Allgemeines » quarterback and an offense with no running

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Kevin Durant era tips off for the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night against an opponent, the San Antonio Spurs, that both Durant and the Warriors would consider unfriendly.After signing a two-year, $54.3 million deal to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder in the offseason, Durant is expected to take his place alongside holdover Warriors standouts Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green in the nightcap of TNTs opening-night doubleheader (10:30 p.m. ET).And he will do so against a Spurs team that also will sport a new look this season -- albeit one with a key piece missing.In its quest to unseat Golden State as the two-time Western Conference champs, San Antonio will go forward without future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, who retired in July after his 19th season.Before concluding the addition of Durant and the subtraction of Duncan tilts the balance significantly in the Warriors favor, consider this: The last four times the Spurs played Golden State without their star big man, they won two of them.The Spurs went after Durant in free agency, then settled for Pau Gasol, who is primed to join a star-studded collection of talent himself. San Antonio returns Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard from a team that won 67 games last season.I wouldnt think of ourselves as the guinea pig, Gasol said Monday when asked if the Spurs saw themselves as a test experiment for Golden States new concoction. We have an incredible team here with a lot of talent and a lot of experience. Its going to be an interesting, challenging first game.The Warriors feel the same way, and with good reason.Even after winning the season series 3-1 last season, Golden State has prevailed just six times in its past 30 regular-season meetings with the Spurs.Meanwhile, halfway across the country, Durant was having similar struggles with his Southwest Division rival. His 25.8-point career scoring average against the Spurs is lower than his mark all teams except the Charlotte Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks and Portland Trail Blazers.The Warriors will take the court fully aware the NBA hasnt scheduled a coming-out party for Durant on opening night.Itll be a really good atmosphere, obviously, and Im sure there will be a very high level of play on both ends, Curry said. Itll take a lot to get a win.The Warriors did more tinkering to their record-breaking, 73-win team than adding Durant. They even plucked one of the Spurs -- David West -- with a team-friendly, $1.6 million offer that was similar to the one ($1.5 million) that lured the veteran away from the Indiana Pacers for a shot at a title in San Antonio last season.That didnt work out as planned, as West contributed only a career-worst average of 4.0 rebounds and his lowest scoring output in 10 years (7.1 points per game) to the Spurs quest.So now, instead of backing up Duncan and LaMarcus Aldridge as he did a year ago, he will team with Zaza Pachulia in replacing Andrew Bogut in Golden States bid for a second championship in three seasons. Custom Bengals T-shirts .Y. -- Syracuse has turned up the defence at the right time all season, and when High Point threatened to pull off a monumental upset the second-ranked Orange did what they do best with their quick hands and savvy play. 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PASADENA, Calif. -- Five years after Utah running back Joe Williams and UCLA quarterback Mike Fafaul left Fork Union Military Academy together, they both posted record-breaking performances on the same wild afternoon.Only Williams left the Rose Bowl happy with his effort -- and his decision to get back in the game with the Utes.Williams rushed for a school-record 332 yards and four touchdowns in his second game back from retirement, and No. 19 Utah held off pass-happy UCLA 52-45 Saturday.Williams broke off TD runs of 3, 43, 64 and 55 yards during the greatest rushing day in Utah (7-1, 4-1 Pac-12) history, surpassing Mike Andersons 1999 record, and the most prolific rushing performance ever by a UCLA opponent.Im pretty sure (the Bruins) are tired of seeing the back of my jersey running down the field, Williams said, giving the credit to his offensive line. Weve got five grown men out there that could be in the NFL tomorrow. Im just glad to be running behind them.Cory Butler-Byrd returned the opening kickoff for a 99-yard touchdown on a day of stunning superlatives for the Utes in their second straight win at the Rose Bowl.Williams quit football last month before returning last week when injuries decimated Utahs depth, and he has 511 yards on the ground in two games since.Its awesome, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. Weve had some really good running backs come through here, and played against some inferior teams (compared to UCLA). He broke the record of all-time, and weve had a bunch of guys in the NFL, running backs that have done a lot of great things.Williams broke Andersons Utah record shortly before shredding Edgerrin James record for a Bruins opponent on his fourth scoring run with 10:28 to play.That young man had a world-class day against us, and thats disappointing because weve been playing the run so well, UCLA coach Jim Mora said.Williams didnt get a chance after the game to talk to Fafaul, his former high school teammate in Virginia.Fafaul made his own history, setting UCLA records for pass attempts (70) and completions (40) while throwing forr 464 yards, third most in school annals.ddddddddddddUCLA essentially abandoned its awful running game, which began the weekend ranked 126th out of 128 FBS teams.We wanted to do something to help our run game and catch the defense off-guard, Fafaul said. Its not about the records or my performance. I just wanted a victory, and its really disappointing.The former walk-on had five touchdown passes and four interceptions for the Bruins (3-5, 1-4) in their fourth loss in five games.Fafaul was prolific but erratic in his second straight start in place of injured Josh Rosen, who went through warmups but didnt play. Fafaul had the third-biggest passing performance in UCLA history, trailing only 500-yard games by Cade McNown and Drew Olson.THE TAKEAWAYUtah: Williams ran wild on a record afternoon, but the ground game behind a dominant offensive line only lessens the sting for a Utah defense that got beaten for several big plays with poor tackling. Whittingham wont be happy about the Utes inability to limit a backup quarterback and an offense with no running game.UCLA: After struggling to run the ball all season, the Bruins abruptly reverted back to the spread passing offense run by departed offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone. After running the ball just seven times in the first half, the Bruins didnt call another running play until the final snap of the third quarter. Its difficult from the standpoint that (the Utes) kind of know whats coming, Fafaul said.POLL IMPLICATIONSUtah: Injuries and defensive woes cant slow down the Utes, who appear to be Colorados biggest competition for the Pac-12 South title. The Utes should slide up a bit in the polls with a difficult late-season schedule looming.UP NEXTUtah: The Utes return home to host dominant Washington in one of the seasons biggest matchups in the topsy-turvy Pac-12.UCLA: After a bye, the Bruins continue chasing bowl eligibility with a Thursday night trip to suddenly powerful Colorado. ' ' '