News sport : As the Browns turn: GM Ray Farmer apologizes for texting controversy

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INDIANAPOLIS – The Cleveland Browns are in a bad place.


Teams miss on draft picks all the time, or go through multiple losing seasons, but nothing screams to the Browns’ apparent dysfunction more than the general manager apologizing at the NFL scouting combine for sending texts to the sideline during games.


Browns general manager Ray Farmer said it was his mistake to send texts from the press box to the sideline during games last season. That’s against NFL rules. The texts reportedly questioned play calling and personnel decisions. That’s against common football decorum.


Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan left for the Atlanta Falcons after the season, and it has been widely speculated that the texts played a part in that. Quarterback Brian Hoyer, who is a free agent, said the controversy might affect his decision whether or not to return to the Browns.


The NFL is investigating what happened. Farmer said he has apologized. Only in Cleveland.


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“It was me," Farmer said. "To that degree, I have apologized to the people in the building, coach (Mike) Pettine, (Browns owner) Jimmy Haslam, the rest of the football staff.


“I take full responsibility for myself and my actions.”


It’s fairly amazing that any number of Browns stories that would usually be a big topic of conversation at the scouting combine – Josh Gordon’s year-long suspension, Johnny Manziel entering a treatment facility, the Browns’ lack of an obvious option to start at quarterback, 2014 first-round pick Justin Gilbert’s immense struggles as a rookie – were not even the main topic with the general manager. The NFL might end up fining the Browns or even taking away a draft pick over the rule violation.


“It’s not an excuse, but sometimes your emotions get the best of you,” Farmer said.


The Browns supported Farmer through the texting controversy. On Wednesday, coach Mike Pettine said he was upset with Farmer initially but they have worked it out. Farmer said he and Pettine have and will work well together.


“No relationship mending (is needed),” Farmer said. “Coach Pettine and I work very well together. We’ve had our conversations, we’ve gone through what that was.”


There were football questions around him discussing text messages. He was asked in multiple ways if Manziel could be the team’s starting quarterback in 2015, and he refused to give that vote of confidence, speaking only in platitudes about everyone on the roster competing for spots. Farmer said the team does have a plan at quarterback, although he wouldn’t divulge it.


Browns fans deserve better than seeing their team become a laughingstock. There’s a lot of corrections that need to be made with the Browns, and it was summed up by the general manager standing at a podium trying to explain himself and why he was undermining the coaching staff with text messages to the sideline during games.


“Anytime you make mistakes, it is humbling,” Farmer said.


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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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Banyana to compete in Cyprus Cup

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Banyana Banyana will compete in the 12-nation Cyprus Women's Cup which runs from 4-11 March 2015.


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Johannesburg – Banyana Banyana will compete in the 12-nation Cyprus Women's Cup which runs from 4-11 March 2015, the SA Football Association said on Thursday.


The Vera Pauw-coached side was drawn in Group C together with Belgium, Czech Republic and Mexico.


Group A is made up of Canada, Italy, Korea Republic and Scotland while Group B comprises Australia, England, Finland and Netherlands.


“This is an exciting tournament and gives us good preparations ahead of the All-Africa Games and Olympic qualifiers,” Pauw said in a statement.


“These are the type of opponents we should have played ahead of the African Women championships which took place in Namibia last year where Banyana Banyana missed the World Cup spot by a whisker.”


A group of 30 Banyana players will assemble for camp on Sunday. The final group of 23 would be named at Safa House on February 24. – Sapa






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Figo launches Fifa presidency bid

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Former Portugal winger Luis Figo launched his campaign for the Fifa presidency by revealing plans to expand the World Cup to up to 48 teams.


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Former Portugal winger Luis Figo launched his campaign for the Fifa presidency on Thursday by revealing plans to expand the World Cup to up to 48 teams.


Unveiling his manifesto at Wembley Stadium in London, the 42-year-old said the expansion of the quadrennial tournament from its current 32-team format would be “weighted towards non-European teams”.


One of his proposals for the World Cup is to split it into two 24-team tournaments played simultaneously on two different continents, followed by a final knockout stage in one country.


Another of his key proposals is the distribution of half of Fifa's wealth – $2.5 billion (2.19 billion euros) – directly to its member associations for spending on grassroots football.


The former Barcelona and Real Madrid superstar also called for the restoration of the 'old' interpretation of the offside rule, “where a player is judged offside whether directly involved in the play or not”.


Figo is standing against incumbent Sepp Blatter, Dutch football chief Michael van Praag and Fifa vice-president for Asia Prince Ali bin Al Hussein in the Fifa presidential election on May 29. – AFP






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City receive double boost

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Champions Manchester City hope the return of Yaya Toure and new boy Wilfried Bony can help them bridge the gap to Chelsea.


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London – Champions Manchester City hope the return of Yaya Toure and new boy Wilfried Bony can help them bridge the gap to the league leaders.


Manchester City will be relying on two faces - one familiar and one new - to lead a final push as they try to overhaul Chelsea at the top of the Premier League, starting this weekend.


The return of Yaya Toure from international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations is a massive boost to a City side who won just once in six games without him.


That win came last time out, though, and City hope the addition of striker Wilfried Bony will be their required X factor as they try to win the title for a second successive year.


Seven points behind Chelsea with 13 games to go is a huge task but Bony, who signed in January and who has also been on international duty alongside Toure, is raring to go as City host Newcastle this weekend.


“We need to win as many games as we can because we need to make up seven points on Chelsea,” the former Swansea striker said.


“It's not easy because I've just arrived from Africa and I will have had five days of training before we play Newcastle.


“I'm not 100 per cent just yet and as I say, I've only just arrived so we will see. (But) if I am needed, I have a good record against Newcastle and I've scored three goals in two games against them.”


“They are a good side and are strong at the back but they are coming to our stadium and we need to win this game.


“Four days later we'll be playing Barcelona and we need to go into this game on the back of a strong performance.”


Chelsea, meanwhile, will hope Cesc Fabregas is over a recent illness as they travel to relegation-threatened Burnley.


Fabregas played most of the midweek Champions League match with Paris St-Germain but should be fresher for the trip to Burnley.


Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho has been shuffling his central defensive combination at times this season and captain John Terry admits the club have a difficult choice.


“Kurt (Zouma)'s done really well,” he said. “When he plays he's been great and when Gaz (Gary Cahill) plays he's been great,' said Terry.


“We will rotate and there are enough games to share around. Obviously we all want to play every game, those two are fighting it out at the moment but it could be me at any time.


“What's important is that we remain top of the league and everybody gets game time.”


Behind the top two, the battle for Champions League places is really hotting up with just five points separating Manchester United in third from Liverpool in seventh.


United face a tricky trip to Swansea while fourth-placed Southampton welcome Liverpool to the south coast. Fifth-placed Arsenal travel to Crystal Palace and Tottenham face West Ham.


Bottom side Leicester are away to Everton while third-bottom Aston Villa will be hoping for a boost from new manager Tim Sherwood's first official game in charge.


Villa host Stoke City this weekend and midfielder Ashley Westwood says the former Tottenham manager's arrival has lifted everyone.


“Training was electric,” he said. “Training was sharp, the lads were on it, if we carry that forward we will be fine. It has been good - the lads are all up for it.


“The gaffer has played at the top so hopefully he can give some good tips over.


“You can see that the way he is around the place, he is a strong character and I think that is going to be good for the team.”


Hull take on Queens Park Rangers and Sunderland host West Bromwich Albion in the weekend's other matches. – Sapa-dpa






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Victim of Chelsea fans speaks out

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The victim of a racist incident involving Chelsea football fans in the Paris metro did not know the incident had been filmed.


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Paris - The victim of a racist incident involving Chelsea football fans in the Paris metro did not know the incident had been filmed and widely broadcast and will now lodge an official complaint with police, he told French daily Le Parisien.


“I don't speak a word of English ... but it was clear to me they were picking on me because of the colour of my skin,” the victim, identified by Le Parisien as Souleymane, 33, said.


The Paris prosecutor's office has started an investigation to find the people responsible for chanting: “We're racist and that's the way we like it” as they stopped a black man boarding a metro train in Paris on Tuesday.


