hton remained one of six undefeated NCAA Division I teams on Saturday, but just by the hair on Santa Claus chinny-chin-chin.Creighton needed a r

MINNEAPOLIS -- Tom Thibodeau, king of solitary marathon film sessions, got lonely.It happened throughout the past year as he moved around the country, trying to take advantage of a paid year away from the NBA. In all, he spent time with 13 NBA teams, watching practices, having lunches with coaches, watching games and, of course, going through security checks and riding shuttle buses.I didnt like traveling alone, Thibodeau said. It got to me. I dont know how people do it.The Minnesota Timberwolves hired Thibodeau because of his strong history of teaching defense and his demonstrated ability to squeeze everything out of his Chicago Bulls teams from 2010-15. But owner Glen Taylor, who gave him a five-year, $40 million deal to also oversee the teams basketball operations, might be getting a coach who is slightly different from the one the NBA last saw.Thibodeau kept telling people he viewed last year as a sabbatical. That meant more than rest, it also meant training. In all that time alone, Thibodeau did a lot of thinking and considering. Whether it will lead to real changes is to be seen.Thibodeaus methods were often branded as old school, even though he repeatedly showed his defensive principles were designed to slow modern offenses. When it came to playing time and the 3-point shot, well, he wasnt as progressive.But there are already signs he is trying to modernize his approach in his first days working with one of the leagues most promising young rosters. As an example, Thibodeau for the first time has hired a shooting coach -- Peter Patton, who was schooled by San Antonio Spurs shooting coach Chip Engelland -- because as he went around the league he noted many teams were adding the position. Patton wont just work with the Wolves players, he will consult the front office in looking at player acquisitions and draft preparation. Again, thats progressive.When examining how the Wolves can break their 12-year playoff drought, Thibodeau immediately pointed to the 3-point line. The Wolves finished 29th in 3-point attempts and makes last season.We gave up nine [3-pointers] a game, and we made only five and a half, Thibodeau said. Thats like starting the game 10 points behind.Thibodeaus Bulls teams werent 3-point heavy. They were 28th in attempts in 2013-14 and 29th in 2012-13, though in his final season, they improved to 16th. Some of that, of course, was due to personnel. But his focus on it now is part of the old-fashioned coachs attempts to evolve.Were a work in progress, Thibodeau said, perhaps even talking a little about himself. Weve got to close the gap.Thibodeau has been using that line a lot in the first days of the season, sometimes reaching his arms out and making a symbolic squeezing motion.The team had plenty of salary-cap space this summer, and some speculated theyd get deep into the bidding on former Bull Luol Deng. But instead of using a large block to chase a veteran starter, they signed a range of reserve players, including?Cole Aldrich, Jordan Hill and Brandon Rush. Thibodeau also signed veterans John Lucas III and Rasual Butler, both of whom played for him with the Bulls, to help the transition for younger players and to teach his systems.The Wolves left $10 million in cap space unused, and two of their highest-paid players, Kevin Garnett and Nikola Pekovic, wont be playing for the team this season. Its a young, relatively cheap and deep roster, albeit still largely unproven.In theory, at least, all the bodies should reduce Thibodeaus famous dependence on riding his front-line players for major minutes, which some believed led to the Bulls rash of injuries. Long-term rest techniques and injury-prevention methods were other league trends Thibodeau observed, notably in his time around the Golden State Warriors and their strength in numbers vision.I liked the core of the team. I want to get to know them better, he said. Im going to focus on the players we have. That gives me a better idea of what our needs are.The Wolves finished last season ranked 27th in defensive rating, a woeful number that Thibodeau certainly has the expertise to improve. They did win four of their last five games, including a bit of a magical West Coast trip in which they won at Golden State and Portland in the same week. Still, it added up to just 29 wins, another losing season.We have the talent, and we have the length to be better on defense, but we didnt always have the discipline, Karl-Anthony Towns said. Im willing to say I dont know. I want to learn.Towns said he thought Thibodeaus defensive system was similar to what he ran at the University of Kentucky, and he was encouraged that hed learn quickly. When this was mentioned to Thibodeau, he just grunted with a half-smile. Towns and the Wolves havent seen anything yet.Thibodeau didnt need a league-wide tour to learn how to teach defense. Looking at the way the Wolves have set up their preseason schedule makes it clear who is in charge now and what his goal is. Thibodeau essentially designed three training camps. Though technically voluntary, every Wolves player was doing full workouts for 2-3 weeks before the beginning of actual training camp. According to players, these were de facto practices.Its a clinic every day, guard Ricky Rubio said. Theres an intensity in practice. Hes tough but in a good way.Then Thibodeau scheduled 11 days between the start of official practice and his first preseason game. Some teams had as little as four days