D-Bo » inexperienced in World Cups, however, with

TORONTO - If you had been up early to watch the Canadian mens hockey team win gold Sunday morning, the Raptors first-half lullaby likely put you back to sleep. "I think we set basketball back probably 15 years in the first half," Dwane Casey admitted, speaking of his teams lackadaisical effort at the outset of a 105-90 win over the lowly Orlando Magic. Slow starts have become a troublesome trend for the Raptors, who scored 44 points on 42 per cent shooting in the opening 24 minutes Sunday, but theyve also developed a fondness for the second-half explosion, which seems to bail them out more often than not. Whatever Casey is saying or doing in the locker room at intermission, its been working. Once considered to be one of the worst third-quarter teams in the association, the Raptors looked like an inspired team coming out of the halftime break. "Like I told our guys, were going to have a lot of games where were going to have to grind it out," Casey said. "For whatever reason we struggle in the first half [and] come through, turn it on [in the second half], but I think thats also a little bit of growth on our part. Ive seen times when it had been a struggle for close to 40 minutes." The Raptors have indeed turned a corner in that regard, establishing themselves as a lethal second-half club. Toronto has outscored, or tied, its opponent in the second half in 13 straight contests, holding teams to 39 per cent shooting and besting them by 91 total points during that stretch. Since the season-altering trade of Rudy Gay, the Raptors lead the NBA in second-half point differential, outscoring foes by 216 points, 47 more than the second-ranked Indiana Pacers. Led by its dynamic backcourt, Toronto missed just two of its 14 field goal attempts in the third, besting the Magic 36-24 and turning a three-point halftime lead into a 15-point advantage going into the fourth. Neither guard, Kyle Lowry or DeMar DeRozan, missed a shot in the frame. The two combined for 26 of Torontos 36 points. Lowry, who shot just 1-of-7 in the first half, was in the zone. As the clock ticked down to end the period, the Raptors point guard pulled up from 25-feet and drained his fourth three-pointer, putting the finishing touch on a perfect (5-for-5 from the field, 4-for-4 from three, 3-for-3 from the line) 17-point quarter. Although the Raptors have outscored the Magic and Cavaliers 73-45, shooting 76 per cent from the floor in their last two third quarters - en route to a pair of home victories - Lowry and his teammates are wisely concerned about their customary slow starts. "Were not that good of a team to just ease our way into the game," said Lowry, who finished with 28 points on Sunday. "Weve got to come out and play with [that] intensity from the start." Whats behind the teams late wake-up calls? "I cant really put a finger on it," DeRozan said after scoring 17 of his 24 in the second half. "Maybe we just like a challenge sometimes. [We] put ourselves in a tough situation so we can fight ourselves out, but weve got to stop that and understand weve got to come out of the gate so we dont make the game that hard on us." Fortunately, the Raptors were playing host to the leagues worst road team. The Magic, riding a 15-game losing streak away from home, were missing leading scorer Arron Afflalo, absent as a result of an ankle injury. They scored just 14 points in the opening quarter and didnt put up much resistance when the Raptors guards seized control of the game. Toronto managed to seal a double-digit victory despite committing a season-high 24 turnovers, 18 of them coming from Lowry, DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas. While six of Torontos next seven games come against losing teams, this is not a habit that will be kind to the playoff-bound Raptors as they approach the stretch run. "We cant rely on that," DeRozan said of his teams second-half success, "because when we run into the top teams its going to be tough to try to make a comeback against those teams." "So weve got to start a habit of that now," he continued, "even when were playing teams like Orlando so well be ready and we know what to expect when we play the good teams." Cheap Pelicans Jerseys China . This time, it was Eric Chavezs turn. Stuck in a rut since coming off the disabled list, Chavez hit the first pitch he saw in the ninth inning for a run-scoring single, sending the Diamondbacks to another walk-off victory, 4-3 over the San Francisco Giants on Saturday night. Julius Randle Jersey .C. -- Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith has been ruled out for Sundays game against the Atlanta Falcons. http://www.cheappelicansjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-solomon-hill-jersey . 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SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari announced his World Cup squad on Wednesday without any major surprises, choosing most of the players who won last years Confederations Cup. Scolaris 23-name list includes 16 players who were in the team that won last years warm-up tournament by beating world champion Spain in the final. It will be a squad inexperienced in World Cups, however, with only six players who featured in past tournaments. "We will have to pass our own experience to these players," said Scolari, who led Brazil to the 2002 World Cup title. The team will mix talented young stars such as Neymar and Oscar with more experienced players such as Julio Cesar, Dani Alves, David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Hulk. "We know that not everybody will agree with all the names, its normal," Scolari said. "But now that we have the 23 players, we would like to ask that our fans support all of them so together we can focus on our goal of winning the World Cup." The squad announcement was a high-profile event in Brazil, with television stations juggling their programing to broadcast it live. The Brazilian football federation said 870 journalists, many from overseas, were accredited for the event at a traditional concert house in Rio de Janeiro. The stage where Scolari spoke was set up in front of a Brazilian flag the size of a four-story building, according to the federation. "My childhood dream came true," Neymar said on social media site Instagram. "Today was one of the most anticipated days of my life. Its time to represent the entire country. Im completely moved, anxious and nervous. I want it to arrive soon." Five players from this years list were in the 2010 World Cup -- Cesar, Silva, Alves, Maicon and Ramires. Fred didnt make it to South Africa but was in the squad for the 2006 tournament in Germany. "I dont think this lack of World Cup experience will play a big part," Scolari said. "Our players have been gaining experience in their leagues in Europe and I dont think they will be affected by this too much, although in certain World Cup situations, having that experience would be important.dddddddddddd But I fully trust these players." Veterans Kaka and Robinho -- the stars in the 2010 tournament -- still had hopes of playing in the tournament at home but were left off the list, as were former AC Milan forward Alexandre Pato and 34-year-old Ronaldinho, the 2002 world champion who missed out on his chance of making it to one last World Cup. Also missing were Atletico de Madrid defenders Miranda and Filipe Luis, as well as Liverpool midfielders Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Leiva. Paris Saint-Germain playmaker Lucas Moura, who played in the Confederations Cup, also was left out. Scolari had already confirmed nine players on the squad -- Luiz, Oscar, Ramires, Willian, Paulinho, Cesar, Silva, Fred and Neymar. He said there were only two spots remaining in the team, with the doubts related to the third goalkeeper and the fourth central defender, positions that were filled by Atletico Mineiro goalkeeper Victor and Napoli defender Henrique. "We know we have a big responsibility and we know that there are a lot of expectations," Fred said. "We have to turn that into motivation so we can go after this sixth world title." Seven alternates will be announced in the coming days. Brazils starting 11 in the World Cup will likely be the same that played in the Confederations Cup. Brazil has won 13 of its last 14 matches, the only loss coming in a friendly against Switzerland after the warm-up tournament. "Its important that today everybody can name most of the Brazilian starters," Scolari said. "We cant know for sure if we will use exactly the same team, it will depend on how these players will show up, but nine or 10 are certain to be in the starting lineup again." Brazil is in Group A with Croatia, Mexico and Cameroon. It will open against Croatia on June 12 in Sao Paulo. 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