PHILADELPHIS (CBS) – The nation’s leading shot blocker in all of Division II men’s basketball calls Northeast Philadelphia home these days.

Holy Family University redshirt senior Rickie Crews has rejected 90 shots through 22 games this season and that’s good for a 4.1 average per game, half a block better than the next closest guy on the list.

The Deptford, New Jersey native’s success is even more impressive when you consider it comes after an entire season lost to a broken wrist.   He suffered the injury in a exhibition game just prior to the start of the 2010-2011 regular season.

“I kind of went to the hospital just to get x-rays and I was just thinking it was a sprained wrist or something like that, something minor,” Crews says.  “Before you know I was calling up my parents, I needed emergency surgery and they told me up front it’s going to take 4-6 months to heal.  And of course basketball season’s not that long so I knew I would be out for the season.”

Crews says dealing with the injury was tough, but he stayed focused on getting back in action.

“It was actually my left hand, so I was able to work on my right hand.  So I was kind of able to stay physically active.  But mentally, basketball is all about instincts and it’s all about knowing where you’re at, timing.  So when I started playing again I had to get my instincts back, just knowing when to do things, when not to do things and just have better court awareness and that definitely takes some time to adjust to.”

An athletic forward who measures in at 6-9, Crews has had some huge nights on the defensive end this season.  He blocked ten shots on February 9th against the University of the Sciences (that’s a school record)  and he has a couple of nine-block performance on his resume this season as well.   He talks about his skill in guarding the basket.

“More of a natural reaction.  The main goal is, once guys challenge you, you want to prevent them from scoring.  In our program one of the things we try and do is play defense and it’s going to happen when guys get down the lane and they’re going to try and get lay-ups and stuff like that.  So with me being down there, I just try and use my height and use some of my instincts to make the best play at the ball that I can.”

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon interview Ricky Crews:

Crews and Holy Family return to the court tonight to visit Wilmington University.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – It’s perhaps the greatest one game performance in the history of basketball, maybe all of sports; Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point game. There is no video, there is limited audio, and there are were fewer than 5,000 people who saw the game live. The Sixers now own just about the best piece of memorabilia from the game, the court it was played on. They’re also going to give Sixers fans a chance to own part of it as well.

The court was purchased from Hershey Entertainment and Resorts, who have had the court since the game in 1962. The game was played at the Hershey Sports Arena on March 2nd of that year. The Sixers plan to display the court at the Wells Fargo Center, at the Sixers practice facility in Hershey, as well as the Basketball Hall Of Fame in Springfield, MA.

Basketball fans also have a chance to own an actual piece of the court. All fans in attendance for the Sixers March 2nd game against the Warriors will receive a 2″ x 2″ specially mounted piece of the floor. To help celebrate the 5oth anniversary of the game, the Sixers will also honor Chamberlain during a halftime ceremony. Chamberlain, who passed away in 1999, played the legendary game as a member of the Warriors, who were located in Philadelphia the time. Attendance at the 50th anniversary game is likely be five times as many people who saw the original game, which was just over 4,000.

“It’s the greatest bobblehead in the history of the NBA,” Sixers CEO and Co-Owner Adam Aron said of the giveaway when he spoke to the WIP Morning Show on Tuesday.

Listen to the WIP Morning Show interview Adam Aron:

Things like the court giveaway and the team’s improved play have had an effect on fans so far. “Based on the pace we’re going, we will have more tickets sold and more ticket revenue, for 33 games this year, than they had for 41 games this last year,” Aron said of the team’s increased attendance this year. The Sixers got their 20th win on Monday night in their 29th game, it took them 45 games last season.

One of the first things the new Sixers ownership did this year was address the team’s mascot situation by saying goodbye to its mascot, Hip-Hop. After an initial fan vote, the Sixers have delayed the announcement of a new mascot. Yesterday, a minor internet dust-up occurred when Aron asked fans what they’d think of bringing back Big Shot, as mascot that the team said goodbye to in 1996. When asked if the team was bringing Big Shot back, Aron said, “I didn’t hint anything, I was asking a question. Today is not the day for mascots, today is the day for Wilt Chamberlain.”

“Wilt Chamberlain is without any doubt one of the most legendary individuals to ever play basketball,” Aron said via a press release.  “It is an honor for 76ers Managing Owner Joshua Harris and all in our ownership group to celebrate with our fans the 50th Anniversary of Wilt scoring 100 points at an NBA game.  We cannot stress enough how excited we are to have found the original court on which Wilt once soared.  Preserving the court in Philadelphia, in Hershey and at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is a thrill.  So, too is sharing a little bit of this rich history with our fans attending the 50th Anniversary of the greatest scoring performance of all-time in the NBA.”

Chamberlain shot 36-63 in the game, and 28-32 from the free throw line. He had 25 rebounds, and even managed two assists. To put Chamberlain’s performance in perspective, NBA teams are averaging about 95 points per game during the 2011-12 season.

Thaddeus Young added 20 points on 6 of 9 shooting, and Jrue Holiday chipped in with 19 points for the 76ers (20-9).

Williams was averaging 19 points over the previous four games. He stayed hot Monday night, making several big shots including a 3-pointer with 6:11 remaining after the Bobcats had pulled within 71-69.

He also hit a 3-pointer in the final minute to seal Philadelphia’s second straight win.

Corey Maggette scored a season-high 22 points for Charlotte, which fell to 3-25 on the season. It’s the worst record in the NBA and drops the Bobcats’ winning percentage below that of the 1972-73 76ers, who finished with the worst record ever in the NBA at 9-72.

Kemba Walker added 21 points and Reggie Williams chipped in with 14 for Charlotte.

The game took on a familiar theme early on for the Bobcats.

For the third straight game, they shot less than 34 percent from the field in the first quarter and found themselves behind by double digits. They had a similar start in two previous blowout losses to the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers over the weekend.

It didn’t turn out that way this time, though.

Holiday scored Philadelphia’s first eight points of the game after hitting his first four shots from the field as the 76ers jumped out to a 28-17 lead. But the 76ers were not able to distance themselves from the Bobcats.

Despite having the second-best defense in the league — and facing the worst offense in the league — the 76ers couldn’t put together a run in the second or third quarters. The Bobcats cut their lead to 69-67 late in the third quarter behind 18 points from Maggette.

However, the 76ers refused to surrender the lead.

The Bobcats again climbed to within two with 6:11 left in the game after back-to-back 3-pointers by Walker, but Williams knocked home a 3-pointer from the wing to quell the rally. The Bobcats never mounted a challenge after that as the 76ers outscored the Bobcats 18-10 down the stretch.

Once again, the Bobcats were dominated in the paint, where the 76ers scored 42 of their points.

Notes: Williams has come off the bench in every game this season and is leading the 76ers in scoring. The last player to lead his team in scoring for an entire season without making a single start was Dell Curry for the Charlotte Hornets in 1993-94. Curry is now a television color analyst for the Bobcats. … Andre Iguodala came in shooting 40.2 percent from 3-point range this season but was 0 for 3 against the Bobcats.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Philadelphia Union have signed veteran defender and Philadelphia native Chris Albright, the team announced today. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Albright played soccer in high school for Penn Charter, then played two years in college for the University Of Virginia, where he was an All-American as a forward.

Albright is a 13 year veteran of the MLS, starting his career in 1999 with D.C. United and most recently playing for the New York Red Bulls in 2011. The 33 year-old Albright has been named an MLS All-Star three times.

Albright has also earned 22 caps with the U.S. National Team.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Temple sits at 19-5 on the season after that impressive 85-72 win over Xavier on Saturday night.  That victory helped the Owls reach the brink of the national rankings.  In the latest polls released on Monday, the Owls are at the top of the “Others receiving votes” category in the AP poll, and they are right behind Wichita State in that group in the coaches poll.

Next up for Temple, a Wednesday night visit to St. Bonaventure.

The Owls got a great performance in that win over Xavier from Ramone Moore as he poured in 30 points, and that made head coach Fran Dunphy a happy man.

“Ramone has worked so hard at his game and he’s really just a terrific guy along with being a very good player.  I’m so happy for his recent success here.  He’s had a really good year and he’s really starting to shoot it from the perimeter and that has just enhanced his ability to make shots and score points for us.”

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon interview Fran Dunphy:

As for Wednesday’s game with the Bonnies, the Owls are going to have to deal with St. Bonaventure senior big man Andrew Nicholson who is coming off an absurdly good performance last time out in a win over Duquesne.  The 6-9 forward poured in 21 points in that one on Saturday, while pulling down 23 rebounds. Needless to say, he has Dunphy’s attention.

“The scary part for me was the eight offensive rebounds.  That means that he knows where the ball is coming off the rim, he’s got that knack for rebounding.  And then they have the other kid, (junior forward) Demitrius Conger, who also had seven offensive rebounds (vs. Duquesne).  So those two stat lines, those two guys, (are) something you really have to worry about.”

For the season, Nicholson is averaging 15.6 points and 7.8 rebounds a game.  Both figures are tops on the Bonnies, who are 13-9 on the season and 9-1 at home.  Dunphy says this will be a battle.

“They are in very good position to finish the league season out strong and certainly they are going to be more than ready for us and we need to accept that challenge on Wednesday.”

Temple and St. Bonaventure will tip-off at 8:00pm on Wednesday night in Olean, New York.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Drexel Dragons will be home on Tuesday night to host CAA foe William and Mary.  The Dragons are the hottest team in the city, and now one of the hottest teams in the nation as their winning streak has hit 13 in a row after Saturday’s win against Hofstra.

The Dragons took care of the Pride, 78-67, shooting 60% from the field in the process.

Junior guard Chris Fouch was huge in that win, pouring in 25 points on 8-10 shooting from the field (6-7 from three).  It was one of Fouch’s best games as a Dragon and it was a welcome sight for Drexel fans, as Fouch has worked hard to come back from offseason knee surgery that cost him the first four games of the season and has prevented him from getting into a good rhythm.

Dragons head coach Bruiser Flint says he could see Fouch’s success coming in pregame warm-ups.

“He had a great shoot around.  He was jumping all over the place, dunking, shooting.  Always get on my guys, I always say, ‘The pressure is not to perform, the pressure is to prepare’.  And I thought he had a great shoot-around the day of the game and he really came out and shot the ball well.”

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon’s interview with Bruiser Flint:

The Dragons will try for 14-straight wins and look to stay perfect at home (currently 11-0) on Tuesday night as they host William and Mary.

Drexel already beat the Tribe down in Virginia, picking up a 64-48 win back on January 23rd.   Flint talks about what they can take out of that win this time around.

“I thought we played great defensively.  We’ve had a lot of problems down there — we’ve had a lot of problems against this team.  One, because we’ve really fouled them a lot.  In the games that we’ve lost to them, they’ve gone to the foul line an average of 26 times and they’ve actually made 22 of them.  So not only do we foul them, but they also make their foul shots.  So one of the things we really talked about was defending without fouling, which I think we did a great job of.  It’s going to be the same thing at home.”

In that game back in January, William and Mary only went to the line seven times (made six).

Mentioned the Dragons success at home earlier, Flint says it is no accident that his team has been so good at the DAC.

“We’ve had great crowds at the DAC.  So the fans have been unbelievable, the students.  It gives you a boost of energy, I don’t care what anybody says.  When you have a raucous crowd and the people in there are cheering you, it’s always intimidating for the other team.  Especially in our arena where its pretty close quarters and people can almost touch you as you’re running down the floor.”

William and Mary is 5-22 on the season coming into this one.

Drexel and the Tribe will tip-off at 7:00pm.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – DeSean Jackson said his contract situation kept him from performing as well as he could have last season for the Eagles. Long-term deal or not, Jackson stands to make a lot of money next year. 94 WIP’s Howard Eskin has confirmed that the Eagles plan to use their ‘franchise tag’ on the wide receiver.

The franchise tag doesn’t necessarily mean that Jackson will be a member of the Eagles next year, but it does assure that if the Eagles do let him go, they’ll get something in exchange.

Here’s how it works; by placing the tag on Jackson, the Eagles must offer Jackson the average of the top five salaries in the NFL at his position (wide receiver) for one year. Those salaries range from Calvin Johnson’s $14 million and Sidney Rice’s $7 million, and the average is about $9.1 million. After making that offer, the Eagles are free to pursue a long-term deal with Jackson, perhaps lowering the average salary over the life of the deal and locking Jackson up for the future. The Eagles are also able to trade Jackson’s rights to another team. If the team is unable to sign Jackson to a long-term deal, or get sufficient value in a trade, they can sign him for just the 2012 season. The Eagles would be able to put the franchise tag on Jackson next year as well. Teams can put the tag on a player for a maximum of two consecutive years.

What do you want the Eagles to do, sign Jackson for one year, sign him for multiple years, or trade his rights? Let us know in the comments.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Trading for a defenseman is not a topic that all Flyers insiders see the same way. The importance of Ilya Bryzgalov’s success however, is one that they do.

Randy Miller, Flyers beat writer for the South Jersey Courier Post doesn’t think the Flyers should make a deal for a defenseman. “I don’t think you make a trade because I don’t think there’s a piece out there that can get these Flyers in the class of the Rangers, the Bruins, or the elite teams,” Miller said in an interview with 94 WIP’s Eytan Shander. “There are some years you have a chance to win the Cup, and I think at this point, two-thirds through the season, they have flaws. They’ve had a nice year, they have eight rookies in the lineup. Their goaltending situation is a mess right now. And I just don’t see this team being an elite team.”

Listen to the interview with Randy Miller:

To Miller, the only thing that really matters is the Flyers goaltending. “Unless they get Bryzgalov playing like Tim Thomas, or  Henrik Lundqvist, they don’t have a shot,” he said.

Though 94 WIP’s Al Morganti thinks the Flyers will swing a minor deal for a defenseman, he also thinks Bryzgalov is the key to the Flyers making a run. “Bryzgalov’s gotta get his game together, because there are no other options there,” Morganti said on Monday. “The goalie mess, there’s got to be some resolution to it.” Morganti said under normal circumstances, the Flyers would trade for a goaltender at this point in the year. The number of years and dollars tied up in the Bryzgalov deal make that almost impossible.

The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Sam Carchidi agrees with Morganti on both points. “They do need to make a move, they do need to get somebody, a defenseman,” he said of the Flyers trade prospects in an interview with 94 WIP’s Angelo Cataldi and The Morning Team. Again, it was Bryzgalov who was the focus, “they have to get the thermos man back on track. If he can get to the form he had in Phoenix, I’m not as discouraged.”

Listen to the interview with Sam Carchidi:

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – After the Sixers toughest two week stretch of the season, things have gotten a bit easier. After taking care of the Cavs in Cleveland on Saturday night, while the Cavs were missing their two best players (Kyrie Irving, Anderson Varejao), the Sixers head to Charlotte tonight to play the worst team in the NBA.

To say the 3-24 Bobcats are the worst team in the league may be an understatement. They’ve lost 14 consecutive games. They’re scoring the fewest points per game in the NBA, while allowing the most points per game in the league. They just became the first team in NBA history to lose consecutive home games by more than 25 points each. Their leading rebounder (Corey Maggette), is averaging fewer than six rebounds per game. To make matters worse, their starting backcourt and two leading scorers, Gerald Henderson and D.J. Augustin, are expected to miss the game due to injury.

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon interview Marc Zumoff:

The Bobcats are being led now by rookie point guard Kemba Walker, who although is scoring more with more minutes, is still shooting 35% from the field.

The Sixers (19-9) come in attempting to win their 20th in the 29th game of the season. The Atlantic Division leading Sixers would hit that mark 16 games faster than they did last year, when the team started the season 3-13. They’ll be looking for back-to-back wins after losing consecutive games (San Antonio, Los Angeles Clippers) for the first time this year. Their win on Saturday in Cleveland was the kind the Sixers have gotten used to, with six players in double figures.

The Sixers will be without center Spencer Hawes, who didn’t travel with the team on their current three game road trip, as he tries to recover from an injured Achilles that’s kept him out of 13 games this year. The Sixers will start rookie Lavoy Allen in his place. They had been starting rookie Nikola Vucevic at the center position, until the coaching staff decided he’d be better suited coming off the bench.

The game can be heard live on 94 WIP at 7pm.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – When the Phillies 2011 season ended with a disappointing Division Series loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, Ruben Amaro said the offense had to change, and it was up to the current players to change it, instead of the team making roster moves. “We need to make adjustments, work counts better, have better two-strike at bats,” he said. With pitchers and catchers preparing to report to 2012 Spring Training, and their off-season moves essentially finished, Amaro still believes the same thing.

“You accomplish it by guys stepping up and noticing some of their, you know, their faults, and reorganizing the way they think about the offense,” Amaro said on Saturday during an interview with Howard Eskin on 94 WIP. “You have to understand that the long ball’s not going to be as essential a part of our game, and we have to kind of live by that. We have some speed on the club. We have some guys who move runners. If they dedicate themselves to doing that, we’ll have a much better offensive club.”

Listen to Howard Eskin’s interview with Ruben Amaro Jr.:

Getting on base and moving players over is something the Phillies need to do, and haven’t been as successful at in recent years. Though the Phillies have had trouble, Amaro thinks the problem is league-wide. “Teams really have a tough time with situational hitting across the board,” he said. “Unless the players are dedicated to doing it, then it’s not going to happen.”

Pitchers and catchers report to Clearwater, FL for Phillies Spring Training on Saturday.

DETROIT (CBS) — After Saturday’s 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers, Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen called out his teammates for their lackluster effort.

On Sunday night in Detroit, the effort was there – but the results were not. Philadelphia fell to the Red Wings 4-3. It was their fifth loss in the last six games.

For Detroit, it was a historical 20^th consecutive win on home ice, equaling the NHL mark first set by the Boston Bruins during the 1929-30 season, and then matched by the Flyers in 1976.

“We definitely wanted to keep them from tying the record,” said Flyers winger Scott Hartnell. “We’re all disappointed about that.”

The Flyers – a team that has played very well on the road this season – did so again. But the penalty kill problems that haunted them against the Rangers a day earlier continued against the Red Wings.

Niklas Kronwall opened the scoring a little more than seven minutes into the first period with a power-play goal for Detroit after a Brayden Schenn tripping penalty.

Schenn made up for his mistake. The Flyers’ rookie beat Red Wings goalie Joey MacDonald not once, but twice. His first goal came in the first period and evened the score at one. His second tally, early in period number two, gave the orange and black a short-lived 2-1 lead.

After Wayne Simmonds was sent to the box for a roughing penalty, Pavel Datsyuk answered with another Detroit power-play goal, beating Sergei Bobrovsky and tying the game at two. It was the fifth power play goal allowed by the Flyers in the past two games.

Max Talbot briefly put the Flyers back on top with his 14^th goal of the season. But again, the Red Wings struck quickly. This time, a goal by Henrik Zetterberg that sent the teams to the second intermission knotted at three.

Coming out of the break, Detroit wasted little time snapping the tie. Less than one minute into the third period, Johan Franzen scored to put the Red Wings in front for good.

“There’s not much you can do about it when they’re zinging it around like that,” said Hartnell. “They picked us apart a few times out there and that was the difference.”

Detroit hasn’t lost at home since November 3 against Calgary. They can make history with a win on Tuesday night over the Dallas Stars at Joe Louis Arena.

The Flyers will have a few days to sit on this loss. They won’t return to the ice until Thursday night when they welcome the Buffalo Sabres to the Wells Fargo Center.

Notes:  MacDonald stopped 26 shots for Detroit. Bobrovsky made 21 saves for the Flyers.

That turned out to be Phil Mickelson, not Tiger Woods.

In a big, big way.

Mickelson went from a six-shot deficit to a two-shot lead in just six holes, closed with an 8-under 64 for a two-shot victory over Charlie Wi and gave Woods a Sunday thrashing not many saw coming.

Mickelson and Woods played in the second-to-last group, and Mickelson beat him by 11 shots. He won for the fourth time at Pebble Beach, and became only the ninth player in PGA Tour history with 40 wins.

“Pebble Beach … it feels awesome no matter what number it is,” Mickelson said.

It was anything but that for Woods, who was reduced to a supporting role on a cool, overcast day along the Pacific. Right when it looked as though Woods might still be in the game after holing a bunker shot for birdie on the par-3 12th, Mickelson answered by pouring in a 30-foot par putt.

Mickelson seized control for good with a 40-foot par save on the 15th hole, and he played it safe — Mickelson is capable of that every once in a while — on the 18th hole and still made birdie.

Wi, who started the final round with a three-shot lead, four-putted for double bogey on the opening hole and never quite recovered. He closed with back-to-back birdies for an even-par 72 and his fifth runner-up finish on tour.

It was the third straight week on tour that the winner started the final round at least six shots behind a 54-hole leader going after his first tour victory.

The shocker, though, was how Woods fell apart.

He has been taking big strides with his game over the past few months, and he looked poised to break through after a 67 in the third round at Pebble Beach got him to within four shots of the lead.

But he failed to make birdie on the easy opening stretch at Pebble Beach, and even when he made his first birdie at the par-5 sixth, Mickelson poured in a 20-foot eagle putt to take the outright lead.

“I didn’t hit it as bad as the score indicated, but I putted awful,” Woods said. “As good as I felt on the greens yesterday, I felt bad today. Anything I tried to do wasn’t working. Consequently, I made a ton of mistakes on the green.”

Two weeks ago in his 2012 debut at Abu Dhabi, Woods was tied for the lead with unheralded Robert Rock going into the final round and didn’t break par, tying for third.

Woods used to own Mickelson, but that changed at the 2007 Deutsche Bank Championship. This was the fifth straight time Mickelson posted the better score when playing in the same group as Woods in the final round.

Mickelson has won three of those tournaments, although they have yet to be in the final group on those occasions.

Mickelson started his season sluggishly, failing to crack the top 25 at the Humana Challenge and Phoenix Open, and missing the cut at Torrey Pines. He said his putting was as good as ever, and it was a matter of getting his game in sync.

It simply sang on Sunday, mostly his amazing touch on the greens — a long eagle putt at No. 2 that caught part of the hole, long two-putts for par and enough birdies to make him a winner at Pebble Beach again.

“It feels just amazing,” Mickelson said. “I felt like my game was there, but coming out the first couple of weeks, I posted some horrendous scores and started to question it. To be able to play the way I did the last 18 holes really means a lot.”

Mickelson finished at 17-under 269 and earned $1.152 million for his first win since the Houston Open last year. He will move to No. 11 in the world.

Ricky Barnes closed with a 67 and finished third. Kevin Na tied for fifth and earned a spot in the Match Play Championship in two weeks at Arizona.

Wi talked about battling the demons of self-doubt, and they must have had the first green surrounded. Equipped with a three-shot lead to start the final round, Wi four-putted from 35 feet above the hole for a double bogey.

Just like that, the game was on.

That still wasn’t enough for Woods to get in on the action. Standing in the sixth fairway, Woods was only one shot out of the lead, yet the sleeves of his red shirt and his name on the leaderboard didn’t seem to make him stand out the way it has before.

The opening holes had something to do with that, and watching Mickelson play alongside him.

Mickelson nearly holed an eagle putt across the second green; Woods missed a 5-foot birdie putt that stayed 2 inches above the hole. Mickelson holed a 15-foot birdie putt down the hill at the fourth; Woods had a 30-foot putt up the hill that was 3 feet short. Mickelson’s tee shot on the par-3 fifth settled a foot from the cup. Woods missed his birdie putt from 12 feet.

Yes, there was a big charge at Pebble Beach — from Lefty.

Mickelson started the day six shots behind and went two shots ahead with an eagle on the sixth hole. Woods then vanished in a series of blunders — missing a 2½-foot par putt on the seventh, missed a 5-foot par putt on the eighth, and a third straight bogey at No. 9 when he hit his approach into the bunker.

The only hope for Woods came on the 12th, when he holed his bunker shot. It looked like it might be a two-shot swing, pulling him to within three of the lead, until Mickelson made his 30-footer for par.

On the next hole, Mickelson hit an approach to 2 feet and Woods’ tee shot landed in a divot.

“It’s frustrating because I had a chance,” Woods said. “All I had to do was get off to a good, solid start. And I didn’t do that.”

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

National TV. Nearly 9,500 Temple fans dressed all in white. First place up for grabs.

“Everything about the game was hyped up,” guard Ramone Moore said. “We just wanted to live up to it.”
Moore delivered with five 3-pointers and 30 points, and Micheal Eric had 11 points and 16 rebounds to lead Temple to its eighth straight win, 85-72 over Xavier on Saturday night.

Khalif Wyatt scored 18 points and helped the Owls (19-5, 8-2 Atlantic 10 Conference) build a 21-point lead in the first half and remain in first place in the conference.

The Owls dominated from the start in a matchup between two of the perennial powers in the Atlantic 10. The Musketeers, playing for the fourth time in five games on the road, entered only a half-game behind the Owls in the conference standings. Only some garbage-time buckets made the score respectable.
Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson grabbed 10 rebounds as everyone played a role for the Owls in the easy victory.

One of the largest crowds of the season came dressed in “I Believe” shirts for a “White Out” at the Liacouras Center. They saw the Owls emphatically state their case for being the best in the A-10.
“It puts us in a great position,” Moore said. “We’ve just got to maintain with six games left.”

Moore was sensational with a 9-of-16 effort from the floor. He fell only two shy of matching his career high of 32 points set in December against Villanova. He proved his sizzling first half was no fluke. Moore opened the second half with a 3-pointer off a no-look pass, then dunked off a turnover and it was 52-31.
Wyatt scored a bucket but came up hobbling and instantly went to the bench. He returned a short time later and made all three free throws after he was fouled.

Moore did more than shoot 3s. He had a sweet reverse baseline layup in the second half.
It was that kind of game for the Owls.

“I’m not sure we had our way,” with them, coach Fran Dunphy said. “We made some tough shots. We made some timely shots.”

Tu Holloway scored 23 points for Xavier (16-9, 7-4). Mark Lyons added 15 points.

Moore, a 40 percent 3-point shooter, helped the Owls race to a 21-point lead in the first half with a fantastic effort from long range. He made 4 of 5 3s to help Temple punish Xavier from beyond the arc.
“Ramone is terrific in big-game atmospheres,” Dunphy said. “He really gave us that great cushion we had in the first half.”

Wyatt added two 3s in the half. After Aaron Brown nailed a 3 in front of the Xavier bench for a 43-22 lead, Musketeers coach Chris Mack placed his hands on his hips and looked down. It was about over.
Mack said the Musketeers showed “no fight” early.

“Xavier has always been led by its oldest players,” Mack said. “Tonight was an example of our older players not getting the entire team ready to play.”

The Owls pounced and put the game away after a 16-0 run early in the first half. Xavier ended the spurt, but Moore promptly buried a 3 on Temple’s next possession to wipe out any chance of a rally.
Xavier had no more than two or three decent consecutive possessions. Trailing 19-5, the Musketeers already had six turnovers.

Lyons, who averaged 15.9 points, did not start and missed three of four shots in the first half. Holloway missed six of his nine shots and had a 3 blocked by T.J. DiLeo. Frontcourt starters Dezmine Wells and Kenny Frease were both scoreless in the half.

Holloway, Xavier’s star point guard, had two assists and four turnovers.
“We didn’t pass the ball,” Mack said. “One guy just wants to pat it, pat it, pat it and just survey the court like he’s a quarterback.”

The Owls shot 61 percent from the floor (19 of 31) in the half, 64 percent from 3-point range (7 of 11) and led 47-27 at halftime.

The numbers were stunning against a Xavier team that led the A-10 in field-goal percentage defense (39 percent) and was second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (30 percent).

The Owls were on the cusp of entering the Top 25 this week and a win over a solid Xavier team could help push them closer to the poll. The Owls have gone 11-2 since Jan. 1, including a 78-73 win over then-No. 5 Duke.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

2012 Grammys

Trailing 34-32 with 16:17 remaining, the Hawks (16-10, 6-5 Atlantic 10 Conference) rattled off 14 straight points.

After Saint Joseph’s extended the lead to 16 with 3:16 remaining, the Minutemen (18-7, 7-4) used a 9-0 run to pull within seven, but could get no closer.

Langston Galloway added 15 points, Ronald Roberts 14 and C.J. Aiken 13 for the Hawk, who have won three of four. Halil Kanacevic tied his career-high with 15 rebounds.

Saint Joseph’s, which ranked second in the league in field goal percentage defense and 21st nationally (39.3 percent), held the Minutemen to 33.8 percent shooting (24 of 71).

Jesse Morgan had 18 points and Chaz Williams added 11 points and 10 assists for UMass, which won 71-62 on Jan. 14.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

2012 Grammys

A layup by Miles Cartwright with 14:07 to play gave Penn its largest lead at 45-30. The Big Green responded with an 18-3 run to forge a 48-48 tie with 7:25 left.

The Quakers went back in front 55-50, but Dartmouth scored the next five points to tie it 55-55 after two free throws by Jvonte Brooks with 23 seconds remaining in the game.

Tyler Bernardini scored 15 points and Rosen added 12 for the Quakers (13-11, 5-2 Ivy League), who have won two of their past three games.

Brooks, a freshman, tallied his second straight double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Big Green (4-20, 0-8), who have lost 19 straight conference games. Brooks made 12 of his 14 free throw attempts.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

2012 Grammys

Philadelphia bounced back from a difficult home loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night to break a season-high two-game losing streak.

Cleveland, which dropped an overtime decision to Milwaukee at home on Friday, played without two of its three leading scorers. The team announced before the game that center Anderson Varejao will be sidelined indefinitely because of a broken right wrist sustained Friday. Rookie point guard Kyrie Irving missed his third straight game with a concussion.

Antawn Jamison led Cleveland with 20 points, while Ramon Sessions — starting in place of Irving — scored 19 points and had eight assists.

Lou Williams scored 19 points and Thaddeus Young added 16 for Philadelphia.

The Sixers haven’t lost three straight April 2-6 of last season and made quickly sure that wouldn’t happen Saturday. Philadelphia scored 12 straight points after trailing 19-18 late in the first quarter. Williams scored nine points in the second period in which the 76ers put up 37 points and made nine of 21 shots.
Philadelphia’s biggest lead came at 54-35 late in the quarter.

Both teams came off tough defeats, but the Sixers were in a much better position to regroup. Philadelphia led Los Angeles for most of Friday’s game, but Chris Paul’s jump shot with 3.2 seconds left sent the Sixers to a 78-77 loss. The Cavaliers had a chance to win Friday’s game in regulation, but Jamison missed two free throws with the game tied and 3.7 seconds remaining. Cleveland fell 113-112.

Philadelphia has played a league-high 18 home games, but started a stretch where it will play seven of eight on the road.

Cleveland has lost 10 of 14. Varejao is averaging 10.8 points with 11.5 rebounds, but the Cavaliers will miss his intensity and energy as much as his numbers. Semih Erden started at center, but was scoreless and had four fouls in 13 rebounds.

Cleveland coach Bryon Scott said Irving, who hasn’t played since Tuesday, rode the stationary bike Saturday in his first physical activity since being diagnosed with the concussion Wednesday. It’s unclear when Irving, who leads Cleveland averaging 18 points a game, will be cleared to take part in practice sessions.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Fouch was 8 of 10 from the field, including 6 of 7 from 3-point range, while Massenat was 8 of 9 and dished a team high five assists.
Hofstra cut Drexel’s 32-23 halftime lead to 36-34 but wouldn’t get any closer as Fouch sank three free throws and then hit a 3-pointer on Drexel’s next possession to give the Dragons (21-5, 13-2 Colonial Athletic Association) a 42-34 lead.

Drexel pushed their lead to 61-42 behind a Massenat layup with 9:37 left to play.

The Dragons shot 59.5 percent (28 of 47) from the field and 58.8 percent (10 of 17) from deep.

Nathaniel Lester led Hofstra (8-19, 2-13) with 27 but the Pride shot just 32.8 percent (21 of 64) from the field.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

With the game tied 47-47, Mike McCall Jr.’s 3-pointer for the Billikens (20-5, 8-3 Atlantic 10 Conference) began a 12-4 closing run over the final 4:45. McCall scored six of Saint Louis’ points in that stretch, and his steal with 23 seconds left led to two free throws by Kwamain Mitchell that made it 56-49.

Mitchell finished with 12 points for the Billikens, while McCall had 11 and Brian Conklin 10.

Jerrell Wright scored 18 points to pace the Explorers (17-9, 6-5), including 15 in the second half.

Saint Louis led nearly throughout the game, with the Explorers never ahead by more than two points.

La Salle’s streak at Gola Arena had included 12 victories this season.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Marian Gaborik and Artem Anisimov also had goals for the Eastern Conference-leading Rangers, who broke out of their power-play funk and improved to 5-0 against the Flyers this season — including a win in the Winter Classic.

It was a rare display on special teams that catapulted the Rangers to their second victory over Philadelphia in seven days. New York had a season-high three goals on the power play. The Rangers increased their lead to six points over the Flyers in the Atlantic Division and have two games in hand.

The Rangers entered with the fourth-worst power-play unit in the NHL, converting just 13.4 percent of their chances. They failed to score on their first man-advantage, but then got going when Callahan scored in the first period. New York capitalized on three straight opportunities with the man advantage.

Claude Giroux and Wayne Simmonds had Philadelphia’s goals. The Flyers have lost four of five, and are losing their hold on fourth place in the East.

Henrik Lundqvist had 31 saves in another outstanding effort against a team that can’t seem to beat him. The Flyers’ top line of Giroux, Jaromir Jagr and Scott Hartnell have combined for two goals against Lundqvist this season.

The crowd at Madison Square Garden chanted “You can’t beat us” at the Flyers during New York’s 5-2 victory last Sunday. Some of the brave, blue-shirted fans who made the trip down I-95 threw caps on the ice to celebrate Callahan’s second NHL hat trick after he scored to make it 5-2 in the third period.

The Rangers, who earned a playoff berth on the final day of the regular season last year and lost to Washington in the first round, have a comfortable grip on first place in the conference. They have a five-point lead over the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

John Tortorella, the demanding coach who led Tampa Bay to a Stanley Cup title in 2004, has the Rangers playing like the Lightning did that season. They are 18-5-1 since mid-December and appear poised to make a serious run at their first Cup championship since 1994.

Callahan gave the Rangers a 3-2 lead midway through the second period when he tipped Michael Del Zotto’s pass past goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.

The Flyers had tied it 2:39 earlier when Giroux scored on a breakaway. Lundqvist made a glove save on Giroux’s initial shot, but the All-Star forward poked the rebound in for his 22nd goal.

A giveaway behind the net helped the Rangers extend their lead to 4-2 in the third period. Anisimov redirected a pass from Derek Stepan past Bobrovsky to give New York its first two-goal cushion.

Less than four minutes after the Flyers tied it at 1 in the first, Gaborik scored to put the Rangers ahead again. Gaborik redirected Brad Richards’ crossing pass over Bobrovsky’s shoulder for his 27th goal.

Philadelphia’s Tom Sestito, who got in three fights in last Sunday’s loss, drew a double minor and a misconduct penalty for a scrum with Stu Bickel in the first period.

The Rangers quickly took advantage on the ensuing power play. Gaborik set up New York’s tally with a crisp pass to Callahan, who took a shot from the side of the net that bounced off Bobrovsky and went in.

The Flyers answered when Andrej Meszaros’ slap shot hit Simmonds and went past Lundqvist. Just before Philadelphia’s rush, Zac Rinaldo delivered a crushing check on Derek Stepan at the opposite end of the ice.
Bobrovsky made an outstanding save early to prevent the Flyers from falling behind. He slid across the crease from right to left and blocked Gaborik’s one-timer during a 2-on-1 break.
Gaborik made up for it later.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Philadelphia (CBS) – Need a harbinger of spring on a cold, snowy day? The Phillies supply truck is leaving for Clearwater Sunday.

For many Phillies fans, the first vision of spring is a 53-foot truck leaving Citizens Bank, bound for sunny Clearwater. Phillies Equipment Manager Dan O’Rourke (photo) says the truck is loaded with everything a big-league team needs except for the players.

“Bats and balls, uniforms, hats, gloves, we have shoes, shower shoes, T-shirts, underwear, jocks, golf clubs, bicycles, seeds, and a liquid to get the pine tar out of the uniforms. We basically just pick up everything here from Philadelphia and take it to Clearwater.”

O’Rourke says the truck is expected to be unloaded at Bright House Field Tuesday morning, with equipment sorted and in the locker rooms the next day.

By Lesley Van Arsdall

FRANKLINVILLE, N.J. (CBS) — For most high school athletes, playing sports is just another activity that needs to be balanced with classwork and family life.

For disadvantaged athletes, it can be a struggle just to compete on the same level as your peers. But, a senior swimmer is defying the odds in South Jersey, inspiring others with her positive attitude and unmatched resolve.

Kathlyn Walker entered this past weekend’s Gloucester County Championship swim meet with one goal in mind.

“My fastest time is a 1:20:02, so I’d like to beat that,” said Kathlyn Walker, Delsea High School Swimmer.

Kathlyn is a Senior at Delsea Regional High School, and she’s been swimming since she was just three years old.

But Kathlyn is unique among the hundreds of swimmers at this meet.

She was born with a rare genetic disorder called “Thrombocytopenia with Absent Radii”, abbreviated “T A R”.

Kathlyn does not have radius bones, bones that help to make up the human forearm.

“I was kind of shocked the first time I saw her jump into the pool. The whole aspect of not having any arms and being able to do what she did. And her progession each year got better and better,” said said John Meehan, Delsea Swimming Head Coach.

Kathlyn is almost entirely independent in the water. She uses her legs to guide her along, and she’s helped out of the water by her coaches, or her Mother Kathie. She says she learned her technique over the years.

7th or 8th grade our school has an intramural program, and they teach us the strokes and stuff, so that’s where we did it.

“We’ve been working on being on the block, and jumping into the pool it’s all about kick and her turns too,” said Meehan.

Kathlyn takes part in the girl’s 50 yard freestyle, and the 200 yard freestyle relay. And sure enough, this weekend, she set a new personal record, beating her 50 yard time by just 7 tenths of a second.

Meehan “It’s such a loud noise when she finishes a race, it just gives you goosebumps,” said Meehan.

In addition to setting a new personal record – she also took home the MVP award. Her positive attitude and engaging personality make her a favorite among teammates, coaches, and the community.

“The community comes out and wishes her well,” John Delia, Delsea Swimming Assistant Coach. “She’s just got such a positive attitude and she doesn’t look at the bad side of anything”

Kathlyn says she wants to be either a psychologist or a guidance counselor when she graduates in the Spring, and she’s currently considering a number of local colleges.

Mo Williams added 14 points, Randy Foye had 10 and Reggie Evans added a season-high 10 rebounds for the Pacific Division-leading Clippers, who improved to 16-8.

The Clippers are still coping with the loss of veteran guard Chauncey Billups, who suffered a season-ending Achilles tear.

Foye, who starred at nearby Villanova, received his second straight start and scored four points in the fourth quarter.

Elton Brand had 12 points and 10 rebounds while Andre Iguodala contributed 12 points, eight rebounds and seven assists one day after being selected to the All-Star team as a reserve for the first time in his eight-year career.

Lou Williams had 11 points while Jodie Meeks and Thaddeus Young had 10 each for the Sixers, who dropped consecutive games for the first time this season.

The Sixers completed a tough seven-game stretch with a 4-3 mark.

Philadelphia defeated Orlando, Chicago and the Los Angeles Lakers at home with a road victory against Atlanta.

The three losses came against Miami, San Antonio and the Clippers, all at home.

The Sixers have a 13-5 record at home following a favorable schedule with only nine road games thus far.

A sellout crowd of 20,539 was roaring — the third sellout on this homestand — and the fans were chanting “Beat LA!”

The noise reached a fever pitch following a pair of free throws by Williams with 18 seconds left, giving the Sixers a 77-76 advantage.

But Paul responded with a difficult shot with 3.2 seconds left, sending the Clippers back on top 78-77.

The Sixers led by as many as 12 in the first half, but the Clippers rallied thanks to Mo Williams and got within 43-41 at halftime.

Notes: Griffin was whistled for a technical foul with 5:39 left in the third quarter. … Sixers C Spencer Hawes was out for the 12th time in the past 14 games with a strained left Achilles. … Wali Jones, a member of the Sixers’ 1966-67 championship team, attended the game.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – After taking care of the St. Joe’s Hawks on Wednesday night, the St. Louis Billikens will continue a mini-tour of Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon when they visit those La Salle Explorers.

17-8 La Salle has dropped two straight, including a heartbreaking 78-76 loss down at Richmond on Wednesday night.  The Explorers struggled on the glass in defeat, getting outrebounded 45-27 by the Spiders and the game-winning basket in the final seconds was a put back off an offensive rebound.

“Rebounding is probably our greatest weakness, ” La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini tells KYW Newsradio. “We’ve traded off some size for that (playing four guards).  On the other hand, out turnovers are way down, our shooting percentage is way up.  I think our defensive field goal percentage has been good with our ability to pressure.  And a thing that doesn’t show up in the stat sheet is you’re quicker to loose balls when you’re smaller.  So you can’t be great at everything, but you have to be able to come up with the big rebound here or there and we just weren’t able to do it.”

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon’s interview with Dr. John Giannini:

“As I got into watching them and really look at them in great detail, I think they are a team with very few, if any, weaknesses.  They are very, very good defensively.  They have a great point guard with Kwamain (Mitchell).  They have an outstanding big man with (Brian) Conklin.  They have big guys who shoot well, who compliment Conklin inside.  They have slashers, some athletes.  They just have a lot of depth at everything you want, whether it’s post play or size or shooting or playmakers.”

St. Louis is 19-5 this season and 7-3 in the Atlantic 10.  They are one of three teams tied for second place in the conference, half a game behind Temple.  The Explorers are 6-4 in the A-10, that’s good for fifth in the conference.

The Explorers have been brilliant at home, they are 12-0 at Gola Arena this season and they have won 14 straight dating back to last season.  That is the 10th longest active home winning streak in the nation.

La Salle and St. Louis will tip-off on Saturday at 2:00pm at Gola Arena.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – St. Joe’s sits at 15-10 on the season (5-5 in the Atlantic 10) as they get ready to host UMass on Saturday night at Hagan Arena.

The Hawks are coming off a 72-60 loss to St. Louis on Wednesday night.  In that game they fell behind 12-0 right off the bat, fought back to tie the game – even took a brief first-half lead-  but then they couldn’t keep up with the Billikens who started to pull away in the second half.

Hawks head coach Phil Martelli says his team just was not razor sharp against SLU.

“What we showed the team on tape was, we didn’t respond defensively four different times when we got the game tied.  We weren’t able to get a hold on the next play, or if we did get a hold we didn’t convert that.  I’m very, very big with our team in grinding situations that we think this way -   ‘You must get a score, and then you must get a stop.  You must get a score and then you must get a stop.’  And we didn’t do that well enough on Wednesday night.”

Listen to KYW’s Matt Leon’s interview with Phil Martelli:

It doesn’t get any easier with UMass.  The Minutemen are one of the surprise teams in the conference this year with an 18-6 record.  Martelli says they really can score the basketball.

“This will be a very high paced game.  They take very quick shots.  They are playing very, very comfortably because of their 18-6 and 7-3 in the Atlantic 10 start.  They are playing very loose, very comfortable and they are led by a point guard who plays, basically 75 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone.”

That point guard is sophomore Chaz Williams who leads UMass in scoring at 15.8 points per game, he also is tops in assists on the squad with 141.  Martelli talks about trying to defend a veratile threat like him.

“We have to have all five guys involved.  We’re going to say, when you look at the game notes, ‘Ok, who is going to guard him?’  My answer is we are all going to guard him. (Carl) ‘Tay’ Jones will have the original assignment on him, but everybody is going to be responsible to make sure that he puts the ball where we want it.  If he puts the ball where they want it, which is in the middle of the lane, then chaos will ensue.”

This is the second meeting between these two teams this season.  UMass won the first back on January 14th in Amherst 71-62.  Williams led all scorers in that game with 22 points.  Ron Roberts paced the Hawks with 16 off the bench.

St. Joe’s and UMass will tip-off at 7:00pm Saturday night at Hagan Arena.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — After a flurry of activity in the local soccer world last week, things are much calmer on the KYW Philly Soccer Show.

This week, KYW’s Greg Orlandini and Philly Soccer Page writer Eli Pearlman-Storch take a look at the Philadelphia Union as they settle into training camp in Orlando, Florida.

The team has brought in a new striker in Lionard Pajoy of Colombia (top photo), giving the team a physical, veteran presence up front.

Also returning to the fold is Keon Daniel, after a protracted immigration issue.  The team sorely missed the Trinidad-and-Tobago midfielder in the latter part of last season.

Listen to Part 1…

Download Part 1 for listening anytime

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In part two, Greg and Eli dissect the goalkeeper situation.  Zac MacMath is the number one man in net but will likely miss a chunk of time on Olympics duty.

Chase Harrison and Chris Konopka are both in camp, but neither have much MLS experience.

And finally, we take a needlessly sarcastic look at the ups and downs of the England National Team after its coach, Fadio Capello, resigned.

Listen to Part 2…

Download Part 2 for listening anytime

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