The incident was captured on video by another passenger on the platform at the Richelieu-Drouot metro station before English club Chelsea played Paris St Germain in a Champions League match at the Parc des Princes in the French capital.


After the incident, which Souleymane said lasted six or seven minutes: “I took the next metro and went back home without telling anyone, not even my wife or kids. What would I have told my kids? That daddy was pushed in the metro because he's black?”


Police said no arrests were made in relation to the match, which ended in a 1-1 draw, but amateur footage posted on The Guardian newspaper website (www.theguardian.com) clearly showed the incident, which has been widely condemned by the soccer authorities including FIFA president Sepp Blatter and Chelsea.


Souleymane told Le Parisien he was used to racism but it was the first time it happened to him in the Paris underground.


“I didn't know I had been filmed. Talking about this now encourages me to lodge a complaint with the police,” he said.


The Metropolitan Police in London have appealed for anyone with information to come forward. – Reuters






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Terry hoping for new Chelsea deal

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John Terry admits there have been no talks yet about extending his Chelsea contract beyond the end of the season.


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John Terry admits there have been no talks yet about extending his Chelsea contract beyond the end of the season.


At 34, Terry is aware time is running out for him at the top level and wants to squeeze every drop from a campaign chasing three major trophies.


He hopes to sign for another year under Jose Mourinho and is unconcerned that negotiations have not opened because he accepts the priority for Chelsea was to secure the long-term future of Eden Hazard.


‘The club know my position,’ said Terry. ‘Hopefully, I know theirs and it will get done. No talks have happened yet between myself and the club but we both respect the position.


‘There’s more important players. Hazard’s one. For me, that was the most important for the club. Without anyone telling me that, I knew that was the first priority for them. Hopefully they’ll be knocking on the door soon.’


Hazard, 24, signed a five-and-a-half-year deal last week, making him the top earner at Stamford Bridge and keeping him from the clutches of Real Madrid, at least for now.


The policy at Chelsea for players over 30 is to limit extensions to one year. Terry could secure a longer deal elsewhere and his contractual situation means he is free to talk to foreign clubs about a move.


He could sign a pre-contract leading to a free transfer at the end of the season. But he is comfortable with Chelsea’s stance, having been through the same process last year, when he was linked with moves to Galatasaray and Monaco. And Mourinho has spoken in public to confirm he wants to keep his captain.


‘The first year, I was maybe a bit nervous and hoping and knocking on the door myself,’ said Terry. ‘But we had a good chat. I know their position and they know mine. I want to stay and hopefully my performances are showing that and they want to keep me.


‘I’ll be happy with one more year and then we’ll see how we go year by year. I’ve not got much choice.’


Terry has spent his entire career at Chelsea and has been restored as the defensive bedrock of the team since Mourinho returned to west London.


There is pressure from emerging players such as Kurt Zouma, but the captain promises to be one of the last survivors from his generation at the top of the English game.


Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard plan to leave for the USA in May, Ashley Cole is in Italy and Rio Ferdinand has been unable to hold a regular place at QPR.


‘The way players like me, Stevie, Rio, Lamps, those kinds of player, have looked after ourselves in the last five or six years has helped us in our later careers, for sure,’ said Terry. ‘They’re a couple of years older than me.


‘It’s difficult when you see young boys come in like Kurt. He’s been a revelation since he came in. He’s young, fit, strong and hungry and it makes it even more difficult. We all want to play every game. Gaz (Gary Cahill) and Kurt have been fighting it out and it could be me (who’s dropped) any time.


‘It’s important to remain top of the league and everyone gets their game time. When Gaz plays he’s been great, when Kurt plays he’s been great, so it’s hard but we’re all rotating and there are enough games to share around.


‘I don’t want to rest. I’m coming to the end of my career, so it’s important I stay fit and play as much as I can.’ – Daily Mail






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Liverpool ticking all the boxes

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Brendan Rodgers is confident that Liverpool can atone for their failures in the Champions League by winning the Europa League.


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Brendan Rodgers is confident that Liverpool can atone for their failures in the Champions League by winning the Europa League.


