Offtopic/fun » said. Try to learn and do everything as fast as poss

Big East basketball got a big boost when Villanova won the National Championship last season, and No. 22 Creighton is hoping to join that wave by taking a step forward in 2016-17.The Bluejays, who host UMKC in the season opener on Friday, reached the quarterfinals of the NIT last spring and are trying to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014 behind transfer Marcus Foster and leading returning scorer Maurice Watson, Jr. Foster is joined by four freshmen expected to make an immediate impact.Foster averaged 14.1 points in two seasons at Kansas State before sitting out last season due to the transfer. He needed only 16 minutes in Creightons lone exhibition game to score a team-high 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting.Basketballs been my life since I was very young -- so for me and my family right now, this is just a lot of excitement and anxiousness, Foster told the Omaha World-Herald.Bluejays coach Greg McDermott is a veteran when it comes to integrating transfers into his system. Watson Jr. (Boston University) and second-leading scorer Cole Huff (Nevada) were both new to the program last season after transferring in and led Creighton to a 20-15 record.When I got here, everybody, they opened up to me immediately; and you dont see that at most places, Foster told the Omaha World-Herald. This team, everybody likes each other, wants to hang around each other. You dont see that everywhere. Its good to have that on your team.It used to be that you either transferred because you didnt have a choice -- you got kicked off the team -- or you figured out you werent good enough to play there, McDermott said. And now, good players transfer.The Kangaroos rely on transfers as well and count at least eight on the roster including junior college transfers. Star senior Martez Harrison is an exception as a four-year starter and is trying to get back to the level he showed during his sophomore season.The Kansas City native was an honorable mention All-American and WAC Player of the Year after leading the league in scoring (17.5 points), steals (60) and assists (129) as a sophomore. The added defensive focus last season caused Harrison to slip to 15.4 points on 38.7 percent shooting and a spot on the second-team All-WAC.Harrison was named first-team All-WAC in preseason polling while fellow senior LaVell Boyd, who is in his second season with the Kangaroos after transferring from junior college, was named to the second team.Theres always that new excitement every year for each fan base and hopefully we can keep them excited, UMKC coach Kareem Richardson told reporters.The Kangaroos finished sixth in the WAC last season at 12-19 (4-10) and are due for only a modest improvement according to preseason polling that slated them fifth in 2016-17. UMKC will also visit No. 3 Kansas and No. 20 West Virginia in the non-conference slate.The Bluejays were slotted third in the Big East preseason poll behind defending champion Villanova and Xavier. Creighton will need to work not to overlook the Kangaroos with No. 9 Wisconsin scheduled to visit on Tuesday before heading off to St. Thomas for the Paradise Jam starting Nov. 18. Patrick McCaw Raptors Jersey . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. Toronto Raptors Jerseys . -- For the first time in two months, an opponent was standing up to Alabama. http://www.nbaraptorsonline.com/Authentic-Jodie-Meeks-Jersey/ . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Serge Ibaka Jersey . It says Pocklingtons lawyer filed the appeal Friday in a California court. CTV Edmonton also says Pocklington gave a $100,000 cash deposit as part of the conditions of his bail, and that he will be out on bail until his appeal is heard. Tracy Mcgrady Raptors Jersey . It is a cliché dragged out by fans and pundits regularly when discussions take place around which teams are better than others. THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- Ask Los Angeles Rams defensive end Robert Quinn for his first memory of Monday Night Football and nothing comes to mind.Oh shoot. Yeah, you got me stumped on that one, Quinn said.Coach Jeff Fisher remembers its infancy when the antics of Howard Cosell and Don Meredith captivated the nation, and it offered the only chance to see everything that happened in the NFL that week.Things have changed, Fisher said. Back in the day when Howard and Don and the rest of them were doing it, that was the only way you got to see highlights from the weekend. Now you get to see highlights moments after they happen.Playing a game on Monday night is no longer a novelty, the television broadcast accompanying it no longer a cultural phenomenon, but the Rams season opener at the San Francisco 49ers will mean plenty to linebacker Cory Littleton.`Monday Night Football, everybody in America watching it, Littleton said. Its exciting.Littleton seemed set for a limited role this season as an undrafted free agent from Washington before the Rams cut veteran Akeem Ayers last week. When Ayers signed with the Indianapolis Colts, it all but locked the Rams into using five defensive backs as their primary personnel package with Littleton backing up starting hybrid linebacker-safety Mark Barron.All you can do is just keep pushing forward, Littleton said. Yeah, there might be changes around you, but ultimately you cant control that.It doesnt really change anything for us, added middle linebacker Alec Ogletree. We feel like we played mostly nickel throughout the whole season last year, and most teams do play nickel more because it is a passing league.Littleton thrived as an outside linebacker as the Huskies led the Pac-12 in points and yards allowed last season. He had 65 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and six sacks as a senior, showing good range and versatility that has carried over through this summer.ddddddddddddLittleton wasnt sure he would get the opportunity because of a rule that limits the contact rookies can have with their teams until the end of the academic year. For schools on the quarter system, including Washington, rookies like Littleton had to wait until well into June to participate in conditioning workouts or organized team activities. That forced Littleton to quickly familiarize himself with a new team and scheme.Littleton said the coaches were understanding, but that it was just a crappy situation.There was nothing I could do about it, Littleton said. Try to learn and do everything as fast as possible, thats the only thing I could do.Littletons quick maturation actually seemed to strengthen his case for making the final roster. After recording three tackles in the Rams second preseason game, Littleton believed for the first time that he could make the team.Cory really didnt get to do much until he got to training camp, so I think that speaks volumes for him because he had a short period of time and he showed us what he can do, coach Jeff Fisher said.On Monday night, Littleton will go from watching the game to playing in it.Every time we go to a new stadium its just like Im a little kid in a candy store with a big old smile on my face because these are the places I have been seeing on TV for years or these are the players I have been seeing on TV for years or this is my favorite player, Littleton said. Its just a great experience.---Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '