NEWS » but if he does hell need a personality transplant if he is to wi

ESTERO, Fla. -- A big lead was gone, and No. 8 Ohio State looked to be in trouble.Kelsey Mitchell wasnt bothered whatsoever.Mitchell scored 24 points, including 3-pointers on consecutive possessions early in the fourth quarter after her team fell behind, and the Buckeyes held off No. 11 Syracuse 77-72 on Saturday night in the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase. The Buckeyes (5-1) led by 15 points early in the second half before needing to rally.They just came in the rhythm of the offense, Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said of Mitchells two big 3-pointers late. Shes such a great player and makes a lot of big shots.The Buckeyes (5-1) will meet No. 5 Baylor on Sunday in the championship game.Theyve got a great team, talented, well-coached, McGuff said of the Bears, who rolled past DePaul in Saturdays other semifinal. Theyre the biggest team in college basketball and weve got a great challenge on our hands. But thats why we came to this tournament.Sierra Calhoun scored 19 points, Stephanie Mavunga had 13, and Shayla Cooper grabbed 10 rebounds for Ohio State.Alexis Peterson led all scorers with 29 points for Syracuse (4-2). Brittney Sykes had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Gabby Cooper scored 12 for Syracuse -- which will meet No. 18 DePaul in the consolation game Sunday.Petersons 3-pointer from the left wing with about 40 seconds left tied the game at 72. But she was called for a blocking foul as Mitchell dribbled near the sideline on the next Ohio State possession, and the Buckeyes star coolly hit both to put her team back up by two.Another free throw made the lead 75-72, and Petersons deep 3-point try from the right wing in the final seconds was short. A pair of free throws then closed the scoring.We played really well in the second quarter and the start of the third quarter, McGuff said. Then our defense really started breaking down and you cant give a team like Syracuse open 3s.Syracuse needed only 1:49 of the first quarter to put together an 11-0 run, with four different players doing the scoring and the last three baskets in that stretch all coming from 3-point range.But the Buckeyes controlled much of the rest of the half, taking a 44-34 lead into the locker room and pushing the margin out to 15 early in the third quarter.Syracuse wasnt done.A 7-0 run got the Orange within two late in the third, and Sykes layup with 7:37 left put Syracuse back on top 62-60. Thats when Mitchell answered with the back-to-back 3-pointers, and Buckeyes would not trail again.BIG PICTURESyracuse: The Orange have now dropped two of their last three games after a 3-0 start to the season. Each of those three games have been of the down-to-the-wire variety. ... Cooper was 4 for 16 from the field -- 0 for 1 from 2-point range, and 4 for 15 from 3-point range.Ohio State: Both of the Buckeyes games in the tournament so far have been close in the fourth. ... Ohio State outscored Syracuse 32-16 in the paint.SPLIT DECISIONPeterson went 1-1 on Saturday.The native of Columbus, Ohio was rooting for No. 2 Ohio State to beat No. 3 Michigan in football earlier in the day -- and the Buckeyes took care of her wishes, prevailing 30-27 in double overtime. But her wish to beat the Buckeyes fell short, despite her season-high point total.UP NEXTSyracuse: Faces No. 18 DePaul on Sunday in the tournament consolation game.Ohio State: Faces No. 5 Baylor on Sunday in the tournament championship game. Predators Jerseys China . LOUIS -- Roman Polak was celebrating even before Alexander Steen scored the winning goal in Saturdays 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. Custom Predators Jersey China . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. http://www.custompredatorsjersey.com/ . Oyama had six birdies and two bogeys at Kintetsu Kashikojima in the event also sanctioned by the Japan LPGA Tour. "I have been having this neck ache thats been affecting my golf recently," Oyama said. Custom Predators Jerseys .R. Smith realized how easily basketball can be taken from him, and he wasnt going to take his place in the NBA for granted anymore. Cheap Custom Predators Jersey . William Carrier opened the scoring for Cape Breton (6-4-2), but Andrew Ryan tied the game and Brent Andrews put the Mooseheads (8-6-0) in front for good with a short-handed goal at 13:49 of the second period. Its almost Christmas, which can mean only one thing - its time for that other Randwick mile, the Villiers Stakes.Though this Group II lacks the overall quality of its more esteemed cousins, the Doncaster and the Epsom, this years renewal is at least as competitive.Its worth noting this is the first meeting at headquarters for seven weeks. The rail is in the true position, so one would expect the track to play fairly, but with so much rain about you never know. It will pay to watch closely the first few races in case any bias is evident.The pattern of the day will be particularly pertinent for the races top hope, Fabrizio. This free-wheeler is the likely leader, though he showed he could take a sit if required when winning over 1800m at Flemington on Cup day.Fabrizio has been a real find, with his only blemish coming in the Epsom when going too hard for his own good. Progressive, in-form, fresh: the favourite should win, though be wary about taking anything much shorter than the $3 on offer with UBET.Dibayani ran a blinder in the Epsom and was all over the winner until Hauraki swooped late. Hes up in weight and finds it hard to win, but comes here off a let-up and is an each-way chance from a good draw.Of the others, Hazzabeel, Amovatio and Pajaro should be respected on the back of solid efforts in the Festival Stakes, while 2014 winner Rudy will relish the soft ground and should give a good account at long odds.Recommended bet: Cautious about taking the shorts on Fabrizio, so buy some insurance and anchor him in a quinella with numbers 1,2,6,8,11,13,15.Best BetFlemington Race 7, No.10 Gallic Chieftain @ $2.90 with UBETA former French galloper who simply must be followed now that he has hit his straps in this country.Ran two respectable races since resuming for Darren Weir, but went bang third-up when running away with a Benchmark 78 on Pakenham Cup day. Ran scintillating time that day when trouncing a horse called Goathland, who then did this column a good turn when thrashing a decent field last week at Flemington.Gallic Chieftain could be very, very good. Dont worry about the wide gate. In fact, be thankful for it - his price is longer than it should be as a result. Has panels on this lot and should just win.Over the oddsRandwick Race 6, No.7 Manuel @ $4.80 with UBETTempted to make this one Best Bet II but the rain in Sydney is tempering enthusiasm somewhat.Its not that Manuel definitely doesnt go on rain-affected tracks - he does have a second to handy sprinter Showpero on a Soft 6 to his name - more that he is very effective on top of the ground.Regardless, this colt is finally starting to put it all together after a couple of costly defeats. Obviously showed a great deal at home as he was sent out at $1.80 on debut in a Listed race at Flemington two Octobers ago.It took until last month for Manuel to get on the scoresheet and he did so emphatiically, winning a Geelong maiden by 10 lengths.dddddddddddd That followed a totally luckless first-up fourth down the straight on Cup day. Whatever happened during this gallopers mid-year spell, it has worked.Tony McEvoy went very close to winning this race last year with Stoker. Manuel is a better galloper and can make amends.Randwick Race 8, No.9 Shiraz @ $12 with UBETPrepared to forgive this geldings first-up flop when fancied by yours truly. Actually wasnt beaten that far that day by Kuro (who reopposes here) and trainer Kim Waugh conceded her recent acquisition might have been a run short.The gelding is still fresh and that is a big tick, but the factor that really swings the tide in his favour is Sydneys big wet. As befitting a galloper named after a drink, Shiraz excels in the wet.Drawn out but that could well prove the place to be if the fence chops up. Looks a really viable each-way bet.Randwick Race 5, No.3 Destinys Kiss @ $8 with UBET Another who needs a wet track, hence this stayer is now firmly in the reckoning for the Christmas Cup.Has won over two miles, so the fact he placed first-up over 1400m and last start ran a cheeky fourth at this level over 2000m is ample proof that all is well.Should be set to peak fifth-up and will relish the step up to 2400m, as well as the soft ground. Overs at the present quote.Lay of the day Randwick Race 9, No.2 Sir Plush @ $5 with UBET Made this one our best bet a couple of weeks back and while he ran very well, he still didnt win.Sir Plush is in the sin bin this week not because of that reverse - punters dont bear grudges, do they? - but because he is a duffer in the wet.Needs the track bone dry and he just wont get that on Saturday. If the rain continues he might not even run, but if he does hell need a personality transplant if he is to win.Under the oddsRandwick Race 3, No.8 She Will Reign @ $1.95 with UBETWon a Kembla Grange maiden by eight lengths on debut so is sure to be very popular with punters.Dont particularly like knocking gallopers who are yet to disappoint, but equally am reluctant to get sucked in at the shorts off just one run. Do we know she beat much at Kembla?Do we know shell like soft ground? Shes drawn stall two, so will the fence be the right part of the track?We cant answer yes to any of these questions, so why on earth should we take odds-on about this filly?Multi of the weekendFlemington Race 3, No.1 Miss Wonderland - WIN @ $2Flemington Race 7, No.10 Gallic Chieftain - WIN @ $2.90Flemington Race 8, No.3 Mihany - PLACE @ $1.48Randwick Race 3, No.1 Vinland - PLACE @ $1.56Randwick Race 5, No.3 Destinys Kiss - PLACE @ $2.65Randwick Race 8, No.2 Shiraz - PLACE @ $3.75Doomben Race 7, No.7 Too Good To Refuse - PLACE @ $1.44Multi price: $191.63 with UBET ' ' '