Shawn Long led the 76ers (2-4) with 18 points and 10 rebounds

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. -- Chris Buescher is a giant step closer to qualifying for the Chase for the Sprint Cup after notching a victory at Pocono. Now, he has to take that small step -- make it into the top 30 in points, the cutoff needed to become eligible for NASCARs postseason.I absolutely think we can get into the top 30, the rookie said Friday before practice on the road course at Watkins Glen. We really shouldnt have been out of it.Buescher emerged from the fog at Pocono on Monday to become the surprising winner in a shortened Cup race, compliments of a race strategy call by Bob Osborne, veteran crew chief of the No. 34 for Front Row Motorsports. Bueschers best finish this season before his breakthrough victory had been 14th.Osborne took a gamble and kept Buescher on track while others made pit stops with 28 laps left. Once the cars were halted because of the weather, the fog and rain settled in and Buescher was declared the winner. The victory left him 31st in the points standings, six points behind David Ragan for 30th as the teams prepare for Sundays Cheez-It 355 at The Glen.Ragan was the driver who won Front Rows first race, at Talladega in May 2013, 118 races ago. Ragan also helped Buescher get his career off the ground by setting him up with living arrangements, signing him to his Legends car team as a development driver, and connecting him with Roush Fenway Racing.The irony of the moment is not lost on Buescher.Its funny for me, he said. David Ragan has been a huge help for me my entire career. His whole family has. Weve got to pass him now, try to outrun him. Its not going to just be him. Theres going to be a handful of them that were going to have to outrun. It just so happens that one of them is the guy that mentored me through a lot of the early stages of my stock car career.The 23-year-old Buescher is the first Cup rookie to win a race since Joey Logano at New Hampshire in 2009, and his first NASCAR victory came on a road course -- at Mid-Ohio in 2014 in the second-tier Xfinity Series.Buescher posted two Xfinity victories last season and won the series title. Hes spending his rookie season in Cup as basically the fourth driver for Roush Fenway Racing because of a shared technical alliance between the organizations. Osborne said that relationship would give his shop everything it needs in the coming weeks as the team seeks a Chase spot.I dont see anything to hold him back from getting into the top 30, said Ragan, who drives the No. 23 Toyota for BK Racing. Im certainly going to race hard. I dont want him to get there at my expense, but hes had speed of late. If he just had a little luck.With five races remaining before the Chase begins, 10 drivers have clinched spots in the 16-driver field: Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin, Logano, and Martin Truex Jr. With one win, Tony Stewart also has all but claimed one of the remaining spots.That Buescher is ready to join them is not a surprise back at the shop. The surprise is that he isnt in yet, and thats mainly because of bad luck. Hes finished 30th or worse 10 times this season, including the first three restrictor plate races.It was our goal at the beginning of the season, said Buescher, who spent a day and a half this week in Utah honing his road course skills. Were in really good shape. The last seven, eight weeks weve been unloading with a lot better speed, running better in the race. After this weekend, were going to a lot of places for the second time. Weve got a good notebook. We feel like we have good chemistry where we can pick up speed in the next five races.Still, it promises to be full of intrigue, starting with newly paved Watkins Glen International, where strategy and fuel mileage often come into play in a race that covers just 220.5 miles. Buescher was 23rd fastest in final Cup practice Friday.Im really happy for Bob, really happy for Chris, said Carl Edwards, who worked with Osborne at Roush. Bob and I talked a while back and Bob made a specific point. He said, `Chris is so good, people dont realize how good this kid is. Hopefully, they can get things rolling and get in the points and maybe put something together for the end of the year. Zach Parise Jersey .05 million next season unless Graham and the Saints subsequently agree on a long-term deal. The designation was released Monday after the deadline passed for NFL teams to use franchise or transition tags on players becoming free agents. Alex Stalock Jersey . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. http://www.authenticwildpro.com/Greg-pateryn-wild-jersey/ . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. Luke Kunin Jersey . 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. Jason Zucker Jersey . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. A look at the eight consolation games Friday in the Las Vegas Summer League:76ERS 74, HEAT 66No. 1 pick Ben Simmons returned for his final summer game and had 15 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.Simmons had sat out the last two games. Shawn Long led the 76ers (2-4) with 18 points and 10 rebounds.The Heat rested Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and most of their top players again in finishing 3-3.SPURS 90, KINGS 86, OTDejounte Murray scored 20 points as the Spurs erased a double-digit in the fourth quarter of its final game.Recently signed Davis Bertans and Bryn Forbes each added 15 points as San Antonio finished 3-2 after winning the championship last year under coach Becky Hammon.Rookie Skal Labissiere, taken with the No. 28 pick and dealt to Sacramento, scored 19 points. The Kings finished 0-5.TRAIL BLAZERS 80, CELTICS 75Pat Connaughton scored 23 points and Pierre Jackson chipped in 20 points and eight assists for the Trail Blazers.Portland finished 2-3.Jaylen Brown, the No. 3 pick, finished his summer with 21 points and seven reboundss.dddddddddddd Boston went 1-4.ROCKETS 92, BUCKS 89Montrezl Harrell had 20 points and eight rebounds, Sam Dekker added 17 points and eight boards, and the Rockets finished up their summer by holding off Milwaukee.K.J. McDaniels scored 15 points for Houston, which shot 52 percent and finished 2/3 as it prepares for its first season under Mike DAntoni.D-LEAGUE SELECT 88, PELICANS 76Quinn Cook scored 19 points as the NBA D-League Select Team finished with a 3-2 record in Las Vegas.Buddy Hield was 1 for 7 from 3-point range and 5 for 18 overall as the Pelicans blew a 10-point halftime lead and finished 1-4. Cheick Diallo had 12 points and 10 rebounds.HAWKS 89, GRIZZLIES 79Bryce Cotton scored 18 points and Brandon Ashley had 17 for the Hawks.Edy Tavares finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds to help Atlanta leave Las Vegas with a 4-2 mark.Vince Hunter scored 18 points to pace Memphis (2-3) and Levi Randolph had 16. ' ' '