Dein erstes Forum » Toronto leads the major

HOUSTON -- Houston is starting to make a habit of 40-point first quarters. After not scoring 40 points in the opening quarter in the last five seasons, the Rockets have done it five times this season and twice in the last three games. Terrence Jones had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Rockets opened a big early lead and beat the Detroit Pistons 118-110 on Saturday night for their third win in four games. Jones finished 10 of 15 from the floor as Houston shot 50 per cent for the game, including 61 per cent in the first half. Houston scored 41 points in the first quarter and finished 11 of 33 from behind the arc. "We got a big halftime lead and didnt play well in the second half," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "We came out and really moved the ball. We had it going up and down and just did a nice job of doing what weve been talking about doing, which is attacking early, getting inside to Dwight (Howard) and making some nice passes." James Harden added 20 points and 12 assists, Patrick Beverley had 19 points and Howard chipped in 17 points and eight rebounds. Reserve Omri Casspi scored 16 points and Jordan Hamilton had 13. While saying it was an important win before the Rockets begin a stretch against some of the top teams in the NBA on Tuesday against Miami, Howard did not like the way Houston came out in the second half. "I thought we should have really put the foot on the gas," Howard said. "We didnt. We allowed them to get back into the game, and that is not what we need to do if we want to be a championship team." Rodney Stuckey had 23 points on 10 of 17 shooting off the bench, and Josh Smith added 21 points for the Pistons, who dropped their fourth straight and seventh in eight games. Andre Drummond had 16 points and 17 rebounds, Greg Monroe had 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Brandon Jennings chipped in 11 points and eight assists for Detroit, which shot 45 per cent from the field. "In the first half, we didnt play with the energy, enthusiasm or desire you have to play at to play against any NBA team, let alone a high-level team like Houston," Detroit interim coach John Loyer said. "We came in here, and I told our guys we played harder in practice than the first 24 minutes. We had more juice, energy running a three-man weave than we did in the first half. There are two halves to a game, and fortunately, we played a much better second half." Detroit fell four games out of the final Eastern Conference playoff spot. Drummond said the Pistons have enough time to make the playoffs. "We have enough time to do anything, and were four games out, so it comes to what we do as a team," Drummond said. "It cant be one or two people. We have to be as a collective group to want to buckle down and try to win games." Trailing 102-84 with 10:33 remaining, Detroit outscored the Rockets 13-5 over the next 4:22 to cut the lead to 10 on Smiths free throws, but Beverley nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to push the lead back to 16 with four minutes remaining. The Pistons closed within seven once more with a 10-1 run, capped by consecutive layups by Stuckey, but got no closer. "I think guys stopped playing a little bit because of the lead," Jones said. "We just tried to make sure that we got back to it on the defensive end to make sure we got the win. I think we did that late in the fourth." The Rockets, who never trailed, moved to 40-19. Only the 1993-94 team that started 40-15 got to 40 wins faster. Houston used a 16-2 run over a three-minute stretch of the first quarter to open a 23-6 lead on Howards two free throws 5 minutes into the game. "We did a good job of coming out with some aggression and getting some defensive stops and getting out in transition," Harden said. Houston expanded its lead to 58-33 on Howards free throw with 4:58 remaining in the first half. The Rockets led 69-46 at the break. NOTES: Houston forward Chandler Parsons missed the game with an illness. . Rockets centre Greg Smith underwent an exploratory arthroscopic knee surgery Wednesday to repair a medial meniscus tear and to examine changes to ligament structures in his right knee. Smith, who has missed 36 games this season, is out indefinitely. . Drummond leads the Eastern Conference with 43 double-doubles this season Arizona Diamondbacks Pro Shop . -- Darrelle Revis says at least 26 teams called after he was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Danny Bautista Jersey . PAUL, Minn. https://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.us/. For the first time all night, as the Raptors were on the clock to make the 20th overall selection, no one had the slightest idea what was about to happen. No leaks, no whispers, nothing. Robbie Ray Jersey .com) - Mikko Korhonen carded a 5-under 67 on Thursday to claim medalist honors at the European Tours Final Qualifying Stage tournament. Ketel Marte Jersey . Rico dove horizontally to meet Andoni Iraolas precise long cross from the right to score his second league goal of the season in the 33rd minute. Two minutes later, Aritz Aduriz netted Bilbaos second