win over a quality foe will not hurt Gonzagas poll ranking.BIG PICTUREAkron

MINNEAPOLIS -- In basketball parlance, the term isnt original. A Google search turns up multiple DVDs and articles with the same phrase Minnesota Lynx associate head coach Jim Petersen used to describe one aspect of the teams workouts during the WNBAs Olympic break.Its a phrase that conjures white gloves, proper posture and old-fashioned roles for women that, thankfully, no longer apply.But its perfect for what Petersen is trying to accomplish: finishing school.For Lynx players, it means laying the ball in the basket time after time while Petersen, a 6-foot-10 former NBA post player with a shaved head, slides at them yelling Hey! or something equally distracting.Its being able to finish when youre driving to the basket over a big thats stepping up, instead of panicking and looking for somebody to pass to and turning it over, Petersen said. How many times have you seen us do that in the pick-and-roll game, driving into the paint and turning it over?Often enough that Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve told Petersen and assistant coach Shelley Patterson to emphasize it while she was away in Rio assisting Geno Auriemma as the U.S. womens basketball team won its sixth consecutive gold medal.The WNBA shut down for four weeks during the Olympics. That break, commonly known as the hiatus, is often the only time players can find time to work on their games.Because the league pays so little compared to the NBA (top salaries run about $104,000), women must play overseas in the winter to make serious money. The 11-month grind of games leaves little time for hoisting 500 jumpers a day or any other improvement drill.The break gives us the opportunity to do something we dont get to do much in our league -- skill development, Reeve said prior to leaving for the Rio Games.By league rules, players get at least seven days off between their last WNBA game and the start of workouts. And those workouts cant be as frequent or demanding as training camp.So the Lynx -- who have the WNBAs second-best record at 21-4, just a half game behind league-leader Los Angeles -- trained Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. With Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus, Lindsay Whalen and Sylvia Fowles competing in Rio, Petersen and Patterson supervised starting power forward Rebekkah Brunson and five reserves.Basically, what Cheryl wants us to focus on is execution, and improve on things players are deficient at, Petersen said.With the guards, were working a ton on in-between game, finishing moves, floater game, adding things to their game they dont have. The other thing thats really important, we never have time to make them work on perfect shooting. Its a lot of reps, making perfect shots, shots in a row. Theyre working on perfect shots on one end, and finishing on the other.Lynx backup forward Keisha Hampton, a 26-year-old rookie from DePaul, relished the time. A knee injury as a senior kept Hampton out for more than a year, and she struggled adjusting from college power forward to pro small forward.She never played a minute for Seattle, which drafted her in 2012, or for Connecticut, which signed her in 2014 and cut her in training camp.Hamptons strong 2015-16 season in Israel, averaging a team-leading 17.8 points per game for Bnot Hertzeliya, attracted Reeves attention. In camp, Hampton had one goal: make the team. She hardly played at first. Now her role off the bench is growing.Im still developing my ball skills, becoming a real wing, not like a 4-3, more like a 3-4 now, Hampton said. Im working with [video coordinator Wes Bohn], Jim P. and Shelley on ball handling, finishing, decision-making, trying to expand my guard game.The break also allowed the coaches and players to dive deeper into Reeves playbook, learning nuances to better understand their foundation and exploit certain options.Its small things, Brunson said. Going through the offense, making sure we understand exactly what you want to get. When you put the offense in, you get the grasp of it, but you might miss a couple of details. Everything happens so fast, especially getting new players in. Its going through the offense and making sure we all understand what were trying to accomplish.Four years ago, Petersen said Moore, Augustus and Whalen returned from the London Olympics exhausted, and the Lynx lacked the bench depth to rest them. (Fowles was still playing with Chicago.) The Lynx won nine straight out of the break anyway and reached the WNBA Finals, losing to Indiana.This year, with veteran guards Jia Perkins and Renee Montgomery, impressive young forward Natasha Howard, plus Hampton and Janel McCarville in reserve, the Lynx expect to give the Olympians time to ease back into things. Even before the hiatus, Reeve leaned on her bench much more than previous seasons.This group right here could legitimately win basketball games, Petersen said after a recent practice at the Mayo Clinic Square. Renee, Jia and J-Mac [McCarville] have been starters. Brunson is a starter. Hampton is coming on. Natasha Howard ? [has] been simply amazing.The thing about being a second-team player, youve got to be ready to run anything, because you could be in there with a combination of starters running starter play sets. So theyve got to know the entire playbook.Another benefit for Brunson: getting to know her newer teammates better. The Lynx often schedule fun non-basketball activities on days between workouts. Early on the group met for whirlyball, a mash-up of hockey, basketball and lacrosse played in bumper cars.It was very entertaining, Brunson said, laughing. It was fun. You dont get a chance to do those type of things. Adidas Continental 80 Suomi .5 million, one-year contract on Friday. Hawkins, who turns 41 in December, will compete with Rex Brothers for the closers role at spring training. Adidas Kengät Halvalla . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July. http://www.nmdhalvalla.com/adidas-nmd-r1-halvalla.html .com) - The Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks both take aim at their first wins of the season on Saturday, as the Canucks open their home slate at Rogers Arena. Adidas Prophere Suomi . 1, meaning problems for the doping controls at both major international sports events next year. The World Anti-Doping Agency provisionally suspended the Moscow Antidoping Center on Sunday, saying its operations must improve or a six-month ban on the facilitys accreditation will be imposed. Adidas Deerupt Kengät . I cant pinpoint a date, but I do remember a player from my youth. Brian Downing was with the Chicago White Sox at a time when I listened to every game I possibly could on the radio. That particular season the late great Harry Caray was calling the White Sox games. SPOKANE, Wash. -- Gonzaga coach Mark Few was looking for a hard-nosed opponent to schedule at home in December to toughen up his No. 8 Bulldogs.He found one in Akron.The Zips gave Gonzaga all it could handle before a late surge lifted the Bulldogs to a 61-43 victory Saturday night.Akron is a heck of a program, Few said. They push you to the limit physically. We had to grind that one out.Przemek Karnowski scored 14 points to lead all players in scoring in a defensive battle that lifted the Zags to the best start in program history.Nigel Williams-Goss added 11 points for Gonzaga (10-0), which has won 10 straight to open the season for the first time since joining Division I in 1958.Few was not overly impressed by the winning streak.I live for the next game, Few said. I dont spend a lot of time looking back.But he allowed that he felt good about Gonzagas record. Im looking forward to getting better, he said.Isaiah Johnson scored 11 points, and Jimond Ivey had 10 for Akron (7-3).The Zips were undone by 27 percent shooting (16 of 60)Gonzaga shot just 40 percent and finished 24 points below its season scoring average.Johnathan Williams scored consecutive baskets and Gonzaga took a 31-25 lead early in the second half.Akron cut the Gonzaga lead to three points, but four free throws by Williams-Goss pushed it out again.Three-pointers by Ivey and Josh Williams cut Gonzagas lead to 42-40 with just under 10 minutes left in the game.But Jordan Mathews hit a 3-pointer to spark a 16-1 run that gave the Zags a 61-43 lead with 2:46 left.The Zips were held without a field goal for the final 8 minutes of the game.We got tired, Akron coach Keith Dambrot said. I was disappointed in how we finished.Dambrot has also been upgrading his schedule to put his players in tough situations.We are big enough to compete with the big boys, he said.Baskets were hard to come by in the ffirst half.dddddddddddd.A 3-pointer by Silas Melson helped Gonzaga build a 15-9 lead midway through the first half, as both teams went long periods without scoring.That lead held up as Gonzaga led 23-17 at halftime, despite shooting just 27.6 percent. Thats because Akron shot just 25.8 percent and missed all 11 of its 3-point attempts. Gonzaga had been averaging 45 points in the first half of its past four games.It was a season low in first half points for both teams.We didnt let our frustrations on offense bleed over to the defensive side, Few said.The teams only previous meeting was in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament, won by Gonzaga 77-64.POLL IMPLICATIONSA tough win over a quality foe will not hurt Gonzagas poll ranking.BIG PICTUREAkron: Three players are averaging double-digit scoring, led by Isaiah Johnson at 15.2. Antino Jackson and Noah Robotham are adding 12 and 10.1 ppg. Akron is one of just five programs, including Gonzaga, that has won at least 21 games in the past 11 seasons. Dambrot coached LeBron James at Akrons St. Vincent-St. Mary High School.Gonzaga: The only other time the Bulldogs started 9-0 was in 2012-13, and they lost the next game to Illinois. Gonzaga has seven players averaging between 7.9 and 13.7 points per game. Gonzaga is currently seventh in the RPI on NCAA.com.STATSAkron outrebounded the Zags 42-36, including 20 offensive rebounds that gave them an 18-2 advantage on second chance points. Gonzaga made 17 of 20 free throws, which helped them stay ahead when the game got tight. Akron was 6 of 14 from the line.UP NEXTAkron hosts Marshall next Saturday.Gonzaga plays Tennessee in Nashville at the Battle on Broadway on Dec. 18.---More AP college basketball: http://collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '