points before winding up with a 40-26 edge at halftime. Miller-McIntyre got a layup to fall

ANAHEIM, Calif. Danny Shelton Jersey . - After Hilary Knight skated with the Anaheim Ducks, the two-time U.S. Olympian emerged confident she can play hockey with anybody in the world.Knight practiced with the Ducks on Friday as part of her work to raise the profile of womens hockey. The skilled forward is thought to be the first non-goalie to practice with an NHL team, and everybody in Anaheim thought Knight fit in perfectly.Im one of those women who just like to push boundaries, Knight said. Ive got a frame and stature that can blend in sometimes with some of the guys, and its a great opportunity to go out there and skate with them.Indeed, the 5-foot-10 Knights speed and size allowed her to blend in seamlessly with the two-time Pacific Division champion Ducks. Her whip-quick wrist shot impressed Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau, who has never watched a womens hockey game live.I was really pleasantly surprised at her skill, Boudreau said. Once she got over the jitters, I think she was really good. Id be pretty nervous if I walked into an NHL room and had to practice with them, and I thought she handled it really well.Knight joined the Ducks for the first 25 minutes of their workout, going through skating and passing drills, and she returned later for 20 minutes of shooting. Knight also dropped in as a guest coach for a Ducks-affiliated womens team on another rink in the training complex.The day was a dream fulfilled for Knight, one of the worlds elite players. She won an NCAA title during a decorated four-year career at Wisconsin, and she has Olympic silver medals from Vancouver and Sochi, where the U.S. team lost twice to Canada in the gold-medal game.She is clearly the best player in the world right now, said Ducks defenceman Ben Lovejoy, an avid fan of womens hockey along with his wife. In her element against her peers, she is clearly dominant. ... She truly did fit in. You really had to try on the ice to find her, because she wasnt out of place at all. She was snapping pucks right on the tape. Precise passing. She put it on the money every time.Lovejoy and Knight both grew up in New Hampshire, and Knight lived in Lovejoys hometown for several years. They discussed their roots on the ice, and Knight also had in-depth conversations with Boudreau, centre Nate Thompson, captain Ryan Getzlaf and fellow U.S. Olympian Ryan Kesler.I was just trying to pick their brains, Knight said. I was like a sponge out there: OK, what can I learn? Watching Ryan Kesler, how does he shoot? Getzlaf was teaching me things about the sticks. All of them were really friendly, and Im just so fortunate to have this opportunity. I was like, OK, dont smile too much.Knights shot didnt look out of place among the Ducks, even if the targets are smaller when 6-foot-4 Frederik Andersen and 6-foot-3 John Gibson are the puck-stoppers.Goalies here are huge, Knight said with a laugh. I knew they were tall, but theres no holes in that net.The Ducks approached Knight last month about participating in practice, and she eagerly agreed. She hopes the publicity benefits the IIHF World Girls Ice Hockey Weekend next week, when thousands of girls will get a free chance to play hockey at rinks across the world.Womens hockey is fairly robust in North America, which dominates the sport on the international level. Olympic officials periodically express public worry about the slower growth of the game in Europe, where Sweden and Finland were the top teams until Switzerland grabbed bronze medals in Sochi.I want to grow the sport, and this is a step in doing that, Knight said. I want to get another invite in the future.Knight is stepping into the skates of pioneers including goalie Manon Rheaume, who signed with Tampa Bay in 1992 and played in exhibition games for the Lightning. Hayley Wickenheiser, Canadas five-time Olympian, played with a mens pro team in Finland in 2003, while U.S. defenceman Angela Ruggiero became the first woman to play in a North American mens pro league with the CHLs Tulsa Oilers in 2005.For her next feat, Knight would love to play in an NHL exhibition game. Boudreau and Lovejoy wont be surprised if it happens someday, although most NHL teams are winding up their preseason schedules in the next few days.That would be huge, Knight said. Hopefully someday Ill get that opportunity. Troy Niklas Jersey . He also had some help Monday night.Hibbert scored a season-high 29 points to help Indiana beat the Utah Jazz 97-86 Monday night, ending the Pacers six-game losing streak. Trent Brown Patriots Jersey . - Hitting was supposed to be the Pittsburgh Pirates weakness coming into the season yet they lead the major leagues in home runs through the first 16 games of the season. http://www.authenticpatriotsfanatic.com/c-117-patriots-trent-brown-jersey.aspx . Louis Cardinals won the World Series last season, but after losing first baseman Albert Pujols to free agency and manager Tony LaRussa to retirement, they opened the 2012 season in 12th spot in the TSN.PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Winning ugly is nothing that Kansas coach Bill Self will complain about. In fact, theres times he finds it downright satisfying. Like Thursday, for instance, when Canadian Andrew Wiggins was slowed by the flu, when the second-ranked Jayhawks used reserves more than starters in the second half and when the hottest scorer on the court happened to be wearing a Wake Forest uniform. No problem -- Self was all smiles afterward, because above all else, a win always beats the alternative. Wiggins scored 12 of his 17 points in the final 5:53, and Kansas held off previously unbeaten Wake Forest 87-78 in the quarterfinals of the Battle 4 Atlantis. A pair of reserves, Frank Mason and Joel Embiid, combined for 23 more points for the Jayhawks (5-0), who will face Villanova in the semifinals on Friday night. "Ive always taken great pride in winning ugly," Self said. "I think its good to win ugly. Id rather win pretty, but theres nothing wrong with winning ugly. The thing about it thats frustrating to me, and I think these guys will probably agree, weve always been a team that won ugly by not allowing the other team to score." That wasnt the case Thursday, at least not in the final 20 minutes. Well, the last 20:01, really. Kansas was up by 16 when Codi Miller-McIntyre got a layup to fall for Wake Forest just before the first half ended. Before that shot, Miller-McIntyre had only four points. He finished with a career-best 26, and has scored at least 20 in five of Wake Forests six games this season. "Ive been coaching for a long time and hes one of the best Ive ever been around," Wake Forest coach Jeff Bzdelik said. "Great, great person. Youre seeing the fruits of his labour. ... Ive never seen a young man put the amount of time into his game as he has, both on the court, in the weight room and cerebral. He watches as much film as us as coaches." Miller-McIntyre was seated to Bzdeliks right as he raved about his effort. As his coach spoke, Miller-McIntyres facial expression barely changed. The Demon Deacons let a chance slip away, and Miller-McIntyre wasnt thrilled about that realization. "I hate the term moral victory," he said. The Demon Deacons (5-1) held Kansas to a season-low 47 per cent from the field, but loost forward Devin Thomas after he was ejected for two technical fouls with 7:28 remaining. Troy Niklas Patriots Jersey. Bzdelik said he was not given an explanation. And when told that Kansas was getting four free throws, even Self scoffed. "I hated what happened with Thomas," Self said. Tyler Cavanaugh scored 11 points, while Madison Jones and Coron Williams each had 10 for Wake Forest. When Thomas got ejected, Kansas Conner Frankamp made three of the four free throws to put the Jayhawks up 64-52. And when Wiggins, who was largely silent offensively for the first 35 minutes, made a 3-pointer for a 68-57 lead, the overwhelmingly pro-KU crowd might have sensed that Wakes upset bid had run dry. The Demon Deacons had other ideas. Miller-McIntyre kept attacking, and his 3-pointer with just under 2 minutes left got Wake Forest to 77-72. Desperately needing a stop, Wake Forest wound up losing Arnaud Adala Moto to his fifth foul when he got in Wiggins way on a drive with 38 seconds left. Wiggins made the first free throw and missed the second, but the ball bounced out of bounds to Kansas. Naadir Tharpe hit a pair of foul shots to make it a three-possession game, and Kansas escaped. "Were happy we won," Self said. "I thought Wake Forest really outplayed us in the second half." A three-games-in-three-days tournament is a chance for teams to show off their depth. Kansas wasted no time in doing just that. The Jayhawks had eight players score in the first 10 minutes, running out to a quick 24-13 lead. A 17-2 run put Kansas in early control, with the Demon Deacons getting only one field goal in a stretch that lasted nearly 8 minutes. Kansas had seven players score in that burst, no one getting more than four points and Wiggins not even registering a field goal. Wake Forest weathered that storm, and the score was 27-20 with 5:25 left until the break. Thats when the Jayhawks hit the gas again, scoring 13 of the next 17 points before winding up with a 40-26 edge at halftime. Miller-McIntyre got a layup to fall just before the halftime buzzer, and then the Demon Deacons opened the second half on a 16-6 run. But the Jayhawks never lost the lead in the second half, even with reserves in there for long stretches. "Our bench was really good," Self said. Cheap Jerseys Store Jerseys NFL Cheap Cheap NFL Black Jerseys China Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Jerseys Camo China NFL Jerseys ' ' '