its helping young guys, or helping the more experience | Forum

                                      PULLMAN, Wash. L.J. Collier Jersey Large . -- New Orleans last win over a Pac-12 opponent dates back to 1998. On Saturday, a low-attended road game against streaky Washington State presented an opportunity.The Privateers owned the Cougars on glass, shot 53.7 percent from the field and Erik Thomas had 17 points and 10 boards as New Orleans defeated Washington State 70-54 to cement the landmark.I think its a step forward for our program, New Orleans coach Mark Slessinger said. My biggest concern was being prepared ... and they had good counters from start to finish . Im humbled at how hard these guys play,Christavious Gill scored 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, Travin Thibodeaux added 16 points and Tevin Boyle finished with 10 points and six assists for the Privateers (4-3).Washington State (4-4) hung around in the second half, but New Orleans kept its lead hovering around 10 throughout most of the period and had a late 10-2 run to pull away to an 18-point lead in the final minute.With little success weve had I dont think we handled it well, Washington State coach Ernie Kent said. I just thought the start of game, if the ball doesnt go down, that really determines what type of energy we play with the rest of the way. I didnt feel like we had a sense of urgency or energy.New Orleans dominated Washington State on the glass 36-20.Robert Franks led the Cougars in scoring with a career-high 16 points off the bench.Gills early 3 helped New Orleans to a 7-2 lead. WSU tied the game at 13 after Derrien King hit a 3 and Robert Franks flushed a fast break dunk.The Privateers then scored 13 in a row, fueled by 3s from Broyles, Jorge Rosa and Gill to take a 26-13 lead with 6:23 left in the half. Ike Iroegbus seven first-half points helped cut the New Orleans lead to four at the half.BIG PICTURENew Orleans: New Orleans managed a big road win over a Pac-12 opponent to pull its record over .500. The win was the first against a Pac-12 team since 1998.Washington State: Home losses to San Jose State and New Orleans do not look favorable as WSU dropped to .500 on the season. The Cougars lost their second home game against a mid-major opponent in the span of a week and lost any momentum it gripped after beating Utah Valley. Picked to be the Pac-12s last place finisher, WSU is doing little to convince anyone otherwise.LOW ATTENDANCEKent acknowledged the lack of energy the Cougars put forth may in part be a product of the continual small home crowds. The official box score listed 2,617 fans in attendance at Beasley Coliseum Saturday, which is a fraction of the 11,671 venue capacity.I dont know if (low attendance) is psyching (the players) out, but its just hard game-in and game-out to rely on bringing energy yourself, Kent said. Sometimes youre going to come into the game and youre not going to have your legs, youre going to be a little worn down and (the crowd) is where you usually get that juice from your crowd, but I just cant blame it just on the crowd.UP NEXTNew Orleans: The Privateers next game is at Northwestern on Dec. 11 before they return home to face Louisiana-Lafayette on Dec. 17.Washington State: With four games left in the nonconference schedule, one remains in the Cougars current four-game home stand, a Wednesday matchup with out-of-state neighbor Idaho. WSU then travels to Kansas City, Missouri, to face Kansas State in the Wildcat Classic on Saturday, and returns home to face Santa Clara on Dec. 17 and Sacramento State on Dec. 21. Custom Seahawks T-shirts . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Seahawks Jerseys China . Miller reached right to deflect Mikhail Grabovskis attempt with just over 2 minutes remaining in regulation, and then made two more saves in the shootout Sunday to give the Sabres a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. http:///...ersey-large-79k.html . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. In the days when Australias cricket team were all-conquering, Adam Gilchrist was frequently referred to as the sides allrounder, for his batting carried that kind of weight. On his recall to the national side in far grimmer times, Matthew Wades allround responsibilities appear to be threefold: batting, wicketkeeping and presence.While Wade insists that his glove work has gone up a notch or three since he was dropped for Brad Haddin ahead of the 2013 Ashes series, ending a run of 12 Tests behind the stumps, he also acknowledged his role around the team will be much more multifaceted than simply adding to his tally of dismissals. At a time when Australian batting could not be at a lower ebb, Wade must bring plenty of runs, after the fashion of his two commendable Test hundreds against the West Indies and Sri Lanka. In particular he must help to fashion lower-order partnerships to extract more value from the home sides tail - something he enjoys.I enjoy that part of the game, I enjoy the scrap, Wade said on Monday. I enjoy getting out there when our backs are to the wall. Hopefully that doesnt come in this Test, but if it does Im looking forward to getting out there and having a scrap, yeah.That liking for a scrap has not always paid off for Wade. He has got himself in trouble on the field for aggressive verbal exchanges, most recently in South Africa during the ODI series that preceded these Tests. But in the wake of the captain Steven Smiths plea for cricketers prepared to fight for the national team cause, a more pugilistic presence behind the stumps has helped push Wade ahead of Peter Nevill.I think I just bring what I bring for Victoria week in, week out, he said. Obviously Ive been picked for a reason and Ill just come and play my way. Ive been picked to come in and be a bit of a presence hopefully I suppose. I feel like being around one day international team for a while I can really lead as well.Ive been around for long enough it doesnt feel like Im coming in for my first game. I can come in and contribute and help the leaders out on the field. I dont go into any game looking to really get into anyones head. I just go out and play the way that I play.Im competitive. I like the contest. If an opportunity comes where I feel like I can contribute in that way to get benefit for the teeam then I will. Custom Seahawks Jersey China. I certainly dont go out looking to target people, it just develops out on the ground.Underpinning all this will be Wades effectiveness or otherwise behind the stumps. Intriguingly, he has not worked specifically with any one mentor to improve his technique, whether it be footwork, softer hands or anticipation. But he acknowledges now that it was the art of wicketkeeping that got away from him at the time he was dropped from the Test side, meaning that much more emphasis on it this time around.Theres no doubt when I played Test cricket last time my wicket keeping was not where it needed to be so Ive worked hard on it and improvements have come, he said. So I feel confident in my game that I can make a contribution in the team. Thats what its all about.The good thing about wicket keeping is that everywhere you go generally you find a keeper. Ive done work with Heals [Ian Healy], Ive done work with Rod [Marsh], Ive done work with Tim Coyle. Ive worked with everyone. But in the end when youre out there and things arent going well youve got to try and work it out yourself and if you dont know your game 100% its going to be hard to get back.I just needed to keep better that was basically it. Three years ago was a long time ago so hard to remember exactly what the selectors told me at that time. But I knew I needed to work on my keeping at that stage, it was no surprise I was out of the team. But Ive worked hard on it and Im confident in it that I can contribute. Its not about my wicket keeping or my batting. Its about trying to find a way as a team to get some wins out.Winning culture is something Australia desperately need right now, in whatever form it takes. As Victorias captain, Wade has helmed consecutive Sheffield Shield triumphs for his state and just yesterday helped oversee a crushing win for the Bushrangers over their longtime rivals New South Wales at the SCG. It all helps.Ive played enough first-class cricket now and been around the Australian setup long enough to feel like I can go out and lead, he said. Whether its helping young guys, or helping the more experienced guys. Whatever the team needs, Ill be there to help out. ' ' '