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2B Daily News – Thursday, December 6, 2012 NHL LOCKOUT NBA Commissioner 'pleased' with negotiation process Bryant becomes youngest to hit 30,000 points NEW YORK (AP) — Negotiations between hockey owners and players are going so well that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman says he's ''pleased with the process'' — even if he has been left outside the latest rounds of discussions. Still stuck on the perimeter with players' association executive director Donald Fehr, Bettman made a brief statement Wednesday on the state of the ongoing lockout after the league's board of governors met for about two hours. Bettman declined to take any questions as he stood at an NHL podium in a Manhattan hotel, just one floor away from where talks resumed for a second straight day. A ray of hope that a season-saving deal could be made emerged late Tuesday night after about eight hours of bargaining. ''We are pleased with the process that is ongoing, and out of respect for that process I don't have anything else to say,'' Bettman said. Some executives spoke briefly as they scurried on New York streets and hopped into cars after the board of governors meeting. No details emerged, but the mood seemed positive. ''We feel good about the information we got,'' new Columbus Blue Jackets president John Davidson said. Larry Tanenbaum of the Toronto Maple Leafs, one of the six owners participating in these negotiations, also painted an optimistic picture as he walked the few blocks back to the hotel hosting the meetings. ''We're going to continue to talk up until we get a deal,'' said Tanenbaum, who added there is more clarity on both sides where each group stands. ''All I can say is as long as we're talking we're hopeful.'' If a breakthrough can be made RAIDERS (Continued from page 1B) franchise has regressed in the first year of the new regime led by general manager Reggie McKenzie and coach Dennis Allen. ''It's definitely disappointing. Coming into the season, we had a new GM, had a new coaching staff and it felt like the sky was the limit, but for some reason — obviously, we had a lot of injuries — but for some reason, we haven't been on the same page the whole season,'' defensive back Michael Huff said. ''The defense has had their struggles, the offense has their struggles at times, special teams had their struggles at time. It's like we haven't just put that complete game together yet. We're just trying to figure it out and find that perfect game.'' The Broncos figured it out quickly after going 8-8 last year in their first season under front office boss John Elway and coach John Fox. The biggest change came when they acquired quarterback soon, the delayed and shortened hockey season could get going quickly. ''I've always been hopeful there would be a season,'' said Lou Lamoriello, the New Jersey Devils president and general manager. ''Right now we just have to leave it in the hands of the people that are talking.'' The same negotiators were expected to participate in talks Wednesday, with minor tweaks to the large contingent of players. Bargaining stretched on Tuesday night until about midnight, and it was clear progress was made when deputy commissioner Bill Daly stood side by side with union special counsel Steve Fehr and issued a rare joint status report. Negotiations took place in a pair of sessions that included various sized groups. The sides are trying to avoid another lost season. The NHL became the first North American professional sports league to cancel a full year because of a labor dispute back in 2005. The deal reached then was in place until this September, and the lockout was enacted on Sept. 16 after that agreement expired. The lockout reached its 81st day Wednesday. The main issues are how to split revenue and issues surrounding how player contracts are set up. The league had more than $3 billion in the 2011-12 season but an analysis by Forbes magazine recently showed a major gap between profitable teams those that operate in the red. ''We had a long day,'' Steve Fehr said Tuesday. ''We thought it was a constructive day. We had a good dialogue. In some ways I'd say it might be the best day we've had, which isn't too overly optimistic of a picture. There is still a lot of work to do and a lot to be done.'' Peyton Manning to replace pedestrian passer Tim Tebow. But nearly 20 other players acquired since Elway took over the football operations have started games this season, including standout defensive star Von Miller, who has 26 1/2 sacks in less than two seasons. ''It's been a lot of hard work by a lot of people whether it's personnel department, the coaching staff, the players in the locker room,'' Fox said. ''As far as the offseason I know a lot was made of Peyton Manning but we had a lot of other guys that have been big contributors to this football team as well. But, you know, anything worth a darn takes time to build and so we just in year two of that process.'' The acquisition accelerated it. He has come back from a neck injury that sidelined him all last season to set a Denver record with 29 touchdown passes. The addition of a dangerous passing game to complement a strong defense led by pass rushers Miller and Elvis Dumervil and a solid running game have Daly echoed Fehr's comments, and spoke well of the talks. ''I appreciate the efforts of the players,'' Daly said. ''Everybody is working hard. I think everybody wants to get a deal done, so that's encouraging. We look forward to hopefully making more progress.'' That was the extent of the details revealed by the two sides, which could be another good sign that neither group wanted to say anything that could throw the discussions off the rails. All games through Dec. 14, along with the New Year's Day Winter Classic and the All-Star game, have been wiped off the schedule. Originally the thought was no one other than owners and players would be in attendance for Tuesday's meeting, but each side had staff present, as well. The six selected owners were Tanenbaum, Ron Burkle (Pittsburgh Penguins), Mark Chipman (Winnipeg Jets), Murray Edwards (Calgary Flames), Jeremy Jacobs (Boston Bruins), and Jeff Vinik (Tampa Bay Lightning). Jacobs, considered one of the hard-line owners, and Edwards are the only members of the group of six to have taken part in previous negotiations. The NHL had no objection for more than six players to take part, so Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews, Shane Doan, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Ryan Miller, Craig Adams, David Backes, Michael Cammalleri, B.J. Crombeen, Mathieu Darche, Ron Hainsey, Shawn Horcoff, Jamal Mayers, Manny Malhotra, Andy McDonald, George Parros and Kevin Westgarth joined the union's negotiating team on Tuesday. made the Broncos legitimate contenders in the AFC. They clinched the division last week and are tied with New England and Baltimore for second place in the conference and a first-round playoff bye. ''I think our team realizes what a unique opportunity we have and we are trying to take advantage of it,'' Manning said. ''Those are the kind of guys you want to be around.'' It might be natural for the Broncos to overlook the struggling Raiders team that hasn't led a game at any point the past four weeks, especially with a potentially key playoff positioning game the following week in Baltimore. But with big-play running back Darren McFadden expected to return and the intensity of a division rivalry, Fox has preached all week to his players to avoid that trap. ''You can't look at their record; you've got to look at their film,'' safety Rahim Moore said. ''They have bigtime playmakers. They have speed all over the field, a great running back in Darren McFad- den. ... Even though this is a team that's shuffling on paper, that doesn't mean they can't make plays. Just because we've been winning doesn't mean they're going to give us a victory. They're going to come play us hard. It's the NFL. Don't ever take anybody lightly in anything you do.'' The Raiders will be playing the game with heavy hearts. Allen, the defensive coordinator in Denver last season, has been away from the team all week because the death of his father, Grady. The players have talked about rallying behind their coach this week. They are searching for any kind of motivation after all their real goals disappeared during the five-game losing streak. ''You just play for pride,'' Huff said. ''We