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SAN ANTONIO -- Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili sat in mostly stunned silence, all that playoff experience not preparing them for how they felt after two games. They were satisfied, yet shaken. The San Antonio Spurs had taken home-court advantage away from the Miami Heat, but then the reigning champions took them apart. So as they prepared to bring the NBA Finals back home for the first time in seven years, the veterans struggled with how they were supposed to sum up their situation. Getting one in South Florida was an accomplishment, but nothing that provided them any momentum after the Heats 103-84 victory Sunday in Game 2. "Not after tonight. I think they regained that," Duncan said. "Obviously we were glad to win a game here in Game 1. Our goal was to get two. But they got the one tonight. We get to go back home. We got a game here. We have three at home, so were excited about that. But if we play like we did tonight, thats not going to matter." The teams took Monday off, with the series resuming Tuesday night. The Spurs will also host Game 4 on Thursday and Game 5 on Sunday. The finals were once as much a part of June as the heat in this city deep in the heart of Texas. San Antonio won four titles in a nine-year span starting in 1999, but hasnt hosted a game in the NBAs championship round since the Spurs took a 2-0 lead over LeBron James and Cleveland in 2007. Here comes James again, needing to win one here -- which hasnt been easy for Miami -- and not concerned that the finals 2-3-2 format now gives the advantage to the Spurs. "It doesnt matter," he said. "Two best teams in the NBA at this point. Both teams have won and can win on each others floor. So its not a biggie." The Heat are just 3-22 in San Antonio, though they did win this year even while James, Dwyane Wade and Mario Chalmers sat out the late-season meeting. James had no cause for concern after Game 2, which validated his belief that he can depend on his teammates until he gets rolling, as he did late in the third quarter and well into the fourth. But a little doubt seemed to creep into the Spurs Big Three, unusual for a group that has been there, done that. Duncan, Parker and Ginobili have teamed for 99 post-season victories together, second-most in NBA history, a trio that is well aware of how quickly things can change in the playoffs. They changed really quickly in this series, about the time it took James to turn Tiago Splitters dunk attempt into a forever finals highlight with a blocked shot. "Of course if you look at the result, being 1-1, its not bad. But you dont want to play like this in an NBA Finals," Ginobili said. "You dont want to give them that much confidence, and you feeling bad about yourself." Duncan was admittedly awful in Game 2, shooting 3 of 13 for nine points. Parker offset his five baskets in 14 attempts with five turnovers, and Ginobili had three of the Spurs 17 turnovers that led to 19 points. The Spurs, like every other team in the NBA, know that theres no way to beat the Heat with that kind of ball handling. "We have to play better. Definitely have to play better," Parker said. "You know, were playing the defending champs. Theyre a great team. We knew they were going to come in and play with a lot more energy and play harder. Thats what they did tonight. "So its always easy to bounce back after a loss, and now its our turn to see how were going to handle our loss and how were going to respond." Big Three against Big Three provided plenty of buildup to the series, and Ginobili said the Spurs stand little chance of winning if their trio plays poorly. But James, having seen the Heat not have enough when they were largely just he, Wade and Chris Bosh two years ago, insists his current team is deep enough to do big damage even when it doesnt come from the big names. "I think the supporting cast is really why both teams are here," James said. "Theyve been making an impact all year long, and they feel like their supporting cast is better. We feel like our supporting cast is better. Its who goes out and do it each and every night to help seal wins." The Spurs are shooting just 41 per cent and averaging 88 points in the series, perhaps lucky to not be down 2-0. Duncan, the three-time NBA Finals MVP who always seemed to be more reliable the later in the season it was, has made only 11-of-32 shots. "Obviously, theyre contested shots, but theyre the shots I feel I can make. So whether it be them or me or whatever it may be, Im going to get back in the gym tomorrow and hopefully come out with a better stroke," he said. "But Im getting the shots I want. I just have to knock them down." Sale Shoes Uk . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Sale Shoes Uk Clearance . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. http://www.saleshoesuk.com/ .ca! Kerry, Two nights after the Scott-Eriksson incident in Buffalo, the Bruins returned home to play San Jose. In that game, Zdeno Chara put a check on Tommy Wingels that clearly targeted his head. Cheap Shoes Wholesale Uk . Collaros, 25, was solid last season, posting a 5-2 record as the starter while incumbent Ricky Ray was injured. Collaros also started Torontos 23-20 regular-season finale loss to Montreal — Ray didnt dress because the Argos had already clinched first in the East Division — but was one of three quarterbacks to play that day. Cheap Shoes Wholesale Free Shipping .com) - Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer were easy first-round winners Tuesday at the Australian Open. What went down in the seventh week of college soccer? The aim each week is to bring you five stories that defined the week in college soccer or help navigate the long road to the (still homeless) Womens College Cup.And sometimes to point out just how perfectly someone