This was never a competition that Rodgers intended Liverpool to enter. However, the manager conceded that, had they been playing in the first half of the season with the panache they have displayed in the last two months, they would still be among the European elite.


“That was the frustration; we had put in two years of hard work to get to the Champions League and when we arrived there we didn't have the team,” said Rodgers.


Despite realistically only having to finish above Basel to make the knockout phase, a Liverpool side without Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge and with Mario Balotelli hopelessly off form never suggested they could make an impact.


Now, despite playing Besiktas, the leaders of the Turkish Super Lig, there is a buoyancy about Liverpool. On the wall in Anfield's Trophy Room, where Rodgers was addressing the media yesterday, hung a picture of Rafa Benitez, who took a Chelsea side eliminated from the Champions League to win the Europa League and, in doing so, revived the club and his own managerial career. Rodgers would back himself to do something similar. The last time Besiktas came to Anfield, in November 2007, they lost 8-0.


He did not disagree when it was put to him that Liverpool may be where they were under Gérard Houllier in 2001 - a team that could compete for and win the Uefa Cup but one that was not quite ready to go head to head with the European elite.


Now, having lost only one match since early December, and with Sturridge back to lead their attack, there is a bullishness about Liverpool that was never really apparent in the Champions League. The fact that Liverpool could requalify for the Champions League by winning the Europa League final in Warsaw will be an added incentive.


“That is the icing on it,” said Rodgers. “But the initial reaction is wanting to win a trophy and, if we do that and qualify for the Champions League, then so much the better.”


On Saturday evening, Liverpool raised one of the ghosts of last season by beating Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, one of the venues where their assault on the championship foundered.


There was a period in that FA Cup tie where Liverpool kept the ball for almost two minutes, the kind of confidence that underpinned so many of their displays last season.


“People watching us now are seeing the return of the domination we used to have,” said Rodgers. “Even when we were 1-0 down at Crystal Palace there was a feeling we would go on and win the game. That was never the case earlier in the season, it was always a feeling of 'where is it going to come from?'


“Now we are ticking all the boxes, we are defensively strong, very creative and even more important is the ability to press the ball. It is a far cry from what we were a few months back.”


If one ghost was exorcised on Saturday, another will be at Anfield this evening. Although Rodgers may be right to argue that the departure of Suarez and the injury to Sturridge that cost the striker the whole of Liverpool's Champions League campaign undermined the start of the season, there was the psychological blow of failing to win the title that spilled over from one campaign to another.


And nothing quite encapsulated that more than Demba Ba's goal that resulted from Steven Gerrard's slip against Chelsea. Ba will be leading the Besiktas attack tonight. – The Independent






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Liverpool trio set for Saints reunion

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Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert and Dejan Lovren left Southampton hoping for bigger things at Liverpool.


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London - Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert and Dejan Lovren left Southampton hoping for bigger things at Liverpool but when they return to their former club in the Premier League on Sunday they will look enviously at their former team mates.


Southampton are fourth in table, occupying the final Champions League qualification spot, while Liverpool have endured an indifferent season and lie seventh, four points adrift of Ronald Koeman's side.


After six months and 25 games, the weekend brings the reverse fixtures of the first matches of the campaign.


When Koeman lost his first competitive game in charge of Southampton 2-1 at Anfield it looked as though the season might unfold as most pundits had predicted.


Liverpool were flying high after finishing runners-up the previous season and the south-coast club looked destined to struggle after an exodus of leading players and the loss of manager Mauricio Pochettino.


But Southampton have defied the doom-mongers, coping admirably with the loss of Lallana, Lambert and Lovren to Liverpool as well as Luke Shaw to Manchester United and Calum Chambers to Arsenal.


Serbia defender Lovren has not been missed as the Saints boast the tightest defence in the league, while Koeman's attack has outscored Liverpool's expensively-assembled forward line.


Brendan Rodgers's side have struggled to recapture their scintillating form of last season but have regained a bit of swagger recently, unbeaten in nine league games ahead of the trip to St Mary's.


