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2B Daily News ��� Thursday, February 28, 2013 NBA Knicks overcome Curry���s special night NEW YORK (AP) ��� Stephen Curry rose for another jumper, and by then even the Knicks probably figured it would go in. Curry had hardly missed in a scintillating second half of the NBA���s most electric performance this season, the crowd cheering even before the ball left his hands. This time, Raymond Felton jumped with him, making the play New York needed to finally withstand Curry. Felton���s blocked shot led to J.R. Smith���s tiebreaking basket with 1:10 left, and the Knicks overcame Curry���s NBA season-high 54 points to beat the Golden State Warriors 109-105 on Wednesday night. Curry was 18 of 28 from the field, finishing one shy of the NBA record with 11 3-pointers in 13 attempts, in a performance that had the crowd hanging on his every shot. But the Knicks and Felton finally stopped him with 1:28 to play and the score tied at 105. ������My main thing is to keep playing. Like I said, once a guy gets it going like that, there���s nothing I can really do. I���ve still got to stay in my mindset, still play my game, and I was still able to come up with some big plays at the end,������ Felton said. ������We all came up with some big plays to get that win.������ Carmelo Anthony followed Smith���s basket with another one and the Knicks hung on to spoil former Knicks star and Warriors coach Mark Jackson���s homecoming. Anthony finished with 35 points and Smith had 26. ������We made the defensive stops we needed to make down the stretch,������ Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. SPRING TRAINING | Athletics 11, Padres 6 Weeks, Smith lead Athletics over Padres PHOENIX (AP) ��� Jemile Weeks hit a leadoff home run in the first inning, Seth Smith later homered and the Oakland Athletics beat a split squad of San Diego Padres 11-6 on Wednesday. Weeks, Smith and Jed Lowrie each had two hits and drove in two GIANTS (Continued from page 1B) best season of six with San Francisco in 2012 with a 158 record, replaced Vogelsong and allowed one hit in a scoreless fourth before allowing a hit and a walk in the fifth, which both scored. He was pulled after 1 2-3 innings. ������I���m trying to get a feel VOISIN (Continued from page 1B) "Big markets have a tremendous edge in what can be done to generate local revenues, salary cap or no salary cap," said former Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo, who now oversees USA Basketball. "It's very challenging for smaller markets to stay up with the big boys. But you can. I've always felt the cream rises to the top. Look at San Antonio and Utah. If you are consistently doing the job, you'll get your time." According to Forbes, the NBA already is deriving benefits from a new collective bargaining agreement that reduced players revenue from 57 to 50 percent; increasing television earnings; revenue from new and renovated arenas; and an overall increase in franchise valuations. While the 30 NBA franchises offer sharp differences in demographics, television market size, population, etc., the successful organizations generally share common characteristics _ quality ownership invariably among SMITH (Continued from page 1B) hardly unexpected. He realized it once Kaepernick emerged as a capable starter over the season���s final two months, and Smith all but said goodbye with his first pro team when he played briefly in the regular-season finale against Arizona to cheers of ������Let���s Go, Alex!������ and ������Alex! Alex!������ from the Candlestick Park crowd. With Smith now headed for Kansas City, Matt Cassel is likely headed out of town. And Reid will enter his first draft as Chiefs coach in April no longer needing to search for a quarterback. The Chiefs��� problems at quarterback are the single biggest reason they went 214 last season and secured the No. 1 pick in the draft for the first time in franchise history. It���s been a long-running problem for a franchise that has tried Steve Bono and Elvis Grbac (two more onetime 49ers), and more recently Damon Huard, Tyler Thigpen and Tyler Palko at quarterback. And then there���s Cassel. He was acquired by recently fired general man- runs. Smith homered in the second as Oakland took a 7-2 lead. Weeks, coming off a down season, has hit safely in all three of his games and upped his spring average to .625. Cody Ransom homered and drove in two runs for San Diego. Travis Buck, who previously played for the A���s, had two hits and drove in two runs. A���s starter Dan Straily allowed two runs and two hits in 1 1-3 innings. Padres starter Eric Stults gave up four runs on four hits and two walks in one inning. for all my pitches right now,������ Zito said. ������I was in and out with all my pitches ... I felt OK.