in allowing only 58.6 ppg
Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2016 8:53 amMONTREAL - When things were falling apart for the B. .C. Lions in the CFL East Division semifinal, defensive back Jerald Brown made some Montreal Alouettes team history. Just after the Lions had something positive happen, a Tim Brown kickoff return to the Montreal 12-yard line, Brown scooped up a fumble and ran a team-record 103 yards for a touchdown to put the Alouettes at the half-century mark in what would be a 50-17 victory. That, and the stellar play of a Montreal defence that held B.C. to 102 passing yards, earned Brown CFL defensive player of the week honours on Tuesday. Hell try to keep up the strong defensive play when the Alouettes face the Tiger-Cats in Hamilton in the East final on Sunday. Thats cool, but its about our team, said Brown. I accept it and I appreciate it, but its just another week for me. Weve got to go out and win. Thats all were focused on. Its not about individuality. Weve got to get it done as a team. The Alouettes are looking to stay on the roll that saw them rebound from a 1-7 start to the season to finish 9-9, good for second place in the East. Then they beat the 9-9 Lions to get a shot at still another 9-9 club in Hamilton. The Alouettes and Ticats met in the regular season finale for both clubs on Nov. 8, with Hamilton getting the 29-15 win and first place based on points differential between the teams this season. Now they are set to meet again, with rainy but relatively warm 8 C weather in the forecast. The Alouettes have not won an away game against Hamilton in four years. In their last meeting, played in wind, snow and cold, the Ticats dominated while ending the fumble-prone Alouettess six-game winning streak. It left the Ticats unbeaten in six games at the new Tim Hortons Field. This is a new ballgame, said Brown. You win and you move on and you lose you go home. Anything prior to this game is irrelevant. The Alouettes will be boosted by their best offensive display of the season against B.C. They scored six offensive touchdowns, including a pair of TD passes by Jonathan Crompton, the awkward but effective pivot who took over as a starter just when the team turned its season around. Brown said it was a matter of time before the Alouettes put together a top effort from the offence, defence and special teams at once. Ive been saying all year that once we get going on all phases, its going to be a problem (for opponents), said Brown. Its nothing were overly excited about because we have another game to play this week. We knew what we were capable of and we went out and did it. If you look at our roster, we have all the pieces in place. Coach Tom Higgins said having played a game in Hamiltons windy new park will help on their visit. We learned a lot about how to handle the wind and I think were looking forward to getting back there, he said. My biggest challenge is make sure the guys arent too excited. A lot of lessons were learned and its still fresh in their minds why we didnt win that game. A question about the importance of the coin toss had Higgins smiling. Winning it could be key because it would determine who plays with the wind at their backs in the fourth quarter. As the visitor, we get to call heads or tails, he said. We will call tails. Thats what weve called all year. We made that determination before the start of the season and weve won more often than not. I know were above 50 (per cent) mark with tails. Higgins will have a decision to make at running back. It appears that Tyrell Sutton, who missed the semifinal with an ankle injury, will be back when practices resume on Wednesday. Brandon Rutley ran for 95 yards on 15 carries in his absence. We came through the game relatively healthy, said Higgins. I think everyone who played in the game will be able to practice. Defensive end John Bowman left the game with a rib problem, but Higgins said hell still be sore, but I dont imagine hell miss one snap of practice. Centre Luc Brodeur-Jourdain was wearing a sheepish expression and a University of Montreal Carabins T-shirt. The Laval U grad lost a bet when the Carabins beat the Rouge et Or in the Quebec Conference championship on Saturday. . - Corey Perry got to 40 goals and helped the Anaheim Ducks reach 50 wins. .com) - Jason Day and Cameron Tringale combined for a 17-under 55 in Thursdays scramble format and they grabbed a 2-stroke lead after one round of the Franklin Templeton Shootout. ., continues his run in Melbourne tonight when he takes on Bulgarias Grigor Dimitrov in the third round of the Australian Open.College Park, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - Coming off a pair of tough losses last week, the Syracuse Orange will try to put an end to their first losing skid of the season when they pay a visit to the Maryland Terrapins at the Comcast Center on Monday night in Atlantic Coast Conference action. You catch all of the action live on TSN at 7pm et./4pm pt. Syracuse was cruising right along with wins in each of its first 25 games, but after a shocking home loss to Boston College last Wednesday (62-59), it ventured to Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday and battled wire-to-wire with Duke before losing 66-60 following a controversial ending that resulted in head coach Jim Boeheims ejection. At 12-2 in the ACC, the Orange have slid out of the drivers seat in the league standings, as they are a game and a half behind Virginia for first place (14-1). Maryland sports a 15-12 overall record this season with a decisive split between its success at home (10-3) compared to on the road (2-7). The Terps snapped a two-game skid last Tuesday when they took care of business versus Wake Forest, 71-60, their third straight home win, improving to 7-7 in the ACC. Maryland leads the all-time series with Syracuse, 5-2, although the sides havent met since 2008. With the Orange trailing by two points with 11 seconds remaining, C.J. Fair was called for a charge on what appeared to be a borderline call. It caused Boeheim to lose his temper, receive two technical fouls and get ejected from the game. Duke converted 3-of-4 at the line following the technicals to effectively put the game away. The squad struggled shooting in the hostile road environment, making less than 39 percent of it field goal tries, including just 2-of-9 from 3-point range. Jerami Grant posted team highs in points (17) and rebounds (eight), Fair finished with 12 points and Tyler Ennis was dreadful from the floor (2-of-13) but still had nine points, six assists and four steals. Syrracuses offense has been far from spectacular this season, as it shoots a modest 44. . 6 percent from the field for 69.2 ppg, but it has risen to elite status thanks to its excellent defense, which ranks seventh nationally in allowing only 58.6 ppg. It also lives comfortably in terms of its rebounding (+4.0) and turnover (+4.9) margins, with the latter ranking eighth-best in the country. Fair pours in a team-high 16.4 ppg and grabs 6.0 rpg. Trevor Cooney (13.0 ppg) does the majority of his damage from 3-point range, knocking down 77 long-range buckets at a 41.4 percent clip. Grant (12.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg) is another staple in the frontcourt, and Ennis (11.7 ppg, 5.7 apg) has made a name for himself as a clutch playmaker as a freshman. The Terps carried a five-point lead into intermission of their most recent game and extended their advantage to as many as 16 down the stretch en route to the easy victory over Wake Forest. Although they were outshot from the field on the evening, 47.1 percent to 42.6 percent, they outscored the Deacons from 3-point range, 24-9, and scored 18 points off of 18 Wake turnovers. Nick Faust was the spark plug off the bench with 20 points, while Charles Mitchell and Jake Layman scored 12 and 11 points, respectively, and Seth Allen and Evan Smotrycz netted 10 points apiece. Maryland has been able to successfully outpace its opponents this season, as it shoots 43.9 percent from the field for 71.8 ppg, while allowing 68.5 ppg on just 42.4 percent shooting. One of its biggest strengths comes on the glass with a +3.9 rebounding margin, but it is oftentimes held back by a lackluster free-throw percentage (.663). Dez Wells is the go-to scoring option with 14.8 ppg on greater than 48 percent field-goal shooting. Layman (12.1 ppg), Allen (12.0 ppg), Smotrycz (11.0 ppg, 6.2 rpg) and Faust (10.1 ppg) round out the balanced attack and all four player have drained at least 33 3-pointers. ' ' '