Einsteigerforum » st. Anthony Duclair opened the scoring for Quebec

The San Antonio Spurs, the model for stability and sustained success in the modern NBA, were still a shaken team when they showed up for training camp in October, less than four months after a devastating loss to Miami in the NBA Finals. Some coaches would try to brush off the disappointment of letting a title slip through their fingers and refuse to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Gregg Popovich took it head on, embraced the heartache, and in a career full of masterful coaching performances, delivered perhaps his finest effort in season No. 18. "The way we lost in the finals wasnt an ordinary loss, it was pretty devastating," Popovich said on Tuesday after being named NBA coach of the year. "We decided that we needed to just face that right off the bat at the beginning of the season and get it out of the way. Dont blame it on the basketball gods or bad fortune or anything like that, the Miami Heat beat us and won the championship and thats that." Popovich joined Don Nelson and Pat Riley as the only coaches in league history to take home the Red Auerbach trophy three times in their career. "Theyre on the hood of my car," Popovich cracked. "One, two, three, right on the car, the way players do license plates. ... Ive got three of those right on the hood." Hes never liked the attention, never bought into the proclamations of his genius. When the accolades come his way, Popovich is quick to deflect them, giving the credit to his players, his assistant coaches, owner Peter Holt and general manager R.C. Buford. The humility in his voice on Tuesday was genuine, the challenge of putting the pieces back together after last seasons finish as daunting as ever. They showed up to training camp still stinging from that defeat, and Popovich had to get to know a new-look coaching staff after losing longtime assistants Brett Brown and Mike Budenholzer to head coaching jobs in Philadelphia and Atlanta. Then he led the Spurs to a league-best 62-20 record, which gives them home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. And he did it while deftly navigating a season filled with nagging injuries to several key players. Tim Duncan was the only starter to play in at least 70 games. No Spur averaged 30 minutes per game and Tony Parker led the team with a modest 16.7 points per game. Despite all of that, the Spurs won at least 50 games for the 15th straight season and topped 60 for the fourth time in that span. "Day after day, year after year, the energy that Pop provides our organization is truly unique," Buford said. The Spurs lead the Dallas Mavericks 1-0 in their best-of-seven series, with Game 2 on Wednesday night in San Antonio. "Hes a gentleman," Spurs swingman Marco Belinelli said. "Everybody knows that hes the best coach in the league. So to say that is not really important. But maybe some people, they dont know hes really a great guy, a great gentleman. He really helps guys, helps each other. He wants to help everybody. Great person." When Miami topped San Antonio in that classic seven-game series, Popovichs reaction resonated deeply within some members of the Heat organization. Instead of showing his disappointment at the final buzzer, Popovich lingered on the court for a few minutes, sharing heartfelt embraces and words with Erik Spoelstra, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, among others -- even smiling as he chatted with them and congratulated them on winning the title. And when told of Popovichs award Tuesday, James offered high praise to the Spurs coach. "Not surprised," James said. "Its well-awarded. I have the utmost respect for Gregg Popovich, man. Not only what hes been able to do for that team, but him just being able to always keep those guys motivated and always keep their best interests. ... From the outside looking in, it seems that he has their best interests and all he cares about is the teams success and nothing else matters. Thats big-time." Behind all his press conference bluster and the orneriness he directs toward the officials, there is a softer side that endears Popovich to those around him. That much was revealed during Game 1 against the Mavericks when he was interviewed by Craig Sager Jr., who was filling in for his father, a longtime sideline reporter who is being treated for leukemia. Popovichs curt demeanour and one-word answers to the elder Sagers questions have become appointment viewing, but this time the coach stopped in the middle of tense game, stared right into the camera and delivered a heart-felt message. "We miss you. Youve been an important part of all of us for a long time, doing a great job," he said. "We want your fanny back on the court, and I promise Ill be nice." Popovich garnered 59 first-place votes and 380 total points in voting conducted by a panel of media members. Phoenixs Jeff Hornacek (37 first-place votes) finished second and Chicagos Tom Thibodeau (12) finished third in the