Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/24535
2B – Daily News – Friday, February 4, 2011 Super Bowl QBs tough to tackle ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dropping back to pass, eyes aimed downfield, Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlis- berger seems to have radar scanning the area around him. Without even looking, he knows when defenders are closing in and from which direction. Once he ‘‘feels’’ their presence, Roethlisberger takes off — not sprinting, more like getting out of their way. He buys enough time to complete a pass or simply avoid a sack. Even if someone hits him, he’s so big that defenders tend to bounce off. Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers relies on ‘‘feel,’’ too. But when his intuition tells him to get moving, he’s looking for somewhere to go. Swift and agile, Rodgers turns into a running back in the open field. He’ll juke would-be tacklers and set up blocks that might spring him for a first down or a touchdown, lunging toward contact if it means gaining that pivotal final yard or two. When it comes to scrambling, the only similarity between these Super Bowl quarterbacks is that they’re very good at how they do it. It’s such a big part of their success that the champi- onship could be decided Sunday by which defense does the best job of putting the quarterback on the ground once he gets moving. ‘‘Both defenses have their work cut out for them trying to get to those guys,’’ said John Kuhn, a running back who broke into the NFL taking hand- offs from Roethlisberger, but now plays behind Rodgers. ‘‘When defenses get to them, it’s not over. They’ve got to get them to the ground. Against Atlanta, Aaron made like four or five guys miss in the pock- et on several different plays. He’s phe- nomenal. He’s playing at a high level right now. But with Ben, you can’t tackle him. He’s a beast back there. I think people underestimate how big NBA (Continued from page 1B) voting and announced last week. Orlando’s Dwight Howard, Chicago’s Derrick Rose and Knicks forward Amare Stoudemire are the other East starters, while the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, Hor- nets guard Chris Paul, for- wards Carmelo Anthony of Denver and Kevin Durant of Oklahoma City, and Houston center Yao were the winners from the West. Yao is injured and Com- missioner David Stern will choose a replacement. That gives another chance to Love, who is averaging 21.4 points and a league- best 15.5 rebounds, and shooting 43.9 percent from 3-point range. He has 34 and strong he actually is.’’ Mobile quarterbacks were com- monplace in Super Bowls during the 1970s, the heyday of Roger Staubach, Fran Tarkenton, Bob Griese and a young Terry Bradshaw. But since the 1980s, it’s hard to find a single matchup that pits a pair of guys who scoot around as well as these two. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Rodgers ran for 23.8 yards per game this season, the most among all quarterbacks other than Michael Vick. It’s almost double Rodgers’ number for 2008, his first season as a full-time starter. That’s an interesting change because as quarterbacks mature and get more comfortable, they tend to understand the intricacies of the pass- ing game more and settle into the pock- et. They no longer have ‘‘happy feet.’’ Rodgers runs about as often as he did in ’08. The spike in production shows that he’s become a smarter run- ner. Another improvement is under- standing how to use his feet to avoid sacks. He took 50 last season, 31 this season. ‘‘I think I’ve done a better job over the last season of knowing when to get out and when to hang in there,’’ Rodgers said. ‘‘Now, when you’re playing a team like Pittsburgh, I think your reactions have to be on point, your decision-making needs to be quick and instinctive. But every time I see an opportunity to extend the play and get outside the pocket, that’s definitely what I’m going to look for.’’ Against top-seeded Atlanta, Rodgers dropped back, zigzagged up the middle, pump faked and dove into the end zone for a touchdown that put Green Bay up 35-14 midway through the third quarter. In the NFC champi- onship against Chicago, he ran seven times, picking up four first downs, including the touchdown that put the Packers ahead 7-0 on their way to a 21- straight double-doubles, but was undoubtedly hurt by his Minnesota Timber- wolves’ 11-37 record. But the coaches couldn’t overlook Griffin, even though the Clippers are also below .500. The No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft has been spectacular after sitting out last season following knee surgery, averaging 23 points and 12.7 rebounds while compiling a half season of highlights with his array of dunks. The East will be coached by the Celtics’ Doc Rivers, who said earlier Thursday that he hoped his four play- ers would be rewarded and said he would play them all together. ‘‘That way we can run offense in the All-Star game,’’ Rivers said. ‘‘That’d be a first.’’ The Celtics (1953, ’62 and ’75); Lakers (’62 and ’98) and 76ers (’83) also had four All-Stars. But only the Pistons, with Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Ben Wallace and Rasheed Wallace, had four reserves selected by the coaches. The Heat’s own Big Three was recognized when Bosh was selected to his sixth All-Star game, even though his numbers have dropped significantly in his first year since leaving Toronto. ‘‘Chris is definitely one of the top 24 guys that we have in this league, definite- ly one of the top 12 guys that we have in the Eastern Conference. So I don’t think it’s much of a debate,’’ James said. ‘‘Happy for 14 victory. ‘‘He’s like a very good scorer in basketball — you know he’s going to get points,’’ Steelers defensive coordi- nator Dick LeBeau said. ‘‘From a defensive standpoint, you’ve got to keep him from controlling the game and monopolizing the game. That’s what we have to try and do with Rodgers. He’s a great player. He can create, improvise with his feet, go to his second and third choice in the route because he has such a quick release.’’ The 6-foot-5, 241-pound Roethlis- berger isn’t as speedy as Rodgers or Vick nor as statuesque as Tom Brady and Peyton Manning; he just makes it work. This season, 15 of his 34 rushes pro- duced first downs, a rate of 44 percent that was best in the league among quar- terbacks who ran more than five times. ‘‘Even if you took the number and name off his jersey, you could watch the film and still know it’s Ben,’’ said his backup, Byron Leftwich. ‘‘It’s never going to be pretty. If you watch his college films, he was making the same kind of plays. I’m quite sure he was doing it in high school and junior high. That’s just the type of player he is. It allows him to win a lot of games.’’ It turns out the formula for slowing scrambling quarterbacks starts with good tackling. ‘‘You’ve got to come in under con- trol,’’ Steelers nose tackle Casey Hampton said. ‘‘If you are out of con- trol, he’s going to slip you and get away.’’ A single player probably isn’t enough, either. ‘‘Once you see one guy going back there, you can’t just assume he’s going to bring him down,’’ Packers defensive end Cullen Jenkins said. ‘‘You’ve got to try to bring in other guys to help.’’ him, absolutely. To be able to take three guys off one team, just compliments this team, first of all, and then our individual talents put together that we’re able to represent the Miami Heat that weekend.’’ Duncan earned his 13th straight selection despite career-low numbers. Although Popovich has been monitoring Duncan’s minutes with the Spurs, the coach isn’t worried about a little extra playing time at Staples Center for his veter- an big man. ‘‘I’m actually thrilled that he was chosen,’’ Popovich said. ‘‘He’s been the bulwark of what we do for a number of years. We have a pretty good record (this season), and he’s a big part of that.’’ 4 tied for lead in chilly Phoenix Open Phoenix Open SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Bubba Watson start- ed play with a ski cap and kept his hands warm between shots with mittens. Ben Crane wore two hats and three pair of pants. And Phil Mickelson played his final nine hole in short sleeves. Short sleeves? In 45-degree conditions Thursday in the Phoenix Open? ‘‘I don’t know how he was doing it because I did- n’t think it was that warm out,’’ said playing partner Bill Haas, tied for the lead in the suspended first round at 6-under 65. ‘‘Better than it was in the morn- ing, but it’s still pretty cold.’’ Lefty thought nothing of it. ‘‘I started to get a little bit warm,’’ Mickelson said. ‘‘It felt great.’’ The start of play was delayed four hours because of heavy frost at TPC Scottsdale and only the scheduled morning starters completed the round. The temperature dipped into the mid 20s overnight and it was 39 when play started at 11:40 a.m. The high was 47 on a cloudless day in the desert. ‘‘It’s cold. You’ve got four layers on,’’ said Haas, tied with Jason Bohn, Tom Gillis and Champions Tour player Tom Lehman. Another long frost delay was expected Friday, like- ly forcing most of the second round to Saturday and possibly setting up a 36-hole finish Sunday. Lucas Glover, sporting a thick beard that prompted calls of ‘‘Grizzly’’ and ‘‘Brian Wilson’’ from fans, was a stroke back along with Chris Couch and Ben Crane. ‘‘It was cold, and it’s getting colder,’’ Glover said. Mickelson, coming off a one-stroke loss to Watson last week at Torrey Pines in San Diego, topped the group at 67. Watson shot a 70. ‘‘I expected the golf course to be frozen and balls to be bouncing on the greens quite a ways.’’ Mickel- son said. ‘‘It played terrific. The greens were recep- tive.’’ Gillis said it seemed colder than it was over Christ- mas in Michigan when he played hockey on a lake in 15-degree conditions. ‘‘I was wearing the same stuff and it felt a little colder today,’’ Gillis said. ‘‘Probably because we weren’t moving as much as we were when we were playing hockey. ... But it just seemed colder than 15 degrees up there, that’s all I know.’’ Lehman won the tournament in 2000 for the last of his five PGA Tour titles. The 51-year-old Minnesotan won the Senior PGA Championship last year and opened the season two weeks ago with a second-place finish in the Champions Tour event at Hualalai. ‘‘It was chilly, but once you get playing, you kind of forget about it,’’ Lehman said. ‘‘Somebody men- tioned about playing in Minnesota where I grew up. There were some days there where it was so brutally cold that I can tell you, one time in high school, a kid broke his hand, but didn’t know it until the ride home because his hands were numb all day. That’s cold. Today wasn’t there.’’ Fellow Champions Tour player Mark Calcavecchia, a three-time winner at TPC Scottsdale, had a 77. Colombian star Camilo Villegas also struggled in the cold, shooting a 78 — the worst round of the day. Defending champion Hunter Mahan was even par after five holes. Geoff Ogilvy was 1 under through six holes in his first start since gouging his right index finger on a coral reef in Hawaii before the Tournament of Cham- pions. He needed 12 stitches to repair the cut to the side of his knuckle. Silva winning streak tested by Belfort at UFC 126 By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer Anderson Silva’s invinci- ble aura has lost much of its sparkle over the past 10 months. The UFC mid- dleweight champion barely tried during a win in Abu Dhabi last April, and he came within two minutes of losing his belt in August. Vitor Belfort won’t judge his fellow Brazilian, who’s widely considered the world’s top mixed martial artist despite his recent struggles. Belfort simply believes he can finally inter- rupt the UFC middleweight champion’s remarkable unbeaten run at UFC 126 on Saturday. ‘‘I think he’s an amazing fighter,’’ Belfort said. ‘‘He brings inspiration for all of us. You know he has all the tools — ground, striking. He’s a great fighter, and I’m very honored to be fighting the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.’’ The Brazilian brawlers are expected to fight mostly on their feet when they meet on the UFC’s annually stacked card during Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas. Rich Franklin will fight Forrest Griffin in a meeting of popular veterans, while Jon ‘‘Bones’’ Jones meets Ryan Bader in an intriguing matchup of elite light heavyweight prospects. Silva (27-4) has won 12 straight UFC fights while making a record seven title defenses since winning his belt in October 2006, when he stopped Franklin with a knee in the first round. He has never lost in the UFC, and hasn’t lost any MMA bout since getting disquali- fied for an illegal kick in January 2006 for a smaller promotion in Hawaii. But in Oakland last August, Chael Sonnen largely dominated Silva for four rounds with wrestling skills, preventing Silva from unleashing his potent strikes. Silva saved himself with a remarkable submission move, but the thorough thrashing so soon after his passive perfor- mance against Demian Maia in the Middle East led some to wonder whether the Spider had lost his passion. While Belfort speaks flu- ent English, Silva doesn’t say much even in his native Portuguese. The champ still reaffirmed his motivation before stepping into the octagon at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. ‘‘I’m not doing this for the fame,’’ Silva said through a translator. ‘‘I’m not doing it for the money. I’m not doing it for the belt. I’m doing this because I love doing it. I’ve been doing this since I was a kid. I feel very comfortable doing it.’’ Belfort (19-8) rediscov- ered that love in recent years as well. He was the youngest fighter to win in the UFC as a 19-year-old back in February 1997, but he’s long removed from his youth as the striker known as ‘‘Phenom’’ who seemed poised to take over the game with his fantastic skills. Belfort famously beat UFC hero Randy Couture in January 2004 — also at Mandalay Bay — to take the light heavyweight title. But Couture reclaimed the belt seven months later, and after a narrow loss to Tito Ortiz in early 2005, Belfort was out of the UFC. He bounced around four MMA promotions and even made his boxing debut, but fought his way back to the UFC in September 2009, scoring a first-round knock- out of Franklin in his return. With his tantalizing talent still on many fans’ minds, Belfort almost got a title shot from UFC president Dana White last January despite his thin resume at middleweight. ‘‘Sometimes we make bad decisions, but guess what, next day we can make it better,’’ Belfort said. ‘‘Every time that I’m out of my job as a fighter, I try to improve everything else in my life.’’ Belfort trains at Cou- ture’s Las Vegas gym, but hasn’t fought in 16 months while recovering from surgery on a torn labrum in his shoulder. The former 205-pound champion does- n’t think he has lost any power in slimming down to 185. ‘‘Not a lot of people in the world of martial arts can have the chance that I have,’’ Belfort said. ‘‘It’s a privilege to fight one of the greatest fighters on the planet. I have to earn it.’’ Belfort once trained at Silva’s Black House gym, but they aren’t friends, and the Brazilian press is filled with stories of icy exchanges between the two. When asked during Wednesday’s news confer- ence if Belfort is the best striker he has faced, Silva — sitting nearly motionless behind dark glasses — answered: ‘‘No.’’ Belfort is among the most talented boxers in MMA, and he believes he can match Silva’s speed and power. He knows Silva can unleash a dizzying array of strikes — kicks, elbows and knees — when he gets an advantage on an opponent, and Belfort has worked on his defense. No matter the outcome, both fighters are eager to cement Brazil’s reputation for breeding champions heading into the UFC’s PGA Phoenix Open At TPC Scottsdale, Stadium Course Scottsdale, Ariz. Purse: $6.1 million Yardage: 7,216; Par 71 (35-36) Note: Play was suspended due to dark- ness First Round Leaderboard Tom Gillis Bill Haas 32-33— 65 -6 31-34— 65 -6 Tom Lehman 34-31— 65 -6 Jason Bohn 33-32— 65 -6 Chris Couch 33-33— 66 -5 Ben Crane Lucas Glover 33-33— 66 -5 Chris Riley Jeff Overton Joe Ogilvie 33-33— 66 -5 35-32— 67 -4 31-36— 67 -4 34-33— 67 -4 Phil Mickelson 33-34— 67 -4 Matt Bettencourt 34-33— 67 -4 debut in Rio de Janeiro in August. ‘‘In Brazil, a lot of people are talking about this fight,’’ Silva said. ‘‘It’s two of the NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific Division WL OT Pts GF GA Dallas 30 17 5 65 151 147 SHARKS 27 19 6 60 148 144 Ducks 28 21 4 60 143 150 Phoenix 25 19 9 59 152 156 Kings 28 22 2 58 146 126 Central Division WL OT Pts GF GA Detroit 31 13 6 68 173 148 Nashville 27 18 7 61 138 125 Chicago 27 20 4 58 164 143 St. Louis 22 20 7 51 130 146 Columbus 23 22 5 51 134 159 Northwest Division WL OT Pts GF GA Vancouver 33 10 9 75 175 122 Minnesota 27 19 5 59 135 137 Calgary 26 21 6 58 151 156 Colorado 25 20 6 56 164 169 Edmonton 15 27 8 38 123 171 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division WL OT Pts GF GA Philadelphia 34 13 5 73 177 136 Pittsburgh 33 15 4 70 161 117 N.Y.Rangers 29 21 4 62 153 133 New Jersey 18 30 3 39 106 149 N.Y.Islanders 16 28 7 39 123 166 Northeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Boston 30 15 7 67 161 117 Montreal 29 18 5 63 136 127 Buffalo 23 21 5 51 137 144 Toronto 21 25 5 47 131 156 Ottawa 17 27 8 42 114 169 Southeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Tampa Bay 32 15 5 69 158 154 Washington 27 15 10 64 142 132 Atlanta 24 21 9 57 155 174 Carolina 25 21 6 56 155 161 Florida 22 23 6 50 136 138 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. ————————————————— Thursday’s results NCAA Thursday’s Top 25 results No. 1 Ohio State 62, Michigan 53 No. 9 Notre Dame 83, DePaul 58 Oregon State 68, No. 20 Washington 56 No. 21 Arizona 78, Stanford 69 Today’s Top 25 games No games scheduled Wednesday’s late Top 25 result No. 22 Utah State 67, Nevada 45 Boston 6, Dallas 3 Calgary 4, Atlanta 2 Minnesota 4, Colorado 3 New Jersey 3, N.Y. Rangers 2 Philadelphia 3, Nashville 2 Toronto 3, Carolina 0 Today’s games Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m. Florida at New Jersey, 4 p.m. Columbus at Detroit, 4:30 p.m. Washington at Tampa Bay, 4:30 p.m., NHLN Edmonton at St. Louis, 5 p.m. Chicago at Vancouver, 7 p.m. Wednesday’s late result San Jose 4, Anaheim 3 greatest fighters that ever came out of Brazil. Every- body is going to watch this fight.’’ NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific Division WL Pct GB Lakers 34 15 .694 — Phoenix 23 24 .489 10 WARRIORS 20 27 .426 13 Clippers 19 29 .396 14.5 KINGS 12 34 .261 20.5 Southwest Division WL Pct GB San Antonio 40 8 .833 — Dallas 33 15 .688 7 New Orleans32 19 .627 9.5 Memphis 26 24 .520 15 Houston 23 28 .451 18.5 Northwest Division WL Pct GB Okla. City 31 17 .646 — Denver 29 20 .592 2.5 Utah 29 21 .580 3 Portland 26 23 .531 5.5 Minnesota 11 37 .229 20 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division WL Pct GB Boston 37 11 .771 — New York 25 23 .521 12 Philadelphia 22 26 .458 15 New Jersey 15 35 .300 23 Toronto 13 37 .260 25 Southeast Division WL Pct GB 35 14 .714 — Miami Atlanta 31 18 .633 4 Orlando 31 19 .620 4.5 Charlotte 21 27 .438 13.5 Washington 13 35 .271 21.5 Central Division WL Pct GB Chicago 34 14 .708 — Indiana 19 27 .413 14 Milwaukee 19 28 .404 14.5 Detroit 17 32 .347 17.5 Cleveland 8 41 .163 26.5 ————————————————— Thursday’s results Milwaukee at Golden State, late Miami 104, Orlando 100 San Antonio at L.A. Lakers, late Today’s games San Antonio at Sacramento,7 p.m.,CSNC Miami at Charlotte, 4 p.m. Minnesota at Toronto, 4 p.m. New York at Philadelphia, 4 p.m. Orlando at Washington, 4 p.m. Portland at Indiana, 4 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Atlanta, 4:30 p.m. New Jersey at Detroit, 4:30 p.m. Cleveland at Memphis, 5 p.m. Dallas at Boston, 5 p.m., ESPN Oklahoma City at Phoenix, 6 p.m. Utah at Denver, 7:30 p.m., ESPN Wednesday’s late result Chicago 106, L.A. Clippers 88