and hit 1-0 pitch over the left-field wall in the fourth off right-hander Taylor Buchholz (1-2). He greeted reliever Tom Martin with a run-scoring triple in the fifth and sent a Denny Bautista fastball into right field for a single in the seventh that sparked a six-run inning.
MLB scores
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