He made sure that prediction came true Sunday.

Following the best season of his three-year career, George opened the playoffs by producing the first postseason triple-double of his career — 23 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists — and led the Pacers out of their late-season funk and past Atlanta 107-90 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Suddenly, all those problems ailing the Pacers have been forgotten.

“I know what the team will expect from me now,” George said. “But, again, I like the pressure.”

He can expect to be dealing with even more of it in the best-of-seven series.

There were plenty of questions after Indiana coach Frank Vogel gave four of his starters — George, George Hill, Roy Hibbert and David West — a three-day break this week. The move meant those four came into the opening game without playing a minute since last Sunday’s loss at New York sealed Indiana’s fate as the East’s No. 3 seed.

Outsiders wondered whether those off-days would rejuvenate the Central Division champs, who looked so good from mid-December through early April, or whether would be rusty after stumbling to five losses in their last seven regular-season games.

Those inside the locker room said that the extra rest would be beneficial. Sunday’s performance left no doubt as fans repeatedly waved the gold towels the Pacers handed out before the game.

While George went 3 of 13 from the field, he made his first 17 free throws, tying Reggie Miller’s single-game playoff mark for best percentage. George missed his 18th and final attempt with 2:35 to go. It was about the only thing that went wrong for the All-Star forward who had Indiana’s first triple-double in the playoffs since Mark Jackson on May 13, 1998, against New York.

Indiana also has a 1-0 lead for the first time since beating the New Jersey Nets 90-88 in 2006.

“It was huge for our confidence,” George said. “We got back to playing our style of basketball.”

George had plenty of help, too.

Hill, who sat out parts of practice Friday and Saturday with an injured left groin, made his first six shots and finished 7 of 10 from the field with three 3-pointers and 18 points. And Hibbert added 16 points and 11 rebounds on a day the Pacers outrebounded Atlanta 48-32 and limited the Hawks to 14 fast-break points.

Vogel couldn’t have designed a better script.

“You have to stick to who you are and play your style of play, which I think we did,” Vogel said. “We have to play with passion. When we play with passion and energy on both ends of the court we’re pretty good. ”

Atlanta found out the hard way.

Indy native Jeff Teague led the Hawks with 21 points and seven assists, while Josh Smith had 15 points and eight rebounds. The only other Atlanta player to reach double figures was Al Horford with 14 points.

Most of the Hawks’ players were upset about the wide free throw discrepancy.

Indiana was nearly flawless from the line (30 of 34), while the Hawks spent most of the second half in foul trouble and made seven of the 14 free throws they got.

“I felt we like earned the opportunity to shoot a little bit more free throws than what we did, but it is what it is,” Smith said. “We have to make sure next game that just one player on the opposing team doesn’t shoot more than the whole entire team.”

Coach Larry Drew had bigger concerns.

He was disappointed with how the team responded to the calls and with the effort, too. He hopes both will be fixed when the series resumes Wednesday in Indy.

“We didn’t come up with the big plays, we didn’t come up with the hustle plays, the energy plays,” he said. “I thought right when we were, I believe it was a nine-point game, them shooting a free throw, they come up with the offensive rebound off the free throw, kick it out, swing it around, they get a 3. That’s just getting outworked. They just clearly outworked us.”

It wasn’t a perfect game for Indiana.

Again, the Pacers got off to another rocky start by giving up the first six points. But unlike the previous six games when they dug themselves into 20-point deficits in each game, Indiana wasted no time charging back.

The Pacers used a 9-0 first-quarter run to take a 19-13 lead, extended it to 34-26 after one and never trailed again.

While the Hawks tried valiantly to rally, cutting the deficit to four late in the second quarter and trimming Indiana’s 15-point lead to eight with 7:23 to go, Indiana never let the Hawks get any closer and eventually pulled away.

Just like they were doing in the middle of the season.

“We got back to playing our style of basketball,” George said. “They came out and hit shots, but what we did a great job of was not letting them string some of those baskets together. We kind of ended their momentum and that’s what it’s going to take.”

Game notes

The Hawks dropped to 0-3 this season at Indiana but have won 11 straight in Atlanta over the Pacers. … This is only the fourth time these teams have met in the playoffs. Atlanta holds a 2-1 advantage and won the last postseason matchup 3-2 in 1996. … Hibbert played with the phrase “B Strong” written on his white shoe Sunday, a message to the people of Boston from the bombings earlier this week. … The Hawks went home after the game and will practice there Monday and Tuesday before returning to Indy on Wednesday.

The post Paul George’s triple-double helps Pacers to Game 1 win appeared first on IdealCapper.

Luongo showed his frustration with his contract and his current status as a backup goaltender Wednesday during a news conference with the Vancouver media.

“My contract sucks — that’s what’s the problem,” Luongo said. “I’d scrap it if I could now.”

“I think that he was very emotional,” Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said. “I think these days are emotional for everybody. I think he said that in a highly emotional state. I’d like to give him the opportunity to catch his breath and have a discussion with him.”

Luongo will spend the remainder of the season in Vancouver and will back up starter Cory Schneider, who has seized the starting job with a 2.27 goals-against average and .922 save percentage.

A three-time All-Star, Luongo hasn’t started a game since March 18.

“It’s a tough situation for everybody, no doubt,” Luongo said following Wednesday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline. “We’re obviously trying to make the best out of it and making sure that what’s best for both sides is done. Obviously, the time isn’t now, and we’ll have to wait.”

Luongo acknowledged that the remaining nine years on his contract made a trade especially challenging. His average salary cap hit is $5.33 million per season.

“I do feel obligated to trade Roberto and get him into a position where he’s happy,” Gillis said. “The needs of our team also play a role in this. Trying to balance them is a difficult thing. We’ve been doing that for six months.”

According to ESPN.com’s Pierre LeBrun, the Maple Leafs had discussions with the Canucks regarding Luongo, but the two sides couldn’t find a match. Luongo can reject any deal but claimed that it never came to that, even though he was pulled from practice early Wednesday.

“There was obviously some teams that were interested,” Luongo said. “Nothing ever materialized to a point where I had to give a decision whether I was going to waive or not. What the future holds is something you try not to think about.”

The post Roberto Luongo stays with Canucks appeared first on IdealCapper.

Cazorla opened the scoring in the sixth minute, but Villa came back strongly and equalized through Andreas Weimann after the break.

Arsenal threw everything at Villa keeper Brad Guzan, but the Gunners could not find a way past until Cazorla found the net with five minutes remaining — saving his manager from another ear-bashing from the supporters who have started to doubt whether the Frenchman is the right man to lead the club forward.

Many had questioned whether Wenger had lost the plot this week with a bizarre news conference rant sandwiched in between two disappointing defeats to Blackburn and Bayern Munich.

Some of those doubters will not have been convinced by this performance. Wenger’s men were often sloppy in possession, looked edgy at the back, and their propensity to want to walk the ball in to the net caused a huge amount of frustration among the home crowd at a sparsely populated Emirates Stadium.

After the match, Wenger took aim at his critics once more. When asked whether these had been “dreadful times”, Wenger replied: “Of course. But you do your job and focus on the next game. That’s what I did.

“I’m not 30 years in this job at the top level to be destroyed by people saying I don’t know what I’m doing. (If I was) I would have stopped this job a long time ago. But we have responsibilities and have to stand up and get the team ready to fight.”

Whatever criticisms are aimed at Wenger — whether it be his match tactics or his transfer policy — there is no doubt he possesses players who can turn the game with a bit of magic. Cazorla is certainly of them.

The Spaniard, who now has 11 goals for the club, drifted in and out of the game, but he took his two strikes brilliantly.

“Santi Cazorla played very well and delivered in a game that was very important. He’s a great player,” Wenger said. “He has shown he’s a great football player and I’m happy and grateful he delivered those two important goals today.

“I didn’t expect him to score so many goals for us. He has 11 games to go so he could get a few more. For me, he’s a complete football player because he also has spirit. He was a bit tired in the last few minutes, but he continued to fight. He’s a good example to follow. He’s happy to come and play and practice every day, and he gives you absolutely everything on a football pitch.”

The win puts pressure on Tottenham, which now has a one-point advantage over their rival for fourth place ahead of a game at West Ham on Monday.

Villa remains one point above the relegation zone, and on this evidence, certainly has the players to stay up.

Watched by owner American owner Stan Kroenke, making a rare visit to north London, Arsenal started well.

Jack Wilshere capitalized on a poor backpass and raced at goal, but the midfielder fired straight at the American Guzan.

Cazorla then lifted the quiet atmosphere inside the Emirates with Arsenal’s opener in the sixth minute.

Nathan Baker blocked Cazorla’s initial shot after some good work by Wilshere, but the Spaniard made no mistake with his second effort, slotting past Guzan with a beautiful curling effort.

Urged on by an animated Paul Lambert from the touchline, Villa looked to hit straight back. Charles N’Zogbia raced down the right past Thomas Vermaelen and pulled the ball back for Gabriel Agbonlahor, but Wojciech Szczesny saved.

