Jukebox » The Sharks won the first three games

VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Patrick Farrell missed his first free throw, and was off on his second. With only 19 seconds left in the game, the pressure was on for Farrell to make the third. The Villanova fans stood and cheered, and his teammates were stoked, yelling from the bench at the sophomore forward that the final one would be good. Farrell practiced his motion, took a breath, released, and watched as the basketball bounced twice around the rim before it plopped through the net. The eighth-ranked Wildcats went wild, celebrating Farrells first point of the season like a game-winner, and not just the finishing touches of a 67-48 victory over Butler on Wednesday night. For a team that played about 30 minutes of basketball to forget, that moment of team bonding for the deepest of deep reserves was one to remember. "I love that," coach Jay Wright said. "Thats whats special about this team." The Wildcats (25-3, 13-2 Big East) survived one of their worst halves of the season to win for the ninth time in 10 games. They needed almost the first 10 minutes of the game to score 10 points, missed eight of their first nine 3-point attempts, and didnt have a player reach double digits in scoring until midway through the second half. "Youve got to find a way to grind against them," Wright said. "Ill take that." Darrun Hilliard and James Bell led them with only 11 points each and the Wildcats put up the kind of numbers that usually lead to a loss. Not against the lowly Bulldogs (12-16, 2-14). Butler was even worse, shooting only 26 per cent in the first half, and the Bulldogs lost their seventh straight game. The Wildcats had a small hot streak at the end of the first half, making 5 of 6 shots, to build enough of a cushion and slowly pull away. The Wildcats fell shy of their 79.9 points per game average and played for about 35 minutes looking nothing like the team that has become one of the best in the Big East. Each team took turns trading clunkers and clangers in the first 10 minutes, one reason the Wildcats only led 10-4. With 6 minutes left in the half, the Bulldogs and Wildcats combined for only 26 points. And no, Bo Ryan wasnt coaching either of the teams. The Pavilion had all the atmosphere of an art museum on a sleepy Sunday morning, making this one feel more like a bad NBA preseason game than the final on-campus home game of the season. Wright did let senior reserves Nick McMahon and Tony Chennault start -- though McMahon played only 20 seconds before he was benched for Ryan Arcidiacono. McMahon couldnt have been worse than the rest of the offence. Villanova missed 12 of its first 15 shots, most from 3-point range. The Wildcats were determined to keep shooting 3s until they fell. Bell and Arcidiacono did hit two straight near the end of the first half for a 28-15 lead. Butlers Kellen Dunham buried the shot of the game with a high banker for 3 that cut it to 34-20 at halftime. He led Butler with 12 points. Hard to believe these teams needed overtime before Villanova pulled out the win in their first matchup. "We didnt have it tonight," coach Brandon Miller said. "When you keep getting the results you dont want, it weighs on you a little bit." Bell was the lone senior regular for the Wildcats and exchanged an emotional hug with Wright after he checked out for the final time. "It was tough," Bell said. "I dont see my mom that much. My dad works a lot, doesnt really get the chance to get down that much. That was probably the toughest part, seeing my mom crying. Other than that, it was time to play." Pick a stat in the first half and both teams probably wish the number could be wiped from the record book. Butler missed 8 of 10 3s; Nova missed 12 of 16. Butler had two starters who went scoreless in the half. The Wildcats shot 38 per cent from the field. But theres a reason the Wildcats have spent most of the season in the Top 25, and they showed why in the second half, going more than 25 minutes without a turnover during a 16-3 run that stretched the lead to 24 points. Butler scored six baskets in the first half, and didnt reach seven for a second-half total until there was 1:51 left. While the Wildcats are in the hunt for a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament, the Bulldogs need a shocking conference tournament championship to have any shot at returning for some March Madness. "This is a really good group to coach," Wright said. "Its been a pleasure all year. But it cant let that prevent us from driving them and them driving themselves to get better." Isaiah Oliver Jersey . Right-hander Todd Redmond took the loss. Jose Bautista hit his second home run of the spring. 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Logan Paulsen Falcons Jersey . -- Oakland Athletics third baseman Scott Sizemore has undergone surgery on his left knee to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The pain of another playoff collapse was still fresh less than two days later as the San Jose Sharks packed up for another early summer. General manager Doug Wilson expressed his still boiling anger in a team meeting Friday and vowed that the status quo is not an option after the Sharks became the fourth NHL team to lose a best-of-seven series after winning the first three games. But Wilson said it will be his recommendation that the change not include coach Todd McLellan. Wilson said he has not yet talked to owner Hasso Plattner and acknowledged that he also is under evaluation. Wilson said the final decision on what the Sharks will do going forward will likely be made in the next two weeks. "This is not a nick or a scratch," Wilson said. "This is an open wound. When the emotions are raw, the emotions should run deep and resonate and live for a long time. We have already started the process of what decisions were going to make." The Sharks won the first three games of the series by a margin of 17-8. But they managed only two goals in the final three games in the latest playoff disappointment for a franchise that has the second-most points in the regular season the past 10 seasons but is still looking for its first Stanley Cup appearance. McLellan took the blame for the collapse after the Game 7 loss and said he is even more frustrated two days later with his teams performance in their second straight playoff loss to the Kings. "Something has to change," McLellan said. "Its two years in a row losing to that team, and its a very good team, too. Let me make that very clear. But its two years in a row losing to them. And, in fact, when we thought we had improved our group -- which I believe we did -- we got a weaker performance than we go the year prior." McLellan has the support of his players as well, who universally praised the job hes done the past six years even if it hasnt transslated into the ultimate post-season success.dddddddddddd. "I dont think the coaching is the problem. Ive had some bad coaches in the past," defenceman Dan Boyle said. "Its on the players. Were the ones that go out there and need to get it done. We didnt." The Sharks entered the playoffs almost completely healthy and looked like they were finally ready to make a run to the first Stanley Cup in franchise history the way they shredded the leagues top defensive team the first three games. But the offence dried up late in the series with the only two goals in the final three games coming from fill-in defenceman Matt Irwin and third-line forward James Sheppard. "Theres no sugarcoating it. When youre up 3-0 in a series, you step on their throat and put them away," Wilson said. "They came back and were able to play and establish their game for four games. We played it for three. Its not good enough. Thats the truth." Captain Joe Thornton, linemate Brent Burns and Logan Couture had no points in the final four games. Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski didnt have a goal or an assist in the last three. The power-play went 0-for-15 in the final three games, including four blown chances in the second period of Game 7 when the Sharks were either ahead or tied. "I think Ill think about that probably until next year sometime," Thornton said. "The way we played in the first three games and then what we did in the last four, its mindboggling. I think I will lose sleep probably for the next couple months." The Sharks have five unrestricted free agents: Boyle and Scott Hannan, goalie Alex Stalock and forwards Mike Brown and Bracken Kearns. 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