shot hit off the rim. Losing Kanacevic was a costly blow for the H

PORTLAND, Ore. - With a potential playoff spot in the balance, as well as a chance to climb to the top of the Cascadia Cup standings, the Vancouver Whitecaps travelled to Portland on Saturday looking to make amends for the drubbing suffered at the the hands of the Timbers less than a month ago.It was not to be.In a near-replica of that August 20th matchup at B.C. Place Stadium, Vancouver got off to a lively start before giving up a goal and then fading down the stretch. Portland dominated for long stretches en route to another 3-0 trouncing of the Whitecaps in front of 20,814 at Providence Park.Fanendo Adi scored twice, Diego Valeri added a goal and an assist, and Donovan Ricketts had his fourth shutout as the Whitecaps ceded the fifth and final Western Conference playoff spot to their Pacific Northwest rivals with just five games remaining.Were chasing them now, said Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson. Its a different scenario when youre chasing a team rather than them chasing you.The game started with the visitors creating some good chances in the opening 15 minutes, including a Sebastian Fernandez shot in the games first minute that went just wide of the post.For the first 20-odd minutes we were excellent but werent able to capitalize on that, said Robinson. And goals change games, as we all know.Unfortunately for the Whitecaps, it was the Timbers that changed the game to their benefit.Following an end-to-end first twenty minutes, momentum started to shift in Portlands favour, culminating in the opening goal from Valeri at the 28-minute mark. The sequence started with Steven Beitashour getting caught in a two-on-one situation on the right wing. With Beitashour unable to commit, Portlands Jorge Villafana had time and space to neatly pick out Valeri running unmarked through Vancouvers penalty area.My initial reaction was to go out, but I saw I had guy, said Beitashour. I didnt want to go out and have them just play in behind, so I sat in and he whipped in a good ball. Great finish.Beitashour, a question to start prior to the match, had words with Mauro Rosales about the defending mixup, but the damage was already done.The goal took the wind out of our sails, said centre back Andy OBrien.Robinson agreed that there was a bit of a drop-off in Vancouvers performance once the home side took the lead.When we go a goal down, were probably not playing with the same energy, desire or confidence we should, Robinson said. But weve got to learn, because were not always going to score the first goal.The Timbers put a choke-hold on the remainder of the first half and Vancouver took a one-goal deficit into halftime.The visitors regrouped to start the second half, but a costly mistake in the 66th minute by Matias Laba gave Portland a chance to double the lead, and Adi capitalized on the chance for the first of his two goals on the night.Laba tried to cut the ball back near midfield with his teammates mostly in the attacking third. Valeri took it cleanly off Laba and easily found Adi breaking towards David Ousteds net all alone.Ninety-nine times out of 100 (Laba) makes that play, said Robinson. Valeris a good player, hes knicked the ball.Adi put the finishing touches on just four minutes later, slipping a ball between Ousteds legs for the final goal of the game.The additions of Kekuta Manneh, Darren Mattocks and Nicolas Mezquida created a flurry of half-chances in the waning moments of the game, but Portland saw out the match to keep the visitors scoreless for the the sixth time in nine games. Vancouver is winless on the road in that stretch as well.Its not a fun way to lose, said Ousted. Its not a fun place to lose, especially with the fan support we had out today. There are five games left and we cant feel sorry for ourselves, we cant get down. We need to continue to work.The Whitecaps face three playoff-bound teams in their remaining five games, starting next Saturday at home against Real Salt lake.Despite the recent form and a tough outlook for upcoming games, Robinson doesnt feel his team is wilting.People can say whatever they want, he said. 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With one week left in the regular season, Cornish - voted The Toughest Player To Bring Down - is a leading candidate for the CFLs Most Outstanding Player award. He has rushed for 1,799 yards and could break Willie Burdens club record for rushing yards in a single season with a 98-yard performance against the B. Nike NFL Jerseys Outlet . "I honestly dont know," he said. Try this: 20 points, nine assists and seven rebounds by Rajon Rondo, a 62-37 rebounding advantage by the Celtics and a horrible 4-for-30 shooting performance on 3-pointers by the Nets.BUFFALO, N.Y. -- With Jim Calhoun watching from the stands, Shabazz Napier capped Connecticut coach Kevin Ollies first NCAA tournament appearance with a win. Shaking off a 23-foot miss at the second-half buzzer, Napier scored nine of his 24 points in overtime to lead seventh-seeded UConn (27-8) to an 89-81 win over 10th-seeded Saint Josephs (24-10) in the second round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday night. DeAndre Daniels scored 18 while freshman centre Amida Brimah forced overtime by completing a three-point play in the final minute. It was a big victory for Ollie, who took over two years ago after Calhoun was forced to step down because of health issues. After the Huskies won three national titles in 26 seasons under Calhoun, Ollie became the first UConn coach to lead the program to a tournament berth since Dom Perno in 1979. And it came a year after Connecticut was barred from post-season play because of academic sanctions. Langston Galloway scored 25 points for Saint Josephs (24-10). The Hawks wore down because of a lack of depth, and then lost their top forward Halil Kanacevic, who fouled out early into overtime. The Huskies advance to play Saturday, when theyll face the winner of an East Region game between No. 2 seed Villanova and No. 15 Milwaukee. With the game tied at 70 entering overtime, Daniels opened the scoring by completed a three-point play with 3:47 left during a 5-minute period the Huskies never trailed. Napier then scored seven straight points -- five of them coming from the line -- to put the Huskies up 82-74 with 55 seconds remaining. The game turned in the final minute of regulation and after Hawks guard Chris Wilson hit two free throws to put Saint Joes up 70-67 with 49.dddddddddddd.2 seconds left. Napier missed on a drive at the other end, but Brimah got the rebound to the left of the basket, and was fouled while putting it back. He tied the game by hitting the free throw. Taking over with 39 seconds left, the Hawks never got a shot off on what became their final possession of regulation. Galloway twice lost the ball on the dribble, but got it back both times, before launching a desperation shot that hit off the side of the backboard as the shot clock expired. With 2.7 seconds left, the Huskies made two nifty passes to get the ball to Napier on the fly, who pulled up just before the 3-point line and had his shot hit off the rim. Losing Kanacevic was a costly blow for the Hawks, who have little depth beyond their starting five. Kanacevic finished with 12 points and seven rebounds. Freshman DeAndre Bembry scored 16 points for a Hawks team that won the Atlantic 10 tournament title last weekend. After hitting 13 of their first 20 baskets, the Hawks offence cooled. Saint Joes went 10 of 22 in the second half, and finished the game going 27 of 54. The Huskies were coming off a 71-61 loss to Louisville in the American Athletic Conference title game on Saturday. Theyve now won 10 of their past three, with two of those losses coming against Louisville. The opening nine minutes of the game featured eight lead changes before the Hawks eventually broke the game open by building a 37-27 lead with 3:09 left, when DeAndre Bembry hit two free throws. The Hawks hit 13 of their first 20 attempts and were up 40-32 before UConns Ryan Boatright hit a 3-point basket with 8 seconds left. ' ' '