Arsenal, who are one point behind Southampton in fifth, visit London rivals Crystal Palace on Saturday, while sixth-placed Tottenham Hotspur host another capital derby when West Ham United visit White Hart Lane on Sunday.


Leaders Chelsea held on for a 1-1 draw at Paris St Germain in their Champions League last-16 first-leg tie on Tuesday and will hope for an easier ride at home to second-bottom Burnley.


Champions Manchester City, trailing Jose Mourinho's team by seven points in second, host Newcastle United.


Louis Van Gaal tasted defeat in the first competitive game of his managerial reign at Manchester United and will want to avenge the Old Trafford loss when his third-placed team go to Swansea City on Saturday.


Tim Sherwood's first league game as Aston Villa manager is at home to Stoke City. – Reuters






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Pirates sweep past Tornado FC

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Orlando Pirates got their defence of the Nedbank Cup off to the perfect start courtesy of a dominant win over Tornado FC in Soweto.


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Johannesburg – Orlando Pirates got their defence of the Nedbank Cup off to the perfect start courtesy of a dominant 4-0 win over rookie outfit Tornado FC in Soweto on Wednesday night.


Lennox Bacela scored his third goal of the season just six minutes in, before Thandani Ntshumayelo scored either side of half-time, while Sifiso Myeni scored in the dying minutes to seal a comfortable win that books the Buccaneers a spot in the next round.


It took no time at all for Pirates to stamp their authority on the game and were awarded a penalty for a push on Bacela in the area.


Bacela was handed the ball and made no mistake from the spot-kick, sending the goalkeeper the other way and handing the Buccaneers the lead with the game less than seven minutes old.


Tornado were left reeling after a breathless opening 10 minutes and were soon under even more pressure as Pirates came surging forward.


Chances opened up for Mpho Makola, Bacela and Sifiso Myeni, but it was Ntshumayelo who doubled the hosts' lead after 20 minutes with a well-taken goal from Makola's square ball into the middle of the box, securing his first of the season.


Tornado, from East London, were no match for their Soweto counterparts and stuttered to half-time looking somewhat star-struck by their more fancied opponents, who were untroubled on all fronts.


Bizarre scenes followed 10 minutes after the break when Mapogo Mphakane was booked for a second time in the match but was not sent off by referee Shane Chuma.


Mphakane was booked for the foul on Bacela in the first half that led to the penalty and opening goal and was then booked again early in the second half.


Chuma failed to realise his mistake and it took the intervention from the fourth official to get Mphakane removed from the pitch, some seven minutes after he should have been shown red.


Down to 10 men, Tornado struggled to keep up with the Sea Robbers. Makola came agonisingly close to adding a third on 70


minutes when his long-range effort was parried onto the crossbar by Tornado's goalkeeper.


But just two minutes later, Ntshumayelo was on target and bagged his second of the night with a cut inside, followed by a strong finish at the near post which snuck under Tornado's shot-stopper, somewhat fortunately for the hosts.


Pirates could have added at least two more but were let down by some poor finishing at the last second as Menzi Masuku and Myeni both skied their efforts from dead in front, leaving a frustrated Eric Tinkler gazing on from the sides.


Myeni was eventually rewarded and bundled over a cross from Thabo Rakhale, scoring three minutes from the end to put the result to bed and wrap up a thoroughly miserable night for the visitors from the Eastern Cape. – Sapa






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Ronaldo scores as Real beat Schalke

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Cristiano Ronaldo ended a three-game goal drought as holders Real Madrid won at Schalke 04 to take a big step towards the Champions League quarter-finals.


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GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany - Cristiano Ronaldo ended a three-game goal drought as holders Real Madrid won 2-0 at Schalke 04 on Wednesday to take a big step towards the Champions League quarter-finals and equal the competition record with a 10th straight win.


The world player of the year headed in after 26 minutes for his 73rd Champions League goal with Real's first chance and he set up Marcelo to make it seven wins for the Spanish side in seven Champions League games this season and 10 in a row.


Real's victory was nowhere near as emphatic as last season's 6-1 romp at Schalke at the same stage of the competition but it was a much-needed confidence boost for Carlo Ancelotti's team after a lacklustre start to the year in Spain.


