further ahead before the Cowboys open

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Baylor couldnt get Johnathan Motley going early, Manu Lecomte was fighting his shot and the 20th-ranked Bears found themselves trailing for one of the few times this season.Their response? Cut down on turnovers, frustrate VCU defensively and grind out the tough baskets, a formula that helped Baylor hold off the Rams 71-63 on Wednesday in the opening round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.When youre shooting well and the games coming easy on the offensive end, its easy to have that carry over on the defensive end, Baylor coach Scott Drew said. It takes the mentally tough players when theyre not making shots they normally make to make sure it doesnt carry over and affect that on the defensive end.Motley scored 14 of his 19 points after halftime. Al Freeman scored 15 points, hitting three baskets during a critical second-half sequence for the Bears (4-0).In addition, Lecomte shook off a rough shooting game to finish with 16 points, including a hanging layup while being knocked to the ground for a three-point play to go with several key free throws in the final minute.You needed toughness to play in this type of game, Freeman said.JeQuan Lewis had 21 points for the Rams (3-1). They went without a basket for roughly 6 1/2 minutes during the second half.VCU used a late-half burst to lead 36-28 at the break and shot 58 percent in the opening half, but it cooled in the second half as the Bears defense tightened. VCU shot just 35 percent after halftime.I think we played really well for about 25 minutes, VCU coach Will Wade said. It got away from us the last 15 minutes.BIG PICTUREVCU: The Rams just couldnt find someone to step up and make a big basket as the empty possessions mounted during the critical second-half stretch. That included a run of six straight misses with a few turnovers during that field-goal drought.We have to play a full, complete game to be beat the best teams on our schedule, Wade said. We werent able to do that today.Baylor: Drew could at least feel good about his teams response after falling behind late in the opening half and then trailing through the first 9 minutes of the second half, especially with how it had just five second-half turnovers after committing 11 in the first 20 minutes. Baylor had led for 94 percent of game time through its first three games.I liked the way we fought back, Motley said.POLL IMPLICATIONSThe Bears entered the AP Top 25 this week after upsetting Oregon at home last week. Baylor could only help its standing in the three-games-in-three-days event, especially with No. 10 Louisville and No. 24 Michigan State lurking in the bracket.LECOMTES DAYLecomte had made just 2 of 11 shots before that three-point play with 51.1 seconds left. He also went 10 of 11 from the line, including a 7-for-7 effort in the final minute.I was struggling shooting so my job was just to find the hot man ... and they did a great job finishing, he said.FREEMANS FINISHESFreeman, a 6-foot-3 junior from Charlotte, North Carolina, hit a driving shot then followed with a big 3-pointer off a crosscourt feed. His third big basket came when he drove by Jordan Burgess for a score to push the lead to 60-53 with 3:07 left.UP NEXTVCU: The Rams will play St. Johns, which lost to Michigan State, on Thursday on Day 2 of the three-day tournament.Baylor: The Bears will play No. 24 Michigan State in the semifinals on Thursday.---This story has been corrected to show the first name of Motley is Johnathan, not Jonathan.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap---More AP college basketball at http://collegebasketball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 Corey Brewer Jersey . LUCIE, Fla. Shabazz Napier Jersey . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. https://www.cheaptimberwolves.com/ . -- Derrick Rose shook off poor shooting early to hit clutch shots late and Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 104-95 preseason victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. Doug West Jersey . Instead of dwelling on the negative, Oates focused on what was good about the clubs recent play. It worked. Zach LaVine Jersey . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. Wests Tigers have produced one of the upsets of the NRL season, with Mitchell Moses leading the joint venture to a memorable 26-14 win over North Queensland at Leichhardt Oval.Minus halfback Luke Brooks on Sunday against a Cowboys side boosted by the return of superstar Johnathan Thurston from a hamstring injury, the Tigers were deserved four-tries-to-two winners.Sauaso Sue crashed over seven minutes from fulltime to seemingly give the Tigers the win before Ethan Lowe hit back for the visitors.James Tedesco then scored one of the individual tries of the season, beating at least six defenders on his way to the line in the final minute to push the Tigers into the top eight for the first time since early in the season.The loss tips premiers the Cowboys out of the top four with four rounds to play until the finals.Thurston was a late inclusion for the round-22 clash and while he tried hard to spark his side, he was well below his usual sparkling form.In comparision, Moses led the Tigers brilliantly in attack and was stoic in defence as the Robbie Farah-less Wests claimed their best win of the season to stay in finals contention.The home side opened the scoring in the sixth minute wwhen Kevin Naiqama pounced on a Moses kick that was deflected off Cowboys fullback Lachlan Coote.dddddddddddd 19th-minute Moses penalty goal put the Tigers further ahead before the Cowboys opened their account as Thurston grubbered behind Wests defensive line for Kane Linnett.David Nofoaluma put the Tigers ahead again in the 31st minute when he forced his way through three Cowboys defenders.Another Moses penalty goal two minutes from the break gave the home side a six-point buffer at halftime.For most of the bruising second half, the only points were from penalty goals through Moses in the 62nd minute and Thurston in the 67th minute.But then the Tigers forced a late dropout and after the visitors went short with the restart, giving the home side great field position, Sue crashed over.Lowe kept the Cowboys in the hunt before Tedesco sealed the win.North Queensland are now 1-9 at Leichhardt.The Cowboys have won three from 10 away from home this year.Thurston is winless from five games at the suburban venue and 0-12 at Sydney venues against the Tigers. 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