t the young talent new coach Tom Thibodeau has on hand. Karl-Anthony Towns averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds per game in his rookie seas

NEW YORK -- Notre Dame had a good enough start that a tough second half didnt make a difference.Bonzie Colson had 22 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth career double-double and the Fighting Irish held off Colorado 89-83 on Monday night in the semifinals of the Legends Classic at Barclays Center.We got off to a great start, really flowing offensively, Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. Second half Colorado really guarded us and we had to find different ways to play. We made free throws and it was kind of a grinding game. Im proud of how we held people but we have a lot of guys that have won big games and have big game pressure on them. I thought that experience helped us escape tonight.The Fighting Irish (4-0) will play Northwestern, which beat No. 22 Texas 77-58, for the title on Tuesday.The Buffaloes (3-1) trailed by 15 points at halftime and were able to get as close as four points twice in the final minute but Notre Dame went 14 for 14 from the free throw line over the final 1:33 to keep Colorado at bay in the first meeting between the schools.Matt Farrell had 20 points and V.J. Beacham and Steve Vasturia added 17 each for Notre Dame which went 27 for 29 from the free throw line. Colson, a 6-foot-5 junior, matched his career high with the 12 rebounds.I just wanted to stay composed and just stay focused, make sure I attacked the glass on both ends, Colson said. Coach emphasized before the game trying to get more rebounds and I think as a collective unit we did really well in that. Just stay composed and. we stayed in character.Xavier Johnson scored 23 points, Derrick White had 20 points and nine assists and George King added 17 points and 13 points for Colorado, which was able to rally in the second half by shooting 16 of 34 from the field (47.1 percent). The Buffaloes finished 18 of 19 from the free throw line.Theres a sense of urgency. We were down 15 points. The margin of error was very small, King said. So we had to pick it up defensively. That was our main focus going into the second half.Notre Dame came out firing and gave itself a comfortable 50-35 halftime lead.The Fighting Irish shot 54.5 percent (18 of 33) from the field, including making six of 12 3-point attempts in the first half. Colorado, meanwhile, struggled from the field in the first half shooting 37.1 percent (13 of 35) from the field and only 2 of 8 from 3-point range.I liked our guys fight to get back. You dig yourself a hole in the first half, against a good team its tough, Colorado coach Tad Boyle said. They made free throws down the stretch when they had to. I knew they were a good free throw shooting team. So its tough to come back on teams like that. We have to fight for 40 minutes, not for 20.Notre Dame couldnt keep up the shooting in the second half and the Buffaloes were able to make it close but the Fighting Irish sealed it at the free throw line.Weve been in those situations before. I never thought we were going to beat them by 20. Theyre too good a team, Brey said. Theyre an NCAA Tournament team and I think theyre going to be pretty darn good in the Pac 12. Youre not just going to put them away. I expected a run and Im glad that our guys were poised. We made some big free throws.BIG PICTURE:Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish will be looking for their first in-season tournament since winning the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic in 2012. ... Former Notre Dame star Kelly Tripucka was honored during the game as a legend for the Fighting Irish. ... As of Nov. 18 Notre Dame was scheduled to face seven teams in the top 15 in the AP poll.Colorado: This was the Buffaloes first game away from home. ... Colorado was picked fifth in the Pac-12 preseason poll. ... The Buffaloes came in allowing 59.3 points per game.NICE PLACE:Notre Dame started its run to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament last season at Barclays Center. The Fighting Irish beat Michigan and Stephen F. Austin to advance to the regional. They will be back here in March for the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.I said the karma would still be here, Brey said. Were comfortable in this building. Id love to get one more tomorrow night and then to come back in March and try to get some. But theres no question, the familiarity and the memories. We were in the same locker room. Oh it was good stuff, all good stuff.BAD SHOTS:Its a lot easier to list the players who missed free throws rather than making them. Austin Torres missed the two free throws for Notre Dame and Johnson went 5 of 6 for the Buffaloes. Colson led all free throw shooters by going 9 for 9.ON THE MARK:Both teams almost hit their scoring average for the season. Notre Dame came in averaging 88 points per game and the Buffaloes were at 82. The defensive numbers took a hit, however. The Fighting Irish came in allowing 53.7 points and Colorado allowed 59.3.UP NEXT:Notre Dame: will play Northwestern in the championship game of the Legends Classic.Colorado: will play No. 22 Texas for third place in the Legends Classic. Fake Jordan 1 White . PETERSBURG, Fla. Cheap Jordan 1 Chicago . Despite the cost, effort and an improved steroid test, its possible that very few -- if any -- positives will be detected, Dr. Richard Budgett told The Associated Press in an interview. "We just dont know what the results from Torino will be," Budgett said. http://www.bestfakejordan1.com/cheap-jordan-1-banned-outlet.html . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Jordan 1 Bred Replica . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. Off White x Retro Air Jordan 1 White Mens . A forerunning sled crashed into the worker Thursday at the Sanki Sliding Center. The unidentified worker broke both legs and was airlifted to a nearby hospital. On Monday, we kicked off our ninth annual Summer Forecast by sizing up the Eastern Conference in 2016-17.On Tuesday, we revealed our projected Western Conference standings.Over the next couple of weeks, well also share our early predictions for rookie of the year, MVP, best newcomers, NBA champion and much more.For our results, we surveyed our ESPN Forecast panel on each topic. On to the West ...Western Conference projections1. Golden State Warriors Projected record: 67-15 Last season: 73-9The Warriors became the first team in NBA history to finish a season with the leagues best record and then add a former MVP still under the age of 30 in the following offseason. Despite the addition of Kevin Durant, our forecast projects the record-breaking Warriors will come back down to earth -- slightly -- to the tune of 67 wins. The folks in Las Vegas have placed Golden States over/under win total at 68.5. You can also get +500 odds for the Dubs to win 74 or more games.2. San Antonio Spurs Proj. record: 57-25 Last season: 67-15For the first time since 1996-97, the Spurs will open a season without Tim Duncan, who retired this summer after 19 seasons. While losing Duncan is certainly the headliner, San Antonios frontcourt must also replace the production of David West, Boris Diaw and fan favorite?Boban Marjanovic. The main?addition is Pau Gasol, who made the All-Star team in each of the past two seasons and is one of three players to average at least 15 points and 10 rebounds per game in each of the past two seasons. The others? Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins.3. Los Angeles Clippers Proj. record: 52-30 Last season: 53-29Our panel sees a similar regular season for the Clippers, whose promising postseason ended with injuries to Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Its mostly the same roster, with Doc Rivers re-signing Jamal Crawford, Austin Rivers, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Wesley Johnson, while adding Raymond Felton, Brandon Bass and Marreese Speights. This could be the groups last run together, as both Paul and Griffin can become unrestricted free agents after this season.4. Portland Trail Blazers Proj. record: 46-36 Last season:?44-38As last seasons surprise, our panel sees further progress for a Portland team that spent serious dough this summer to keep its roster intact. The Blazers spent just north of $290 million dollars this offseason on new deals for C.J. McCollum, Allen Crabbe, Meyers Leonard and Evan Turner. And with Damian Lillards five-year, $139.9 million contract kicking in this season, Portland is going all-in to return to contention in the West.5. Utah Jazz Proj. record: 45-37 Last season: 40-42With veterans George Hill, Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw joining a young and promising nucleus led by Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert, our forecast has Utah leaping from the lottery to the No. 5 seed. In addition to the stable of veteran support, Dante Exum -- the No. 5 overall pick in 2014 -- is set to return after missing all of last season with a torn ACL. A methodical squad, the Jazz ranked third in defensive efficiency after the All-Star break, while playing at the leagues slowest pace.6. Oklahoma City Thunder Proj. record: 44-38 Last season: 55-27Despite OKCs losing Kevin Durant and trading away Serge Ibaka for Victor Oladipo, Ersan Ilyasova and Domantas Sabonis, our panel still likes the Thunders chances of making the playoffs. Over the past two seasons, Russell Westbrook played 48 games without Durant; he averaged 30.5 points, 9.2 assists and 7.6 rebounds, and he registered 11 triple-doubles. Oklahoma City went 25-23 in those 48 games, which would equate to 43 wins, just barely south of where our forecast places the Thunder in 2016-17.7. Memphis Grizzlies Proj. record: 43-39 Last season: 42-40A total of 28 players saw action for the Grizzlies last season, an NBA single-season record, so why does our panel project an improvement of only one win, despite the Grizzlies adding Chandler Parsons and re-signing Mike Conley? Age and health are factors. Zach Randolph turned 35 in July and saw declines in scoring and rebounding last season. And Marc Gasol, who will be 32 by seasons end, is recovering ffrom a broken foot and has missed 20 or more games in two of the past three seasons.dddddddddddd8. Houston Rockets Proj. record: 41-41 Last season: 41-41We know a bit about how Houston will play. The already 3-oriented offense should get a boost with new coach Mike DAntoni arriving in town and the additions of Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon, who both averaged 15 points and two 3-pointers per game last season in New Orleans. But the departure of Dwight Howard cost Houston a strong interior presence on defense. Our panel expects the Rockets to hover around .500 once again.9. Dallas Mavericks Proj. record: 40-42 Last season: 42-40The Mavericks added Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogut and a player named Curry (Stephs brother, Seth) this offseason, but dont expect this team to become the Dallas Warriors. Our panel projects the Mavericks to see a decrease in wins this season. Age is a big issue here: Dirk Nowitzki is 38;?Deron Williams is 32;?Wesley Matthews will be 30 in October; and Bogut will be 32 in November.10. Minnesota Timberwolves Proj. record: 39-43 Last season: 29-53One of the biggest projected win increases next season belongs to the Timberwolves, and its not hard to see why. Look at the young talent new coach Tom Thibodeau has on hand. Karl-Anthony Towns averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds per game in his rookie season; the last five rookies to do that before him were Blake Griffin, Elton Brand, Tim Duncan, Alonzo Mourning and Shaquille ONeal. The 2014 No. 1 overall pick, Andrew Wiggins, averaged 20 points per game last season.?Kris Dunn, whom the Wolves took fifth overall in Junes draft, looks like the next young star in line.11. New Orleans Pelicans Proj. record: 35-47 Last season: 30-52After winning 45 games and making the playoffs in 2014-15, the Pelicans fell well below expectations with a 30-win effort last season. Anthony Davis missed 21 games and posted the worst shooting percentage of his career as the Pelicans finished 12th in the West. Our panel is expecting a rebound of sorts for New Orleans this season, but until Davis proves he can play a full season (he has missed at least 14 games every year), the Pelicans ceiling might go only so high.12. Denver Nuggets Proj. record: 34-48 Last season: 33-49The Nuggets youth movement continued this offseason, as the franchise had three first-round picks. Jamal Murray (19 years old), Malik Beasley (19) and Juan Hernangomez (20) will join the likes of Emmanuel Mudiay (20), Nikola Jokic (21) and Jusuf Nurkic (21). Our panel doesnt project the Nuggets showing much immediate improvement, but it depends on how quickly the young pieces come together.13. Sacramento Kings Proj. record: 30-52 Last season: 33-49Last season, the Kings won their most games (33) since the 2007-08 season, but our projections have the team regressing once again. DeMarcus Cousins set a career high in scoring last season ?with 26.9 points per game, but the disgruntled superstar was once again unhappy with the Kings draft after the team took Greek big man Georgios Papagiannis (via trade) and drafted another Kentucky big in Skal Labissiere.14. Phoenix Suns Proj. record: 26-56 Last season: 23-59The Suns walked away from the 2016 NBA draft with two of the top eight picks in power forwards Dragan Bender (fourth overall) and?Marquese Chriss?(eighth overall). Throw in the 13th overall pick from 2015 in?Devin Booker?and the Suns have a trio of players who will be no older than 20 by seasons end. The youthful talent is intriguing, and our panel expects improvement from Phoenix, but it also knows that inexperience doesnt lead to wins in the NBA.15. Los Angeles Lakers Proj. record: 25-57 Last season: 17-65The 2016-17 season will be the first since 1995-96 without Kobe Bryant in a Lakers uniform. Kobes retirement might not help ticket sales, but it will give DAngelo Russell and Brandon Ingram a chance to shine in L.A.s spotlight. That should allow the Lakers a chance to improve on a franchise-worst 17 wins last season.*Notes from John McTigue of ESPN Stats & Information. ' ' '