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Brooklyn Nets’ James Harden receives blended response from fans in return to Houston Rockets

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Toyota Center public address announcer Matt Thomas endeavored to utilize a similar tone and fervor Wednesday night when James Harden’s turn came up in the beginning arrangement presentations as he did all through the past eight seasons.

The conditions, obviously, were very extraordinary. So was the response from Houston Rockets fans, who welcomed Harden with a combination of cheers and boos as the 2017-18 MVP got back to confront his previous group interestingly since his solicitation to be exchanged to the Brooklyn Nets was conceded seven weeks prior.

“As far as playing in Houston, a lot of mixed emotions for the fans, but I knew that was going to happen,” Harden said. “I just wanted to come out here and give them a show.”

Harden prevailing with such a breathtaking execution that has been practically standard for him since he joined the Nets. He had 29 focuses, 10 bounce back and 14 helps to lead Brooklyn to a 132-114 success over the injury-attacked Rockets, his eighth triple-twofold in 23 games for the Nets, who enter the All-Star break having won 10 of their previous 11 games.

It was the 13th straight loss for the Rockets, who were restricted to eight accessible players as the establishment’s longest losing streak in twenty years was reached out into the All-Star break.

“The way we’ve been losing, we definitely do need a break to clear our minds, find ourselves, try to get some guys healthy, try to get a full team again,” said Rockets point guard John Wall, who scored 36 points on 12-of-30 shooting in 41 minutes. “I don’t know when the last time we had a full team. Tonight we went in with only eight guys, but we didn’t stop fighting. We kept competing, we kept battling, and that’s one thing you can respect.”

A smattering of fans in the decreased limit swarm booed Harden each time he contacted the ball right off the bat in the game, communicating their disappointment of Harden’s driving the Rockets to exchange him, a separation cycle he has recognized turned out to be more tense and harsh than he would have preferred. Solidify, who as per Elias Sports Bureau research turned into the 6th player to post a triple-twofold in his first game against his previous group, said the boos didn’t affect him.

“Once I get on that court, it’s just trying to win,” said Harden, who was 10-of-15 from the floor. “I’m not really worried about anything else. That was kind of my feeling — win the game and do whatever it takes to do what you’ve been doing. I wasn’t trying to show off, wasn’t trying to do anything out of the ordinary that I haven’t been doing.”

The Rockets as an association gave Harden a warm greeting back to Houston. He talked with and embraced a few Houston staff members and players when the game. A recognition video, including features from Harden’s eight seasons in Houston and his beneficent demonstrations locally, played during the first break of the game.

“You could tell it meant something to him,” Nets coach Steve Nash said. “This place is special for James. Houston means a lot to him — the city, the organization, what he accomplished here with this team. I know it was a big game for him. I’m proud of the way he handled it.”

Harden said he learned “on the Internet” on Tuesday that Rockets proprietor Tilman Fertitta plans to in the long run resign Harden’s No. 13 pullover and drape it in the Toyota Center rafters.

“My reaction was hopefully I did something right. Obviously, I came up short of a championship, but the work on and off the court that [I] put in over those past eight years was elite,” he said. “I think that’s the only thing I didn’t do or didn’t accomplish, was a championship, which is difficult to attain. But as far as bringing excitement to this city, taking care of the fans on and off the court, is something I tried to contribute, so hopefully that outweighs that [lack of a championship].”

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Some ‘telekinesis’ helps the Utah Jazz defeat the Mavericks 115-113 for their first home victory

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To be honest, after the 3-pointer he had just made, that was the only suitable reaction. Clarkson almost double-dribbled, almost ran out of time, and then almost committed a backcourt violation. His shaky running 3-pointer from the wing instead went in.

At the end, he could have done the same.

To be honest, after the 3-pointer he had just made, that was the only suitable reaction. Clarkson almost double-dribbled, almost ran out of time, and then almost committed a backcourt violation. His shaky running 3-pointer from the wing instead went in.

After catching Dallas in a preswitch, Clarkson zipped a pass under the rim to a wide-open John Collins. With 6.4 seconds left, he made an uncontested two-handed slam that proved to be the game-winning basket as Utah defeated the Mavericks 115-113.

During that last possession, Luka Doncic was on Collins down low. Doncic had his sights set on the corner, and Quentin Grimes started to cheat up the wing to meet Collins, who seemed to be expecting him to run up to set a pick for Clarkson.

The issue? He was left alone in the most hazardous area of the court when Collins chose not to go up.

“I’m just happy me and John had some, like, telekinesis action going on,” Clarkson stated. “I mean, he just read my eyes and knew what I was looking for.”

“Me and JC were just like looking at each other: ‘You gonna be open?'” Collins grinned as he spoke. “You can see JC saying (with his eyes), ‘No stay, Here you go.’ And it was just like a great play that shows our chemistry. We always had a JC-to-JC connection. JC made a great read, finished the play, and we finally got a home win.”

Collins completed a 28-point evening with the final dunk, maintaining his impressive recent play.

After it appeared that the home team was losing the game, he scored Utah’s final two baskets. Utah led by 16 points early in the fourth quarter after a solid third quarter, which has been unusual for the Jazz this season. Doncic then guided Dallas to victory.

The Dallas star finished the game with nine assists and 37 points. With 1:33 left, he helped Derrick Lively, giving the Mavericks a two-point advantage.

At that moment, Utah appeared to have no answer for a Mavericks team on the rise and was without Lauri Markkanen, who was hurt in the eye and missed the end of the game.

