NBA
SIXERS SNEAK UP ON PISTONS IN GAME 1
Sports teams react variously to the intangibles that face them. For the Philadelphia 76ers, going up against the second-seeded Detroit Pistons while carrying a losing record and the seventh seed can be daunting. The intangible of being the underdog or of being overlooked can be overcome by a hunger to win and an enthusiasm for the challenge.
On Sunday, the Sixers chose the intangibles of desire, courage, and enthusiasm to waltz out of the Palace of Auburn Hills with a first-round victory over the Pistons 90-86. While all of the other higher seeds were winning in the first game of the opening round, the Pistons could not handle the young, energetic Sixers.
Detroit marched off to a 51-38 lead at halftime, and it looked to be business as usual in playoff basketball, first-round style. But after the break, the Sixers shut down Detroit's offense and produced 52 second-half points of their own. The Pistons managed just 35 points after the intermission.
Andre Miller topped Philadelphia's scoring with 20 points while Willie Green had 17 and Andre Iguodala had 16.
Rasheed Wallace topped Detroit's scoring effort with 24.
The teams now will hang around the Detroit area for two days waiting for Game 2, which won't be played until Wednesday, again at the Palace.
NBA PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Eastern Conference
#1 Boston vs. #8 Atlanta
Game 1: Boson 105, Atlanta 81
Boston leads 1-0
Game 2: At Boston Wednesday
#2 Detroit vs. #7 Philadelphia
Game 1: Philadelphia 90, Detroit 86
Philadelphia leads 1-0
Game 2: At Detroit Wednesday
#3 Orlando vs. #6 Toronto
Game 1: Orlando 114, Toronto 100
Orlando leads 1-0
Game 2: At Orlando Tuesday
#4 Cleveland vs. #8 Washington
Game 1: Cleveland 93, Washington 86
Cleveland leads 1-0
Game 2: At Cleveland Monday
Western Conference
#1 LA Lakers vs. #8 Denver
Game 1: LA 128, Denver 114
LA leads 1-0
Game 2: At LA Wednesday
#2 New Orleans vs. #7 Dallas
Game 1: New Orleans 104, Dallas 92
New Orleans leads 1-0
Game 2: At New Orleans Tuesday
#3 San Antonio vs. #6 Phoenix
Game 1: San Antonio 117, Phoenix 115 (2 OT)
San Antonio leads 1-0
Game 2: At San Antonio Tuesday
#4 Utah vs. #5 Houston
Game 1: Utah 93, Houston 82
Utah leads 1-0
Game 3: At Utah Monday
MLB
JURJJENS STARS AS BRAVES SWEEP DODGERS
Atlanta Braves 22-year-old starter Jair Jurrjens pitched his team to a 6-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday to close out a three-game sweep.
Jurrjens (2-2) tossed seven strong innings-striking out a career-high eight-to beat the Dodgers. Blaine Boyer and Will Ohman each worked a scoreless inning in relief of Jurrjens.
Mark Teixeira and Kelly Johnson delivered key hits for Atlanta. Teixeira went 3-for-4 with a home run, and Johnson went 2-for-4 with three runs scored and a home run.
Hiroki Kuroda (1-2) took the loss for Los Angeles.
How good was Atlanta pitching in the series? Los Angeles scored a meager three runs in the series.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Florida 6, Washington 1
Houston 6, Colorado 4
San Francisco 8, St. Louis 2
Chicago Cubs 13, Pittsburgh 6
San Diego 9, Arizona 4
Philadelphia 5, New York Mets 4
Cincinnati 4, Milwaukee 3 - 10 innings
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Seattle 4, Los Angeles Angels 2
Toronto 5, Detroit 3
Chicago White Sox 6, Tampa Bay 0
Boston 6, Texas 5
New York Yankees 7, Baltimore 1
Oakland 7, Kansas City 1
Minnesota 2, Cleveland 1 - 10 innings
NHL
STARS BEAT DUCKS, MOVE INTO SECOND ROUND
The Ducks are done. One season after winning the Stanley Cup, the Anaheim Ducks have been eliminated in Round 1 of the 2008 playoffs by the Dallas Stars.
The Stars used a fourth-quarter barrage of goals to send the Ducks off to an early end to their season.
After Corey Perry scored for the visiting Ducks at 2:11 of the first period, he and his teammates made that lead stand up for quite a while.
But after the second intermission, the Stars shone. First, Stephane Robidas scored at 1:18 of the third to tie the game. Less than a minute later, Dallas led 2-1 after Stu Barnes score. Then Loui Eriksson at 17:42-and then the coup de grace-an appropriate gesture, it seemed-Mike Modano scored with four seconds left.
With the win, the Stars won their first series in five seasons, and Modano, who for most hockey fans represents Dallas, had a goal.
OTHER PLAYOFF SCORES
Detroit 3, Nashville 0
Detroit wins series 4-2
Calgary 2, San Jose 0
Series tied at 3-3
SPORTS SPECTRUM INSIDER
Getting to the heart of what matters in life
TODAY'S FEATURE:
LORENA OCHOA, LPGA golfer
BIO NOTE: Ochoa is from Mexico, where she spends her offseasons with her family.
RECENT NEWS: On Sunday, Ochoa won her fourth straight LPGA tournament by winning the Ginn Open in Reunion, Florida. She has been the LPGA's top player for two straight seasons, and this one seems to be no different.
FAITH QUOTE: "The Bible study is the best thing that ever happened to me. It is too hard without God, but here you have friends who worry about you and pray for you. You can talk and share with your friends, and that is very valuable to me."
-Sports Spectrum magazine
MINI MEMOS
Putting the SS spin on today's sports news
Motor Sports
TEARS AND CHEERS FOR PATRICK
Danica Patrick finally got the checkered flag. Then she cried. And why not? Patrick became the first woman to win a top Indy car victory when she crossed the finish line first at the Japan Indy 300 in Motegi, Japan, on Sunday. The Indy Racing League needs this kind of star-power news as it tries to reinvent itself following years of battle with a rival series (over now) and the defection of some of its top drivers to NASCAR. With Patrick's win, she now sheds the constant wondering about her ability to finish first, and her popularity-and along with it that of the IRL-will increase.
MLB
TWO VETS GET HEAVE-HO
Good-bye, Frank Thomas. So long, Hideo Nomo. Both veteran major leaguers were let go on Sunday-one perhaps to play again, the other, not so much. The Toronto Blue Jays tired of waiting for the notoriously slow-starting Thomas to get going-and a heated argument between Thomas and manager John Gibbons didn't help matters. Now the Jays have to pay Thomas $7 million not to play for them, and he may hook up with another AL team that needs a DH. Meanwhile the KC Royals designated Nomo for assignment on Sunday. Nomo, 39, had been ineffective in the early going for the Royals. Nomo first pitched in the majors in 1995 but did not pitch in the majors in 2007.
MLB
LIKE FATHER . . .
Maybe Hank Steinbrenner would like to do more than be co-chairman of the NY Yankees. Maybe, he'd like to be the manager. He has no trouble criticizing the one he has. Speaking about whether Joba Chamberlain should be used in the bullpen or as a starter, George's son came pretty close to calling Joe Girardi an idiot. He said, "You don't have a guy with a 100-mile-per-hour fastball and keep him as a setup guy. . . . You have to be an idiot to do that." Wonder how long it will be until Chamberlain is in the starting rotation-which may or may not be such a great idea at this stage in Chamberlain's career.
THIS JUST IN
Notes of significance from the Christian sports community
New Book: Time Out
By Stephanie Zonars
Campus Crusade for Christ has just published a new book by Athletes in Action coach Stephanie Zonars.
For Time Out, Zonars took lessons from her 17 years of experience training athletes spiritually and physically and turned them into a series of devotional articles for the person who loves sports and wants to grown in Jesus Christ.
Each devotional article is based on a Scripture passage and is followed up with some thought questions for application and further consideration. Find out more about Time Out at www.lifebeyondsport.com