voting, with Charlottes Steve Clifford and Torontos Dwane Casey rounding out the top five in a season so strong that Spoelstra did not make the top 10. wholesale nfl jerseys . Following the Ford Womens World Curling Championship gold medal match that attracted record-breaking audiences to TSN, the networks exclusive live coverage of the tournament begins Saturday at 7am et/4am pt with Canadas opening draw against Denmark. china jerseys cheap . - Chris Davis hit a two-run double, scoring Nelson Cruz in his Orioles debut in Baltimores 9-7 win over to the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. http://www.chinajerseyscheapwholesale.com/ . Pospisil, from Vancouver, and Sock will compete for the title against defending champions and top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States, who defeated the 12th-seeded French duo of Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-2. china jerseys nfl . 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. china jerseys authentic . The judge sternly instructed the prosecutor to restrain himself and he apologized -- then went right back to trying to pick holes in the testimony of the double-amputee runner. It was a harsh day of cross-examination for Pistorius, challenged relentlessly about his account of the moments just before he killed Reeva Steenkamp, as well as circumstances related to several firearms charges against him, including the firing of a gun in a crowded restaurant.VAL-DOR, Que. -- Anthony Mantha scored twice and added three assists as the Val-dOr Foreurs downed the visiting Drummondville Voltigeurs 6-4 on Friday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. The 19-year-old has produced 14 points in his last four outings, including two five-point performances. He leads the QMJHL in scoring with 13 goals and 23 points in eight contests. Samuel Henley had a goal and an assist for the Foreurs (6-4-0) while Guillaume Gelinas and Maxime Presseault each scored once. Guillaume Gauthier led the Voltigeurs (6-5-0) offensively with a goal and two assists as Christophe Lalancette, Charles-David Beaudoin and Jerome Verrier had a goal and an assist apiece. Francois Tremblay made 18 saves for the win as Louis-Philip Guindon stopped 25-of-31 shots in defeat. Four goals in two minutes had the game tied 2-2 less than halfway into the first period, but Mantha put Val-dOr ahead at 15:20. Mantha made it 4-2 for the Voltigeurs at 11:13 of the second period, but Beaudoin brought the Voltigeurs within a goal after scoring at 19:43. Lalancette tied the game 2:09 into the third period, but Henley responded four minutes later to make it 5-4 Val-dOr. Richard added another for the Foreurs in the final minute of the game to put it out of reach. Both clubs had success with its power play as Val-dOr went 2-for-3 while Drummondville scored four times on seven opportunities with the man advantage. --- Screaming Eagles 3 Islanders 2 CHARLOTTETOWN, -- Timothe Simard scored the winner at 12:40 of the third period as Cape Breton squeezed past the Islanders. Kyle Farrell had a goal and an assist for the Screaming Eagles (5-3-2) while Julien Pelletier scored the other. Kameron Kielly and Yan Pavel Laplante supplied the offence for Charlottetown (7-2-1). Alex Bureau made 29 saves for the win as Antoine Bibeau stopped 35-of-38 shots in defeat.dddddddddddd --- Armada 4 Mooseheads 3 HALIFAX, -- Frederic Bergeron scored once and set up two more as Blainville-Boisbriand edged the Mooseheads. Philippe Sanche, Samuel Tremblay and Marcus Hinds also scored for the Armada (10-0-0), which remain the only undefeated club in the QMJHL. Andrew Ryan, Ryan Falkenham and Luca Ciampini had a goal apiece for Halifax (6-6-0). Etienne Marcoux made 24 saves for the win. Zachary Fucale allowed four goals on 24 shots, picking up the loss. --- Remparts 3 Titan 0 QUEBEC CITY, -- Francois Brassard turned aside all 21 shots he faced as the Remparts blanked Acadie-Bathurst. Anthony Duclair opened the scoring for Quebec (3-5-3) with a short-handed goal and Fabrice Herzog and Adam Erne followed with power-play goals. Jacob Brennan stopped 40-of-43 shots in defeat for the Titan (4-6-1). --- Huskies 4 Phoenix 1 ROUYN-NORANDA, Que., -- Marcus Power and Quinn OBrien scored 2:06 apart early in the second period to put the Huskies ahead, en route to a victory over Sherbrooke. Alexandre Leclerc and Maxime St-Cyr also scored for Rouyn-Noranda (5-3-2). Jean-Francois Plante had the lone goal for the Phoenix (3-7-1). Alexandre Belanger only had to make 15 saves for the win while Francis Desrosiers stopped 24-of-27 shots in a losing effort. --- Tigres 3 Cataractes 0 SHAWINIGAN, Que., -- Brandon Whitney stopped 31 shots as Victoriaville blanked the Cataractes. Angelo Miceli led the Tigres (8-3-1) offensively with a goal and an assist while Gabriel Gagne and Ross Johnston each scored once. Marvin Cupper turned away 33-of-35 shots in defeat for Shawinigan (0-8-2), which remains the only club in the league without a victory. ' ' '