Collins and Clarkson supplied one.

“JC and John were unbelievable down the stretch,” Hardy stated. “Their poise really stood out. JC, made big plays. John made big plays all night. His energy is infectious for us.”

Clarkson finished a 3-point play on the other end after he was knocked down by a bucket. Then, with 36.7 seconds left, Collins dunk after rebounding a rejected Clarkson jumper to put Utah ahead 3 points.

Klay Thompson’s wing three to tie the game only served to set up the last play by Clarkson and Collins.

“They got confused on whether they were switching or not—sort of two guys went back out towards the corner and JC threw him a dart,” Hardy recalled. “But that’s JC and John understanding the moment together.”

Collin Sexton ended with 16 points and five rebounds, while Clarkson finished with 20 points and four assists. Kyle Filipowski scored 11 of his 14 points in a dominant second quarter, and Lauri Markkanen added 14 points before he left.

Six of the Jazz’s players were in double figures.

“Tonight’s not about like the X’s and O’s piece, the tactical piece. It was about the mental and the physical toughness the team showed throughout and really stuck with it against a good team tonight. That’s what we’re looking for,” Hardy stated.

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Dodgers Unveil Plans for Friday Parade and Stadium Celebration

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The Dodgers announced Wednesday night that they would celebrate their World Series victory on Friday with a parade in Downtown Los Angeles and a special ticketed event at Dodger Stadium. The full broadcast of both tournaments will be available on AM 570, local television stations, and Spectrum SportsNet LA. Fans will not be able to attend both events due to scheduling conflicts, transportation, and logistical issues.

The parade will start at Gloria Molina Grand Park on Spring Street in front of City Hall at 11 a.m. PT. The procession will begin with an official kickoff by Mayor Karen Bass and go for 45 minutes from 1st Street to Grand Avenue to 5th Street, ending at the corner of 5th and Flower Street. Dodgers players will ride double-decker buses during the parade. Due to extensive street closures and a shortage of public parking, those who desire to join the parade are strongly recommended to use public transportation.

At around 12:15 p.m., a special ticketed event at Dodger Stadium will start after the procession. The stadium’s entrance gates will open at 9 a.m., and parking gates for attendees will open at 8:30 a.m. There will be food and merchandise for sale. Before the team arrives, there will be entertainment inside the stadium, including DodgerVision scoreboards that will show the parade. This event will be subject to all Dodger Stadium policies and procedures, including the reminder that signs, bags, and other objects that are prohibited by our policies are not allowed.

At 9:30 a.m., SportsNet LA and local networks CBS 2, NBC 4, KTLA 5, ABC 7, KCAL 9, and Fox 11 will start airing coverage of every event on Friday. On AM 570, there will be radio coverage.

The Los Angeles Dodger Foundation, which is working to address the most important issues confronting Los Angeles with a mission to enhance social justice, health care, education, and homelessness for all Angelenos, will get a part of the stadium event’s earnings.

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Tuten Leads the Hokies with 4 Touchdowns and 266 Running Yards in a Blowout Victory

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Thursday night, Virginia Tech defeated Boston College 42–21 thanks to a school record 266 yards and four touchdowns from Bhayshul Tuten.

For the Hokies (4-3, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and never trailed en way to a second straight victory, Kyron Drones added two rushing scores and a touchdown pass.

Tuten completed 18 carries while also scoring on 83 and 61-yard touchdown runs, the latter of which came with 8:28 remaining to win the game. And he caught a touchdown pass from Drones that was 20 yards in length.

Tuten declared, “Every game is a special game.” “That’s how I look at it. I just felt a little better today. We had a bye week. I felt great throughout practice. I took the knee brace off (for a sore knee). I felt fast, I felt good, I felt fluid. I just came out and balled today, and that’s what we needed.”

After trailing 28-0 at the half, Boston College (4-3, 1-2 ACC) got within 28-21 on a 5-yard run by Kye Robichaux with 2:55 remaining in the third quarter, and they were on the drive early in the fourth. However, Robichaux was stopped on a fourth-and-1 at midfield, and Virginia Tech took advantage of the next play. With 11:02 remaining, Tuten scored on a 6-yard run to give Virginia Tech a 35-21 lead.

“That’s a good team that we beat tonight,” stated Brent Pry, the coach of Virginia Tech. “And we beat them soundly.”

With his 266 rushing yards, Tuten eclipsed the previous school record of 253 established by Darren Evans in 2008 versus Maryland. After removing Tuten from the game because of his proximity to the record, the Virginia Tech coaching staff decided to put him back in to break it. During the Hokies’ last drive, Tuten set the record with a 17-yard run.

“I normally don’t like that, but a school record at a place like Tech with so many great running backs, and he was deserving with his performance,” Pry stated.

Drones completed 14 of 18 passes for 164 yards and ran for 40 yards. Drones scored on runs of 11 yards and 1 yard on the Hokies’ opening two possessions. The Hokies finished with a season-high 533 yards, trailing just Tuten and Drones.

The Eagles finished with 372 yards, led by Thomas Castellanos, who passed for 205 yards and two touchdowns.

“I felt really good about the preparation for the game,” Boston College head coach Bill O’Brien remarked. “Obviously, I was wrong. We’ve got to prepare differently, better, whatever it might be. We’ve got to figure it out. … We’ve got to coach better. We’ve got a good coaching staff. We do. We have a lot of experience. But we didn’t play well tonight, so that’s on the coaching. We’ve got to coach better and hopefully we’ll get it turned around.”

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