when he raced forward and pounced on a poor clearance by Villarreal defender Mateo Musacchio, sending a low shot rolling past goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo.TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays power numbers have been impressive during their seven-game winning streak that has taken them to the top of the American League East standings. Theyre also doing the little things right and it paid off in a 10-5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night. Bunt singles, hustle plays, slick defence, outfield assists -- the Blue Jays are doing it all while keeping the long ball in their arsenal. Edwin Encarnacion, Steve Tolleson and Dioner Navarro hit solo homers and Toronto (30-22) pounded out 16 hits in the opener of a three-game series on a muggy night at Rogers Centre. "They just put the heavy gloves on and beat us up tonight," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. The Blue Jays jumped out to a 2-0 lead after opening with five straight hits on Canadian starter Erik Bedard (2-3). Tampa Bay (23-29) did some damage against Toronto starter Drew Hutchison (4-3) but could never move into the lead. Every time the Rays scored, the Blue Jays were quick to answer. When Tampa Bay tied the game in the third inning, Navarro and Tolleson responded with back-to-back homers in the fourth. When the Rays pulled even again in the fifth, Toronto put four more runs on the board in the bottom half before Encarnacion added an insurance run with a solo shot in the sixth inning. With the win, Toronto remained two games ahead of second-place New York in the A.L. East. The Yankees defeated St. Louis 6-4 in 12 innings. The Blue Jays have won seven of their last eight home games and 12 of their last 14 games overall. "When things are going good, theyre going good," said Toronto manager John Gibbons. It was Encarnacions 13th homer this month, breaking Jose Bautistas club record for home runs in the month of May that was set in 2010. Melky Cabrera chipped in with three hits, while Brett Lawrie of Langley, B.C., Navarro and Kevin Pillar added two hits apiece. "It was just not enough," Maddon said. "They kept adding on. They have such a good lineup and when the bottom (of the order) contributes like they did today, it makes it even more difficult." The Blue Jays showed their mix of skill and power in the first inning. A bunt single, double and three straight singles got the crowd of 15,616 into the game early. David DeJesus hit a solo shot for Tampa Bay in the third and James Loney later drove in Evan Longoria with a sacrifice fly. The Rays loaded the bases but Tolleson showed his range at second base by cuutting off a sharp grounder by Cole Figueroa and making an off-balance throw to first for the third out.dddddddddddd Toronto responded in the fourth inning by hitting back-to-back homers for the third time this season. The Blue Jays also used a little small ball to push another run across. Pillar reached on an infield single and moved to second when Anthony Gose dropped down a nice sacrifice bunt. Reyes moved Pillar to third on a grounder to the right side of the infield and Cabrera drove him in with a single. In the fifth, Tampa Bays Matt Joyce hit a one-out double and cleanup hitter Desmond Jennings followed with his fifth homer of the season. Loney tied the game with a solo shot -- the first time the Rays have hit back-to-back homers this year. Toronto responded with four runs in the bottom half of the frame. Encarnacion and Lawrie hit back-to-back doubles and Navarro added an RBI single to make it 7-5, knocking Bedard out of the game. Alex Colome came on in relief and didnt fare much better. He walked pinch-hitter Juan Francisco and got Pillar to fly out before being burned by the speedy Gose, who out-hustled Colome to the bag on a slow chopper to the right side. Reyes drew a bases-loaded walk and Cabrera drove in Francisco with a sacrifice fly. Encarnacion led off the Toronto half of the sixth by turning on a 2-2 pitch from Colome. Entering the game, the Toronto slugger led the major leagues in homers in May, was tied for first with 17 extra-base hits and was second with 25 RBIs. Cabrera and Gose each chipped in with an outfield assist. Pillar also showed off his defensive skill in right field by making a nice sliding catch at the warning track to prevent Longoria from driving in a couple of runs. Hutchison allowed seven hits, five earned runs and four walks. Bedard, from Navan, Ont., gave up 12 hits, seven earned runs and struck out a pair. Notes: The game took two hours 58 minutes to play. ... Bautista owns the club record for most homers in a month with 14 in June 2012. ... Toronto leads the major leagues with 55 homers. The Blue Jays have gone deep in nine straight games. ... Toronto left-hander Mark Buehrle (8-1) is scheduled to start Tuesday night against right-hander Alex Cobb (1-0). ... The Blue Jays will close out their 10-game homestand later this week with a four-game series against the Kansas City Royals. ... For Tampa Bay, it was the first game of a nine-day, eight-game road swing that will continue with stops in Boston and Miami. ' ' '