Kansas State to an?84-53 win over Saint Louis on Saturday.The Wildcats won their second in a row

WASHINGTON -- Ivo Karlovics big serve carried him to a second consecutive final at age 37, earning a 6-4, 6-4 victory over fifth-seeded American Steve Johnson at the Citi Open on Saturday.The 6-foot-11 Karlovic, a Croatian seeded 13th at the hard-court tournament, saved all five break points he faced in the semifinals. He has won all 43 of his service games this week.This is my game. This is my strength, Karlovic said in an on-court interview. I will never run like he does.He broke Johnson in the third game of each set, each time right after saving break points on his own serve.Its definitely frustrating when you have chances, you dont take them, and you lose your focus for a second and you lose serve, said Johnson, who eliminated top-seeded John Isner in the quarterfinals. And thats the margin when you play a guy (like) Ivo, (who) pretty much only has a serve.Karlovic will face No. 2-seeded Gael Monfils of France or No. 7 Alexander Zverev of Germany in Sundays final.Last week, at the grass-court tournament in Newport, Rhode Island, Karlovic became the oldest man since 1979 to win an ATP singles title.I believe its (because of) hard work and also because I didnt begin very young, said Karlovic, who was 21 when he turned pro. Im not as used up as my age would suggest.This has been something of a resurgence for the man whose biggest victory was a first-round upset of defending champion Lleyton Hewitt at Wimbledon in 2003. Since losing his first six matches of 2016, Karlovic has gone 16-7.Much of his success is based on his serve, which comes at opponents from way up high and gets quite a bounce on Washingtons hard courts, especially in the July heat.In the 25 years that ATP service stats cover, Karlovic leads the tour with more than 11,000 career aces and by winning 92 percent of his service games. He began Saturday averaging 22 aces per match at the Citi Open and finished the semifinal with 14, including a pair on the last two points at 134 mph and 132 mph.Johnson serves well, too, and he came into the semifinal having held in all 32 of his service games in the tournament, saving 7 of 7 break points.Those streaks did not last long against Karlovic, who isnt necessarily known for his prowess as a returner.In Johnsons second service game, less than 15 minutes into the match, he missed a shot at deuce to hand over a break point and angrily smacked a ball into the stands. Then, with both men at the net, Karlovic lunged for a backhand volley winner to go up 2-1.A game earlier, Karlovics first on serve, represented perhaps Johnsons best chance to steal a break.Struggling to see the ball on his toss because of a bright sun that brought the temperature near 100 degrees, Karlovic double-faulted three times, helping create two break points. But Karlovic erased the first with a 130 mph service winner, then came up with this sequence after the second: 130 mph ace, 128 mph service winner, 109 mph service winner.Similarly, in the second set, Karlovic broke right after saving a break point created by a double-fault. This time, Karlovic went up 2-1 by delivering a cross-court forehand return winner, followed by a down-the-line backhand return winner.When Johnson held a pair of break points at 15-40 in the next game, Karlovic responded by hitting three consecutive aces, then a service winner to hold for 3-1. And he was on his way.After the match, Johnson took to Twitter to respond to some of the meaner messages he received about his loss. Among Johnsons choice phrases: Learn English so we know what you are trying to say and you are an idiot.Asked at his news conference about the exchanges, Johnson said he doesnt take it seriously, whatsoever and considers those sending pointed messages his way useless human beings. Cheap Nike Zoom Shoes . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. Nike Zoom Womens Australia .C. Lions has come to an end. Banks told TSN on Jan 2 that he had no interest in playing out the option year of his contract with the Lions in 2014, and he again made that clear in a conversation with Lions GM Wally Buono last week. http://www.wholesalenikezoomaustralia.com/ . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Cheap Nike Zoom Australia . In the lead up - which seemed to begin the moment Mike Geiger blew the whistle in Houston last Thursday night - the Impact rumour mill went into overdrive. The speculation went into meltdown mode, of the golden nugget variety. Nike Zoom Wholesale . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. ST. LOUIS -- D.J. Johnson scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Xavier Sneed added 15 points to lead Kansas State to an?84-53 win over Saint Louis on Saturday.The Wildcats won their second in a row following a 69-68 loss to Maryland on Nov. 26. Saint Louis now has lost four in a row.Johnson dominated inside, hitting his first 10 shots from the field on the way to a 10-for-11 effort. Johnson?had?four of the Wildcats nine?dunks.Jermaine Bishop led Saint Louis (2-5) with 11 points.Kansas State (2-1) used a 23-9 run over the final 11 minutes?of the?first half to break the game open. The Wildcats jumped out to a 13-5 lead on?back-to-backk baskets by Johnson.dddddddddddd Sneed sank a pair of 3-pointers midway through the half to push the lead to?18-10.Dean Wade added?13 points for Kansas State.BIG PICTURE:Kansas State: The Wildcats have scored 80 or more points in five of seven wins.Saint Louis: Billikens coach Travis Ford, who coached at Oklahoma State, is 7-10 lifetime against Kansas State.UP NEXT:Kansas State: The Wildcats return home to host Prairie View A&M on Tuesday.Saint Louis: The Billikens hit the road to face Wichita State on Tuesday. ' ' '