LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Oklahoma State won for the second straight day after blowing a comfortable lead. Marcus Smart scored 17 points as the No. 5 Cowboys survived a major scare in a 69-67 win over Butler in an Old Spice Classic semifinal on Friday. "A great game," Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford said. "It was very emotional and very high-level. It felt like an NCAA tournament-type game. Two teams that were wanting to win really badly." Oklahoma State (7-0) again came out flat to start the second half, one day after the Cowboys saw a 23-point halftime lead dwindle to four with 3 minutes to play before beating Purdue 97-87. "Were not paying attention to details as much as we are in the first half," Ford said. With the Cowboys holding a 68-67 lead in the final minute, Smart missed three free throws, including the front end of a 1-and-1. Butlers Khyle Marshall was fouled with 8.4 seconds remaining, but missed both free throws. "Its always tough to lose," Butler coach Brandon Miller said. "When you lose, and its a one-point game or a two-point game, sometimes you can beat yourself up over one mistake here, one mistake there, especially at the end of the game. I think mistakes, or a lack of execution, or a missed shot at the end of the game sometimes gets highlighted more than what it should. "Basketball is a 40-minute game. We didnt execute very well at the beginning of the game. The first half of the game got us." LeBryan Nash made it 69-67 by hitting 1 of 2 from the line before Butlers Elijah Brown had his last second 3-point shot blocked by Michael Cobbins. Nash added 15 points for the Cowboys, who will face the winner of the other semifinal between No. 21 Memphis and LSU in Sunday nights championship game. "My first initial thought is Oklahoma State is a heck of a basketball team," Miller said. "Obviously, very talented. When you have one of the best players, if not the best player in the country in Marcus Smart and the way he fights and leads his team, he sets the standard for his team." Butler (5-1) got 15 points from Brown. Kellen Dunham, who set a tourney record with 32 points in Thursdays 76-69 victory over Washington State, finished with nine, while Marshall, coming off a 30-point performance Thursday, had eight. This was the first meeting between the teams since Butler beat Oklahoma State 49-26 on Feb. 12, 1934. Alex Barlow keyed Butlers initial surge by connecting on a pair of 3-pointers to get the Bulldogs within 48-41 five minutes into the second half. Phil Fotre made two long-range jumpers and Smart had a couple driving baskets as Oklahoma State responded and grabbed a 66-57 lead with 6 1/2 minutes to play. Dunham and the Bulldogs made a final run, pulling within 68-65 with three minutes remaining when the guard hit a 3 and then converted a three-point play. Smart had the ball stolen by Erik Fromm on Oklahoma States next possession and Marshall got a rebound basket at the other end to make it 68-67. "In the second half, we werent scoring quite as much. We were taking some questionable shots that led for easy points for them," Ford said. Nash had 10 points, helping Oklahoma take a 44-30 halftime advantage. Five different Cowboys had at least six points during the opening 20 minutes. Smart had a slam and Markel Brown made a jumper to give the Cowboys their biggest lead of the first half, at 44-28, 1:48 before the break. Smart had 30 points in Thursdays tournament opener. Nike Air Foce One Dame . The Durban-based Sharks withstood a furious second-half fightback to beat the Queensland Reds 35-20 for a fourth straight win which gave them a five-point lead atop the championship table. The Hamilton-based Chiefs scored two late tries to beat the Cape Town-based Stormers 36-20 for their third win, after the Stormers rallied from 24-6 down to 24-20 with six minutes remaining. Nike Roshe One Flyknit hvid . The Buffalo Sabres forward was suspended 10 games for his actions in a game against Columbus on October 10 before appealing the ruling to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. http://www.rosheonedk.com/nike-roshe-one-danmark-running/nike-roshe-one-br.html . -- Kyrie Irvings last-minute 3-pointer helped seal another victory for Cleveland -- and the Cavaliers longest winning streak since LeBron James left. Nike Roshe One Print . The 29-year-old scored once and assisted on another as Colorado edged the host Calgary Flames 3-2 on Friday. Nike Roshe One Slip .Y. -- Bills general manager Doug Whaley is done playing franchise tag with safety Jairus Byrd.With no idea where he will be playing in the NBA next season, Kevin Love has withdrawn from this summers Team USA basketball roster. Love is in limbo while the Minnesota Timberwolves field offers for their three-time All-Star, a process that was complicated and likely lengthened when Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Andrew Wiggins signed his contract this week. Love is the latest All-Star to pull out of Team USA, which begins its training camp in Las Vegas next week to prepare for the FIBA World Cup in Spain. In recent weeks the Americans have lost Blake Griffin, LaMarcus Aldridge and NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard. They have 18 players remaining and will choose 12 for the World Cup of Basketball roster. Love, who won gold medals at the 2012 Olympics and 2010 world championship and was one of the first players to commit to play this summer, told USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo that he would be unavailable for training camp that starts Monday. "He wants to play but its a little bit of a sign of the times when you look at the league in terms of contracts, rumoured trades," Colangelo told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "All of those circumstances puts players Im a funny position." The Cavaliers have been in pursuit of Love since before the draft. Their chances of landing Love, who can opt out of his contract next summer and has told the Timberwolves he wants to play for a contender, increased exponentially when LeBron James chose to return to play in Cleveland. The Timberwolves have demanded Wiggins, the No. 1 overall draft pick, in a package in return for Love and the Cavaliers have gradually softened on their position to include the dynamic 19-year-old wing player in trade talks. Under NBA rules, Wiggins cannot be traded until 30 days after he signed his contract with the Cavaliers.dddddddddddd. That length of time allows other teams to make offers for Love as well, but also makes it too risky for Love to participate with Team USA. An injury could derail any trade possibilities, so Love had to take the difficult step of informing Colangelo on Friday night that he would not be able to participate. It had to be a tough call for Love to make. He has long held playing for Team USA as one of the highest honours possible and has referred to his experience of winning gold in London as the pinnacle of his young career. While other big stars like James were stepping away from the team to get some rest this summer, Love took pride last year in joining with Kevin Durant to be among the first elite players to recommit to the World Cup team. "I think he truly is remorseful," Colangelo said. Love was a vital piece to the London team, giving the Americans a rebounding presence and a much-needed big man to stretch the floor. But Colangelo said the team would be able to get by without him, pointing to an experienced roster and rising star Anthony Davis, who was on the Olympic team but played only sparingly. "Its not like theres a barrel full of power forwards that can rebound and shoot the ball like Kevin Love," Colangelo said. But in international competition, where teams generally play smaller than they do in the NBA, players such as Indianas Paul George and Dallas Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons could help fill the void. DeMarcus Cousins and Andre Drummond are other big men that should give the Americans a presence in the paint. "Someone is going to have an opportunity to step up," Colangelo said. "Were kind of anxious to get started to look at this." ___ AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney contributed to this report. cheap nfl jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '
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