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2B Daily News – Tuesday, November 29, 2011 49ers trying to heal before potential clincher Harbaugh, who didn't want to speculate on SANTA CLARA (AP) — Braylon Edwards has a nagging knee injury and a bum shoulder. He insists that's the reason his numbers are down in his first season with San Francisco. A key acquisition by the 49ers (9-2) heading into the season, Edwards has only 14 catches for 172 yards and no touchdowns in seven games for the NFC West leaders. He missed four games earlier in the year after undergo- ing surgery on his injured right knee, which still isn't fully healed. ''It's not about production, I've been hurt. I had knee surgery. Now I have a bad shoul- der,'' Edwards said Monday, when the Niners returned to work after getting the weekend off. ''I haven't ever had a season where I've been hurt, with the exception of my rookie year. This is all new to me. It's very frustrating, but I ask the team to bear with me. I can't really con- trol being hurt — it's part of the game.'' Edwards is among a handful of players who are beat up head- ing into a week in which they hope to clinch the division and the franchise's first playoff berth since 2002. He has been targeted seven times in the past two games and has only one recep- tion, missing crucial chances in the end zone. In Thursday night's 16-6 loss at Baltimore to coach Jim Har- baugh's big brother, John, a sec- ond-quarter miscommunication between Edwards and quarter- back Alex Smith on a deep throw to the end zone resulted in an interception. The 49ers didn't score a touchdown for the first time all season. ''There's been limited practice time, a pitch count with him. And same with the games,'' said how healthy Edwards is. ''I wouldn't put a percentage on it.'' The 28-year-old Edwards was considered an ideal fit under Harbaugh. They're both Michi- gan men. Edwards had great size at 6-foot-3 and 214 pounds and relished the second chance he received out West after two tumultuous years with the New York Jets. Now, Edwards is working to make sure he can contribute come January, come playoff time. ''My plan is more the play- offs. We can pretty much wrap those up with a win this week,'' he said. ''So, I think the big thing for me is to get back healthy. We've got five games left, plus the playoffs. So the ideal goal for me is to just get back healthy for the playoffs. That would be key.'' Harbaugh said he will speak with Edwards privately about any plans for the rest of the reg- ular season. Edwards declined to say which shoulder is hurting him, though he made it clear he hasn't returned to full speed or full strength since missing time earli- er in the season because of the knee that he hurt early in the game against Dallas on Sept. 18. He injured his shoulder in the fourth quarter of a 19-11 win at Washington on Nov. 6. ''I'm playing through a foot- ball season. No one is ever going to be fully healthy, but just fight- ing every day,'' he said. ''Injury means you can't play, but I do have a shoulder ailment, I'll say. Little bit of AC joint. Nothing super serious, but at the same time, it's nagging. It bothers me.'' Right guard Adam Snyder is nursing a strained left hamstring he hurt at Baltimore, but Har- baugh declined to offer details because that would tip off Sun- day's opponent, St. Louis. Chilo Rachal played in Snyder's place. ''He's working through some- thing. I'm not going to comment on if it's better, it's worse, what percent it's going to be by tomor- row or Saturday or Sunday,'' Harbaugh said of Snyder. ''I mean, teams would love to know that information. Just can't expect us to hand it out.'' Without Edwards at his best, the 49ers are thin in the receiv- ing corps. They lost Joshua Mor- gan for the season in early Octo- ber to a broken right leg that required surgery. Morgan, leaving team head- quarters Monday wearing a walking boot, said he is improv- ing. ''I'm healing faster than they thought. I'm like a wolverine,'' he said, smiling. Harbaugh sure sounds content with the offensive options he has for Smith. When asked if there's a need for a game-breaking receiver, he said: ''Is there a need for that? Yes. We have that. I think we have that with (Edwards). I think we have that with him, we have that without him, yes.'' Still, Smith realizes he and Edwards need to get in sync, while acknowledging Edwards' return from the knee injury remains a ''work in progress'' and he is still trying to get com- fortable playing on it again. ''I don't think it was anything to get worked up about,'' Smith said. ''We need to get him the ball, keep him involved because he's such a playmaker, especially down field, he's such a threat. Need to get him more involved. Didn't do that on Thursday.'' Fullback Bruce Miller said he has improved from a concussion that sidelined him against the Ravens. Harbaugh didn't have an update on Miller's status for Sunday's game. Kentucky new No. 1 in AP Top 25 (AP) — Kentucky is back at No. 1 in The Associated Press' col- lege basketball poll for the first time since the 2009-10 season. Saint Louis is back in the Top 25 for the first time since 1993-94. The Wildcats (6-0) replaced North Carolina, which had been No. 1 since the preseason poll, on Monday, receiving 46 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel. The Tar Heels (5-1) dropped to fifth following their 90- 80 loss to UNLV in the championship game of the Las Vegas Invitation- al. Ohio State (6-0) moved up from third to second and had 17 first- place votes, while Duke (7-0), which won the EA Sports Maui Invitation- al, jumped from sixth to third and had the other PRIME (Continued from page 1B) in their past 22 games when they rushed for fewer than 75 yards. ''At the end of the day I think we're growing all across this football team,'' coach Hue Jackson said. ''What we need to do is still put a complete game togeth- er where we're playing from the first snap to the last snap and when we do that we've got a chance to be a scary group of players.'' The Raiders were in con- tention a year ago, but knew they needed help to end their playoff drought. They ended up losing a crucial road game in Jacksonville and Kansas City kept winning and Oak- land finished 8-8, two games behind the Chiefs. Now they only need to worry about their own games, knowing if they keep winning the Broncos won't be able to catch them. ''It's a good feeling for us two No. 1 votes. Syracuse, North Car- olina, Louisville, Bay- lor, Connecticut, Wis- consin and Florida rounded out the top 10. UNLV (7-0) used the win over North Carolina to move in at 18th. The Runnin' Rebels were ranked for four weeks last season. Saint Louis (6-0), which beat Boston Col- lege, Villanova and Oklahoma to win the 76 Classic, moves in at No. 23, the Billikens' first time in the poll in almost two decades. ''Being nationally ranked is a big deal, but we're not going to prac- tice any different or play any different,'' Saint Louis forward Cody Ellis said. ''That's what's been keeping us successful.'' North Carolina is at Kentucky on Saturday, a to be able to be in first place and not have to look, 'Oh, hopefully somebody loses,' Or, 'Get this win and hope- fully this team loses,''' receiver Louis Murphy said. ''It's good to be in control of our own destiny.'' Notes: The only injury from the game was LB Rolando McClain, who tweaked his sprained left ankle but returned to action. ...RB Darren McFadden did a light workout on the practice field without a TENNIS ATP Final Money Leaders 1. Novak Djokovic 2. Rafael Nadal 3. Roger Federer 4. Andy Murray 7. Tomas Berdych 8. Mardy Fish 9. Janko Tipsarevic $11,019,803 $6,668,214 $5,744,576 $4,680,091 5. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga $2,848,969 6. David Ferrer 10. Nicolas Almagro $1,326,007 11. Robin Soderling 12. Gilles Simon 13. Michael Llodra 14. Alexandr Dolgopolov $1,196,499 15. John Isner 16. Marin Cilic 17. Jurgen Melzer $2,793,904 $2,301,813 $1,657,091 $1,492,912 $1,323,835 $1,222,752 $1,210,799 $1,170,432 $1,139,799 $1,133,482 18. Marcel Granollers $1,132,893 19. Gael Monfils 20. Andy Roddick $1,094,353 $1,061,404 matchup that would have had No. 1 facing No. 2. This is Kentucky's 90th week at No. 1, fourth on the all-time list behind UCLA (134), Duke (122) and North Carolina (108). Before the one-week appearance at No. 1 in 2009-10, the Wildcats' last time on top of the rankings was the final poll of 2002-03. Xavier moved up one place to 11th and was followed by Alabama, Missouri, Michigan, Kansas, Marquette, Pittsburgh, UNLV, Gon- zaga and Vanderbilt. The last five ranked teams were Mississippi State, Memphis, Saint Louis, California and Texas A&M. Florida State (5-2) dropped out from 22nd following losses to Har- vard and Connecticut in protective boot on his sprained right foot. He has not played since injuring the foot in the first quarter against Kansas City on Oct. 23. ''I think that was huge,'' Jackson said.''I think that's a step in the right direction.'' ... WR Jacoby Ford said he is making progress to return from his sprained left foot that he hurt in San Diego on Nov. 10 but does not know when he will be able to practice. NCAA FOOTBALL Top 25 Schedule Thursday's game No. 22 West Virginia at USF, 5 p.m. Friday's game No. 8 Oregon vs. UCLA Pac-12 championship, 4:30 p.m. Saturday No. 1 LSU vs. No. 12 Georgia SEC championship at Atlanta, 1 p.m. No. 3 Okla. St. vs.No.13 Oklahoma, 5 p.m. No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 21 Clemson ACC championship at Charlotte, N.C., 5 p.m. No. 7 Houston vs. No. 24 Southern Miss CUSA championship, 9 a.m. No. 9 Boise State vs. New Mexico, 3 p.m. No. 11 Michigan St. vs. No. 15 Wisconsin Big Ten championship at Indianapolis, 4:30 p.m. No. 16 Kansas St. vs. Iowa St., 9:30 a.m. No. 18 TCU vs. UNLV, 11:30 a.m. No. 19 Baylor vs. Texas, 12:30 p.m. the Battle 4 Atlantis. Arizona (4-2) fell from No. 23 after a home loss to San Diego State. Missouri had the week's biggest jump, using easy wins over Notre Dame, California and Binghamton to move from 21st to No. 13. Memphis, which lost to Michigan and Georgetown in the Maui Invitational, had the biggest fall, dropping from No. 8 to 22nd. NHL WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific Division WL OT Pts GF GA Dallas 14 9 1 29 62 65 SHARKS 13 6 1 27 60 46 Phoenix 12 7 3 27 61 56 Kings Ducks 11 8 4 26 55 55 6 13 4 16 50 76 Central Division WL OT Pts GF GA Chicago 14 7 3 31 79 74 Detroit 14 7 1 29 65 49 St. Louis 13 8 2 28 57 49 Nashville 11 8 4 26 60 62 Columbus 6 14 3 15 54 75 Northwest Division WL OT Pts GF GA Minnesota 14 7 3 31 57 53 Vancouver 13 9 1 27 69 59 Edmonton 12 10 2 26 65 60 Colorado 10 13 1 21 62 73 Calgary 9 12 1 19 50 60 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division WL OT Pts GF GA Pittsburgh 14 6 4 32 77 59 Philadelphia13 7 3 29 80 68 N.Y. Rangers12 5 3 27 56 43 New Jersey 12 9 1 25 57 58 N.Y. Islanders 6 11 4 16 41 68 Northeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Toronto 14 8 2 30 79 75 Boston 14 7 1 29 75 47 Buffalo 13 9 1 27 67 61 Ottawa 11 10 2 24 69 79 Montreal 10 10 4 24 61 60 Southeast Division WL OT Pts GF GA Florida 12 7 4 28 64 59 Washington 12 9 1 25 70 73 Tampa Bay 11 10 2 24 63 72 Winnipeg 9 10 4 22 66 74 Carolina 8 13 4 20 60 83 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. —————————————————— Monday's results San Jose at Los Angeles, late Dallas 3, Colorado 1 Minnesota 3, Tampa Bay 1 Nashville 2, Edmonton 1 Today;s games Florida at Carolina, 4 p.m. N.Y. Islanders at Buffalo, 4 p.m. St. Louis at Washington, 4 p.m. Pittsburgh at N.Y. Rangers, 4:30 p.m. Ottawa at Winnipeg, 5:30 p.m. Phoenix at Chicago, 5:30 p.m. Nashville at Calgary, 6:30 p.m. Columbus at Vancouver, 7 p.m. Wednesday's games Boston at Toronto, 4 p.m. Tampa Bay at Detroit, 4:30 p.m. Minnesota at Edmonton, 6:30 p.m. New Jersey at Colorado, 6:30 p.m. Montreal at Anaheim, 7 p.m. A's ponder spring site switch from Phoenix OAKLAND (AP) — The Oakland Athletics have begun exclusive negotiations with the city of Mesa, Ariz., to