tally different, said the retired 15-year NBA vet. I mean, I just le

SAINT-ETIENNE, France -- Saint-Etienne made up ground in the race for a Champions League spot by defeating third-place Lille 2-0 Friday in the French league. Brazilian striker Brandao opened the scoring with a header in the 55th minute before winger Franck Tabanou volleyed home from close range to double the lead in the 61st. Lille was down to 10 men in the 62nd when midfielder Florent Balmont was red-carded for dissent. Saint-Etienne bounced back from a French Cup elimination against fourth-division side Cannes on Tuesday to pull within three points of Lille. "The team that wanted it the most tonight won the match," Saint-Etienne coach Christophe Galtier said. "We showed courage to make things happen. My players were rewarded for their efforts." The hosts struggled to provide some decent service to Brandao in a tactical first half. Lille centre back David Rozehnal cleared dangerous crosses from Saint-Etienne wingers Romain Hamouma in the 27th and Tabanou in the 33rd. The visitors did not create much either but were more threatening from set pieces. Lille defender Simon Kjaer headed a corner over the bar in the third minute before Salomon Kalou connected with a free kick from Balmont in the ninth for a header that Saint-Etienne goalkeeper Stephane Ruffier palmed away. One accurate final ball made the difference in the second half. A cross from Saint-Etienne leftback Faouzi Ghoulam eluded the Lille defence, but Brandao beat the offside trap to head in at the far post. Six minutes later, Tabanou converted a rebound after Lille goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama parried a volley from Hamouma. Balmont spotted a foul from Tabanou in the build-up to the goal and argued with the referee, who sent off the Lille midfielder. "I told him there was a foul and that it was a disgrace," Balmont said. "In the heat of the discussion, I told him he was rubbish. To me, thats not an insult, thats what is frustrating. But he took it as an insult." Saint-Etienne could have added a third goal in the 78th but Tabanou failed to convert from six yards a low cross from Hamouma. Ruffier kept a clean sheet by saving a close-range effort from Lille substitute Ryan Mendes in the 86th. "We played for about an hour and then we faded after conceding that goal," Lille coach Rene Girard said. "We gave up. We will sort out those problems together. Its in the heads. We will have to put a few heads in the fridge. We must get back to things that are more down to earth." On Saturday, its: Marseille vs. Valenciennes; Bastia vs. Bordeaux; Lorient vs. Guingamp: Nice vs. Ajaccio; Rennes vs. Evian; and Sochaux vs. Montpellier. On Sunday, leader Paris Saint-Germain hosts Nantes, Monaco visits Toulouse and Lyon faces Reims. Patriots Jerseys .C. -- LeBron James called comments on an audio recording of a man identified as Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling "appalling" and said hes not sure if he would suit up for the remainder of the NBA playoffs if he played for the Clippers. Custom Patriots Jerseys . Hamelin overcame a weak start to win bronze in the 500-metre race behind winner Wu Dajing of China and American J.R. Celski on Saturday at the world short track speed skating championship. http://www.authenticpatriotsfanatic.com/c-115-patriots-jason-mccourty-jersey.aspx .Before a raucous sellout crowd, the Hawks won for the 29th time in 31 games to extend their Eastern-best record to 36-8.As usual, pretty much everyone chipped in.Four starters were in double figures and backup point guard Dennis Schroder led a spurt at the start of the fourth quarter that helped the Hawks pull away. Jason McCourty Jersey . Booth picked up 65 caps after making her national team debut in 2002 at the age of 17. She most recently played for Sky Blue FC of the National Womens Soccer League. "It just felt like it was my time to move on," she said in a phone interview from her hometown of Burlington, Ont. Adrian Clayborn Jersey . Dane Dobbie had four goals and two assists, Karsen Leung had two goals and two assists, and Matthew Dinsdale scored two and helped on another for Calgary (6-3). Shawn Evans and Jeff Shattler had eight-point games with a goal and seven assists apiece, and Jon Harnett and Geoff Snider also scored.TORONTO - As DeMar DeRozan finished addressing the media ahead of Friday nights game, the first time hes spoken publicly since going down with his injury last week, one reporter pointed out hell need some new suits. DeRozan has missed the Raptors last four games with a torn tendon in his groin and will be a spectator for the foreseeable future. But the 25-year-old All-Star guard and iron man did not watch his teams 105-91 loss to Cleveland from the bench. He stood in the tunnel for some of it but spent most of the night sitting in front of a television. He watched the previous three games from his couch, as the