second half. He scored all 17 of his points and grabbed six o

ST. PAUL, Minn. - When the Minnesota Wild hired Mike Yeo as a first-time NHL head coach, he fit their criteria for a bench boss who could develop several top, young players. Yeo has undergone his own growth in that time, too, and the Wild were satisfied enough with the results on both fronts to make another commitment to him. After his three-year contract extension was finalized last weekend, Yeo appeared with general manager Chuck Fletcher at a news conference Friday to discuss the deal and the teams future. The Wild advanced to the second round of the playoffs for only the second time in franchise history, and Fletcher praised Yeos ability to help keep the players on an even keel during some challenging stretches as injuries piled up. "He improved by leaps and bounds, and its not just understanding that you have to make those adjustments. Its the confidence to make them, and the confidence to sell them to your team," Fletcher said, recalling their conversation from last summer about areas where both the Wild and Yeo could improve. In the final year of his contract, Yeo was in a precarious place after a six-game losing streak to finish 2013. But despite notable absences by Mikko Koivu, Zach Parise and the top two goalies, Yeo and his staff not only held together the group but guided a resurgence that transcended the regular season. "Id be hard-pressed to sit here and name one player that wasnt better now than what he was at the beginning of the year," Fletcher said, adding: "The funny thing: At the exact point in the year when you thought wed fall apart, we actually became a team. And theres a lot of work that went into that, and again Mike and his staff deserve a lot of that." Yeo, who will turn 41 next month, has a career record of 104-82-26, plus 7-11 in the playoffs. Though Fletcher waited until June to address his status, Yeo said there was never a point at which he became nervous. Thats a hallmark of his, actually, as evidenced by his demeanour through and triumph over the losing streaks and fluke injuries of the 2013-14 season. Yeo gave four different goalies 10 or more starts each, and the carousel didnt stop spinning once the playoffs came. Darcy Kuemper and Ilya Bryzgalov both took turns, due to injury and performance, but the Wild beat Colorado 4-3 in a first-round thriller and gave Chicago fits until falling 4-2. "The team took on Mikes demeanour, and I think that helped us get through," Fletcher said. "Hey, were down 2-0. No big deal. They come back late and score? No big deal. We just kept finding a way to hang around and hang around until we could put the last shot in the net." Yeo showed a knack as a tactician during those series, too, making plenty of adjustments to his front lines that paid off against a pair of opponents in the Avalanche and Blackhawks that boast a lot of fast, skilled forwards. "The line switches, thats something I tried to make a conscious effort of at the start of the year, not only for me to grow as a coach but also for our team to get more used to it," Yeo said, adding: "But its always the players that make you look smart." Yeo said he didnt feel any more pressure to win this season than in his first one. He also pondered a question about when he felt the Wild truly clicked in the last few months before punting on the answer. "It never really gets to that point," he said, laughing. "I wish it did." Willie Mays Jersey . This game was inside. Adrian Peterson was missing. The stage was set for another step toward the playoffs. Buster Posey Jersey .com) - Hassan Whiteside scored 20 points with nine rebounds in the Miami Heats 83-75 win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday. http://www.sfgiantsrookiestore.com/Giants-Brandon-Crawford-Kids-Jersey/ . The (35-35-10) Jets have 80 points and are also playing .500 hockey on home ice this season with a 17-17-6 record. Michael Hutchinson will start his second straight game in goal. San Francisco Giants Jerseys . Yahoo! Sports columnist Marc Spears says that the Boogie Smooth album may have been an elaborate April Fools prank. Austin Jackson Jersey . "Im excited just for a new start, just to see where things are going, to bring some kind of tradition back to the team and guys being excited about something new," the defensive back said during a conference call Monday after agreeing to stay with the Bombers rather than go to free agency next month. GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida basketball coach Billy Donovan hadnt planned on having centre Patric Young for its game against Auburn because of a flareup of the tendinitis in the his knees. However, when pregame warmups were finished, Young told his coach he could play. That decision turned out to be crucial in saving the Gators school-record 18-game winning streak. Young hit a pair of free throws with 19 seconds remaining to break a tie and added another after Auburn committed a crucial turnover to seal second-ranked Floridas 71-66 victory at the OConnell Center. "Ive been practicing situations, like the opportunity to go to the Final Four with free throws as the game-winner," Young said about clutch late-game performance. "I was just telling myself, Be great. Strive to be great right now. "Ive been working on my free throws and I just went up there and swished them like it was nothing," he said. It wasnt the Gators best effort but it may be good enough to put them atop The Associated Press college basketball poll for the first time since the 2006-07 season after No. 1 Syracuses overtime loss to Boston College on Wednesday night. Provided, of course, the Gators beat host Ole Miss (16-10, 7-6) on Saturday. "One of the things I talk to our guys about is that with our rankings and being undefeated in the league we get everyones best shot," Donovan said. "But I like to look at it the other way. Are we going to give our best shot? I dont think that we did that today." Young never mentioned he had chronic tendinitis in his knees. Donovan revealed that Young was hurting in his postgame news conference. "He didnt warm up and he told me before the game that he could play," Donovan said. "His knees are ailing. I thought he was phenomenal in the second half. He played great. Where hell be at tomorrow well probably have a better idea but him playing or how much we could play him today was in doubt.dddddddddddd" Young didnt played well in the first half, missing his only shot from the field and grabbing just one rebound in 14 minutes. He wasnt the only one playing sluggishly, though. The Gators (24-2, 13-0 SEC) trailed 38-30 at the break, which the was the teams largest halftime deficit of the season. "We definitely came out a little flat," said senior forward Casey Prather, who scored 16 points and had nine rebounds. "We werent doing the things that we needed to do and should have done to win the game. Im just glad we had a chance in the second half to continue to play basketball." Young certainly responded in the second half. He scored all 17 of his points and grabbed six of his seven rebounds in the final 20 minutes. He hit five of his six shots in the second half and the 17 points tied a season high. Florida had taken a 66-65 lead on Michael Fraziers 3-pointer with 40.5 seconds to play, but the Tigers tied it on a free throw by Chris Denson with 20 seconds remaining. Young grabbed the rebound on the missed foul shot and was immediately fouled. Young, a 55.9 per cent career free throw shooter, hit the two free throws to give the Gators the lead for good and ensure theyd extend their home winning streak to 31 consecutive games. Auburn (12-12, 4-9) nearly pulled off the upset because of its 3-point shooting. The Tigers made 10 of 19 3-point shots. Tahj Shamsid-Deen led the Tigers with 17 points and made 5 of 8 3-point shots. Auburn, though, made a costly mistake in the final seconds. After Youngs free throws put the Gators up 68-66, Allen Paynes inbounds pass to K.T. Harrell bounced out of bounds. Harrell had glanced up-court and never saw the ball and it ricocheted off his arm and into the Florida bench. ' ' '