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SUNDAY, MARCH 1, 2015 SPORTS

Chiefs thrash Crusaders Fenerbahce beat CSKA Sharapova out with bug virus HAMILTON: The Chiefs sent an ominous reminder to their rivals why they : Fenerbahce moved a step closer to the Euroleague playoffs MEXICO CITY: A stomach virus caused world number two Maria Sharapova are favorites to win this year’s Super Rugby title with a 40-16 thrashing of with a shock 81-75 win at CSKA Moscow on Friday, handing the six-time to pull out of the Acapulco International in Mexico just hours before her the Canterbury Crusaders in Hamilton yesterday. champions their first home loss this season and stalwart a semi-final on Friday. Chasing their third championship in four seasons, the Chiefs flexed their sour return home. Former NBA All-Star forward Kirilenko, who rejoined “I’m really sorry to have to withdraw,” the top-seeded Russian said on her muscles with a five-tries-to-one romp against a Crusaders team that made CSKA on Tuesday for a third stint with the Russian giants, made a cameo website (www.mariasharapova.com). “I had a great start to the event and the final last year but has struggled to reproduce their best form. appearance but scored only two points in five minutes on court. was hoping I could recover in time for tonight’s match but unfortunately it The Chiefs have won all three matches they have Roared on by several hundred noisy away fans, the Turkish side raced was not enough time. played this year, each with more conviction than the last, into a 10-0 lead and held the upper hand throughout a physical contest, “I want to thank the tournament for organising such a great while the Crusaders have managed just one victory from which boiled over in the closing stages when CSKA’s Serbia playmaker event and most importantly the fans who were so passionate dur- three and suffered one of their heaviest losses in the Milos Teodosic was ejected for dissent. ing all my matches.” southern hemisphere competition. Cool free-throw shooting by Teodosic’s compatriots Nemanja Bjelica French Open champion Sharapova, winner of five grand slam and Bogdan Bogdanovic allowed Fenerbahce to pull away in the last two Sonny Bill Williams, back with the Chiefs after titles, reached the last four of the hardcourt tournament with a minutes. “I think we did a great job rebounding at both ends and we had to spending the last two seasons playing rugby 6-1 4-6 6-2 win over Slovakia’s Magdalena Rybarikova on because we were up against one of the best teams in Europe,” Fenerbahce’s Thursday. league in Australia, had another big game. He Czech forward Jan Vesely told Euroleague television. “It was a tough game scored his team’s first try and had a hand in two Sharapova, who will next play at Indian Wells, California and a great team effort so we are all very happy,” added the former Denver from March 11, was due to meet Caroline Garcia of others as the Chiefs went to the break leading 22- Nuggets and campaigner.—Reuters 9.—Reuters France in the semi-finals. —Reuters

NBA results/standings

Indiana 93, Cleveland 86; Philadelphia 89, Washington 81; Atlanta 95, Orlando 88; Boston 106, Charlotte 98; NY Knicks 121, Detroit 115 (OT); Golden State 113, Toronto 89; Chicago 96, Minnesota 89; Houston 102, Brooklyn 98; LA Clippers 97, Memphis 79; New Orleans 104, Miami 102; Utah 104, Denver 82; San Antonio 107, Sacramento 96; LA Lakers 101, Milwaukee 93; Portland 115, Oklahoma City 112.

Eastern Conference Atlantic Division W L PCT GB Toronto 37 21 .638 - Boston 23 33 .411 13 Brooklyn 23 33 .411 13 Philadelphia 13 45 .224 24 NY Knicks 11 46 .193 25.5

Central Division Chicago 37 22 .627 - Cleveland 37 23 .617 0.5 Milwaukee 32 26 .552 4.5 Indiana 24 34 .414 12.5 Detroit 23 35 .397 13.5

Southeast Division Atlanta 46 12 .793 - Washington 33 26 .559 13.5 Miami 25 32 .439 20.5 Charlotte 23 33 .411 22 Orlando 19 41 .317 28

Western Conference Northwest Division Portland 38 19 .667 - Oklahoma City 32 27 .542 7 Utah 22 35 .386 16 Denver 20 38 .345 18.5 Minnesota 13 44 .228 25

Pacific Division Golden State 45 11 .804 - LA Clippers 38 21 .644 8.5 Phoenix 31 28 .525 15.5 Sacramento 20 36 .357 25 LA Lakers 16 41 .281 29.5

Southwest Division Memphis 41 16 .719 - Houston 40 18 .690 1.5 Dallas 39 21 .650 3.5 San Antonio 35 23 .603 6.5 New Orleans 31 27 .534 10.5 PORTLAND: Oklahoma City Thunder center Serge Ibaka drives on Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge during the first half of an NBA game. —AP T’Blazers silence Thunder

PORTLAND: LaMarcus Aldridge had 29 points HAWKS 95, MAGIC 88 have won four straight. and and 16 rebounds, and the Portland Trail Blazers Paul Millsap scored 14 of his 20 points in the Deron Williams had 15 points apiece for the rallied to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 115- first quarter and Atlanta recovered after losing Nets. Schmidt looks to claim 112 Friday night, spoiling Russell Westbrook’s an early 16-point lead to beat Orlando. third straight triple-double. Led by Millsap’s 3-point shooting, the Hawks LAKERS 101, BUCKS 93 Westbrook, who fell and hit his face on team- sprinted to a 19-3 lead. The Hawks hit their first scored 11 straight points in big win over England mate Andre Roberson’s knee in the final seconds, eight shots before Orlando rallied to finish the the final 6 minutes, helping Los Angeles beat DUBLIN: Ireland coach Joe Schmidt side for Ireland, inflicting their only loss of had 40 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. He half up 45-42. Atlanta regained the lead with a Milwaukee for its season high-tying third believes if Six Nations champions Ireland the last Six Nations their fourth successive became the first player to string together three strong third quarter and stretched the advan- straight victory. Jordan Clarkson led the Lakers defeat England at Lansdowne Road today victory over the Irish. triple-doubles since LeBron James in 2009. The tage to 10 points in the final. Nikola Vucevic had with 16 points. Ellington finished with 14 - all in it will be the team’s biggest win since he Schmidt admitted to being excited Blazers overcame a 15-point, third-quarter 21 points for Orlando. the final period - and Jordan Hill and Jeremy Lin took over in 2013. ahead of the game which if the Irish win deficit and tied it on a tip shot by Aldridge with added 14 points apiece. Ersan Ilyasova had 17 Victory would also equal the best ever would set them fair for a third ever Grand 4:33 to go. Rookie Mitch McGary came off the PELICANS 104, HEAT 102 points and 12 rebounds for the Bucks. Michael win sequence of an Irish side at 10 tests. Slam and also only the second time they bench for a season-high 20 points - 12 in the Alexis Ajinca made the go-ahead layup with Carter-Williams scored eight points in his second However, the 49-year-old New Zealander- will have successfully defended the title- third quarter - for the Thunder. 26 seconds left and scored a career-high 24 game for Milwaukee as the starting point guard. who has guided the Irish to eyecatching the last occasion being the old Five points to help New Orleans win its fourth victories over southern hemisphere giants Nations back in 1949. “It would be the WARRIORS 113, RAPTORS 89 straight. appeared to be going KNICKS 121, PISTONS 115 South Africa and Australia-added he is biggest win we’ve had so far,” said Klay Thompson scored 25 points, Stephen up for a tying dunk when he was blocked by fel- Shane Larkin’s three-point play in the final under no illusions how difficult it will be to Schmidt. “Not only because of the year Curry had 22 and Golden State never trailed low 7-footer Omer Asik, who secured the minute of the second overtime helped New York beat the only other unbeaten side in the that is in it (the World Cup which begins in against Toronto. Draymond Green had 17 points , but his hasty outlet pass went off Eric snap an eight-game losing streak. tournament after two matches. September) but also for the players who and nine rebounds for the Warriors. They Gordon’s hands and out of bounds. That gave Larkin put the Knicks ahead by four with 28 England are on a good run of their have come into the squad, it would be bounced back from a loss Thursday night in Miami one more shot, but ’s 3- seconds remaining, and they held on to win a own, having won four tests on the trot, great to give those players that confidence Cleveland to improve to 10-2 in the second point attempt bounced out as time expired, game that Detroit appeared to have control of and have in recent times been a bogey which comes with such a win.”—AFP game of back-to-backs. dropping the Heat to its first loss in three games. after two quarters. The Pistons led by 18 in the Tempers flared after Golden State’s Festus Gordon scored 20 points and Tyreke Evans second and by 12 at the half but blew what Ezeli pushed Toronto’s in the had 19 points and 11 assists for New Orleans. looked to be an easy game against the team Nadal strolls into semi-final throat after they tangled under the basket in the Luol Deng had 22 points for the Heat, and Goran with the NBA’s worst record. third. Hansbrough responded by chasing after Dragic added 20. Detroit squandered a five-point lead in the BUENOS AIRES: Rafael Nadal, working his four minutes. “Now the next step is to reach Ezeli, shoving him and throwing a punch that final minute of regulation, allowing the Knicks to way back to top form after wrist problems the final to improve on ... Rio de Janeiro last failed to connect. Both players received double CLIPPERS 97, GRIZZLIES 79 tie it at 95 it on a pull-up 3-pointer by Langston last year, screamed with delight on reaching week and I hope to do it,” he added in a technical fouls and were ejected. Terrence Ross Chris Paul had 19 points and 13 assists, and Galloway with 6.3 seconds remaining. the Argentine Open semi-finals with a 6-1 6- courtside interview after the quarter-final at scored 18 points for Toronto. They have lost four DeAndre Jordan added 15 points and 22 1 rout of Federico Delbonis on Friday. the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club. straight. rebounds to lead Los Angeles past Memphis. JAZZ 104, NUGGETS 82 Nadal, who went down to a first defeat in The Spaniard, who dropped to world Jamal Crawford also had 19 points, and J.J. had 21 points, 10 rebounds 53 consecutive semi-finals on clay at the Rio number four with his loss to Italian Fabio PACERS 93, CAVALIERS 86 Redick finished with 18. Matt Barnes added 13 and three blocks, came off the bench Open last weekend, pumped his fist after Fognini in Rio de Janeiro, meets With LeBron James and Kyrie Irving sidelined, for the Clippers. Zach Randolph led Memphis to score 19 points and Utah beat struggling winning a superb rally in the fifth game of Argentine Carlos Berlocq in Saturday’s Rodney Stuckey scored 19 points and George with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Jordan helped Denver. added 15 points for the second set and again when the second semi-final with a 65th title and Hill had his first career triple-double in Indiana’s the Clippers to a 47-41 advantage in rebounds. the Jazz. Utah has won five of its last seven. Will Argentine hit the ball wide on second match Guillermo Vilas’s record of 46 claycourt victory over Cleveland. Barton had 22 points for the Nuggets. They have point. “It was very important for me to reach crowns in his sights. Juan Monaco, tour- Hill had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists SPURS 107, KINGS 96 lost nine straight at home and 18 of 20 overall. the semi-finals here in Argentina,” said nament winner in 2007, faces 2011 cham- to help Indiana win for the seventh time in nine Tony Parker scored 19 points, Kawhi Leonard Denver was in the playoff conversation after a Nadal, who overwhelmed Delbonis in an pion Nicolas Almagro in the other games - including twice over the Cavaliers in the had 17 points and seven rebounds, and San five-game winning streak in mid-January, but impressive battering lasting one hour and Argentine-Spanish semi-final. —Reuters past three weeks. Antonio snapped a four-game losing streak with has fallen into 13th place in the Western James sat out with soreness in his lower back, a victory over short-handed Sacramento. Conference. while Irving stayed home after hurting his left The Spurs avoided their first five-game skid shoulder. J.R. Smith had 21 points and Kevin since late in the 2010-11 season with an efficient 76ERS 89, WIZARDS 81 Love finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. and aggressive performance. They had just six had 14 points and 13 rebounds turnovers and made 29 of 32 free throws, offset- for Philadelphia. Robert Covington added 13 BULLS 96, TIMBERWOLVES 89 ting a night they shot below 40 percent from the points and Jason Richardson had 12 to help had 28 points and 12 rebounds floor. Kings center DeMarcus Cousins sat out Philadelphia snap a five-game winning streak and Chicago beat Minnesota for its seventh vic- with a sprained left ankle and bruised left hip, and win for the first time since trading Michael tory in its last nine games. Mike Dunleavy made and point guard Darren Collison missed his Carter-Williams. five 3-pointers on his way to 21 points, and eighth consecutive game as he prepares to have scored 21 points on 7-of-26 shoot- Joakim Noah finished with 11 points, 12 surgery on a core muscle injury that will sideline ing for Washington. added 19 and rebounds and eight assists. The Bulls trailed 85- him at least another month. Sacramento is 2-11 Ramon Sessions had 14. The Wizards have lost 84 before Kirk Hinrich drove inside for a layup without Cousins. six in a row and 11 of 13. with 4:29 remaining, and then made a smart pass to Dunleavy for an open 3 that made ROCKETS 102, NETS 98 CELTICS 106, HORNETS 98 it 89-85. Butler added a clutch bank shot to help Terrence Jones scored a season-high 26 Isaiah Thomas scored 28 points and Boston Chicago improve to 10-1 in its last 11 games points, James Harden made the tiebreaking free overcame a 16-point third-quarter deficit to beat against Minnesota. throw with 43 seconds left and followed that Charlotte for its third straight victory. Kevin Martin scored 18 points for the with a jumper in Houston’s victory over Thomas scored 21 points in the second half. Timberwolves. Minnesota coach Flip Saunders Brooklyn. Harden, who played after spraining his Fellow newcomer Jonas Jerebko had 16 points rested Kevin Garnett in the first part of back-to- right ankle on Wednesday night, shot just 4 for and 10 rebounds. Mo Williams had 31 points for BUENOS AIRES: Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball to Federico Delbonis of back games. 15 for 15 points, but had 12 assists. The Rockets Charlotte. —AP Argentina at the ATP Argentina Open. Nadal won the match 6-1 6-1. —AP