rough tackle. Portugal also had to go through the playoffs to qualify fo

ATLANTA -- After an unbeaten run through the Southeastern Conference, top-ranked Florida reaped its rewards Monday. Scottie Wilbekin was picked as The Associated Press Southeastern Conference player of the year, while Billy Donovan took the coaching honour for the second season in a row. Kentucky freshman Julius Randle was selected as newcomer of the year. The AP awards were announced one day after Florida defeated Kentucky 61-60 in the championship game of the SEC tournament. The Gators (32-2) were named top overall seed in the NCAAs and will open against either Albany or Mount St. Marys in the South Regional. Wilbekin and Randle were unanimous choices to the All-SEC first team, joined by Tennessee forward Jarnell Stokes, Florida forward Casey Prather and Missouri guard Jabari Brown. Wilbekin averaged 13 points and 3.8 assists a game. More important, the 6-foot-2 senior guard was the unquestioned leader for the Gators at both ends of the court, making amends from two suspensions that threatened his future with the program. He missed the first five games this season for an undisclosed violation of team rules, after behind held out the first three games the previous year. "I think when he went through that, our guys were like, OK, it happened one time, blah, blah, blah. But now it happens again, guys start pulling back, saying, OK, man, is this guy about us? Does this guy even care about us or our team?" Donovan said. Wilbekin worked hard to rebuild the relationship with his teammates, and it showed on the court. "He had to go through a long process of showing these guys that he cares and hes committed to them," Donovan said. "I think once he got through the end of that process, I think our guys kind of put their arms around him and were like, Wow, coach made this guy go through a lot. A lot of that had to do with me wanting to help him restore his credibility inside the team, and he had to do that and hes grown from that on and off the court." Wilbekin was named MVP of the SEC tournament. During hard-fought wins in both the semifinals and final, he would gather the team around him when things werent going Floridas way. "Coach cant talk to us all the time," he said, "so we try to huddle ourselves and say the right things among ourselves." Donovan repeated as coach of the year with Florida becoming the first team to go 18-0 in SEC games during the regular season. The Gators won three more games at the Georgia Dome this past weekend for their first tournament title since 2007. "Anytime you get those coaching honours or coaching awards, a lot of it is because youve got a good group and theyve done a great job," Donovan said. "I do think that when individual awards come out, its much, much more of a reflection of the people around you. Even with Scotties award, Id say the same thing. Its more of a reflection of the people around him. I think for me, its the players and the coaching staff, the people I have around me." Randle emerged as the top player from Kentuckys latest group of heralded freshmen. While some thought the Wildcats (24-10) underachieved -- after all, they started the season No. 1 and there was even speculation about whether they could go unbeaten -- the 6-foot-9 Randle led the conference in rebounding (10.5 a game) and ranked 10th in scoring (15.0). Kentucky was seeded eighth in the NCAAs and will open Friday against Kansas State in the Midwest Regional. "I feel like our chemistry is getting better," Randle said. "Were becoming a better team, getting better every game." Stokes, a 6-8 junior forward, helped Tennessee (21-12) join Florida and Kentucky as the only SEC schools in the 68-team NCAA field, ranking second to Randle in rebounding (10.3) and 12th in scoring (14.7). The Vols will face Iowa on Wednesday in a first-round game at Dayton. Prather was another of Floridas senior leaders. The 6-6 forward paced the Gators in scoring at 14.2 points per game. Brown, a 6-5 junior guard, led the SEC in scoring with an average of 19.8 points. Florida landed another player on the All-SEC second team: senior centre Patric Young. He was joined by Tennessee forward Jordan McRae, Alabama guard Trevor Releford and a pair of LSU forwards, Johnny OBryant III and Jordan Mickey. McRae and Releford both slipped to the second team after making the top squad in 2013. The 66th annual AP All-SEC team was selected by a 12-member regional media panel. AP Sports Writer Mark Long in Gainesville, Fla., contributed to this report. USA Soccer Jerseys 2020 . Returning to Davis Cup tennis, Federer cruised past Ilija Bozoljac, winning 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 in less than two hours. Federer faced little challenge from Bozoljac, who served well but still was no match for his Swiss opponent. USA Soccer Jerseys China . A wide-eyed 18-year-old visiting North America for only the second time in his young life, Caboclo immediately noticed the "big tower" his new home is best known for. https://www.cheapusasoccer.com/ .J. -- Fabian Johnson scored his first international goal and Clint Dempsey doubled the lead after a defensive lapse as the United States beat Turkey 2-1 Sunday in the second of three World Cup warm-up matches for the Americans before they head to Brazil. USA Soccer Gear . But last years runner-up Jarkko Nieminen crashed out despite winning the first set against Denis Istomin. Istomin fired 10 aces and won 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2 to even his career record against Nieminen at 3-3. USA Soccer Pro Shop . After Mondays comments by Coach Claude Noel that its work first and skill second, and that more “A” games are needed, the Jets responded with a 47-shot effort. If not for terrific goaltending by Braden Holtby the Jets would have had two points in regulation.BAKU, Azerbaijan -- Russia qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 12 years by drawing 1-1 with 10-man Azerbaijan on Tuesday. Russia finished on top of Group F with 22 points, one point ahead of second-place Portugal which beat 10-man Luxembourg 3-0 and will go into next months European playoffs for a berth in Brazil. The Russians last qualified for the World Cup in Japan and South Korea in 2002, but under coach Fabio Capello they quickly secured the groups top spot and held it as Portugal once again came up short. "Russia was the best team. They were better than us," Portugal coach Paulo Bento said. "We needed to demonstrate better quality if we wanted the top spot." In Baku, Roman Shirokov gave Russia the lead in the 16th minute from a cutting pass from Alexander Samedov. Vagif Javadov headed in the equalizer in the 90th. Azerbaijan was reduced to 10 men in the 73rd when Maksim Medvedev was given a red card for a rough tackle. Portugal also had to go through the playoffs to qualify for its last two major tournaments, the 2012 European Championship and 2010 World Cup.dddddddddddd It was a semifinalist at Euro 2012. The Portuguese have been dogged by inconsistency. They have won just eight of their 16 qualifiers and friendly games since Euro 2012. Their qualifying campaign was spoiled by a 1-1 home draw against Northern Ireland and two draws against Israel. Portugal, playing without suspended Cristiano Ronaldo in Coimbra, struggled to find a way through the Luxembourg defence until Aurelien Joachim was shown a straight red card for a high tackle on Andre Almeida in the 28th. Two minutes later, Joao Moutinho set up Silvestre Varela for his fourth international goal. Nani made it 2-0 in the 36th after Moutinho set him up with a neat backheel. Helder Postiga made it 3-0 in the 78th, making him the top scorer in qualifying with six goals. But the Portuguese missed a half-dozen chances to extend their lead in a game that once again exposed their shortcomings in attack. Postiga and Hugo Almeida both hit the woodwork. ' ' '