don't want to go out there and get embarrassed Thursday night. Our family, friends, high school coaches, little league coaches, everybody will be watching us. If you don't want to not get embarrassed you shouldn't be playing this game.'' NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Kobe Bryant has become the youngest player in NBA history to eclipse 30,000 career points and only the fifth overall to hit that mark. Bryant entered the elite scoring club during the first half of the Los Angeles Lakers' game against the New Orleans Hornets. He arrived in New Orleans 13 points short, and scored his 13th and 14th points on a short jumper with 1:16 to go in the first half. Because the basket came in the flow of play, there was hardly any reaction on the court as Bryant and his teammates ran back on defense. Bryant is 34. Wilt Chamberlain was 35 when he hit the mark, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone were each 36 and Michael Jordan was 38. CARDS (Continued from page 1B) their outside game. Las Plumas got a 3 each from Chris Knight, A.J. Cahee, Jess Little and Brendan Matheson, but those shots didn't fall with enough regularity to make up for the consistent output of Corning (5-0). Knight finished with 14 points, including eight in the third quarter, but no other Thunderbird totaled more than four points for the game. The Cardinals built an early lead from the line, making all six attempts — four from Hoag and two from Shoemaker — in the first quarter. While Corning made 6 of its 15 foul shots the rest of the way, that created enough of cushion for the Cardinals to lead 15-7 after the first. In the second quarter, Hoag and Shoemaker flashed their various skills to help Corning to some easy points. Twice, Hoag grabbed defensive rebounds and fired long outlet passes to Maday for fast-break points, the latter of which capped a 9-0 run to start the period and made it 24-7 in favor of the Cardinals with 5:17 left in the second quarter. About two minutes later, Shoemaker had a steal at the top of the key and glided down NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE Pacific W L Pct GB L.A. Clippers 11 6 .647 — WARRIORS 11 7 .611 .5 L.A. Lakers 4 12 .250 6.5 Southwest W L Pct GB San Antonio 4 0 1.000 — Dallas 4 1 .800 .5 Memphis 3 1 .750 1 Houston 2 2 .500 2 New Orleans 2 2 .500 2 Northwest W L Pct GB Oklahoma City 15 4 .789 — Denver 9 10 .474 6 Utah 9 10 .474 6 Minnesota 8 Portland 8 11 .421 7 9 .471 6 EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic W L Pct GB New York 13 4 .765 — Brooklyn 11 6 .647 2 Philadelphia 10 8 .556 3.5 Boston 10 8 .556 3.5 Toronto 4 14 .222 9.5 Central 49ERS (Continued from page 1B) Kaepernick still can learn as much from plays that go awry as from those that work. Even Rams coach Jeff Fisher wondered afterward why San Francisco called such a risky play in that situation. ''The play we called in the huddle was a loser, and we didn't have an audible for that play,'' Harbaugh said. ''The way it turned out, that's a low-hanging fruit, 'What the heck are they doing?' You learn from it. It feels like somebody reached into your chest and stomach and started pulling the innards out without using any anesthesia.'' Not that Harbaugh actually called that one — that was offensive coordinator Greg Roman — but he did relay the call to Kaepernick through the headset and took full responsibility for it. Kaepernick isn't blaming anybody. He will be the first one to acknowledge he has plenty of flaws to go with his big, playmaking arm. Now, Kaepernick is back to work getting ready for what has turned into a key game with the Dolphins considering Seattle won at Chicago in overtime Sunday to put pressure on the NFC West-leading Niners. San Francisco plays at the Seahawks (7-5) on Dec. 23. ''Can't make mistakes. That's the biggest thing,'' Kaepernick said of what he took from Sunday. ''For the most part I felt my reads were good, got through progressions well. That's something I want to continue to do going forward.'' There haven't been many miscues so far. Kaepernick took over as starter in the second half of San Francisco's first game with the Rams, a 24-24 tie on Nov. 11, after Smith suffered a first-half concussion and the 2011 second-round draft pick has kept the job even after Smith was medically cleared to return. Kaepernick is 69 for 106 for 888 yards and three touchdowns with one interception and a 96.7 passer rating. ''We've got faith and trust in Colin in the way he's played,'' Harbaugh said. ''Therefore, another start this week.'' AFC West W 9 4 3 2 L 3 8 9 10 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .750 .333 .250 .167 PF 349 258 235 188 PA 244 257 376 322 W y-N. England9 N.Y. Jets 5 Buffalo 5 Miami 5 South W x-Houston 11 Indianapolis 8 Tennessee 4 Jacksonville 2 North W Baltimore 9 Pittsburgh 7 Cincinnati 7 Cleveland 4 L 3 7 7 7 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .750 .417 .417 .417 PF 430 228 277 227 PA 260 296 337 249 L 1 4 8 10 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .917 .667 .333 .167 PF 351 265 248 206 PA 221 306 359 342 L 3 5 5 8 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .750 .583 .583 .333 PF 303 254 302 229 PA 242 230 260 265 y-Denver San Diego RAIDERS Kansas City East x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division 7 12 .368 5 KINGS NFL 9 10 .474 3 Phoenix court for a layup that put Corning ahead 30-10. Little's 3 was LP's only points of the second quarter until Matheson beat the first-half buzzer with another outside shot. Hoag finished with 14 points, and Maday had 11. Bruce was pleased with the play of some of his reserves, most notably Beng Thor. "He was a spark plug. He gets a lot of steals," Bruce said. LP outscored Corning's subs 14-3 in the final quarter. "We have a lot to learn," Bruce said, "but that's what the preseason is for." Las Plumas goes to Shasta Lake City to play in Central Valley's Lehigh Classic tournament. The Thunderbirds open against Liberty Christian, the defending section champion in Division V, at 5 p.m. today. Corning next plays in the Live Oak tournament, which also begins today. W L Pct GB Chicago 9 8 .529 — Indiana 10 9 .526 — Milwaukee 8 Detroit 6 14 .300 4.5 9 .471 1 Cleveland 4 15 .211 6 Southeast W L Pct GB Miami 12 4 .750 — Atlanta 10 5 .667 1.5 Charlotte 7 10 .412 5.5 Orlando 7 10 .412 5.5 Washington 2 13 .133 9.5 —————————————————— Wednesday's results New York 100, Charlotte 98 Indiana 99, Portland 92 Boston 104, Minnesota 94 Golden State 104, Detroit 97 L.A. Lakers 103, New Orleans 87 Atlanta 108, Denver 104 Chicago 95, Cleveland 85 San Antonio 110, Milwaukee 99 Orlando at Utah, late Toronto at Sacramento, late Dallas at L.A. Clippers, late Today's games New York at Miami, 5 p.m. Dallas at Phoenix, 7:30 p.m. NFC West 49ERS Seattle St. Louis Arizona East N.Y. Giants Washington Dallas Philadelphia South W 8 7 5 4 L 3 5 6 8 T 1 0 1 0 Pct .708 .583 .458 .333 PF 289 242 221 186 PA 171 202 267 234 W 7 6 6 3 L 5 6 6 9 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .583 .500 .500 .250 PF 321 312 280 217 PA 243 301 295 320 W L T Pct PF PA y-Atlanta 11 1 0 .917 317 229 Tampa Bay 6 6 0 .500 333 285 New Orleans5 7 0 .417 321 327 Carolina 3 9 0 .250 235 292 North W L T Pct PF PA Green Bay 8 4 0 .667 296 259 Chicago 8 4 0 .667 294 198 Minnesota 6 6 0 .500 262 272 Detroit 4 8 0 .333 300 315 —————————————————— Week 13 Results Thursday's result Atlanta 23, New Orleans 13 Sunday's results Seattle 23, Chicago 17, OT Green Bay 23, Minnesota 14 St. Louis 16, San Francisco 13, OT Kansas City 27, Carolina 21 Houston 24, Tennessee 10 N.Y. Jets 7, Arizona 6 Indianapolis 35, Detroit 33 Buffalo 34, Jacksonville 18 New England 23, Miami 16 Denver 31, Tampa Bay 23 Cleveland 20, Oakland 17 Cincinnati 20, San Diego 13 Pittsburgh 23, Baltimore 20 Dallas 38, Philadelphia 33 Monday's game Washington 17, N.Y. Giants 16 Week 14 Schedule Today's game Denver at Oakland, 5:20 p.m. Sunday's games Chicago at Minnesota, 10 a.m. Baltimore at Washington, 10 a.m. Kansas City at Cleveland, 10 a.m. San Diego at Pittsburgh, 10 a.m. Tennessee at Indianapolis, 10 a.m. N.Y. Jets at Jacksonville, 10 a.m. Atlanta at Carolina, 10 a.m. Philadelphia at Tampa Bay, 10 a.m. St. Louis at Buffalo, 10 a.m. Dallas at Cincinnati, 10 a.m. Miami at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m. Arizona at Seattle, 1:25 p.m. New Orleans at N.Y. Giants, 1:25 p.m. Detroit at Green Bay, 5:20 p.m. Monday's game Houston at New England, 5:30 p.m.