Raptors were out West, and had avoided sitting on the sideline during the three contests he missed last season. Its not for a lack of leadership or interest on his part. Its also not for a lack of suits. Its simply too difficult for him. Thats been the biggest adjustment as he continues to recover from the first serious injury of his five-plus year career. Its definitely tough, just for me personally, the Raptors leading scorer admitted before Fridays game. Im used to being out there. Its more just frustrating than anything, because I always want to be out there every single night with my teammates. DeRozan had missed just 11 of a possible 394 games over his first five seasons and into his sixth. A self-made star, he has become known for his relentless work ethic, a player that has spent countless hours in the gym each day for the bulk of his life. Now, hes got a bunch of time on his hands and, understandably, its driving him crazy. Where does he spend most of his time? On the couch, he responded. If theres no basketball game on Im playing Madden. Thats been my day, every single day, just to keep my sanity. I dont have a choice now. Its different when you have a choice but I dont have no choice now. Ive just got to stay positive and just become more of a student and grow mentally. Just because hes not watching from the bench doesnt mean hes not watching. DeRozan hopes to use this time as an opportunity to see the game in a new light. Dwane Casey has asked him to sit in on the coaches meetings, something hes looking forward to doing. Hes just happy to get off the couch. I think this is going to definitely help me out mentally, just becoming more of a student of the game and really scouting and looking at the game a different way, he said. Just understanding a lot more about the game, outside of being a basketball player, honestly. Seeing how coaches approach the game. DeRozan sustained the injury a week ago, slipping and falling awkwardly in a loss to the Mavericks. Toronto has split the four games hes missed, scoring over 120 points in two of them. But they could have used him Friday. With the Cavs in town, the Raptors red-hot offence turned ice cold in a hurry. Amir Johnson aside - he scored a season-high 27 on 11-for-15 from the field - Toronto struggled to find any kind of rhythm. We go from a game at altitude [in Utah], where we shoot 57 per cent and tonight we couldnt buy a bucket, Casey said after his team shot a mere 41 per cent against Cleveland. We couldnt hit the side of a barn with a bass fiddle. Its one of those things that you look at the schedule and you kind of expect that. But were better than that. I know this team tonight wasnt us, he continued. First game back from a west-coast trip, the [last] team you want to see is a team as talented as Cleveland. Two weeks ago it was DeRozans surprising defence on James and his big second-half effort that helped the Raptors erase an early 18-point deficit to knock off the struggling Cavaliers in Cleveland. They havent lost since, winners of six in a row. Even without DeRozan, this is a deep team that should have enough talent to steal at least half their games and compete more often than not. But against the leagues best, theyll need all hands on deck. This is a tight-knit group and the chemistry theyve built over the last year is something DeRozan values now more than ever. Its definitely helpful, DeRozan said. Amir texted me one night, couple nights ago and he just said he was walking down the hotel hallway screaming my name and he was used to me popping my head out the door. Something like that goes so far because it just shows the appreciation that your teammates have for you and the relationship that you have together. It keeps him integrated with the team, added Kyle Lowry, who has picked up the slack with his teammate out, scoring 22 in the loss to Cleveland. I think when youre still integrated with the team you dont feel as lonely. It can get lonely not traveling with the team, not being with the team but our growth and the relationship with our teammates, were like family. The Raptors still dont have a timetable on DeRozans return to the court. Surgery is not being considered, instead theyre taking a patient approach to his recovery, reevaluating his progress on a week-to-week basis. Im feeling better each day, he said. Just trying to stay off it as much as I can, get as much rest as I can, continue to eat well and just let it heal. I always looked at it like it could be worse. It could be a lot worse. Im still going to come back, Im still going to play. Returrn of T-Mac Tracy McGrady isnt the first controversial former Raptor to be honoured as part of the teams continued 20th anniversary celebrations, and likely wont be the last.dddddddddddd When its all said and done, theyll have paid homage to something in the neighbourhood of 15 players from their past and the unfortunate reality is you can probably put an asterisk next to most of their Raptor tenures. Some of them werent here long, some didnt win enough, some left on bad terms. McGrady checks all three of those boxes. The ninth overall pick in 1997, Torontos third ever first-round selection, McGrady spent three seasons north of the border before bolting for his hometown in Orlando ahead of his 22nd birthday. Drafted straight out of high school, he didnt play a prominent role until his third season for the Raptors first ever playoff team. Like his former teammate Vince Carter, McGrady has been booed each time hes returned to the Air Canada Centre as a visiting player, but his case is a little bit different, having left as an unrestricted free agent. The way it ended with me and it ended with [Carter] was totally different, said the retired 15-year NBA vet. I mean, I just left to go play [at] home, it was no hard feelings or anything involved. It was a little bit different for him because of the statements that he made a little bit later on. Same as his distant cousin and the rest of the teams honourees to this point - Alvin Williams, Antonio Davis and Jalen Rose - McGrady was given a standing ovation after a video tribute was shown on the big screen early in Friday nights game. Speaking ahead of tip-off, McGrady expressed some regret over his decision to escape Carters shadow and move on so early in his career. Looking back, yeah, I wish I would have stayed, because I didnt expect myself to pan out to be that type of player that I turned into, said the seven-time All-Star, who went on to win two scoring titles with the Magic before spending five seasons in Houston. And to team up with Vince and what we built there, if you listen to Kobe [Bryant], if you look back on what Kobe said a while back, he said had I stayed here we probably would have been playing the Lakers in a couple of championships. So, I dont like to look back. It was great times here, I just felt like at the time... let me say this, if the organization was the way it is now back then, theres no way I would have left. And in the end, thats what it comes down to: closure. The Raptors are thriving as an organization and theyre off to their best start in franchise history. As they say, living well is the best revenge and with the team turning a corner, it seems some fans are finally able to let go. After all, perspective is important here. These arent jersey retirement ceremonies, theyre 60-second video montages. Hoping to lure stars to Toronto in the future, its important to the organization that they show some love to players of the past. Theres no question for me, said Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri. When I came here, you think about it and I know theres all the talk on how they left and all that stuff, but thats gone. Lets think about the future. These guys helped inspire young kids in Canada and look at where basketball is. Every young kid, prospects, they mention those guys and how they elevated them to get to play the game. So for me, 20 years, embrace it, man. Were lucky to have Tracy McGrady, were lucky to have Vince Carter, were lucky to the great fans that we have. Lets move on. Lets embrace the guys we have now and share it and move on. Giant of Africa Toronto laid out the red carpet Friday, welcoming basketball royalty to town for Ujiris event - The Giant of Africa - honouring the life of his hero Nelson Mandela. Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson and Dikembe Mutombo sat courtside and were among those in attendance as the Raptors turned their practice facility into a pre-game cocktail reception. On the first anniversary of Mandelas passing, Ujiri hosted the evening-long celebration of the late former South African President and Nobel Peace Prize winner, also supporting the Nelson Mandela Foundation and Giants of Africa, his not-for-profit organization. The world is not in a good place, in my opinion, and [Mandela] makes it better, Ujiri said, tearing up. I think hes going to be bigger, even though hes passed. He was bigger than life. Its incredible. To see Magic, Dikembe, Charles, all these guys here, you cant ask for anything better, and they came just like that. Its touching for me. The Raptors welcomed all three NBA legends with highlight videos, each of them receiving a standing ovation from a sellout crowd. The team is one of the top two or three teams in the East, Johnson said of the Raptors. Theyre a powerhouse now, its no more the Raptors we used to know. Wed mark down, okay, theres two wins for us with the Raptors, we wont worry about them. Now, this is a serious Eastern Conference championship team so [Ujiris] built a wonderful team. Hes done a wonderful job but hes showing people also that he has a heart and soul and that the Toronto Raptors are not just about playing winning basketball, theyre also about touching the world and I love that. 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