Pirate Galaxy » has been no chance to see how Jennings or Hameed

PORTLAND, Ore. -- A fiery halftime speech from coach Terry Stotts spurred the Trail Blazers over the Nuggets.Portland had fallen behind 57-50 at the break and the defense was struggling.He got after us, and pretty much told us what we were doing was not acceptable and we couldnt keep doing it -- putting ourselves in that position and not playing smart as were capable of and not playing as hard as we need to be to give ourselves a chance, Damian Lillard said.Lillard finished with 32 points and Portland handed Denver its fourth straight loss with a 112-105 victory on Sunday night.CJ McCollum added 21 points for the Blazers, who have won five of their last six games. Portland came alive in the second half after Stotts speech and outscored Denver 36-15 in the third quarter.He got on us, he yelled at us a little bit, and its up to us to go out and answer the call, Lillard said about the halftime talk. I thought we did a great job responding.Jamal Murray hit a 3-pointer to pull Denver within 110-105 in the final seconds, but the rally came up short. It was the Blazers seventh straight victory over the Nuggets at the Moda Center.Murray and Danilo Gallinari led the Nuggets with 19 points apiece and Kenneth Faried added 18. Fourteen of Murrays career-high points came in the fourth-quarter rally. He made five 3-pointers.Denvers Gary Harris, who has started in four games for the Nuggets this season, was out because of a right ankle sprain. Harris started and had 13 points in the Nuggets 106-95 loss at home to Detroit on Saturday night. While he injured his ankle during the game, he returned to play.Jameer Nelson started in his place on Sunday. Reserve forward Wilson Chandler, who has struggled with a left hamstring strain, also played and had 18 points.Once were aggressive and play as a team we can beat anybody, but we didnt do that in the third quarter, Chandler said. They came out and just flipped it on us. They were the aggressors in the third quarter and they just jumped on us.The Blazers were coming off a 122-120 overtime victory over the Sacramento Kings on Friday night. Afterward, Lillard said the Blazers needed to play well for longer stretches.Portland went up 13-7 early on Meyers Leonards alley-oop dunk but Denver wrestled away the lead and went up 28-20 at the end of the first quarter on Nelsons 3-pointer.Jusuf Nurkics hook shot pushed Denvers lead to 48-31 midway through the second quarter. The Blazers played their way back, with Maurice Harkless layup pulling Portland within 52-46.Portland trailed 57-50 at the half, but closed to 58-55 on CJ McCollums layup. Portland took a 61-60 lead on Harkless 3-pointer and his fast-break layup stretched the advantage to 73-64.Harkless finished with 17 points.Asked about what he said at halftime, Stotts wouldnt reveal much.We talked about defense, he said.TIP-INS:Nuggets: Chandler has had six games this season with at least 10 points. He had 11 in the first half alone against Portland. ... The Nuggets rank last in the league for turnovers with an average of 18 per game. Against the Blazers they had 18.Trail Blazers: The Blazers beat the Nuggets 115-113 in overtime earlier this season in Denver. With six assists tonight, Damian Lillard surpassed Geoff Petrie for fourth place on Portlands all-time list for assists with 2,058.LILLARD-PROTESTS: There have been protests every night in Portland since Tuesdays election of Donald Trump. At times the demonstrations have turned violent with property damage, a non-fatal shooting and 71 arrests on Saturday.I think its very unfortunate that people have done some of the things they have done during the protest. A lot of harm and damage has been done, Lillard told ESPN. I do understand their frustration, and I commend people wanting to come together for some kind of change. Tearing apart your own city just isnt the place to begin, and also making your own city less of a safe place isnt the answer.There has been increased security at the Moda Center since the election.MURRAYS BIG NIGHT: I was getting worried missing them early, he said about his fourth-quarter surge. I was so wide open and I wasnt hitting them so I wanted to make up for that. In addition to his top game in terms of points and 3-pointers, the rookie out of Kentucky also had a season-best five rebounds.UP NEXT:Nuggets: Denver hosts the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.Trail Blazers: Portland hosts the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday. Custom Ozzie Smith Jersey . With Parker having a quiet game for once, Nicolas Batum and Boris Diaw provided the scoring as France won its first major basketball title by beating Lithuania 80-66 on Sunday. It was a victory that ended a decade of frustration for Parker and a talented French generation, which lost the final against Spain two years ago and took bronze in 2005. Custom Cardinals T-shirts . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. http://www.custommlbcardinalsjersey.com/ .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. Cardinals Jerseys China . MORITZ, Switzerland -- Fog prevented downhill racers from getting their Olympic dress rehearsal. Custom Cardinals Jerseys . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. Haseeb Hameed and Ben Duckett look to be the likely beneficiaries of the decision by Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan to miss the tour of Bangladesh, as Englands selectors prepare to name their Test and ODI squads.A recall for off-spinner Gareth Batty, who will be 39 by the time the Test series starts, is also anticipated, as well as his Surrey team-mate, Zafar Ansari.Duckett, who has enjoyed an outstanding season with Northants, looks set to come into the limited-overs squad, while Hameed has emerged as the likely replacement for Hales as Alastair Cooks opening partner in the Test squad.Other uncapped players with a chance of a call-up include the left-arm spinner Jack Leach, as well as Durhams opening batsman Keaton Jennings and the Surrey wicketkeeper, Ben Foakes.England look set to name an unusually large 17-man squad for the two-Test series, plus a 15-man squad for the three-match ODI series in Bangladesh. And, while the tour moves straight into a Test series in India without warm-up games, the ECB have specified that this squad will cover the Bangladesh segment only.The most contentious decisions ahead of the announcement of the Test squad (at 10am on Friday) focus on the identity of Cooks new opening partner, the identity of the reserve wicketkeeper and the identity of the sides third (and perhaps fourth) spin bowler.While Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid are sure to be named as the two main spinners in the squad, the battle for the remaining places is intriguing. Batty, despite his age, is expected to return as an experienced pro, with Ansari a strong possibility despite an injury-ravaged year. Jack Leach may have to be content with a Lions tour despite 58 Championship wickets at a cost of 22.60 this season.Liam Dawson, who has claimed only 15 Championship wickets at an average of 46.80 this season but is seen as a good controlling bowler, is expected to miss out, as is Ollie Rayner who has claimed 50 Championship wickets this season.The selectors have a similarly tricky decision to make over the opening position. While Sam Robson has looked in good touch this season - Warwickshire believe he played Jeetan Patel, Division Ones leading wicket-taker, better than anyone - it seems Hameed is the one who has made the biggest impression on the selectors. Aged just 19 and with fewer than 20 first-class games behind him, his selection would, in some ways, constitute a gamble. But he has impressed with his tight technique and unflustered temperament - his director of cricket at Lancashire, Ashley Giles, compares his hatred of losing his wicket as simiilar to that of Jonathan Trotts - and Englands head coach, Trevor Bayliss, is understood to have been impressed by the footage he has seen of him in action.ddddddddddddJennings success this season is hard to ignore, though. Nobody in the top division of the County Championship has scored more runs - he has made 1,522 at 69.18 - or as many centuries (seven). Having just qualified for England (he is the son of Ray Jennings, the former South Africa wicketkeeper), he has made a compelling case for selection.Mark Wood looks sure to return, while James Vince looks set to miss out. Gary Ballance is another who faces an anxious wait, though he may well have done just enough.The choice of reserve wicketkeeper comes down to a choice between Foakes and Jos Buttler. Foakes has only had one full season as first-choice keeper, but is clearly a special talent, while Buttler has, at this stage, played only one red-ball game since he was dropped from the Test team last October. His record against spin isnt wonderful, either, though his talent is unquestioned and his appointment as stand-in ODI captain demonstrates the managements faith in his character.There was a time when the selectors suggested that nobody would be selected for England unless they had previously come through the Lions system. There is some sense in that stance, too, as it gives the management an idea of how their players will react in a new environment and, often, at a slightly higher level.But that isnt an option this time. The ECB did not arrange any red-ball cricket for the Lions over the winter of 2015-16 or over the summer of 2016, so there has been no chance to see how Jennings or Hameed might cope. To be fair, both have developed from relative obscurity and would have been unlikely candidates for a Lions tour this time last year.This winter, the Lions are hoping to play two four-day games (and five limited-overs games) in Sri Lanka and, subject to agreements, a three-day game against Afghanistan in Dubai before Christmas. The squad for those tours will be named on Monday.While Duckett is a pretty clear choice for the ODI squad - it is by no means impossible that a successful debut would render Eoin Morgans return problematic - there may well be opportunities for several other fringe players (the likes of Sam Billings and Dawid Malan, among them) if, as expected, England rest the likes of Joe Root and Moeen from the limited-overs section of the tour. ' ' '