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Show StatesmanSports Paee 16 Monday, Jan. 28, 2008 Record: Ags lose 71-56 to Louisiana Tech at home Djokovic wins the Austrailian Open MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) - Novak Djokovic started making peace with the crowd as soon as he lifted the trophy. After beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (2) Sunday night to win the Australian Open for his first Grand Slam title, Djokovic knew a little public relations was in order. •True, he had kept the Rod Laver Arena crowd in stitches las^t week with his Maria Sharapova impersonation. But Djokovic also had upset Roger Federer in the semifinals and now had eliminated Tsonga, who was riding a great wave into the title match. "1 know the crowd wanted him to win more," Djokovic said. "That's OK. It's all right. I still love you guys — don't worry. I'm very, very happy that I won my first Grand Slam here, so hopefully we'll see you here on this stage a lot more often." Djokovic felt as if he had to fight two rivals — the fans and his opponent — in beating Federer and Tsonga. He frequently yelled when things went wrong. "Sometimes, you just can't control your emotions on the court," he said. "I'm still learning. I'm still young." The 20-year-old Serb is the first man other than No. 2 Rafael Nadal to win a Grand Slam title from Federer since Marat Safin won the 2005 Australian Open. Djokovic said he was under extreme pressure to defeat Tsonga, an unseeded Frenchman who had beaten four players in the top 14, including Nadal in straight sets in the semifinals. Tsonga*s audacious style, resemblance to Muhammad Ali and magnificent run in only his fifth major made him a popular contender at Melbourne Park. His great tale about his Congolese father witnessing the epic "Rumble in the Jungle" heavyweight bout between Ali and George Foreman in 1974 added to the legend. The underdog story gained momentum when Tsonga's father, Didier, who flew in from France for the match, stood and threw four right hooks to celebrate his son's first-set success. Djokovic admitted he felt the heat. But he regrouped after the first-set barrage and began to climb back. He did not face a break point in the second and third LI continued from page 13 sets. He staved off one crucial break point in the fourth before dominating the tiebreaker. "Coming on against a player with nothing to lose — he was going for the shots and he was very dangerous, especially in the first set — I was pretty nervous," he said. Tsonga, so aggressive earlier in the tournament, seemed content to rally from the baseline, especially after getting passed several times. The forehands that whipped past Nadal and kissed the lines were wayward. And he netted some of the soft touch volleys that gave him easy points against the Spaniard. "I was trying to stay with him because I knew sooner or later, with my style of game, I could get in control of the match," Djokovic said. With Federer only two majors shy of Pete Sampras' record 14 Grand Slam titles, Djokovic said he needed to make the most of any opportunity. "This match was especially important because I was the favorite and I knew everybody was expecting me to win, so anything but the win was a loss," Djokovic said. "I wanted really to win because I felt my chance. I wanted to win my first Grand Slam. Now things are different." Djokovic will remain at No. 3 in the rankings behind Federer and Nadal. Tsonga, ranked 38th coming into the tournament, will move up to No. 18 after advancing past the fourth round for the first time. He thinks he has the game to crack the top 10. "Not everybody can beat players who I beat," he said. "It's very difficult, and I did it. So, of course, I'm confident now." Tsonga was trying to give France its first men's Grand Slam champion since Yannick Noah won at Roland Garros in 1983. Djokovic was certain of the celebrations in his country. "1 can imagine what is happening on the streets of Belgrade and Serbia," he said. "This is just something amazing for us." Djokovic and his female compatriots, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, reached the semifinals at Melbourne Park, repeating their run at the last French Open. JUNIOR GUARD DANYELLE SNELGRO (4) goes in for a layup during Saturday night's loss to La Tech. Snelgro recorded 11 points in 35 minutes of action. The loss dropped Utah State to 2-5 in the Western Athletic Conference. PATRICK logged a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, leading La Tech to a 40-35 rebounding advantage. USU shot 17-of-60 (28.3 percent) from the field, but shot a better percentage from three-point range at 38.5 percent (5of-13). The Aggies were also 17-of-24 (70.8 percent) at the free throw line. LTU was 23-of-52 (44.2 percent) field goal shooting, hitting 5-of-14 (35.7 percent) behind the 3-point arc and the Lady Techsters were 20-of-21 (95.2 percent) at the charity stripe. La Tech led from start to finish, jumping out to a 16-5 lead at 14:22 before taking a 37-27 halftime advantage. The Lady Te*chsters improved to 8-0 when leading at the half while the Aggies are now 0-12 when trailing at intermission. Utah State trailed by double-digits for the majority of the second half as La Tech opened the stanze with a 15-7 spurt to take a 52-34 lead at 13:21 after a pair of Wysinger free throws and the Lady Techsters cruised to the win. The Aggies open a four-game road swing on Saturday, Feb. 2 at Nevada. ODEN photo Memphis and Kansas win MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 21 points and Derrick Rose added 19 to lead No. 1 Memphis to an 81-73 victory over Gonzaga on Saturday. The Tigers (19-0) extended the nation's longest home" winning streak to 43 straight by showing off their athleticism and running over Gonzaga (15-5), which had a six-game winning streak. Antonio Anderson added 12 points for Memphis, and Joey Dorsey had nine points and 13 rebounds. John Calipari joined Larry Finch as the only Memphis coaches with at least 200 wins, improving to 200-63 in his eighth season. Jeremy Pargo led Gonzaga with 25 points while Josh Heytvelt added 13. The Bulldogs got within six inside the final minute but no closer than that even though Memphis went 7-of-12 from the line. Memphis dominated on the boards behind Dorsey (40-28) but hurt Gonzaga most with 23 fastbreak points — 21 off turnovers. No. 2 Kansas 84, Nebraska 49 LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Darrell Arthur scored 18 points and Brandon Rush had 17 points and eight rebounds for Kansas. The Jayhawks (20-0,5-0 Big 12), who led 44-15 at halftime, kept pace with No. 1 Memphis (19-0) as the nation's only unbeaten Division I teams. Aleks Marie, the Huskers' 6-foot11 senior who had been averaging almost 17 points, failed to score for the first time since his sophomore year. He was O-for-6 from the field and 0-for-2 from the line in 21 minutes. Rush was 5-of-7 from behind introducing HIGH Vied the 30th EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT Starts at 8 - Ends late! (what else can you do in Logan after 10?) 10% OFF WITH STUDENT IQ hv*,. ;^ BRING FOUR, SAVE MOREIJ f:-0^m5% the 3-point arc, exactly what he was two weeks earlier in a 79-58 victory at Nebraska. Steve Harley had 16 points for Nebraska (11-6,0-4), the only Big 12 team without a conference win. w OFF FQH GROUPS Providence 585 W. 100 N. Across from Stadium 8 Theat er ,.:t-..- No. 3 Tennessee 85, Georgia 69 KNOXVILLE.Tenn.(AP) — Chris Lofton hit seven 3-pointers and scored a season-high 27 points for Tennessee. It was the seventh straight win for the Volunteers (17-2,4-1 Southeastern Conference) over the Bulldogs (11-6,2-2), who were playing their first SEC road game and first Top 25 opponent. Lofton has only averaged 13.8 points this season compared to 20.8 as a junior. He finished the half with 20 points after going 7-for-9 from the field. |