LONDON -- After a gloomy start to 2014 for English Premier League teams in Europe, Tottenham achieved what five rivals failed to do -- win. Paul Soliai Jersey . Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City all opened the Champions League knockout phase with first-leg losses, while Chelsea drew. But on Thursday, straight after Swansea was knocked out of the Europa League, Tottenham overturned a 1-0 deficit against Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk to win 3-1 at White Hart Lane and advance to the round of 16. Roman Zozulya headed the Ukrainian side in front at the start of the second half but, after Christian Eriksen levelled from a free kick, he was dismissed for head-butting Jan Vertonghen in the 62nd minute. Within six minutes, Emmanuel Adebayor scored twice to set up a meeting with Benfica, which beat PAOK Salonika 3-0 to go through 4-0 on aggregate. The last 16 will see two meetings of national rivals that should lift Europes less illustrious competition, with Juventus facing Fiorentina, and Sevilla playing Real Betis. Juventus replicated its 2-0 first-leg victory over Trabzonspor in Turkey, with goals from Arturo Vidal and Dani Osvaldo. And Fiorentina was held to 1-1 by Esbjerg of Denmark but advanced 4-2 on aggregate. Swanseas loss at Napoli gave Italy a third team in the next round and kept Rafa Benitez on course to win back-to-back Europa League titles. The Spanish manager, who lifted the trophy with Chelsea last season, saw his new team emerge 3-1 winners over Swansea after a goalless first leg in south Wales. Napoli will next face Porto, which drew 2-2 at Eintracht Frankfurt to advance on away goals with a 5-5 aggregate draw. But Serie A rival Lazio went out, drawing 3-3 at Ludogorets after losing 1-0 at home. Three Spanish teams also remain in the competition. Sevilla beat Maribor 2-1 to complete a 4-3 aggregate win over the Slovenian side, and Betis advanced 3-1 on aggregate after winning 2-0 at Rubin Kazan. Valencia relied on its 2-0 away win to oust Dynamo Kyiv after a scoreless draw in Spain, and will next face Ludogorets. Lyon beat Chornomorets Odesa 1-0 to setup a meeting with Viktoria Plzen after the Czech side beat Shakhtar Donetsk 3-2 on aggregate. Ajax conceded another three goals against Red Bull Salzburg, losing 3-1 to allow the hosts to advance 6-1 overall. Salzburg will next play FC Basel after the Swiss side beat Maccabi Tel Aviv 3-0. Malliciah Goodman Jersey . Replay backed him up. Adeiny Hechavarria immediately followed the ruling with a go-ahead sacrifice fly for the Miami Marlins, who held on to beat the Seattle Mariners 3-2 on Sunday completing a three-game sweep. Sam Baker Jersey . Seattle Seahawks superstar Richard Sherman, widely considered to be the leagues top cornerback, is carrying his war of words with Michael Crabtree into the off-season.The Chicago Bulls begin another playoff run without Derrick Rose on Sunday night when they welcome the Washington Wizards to the United Center. Catch the game as the first half of a doubleheader on TSN2 starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. Chicago is in the postseason for a sixth straight year and for the second time without Rose because of lingering knee issues. The Bulls got by without Rose in the first round last season, using a full seven-game series to dispose of the Brooklyn Nets, but the eventual two-time NBA champion Miami Heat bounced the Bulls in five games in the East semifinals. Now the Bulls are taking on a young and inexperienced Wizards team that won two of three meetings against them in the regular season. The Wizards have to play the first two games in the Windy City, where they are just 5-15 in the last 20 games. "The Wizards are a tough team, tough, tough team," said Chicago sixth man Taj Gibson. "They gave us so many problems in the regular season; great shooters. They got some great bigs in Nene and (Marcin) Gortat. John Wall is playing some phenomenal basketball. Bradley Beal is playing great basketball, too. Their bench is loaded up. Its going to be tough." When Rose went down early this season, the Bulls became Joakim Noahs team, although defense is still their calling card. Chicago finished tops in the NBA in opponents scoring (93.7 ppg) and second in opponents shooting percentage (43.2). The Bulls have ranked no lower than third in opponents scoring in head coach Tom Thibodeaus four seasons at the helm. Noah is headed toward a possible Defensive Player of the Year award, but his offensive game is what carried the Bulls. He averaged 12.6 points and led the Bulls with 11.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. Noah played an integral part for Chicagos top defense, but also averaged a career-high 5.4 assists. Chicago won an Eastern Conference-best 36 games since Jan. 1 and won seven in a row before closing out the season with two losses in three tries. Washington is wet behind the ears when it comes to recent postseason appearances. It has returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2007-08, when it lost in six games to a young LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Wizards are facing the Bulls for the third time in the postseason, as they were swept 3-0 back in the first round of the 1997 playoffs and won a best-of- seven series 4-2 in 2005. "I feel like we like our chances against anybody if we play the right way," said Wall, who averaged 20.7 points, 8.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds in three games versus the Bulls this season. "We just have to go out there and play the way we know how to play, and play the defense were capable of playing. Were here and were focused and will try to leave a statement and see where it takes us." The Wizards received a big boost with the return of veteran big man, Nene. He missed a ton of time in the middle of the season, but came back for four games at the end. He averaged 14.3 points and should come in handy against the bruising frontline of Chicago. Washington toook advantage of a weaker Eastern Conference to reach the playoffs and went 19-11 after the break. Bear Pascoe Falcons Jersey. The Wizards closed the regular season with four straight wins and eight in the last 11 games. Portland Trail Blazers at Houston Rockets Two of the leagues best offensive units take center stage Sunday night when the Houston Rockets host the Portland Trail Blazers at the Toyota Center. Catch the game as the tail end of a doubleheader on TSN2 starting at 9:30pm et/6:30pm pt. The Rockets are the NBAs second-ranked offense at 107.7 ppg, followed by the Trail Blazers, who are fourth with 106.9 ppg. Houston secured the home-court advantage with a win on Monday against the NBAs best, the San Antonio Spurs. "We fought hard for it. It took a little longer than I hoped but we knew we had to get 54 wins and we got there with one to spare," said Rockets coach Kevin McHale. The matchup between the two squads has been decidedly in Houstons favor over the last few seasons. The Rockets have won nine of the last 12 meetings, including three of four this season. "Its the West. We dont care who were going to play, its going to be tough anyway," said Portland forward Nicolas Batum. "Houston is a good team, a great team. Theyve got a good group of players. We match up pretty well with them. Weve had good games, tough games." The Rockets were believed to be a serious contender for an NBA title when they signed prized free agent Dwight Howard in the offseason. Along with All-Star guard James Harden, they form a formidable one-two punch. Portland, on the other hand, was a bit of a surprise this season. The Blazers hadnt made the playoffs the last two seasons, but the core group stayed healthy and the bench improved significantly. These two teams met in the first round back in 2009, but oh how different they both are just five years later. Houston has no players on the roster from that team, which was led by Yao Ming, while only LaMarcus Aldridge and Batum remain for the Blazers. "It wont be easy. It is going to be fun," said Batum. "Excited finally for playoffs to start because we wait too much for that, now almost three years, so ready to start." The Rockets got healthy at the right time. Howard missed significant time late in the season with an ankle injury and starting point guard Patrick Beverley was shelved with a knee problem. Both came back before the end of the season and should be all-clear for the playoffs. Portland is healthy. This matchup is so even, down to the matching 54-28 records. Each team had two All-Stars in Howard and Harden for Houston and Aldridge and Damian Lillard for Portland. As expected due to both teams high offensive output, defense has suffered. The Blazers ranked 22nd in opponents scoring, while the Rockets were one rung below. "Its going to be a great series," said Harden. "There are so many guys that can score for them and for us. Its going to be a matter of the small things: who can limit their turnovers and rebound the basketball." Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '
