ta: Eliminated earlier in the day from Big Ten championship game contention, the Gophers can still tie for

MILWAUKEE -- Center Anthony Davis is off to a fantastic start but not much else has gone right this season for the New Orleans Pelicans.In search for their first victory, the Pelicans will look to get it in gear on Thursday night when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks.Davis is fourth in the league with 30.9 points per game and among the league leaders in rebounds, steals, blocks and double-doubles. It hasnt amounted to much, though. The Pelicans are 21st in scoring, 24th in shooting, eighth in points allowed and 14th in opponents shooting percentage.Put it all together and the result is a frustrating 0-8 record on the season.We still have breakdowns in the game plan, which you cant do from a mental standpoint, New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry said. We have crucial turnovers at critical times in the game. Weve just got to play better and smarter.Part of New Orleans problem so far stems from a short-handed roster. The Pelicans have been playing without three key starters: Tyreke Evans and Quincy Poindexter have been battling knee problems while JRue Holiday is out for personal reasons.Gentry refused to use the personnel shortages as an excuse, however.We just have to play better, Gentry told reporters after the Pelicans 102-94 loss at Sacramento Tuesday night. Theres just no way of getting around it. The effort is good and I talked to the guys about the fact that I love the way we are playing hard. But we all have to play smart. In some cases we are not playing smart.The Bucks (4-3), meanwhile, will be looking to get back on track after their three-game winning streak was snapped Sunday night in Dallas, where poor shooting and lackluster defense doomed Milwaukee to an ugly 86-75 overtime loss.We just really played bad, forward Jabari Parker said. Even in overtime, we only scored one point. We cant let that happen. We had to get them out of their groove and close it out to seal the deal.Taking care of the ball has been something of a problem this season for the Bucks, who are allowing 18.1 points per game on 16.1 turnovers. The problem was evident again Sunday as Milwaukee gave up 21 points on 27 turnovers.We turned it over three straight times, and if youre going to win a game on the road in overtime, you cant turn the ball over, head coach Jason Kidd said.The two teams met earlier this month in New Orleans with Milwaukee holding on late for a 117-113 victory to snap a 14-year losing streak in the Crescent City. Davis scored 35 points, but most of his points came from the free throw line -- where he made 17 of 18 attempts. From the field, Davis went 9 of 21 while the Pelicans shot 43.9 percent as a team.We just wanted to make him work for it, Bucks center John Henson said.Milwaukee, meanwhile, shot 48 percent from the floor and hit 10 of 32 3-point attempts while getting 24 points from Giannis Antetokounmpo and 21 from Jabari Parker.I think tonight was the first time we really trusted our offense, point guard Malcom Brogdon said. We stuck to the game plan. We played like a team and battled through it,That loss dropped the Pelicans to 0-4 on the year. Air Max 95 Canada Outlet . Howard Ganz, an MLB lawyer, said in a letter to U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos that Rodriguezs claims do not come "remotely close" to what is needed to overturn an arbitration decision in federal court. Wholesale Air Max Canada . Its an influence in football and a big part of the game. http://www.clearanceairmax95canada.com/ .ca! Kerry, Two nights after the Scott-Eriksson incident in Buffalo, the Bruins returned home to play San Jose. In that game, Zdeno Chara put a check on Tommy Wingels that clearly targeted his head. Cheap Air Max 95 Canada Fast Shipping . - Goaltender Philippe Desrosiers of the Rimouski Oceanic has broken a shutout record that was only three months old in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Cheap Nike Shoes Canada . -- Arizona knocked off some quality opponents, rolled over a few overmatched ones and grinded out victories even when things didnt go so well. MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesotas defense delivered an overpowering performance. Mitch Leidner provided the finishing touch.Leidner threw his first touchdown pass in seven weeks and Blake Cashman and Steven Richardson each had two of Minnesotas season-high seven sacks , leading the Gophers to a 29-12 victory over Northwestern on Saturday.Playing at home for the final time, Leidner found Drew Wolitarsky from 9 yards out with 6:46 left to give the Gophers (8-3, 5-3) a 22-6 lead and then ran in a 12-yard score with 2:31 remaining. The fifth-year senior, who was intercepted once, ended a five-game streak without a touchdown pass.Its been long overdue, Wolitarsky said, smiling.Emmit Carpenter made three field goals and Shannon Brooks totaled 110 yards from scrimmage for the Gophers, whose offense sputtered through most of the afternoon after an 80-yard game-opening march into the end zone and before the late Leidner-led push.Hey, find a way to win this thing, coach Tracy Claeys said. Who cares how anybody has played?Clayton Thorson threw for 276 yards and a late score, but the Wildcats (5-6, 4-4) were denied on fourth-and-1 at the Minnesota 16 in the second quarter and fourth-and-1 at the Gophers 13 in the third quarter. They lost two fumbles and failed on both 2-point conversion tries.Weve just got to learn how to finish, wide receiver Andrew Scanlan said.CARR CRASHAustin Carr, the Big Tens leading receiver, had five catches for 68 yards for the Wildcats before leaving the field a bit woozy from a helmet-to-helmet hit by Minnesota safety Duke McGhee. The targeting penalty, the seventh time this season a Gophers player has received the automatic ejection including two for McGhee, helped set up Northwesterns first score.He knows better than that, Claeys said.Fitzgerald declined to discuss Carrs condition, beyond he seemed to be doing well after the game. The 4-yard touchdown run by Justin Jackson with 2:17 left in the third quarter finished the drive and cut the lead to 15-6, but the Gophers werent deterred.Emotions were pretty high at that point, but were a level-headed team and we didnt let that affect us, said linebacker Jack Lynn, who had 1 1/2 of Minneesotas 12 tackles for loss.dddddddddddd.TAKE THATRichardson recalled a recruiting visit that Fitzgerald once made to his high school, Chicagos Mount Carmel, that left him feeling snubbed. Richardson, listed at 6 feet and 300 pounds, said Fitzgerald was immediately turned off by his lack of height.I saw that guy come into my high school coachs office and just look me up and down and just look at me like Im way too short to play the game, Richardson said. It was really nice to play one of these types of game in front of him, just because he doubted you.EMPTY SEATSWith a kickoff temperature of 30 degrees, including an 18-degree wind chill factor, the Gophers played in front of their smallest crowd (38,162) in eight seasons at TCF Bank Stadium. Less than half of those fans were still in the seats by the fourth quarter. Minnesotas average attendance this year was 43,814, the lowest since 2002 when the team played at the Metrodome.THE TAKEAWAYNorthwestern: With the Thorson-to-Carr connection quiet even before the star pass-catcher departed the game, the Wildcats were uncharacteristically unproductive on offense until they entered catch-up mode late and padded their statistics.Minnesota: Eliminated earlier in the day from Big Ten championship game contention, the Gophers can still tie for first place in the West Division by upsetting Wisconsin and having Iowa beat Nebraska. They reached the eight-win mark for the third time in four seasons, a feat not accomplished by the program since 1905.UP NEXTNorthwestern: Hosting in-state rival Illinois on Saturday, the Wildcats need a win for bowl eligibility. Theyve beaten the Illini in three of the last four meetings.Minnesota: Seeking their first victory over Wisconsin since 2003 on Saturday, the Gophers have not won at Camp Randall Stadium since 1994.Itd be a great way to top off the year, no question, Leidner said. I know its really important to a lot of guys on this team.---For more college football coverage: http://www.collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '