Offtopic/fun » guidance and inspiration to the class of 20

STORRS, Conn. -- Gabby Williams jumped early and totally whiffed the opening tipoff, eager to get a leg up on her taller Baylor opponent in the other half of the circle.If theres a metaphor for Williams play at UConn for the first two games of the season, that mistimed jump was it.The misstep will likely be a footnote after freshman Crystal Dangerfield scored 19 points to lead the third-ranked Huskies past No. 2 Baylor 72-61 on Thursday for their 77th consecutive victory. It is, however, characteristic of how Williams has started this season.The early minutes of the first two games have not been kind. Fresh off early foul trouble during UConns season-opening win against Florida State, Williams again found herself on the bench Thursday.She looked like she was well on her way to a big game early. The 5-foot-11 junior guard took a charge, had a monster block and hit a key bucket -- and then she picked up her second foul with 5:19 left in the first quarter, putting her on the bench for the rest of the half.I told myself I was never going to be in that position [in early foul trouble] again, and to be in it the next game was really frustrating for me, Williams said.While the Huskies are known for playing suffocating defense, discipline is another trademark. Huskies rarely foul out. But Williams wasnt the only UConn player in foul trouble. UConn finished the first half with Dangerfield, Kia Nurse, center Natalie Butler and freshmen Molly Bent and Kyla Irwin on the floor. Thats not a typical lineup for the Huskies; they needed to reach deep into the bench to steer through the crisis.Our propensity to put ourselves in foul trouble these first two games is putting us in bad situations, UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. And we put ourselves in another bad one [tonight].UConn showed some mettle, though, putting four players in double figures and outdueling Baylors taller post players. Williams played all 20 minutes of the second half to finish with 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting, plus three assists, two blocks and two steals. She came up big when her team needed her most, making a huge steal with 2:15 left .For a lot of people, that [adversity] would affect them and shut them down, said Katie Lou Samuelson, who had 16 points. But she came out in the second half and was a huge spark for us. It was really important for her to do what she did. She took that charge and got our whole team really amped up.In the second half, Williams knew she had to play her game, but be smart and be clean, as she put it.I had to put mind over matter, she said. Im proud of how I came back. Vans Old Skool Black Sale .C. -- Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Bobcats got off to a fast start, and the Sacramento Kings were never quite able to catch up. Vans Old Skool Pink . Giroud, who wasnt in the starting lineup for two matches after allegations about his private life and a decline in form, scored twice in the first half. Tomas Rosickys chip made it 3-0 before half time at Emirates Stadium, while defender Laurent Koscielny scored an unmarked header in the second half. http://www.vansshoesclearancesale.com/vans-old-skool-sale.html . For the Wild it was their first win of the season and they now have a record of 1-1-2 while the Jets fall to 2-2. Jets start a six game home stand Friday with another divisional game, home to the Dallas Stars. Vans Old Skool White . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. Vans Sk8 Hi Leather . -- Ohio States Urban Meyer has never had any issue acclimating to the biggest stages in college football. It was April 9, 2016 when, late in the evening, Anthony Joshua stood triumphant over the prone Charles Martin with two swift right hands securing his status as the new IBF heavyweight title-holder.Joshua is not an individual who sits still; his sporting, commercial and mental development has been done in fast-forward with all of his 17 professional fights ending in victorious knockouts. But, his is a status born on one night in London back in August 2012 when he still had amateur next to his name.Olympic legacies are largely subjective but away from the bricks and mortar of the infrastructure and stadia, athletes of the future are inspired to emulate gold medal-winners of Games past. For the first time since the 1984 Games, Team GB will have contenders in all 10 mens boxing categories in Rio and all will want to follow in Joshuas remarkable footsteps.He came to the 2012 Games billed as being a boxer with potential, but someone who had room to grow into. The eventual super heavyweight gold medal was an astonishing return for Joshua, then aged 22, as it came just three years after he threw his first punch in anger in a boxing ring.It was a bit overwhelming, Joshua tells ESPN looking back to London 2012. From the opening ceremony... it was funny because I remember putting on the kit and we were the only guys in sunglasses and when the cameras jumped on us, that was our time to show our friends from the estate that wed made it.People were tweeting my friends saying we were a disgrace to Great Britain so we were just young and having a good time, not really overwhelmed by the Olympics but having a good time.It was an experience which was easy enough to adapt to in theory but not in practice. Having now boxed in a sold-out O2 Arena, Joshua is comfortable on the big stage: the thousands of eyes staring eagerly in his direction and the strained vocal chords bellowing support as he darts from foot to foot before unloading his right arm.But back in 2012 it was all new and that experience of boxing at ExCeL had a profound effect on Joshuas career.When it really hit me [the magnitude of the event] was when I was backstage, Joshua says. It was all purpose-built; it [the arena] was just built for the Olympics so there was scaffolding everywhere with walls put in.dddddddddddd The top of the roof was open.We were tucked away behind the scenes but I could hear the atmosphere going on knowing that in about half an hour I was going to step out into the arena. They said the boxing arena was the loudest arena in the whole of the Olympics.Joshua sees boxing as a pure sport and the individualistic nature of it as nerve-wracking. But back in 2012 as he saw off Erislandy Savon, Zhang Zhilei and then Ivan Dychko in the semifinals, he learnt to embrace the pressure and passion of the crowd rather than blocking it out.Then came Italys Roberto Cammarelle in the final. He was a fitting opponent. Just one year previous, in 2011, Joshua was due to fight Cammarelle but the meeting fell through and his inexperience at that stage gave his trainers second thoughts over whether he was ready.A year on and he was the darling of the ExCeL. The final was on a knife-edge. Joshua trailed by three points after the first two rounds and thanks to a ferocious performance in the third, he drew the fight level at 18-18. After a lengthy wait as the judges deliberated the outcome, he was eventually crowned Olympic champion virtue of countback. On such decisions, careers are made.Joshuas star was propelled into the stratosphere and now as one of Britains most popular sportsmen, he is the figure providing guidance and inspiration to the class of 2016. But it all started on one night in London, the fight that put him on the pathway to heavyweight title-holder and what he hopes will be a boxing legacy as the unified heavyweight champion of the world.Naturally as life goes on, you go through certain experiences inside and outside of your work career and I learnt how to deal with these, so it [London 2012] helped me mature, Joshua says. And I think everyone as time goes on, you get a sense of wisdom and I apply everything Ive learnt outside the ring, in the ring.I continue to grow as a person and then you can see my development and I can project that to a lot of people through my boxing. ' ' '