reen and Gary Neal, who lit up the Heat in a Game 3 blowout, combined for 23 points -- less than half their output the last time

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Shannon Hale hit 3 of 5 from 3-point range and finished with 19 points and Alabama beat Ball State 77-59 on Friday night.I thought his body language was good, Alabama coach Avery Johnson said. ...What more can I say. That Shannon Hale is the one I consistently want to see.After coming off the bench to score 13 in the first half, Hale was inserted into the starting lineup for the second in place Bola Olaniyan. Reserves ArMond Davis and Avery Johnson Jr. combined to score 30 for the Crimson Tide (2-1), with 17 and 13 points, respectively, to help Alabamas bench to match the Cardinals in scoring.Davis made 5-of-7 3-pointers and Johnson Jr. made 3-of-3 while adding six assists and five rebounds.Johnson Jr. said his teammates were instrumental in his success, but he also said breaking from routine and taking a nap before the pre-game meal helped to settle his nerves.I just kind of told myself yesterday, Im not going to wait until like my fifth or my last year to turn it up, Johnson Jr. said. So I thought this was going to be a good opportunity so once I got there I did some different things in my pregame.It was close for much of the first half and scoreless for the first 4-plus minutes. Hales dunk with 15:20 left in the half was the first made field goal and gave Alabama a 4-0 lead. Alabamas offense picked up from there until it cooled off late in the second half when the team failed to make a shot from the field for nearly 7 1/2 minutes.Despite those struggles, the Cardinals (1-2) were unable to take advantage. Tayler Persons led Ball State with 15 points. Franko House, who came in averaging 22 points and 10 rebounds, finished with 10 points and seven boards.Johnson credited Wednesdays practice with the success of the bench. With three starters missing that day others had to step up.Shannon and Avery and ArMond they practically are on the same team every practice so they are getting in a good rhythm of knowing each others strengths and weaknesses, Johnson said.BIG PICTUREAlabama: The Crimson Tide bounced back from Tuesdays 77-72 loss to Dayton to avoid falling below .500.Ball State: The Cardinals held their first two opponents to exactly 64 points in regulation, but the team didnt have an answer for Alabamas offense once it got going.NEXT UPAlabama: The Crimson Tide will leave the confines of Coleman Coliseum for the first time this season to face Valparaiso in Las Vegas, Nevada.Ball State: The Cardinals will return home to face Coppin State for the chance to claim the teams first home victory of the season on Monday.STAT OF THE NIGHT: Ball State committed 21 turnovers -- 100 more than the Tide. Alabama finished the game with 14 steals and outscored the Cardinals 26-6 on points off turnovers. T.J. Warren Jersey . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Alec Peters Jersey . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. http://www.cheapsunsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-davon-reed-jersey . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. "It is still taking a little time to sink in what Ive achieved this week as was the case when I won the FedEx Cup but then it just kept getting better and better as the days went on and I am sure this will be the same," he said. Troy Daniels Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home. Cheap Suns Jerseys Authentic . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. SAN ANTONIO -- Tony Parker made good on his pledge before Game 4 of the NBA Finals: He was ready to go. He just didnt have it in him to finish. What began as a spectacular, told-you-so performance from the All-Star point guard ended with a scoreless second half and second-guessing about his strained right hamstring, which Parker said gradually sapped his strength as the San Antonio Spurs lost to the resurgent Miami Heat 109-93 on Thursday night. Parker, who repeatedly declared "Ill be ready to go" to questions about his health before Game 4, said afterward he "definitely got fatigued" in the second half. Thats when Parker took only four shots and made none. It was an abrupt reversal after a brilliant first half, when Parker looked like the NBAs best point guard -- just as he did at the start of the series. By the end, he settled for 15 points and nine assists in Game 4. "It was kind of weak. I didnt know what to expect," Parker said. "So the first three, four minutes I was kind of testing it, and the first half it felt OK. And the second half I think I got fatigued a little bit." Then he threw in a silver lining. "Overall Im just happy I didnt make it worse," he said. The series is tied 2-all heading into the final home game for San Antonio on Sunday night. Parker said hell be OK to play after packing the next two off days with treatment, but the Spurs might need him to be spectacular again to win a fifth championship. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said health wasnt Parkers problem. "Miami did a great job on him," Popovich said. "They doubled. They got it out of his hands and other people had to play." Parker shot 7 of 16 and reached the foul line just three times. It was a sudden disappearing act after scoring or assisting on 12 of San Antonios first 16 field goals. Despite the lingering problems from his hamstring, Parker didnt make it obvious. He played 31 minutes and well intto the fourth quarter before the Spurs emptied their bench as the Heat pulled away.dddddddddddd. Parker was hurt in the second half of Game 3, and an MRI taken Wednesday revealed a Grade 1 strain. Thats the mildest level, but Parker wouldnt commit to playing Thursday night until the morning shootaround. The way he started the game, it appeared all the concern about his hamstring was silly. He shot 58 per cent in the first half, and had already outscored his listless performances in Games 2 and 3. Miami stars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade had rebounded, too, making this series a thrilling matchup of dueling superstars again. But while James and Wade kept bulldozing the Spurs in the second half, Parker couldnt keep up. "They are doing the same thing on me since the beginning," Parker said of the Heat. "Very aggressive on pick-and-rolls, stuff like that. I missed easy shots, and hopefully Ill get more healthy and better by Sunday." Parker didnt have his supporting cast in the backcourt to bail him out this time, either. Danny Green and Gary Neal, who lit up the Heat in a Game 3 blowout, combined for 23 points -- less than half their output the last time out. One big reason: Miami didnt let the Spurs have their way from 3-point range again. Whereas Neal and Green combined to make 13 of San Antonios Finals-record 16 shots from behind the arc in Game 3, the Spurs totalled only 16 tries from long range as an encore. That was half the number of 3s that San Antonio launched Tuesday night. Green said he expected the Heat to chase them more aggressively off the 3-point line this time. Spurs forward Tim Duncan also gave the Heat credit -- for doing as much to limit Parker as his injury. "Hes played with injuries all year long, minor injuries all year long, and I had no doubt that he would be there and be ready to play," Duncan said. "And he played well. As I said, give credit to Miami in the second half." ' ' '