N’Zogbia cantered down the flank moments later, but Agbonlahor was unable to keep up with him and he arrived just too late to tap in the Frenchman’s cross.

Weimann was the next man to charge at the Gunners defense. He laid the ball off to N’Zogbia, but Szczesny parried well before Thomas Vermaelen hooked the ball clear.

Villa’s attacks led to a nervous atmosphere inside the Emirates, but Theo Walcott brought them to the edge of their seats with a teasing curler that flew inches over Guzan’s goal.

Villa continued to pour forward, however. Matt Lowton nutmegged Abou Diaby and entered the Arsenal box, but Vermaelen came to the rescue with a last-gasp tackle. Lowton caught the Belgian in his follow-through and was booked for the foul. Diaby then entered the book for a clumsy challenge on N’Zogbia.

Arsenal’s passing was often sloppy and the home fans became annoyed at the Gunners’ attempts to pass the ball in to the net.

The hosts did produce an impressive move just before the break, though, with Cazorla finding Olivier Giroud, but Guzan was equal to the Frenchman’s effort.

Arsenal started to dominate the game again after the break but again was reluctant to shoot on goal, much to the annoyance of the home crowd.

With Arsenal throwing so many players forward, the Gunners were left vulnerable at the back.

Weimann went on another rampaging counter down the right and crossed for Agbonlahor, but the forward headed wide.

Wenger was forced into a change just after the hour when Diaby hobbled off with another injury. Aaron Ramsey came on in his place.

Villa then stunned the home side by equalizing. Carl Jenkinson failed to clear a long punt down field, the ball made its way to Weimann and he went on a blistering 40-yard run before beating Szczesny with a weak shot.

Wenger rose from his bench and cast a disappointed glare at his team. His troubles nearly worsened soon after when Christian Benteke found space at the back post, but Per Mertesacker got in front of the Belgian before he could head on goal.

Wenger gambled, throwing Lukas Podolski on for Jenkinson, and Arsenal pressured the visitors’ box.

Guzan saved brilliantly to deny Giroud from point-blank range as Arsenal continued to pile forward.

Arsenal got its reward five minutes from time when Nacho Monreal swung the ball into the box and Cazorla converted, much to the relief of Wenger and the home fans.

Lambert was disappointed to see his team come away with nothing despite a pleasing display.

“We shouldn’t have lost it,” he said. “We were exceptional in parts of that game and we should have been in the lead at halftime. At the very least we should have come away with a point.”

The post Santi Cazorla’s late goal rescues Arsenal appeared first on IdealCapper.

McCoy had one thing to do, though, before accepting the Chargers’ offer, so it was a good thing Chargers president Dean Spanos’ private plane was at his disposal.

“There was no doubt in my mind when I got back on that plane to go back home,” said McCoy, the former Denver Broncos offensive coordinator who was introduced Tuesday as Chargers’ new coach. “They wanted to keep me here last night. But I said, ‘I’ve got to talk to my wife about this before.’ If I made the decision without talking to my wife, I might get in a little trouble.”

So McCoy flew back to Denver to talk it over with his wife, Kellie. McCoy, his wife and their two children were back on the same plane Tuesday morning, flying back to San Diego to take the job.

“Without a doubt, we knew this was the place we wanted to be,” said McCoy, who signed a four-year contract.

McCoy replaces Norv Turner, who was fired along with general manager A.J. Smith after the Chargers finished 7-9 and missed the playoffs for the third straight season.

The move comes three days after the top-seeded Broncos were eliminated from the playoffs in a double-overtime home loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

The 40-year-old McCoy is the same age as Tom Telesco, who was hired as general manager last week. He interviewed after the Chargers already had talked to Seattle defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, fired head coaches Lovie Smith and Ken Whisenhunt, and Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden.

“Once he came in and once we saw how good he was, we just felt we had to have him now,” Telesco said of McCoy. “We had to get it done or we’d lose him.”

“He was polished, prepared, had great questions, which I think is big, too, that he had a lot of questions for us. It’s a partnership between the GM and the head coach, through and through. We spend more time with each other during the season than we do with our own family, so it’s got to be a tight relationship. When he came in, after a little bit of time, you could tell he was the right guy for us. We went after him hard.”

San Diego was scheduled to interview Indianapolis offensive coordinator Bruce Arians on Wednesday. Telesco, previously the Colts’ vice president of football operations, called Arians on Tuesday morning and told him the Chargers had hired McCoy.

“It was a tough phone call,” Telesco said. “I have so much respect for Bruce. He’s an excellent football coach. He’s going to be a great head coach in this league. I was honest with him. I said, ‘There’s different situations, different fits, and right now, this is a fit for Mike McCoy.’ He understood.”