������ One day after he drove in four runs against Arizona, Angels��� utilityman Bill Hall was pulled from the game in the third inning with tightness in his right quadriceps. Hall, who started at third base, was trying to make a play while charging a chopper near the mound that went for a hit. The Angels said he is day to day. Top Angels��� prospect Kaleb Cowart, doubled in a run in a two-run Angels ninth. Left-hander Nick Maronde, the Angels��� No. 2 prospect, according to Baseball America, gave up three hits and two runs ��� one earned ��� in his second outing. He was pulled after 1 1-3 innings. Maronde allowed three runs while getting just two outs in his first appearance Saturday. The Giants built a 7-2 lead and let it slip away with closer Sergio Romo allowing two runs in the bottom of the ninth. The game was called after nine innings, giving the Giants their third consecutive Cactus League tie and the Angels their second straight tie. ������We just got sloppy,������ Bochy said. ������It���s the early part of spring training.������ them. (The Clips' Donald Sterling being the exception). Colangelo allowed that the best franchises "have a basket of goodies. It starts with solid ownership, either in the form of a corporation or an individual owner. Then there has to be a willingness to run a good program and invest longterm, to be consistent. Finally, there has to be a commitment to the team, but also to the community." A totally subjective list of the NBA's five best owners suggests that money can't buy love, and that it doesn't guarantee success, either: The late Dr. Jerry Buss. The Lakers won 10 NBA championships after Buss purchased the team in 1979, displaying different styles, contrasting coaching personalities, and with his offspring becoming increasingly involved in the final years. Buss was not the among the league's wealthiest owners (Forbes lists his net worth at $380 million), but he exploited the L.A. market, hired good people and fired those who didn't produce, and opened his wallet to sign one superstar after another. For all of the Hollywood glitz and glamour and the glory of Showtime, he ran a Mom and Pop shop _ probably the last of its kind in the NBA. Peter Holt. His personal wealth ranks him near the bottom (estimated $80 million), yet the small-market San Antonio Spurs have won four titles since 1999 and are threatening to win more. Much credit belongs to the fortuitous presence of David Robinson and Tim Duncan, but also to Holt, who saw something special in Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford. Holt watched them draft and maneuver like geniuses, repeatedly poach the overseas market, and rewarded them with longterm contracts and a sense of stability. Mark Cuban. Who wouldn't want to work for Mark Cuban? Now that he's stepped back a little _ he no longer visits the Mavericks huddles during games _ his stature and influence within the league has continued to grow. He is one of the smartest, most engaged owners in the league; he is also among the richest. Approximately $2.3 billion already is squeezed into his safety deposit box. His Mavs will contend again. Les Alexander. The Houston Rockets' owner gets props for having the good sense to fire the despised John Thomas, though he didn't do the Maloofs any favors by offering his ex-employee a glowing recommendation for a similar position with the Kings; the Maloofs were just ... duped. But Alexander, one of the league's longest tenured owners, whose net worth is a modest $80 million, not only cut his losses, he adapted with the times. After experiencing a rash of injuries and a downward cycle, he hired relative unknown Daryl Morey, embraced the new age significance of statistics and analytics, along with a balance between continuity and change, and has his Rockets poised for launching. Micky Arison. The head of the Carnival Cruise line is much more impressive on land. And, yes, the Miami Heat owner is among the NBA owners who operate in that billionaire realm ($4.2 billion net worth). He also hires superstars like Pat Riley, who drafted Dwyane Wade and successfully wooed LeBron James, and created an atmosphere that transformed a once-moribund franchise into a destination. ager Scott Pioli, and has two years left on a $63 million, six-year deal. He will likely be cut once Smith is acquired. Cassel was benched last season in favor of Brady Quinn, who also is a free agent after going 1-7 as the starter. If Smith can bring the steady form that defined his last two years, the Chiefs might be able to establish a much-needed consistency under center. They also found themselves a teamfirst player who led the 49ers through workouts during the 2011 lockout. Under the three-year contract he signed last March, Smith is guaranteed $8.5 million in base salary for the 2013 season. Smith thrived under 49ers coach and former NFL quarterback Harbaugh in one-plus season as the starter. Then, just like that, it all changed after he sustained a concussion. Last week at the NFL combine, Harbaugh praised Smith and reiterated just how strong San Francisco was with Colin Kaepernick as the starter and someone with Smith���s credentials at backup. Yet everyone knew it was likely the 49ers would do their best to improve Smith���s situation considering all he did for the franchise for nearly the past decade. ������Alex is really playing the best football of his career the last two years,������ Harbaugh said. ������We think we got the best quarterback situation in the National Football League, feel strongly about that. Again, that���ll be a process that plays out. Alex Smith continuing to be a 49er or if a trade occurs in the next weeks or months. Those are the two possibilities, most likely possibilities.������ Smith acknowledged when he lost the job to Kaepernick back in November that he had done nothing wrong but get hurt. Not only had he completed 26 of his previous 28 passes ��� 18 of 19 for 232 yards and three touchdowns without an interception and a 157.1 passer rating in a Monday Night Football win at Arizona on Oct. 29 ��� Smith had just earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors after that victory in the desert. He then sustained a concussion in the second quarter of a 24-24 tie against St. Louis on Nov. 11 ��� saying later he threw a touchdown pass with blurry vision. Smith sat out the next game as Kaepernick dazzled in his debut as an NFL starter, beating the Bears handily at home on Monday Night Football. After that, Harbaugh vowed to stick with the ������hot hand,������ as he regularly put it, while complicating matters by still referring to Smith as a starter. Smith���s most poignant response to the situation was, ������I feel like the only thing I did to lose my job was get a concussion.������ Kaepernick led the 49ers to the NFC championship and a 34-31 loss to Baltimore in the Super Bowl in his second season. Now the 49ers are looking for his backup. The 28-year-old Smith struggled for most of his career in San Francisco, plagued as much by coaching and constant coordinator changes as by his own indecisiveness. But when Harbaugh became coach in January 2011, Smith blossomed under the former QB���s guidance. He was among the league leaders in passer rating (104.1) with a 70.2 completion percentage when he got hurt last season. Fox Sports first reported the deal Wednesday. CARDS: Semis loss (Continued from page 1B) and the seatbelt signs flash. Jennings stepped to the 3-point line again, took a shot and made a shot with 1:06 left in the game to trail Anderson 47-43. In less than a minute, the Cards came within striking distance. The oxygen masks fall. Corning commits a foul to send the Cubs to the line, where they gained a point. 48-43 Anderson. The Cards took the ball downcourt and kick ed it to Shyanne Petty waiting in the right corner. Petty hit a 3 with space to make it 48-46 with 34 seconds left in the semifinal game. Anderson, on the wrong side of momentum, would miss two free throws after that. But a Corning turnover on the subsequent inbound play would give the Cubs GATES FEARS another shot at the line, where they made 1 of 2 to take a 49-46 lead. Petty spotted up in the corner again, took the shot for the tie, but the ball became jammed between the backboard and the rim, which gave possession back to the Cubs. Anderson's Kilee Hannan then hit a free throw to essentially make the game out of reach with 12.3 seconds to go. ���We were waiting for that spurt all game,��� Corning coach Curt Eller said. ���We kind of usually get a spurt like that and it happened to come at the end. But I thought defensively, (Anderson) played better than us. For the first three quarters, they kind of answered everything we were trying to do. ���I credit Anderson for what they did. They were better than us for three quarters, then we kind of got it going there.��� The Lady Cards, after the first period, looked more like the Lady Fears, as Gates Fears singlehandedly kept Corning in the game early. Fears scored all 13 of the Cards' points in first quarter to keep the game even at 13 going to the second. Fears added 3 points in the second to lead all scorers with 16 at the half. But her teammates would only add 4 points to that total and the Cards trailed the Cubs 28-20 at the break. ���We never really got a rhythm,��� Eller said. ���I know Gates had quite a few early. I think in the first half she was kind of our only scoring threat.��� He added, ���Gates kind of came through and kept us in the game just waiting for those other girls to get going.��� Fears finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. While the Cards outscored the Cubs 21-11 in the final frame, it wouldn't be enough to overcome losing the second and third periods 27-12. The last time Corning reached the section final was in 2009, and Eller said that was the goal for the squad this year. ���We wanted to get to the finals,��� Eller said. ���That was definitely our goal. To get to the finals. And we had a shot. That's all you can ask for ��� is to have that shot.��� But the future looks bright for the Cards, Eller said. ���We have a lot of young kids on the team. They got some good experience this year,��� he said. ���Some tight games, understanding what it takes to play at the varsity level. And compete at that level. So a really, really good experience for a lot of kids.��� ��������� Sports Editor Andre Byik can be reached at 527-2151, ext. 111 or at sports@redbluffdailynews.com. Follow him on Twitter: @TehamaSports NHL NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific GP Anaheim 17 Dallas 20 Phoenix 19 San Jose 18 Los Angeles17 Central GP Chicago 19 Nashville 20 St. Louis 18 Detroit 19 Columbus 20 Northwest GP Vancouver 19 Minnesota 18 Calgary 18 Edmonton 18 Colorado 18 WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific W 13 10 9 9 9 L 3 8 7 6 6 OT 1 2 3 3 2 Pts 27 22 21 21 20 GF 59 56 54 44 45 GA 47 57 51 41 41 W 16 9 10 9 5 L OT Pts 0 3 35 6 5 23 6 2 22 7 3 21 12 3 13 GF 61 44 55 57 44 GA 37 47 52 54 61 W 10 9 7 7 7 L 5 7 7 7 8 GF 54 39 49 42 44 GA 52 43 61 49 54 W L Pct GB L.A. Clippers 41 18 .695 ��� WARRIORS 33 25 .569 7.5 Pts 24 20 18 18 17 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic GP W L OT Pts GF GA Pittsburgh 20 13 7 0 26 69 54 New Jersey 19 10 5 4 24 48 49 Philadelphia22 10 11 1 21 64 67 Rangers 18 8 8 2 18 44 48 Islanders 20 8 11 1 17 57 68 Northeast GP W L OT Pts GF GA Montreal 20 13 4 3 29 58 43 Boston 16 12 2 2 26 49 35 Ottawa 20 12 6 2 26 48 37 Toronto 21 12 9 0 24 59 51 Buffalo 20 7 12 1 15 50 64 Southeast GP W L OT Pts GF GA Carolina 18 9 8 1 19 50 54 Tampa Bay 19 9 9 1 19 70 60 Winnipeg 19 9 9 1 19 52 60 Florida 19 6 9 4 16 48 69 Washington 19 7 11 1 15 52 59 ������������������������������������������������������ Wednesday���s Results, Philadelphia 4, Washington 1 Montreal 5, Toronto 2 Detroit at Los Angeles, late Nashville at Anaheim, late Today���s Games Pittsburgh at Carolina, 4 p.m. Tampa Bay at N.Y. Rangers, 4 p.m. Toronto at N.Y. Islanders, 4 p.m. Ottawa at Boston, 4 p.m. Buffalo at Florida, 4:30 p.m. Chicago at St. Louis, 5 p.m. New Jersey at Winnipeg, 5 p.m. Edmonton at Dallas, 5:30 p.m. Minnesota at Phoenix, 6 p.m. Calgary at Colorado, 6 p.m. Detroit at San Jose, 7:30 p.m. Friday���s Games Edmonton at St. Louis, 5 p.m. Columbus at Chicago, 5:30 p.m. Minnesota at Anaheim, 7 p.m. 28 30 .483 12.5 KINGS 20 39 .339 21 Phoenix OT 4 2 4 4 3 L.A. Lakers 19 39 .328 21.5 Southwest W L San Antonio Pct GB 45 13 .776 ��� Memphis 38 18 .679 6 Houston 31 28 .525 14.5 Dallas 25 32 .439 19.5 New Orleans 20 39 .339 25.5 Northwest W L Pct GB Oklahoma City 42 15 .737 ��� Denver 36 22 .621 6.5 Utah 31 27 .534 11.5 Portland 26 30 .464 15.5 Minnesota 20 34 .370 20.5 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic W L Pct GB New York 34 20 .630 ��� Brooklyn 34 24 .586 2 Boston 30 27 .526 5.5 Philadelphia 22 33 .400 12.5 Toronto 23 35 .397 13 Central W L Indiana Pct GB 36 21 .632 ��� Chicago 32 25 .561 4 Milwaukee 28 28 .500 7.5 Detroit 23 37 .383 14.5 Cleveland 20 38 .345 16.5 Southeast W L Pct GB Miami 41 14 .745 ��� Atlanta 33 23 .589 8.5 Washington 18 38 .321 23.5 Orlando 16 42 .276 26.5 Charlotte 13 44 .228 29 ������������������������������������������������������ Wednesday���s Results Cleveland 103, Toronto 92 Sacramento 125, Orlando 101 Detroit 96, Washington 95 Milwaukee 110, Houston 107 Memphis 90, Dallas 84 Oklahoma City 119, New Orleans 74 New York 109, Golden State 105 Phoenix at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m. Atlanta 102, Utah 91 Denver at Portland, late Today���s Games L.A. Clippers at Indiana, 4 p.m. Philadelphia at Chicago, 5 p.m. Minnesota at L.A. Lakers, 7:30 p.m.