Black- and Whitelist » frustrating for him. Its veery

MINNEAPOLIS -- Kevin Love worked all summer long to put an injury plagued season behind him and reclaim his spot as the best power forward in the league. LaMarcus Aldridge of the Portland Trail Blazers is one of the players standing in his way. In their first head-to-head matchup of the season, Love pounced on a road-weary Aldridge and grabbed Round 1. Love had 29 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists to outshine Aldridge in the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-109 victory over Portland on Wednesday night. "Awesome," Wolves point guard Ricky Rubio said. "Theres no words to describe. Hes doing a great job leading this team in scoring, rebounding, even assisting. Hes taking my job." Nikola Pekovic had 30 points and nine rebounds and Kevin Martin scored 22 for the Timberwolves, who led by 32 in the second quarter and held off a charge in the second half from the Blazers. Damian Lillard had 36 points, six assists and six rebounds and Aldridge had 15 points and 14 boards for the weary Trail Blazers, who lost for the first time in six games. It was just their fifth loss of the season in 27 games and came at the end of a four-game road trip. The Timberwolves outscored Portland 72-34 in the paint and shot 49.5 per cent from the field. Aldridge, one of the early leaders in the MVP race thanks to Portlands remarkable start, made just 7 of 22 shots. "Just one of those nights," Aldridge said. "I couldnt throw a rock in a lake if I tried to, even if I was standing in the water." The Blazers have been the most surprising team of this young season, and they stormed into Target Center fresh off two straight heart-pounding victories on last-second shots by Lillard that gave them the best record in the NBA. But playing their fourth road game in five nights, their legs were heavy, their shots where shaky and the Wolves pounced. Love owned the first 24 minutes. He had a double-double before the game was 13 minutes old and went into halftime with 17 points, 11 boards and eight assists. The Wolves rode a staggering 42-12 run through the second quarter to take a 62-30 lead five minutes before the break. He started fast breaks, he hit deep 3s and he went to the floor for loose balls, setting the tone and building a cushion that they sorely needed as the game wore on. But he still ended up one assist shy of his first career triple-double. "I did think I was looking at it right in the face tonight, but it didnt happen for me," Love said. "Guys kept saying just get one more. I just said lets get a ... win. How about that? Im way more happy with that more than anything." Portland coach Terry Stotts said he considered pulling the plug after the third and resting his starters. But these are the Blazers, who shoot 3s without conscience and play with a swagger generated by their cold-blooded point guard. And theyre never out of a game. Lillard scored 17 points in the third, and his step-back 3 brought Portland to 86-75 with 2:04 to play in the quarter. "Two things, one is you dont know when to pull a plug on a game like this, and two with our team, with our ability to shoot, you just dont know," Stotts said. Martin, who missed Monday nights game in Boston with a sore left knee, responded with a 3 and J.J. Barea hit two big 3s in the closing seconds of the quarter to push the lead back to 22. Lillard hit two 3s and Nicolas Batum, who scored 20 points, scored on a putback and a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to five with 46 seconds to play, but the Wolves closed it out at the free-throw line. "You know last year, that probably wouldve been a game where we just said all right were going to give it a shot in the third quarter and in the fourth quarter we probably wouldve ended up laying down," Lillard said. "But we fought back, and I think with a minute and a half it was a game." NOTES: The Wolves announced that F Chase Budinger has been cleared for full-contact practice. Budinger has yet to play this year after having surgery to remove part of the meniscus in his left knee. ... It was the third career 30-point game for Pekovic. ... Lillard went 7 for 14 from 3, while the rest of the team went 7 for 26. Fake Athletics Jerseys . - Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard has signed with WME-IMG, saying the sports management powerhouse will help maximize the value of my brand. Athletics Jerseys 2020 . With Bernard hurt, the second-round pick has emerged.Hill ran for 152 yards during a 27-10 win at New Orleans on Sunday, his second big game. He also ran for 154 yards against Jacksonville earlier this season. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/. - Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II says the NFL has told the team it will not be docked a pick in this years draft for coach Mike Tomlins foray onto the field against Baltimore last November. Chris Bassitt Athletics Jersey . -- The Detroit Lions made it crystal clear to Golden Tate that he was their top target in free agency. Athletics Jerseys 2019 .com) - Robert Martin and Josh Hicks combined for more than 300 yards rushing and three touchdowns, as Rutgers rolled past North Carolina, 40-21, in the Quick Lane Bowl.HOUSTON -- Houstons Jadeveon Clowney, the top overall pick in this years draft, had microfracture surgery on his right knee. General manager Rick Smith said Clowney had the surgery on Monday. The Texans said last week that Clowney would have season-ending knee surgery, but did not specify what that surgery would be. This surgery was the second this season for the outside linebacker. He had arthroscopic surgery on the same knee after being injured in Week 1. He played three games since the first procedure but continued to struggle with pain and swelling in his knee. He saw his most extensive action of the season against the Bengals on Nov. 23, when he was in for about 50 plays and had three tackles, including one for a loss. But he experienced swelling in his knee after that and missed his eighth game of the year a week later. He last spoke to the media on Thanksgiving, when he revealed he was still in a lot of pain and that dealing with this injury has been difficult and frustrating for him. Its veery tough knowing my ability and how I can play but that my knee wont let me, he said then.dddddddddddd Thats the hard part about it that my knee keeps me from doing a lot of things I was doing before I got hurt. Clowney has had a tough time since Houston took him with the No. 1 overall pick, eager to put him on a defence already featuring rush specialist J.J. Watt. He left a dual practice Aug. 20 after a helmet-to-helmet hit with Denver Broncos tight end Jacob Tamme and missed the Texans final two preseason games, but said he passed the NFL protocols for head injuries in just over a week. He had to sit out the beginning of camp, too, after off-season surgery to repair a sports hernia. The Texans drafted Clowney after a three-year career at South Carolina in which he had 130 tackles, 24 sacks, 47 tackles for losses and 20 quarterback pressures. He also caused a school-record nine fumbles and deflected seven passes. The 6-foot-5, 266-pound Clowney also set a school record with 13 sacks in 2012. ' ' '