switch their spring training site from Phoenix. That exclusivity period lasts through May 15, 2012. The A's say they will discuss with Mesa a move of the team's spring and year-round minor league opera- tions to Hohokam Park and Fitch Park in Mesa, a sub- urb of Phoenix where the Chicago Cubs train. Each side will negotiate only with each other and not have any third-party contact. The negotiating window can be extended by mutual agreement and the approval of the Mesa City Council. Oakland originally held spring training in Mesa after moving from Florida before the 1969 season and spent 10 years there. The A's moved to Scottsdale in 1979 and have trained in Phoenix since 1982, with that agreement running through 2014. Saints blow out Giants NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Drew Brees and the surg- ing New Orleans Saints made everything look easy against the slumping Giants. Brees passed for 363 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another score as New Orleans rolled to a 49- 24 victory Monday night, extending New York's los- ing skid to three games. Tight end Jimmy Gra- ham had five catches for 84 yards, including touch- downs of 5 and 29 yards. Brees' two other scoring strikes went to Lance Moore, who had five catches for 54 yards. This was a game New York was desper- ate to win after losing its pre- vious two to San Francisco and Philadelphia. Instead, the Giants (6-5) dropped a game behind first- place Dallas in the NFC East and face the possibility of a four-game losing streak when they host the unbeaten Green Bay Packers next weekend. The Saints (8-3), meanwhile, maintained a one-game lead over Atlanta in the NFC South. They also padded their rushing stats with 205 yards on the ground, including touch- down runs of 12 yards by Pierre Thomas and 35 yards by rookie Mark Ingram. Marques Colston had three NCAA HOOPS The Top Twenty Five The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' college basketball poll, with first- place votes in parentheses, records through Nov. 27, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and previous ranking: Record Pts Prv 1. Kentucky (46) 6-0 1,599 2 2. Ohio St. (17) 6-0 1,564 3 3. Duke (2) 4. Syracuse 7-0 1,465 6 6-0 1,439 5 5. North Carolina 5-1 1,337 1 6. Louisville 7. Baylor 8. UConn 9. Wisconsin 10. Florida 11. Xavier 12. Alabama 13. Missouri 14. Michigan 15. Kansas 16. Marquette 17. Pittsburgh 18. UNLV 19. Gonzaga 5-0 1,259 7 5-0 1,183 9 6-1 1,055 4 6-0 1,045 11 4-1 1,040 10 4-0 982 12 7-0 912 13 6-0 746 21 5-1 681 15 3-2 676 14 5-0 637 16 5-1 537 17 7-0 535 — 4-0 525 19 20.Vanderbilt 5-1 482 18 21. Mississippi St. 7-1 277 24 22. Memphis 23. Saint Louis 6-0 149 — 24. California 25. Texas A&M 4-1 115 25 Others receiving votes: Creighton 104, Harvard 101, Michigan St. 84, San Diego St. 66, Georgetown 46, Florida St. 24, Ari- zona 15, Illinois 13, Washington 12, Cleveland St. 11, Purdue 6, Marshall 5, Stanford 3, Villanova 2, Cincinnati 1, Northwestern 1, Virginia Tech 1. Top 25 Schedule Monday's results No. 6 Louisville 79, Long Beach St. 66 No. 10 Florida 96, Stetson 70 No.11 Xavier 82, No. 20 Vanderbilt 70, OT No. 16 Marquette 88, Jacksonville 56 No. 22 Memphis 70, Jackson State 45 No. 24 California vs. McNeese State, late Today's games No. 2 Ohio State vs.No.3 Duke, 6:30 p.m. No. 4 Syracuse vs. E. Michigan, 4 p.m. No. 7 Baylor vs. Prairie View, 5 p.m. No. 14 Michigan at Virginia, 4 p.m. No.23 Saint Louis at Loyola Marymount, 7 p.m. Wednesday's games No.5 N.Carolina vs.No.9 Wisconsin, 6:30 p.m. No. 15 Kansas vs. FAU, 5 p.m. No. 17 Pittsburgh at Duquesne, 4 p.m. No. 18 UNLV at UC Santa Barbara, 7 p.m. No.19 Gonzaga vs.Notre Dame, 8:15 p.m. No. 25 Texas A&M vs. Alcorn St., 5 p.m. Thursday's games No. 1 Kentucky vs. St. John's, 4:30 p.m. No.12 Alabama vs. Georgetown, 6:30 p.m. Friday's games No. 4 Syracuse vs.No. 10 Florida, 3:30 p.m. No.6 Louisville vs.No.20 Vanderbilt, 5:30 p.m. No. 13 Missouri vs. Northwestern St., 5 p.m. Saturday's games No.1 Kentucky vs.No.5 North Carolina, 