Clan-Members » well," he said. "I just knew I had to ge

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- On Selection Sunday last March, two of the biggest story lines involved the Syracuse Orange (in) and the Monmouth Hawks (out).Syracuse, a middle-of-the-pack Atlantic Coast Conference team, justified the NCAA Tournament selection committees decision to make the Orange a No. 10 seed by reaching the Final Four.Monmouth, meanwhile, received a No. 1 seed in the National Invitation Tournament and is back to the drawing board this season as the Hawks seek their first NCAA Tournament bid since 2006.In an early-season matchup that recalls the committees controversial decision, Monmouth (1-1) will visit 18th-ranked Syracuse (2-0) on Friday night in a Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational game at the Carrier Dome. The five-team, round-robin tournament also includes South Carolina, South Carolina State and Holy Cross.Syracuse thumped Holy Cross 90-46 Tuesday at the Dome after routing Colgate 83-55 to open the season.After defeating Drexel 78-65 in its opener Nov. 11, Monmouth overcame an 18-point deficit against South Carolina to send the game into overtime Tuesday before losing 70-69 on a buzzer-beater.Last season, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular-season champ Hawks became a mid-major media darling by playing 17 road games and 23 games away from home and beating Power Five teams Notre Dame, USC, Georgetown, UCLA and Rutgers. Ultimately, the selection committee couldnt ignore Monmouths eye-popping losses to Canisius, Army and Manhattan.Led by reigning MAAC Player of the Year Justin Robinson, Monmouth was selected to finish first in the MAAC this season in a poll of the leagues coaches.Against South Carolina, the Hawks trailed 40-22 before mounting a 27-8 run to briefly take the lead. In overtime, the Gamecocks Duane Notice blocked Robinsons layup with eight seconds left, and PJ Doziers 15-footer at the buzzer won it for South Carolina.We were in the right place, they got a lucky shot, Monmouth coach King Rice said immediately after the game. All you have to do is watch (South Carolinas) reaction. They knew they were in a big-time fight. Their kids are tired, they all hugged me and said, Man, coach, your guys. Whoo!While they struggled offensively for three-quarters of the game, the Hawks stayed close by making 23 of 27 foul shots and holding South Carolina to 33.8 percent shooting from the floor. Senior center Chris Brady recorded the second double-double of his career with 17 points and 10 rebounds.The Orange steamrolled Holy Cross behind a 13-for-25 shooting effort from 3-point range. Fifth-year graduate senior transfer Andrew White sank all four of his shots from beyond the arc and led Syracuse with 19 points.The Syracuse offense is directed by point guards Frank Howard and John Gillon, who have combined for 46 points, 27 assists and just five turnovers in two games.There is no answer if we are all hitting jumpers. and when you go to man-(to-man) you will get beaten that way, too, said Gillon, a fifth-year graduate senior transfer from Colorado State. With our depth, our smarts and our athleticism, it is really hard to stop us.Cheap Football Jerseys . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. Cheap NFL Jerseys . Los Angeles star goalie survived those perilous gymnastics with no problem, and he eventually backstopped the Kings to a skid-snapping win. Quick stopped 27 shots in his return from a 24-game injury absence, Jeff Carter scored the tiebreaking goal with 7:55 to play, and the Kings snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night. https://www.cheapnfljerseysjustwholesale.com/ . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Cheap College Jerseys . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . As the crowd erupted, Davis knocked the ball off the glass and back into his hands. With 1:14 to go in overtime, Davis sixth block also became his 17th rebound. That, along with his 32 points -- which tied a career high -- proved too much for Denver to overcome, and the Pelicans held on for their third straight victory, 111-107 on Sunday night. CROMWELL, Conn. -- Charley Hoffman couldnt help but think about last year as he stood on the 17th tee Thursday at the Travelers Championship. A year ago, Hoffman hit a similar tee shot right and into the water, staring at a double-bogey, bogey slide on the final two holes of the tournament in which he lost a two-stroke lead and eventually the title. This time, his drive stayed on the fairway. He finished with a par and then a birdie to complete a first-round 61, one shot off the course record. "Believe it or not, I was thinking about it going down 16, 17, 18," he said. "If I could have just gotten those balls in play, I would have been defending champion here. But this year, I got off to a good start and obviously a little more focused on those last two holes. Hopefully Im there again this year." His 28 on the back nine was the lowest nine holes on the PGA Tour this year, and puts him one shot up on Hunter Mahan, who posted an early 62. Bubba Watson was two strokes back. Hoffman said he thought he might have a chance to go even lower, and was flirting with 59 after making eagle on 10 and 12, and going to 8-under par with a birdie on 16. "I knew I had some chances coming in," he said. "But when its said and done, as I displayed last year, 16, 17 and 18 arent an easy test. So I was just trying to make some pars coming in." Hoffman, Mahan and Watson all have interesting histories in Connecticut. Mahan is the 2007 champion and has two second-place finishes in his 11 previous starts at the TPC River Highlands. "I think this is the most comfortable course on Tour for me," he said. He is also coming off a fourth-place finish after being in the final pair at the U.S. Open, something he said has him playing with confidence. He opened the day by making the first of eight birdies during a bogey-free round. He was also at 8-under with three holes to play before shooting par on the final three holes. "This is a golf course where you can be aggressive off the tee if you want to be, but you can also play it safe," he said.dddddddddddd "I choose to be mostly aggressive, and it gives me some short irons. Im happy to take on pins with my short irons. So its a combo of things, but all I know is when I step on that tee, I feel like I can hit any shot out here." Watson finds himself in contention again after winning in 2010 and tying Hoffman as the runner-up a year ago. He said there is a reason so many familiar names are at the top of the leaderboard. "These are guys that love this course, that love this tournament, they love Travelers and how theyve treated us here," he said. "And so, youre always going to see pretty much some of the same guys up there because they enjoy this area and this golf course." Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., is in a group of six golfers four strokes back at 65. Calgarys Stephen Ames, Ottawas Brad Fritsch both opened with an even-par 70. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., shot a 74. The biggest ovation of the day came when Justin Rose was introduced on the first tee as the U.S. Open champion. Rose went on to shoot a 67, leaving him in good shape heading into Friday. "Obviously, Im playing well," he said. "I just knew I had to get through today without too much damage. If you manage to keep it in the mid-60s for most of the week, you should do pretty well." Rose also announced that he is changing management companies, leaving British-based 4Sports & Entertainment for Excel Sports, the same company that represents Tiger Woods. "I just felt with me playing so much here in the States and where I felt my game was going, I just felt it was a decision I wanted to make," he said. The round marked the pro debut of Chris Williams, the top-ranked amateur in the world the past season. The former University of Washington star shot a 1-over 71, with two bogies and a single birdie. "The first tee, I was a little nervous," he said. "But then it was the same old, same old. I didnt play very well, so that was pretty frustrating, but I got it out of the way." ' ' '