ASS News » League second-round playoff series at a game apiece

FONTANA, Calif. -- Penske Racing was perfect Friday in the first phase toward pushing Helio Castroneves to the IndyCar championship. Will Power, Castroneves and AJ Allmendinger swept the front row in qualifying for Saturday nights season finale at Auto Club Speedway, where Castroneves is trying to chase down Scott Dixon for the IndyCar title. "They did a hell of a job to be a front-row lockout, so job accomplished for those guys," said Dixon, who takes a 25-point lead over Castroneves into the finale. Dixons lead could have been cut to 24 points at the start of the race. Power turned a lap at 220.775 mph to bump Castroneves from the pole, snatching away the bonus point his teammate would have earned for qualifying in the top position. "It would have been nice for Helio to get the point, but Scott didnt, so it kind of still keeps it alive," Power said. Castroneves, who had a 49-point lead in the standings before two disastrous races in Houston two weeks ago, has a ton of work to do to win his first title. The Brazilian likely needs to win the race, while Dixon wins his third championship simply by finishing fifth or better. "Unfortunately, we didnt have a crystal ball to tell my buddy here to slow down," Castroneves said. "Those guys were behind him, so Im glad he went for it. Thats what the car was able to do. We showed that we did our homework. Its a game. Youve got to play the game on the odds. In that position, it was the right thing to do." Dixon qualified seventh and said he never had a shot at catching the Penske drivers. Castroneves was the class of the field in an open test last month, and everybody expected his Chevrolet to be fast at the finale. But the qualifying order had Castroneves go out fairly early, and Power knocked him from the pole, saying after he wanted to ensure that Dixon couldnt grab the top spot when he made his late run. "Im surprised they thought we had that kind of speed in us," the New Zealander said. "Thats kind of nice because it obviously helped us. Ill have to thank Will for taking that point. Whether that comes into control tomorrow night, thats a different subject." Both Castroneves and Dixon made engine changes before the weekend and will take 10-spot penalties on the starting grid. It means both will have to drive through early traffic in their championship race. Allmendinger was brought in by team owner Roger Penske as an added aid to Castroneves battle, and both he and Power have said theyll do whatever is needed to help their teammate. "Obviously, Helios got a championship on the line, and if I can help that, I will," Allmendinger said. But Power bristled when asked if a recent manipulating scandal in NASCAR by Michael Waltrips team could reflect poorly on any Penske attempt to assist Castroneves. "No, cmon. If you just sit there and say Im going to race my teammate really hard for the win, what are we talking about?" Power said. "Everyone knows what the deals going to be. Thats what its going to be. Every single team in this pit lane in this situation would do the same thing. Not just back off over the line. Not going to let him go, but not going to race him hard." Castroneves, usually light and playful, turned serious on the issue. "Were going to race as hard as we can without taking each other out," Castroneves said. "Well see what happens. If we got in that position, thats a great problem to have. Hopefully it will be like that, then well talk about it later." Dixon will be racing with Alex Tagliani filling in for regular teammate Dario Franchitti, who is recovering from injuries suffered in a last-lap crash at Houston two weeks ago. The four-time series champion suffered a broken ankle, two fractured vertebrae and a concussion in the accident, and was hospitalized for almost two weeks. Castroneves did not believe Dixon would suffer from not having his usual Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate on the track. "Scott and Ganassi, not the first-time rodeo for them," he said. "They know what they need to do. We know what we need to do, as well." IndyCar moved the start of the race back 20 minutes to address driver concerns about the glare from the sun in Turn 3. Camiseta Real Madrid Barata . He had spent 16 days on the disabled list before being activated Thursday. He was batting just .203 when he came to bat in the 11th inning on Sunday. Camiseta Marco Asensio . Bozak and Clarkson suffered the injuries in pre-training camp workouts, according to Carlyle, who said they made "small amounts of improvement" from Friday to Saturday. After the players were deemed less than 100 per cent by doctors after Thursdays medical testing, the Leafs held them out of on-ice testing and are being cautious. http://www.nuevacamisetadelrealmadrid.com/camiseta-luka-modric-nino.html . Josh Bailey had a goal and an assist as the New York Islanders earned a 2-1 win over Ottawa Wednesday, leaving the Senators five points out of a playoff spot with just five games to play and four teams ahead of them. Camiseta Isco España . DETROIT LIONS AT CHICAGO BEARS, 1:00 PM (ET) Detroit - G Rodney Austin, WR Ryan Broyles, DT Nick Fairley, QB Kellen Moore, DT Caraun Reid, CB Mohammed Seisay, DE Larry Webster Chicago - S Chris Conte, DT Brandon Dunn, QB David Fales, K Robbie Gould, CB Terrance Mitchell, OT Michael Ola, DE Trevor Scott GREEN BAY PACKERS AT TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS, 1:00 PM (ET) Green Bay - LB Carl Bradford, DT Bruce Gaston, C Garth Gerhart, CB Davon House, WR Jeff Janis, TE Justin Perillo, QB Scott Tolzien Tampa Bay - OT Anthony Collins, CB Isaiah Frey, WR Robert Herron, RB Mike James, WR Solomon Patton, FB/TE Evan Rodriguez, LB Lawrence Sidbury KANSAS CITY CHIEFS AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS, 1:00 PM (ET) Kansas City - WR Donnie Avery, CB Marcus Cooper, OT Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, OL Eric Kush, QB Aaron Murray, RB Charcandrick West, DT Nick Williams Pittsburgh - WR Justin Brown, DE Clifton Geathers, G Chris Hubbard, QB Landry Jones, S Troy Polamalu, TE Matt Spaeth, CB Ike Taylor MINNESOTA VIKINGS AT MIAMI DOLPHINS, 1:00 PM (ET) Minnesota - LB Anthony Barr, OT Carter Bykowski, DB Ahmad Dixon, OT Charlie Johnson, FB Zach Line, CB Shaun Prater, TE Kyle Rudolph Miami - G Nate Garner, WR Matt Hazel, S Don Jones, WR Rishard Matthews, LB Chris McCain, G Dallas Thomas, RB Daniel Thomas NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS AT NEW YORK JETS, 1:00 PM (ET) New England - CB Kyle Arrington, RB LeGarrette Blount, OL Dan Connolly, CB Alfonzo Dennard, OT Jordan Devey, WR Julian Edelman, RB James White NY Jets - DT T. Camiseta Real Madrid Outlet . TSN Hockey Insiders Pierre LeBrun and Bob McKenzie both reported Thursday that there have been ongoing trade discussions between the Oilers and Los Angeles Kings over forward Sam Gagner.BEREA, Ohio - Thrown into their first NFL game — in Pittsburgh, against the vaunted Steelers — rookies Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell didnt shown any nervousness or fear. They performed like seasoned veterans for the Browns. They need to do it again. With starting running back Ben Tate out with a sprained knee, West and Crowell will play Sunday as the Browns (0-1) host New Orleans. After Tate got hurt in the first half last week in Pittsburgh, West rushed for 100 yards — 91 in the second half — and Crowell scored two touchdowns as the Browns rallied from a 24-point deficit before losing 30-27. Browns coach Mike Pettine was pleased with how his rookie runners fared against the Steelers. "It was encouraging," Pettine said before practice Wednesday. "But they need to be able to take the next step, and this is another challenge for them, to go against this type of defence and its nothing that either one of those guys have seen before. It will be a good test for them." West, a third-round pick from Towson, and Crowell, an undrafted free agent whose college career began at Georgia before he transferred to Alabama State, passed their first test with relative ease. They werent intimidated and Pettine credited running backs coach Wilbert Montgomery with having the youngsters ready. Pettine did not provide any details on Tates injury, only confirming he will sit this week. However, theres a chance Tate could be out for an extended period, which would push West and Crowell up the depth chart. If their debuts were any indication, the Browns might not miss Tate. West, a 5-foot-10, 225-pounder, averaged 6.3 yards on 16 carries and became the first Cleveland back in 27 years to rush for 100 yards in his first pro game. Crowell, the SECs freshman of the year before legal problems derailed his career, scored a 3-yard TD on his first carry and on a 15-yarder. The backs have comparable running styles. Neither has breakaway speed, but while West admits he wants to score every time he touches the ball, Crowell is more patient and takes what defences give him. "Hes a slasher," Pettine said of the 5-foot-11, 225-pounder. "He can put his foot in the ground and cut. Hes decisive. Hes a guy that, if you polled DBs and said, Hey, do you want to make a list of guyss that you want to tackle? I dont think he makes that list.dddddddddddd." "Terrance is more of a can make you miss guy. I dont know if Crowell wants to make you miss," Pettine said. Saints coach Sean Payton became familiar with West last year on TV. Payton was watching his alma mater, Eastern Illinois, play Towson in the snow and West wasnt slowed by the wintry conditions. "He had about 310 yards," Payton said. "354," West said, correcting Payton and adding he scored five touchdowns. Maybe wearing his college number again helped. He wore No. 20 during training camp and the preseason, but after veteran back Dion Lewis was released, West asked if he could have No. 28. Clevelands coaches told him he had to earn it and by game time last Sunday he was 28 again. Unfazed by the stage, West ran against the Steelers the way he did in college, where he rushed for 2,509 yards last season with 41 TDs. Pettine wants him to "finish" runs better, and while West understands his coach doesnt want him to force things, hes got one mission with the ball. "Im always trying to score, every play," he said. "I mean every running back should think like that. The great running backs do." Crowells background — he was dismissed at Georgia on weapons charges later dropped — had him wondering about his football future. Looking back, it changed him. "It just made me work harder, made me hungrier," he said. Crowell believes hes just getting started. His debut in Pittsburgh was just his first step. "I feel I can be great," he said. "I feel like I can be one of the best. I want to be one of the best, and thats how Im going to work." NOTES: Pro Bowl TE Jordan Cameron said an MRI showed no structural damage in his right shoulder. He was limited in practice and doesnt know if hell play this week. ... P Spencer Lanning said he did not speak with Steelers WR Antonio Brown, who kicked him in the face on a return. Brown had said he talked to Lanning after the game. "Im not going to say he didnt talk to me, but I didnt talk to him," Lanning said. "I didnt see him. I was looking for him. I made a point to try to look for him." Lanning would not say if he felt Brown should be fined. ' ' '