LeBron James leads way with 29 points, 14 boards as Heat go up 2-1
Halfway to a title, LeBron James shows no sign of letting this one get away.
James had 29 points and 14 rebounds, and the Miami Heat took a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals with a 91-85 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night.
Dwyane Wade had 25 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Heat, who were in this same position through three games last year, then didn't win again against the Dallas Mavericks.
James' poor performance was part of the problem then, but he seems on top of his game this time. His 3-pointer sent the Heat to the fourth quarter with the lead, and he scored five straight Miami points when the Heat were building just enough cushion to hold off another late flurry by the Thunder.
Game 4 is Tuesday night.
Kevin Durant had 25 points for the Thunder, but picked up his fourth foul in the third quarter and had to go to the bench when they had seemed to have control of the game. Russell Westbrook finished with 19 points.
The Heat survived their own fourth-quarter sloppiness by getting enough big plays from their Big Three.
James scored 30 and 32 points in the first two games, his two best finals performances. He fell just shy of another 30-point effort but reached his 20 points for the 20th time this postseason, two shy of Wade's franchise record set in 2006.
"It's all about chemistry," James said. "We understand where we like to get the ball, what we like to do in close situations, and it's good to see us execute down the stretch. But more importantly it was great to see we were able to get stops. That's where the game is won and we did that."
Chris Bosh had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat, who can win a second title by winning the next two games at home.
They seemed out of it when Oklahoma City opened a 10-point lead midway through the third. But Durant went out, Thunder coach Scott Brooks decided to sit Westbrook with him, and the Heat charged into the lead by the end of the period.
The Thunder had grabbed their last lead at 77-76 on James Harden's basket with 7:32 left. James answered with two free throws about 20 seconds later, and the teams would trade turnovers and stops over the next couple of tense minutes.
Wade then converted a three-point play, and another minute went by before James powered to the basket, Durant trying to get in position to draw a charge but watching helplessly as he picked up his fifth foul. James made the free throw for an 84-77 advantage with 3:47 to play.
After another basket by James, the Thunder had one last burst -- haven't they always in this series? -- ripping off six straight points to get within one before Bosh made a pair of free throws with 1:19 to play. Durant missed badly on a wild shot attempt, and the Thunder missed another chance when Westbrook was off from behind the arc.
James hit a free throw for a four-point lead with 16 seconds to go and Wade added two to close it out.
"It's very hard," James said. "Both teams are very active defensively and both teams make it hard on one another in the half court so when you get stops you try to get early offense, it always helps and we were able to do that a little bit."
The series made its way from Oklahoma City, where fans in blue shirts filled every seat, to Miami, where white shirts hung on empty chairs just minutes before the tip. The late arrivals in Oklahoma City had been the Thunder players, who fell into big early deficits and acknowledged some first-time finals jitters in Game 1. Brooks said he heard the cries to change his starting lineup but said it never crossed his mind.
The Thunder quickly fell behind 10-4 in this one after spotting the Heat a 13-point lead in Game 1 and getting clubbed into an 18-2 hole in the opening minutes of Game 2. They didn't let things get any worse this time, playing the Heat even from there and trailing 26-20 after one. James, Wade and Bosh combined for Miami's first 18 points.
James and Wade had some dazzling drives in the second and Shane Battier got free for a pair of 3-pointers in the final 2 minutes, but the Thunder stayed with them the entire way, briefly holding a three-point lead. Westbrook's 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds left cut Miami's lead to 47-46.
Oklahoma City started to take control with a 14-2 run early in the third. Durant had the first four points, Westbrook fooled the Heat with a fake behind the back pass before in for a layup, then Durant leaped over James for a follow dunk before nailing a jumper for a 60-51 lead with 6:55 left in the period.
But it was barely a minute later when he drew his fourth foul, though he appeared to make little or no contract on Wade's baseline drive, and had to go to the bench. The Thunder pushed the lead to 10 on Derek Fisher's four-point play, but the Heat got right back in it when Battier and then James Jones made all six free throws after being fouled behind the arc.
Brooks also pulled Westbrook with 5 minutes left and left him out the remainder of the period, leaving the Thunder without their two best players as they tried to hang onto the lead.
They couldn't.