9 a.m. No. 2 Ohio St. vs.Tex-Pan American, 9 a.m. No. 8 UConn vs. Arkansas at the XL Center, Hartford, Conn., 12:15 p.m. No.9 Wisconsin vs.No.16 Marquette, 1:30 p.m. No. 11 Xavier vs. Purdue, Noon No. 14 Michigan vs. Iowa State, 9 a.m. No. 15 Kansas vs. S. Florida, 2:15 p.m. No. 17 Pittsburgh at Tennessee, 2:15 p.m. No. 19 Gonzaga at Illinois, 12:15 p.m. No. 21 Miss. St. vs.West Virginia, 6 p.m. No.22 Memphis vs.Austin Peay, 5:30 p.m. No. 23 Saint Louis vs.Portland, 5 p.m. No.25 Texas A&M vs.Stephen F.Austin, 5 p.m. Sunday's games No. 7 Baylor at Northwestern, 1 p.m. No. 18 UNLV at Wichita State, 1:05 p.m. No. 24 California at San Diego St., 2 p.m. 2-2 269 8 5-1 121 20 catches for 78 yards, all on the Saints' 34-second, 88- yard touchdown drive late in the second quarter that gave New Orleans a 21-3 half- time lead. Colston's longest reception went for 50 yards when he caught a pass along the left sideline, slipped a tackle and raced up field. The Giants took a beat- ing on the scoreboard and on the field. Defensive end Osi Umenyiora went out with a sprained ankle and receiver Hakeem Nicks was rocked by a vicious collision with Saints rookie safety Isa Abdul-Quddus. Nicks stayed in the game despite bruised ribs. The Giants did not get into the end zone until Brandon Jacobs steamrolled safety Roman Harper on an 8-yard scoring run that made it 21- 10 in the third quarter, but the Saints went right back down the field and scored on Brees' 8-yard scramble. After Giants running back Da'Rell Scott fumbled on his own 29, Brees con- nected with Graham, who rumbled down the left side- line and dove for the pylon for his second TD of the game, and his team-leading eighth receiving score of the season. The Saints never trailed, striking first early in the second on a Brees' 4- yard touchdown pass. NFL AFC West WL T Pct PF PA RAIDERS 74 0 .636 260 274 Denver 6 5 0 .545 221 260 Kansas City 4 7 0 .364 153 265 Chargers 4 7 0 .364 249 275 East WL T Pct PF PA N. England 8 3 0 .727 331 223 N.Y. Jets 6 5 0 .545 256 241 Buffalo 5 6 0 .455 261 281 Miami South Houston 8 3 0 .727 293 179 Tennessee 6 5 0 .545 226 212 Jacksonville 3 8 0 .273 138 200 Indianapolis 0 11 0 .000 150 327 North WL T Pct PF PA Baltimore 8 3 0 .727 272 182 Pittsburgh 8 3 0 .727 233 188 Cincinnati 7 4 0 .636 259 215 Cleveland 4 7 0 .364 165 216 NFC West WL T Pct PF PA 49ERS 92 0 .818 262 161 Seattle 4 7 0 .364 185 232 Arizona 4 7 0 .364 213 256 St. Louis 2 9 0 .182 140 270 East Dallas WL T Pct PF PA 7 4 0 .636 270 225 N.Y. Giants 6 5 0 .545 252 277 Philadelphia 4 7 0 .364 257 251 Washington 4 7 0 .364 183 222 South WL T Pct PF PA N. Orleans 8 3 0 .727 362 252 Atlanta 7 4 0 .636 259 227 Tampa Bay 4 7 0 .364 199 291 Carolina 3 8 0 .273 252 305 North WL T Pct PF PA Green Bay 11 0 0 1.000382 227 Chicago 7 4 0 .636 288 232 Detroit Week 12 results Thursday's results Baltimore 16, San Francisco 6 Dallas 20, Miami 19 Green Bay 27, Detroit 15 Sunday's results Oakland 25, Chicago 20 Arizona 23, St. Louis 20 Atlanta 24, Minnesota 14 Carolina 27, Indianapolis 19 Cincinnati 23, Cleveland 20 Denver 16, San Diego 13, OT Houston 20, Jacksonville 13 New England 38, Philadelphia 20 N.Y. Jets 28, Buffalo 24 Pittsburgh 13, Kansas City 9 Tennessee 23, Tampa Bay 17 Washington 23, Seattle 17 Monday's result New Orleans 49, N.Y. Giants 24 Week 13 schedule Thursday's game Philadelphia at Seattle, 5:20 p.m. Sunday's games Oakland at Miami, 10 a.m. St. Louis at San Francisco, 1:15 p.m. Atlanta at Houston, 10 a.m. Carolina at Tampa Bay, 10 a.m. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, 10 a.m. Denver at Minnesota, 10 a.m. Indianapolis at New England, 10 a.m. Kansas City at Chicago, 10 a.m. N.Y. Jets at Washington, 10 a.m. Tennessee at Buffalo, 10 a.m. Baltimore at Cleveland, 1:05 p.m. Dallas at Arizona, 1:15 p.m. Green Bay at N.Y. Giants, 1:15 p.m. Detroit at New Orleans, 5:20 p.m. Monday's game San Diego at Jacksonville, 5:30 p.m. 7 4 0 .636 316 246 Minnesota 2 9 0 .182 214 295 —————————————————— 3 8 0 .273 212 206 WL T Pct PF PA