Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

The Oklahoma City Thunder are starting over without Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka and the Philadelphia 76ers are starting over with Joel Embiid and Dario Saric.Philadelphia, however, will have to wait a while longer for top overall draft pick Ben Simmons.The two teams square off in an NBA season opener Wednesday night in the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.The Thunder went 55-27 last season, but lost to the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals after building a 3-1 lead. Oklahoma City traded Ibaka, a veteran forward, to the Orlando Magic and saw Durant, a perennial All-Star, sign a free agent contract with Golden State.That would appear to put the bulk of the offensive burden on Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, who averaged 23.4 points, 10.4 assists and 7.8 rebounds last season.Its not totally up to me how we play, Westbrook told USA Today. We have to adjust to how guys play. My job is to be able to adjust to Steven (Adams) and (Andre) Roberson; those guys have gotten better. We have to be able to adjust to the team you have, adjust on a night-in, night-out basis how you want to play.Adams, a rugged 7-foot center from New Zealand, is expected to improve upon last seasons averages of 8.0 points and 6.7 rebounds after playing well in the playoffs. Roberson, known for his defense, scored at a 4.8 point-per-game clip last season.Westbrooks supporting cast also includes guard Victor Oladipo, who came over from Orlando in the Ibaka trade after averaging 16 points a game last year from the Magic. Rookie forward Domantas Sabonis, who was also part of that deal, is expected to contribute off the bench.The Sixers, whose 10-72 record last season fell one loss short of equaling the all-time record for futility, will finally unveil Embiid and Saric.The third pick in the 2014 draft, Embiid has missed the last two seasons as a result of two foot surgeries.Saric, who was acquired in a draft-day deal from Orlando in 2014, played overseas.Both showed promise in the preseason. Embiid, a native of Cameroon, averaged 11.4 points and 6.0 rebounds in just 14.7 minutes a game while Saric, a Croatian, averaged 10.2 points and 4.5 rebounds over 21.1 minutes.I cant wait (for Wednesdays game), Embiid told the Philadelphia Inquirer. Thats going to be my first official NBA game. I just went through the preseason. I thought I got better game-by-game. Im looking to finally get that first game.Simmons, a forward from LSU, fractured his right foot in training camp and underwent surgery in early October. He will be out until at least January.The Sixers will also be without guard Jerryd Bayless (right wrist ligament damage) for at least two weeks, and center/forward Nerlens Noel (left knee surgery) for three to five weeks.Center Jahlil Okafor was also limited to a single preseason game because of a sore right knee. Womens Cavaliers Jerseys . The Browns coaching search remains incomplete. Cavaliers Jerseys From China . Paul Pierce couldnt believe he missed at the end. Young scored a season-high 26 points to spark a huge effort from the leagues most productive bench, and Los Angeles beat the Brooklyn Nets 99-94 on Wednesday night after blowing a 27-point lead. http://www.cheapcavaliersjerseyschina.com/ .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Cheap Cavaliers Jerseys Collin Sexton Jersey .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Nicolas Batum is learning that sometimes he needs to be a little more selfish on the court -- for the good of his team.The Hornets $120 million man bounced back from a slow start to the season by scoring 17 of his 20 points in a pivotal third quarter to help Charlotte overcome a seven-point halftime deficit and defeat the Philadelphia 76ers 109-93 on Wednesday nightIve got to play for myself sometimes, Batum said. In the third quarter, I felt like I came out and stepped up my game.Did he ever.Batum, who came into game shooting just 27 percent from the field and was limited to three points in the first half, was 6 of 8 in the third quarter with three 3-pointers as the Hornets outscored the 76ers 39-20. Charlotte opened the second half on a 16-2 run and was never seriously challenged after that.The 76ers didnt help themselves with eight turnovers in the third quarter that led to 12 Charlotte points.Nicolas Batum is an elite player and made some very difficult shots, 76ers coach Brett Brown said. We got jumped coming out of the locker room.Batum said he was too passive in the first half and passed up too many shots.You could tell that he was going to come out and look for his shot more, Clifford said. You could tell from his body language that he was upset, in a good way, that he knew we had to play better and he was aggressive right from the start. I didnt say anything to him.Kemba Walker led Charlotte (3-1) with 22 points.Frank Kaminsky provided a huge boost off the bench, finishing with 14 points for his second-straight double-digit game since returning from a sprained foot. Cody Zeller added 13 points in his first game since receiving a $56 million contract extension earlier this week.TIP-INS76ers: Jahlil Okafor was on a minutes restriction due to knee soreness and only played 23 minutes, scoring 12 points. ... Treveon Graham saw his first NBA action for the Hornets but played only one minute. ... Have lost six straight games to the Hornets. ... Committed 19 turnovers that led to 29 points.Hornets: C Roy Hibberrt missed his second straight game with right knee soreness.dddddddddddd ... Jeremy Lamb (hamstring) was also out for Charlotte. ... The Hornets were 16 of 22 from the field in the third quarter.ILYASOVA TALKS TRADEErsan Ilyasova, who was acquired in a trade Tuesday with the Oklahoma City Thunder, tied for a team-high 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting in his first game with the 76ers.While the 76ers have struggled in recent years, Ilysova believes there is talent to turn things around.We have to work together as a unit, said Ilysova, who joined the team on Tuesday. When you look at last year and the year before, those records stick with you. But winning is a habit and as soon as you start winning you feel more confident about yourselves.Brown said he was impressed with Ilysova, saying, You can see why we were attracted to him. I think hes going to be an excellent complement to what we have.RIM PROTECTORSBrown said the 76ers are missing rim protection with Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel still out.If you do get beat on the perimeter, theres an extra layer there behind that that has a chance to make a stop, to get a defensive play, Brown said. Weve seen especially with Joel, him at the rim, how significant he can be. We havent really seen Nerlens this year, but we have good memories from previous years. Without those two, thats what you miss.HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTClifford said the Hornets went over the 76ers sets at halftime and talked about his teams one-on-one defense.We just got beat and we gave up a lot of penetration on pick-and-rolls and individual help plays. In the second half, we did a lot better with that, Clifford said.The 76ers were limited to 40 points in the second half.UP NEXT76ers: Things dont get easier for winless Philadelphia, which plays host to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night.Hornets: Visit Brooklyn on Thursday night before returning home for a three-game home stand. ' ' '