The Heat scored the final seven of the period, Wade making a turnaround jumper and two free throws before setting up James for a 3-pointer that made it 69-67 headed to the final quarter.
ESPN
Windies sweating on Bravo, Russell for 2nd ODI
West Indies are sweating on the fitness of batsman Darren Bravo and all-rounder Andre Russell but have been boosted by the news that talismanic opener Chris Gayle will be available for tomorrow’s second One-Day International against England. The left-handed Gayle missed Saturday’s 114-run loss in the opening ODI at Southampton with a stress reaction in a bone in his left leg.
His presence was missed in the batting line-up as the Windies slid to 172 all out in response to England’s 288 for six. The left-handed Bravo injured his groin during the game and was forced to bat at number nine, finishing with eight not out in an uncomfortable 21 minutes at the crease. He joins Russell who is also struggling with a shoulder injury. Both players will have scans today to determine their match fitness.
Wayne Rooney very confident about England chances
Wayne Rooney believes England have the players to go all the way at Euro 2012.
Rooney, 26, returns from a two-match ban to face co-hosts Ukraine in Donetsk on Tuesday with England needing a point to reach the last eight.
A confident Rooney said: "If we keep working hard there is no reason why we can't go really far in the tournament.
"I think we're good enough. I know everyone doesn't want us to build expectations up but I firmly believe we have got the players."
The Manchester United striker is undaunted by the potential prospect of a quarter-final meeting against World and European champions Spain (should England finish Group D runners up and Spain top Group C).
"Before the tournament started I said a country like ours needs to be in there with a shout of winning major tournaments.
"Obviously you need a bit of luck as well, but we've got a good opportunity. We've got the squad and are more organised than we have been as long as I've been in the squad.
"We are hard to beat now. If we keep doing that and keep working hard then there's no reason we can't go really far and be in with a shout of winning it.
"If you want to win tournaments you have to play the best teams and how much of a boost would it be for us if we were to play Spain and beat them? How much confidence would that give us?" he said.
Rooney also revealed he uses a visualisation technique before games in an attempt to be in the right frame of mind to have an impact for England - and at club level with United.
He said: "I've done it all of my career, since I got in the Everton team. I've always asked the kit men what colour kit we're wearing and what colour the opponents are wearing then visualised scoring goals or good things happening in the game.
"I always do it before every game to get good thoughts and good moments happening in my head to help me. I do it the night before a game when I'm in bed."
Rooney admitted it has been frustrating watching from the sidelines during England's opening two group matches.
"What happened was a mistake and I've paid the price. I'm happy and ready to play. I've been looking forward to it and now I'm available to play I'm excited."
Rooney was initially banned for the entire group stage following his straight red card for violent conduct against Montenegro in October.
The suspension was reduced to two games on appeal, and he admitted that at one stage he feared for his Euro 2012 involvement.
"When it was a three-game ban I thought I probably wouldn't be here. I'm happy that I am here."
Rooney is set to return to the starting line-up and is likely to be made vice-captain by manager Roy Hodgson.
"We haven't designated one yet but he is very much a candidate," said Hodgson. "Quite frankly, with him not being available we haven't really felt the necessity before now to decide on that.
"But we are very much considering him for that position, yes."
England need a point from their final Group D game against Ukraine in Donetsk on Tuesday to reach the knock-out stage. The co-hosts, meanwhile, require a win to reach the quarter-finals.
David Nalbandian disqualified from Queen's final after kick
David Nalbandian was disqualified from the Aegon Championships final after injuring a line judge by kicking an advertising board into his shin.
The Argentine, 30, was leading Marin Cilic 7-6 (7-3) 3-4 when he smashed a panel in front of Andrew McDougall's seat, causing his leg to bleed heavily.
Chair umpire Fergus Murphy awarded Cilic the match, while ATP supervisor Tom Barnes confirmed the decision.
"I am very sorry, sometimes you get frustrated on court," said Nalbandian.
With the officials discussing what course of action to take, sections of the 6,000-capacity crowd booed and chanted "play on".
But the match was abandoned and Nalbandian was left to explain his behaviour to Sue Barker on BBC One.
"Sometimes I make a mistake I agree with," he added. "It's a tough moment to end a final like that but sometimes we feel so much pressure from the ATP playing so many tournaments.
"Today I've made a mistake. Sometimes I agree and I do but everyone makes mistakes. I don't feel it had to end like that - especially in a final.
"There are a lot of rules and sometimes they don't do anything. The rule book is very big and I can tell you the ATP do a lot to the players and nothing happens."
After edging the first set on a tie-break, Nalbandian's serve was broken in the opening game of the second.
He managed to level at 3-3 but immediately handed the advantage back by putting a forehand wide on the stretch.
The world number 39 continued his run before angrily booting the board, which broke apart and badly gashed McDougall's left leg.
He received immediate treatment from St John's Ambulance and saw the tournament medical team, but no further treatment was required.
"It is unsportsmanlike conduct, and the supervisor has the authority to declare an immediate default," said Barnes. "Once I saw that the line judge was injured, I didn't have any other option."
Tournament official Chris Kermode later said: "It is obviously not the way that we wanted to finish the final and I can understand the crowd's frustration.
"But the tournament is governed by ATP rules and this was a clear-cut case.
"The line judge was seen and treated by St John's Ambulance. He also saw the doctor, and no further treatment was required."
Rule 8.04 of the ATP rule book states a player guilty of aggravated behaviour can expect to be fined "up to $25,000 or the amount of prize money won at the tournament, whichever is greater".
Given that the runners-up prize money at Queen's is 44,945 euros (£36,114), Nalbandian stands to lose more, as well facing a fine of up to $10,000 (£6,365) and forfeiting the ranking points he earned.
He was appearing in his first grass court final since Wimbledon in 2002.
Cilic becomes the first Croatian to win a title on grass since Goran Ivanisevic triumphed at the All England Club in 2001.
"It was very bitter." said the sixth seed. "It's definitely not the way I wanted to win. To end like this is not easy.
"The match was getting hot and it's tough to see the final finish like this. I can't change it, but I'm really sorry for the fans that it finished like this."
In the doubles, top seeds Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor of Canada comfortably beat the Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike, 6-3 6-4.
Obama, world want bold signs from Europe at G-20
With global anxiety rising, President Barack Obama is searching for bolder, swifter signals from Europe that it will contain its financial mess and keep it from torpedoing the US economy and his re-election chances along with it. Yet as he prepares for summit talks beginning today in Mexico with the other world leaders, Obama is down to the power of persuasion and little else.
Given the teetering global economy and the breadth of leaders about to gather in the coastal resort of Los Cabos, the Group of 20 summit meeting carries the weight of expectations it is not likely to meet. Most of its members are not part of Europe and they have no power to drive how the continent manages its crisis, although they do come looking for signs of progress and urgency.
That clearly is the case for Obama, locked in a tight election that may be decided singlehandedly by whether US job growth sinks or climbs over the next five months. While economic challenge will dominate the summit, the agenda runs deeper. In talks on the sidelines, Obama will confront the bloodshed in Syria and the nuclear threat in Iran.
AP
Partnership falling apart, says PNM
The People’s Partnership coalition Government is falling apart.That was the opinion of the Opposition PNM yesterday, following the MSJ’s move out of the Partnership.PNM leader Keith Rowley and deputy leader Marlene McDonald did not answer calls yesterday.
Rowley is on leave from the Parliament until June 25, it was announced in Parliament last week. PNM officials said he was in California, USA. PNM MP Colm Imbert, however, said: “The partnership is falling apart and this was on the cards for a long time. “The COP threatened to pull out the other day so obviously things were not going too well for them,” he said.
“Obviously this MSJ development wasn’t unexpected as there are a lot of disgruntled people out there. People expected the sun, moon and the stars and they are disappointed. But some of the expectations were unrealistic also.” PNM general secretary Ashton Forde said:
“This collapse was inevitable because this was a government conceived on broken promises and they will die by broken promises.“The people must note that one of the partners is dissatisfied, then how you expect them to treat the rest of the population?” he said.“They went in there as one cohesive unit and they had all kinds of agreement, hugging up one another and for two years later—not even mid-term—and they fall out.“I believe they broke up long ago and today is just the nail in the coffin but the country must stand up and take note because it’s a serious development when a coalition starts to fall apart before mid term.”
B'dos police find marijuana in oranges from Jamaica
The police in Barbados have discovered marijuana hidden in oranges imported from Jamaica at four supermarkets. The police say the drugs have a street of 800,000 Barbados dollars or 400,000 US dollars.
The CMC says the Barbados police have been working with Jamaican authorities to probe the drug shipment but no arrests have been had yet been made.
According to the CMC, 41 taped packages of marijuana were discovered Saturday at four stores in shipments of Jamaican oranges.
The initial discovery of 17 packages of what appeared to be compressed marijuana in 17 cases of oranges at one rural supermarket prompted a search of a chain of stores that netted the drugs.
Prince Charles in climate change warning
The Prince of Wales has warned of the "catastrophic" consequences of inaction on issues such as climate change, at a UN sustainability conference in Brazil.
Prince Charles said he had "watched in despair" at the slow pace of progress on the "critical issues of the day," in a pre-recorded video address in Rio.
He urged world leaders to adopt a more integrated approach to issues such as climate change and food security.
Waiting for the worst to happen would be "too late to act at all", he said.
Rio+20, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, is attended by heads of state and representatives from governments, non-governmental organisations and the private sector.
In his address, the prince said scientific evidence showed the potential consequences of ignoring the risks.
'Sceptical reluctance'
"Like a sleepwalker, we seem unable to wake up to the fact that so many of the catastrophic consequences of carrying on with 'business-as-usual' are bearing down on us faster than we think, already dragging many millions more people into poverty and dangerously weakening global food, water and energy security for the future," he said.
"One thing is clear. We need to be much more informed about the actual state of the planet.
"We do not have nearly enough knowledge on which to base the decisions that will be the best for the long term.
"Until we do, we expose ourselves to the mounting danger of major shifts in policy that are not well conceived, but come as panicked responses to crises that could have been avoided."
He said the "outright, sceptical reluctance" by some to engage with these issues had often slowed progress "to a standstill".
Pointing to the work of his International Sustainability Unit, a foundation set up to campaign on global sustainability, the prince said a better picture of environmental problems was needed before effective policy could be implemented.
'Don't have long'
He said data on on energy, water, biodiversity, forestry and soil, which is collected separately, needed to be combined and and analysed as a whole.
"If this could happen, at least then we would know what the state of the planet actually is - and then plan accordingly," he said.
He went on: "We do not have long to capture such a comprehensive picture, and so I would appeal to you as you meet here in Rio to make an even greater and concerted effort to persuade policy and decision-makers to act before it is finally too late.
"It is, perhaps, a trait of human nature to act only when the worst happens, but that is not a trait we can afford to rely on here.
"Once the worst does happen, I am afraid that this time around it will be too late to act at all."
The conference marks the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's second largest city.
Allen Stanford jailed for 110 years for $7bn Ponzi
Disgraced tycoon Allen Stanford has been sentenced to 110 years in jail for operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of more than $7bn (£4.5bn).
The scheme was described as one of the largest in US history.
In court, Stanford denied any guilt, telling the judge at his sentencing hearing: "I did not defraud anybody."
A Texan banker, Stanford rose to prominence outside the US when he bankrolled international cricket competitions in the UK and Caribbean.
But after the collapse of his agreement to stage Twenty20 cricket in England, his financial empire began to crumble amid investigations by US regulators.
Forbes Magazine listed him as the 605th richest man in the world in 2006.
However, since his arrest in 2009 he has spent three years in detention after being denied bail.
Shifting blame
Stanford's Ponzi scheme centred on his banking operation based in the Caribbean island nation of Antigua.
Some 30,000 individual investors were swindled, it was alleged. Prosecutors failed to find as much as 92% of the assets Stanford International Bank claimed to have.
In his statement in court on Thursday, which ran for some 40 minutes, he told the judge: "I'm not here to ask for sympathy or forgiveness or to throw myself at your mercy.
"I did not run a Ponzi scheme. I didn't defraud anybody."
US District Judge David Hittner, who presided over Stanford's trial, called Stanford's actions "egregious criminal frauds" during the hearing.
Two victims of the scheme spoke during the hearing, including Angela Shaw, who told the court Stanford was worse than convicted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff because he preyed on middle-class investors.
"He stole more than millions," Ms Shaw said. "He stole our lives as we knew them."
His sentence is 40 years shorter than the jail term handed down to Madoff, who pleaded guilty in 2009 to a Ponzi scheme targeting wealthy investors.
Stanford was convicted in March on 13 of 14 charges against him, despite his lawyers attempting to shift most of the blame on his chief financial officer.
Prosecutors had asked for a 230-year sentence, with defence lawyers arguing for a lenient term of 44 months.
Three other former executives at Stanford's company are awaiting trial, while a former Antiguan financial regulator is expected to be extradited to the US for related charges.
While a jury has cleared the way for access to about $330m in stolen funds sitting in Stanford's frozen bank accounts across Canada, England and Switzerland, legal wrangling could make it years before investors recover any of that money.
Asia markets up as Greece voters back pro-bailout party
Asian markets have rallied after support for pro-bailout parties in Greece's elections on Sunday.
New Democracy, which came top, has backed the two bailouts of Greece by the European Union (EU) and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
There had been fears that if anti-bailout party Syriza had won, Greece could have been forced out of the euro.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 1.8%, South Korea's Kospi gained 2.1% and Australia's ASX 200 added 1.5%.
Antonis Samaras, the leader of the New Democracy party, said "the Greek people voted today to stay on the European course and remain in the eurozone".
"There will be no more adventures. Greece's place in Europe will not be put in doubt."
'Sense of relief'
The elections in Greece were being watched closely not just by eurozone leaders but also investors all across the globe.
Greece, which is suffering from a sovereign debt crisis, has received two bailouts in the past two years.
It was given an initial package worth 110bn euros (£89bn; $138bn) in 2010, followed by another one last year worth 130bn euros.
However, the EU and IMF have attached tough austerity measures, including state spending cuts, as pre-conditions to those packages.
There have been various demonstrations against those cuts in Greece and the Syriza party had said that it would renegotiate the conditions if it came to power.
It had led to fears that if eurozone leaders and Athens did not agree on the existing terms, Greece may be forced to leave the eurozone.
There were concerns that such a move may spread contagion to other eurozone countries and result in turmoil in the global economy.
Analysts said that because the highest number of voters had backed the pro-bailout New Democracy party, those fears had been allayed for now.
"There'll be a definite sense of relief spreading around today," said Masayuki Doshida a senior market analyst at Rakuten Securities.
Broader gains
The gains were not limited to stockmarkets.
The euro rose almost 1% against the US dollar, hitting a one-month-high of $1.2748 in early Asian trade.
Analysts said that even though the crisis in Greece has not been solved, the result of the elections had made some investors optimistic that it may have bottomed out.
"At some point in time, when the crisis does end, there will be a significant move of capital from across the world back into the EU," David Lennox of Fat Prophets told the BBC.
"We think that early punters are already taking the view that a floor has put under the crisis for now."
The price of oil also jumped, boosted by a weakening dollar and on hopes that consumer demand may pick up should stability return to the eurozone.
Brent crude rose 1.5% to $99.11 per barrel, while US light crude rose more than 1% to $84.97 per barrel.
'Extremely reactive'
Some analysts said that investors should treat the gains in the markets with caution.
"The markets have become extremely reactive," Mark Matthews, head of Asia research at Julius Baer, told the BBC.
He said while the Greek elections had allayed fears about the country leaving the eurozone, the debt crisis still needed to be resolved.
There have been differences among leaders and policymakers about what is the best way to solve the crisis and spur growth in the region.
Mr Matthews said that until a sustainable solution can be found, markets were likely to remain volatile.
At the same time, some analysts were of the view that concerns about debt problems in larger economies such as Spain may resurface and hurt market sentiment.
Spain's borrowing costs rose to another euro-era record last week, indicating that lenders were concerned about Madrid's ability to repay its debt.
The yield on benchmark 10-year bonds rose as high as 7% in early trade on 14 June, a level which many analysts believe is unsustainable in the long term.
Even though the yield fell back slightly later in the day, analysts fear that the country may have to pay even higher interest rates while raising money in the near future.
The ratings agency Moody's cut Spain's credit rating to one notch above "junk" last Wednesday.
"How long is it going to take for people to worry about Spain again?" said Peter Schiff of the brokerage Euro Pacific Capital.