can strike a free kick.Big Big 12 wins for West VirginiaOK, so No. 4 West Virginia didnt quite wrap up the Big 12 during its first week of conference play. Not officially. But the annual formality that is the race appears to be right on schedule after the Mountaineers beat Baylor and No. 23 Oklahoma by matching 2-0 scores. With the possible exception of Dinamo Zagreb, the mens professional team that has won Croatias top division every year since 2005-06, few titles are as spoken for as the Big 12s. Since moving to the conference in 2012, West Virginia is 29-1-3 in conference games.The two best bets to stop the Mountaineers this season? Well, Oklahoma was 10-2-1 and ranked and Baylor was high on the list of challengers. The Sooners, who a season ago were responsible for one of those three draws, at least made the Mountaineers sweat. Both goals came in the games final minutes, courtesy of Michaela Abam and Hannah Abraham -- who played a part in all four goals the team scored on the week.Its not done and dusted. West Virginia (2-0) travels to play Kansas (3-0) this week while technically looking up at the Jayhawks in the standings. But the Big 12 has a familiar feel.Stanford gears up for season-shaping tripThe nations top-ranked team will likely play the biggest game of its regular season this coming week in Los Angeles. It just isnt clear if it will be Thursday or Sunday.While the Cardinal endured only mild stress in sweeping Washington State and Washington this past week -- standout freshman Tierna Davidson scored her second career goal in the process -- No. 9 USC and No. 11 UCLA took turns securing road wins against Oregon and Oregon State.That leaves all three teams unbeaten in the Pac-12 ahead of Stanfords visit to USC on Thursday and UCLA on Sunday. There is no angle from which the week ahead is anything but intriguing. For Stanford, its a rare road test. The Cardinal havent played on the road since beating Georgetown on Aug. 21. For UCLA, its a further test of how far the team has come since missing the NCAA tournament a year ago. The Bruins needed an 86th-minute winner from Claire Winter to beat Oregon and didnt exactly exert their will on Oregon State.For all of that, this week might reveal the most of USC. Fresh off Katie Johnsons hat trick at Oregon State on Sunday, USC is working on a nine-game winning streak since two losses to open the season. The Trojans are tied for the top spot as the Pac-12s most prolific offense and are its second-stingiest defense. This week is their chance to show championship credentials.And before folks in Berkley get upset, the other game faced by each of UCLA and USC this week is no mere undercard, with No. 17 California also unbeaten in the league and eager to make headway of its own.Wisconsin wins more than a border battleGood luck finding a team that needed a win thiis week more than Wisconsin, which beat No.dddddddddddd. 8 Minnesota 1-0 on Saturday. Receiving Top 25 votes when the season began, Wisconsin was a loss away from a losing record entering the game in Minneapolis and mired in RPI purgatory.For a team with a senior, Rose Lavelle, who is going to get a look from the U.S. womens national team sooner rather than later, it all shaped up as a disappointing season.But after defending exceptionally well for more than 90 minutes, not only holding Minnesota scoreless but largely limiting even its scoring chances, Wisconsin got the overtime victory. Freshman Dani Rhodes got on the end of a bouncing ball in the 18-yard box and finished from close range for the second goal of her career (the first was also a game-winner, albeit just over two minutes into her first college game in a 1-0 win against Illinois State).We may yet see Lavelle in one final NCAA tournament.Hail to the unbeaten Big Ten leadersWere not done with the Big Ten just yet. While it might make sense to turn to a showdown of ACC heavyweights, the 1-1 draw between No. 7 Virginia and No. 16 North Carolina basically continued a pattern of inconclusive results for each. In the meantime, a team that is sure to be ranked when the new NSCAA Top 25 comes out made far more use of the week that was.After a 3-2 overtime win against No. 19 Rutgers and a 3-1 win against Maryland, Michigan sits atop the Big Ten with a 5-0-0 record. It is the best conference start for the Wolverines, who dont play Penn State in the regular season and have arguably their most difficult remaining games -- Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ohio State -- in Ann Arbor. The star of the week was Nicky Waldeck, who scored all three goals against Rutgers, including a 79th-minute equalizer and the winner in the 104th minute.Spare a thought for Texas A&M Corpus ChristiThere are bad weeks, and then there is the week that Texas A&M Corpus Christi endured.The Islanders faced a road trip to Nicholls State and Southeastern Louisiana with an 0-10-0 record. But after a rough stretch in August that saw them outscored 19-0 in three consecutive losses, the scores had at least grown less wince-inducing of late.And when Shayla Spearman scored in the 84th minute of Fridays game at Nicholls to level the score at 1-1, well, there was light at the end of the tunnel. Or at least there was until Nicholls scored just 114 seconds into the first overtime period to claim a 2-1 win. Yet somehow, there was Texas A&M Corpus Christi tied 0-0 at the end of regulation against Southeastern Louisiana on Sunday. Rather than broken by the disappointment, the Islanders were again on the cusp of a first win, with a lot of help from keeper Jordan Wainwright.Until -- and you will have guessed by now that this was coming -- Southeastern Louisiana was awarded and then converted a penalty kick 163 seconds into the first overtime period.But if Texas A&M Corpus Christi didnt get a win, it should earn itself some fans for persistence. ' ' '