McCoy inherits a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since after the 2008 season.

He thanked all the coaches and players he’s worked with over the years for helping him get to this point. He also said he knew just a few minutes into his interview that San Diego was the right place.

“They all laughed at me when I walked in yesterday with this big ol’ bag with all these books and binders and everything,” McCoy said. “Well, that’s my life’s work. We’ve got a detailed plan that Tom and I are going to put together. … There’s going to be some change. There’s a reason for change. And change is good sometimes in organizations. We’ve just got to make the most of the opportunity we have moving forward.”

The Broncos have won consecutive AFC West titles. McCoy tutored quarterbacks Kyle Orton and Tim Tebow in 2011, and had Peyton Manning behind center in 2012.

McCoy, who interviewed with the Miami Dolphins last year after retooling Denver’s offense to the read-option for Tebow at midstream in 2011, burnished his head coaching credentials this season while blending the power formations the Broncos used in leading the league in rushing last year with Tebow and some of the spread formations that Manning ran in Indianapolis.

“I think he’s going to be a great head coach. Very detail-oriented, knows the game, relates with players very well,” Broncos wide receiver Brandon Stokley said.

“Peyton does a lot but Mike is very good at what he does and he did a great job this year, so a lot of credit needs to go to him, also,” Stokley said. “I think that’s what you need to be a head coach — you need to be flexible. You need to do whatever you think is the best for your team to win and you know that’s what he’s done. You saw that last year. Not a lot of offensive coordinators in the NFL like running that kind of offense, but that’s what he did and it was successful.”

McCoy said he was “a bit stubborn” after Tebow was made the starter in 2011, but then realized he needed to change the offense.

“You take advantage of what your players do best,” McCoy said.

With the Chargers, McCoy will work with Philip Rivers, who struggled this season in large part because he was under siege behind a shaky offensive line. Rivers was sacked 49 times and committed 22 turnovers, giving him 47 turnovers in two seasons.

“You go through the disappointment from the season and losing your coach to now having a new GM, new coach, and you get excited and ready to go for this 2013 season,” Rivers said.

“Once I found out that we were bringing him in on Monday, I was hoping he wasn’t going to leave again. I’m excited that was the case and I’m looking forward to getting started.”

Denver swept the Chargers in 2012, including an epic 35-24 victory at San Diego on Oct. 15 when Manning calmly led the Broncos back from a 24-0 halftime deficit.

McCoy was a walk-on quarterback at Long Beach State under coach George Allen. After the 49ers dropped football, he transferred to Utah. He signed with the Broncos as a free agent and spent his rookie season on Green Bay’s practice squad. He had stops in NFL Europe and with San Francisco, Philadelphia and in the CFL. He began his pro coaching career with Carolina before moving to the Broncos in 2009.

McCoy said he learned about detail and preparation from Allen, who coached the Los Angeles Rams and Washington Redskins.

“He was not a big yeller and screamer, he just expected you to go out there and do your job and execute the system the way it was supposed to be executed,” McCoy said.

McCoy said he planned to hire an offensive coordinator to call plays. Turner called his own plays. McCoy was non-committal about defensive coordinator John Pagano, saying he planned to evaluate the entire staff.

The post Mike McCoy takes San Diego Chargers head coach job appeared first on IdealCapper.

This one should be a great game, no doubt about it. The Cowboys always show up against the Giants, and a feature matchup to kick off the season should be no different.

Will two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning get his team off to a winning start? Or will Tony Romo and America’s Team shut down the G-Men at home?

Oddsmakers currently have the Giants listed as 3-point favorites versus the Cowboys, while the game’s total is sitting at 46½.

Team records:
Dallas: 8-8 SU, 5-10-1 ATS
New York: 9-7 SU, 8-7-1 ATS

Dallas most recently:
When playing in September are 5-5
When playing on turf are 5-5
After being outgained are 5-5
When playing within the division are 5-5

New York most recently:
When playing in September are 7-3
When playing on turf are 6-4
After outgaining opponent are 8-2
When playing within the division are 5-5

A few trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas’s last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Dallas’s last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Dallas’s last 6 games when playing NY Giants
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Dallas’s last 5 games when playing on the road against NY Giants
NY Giants are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of the NY Giants last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of the NY Giants last 6 games at home
NY Giants are 5-1 SU in their last 6 games when playing Dallas

Next up:
Dallas at Seattle, Sunday, September 16
NY Giants home to Tampa Bay, Sunday, September 16

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