“Anything can happen in the Champions League. We are humble and we know that to get through we have to work hard like we did today,” Marcelo told Spanish television. “We have a two-goal advantage but the tie is not over.


“Cristiano is not obsessed with scoring. Goals come when the team works together,” he said of his team mate.


Looking to become the first team to retain the Champions League title, Real, eliminated from the King's Cup this month and crushed 4-0 by Atletico Madrid in La Liga, host Schalke in the second leg on March 10.


The Germans fielded five defenders and were on the back foot from the start but coach Robert Di Matteo's disciplined 5-3-2 system proved effective.


Schalke gradually grew in confidence and created good chances for Dennis Aogo and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.


But Ronaldo put Real ahead, ending his mini lean spell with a glancing header from Daniel Carvajal's cross to take his competition tally to 73, two short of the record held by Barcelona's Lionel Messi.


Schalke keeper Timon Wellenreuther, making his competition debut, did well to deny Karim Benzema and Ronaldo, parrying a curling free kick in the 34th.


Schalke's game plan collapsed when Huntelaar, back in action despite serving a suspension in the Bundesliga for a red card, limped off with a leg injury.


Real were almost punished by 19-year-old Felix Platte who replaced Huntelaar and struck a shot against the crossbar 15 minutes from time.


“The quality made the difference,” Schalke coach Di Matteo said.


“They have superb players and that is why they are the title holders. They had one chance and scored two goals.”


Brazilian Marcelo ended any lingering German hopes with a powerful shot 11 minutes from the end after good work from Ronaldo to keep Real firmly on course for a record-extending 11th triumph in Europe's premier club competition. – Reuters






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News sport : Iowa State starts a new kind of streak at Oklahoma State

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Iowa State had an 18-game losing streak at Oklahoma State going into last year's game and came away with a triple overtime victory. The Cyclones went back to Stillwater on Wednesday night and won for the second year in a row against the 22nd-ranked Cowboys.


No. 14 Iowa State scored the final nine points and held the Cowboys scoreless in the last 2 minutes to win 70-65. Richard Nixon was president the last time Iowa State won two years in a row at Oklahoma State.


The victory at least keeps the Cyclones hopes alive, to some degree, of capturing a share of the regular season title in the Big 12 along with Kansas, which has won 10 straight. But the Jayhawks would have to stumble again at some point in their final five games. They play three of five at home but must travel to Kansas State and Oklahoma.


It was only the second road win of the season in the Big 12 Conference for the Cyclones who will be looking to break another road-losing streak later this week when they visit Texas, where they have lost six straight.


Georges Niang made two big jumpers down the stretch and Dustin Hogue drilled a 3-pointer from the corner to earn the victory. Niang had only five points in the game until hitting those two shots in the final 80 seconds. He got into early foul trouble but the Cyclones overcame it.


Jameel McKay came up with a huge performance scoring 17 points and grabbing 14 rebounds while also blocking four shots. He was a huge factor in Iowa State dominating the Cowboys on the boards and often limiting them to one shot.


Winning on the road is one of the final questions lingering about the Cyclones. Otherwise, this is a well-rounded team that appears capable of another deep run in March. Wednesday's result won't complete wipe away the questions some have about the Cyclones capabilities away from Hilton Coliseum, but following it up with a win at Texas just might do that.


Meanwhile, Oklahoma State never seems to be able to find a groove and stay in it. Certainly nothing to be ashamed of in the rugged Big 12, but the Cowboys might now be back in a frame of mind where they doubt themselves after consecutive losses to TCU and the Cyclones.


- - - - - - -


[Kyle Ringo is the assistant editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at kyle.ringo@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!






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News sport : Jon Jones, Chris Weidman to defend titles at UFC 187 in May in Las Vegas

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LAS VEGAS -- Jon Jones has run roughshod over the greatest 205-pound mixed martial artists in the world over the last five years. Only one fight was even close and the UFC's light heavyweight champion has made many of his defenses look ridiculously easy.


Anthony Johnson will be the latest to get a crack at solving the riddle when he challenges Jones in the main event of UFC 187 on May 23 at the MGM Grand Garden. Chris Weidman will risk his middleweight title against Vitor Belfort in the co-main event, a bout that has been postponed several times because of injuries.


UFC president Dana White said lightweights Donald Cerrone and Khabib Nurmagomedov will meet on that card, as well.


"I am so [expletive] stoked for that card," White told Yahoo Sports. "What Jon Jones done is almost hard to believe. Go back to 2009 and look at who he's beaten. It's incredible."


Vitor Belfort will challenge Chris Weidman on May 23 in Las Vegas. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images) Against Johnson, though, he'll face a suddenly rejuvenated man whose punching power is unparalleled. Johnson is coming off a first-round knockout victory over Alexander Gustaffson. Since returning to the UFC from the World Series of Fighting, Johnson has been a different man. He's gone 3-0 with two knockouts. He also stopped Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in the first, needing just 44 seconds to do that on July 26.


A one-time welterweight, Johnson's punching power has carried with him to the higher weight.


"What he's doing with his power is crazy," White said. "He moved up two divisions and is knocking out legit 205-pounders. This isn't like boxer where if you move up two divisions you're going up six or eight pounds. He's fighting way bigger guys than he used to and his power is incredible."


Jones tested positive for cocaine in December in an out-of-competition test. Because cocaine is only banned in-competition, Jones was permitted to fight at UFC 182 on Jan. 3 in Las Vegas, where he routed Daniel Cormier.


Because he passed all of his other tests, Jones isn't considered to have committed a violation. Given he's already licensed in Nevada for 2015, he almost certainly will not have to appear before the commission prior to the fight. Fight licenses in Nevada are for one calendar year.






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News sport : Defenseman Alexei Emelin collides with boards, leaves game (Video)

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It took a mere 20 seconds for the Montreal Canadiens to lose their second defenseman in three games.


Alexei Emelin appears to get inside on Ottawa's Mark Stone. As the two collide, Emelin goes down and hits the boards violently with his upper body. He immediately reaches with his left hand to the right collarbone/shoulder area.


Take a look (via Some Hockey Videos)...



The defenseman left the game under his own power. The team released no other information other than Emelin would not return.


On Saturday night versus Toronto, Habs d-man Sergei Gonchar took a nasty shot from David Clarkson. Gonchar left the game and did not return. He was scratched for the game against the Senators.


The situation surrounding Montreal's defense almost went nuclear late in the second period when P.K. Subban blocked a Bobby Ryan shot and was visibly ailing on the ice; so much so, Subban's partner Andre Markov helped him off the ice with a shove on the butt.


Subban went to the locker room, as the entire province of Quebec held their breath. Luckily, he returned to play in the third. He didn't look entirely comfortable skating, but he's out there, so that's a good thing. The next big test is to see how his foot reacts once he takes the skate off.


It's not a secret that Montreal GM Marc Bergevin is on the look out for a defenseman to join his team for the playoffs. Available defensemen are at a premium, and most playoff bound teams are looking for one (or two). Here's the list assembled by Sportsnet of some of the candidates.



Via @BonksMullet

Yeah... that's a list, that's for sure.


March 2nd's trade deadline will be here before we know it.


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Jen Neale is a staff writer for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter!










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News sport : Colin Kaepernick tattoos Twitter heckler for only having eight followers

♠ Posted by channel-top-news in ,,,,,,,

So Colin Kaepernick has been hard at work at EXOS outside Phoenix, trying to get in even better shape for next season. On Wednesday, he tweeted about his hard work.



That's a lot of ... working out. But one fan wasn't too impressed. He, like many, watched Kaepernick struggle for the 6-10 San Francisco 49ers last season, appearing to regress as a passer. So he let Kaepernick know his feelings on it.


Although Kaepernick deleted the tweet eventually, you know how that screengrab goes.



Colin Kaepernick's first now-deleted tweet.

Then he threw another fastball at @battman_returns, going all Vic Fangio on him.



Kaepernick's second now-deleted tweet.

Then it got personal.



And his third now-deleted tweet.

For the record, Kaepernick has more than 719,000 followers. Battman ... has more than 8 now.


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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!






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