of practice before the preseason opener. In a way, that is the second training camp. The third is an unusual nine-day preseason road trip that will take the Wolves to five cities, including stops in Kansas City, Missouri; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Louisville, Kentucky. This will enable a long bonding session, much of it in non-NBA cities, that will mimic an offsite training camp.In this time, Thibodeau, as one would expect, is drilling his players on defensive techniques. He didnt say it, but his actions make it clear he was appalled at the Wolves defensive habits last season. More than half of the early workouts were focused on defense. There were film sessions focusing on positioning. There were drills intended to create habits.We have to get an understanding of it. We cant rest, Thibodeau said before starting a checklist. We have to be a talk [on defense] team, we have to be challenging shots, we have to learn to finish defense correctly.Thibodeau gave the impression that theres a long way to go for the Wolves, even if his players talk positively about their improvement. Hes also paying a lot of attention to Andrew Wiggins, who two seasons ago was the leagues rookie of the year. In many ways, Wiggins holds the key for the long-range upside of the Wolves. Towns, last seasons ROY, has the look of a budding All-Star, perhaps the most exciting young player in the league. Young wing Zach LaVine quietly had an outstanding second half last season, especially shooting from long range. Theres a lot of excitement over rookie point guard Kris Dunn, who had a promising summer league.But the team needs Wiggins to grow into his potential, to be heading into the conversation for All-Star and All-NBA teams starting now. Going into his third season, this is the time when he should be taking large leaps forward. Thibodeau is spending extra time with him, watching him work on individual drills after practice and giving special instruction.Theres significant excitement around the team, the idea that Thibodeaus arrival combined with natural maturation of young players could truly create the roots of a serious team. Combined with a new practice facility and a renovated Target Center, there is a feeling of rebirth. Thibodeau, of course, is more focused on the work than anything else.Its like building a house, Thibodeau said. Were still working on the foundation. Sione Takitaki Youth Jersey . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Custom Cleveland Browns Jerseys . 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TEMPE, Ariz. -- Creighton remained one of six undefeated NCAA Division I teams on Saturday, but just by the hair on Santa Claus chinny-chin-chin.Creighton needed a remarkable defensive effort to keep its unbeaten record intact in a 66-65 home victory over Oral Roberts, which did not score in the last 6:08 after taking a 65-60 lead on a banked 3-pointer by Albert Owens.Neither team scored after guard Marcus Foster, Creightons leading scorer, hit a short jumper from the lane with 3:28 remaining. Foster had 22 points and the Bluejays squandered all of a 13-point lead in the second half before recovering.No. 9 Creighton (11-0), off to its best start in 13 seasons, will put that streak on the line at up-and-down Arizona State (6-5) on Tuesday.We scored on six of our last 29 possessions and won, Creighton coach Greg McDermott told reporters.Im disappointed we werent able to throw the knockout punch like weve done so often this year. Also pleased that we found a way with our backs against the wall. We had to get some stops. To their credit, they were able to do that.Foster, who is averaging 18.2 points per game, and point guard Maurice Watson Jr. have been the driving forces in the Bluejays fastest start since 2003-04, when a Dana Altman team started 12-0 before falling at Northern Iowa.Watson Jr., a senior guard, is the triggerman for an offense that is averaging 89.3 points per game. He had 13 points and 10 assists for his fourth double-double of the season against Oral Roberts.Watson Jr., a preseason All-Big East selection, leads NCAA Division I players wiith an average of 9.dddddddddddd2 assists per game this season. He leads active players with 740 career assists and is fifth in career steals.Arizona State continued its inconsistent ways with one of its poorer performances Saturday, an 81-70 home loss to preseason Western Athletic Conference favorite New Mexico State. After opening 2-0, the Sun Devils have alternated wins and losses in the last nine games.Forward Obinna Oleka had 18 points and 11 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the season against New Mexico State, but Arizona State shot only 41.3 percent from the floor, including 30.3 in the second half, and were closer than 10 points only once in the final 11 minutes.I knew it was going to be a hard game, said Hurley, who was ejected with 9:47 remaining after receiving his second technical foul during the Aggies 13-2 run.Arizona State played its first game without freshman starting small forward Sam Cunliffe, a Seattle native who left the program last week. He was averaging 9.5 points per game and had made 15 3-pointers in 10 games. He indicated personal reasons were a factor in his decision.Reserve guard Torian Graham leads Arizona State with a 16.5 scoring average and guards Shannon Evans II (16.1) and Tra Holder (15.6) are next.The Sun Devils are 0-2 against Top 25 teams, losing to then-No. 1 Kentucky 115-69 on Nov. 28 in the Bahamas and to No. 15 Purdue 97-64 on Nov. 6 in the Jimmy V Classic in New York City. ' ' '